Empty Nest

Empty Nest was one of my favorite sitcoms growing up, I was exposed to Empty Nest as a preteen quite simply because I was a fan of The Golden Girls. Empty Nest was a sort of quasi-spin off of The Golden Girls. A little piece of trivia but you can actually see the original concept of Empty Nest during Season 2 of The Golden Girls in the episode "Empty Nest". The original concept had veteran character actors Rita Rudner and Paul Dooley playing a couple coping with their children all leaving home. Thank god they didn't go with this original concept as it was dreadful. After poor audience response they re-tooled the show as a showcase for Mulligan, a successful widower doctor with two very different daughters still living at home.

Late in Season 2 the character of Barbara (Kristy McNicol) was written off the show allegedly because McNicol was diagnosed with Severe Bipolar Disorder. Thankfully though we would be reunited with the character of Barbara in the shows series finale. Her departure however was rather unfortunate as she was a good counter to the character of Carol, who was a neurotic psychological mess. Park Overall was the true firecracker of the show. She was easily the funniest character and her scenes seemed to always elevate an episode.

Empty Nest was part of the infamous "Miami Trilogy" which aired for several years on NBC Saturday nights. Empty Nest, The Golden Girls, and Nurses (All shows created by Susan Harris by the way) were all part of the same "universe", so to speak. They all took place in the same Miami, various characters from the shows lived & worked near or with one another and guest spots among characters appearing on the other shows was not uncommon. Even Estelle Getty (The Golden Girls feisty elderly lady Sophia) joined the cast in it's final 2 seasons. However during these last two seasons the show "Jumped The Shark" when main character Dr. Harry Weston left his job at the hospital and started a free clinic in a "not-so-nice" neighborhood with fellow doctor, Marsha Warfield (Of Night Court fame). Empty Nest remains one of my favorite sitcoms from that era. I have heard mixed things about a possible DVD release. Despite the show lasting 7 seasons and consistently being in the Nielsen Top 10 a DVD release is probably unlikely any time in the near future considering the show has become all but forgotten. I won't forget though.

Park Overall made this one. Flipping through channels and hearing her speak was enough to get me started watching the show.

The early shows were the best. Barbara (Kristy McNichol) was needed to offset the neurotic Carol (Dinah Manoff). The show lost a lot when McNichol left.

It also lost a lot when Richard Mulligan as Dr. Harry Weston retired from his practice and started working in the storefront clinic. It was never the same after that, and Marsha Warfield as Dr. Maxine Douglas added little to it.

"EMPTY NEST," is my opinion, is a pure definition of must-see TV! I don't think I've seen every episode, but I still enjoyed it. It's hard to say which episode was my favorite. However, I think it was always funny when a mishap occurred in the hospital. I always laugh at that. As a matter of fact, I think just about every single one of LaVerne's (Park Overall) lines was funny. It would have been nice if Barbara (Kristy McNichol) had stayed with the show throughout its entire run. Everyone always gave a good performance, the production design was spectacular, the costumes were well-designed, and the writing was always very strong. In conclusion, I hope they bring it back on the air for fans of the show to see.

Empty Nest has always been my favorite sitcom. I called Disney several times and a few friends have also called them but it is not on the list ( they have planned for the next 12 months.)

they give no reason for not releasing it on DVD. Say get more people to write. Unfortunately people give up after a while.

I had some on tape which were stolen and now only have a few--- Dreyfus and puppies is one.

it is frustrating as cannot understand why not released on DVD. Any ideas? A sweet sitcom with no angry or unkind plots. Good family viewing.

It's difficult to find great comedy without being to risky for some people. Shows such as Seinfeld, Golden Girls, and Empty Nest can always light a smile on anybody.

I really liked David Leisure's character on this show "Charlie". He would just walk in the neighbors house grab a beer and off he went. He was so stupid and inept, he was funny.

Park Overall and Marsha Warfield added character to the show as well.

It did what TV supposed to do, make you laugh and forget about your problems.

Richard Mulligans passing was a great loss.