Mr. Belvedere

This is sitcom didn't appear to be that popular or well known. I'm a 90s kid and this one didn't reach enough popular to be rebroadcast or talked about a lot.

I was talking care of my Uncle during lockdown with Alzheimer's and this show came on Antenna TV. I scoffed at it at first, but a few days-I would up really enjoying this show! I loved growing pains and whose the boss quite a bit. The family and butler make the show fun and not too deep. The only issue is that it seems to directly copy issues or major themes from growing pains and the Cosby show.

This was a really fun show that is a good example of the old school, very family friendly, situational comedies that ate up most of my family's TV watching time throughout the wonderful decade of the nineteen-eighties.

The lead character (the title-named Mr. Belvedere) is a stuffy but very wise and very professional, stuck-in-his-ways butler who actually was the butler for the royal family. I forget why he leaves them and moves to the U.s.

Anyway he settles in with this American family of blue collar people in Pittsburgh, PA, where the father is a gruff former baseball player (played by Bob Uecker) and the youngest son Wesley is a trouble maker and a constant thorn in Mr. Belvedere's side but also becomes his best friend.

This was one of the more enjoyable family-oriented shows of the 1980's,and for good reason. This was one of ABC-TV's successful line-up of family shows that gave the network an very successful track record on shows from the mid-1980's all the way to the early 1990's. And this were all family oriented shows. With such shows as "Full House","Head Of The Class","Growing Pains","Perfect Strangers",as well as "Who's The Boss","Family Matters",and "America's Funniest Home Videos",the cult comedy "Mister Belvedere",which ran on ABC-TV from the premiere episode on March 15,1985 until the final episode of the series on July 8,1990,is still revered by many as a cult classic in the utmost sense of the word.

It is still a huge favorite within the college circuit who to this day still has a loyal following to the show. The series stars Rob Stone,Brice Beckham,and Tracy Wells as the Owens' children whom Mr.Belvedere looks after while in charge of the house. Clifton Webb's memorably eccentric character from the 1940's films was revived for the 1980's with the late Christopher Hewitt as everybody's favorite British butler,who somehow finds himself in Pittsburgh who gets a job with his latest bosses,the Owens family. The show by the way worked because the chemistry between actors Bob Uecker and Christopher Hewitt was as something as a fish-out-of-water story;a frumpy sportswriter for a major newspaper and a uptight British butler and his three rambunctious kids,including the relationship with Belvedere and the rest of the family,including the friendship with the youngest one-Wesley,who comes to him for needed support and guidance and it shows throughout the entire part of the show's six-year run. The best episode from this series came during the final episode of the show's fifth season. Belvedere in a coma after a devastating car crash,set in motion by Wesley,lies motionless as one of the best performances from a child actor(Brice Beckham)delivers a brilliant passage of dialogue in this emotional episode.

Basically this was a show that relied on dry British humor with family sitcom situations. In each episode,Belvedere would solve the family crisis around the house,when the father figure couldn't do it himself. There was also the wife,Marsha Owens(Ilene Graff) of the house,who was a law student(who received her degree during the 1987-1988 season and begun her first job as a lawyer a major firm),and the youngest daughter Heather,played by Tracy Wells. Each episode dealt with growing up along the way and getting along with each other. Not only was Belvedere the butler but everything else while the father figure constantly whined all the time. The family dog was Spot. At the end of the each episode,Belvedere would begin writing the lessons in his diary for the day. One notable guest star was Robert Goulet,who turned up among other things as well. However,the series produced over a 100 episodes and have a respectable farewell,when the final episode of this series ended on July 8,1990. In the final episode of the show, Mister Belvedere finally gets married and says farewell to the Owens'. This was a show that was underrated for years and when will we see this show finally on DVD?

I recently got familiar again with this 1980s sitcom after watching several episodes in the past week. The middle-class Owens family from 'Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania' couldn't have scored a better housekeeper than a former British butler. After all, he served the Queen of England and was the personal valet to Winston Churchill.

While the wife Marsha studies to be a lawyer, Mr. Belvedere cooks, cleans, grocery shops and meddles in family affairs and always, without fail, manages to give the right advice to help set things straight. As cultured and upper crust as he was, he carried the ability to relate to the family and rightfully so. The hilarious conflict and equally hilarious exchanges between him and his nemesis, the youngest child, Wesley Owens, was a treat.

The show, you have to admit, had excellent casting. Bob Uecker as the dad was perfect for locking horns with the 'big guy' and Rob Stone and Brice Beckham have such a strong resemblance to each other that you can't help, but think they're really brothers.

When watching this sitcom, you can easily see that Mr. Belvedere is there to help out and to help out in more ways than he can. He was so perfect that you can't help, but see how much he spoiled the Owens family with his servitude:

Marsha once complained that he didn't bring her the 'right type' of coffee. The family also sits at the table first thing in the morning, expecting to be served right away. Mr. Belvedere also served an elegant Thanksgiving dinner, but after Grace is said, bows out and wishes everyone a 'happy feast'.

They expected service and got it. Not only that, but Mr. Belvedere was a source to turn to whenever they had their troubles and they always got it without fail.

All that clearly shows what a 100% ideal employee he was. I wish I had a Mr.Belvedere in my household. He had the solutions to everything. The most unforgettable moment was when it was time for him to leave and Wesley said, "I'm losing my best friend." He couldn't have been more right.

One of the more enjoyable family shows of the 80s, this one had a twist. One snowy December night, Englishman Lynn Belvedere shows up at the Owens residence looking for work as a housekeeper. He's heard theyre in need of someone to help out and all take an instant liking to him, except macho head of the household, George (Uecker). The two have their friendly moments over the years, but mostly butt heads most of the run of the show. They had great chemistry over the years, considering we're talking a trained theatrical actor (Hewett) and an ex baseball player (Uecker) playing the parts. But the core of the show was the relationship between Belvedere and the youngest child, Wesley. Played terrificly by Brice Beckham, the two worked so well off each other, the older uptight codger and the rambunctious, wild pre-teen. Together both of them had a lot of great moments over the shows 6 year run, the strongest probably being the final episode of year 5. Belvedere, in a coma after a car crash set in motion by Wesley, lies motionless as Beckham delivers an emotional, expertly acted passage of dialogue of how sorry he is. One of many notable spots from the six seasons. Others featured were Ilene Graff as mother Marsha, Rob Stone as older brother Kevin, and the gorgeous (ok so I had a big crush on her) Tracy Wells as middle child Heather. The show had several tough spots over the years, being yanked a number of times and then brought back to fill the Friday night gaps on ABC. But they managed to crank out over a 100 episodes and have a respectable farewell, with Belvedere ultimately getting married and leaving the family. Some good ones to look for are Wesleys night alone when lies pile up the next day, Belvedere and George delivering a baby, and a great tornado episode set in the family basement. Though not a ratings monster, Mr. Belvedere will always be recognizable and was one of the more underrated shows of recent years.