Mr. Sunshine (1986 TV series)

Mr. Sunshine
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	David Lloyd
Written by	David Lloyd Peter Noah Emily Marshall
Directed by	John Rich [1]
Starring	Jeffrey Tambor Barbara Babcock Leonard Frey Cecilia Hart Nan Martin [2]
Theme music composer	Randy Edelman
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	11
Production
Executive producers	John Rich Henry Winkler [1]
Editor	Marco Zappia
Running time	30 min.
Production companies	Henry Winkler/John Rich Productions Paramount Television
Original release
Network	ABC
Release	March 28 (1986-03-28) – May 24, 1986 (1986-05-24)

Mr. Sunshine ^[3] is an American sitcom that aired on ABC for one season in 1986.

The series followed the trials and tribulations of Paul Stark (played by Jeffrey Tambor), a blind university professor. Co-stars were Barbara Babcock and Leonard Frey.

The series was controversial during its run, attracting criticism from interest groups claiming that Mr. Sunshine poked fun at the visually impaired by using the lead character's disability as a focus for much of the show's humor. Supporters of the series said the show treated the character and the disability respectfully.

Cast

• Jeffrey Tambor as Paul Stark ^[2]
• Nan Martin as Grace D'Angelo
• Leonard Frey as Leon Walters
• Cecilia Hart as Janice Hall
• David Knell as Warren Leftwich
• Barbara Babcock as June Swinford

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
1	"Pilot"	John Rich	David Lloyd	March 28, 1986 (1986-03-28)
Jeffrey Tambor stars as a blind english professor.
2	"Mrs. Swinford Takes the Plunge"	John Rich	David Lloyd	April 4, 1986 (1986-04-04)
Paul asks a beautiful but antagonistic woman for a date
3	"The Evaluation"	John Rich	Bob Ellison	April 11, 1986 (1986-04-11)
Leon's storm-trooper teaching techniques jeopardize his chances at a fellowship to Oxford.
4	"Strictly Personal"	John Rich	Emily Marshall	April 18, 1986 (1986-04-18)
Paul's landlady, Ms. Swinford, becomes convinced he has fallen for her.
5	"Educating Swinford"	John Rich	Bruce David & Bruce Helford	April 18, 1986 (1986-04-18)
Landlady Swinford becomes convinced that Paul is smitten with her and is sending her secret love signals.
6	"The Theater Calls Grace"	John Rich	David Lloyd	April 25, 1986 (1986-04-25)
Paul goes to great lengths, including getting in a wheelchair, to keep Leon's quickly sinking play afloat.
7	"Too Many Cooks"	John Rich	Peter Noah	May 2, 1986 (1986-05-02)
Paul takes a gourmet kitchen course and becomes overly confident. He invites Janice over for a meal, but his newly-found kitchen skills are not up to the job.
8	"Fear of Falling"	John Rich	Emily Marshall	May 3, 1986 (1986-05-03)
New night and time. Janet and a pretty student vie for Paul's affection.
9	"Leftwich in Love"	John Rich	Peter Noah	May 10, 1986 (1986-05-10)
Bumbling assistant Warren falls in love with a conniver who wants his job.
10	"Great Expectations"	John Rich	David Lloyd	May 17, 1986 (1986-05-17)
A newly received inheritance has Leon doing things that may come back to haunt him. Like throwing a huge party, telling off the Dean of the college and even worse...insulting the dean's wife.
11	"Take My Ex-Wife, Please!"	John Rich	Peter Noah	May 24, 1986 (1986-05-24)
Paul views his ex-wife's pending marriage with mixed emotions

References

1. O'Connor, John J. (April 17, 1986). "TV REVIEW; 2 SITCOMS, 'MR. SUNSHINE' AND 'JOE BASH,' ON ABC". NY Times. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
2. "Mr. Sunshine (1986)". British Film Institute . Archived from the original on October 27, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
3. Classic TV Theme: Mr Sunshine , retrieved October 28, 2022

External links

• Mr. Sunshine at IMDb
• Mr. Sunshine at Rotten Tomatoes