Frank's Place

I still so miss this show. Even more now that there is so little of quality on network television. I rank it with Barney Miller and Frasier in the superiority of its comedy writing. Far and away one of the most intelligent shows ever produced. But then so much more than comedy. So deep and true and human. With wonderful performances by the entire, quirky cast. With real essence of place, which seemed to figure as another character in the overall mix. Such conscience, compassion and heart.

It is very dispiriting that such high quality entertainment is choked off as very possibly too black, but is followed by such a host of "black" shows so dumbed down, stereotypical, canned and downright silly as to only be able to aspire to mediocrity.

What a blessing it would be to be able to acquire the episodes on DVD. And/or to get the same dream team together for another stellar effort. I know the characters were only [?] fictional, but they felt so much like friends. COME BACK!!!

The classiest sitcom ever on television, Frank's Place did not insult the intelligence of the American public, but used humor to make people think and perhaps come away from the thirty minute episode a better person for having watched. Perhaps the most innovative idea was the casting of Don Yesso, who was so fluent in the native tongue of New Orleans that sometimes captioning was used so that viewers could follow the dialogue! Wonderful. I can remember waiting all week for the show to come on, and taping each one, but over the years the tapes were worn out and/or lost. What a shame to not be able to buy this wonderful show on DVD. Someone who has influence, please help those of us who have a jones on for a Frank fix!

Frank's Place was loved by both viewers and critics. Too bad sponsors and networks were too jittery about black people as they really are and not as stereotypes. The episode where the "guys" take Ed's body from the funeral home for a night on the town is the funniest ever shown on TV. Even Lucy and Ethel would vote it the best.

Fantastic show. As everyone else seems to note, canceled way too soon. Puts shows like NYPD Blue, Six Feet Under, and other critical darlings to shame -- had more depth, cleverness, backwards humor and good, understated acting in a single show than a year's worth of Six Feet Under.

Definitely leads off the list of "why don't the networks spend the six hours it would take to hire some intern to transfer the tape to DVD and release this oblivion" shows.

Frank's Place is one of my favorite shows. Very underrated, very unappreciated and quite ahead of its time. The episode in which the corpse shows up sitting in the back row at his own funeral, with Bach's marvelously macabre "Toccata in D Minor" as the stinger, is pure genius. The episode in which the homeless man stands at the back door singing "Daaaaaaaaaaayyyyy-OOOOOOOO!" (Harry Belafonte, eat your heart out) is classic. And who could believe that Shorty! The use of subtitles to translate that spicy-as-gumbo Louisiana gush - what a hoot! My husband, whose father was from Louisiana, could always understand every word Shorty said. I had to rely on the subtitles. Why, why, why wasn't this show given a chance? Because it was sensitive, intelligent and enormously funny, that's why. Diversity, the dearth of which is so lamented today, came to TV in 1987 and was shuffled off with less finesse than was the missing corpse. Our loss. TV Land, bring it back! I promise to set my VCR!