Benson

Produced by the team that bought you "Soap",and later on "The Golden Girls", "It's A Living",and "Empty Nest"(under the supervision of executive producers Susan Harris, Paul Junger-Witt,and Tony Thomas),the sitcom "Benson" became one of the biggest hits to come out of the late-1970's and continue its streak into the mid-1980's. This series was basically a spin-off from the soap opera parody "Soap"(the title character,portrayed by Robert Guillaume,had originally first appeared on the earlier series as the wise-cracking yet level-headed African American butler for the highly dysfunctional Tate family);however,"Benson" discarded the soap opera format of its parent show in favor of a more conventional sitcom structure,which was created by Susan Harris who also served as executive producer of this series.

In the show,Benson DuBois(Guillaume) had been hired to be the head of household affairs for the scatterbrained and widowed Governor Eugene Gatling(James Noble),and his daughter Katie(Missy Gold). Governor Gatling was cousin to Jessica Tate(Katherine Helmond),and Mary Campbell(Cathryn Damon),the two sisters on whose families the stories centered on "Soap". The state of which Gatling was governor remained unidentified with the series,although "Soap" had taken place in Connecticut. The series revolved around Benson's housekeeping dilemmas,his fights with the German cook Gretchen Kraus(Inga Swenson,one of Guillaume's fellow alumni from "Soap" and his interactions with John Taylor(former "Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea" alumnus David Hedison in the pilot episode,and during the first season Lewis J. Stadlen),who assisted Governor Gatling as the chief of staff. After the first season,Taylor's job was filled by Clayton Endicott(Rene Auberjonois for the remained of the series run)who was written out by having him run for political office and actually snub his employer's endorsement. He lost the election,but returned when Benson asked him to. But in spite of their adversarial relationship(during the early years of the series)the insults between Kraus and Benson were intense at times but still became good friends. Benson also have very good relations with the Governor's secretary,Marcy Hill(Caroline McWilliams),and her successor,Denise(Didi Conn). Marcy left after the second season after getting married. Denise and Pete Downey(Ethan Phillips),the Governor's press secretary(who were introduced in Season 2)met and later married while working in the Governor's mansion and were expectant parents for most of the third-to-the-last season.

Throughout the course of the series,Benson worked his way up the ladder going from the head of household affairs to state budget director,and eventually was elevated to the position of Lieutentant Governor(by the show's final season)and almost was elected Governor in the show's final episode(which was a two-part series finale) where Benson DuBois was running against his former employer Governor Gatling. "Benson" was mostly seen on ABC's Friday night line-up of great shows,and it was a immediate hit spanning seven seasons on the air from September 13,1979 until the show's final episode on April 19,1986. A total of 158 episodes were produced. Over the course of the show's seven-year run,it was nominated for an impressive 17 Emmys. It won two including Best Actor in a Comedy Series for Guillaume(beating out Sherman Hemsley of The Jeffersons)marking the only time an African American has won the award.

This was a show of all shows that was one of ABC-TV's brilliant Friday night lineup schedule back in the late 1970's and throughout the mid-1980's.The producers of this show(Paul Junger Witt and Terry Thomas) went on to create other successful series to follow like "It's A Living" and "The Golden Girls",and "Empty Nest",but "Benson" is one of their best works ever. This was actually a spin-off on a earlier show called "Soap" in which Robert Guillaume's character was changed from a household servant to Lt. Governor of a huge party of characters and so forth. The reason I watch this show was that of Robert Guillaume's character...He was witty,humorous and hilariously funny. The result made Robert Guillaume a household name not to mention putting this show at the top of the Nielsen ratings during it's run. His constant squabbles with Rene Auberjonois(Clayton Endicott) and Inga Swenson(one of Guillaume's fellow alumni from "Soap")not to mention Governor Gatling(James Noble) made that show was it was and it was the most funniest show on the air during its day. Over the course of the show's run,it was nominated for a total of 17 Emmys. It won two including Best Actor in a Comedy Series for Guillaume's second-to-last season portraying the title character,marking him second to The Jeffersons' Sherman Hemsley as the only African-American actor to win the award. The show lasted seven seasons on ABC-TV producing 158 episodes that aired from the debut episode on September 13,1979 and ending with the two-part series finale on April 19,1986. Most recently,the Antenna TV Channel has brought "Benson" back on the air after missing in action on television for merely a decade since it's original broadcast.

Excellent series. Without a doubt, my favorite episode was when Robert Guillaume sang "O Holy Night" during one of the Christmas-time episodes. This was one of the best of this series, of which there were many fine episodes. Actually, the series finale was just weird in that we never found out who actually won the election. Perhaps though it is just as well. Another excellent episode was when Benson saved Krause's life by using the Heimlich Manuver. Years later a young child (maybe pre-teen, I forget) saved the life of a friend using this technique because this child saw this particular Benson episode. Amazing show by some very talented actors.

That was Miss Kraus' favorite line. I swear she had the hearing of a dog. Benson could be at his table in the kitchen and say

something under his breath. Miss Kraus would always yell from an impossibly long distance: "I HEAR YOU!" Clayton and Taylor were jackasses. They were always the foils for Benson's subtle but

ascerbic wit. In one episode, Katie, Governor Gatling's daughter, (that's Gatling as in Gatling gun, folks,) had to write a report on her family. So she got the bright idea to watch The Sound of Music,

(1965), and do a report on the Von Trapp family. When she told her father, he told her to write it about the staff and to consider it her family. So she did and she got a "B" on it some other kid watched

The Sound of Music and did his on the family in the movie. He got an "A." Eugene Gatling, the governor of an unnamed Southern

state, is widowed and Benson goes to work for him. He later

becomes the budget director and lieutenant governor. In one

episode, Kraus writes a convict in prison and unwittingly offers him a job when he shows up unannounced on the doorstep of the

governor's mansion, he turns out to be a great cook. Unfortunately, he's used to cooking for hundreds of convicts. So Kraus gets him

a job at another state agency. When Governor Gatling asks why

he didn't go to Washington to work for Congress, Benson replies that as a condition of his parole, he can't associate with criminals. "I HEAR YOU!"

This is a splendid series for all viewers to watch and enjoy. The crew did terrific job in creating this series. This series has everything for all viewers to enjoy. The storyline throughout this entire series may have been straightforward but it was more than enough. The cast selection throughout this entire series was strong but not enough. They really committed well to the storyline and to their respective characters. The chemistry that was displayed throughout this entire series between the cast members was strong which worked greatly for this series. This is a great series for everyone to watch and enjoy.