What's Up, Doc? (30 Mar. 1989)

Sam hits on a beautiful woman in the bar, she who promptly shoots him down. She is Dr. Sheila Rydell, a clinical psychiatrist and a colleague of the Drs. Crane. Because she shot him down, ... See full summary »

Director:

James Burrows

Writers:

Glen Charles (creator), Les Charles (creator),

Stars:

Ted Danson, Kirstie Alley, Rhea Perlman

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Ted Danson	...	Sam Malone
Kirstie Alley	...	Rebecca Howe
Rhea Perlman	...	Carla LeBec
John Ratzenberger	...	Cliff Clavin
Woody Harrelson	...	Woody Boyd
Kelsey Grammer	...	Dr. Frasier Crane
George Wendt	...	Norm Peterson
Bebe Neuwirth	...	Dr. Lilith Sternin-Crane
Madolyn Smith Osborne	...	Dr. Sheila Rydell

Storyline

Sam hits on a beautiful woman in the bar, she who promptly shoots him down. She is Dr. Sheila Rydell, a clinical psychiatrist and a colleague of the Drs. Crane. Because she shot him down, Sam wants her even more. Cliff suggests that he approach her on a professional level: that he should make an appointment to see her with some psychiatric problem. Despite the touchy nature of the issue itself, Carla convinces Sam to use the problem of impotence, as all women love to help a man solve such a problem. He does go in to see her at her office and she sees right through his story. When he confesses that he made up the story just to see her again and to ask her out, she accepts, thinking that the clinical part of her job is creeping a little too much into her personal life. As they spend some personal time together, they may have some problem separating their professional and personal relationships.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 March 1989 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions, Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The title is from the signature opening line of the Warner Brothers cartoon character Bugs Bunny.

---

Quotes

Norm Peterson: I've always had this terrible fear of being a failure.
Carla LeBec: You are a failure.
Norm Peterson: Well then, I've licked it.

---

Connections

References What's Up Doc? (1950)

User Reviews

You Are One Sick Cowpoke

Can I tell you how much I love Madolyn Smith Osborne? She is so luscious, so sexy, so crisp, so beautiful, with a great screen presence and comedic rhythm all her own. THIS is the woman who should have been cast as Shelley Long's replacement on the show. She is so good, and has such a great chemistry with Ted Danson that it's a crime she only got to be in one episode.

Madolyn plays Dr. Sheila Rydell, a standoffish psychiatrist and the current object of Sam's lust. He fakes impotence to see her again, which in the days before Viagra was a desperate measure, and he manages to melt her just enough to score a date. Sam tricks her into sharing her clinical opinion of him, and her words are harsh but true. The whole last act is just Danson and Smith Osborne alone in the bar, and they perform together like they've been doing it for years. She seems to bring out the Man in the Sam character instead of the arrested adolescent, and there is a wonderful gravity to Sam in this episode, even when he's joking around.

When Sam hears her honest opinion of him he refuses to sleep with her, even though she's still willing. Lost and disillusioned, he looks for meaning in his life and finds only... the Three Stooges. This is about as brilliant and original as network comedy has ever been. A classic for all-time.

GRADE: A+