Buffalo Bill

Not ahead of it's time but firmly planted in the times. It gave us a nice look at the nastiness of the age. Hilarious. Probably one of the top three comedies to hit the airwaves. I have a distinct memory of laughing so hard that I fell off the couch. I have tried by hook or crook to get copies. I also think it's cancellation represents the true death of the soul of this country. The country had decided that it could not tolerate smart people writing for television. I don't know what it's numbers were but with a show of this quality it's bad business to not give it time to at least develop an audience. So, what's new another tragedy perpetuated by the Network idiots.

BUFFALO BILL was originally received like a Neil LaBute or Todd Solondz movie; the few who liked this program LOVED it, while the masses who didn't like it LOATHED it.

There had been sitcoms starring essentially unlikable characters before, such as ALL IN THE FAMILY and FAWLTY TOWERS, but Archie Bunker and Basil Fawlty were veritable pussycats compared to Dabney Coleman's Bill Bittinger, host of a Buffalo, NY talk show. Think Coleman's "sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot" of a boss in the movie 9 TO 5 and you pretty much have his BUFFALO BILL character, only here he's surrounded not by feisty secretaries but by wimps and sycophants. His stage manager Woody (John Fiedler) worships him, his research assistant Wendy (a young, nubile Geena Davis) is flustered around him while his director/longtime girlfriend Jo-Jo (Joanna Cassidy) puts up with him primarily out of self-loathing.

Brandon Tartikoff wrote in his memoirs that his greatest regret as NBC head was canceling BUFFALO BILL in 1984; one more season and it might have become a hit. Executive producer Bernie Brillstein went on to oversee THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW, and he's said he considers that successful HBO sitcom (also about an insecure talk show host) to have been the critical and ratings hit BUFFALO BILL should have been.

The series was created by the great comedy team of Tom (ALF) Patchett and Jay (MOLLY DODD) Tarses, who wrote the funniest episodes of THE BOB NEWHART SHOW in the 1970s. They bitterly broke up by the end of this show's run. I suspect that even if BUFFALO BILL had become a SEINFELD or FRIENDS-level hit, they'd have broken up anyway because the show was emotionally draining for an early-1980s sitcom. In one two-parter Jo-Jo, pregnant with Bill's baby, vindictively gets an abortion. In another episode, the racist Bill fires his black makeup man Newdell (Charlie Robinson), only to have a nightmare where he's chased by grotesque black stereotypes who lip sync to Ray Charles' "Hit the Road, Jack." Bill rehires Newdell and is congratulated on his enlightenment. In other words, WE GOT IT MADE or MAMA'S FAMILY this wasn't.

While BUFFALO BILL may not offer instant gratification, sticking through the entire run is worth it. Each member of the outstanding ensemble gets a moment to shine, the guest stars include Martin Landau and Jim Carrey (who impersonates Jerry Lewis) and the story lines are well-constructed with intelligent dialogue. In a stroke of good fortune, all 26 episodes were released in a no-frills three-disc DVD set in the fall of 2005 -- unfortunately, licensing issues prevented the "Hit the Road, Jack" sequence from making this set. Do yourself a favor and pick this up. There won't be another sitcom quite like BUFFALO BILL on network TV anytime soon.

Long before "Larry Sanders", this series took a look at what goes on during and behind the scenes at a talk show. This is Dabney Coleman at his best. His portrayal of the philanderer Bill Bittinger is brilliant. And Joanna Cassidy is wonderful as JoJo, his on-again, off-again romantic interest. After all these years, I still consider this to be one of the funniest shows I've ever seen. It's a shame that few people have seen it.

This was a terribly funny corruscating comedy centered upon a loathsome boss at work. The show was consistently surprising - fast-moving with real bite. I loved it - it's a shame it was taken off the air so soon. I'd love to see a DVD of the episodes.

Dabney Coleman can deliver terribly funny terribly unprofessional lines better than any actor I know - the striking thing is that they seem so natural to the character he plays. Joanna was a perfect foil.

The series was just perfect - but not promoted well enough before it was cancelled to build up a head of steam among the audience.

Come to think of it, they could just put the series on again today - Coleman is very much still around. It would be loved.

That long line of great shows that were canceled or short - changed by television decision makers: HE AND SHE, TAXI (which at least managed to get through four seasons), BEST OF THE WEST, and this show.

Dabney Coleman is still active, God bless him, as a performer - but his really meanest days are behind him. Nowadays he can be seen playing nicer, older men. But when he started, on MARY HARTMAN, MARY HARTMAN, he was a despicable, power-hungry, lecherous creep. And he continued that persona in film and television program until about five years ago. NINE TO FIVE is the best example of this but there are other examples - his ambitious C.I.A. official in THE TALL DARK MAN WITH ONE RED SHOE (American version) is another example. And there was this show, that lasted one season only twenty three years ago.

Bill Bittinger was the host of a talk show in Buffalo who had no redeeming features at all. He had a following in Buffalo, but he never can break into national exposure - no matter what he tries. He gives agita to his producer (Max Wright) by his antics and comments that raise the hackles of various people and groups. He treats his staff (Geena Davis, John Fiedler, Charlie Robinson, Joanna Cassidy) as dirt. And he always ends up looking like an ass. Occasionally he is able to break even. In one episode he insults Fiedler, who (for some reason) really admires him. Fiedler quits, and Coleman finds he was absolutely essential to his success on the air. Fiedler, it turns out, also invested his salary wisely, and is Coleman's landlord. Coleman manages to apologize in a matter of speaking to Fiedler, which Fiedler (knowing Coleman's personality) is willing to accept.

In another episode, Coleman manages to talk himself into a corner (on "principle") that enables Wright to take him off the air. He's replaced by episodes of M.A.S.H. (which Wright likes because he likes the character of Radar). Eventually, much to Wright's surprise and dismay, Coleman manages to get back on the air by the end of the episode.

The best episode has been described - where Coleman's bigotry leads to his firing Robinson, and his having a nightmare that he is being pursued by the most violently imagined African-American stereotypes. I have never heard "Hit the Road Jack" since without thinking about this episode.

BUFFALO BILL was one of the best comedies in television history. It only lasted that one season - pity. But then television network programming executives frequently lack vision and patience - and certainly they lack pity.