thirtysomething (1987–1991)

Hope and Michael are a married couple in their thirties, living in Philadelphia, and struggling with everyday adult angst. Michael runs an ad agency with his friend Elliot, whose marriage ... See full summary »

Creators:

Marshall Herskovitz, Edward Zwick

Stars:

Timothy Busfield, Polly Draper, Mel Harris

Won 2 Golden Globes. Another 26 wins & 45 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Timothy Busfield	...	Elliot Weston (85 episodes, 1987-1991)
Polly Draper	...	Ellyn Warren (85 episodes, 1987-1991)
Mel Harris	...	Hope Murdoch Steadman (85 episodes, 1987-1991)
Peter Horton	...	Gary Shepherd (85 episodes, 1987-1991)
Melanie Mayron	...	Melissa Steadman (85 episodes, 1987-1991)
Ken Olin	...	Michael Steadman (85 episodes, 1987-1991)
Patricia Wettig	...	Nancy Krieger Weston (85 episodes, 1987-1991)
Brittany Craven	...	Janey (66 episodes, 1987-1991)
Lacey Craven	...	Janey (66 episodes, 1987-1991)
Luke Rossi	...	Ethan Weston (41 episodes, 1987-1991)

Storyline

Hope and Michael are a married couple in their thirties, living in Philadelphia, and struggling with everyday adult angst. Michael runs an ad agency with his friend Elliot, whose marriage to Nancy is beginning to show the cracks of age, as is the friendship between Hope and her best friend Ellyn. Michael's best friend, Gary, on the other hand, is trying to get on with his womanising life, and get over the mutually-destructive affair he had with Michael's cousin, Melissa. It all sounds like just another soap, but is given a unique atmosphere by the production team (the Bedford Falls company, also responsible for 'My So Called Life') whose intelligent scripts, believable characters and frequent dips into the slightly surreal world of the character's minds places the series as one of the highlights of the late 1980s.

---

Plot Keywords:

best friend | friendship | marriage | reconciliation | business | 

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 September 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dertigers

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bedford Falls Productions, MGM Television, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min 60 min (85 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A scene included in the episode "Strangers" showing Russell (David Marshall Grant) and Peter (Peter Frechette) in a post-coital conversation is widely believed to be the first time gay male characters were ever shown in bed together in a sexual context on American network television. Although the other (heterosexual) couples on the show were frequently shown kissing and having sex scenes, and despite the fact that the scene contained no revealing nudity, no kiss, or even any physical contact at all between between Grant and Frechette, just the fact that the two men were implied to have just had sex was enough to prompt the loss of about US$1.5 million worth of advertising revenue when many of the show's advertisers withdrew their commercials. ABC responded by pulling the episode out of the rerun and syndication lineup, so it was only seen again once the show was released on DVD. Actor David Marshall Grant went on to a second career as a writer and producer of plays and TV shows, including the shows "Brothers & Sisters" and "Smash," both of which featured gay couples who display affection with little controversy.

---

Quotes

[Miles shows up, with flowers etc., at Melissa's place, after the night he nearly raped her]
Melissa Steadman: I didn't know there was a Hallmark card for this kind of thing...

---

Crazy Credits

The early episodes in Season 1 featured scenes under the opening credits that were yet to be broadcast.

---

Connections

Referenced in Dynasty: The Making of a Guilty Pleasure (2005)

User Reviews

Best series ever

This was one of the first series I watched on TV. It has never been on air in Hungary but I could watch it on German TV. I was maybe 15 then but I can still remember it well. I think I will never forget when Gary died... Now I was just searching imdb looking for Peter Horton who I adore since then, and all the memories came alive.