Women of the House

Last updated
Women of the House
Women of the House Cast.JPG
The original cast of Women of the House
Genre Sitcom
Created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason
Written byLinda Bloodworth-Thomason
Directed by Harry Thomason
Starring
ComposerBruce Miller
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13 (list of episodes)
Production
Running time30 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network
ReleaseJanuary 4 (1995-01-04) –
September 8, 1995 (1995-09-08)
Related
Designing Women

Women of the House is an American sitcom television series and a spin-off of Designing Women that aired on CBS from January 4 to August 18, 1995, and the last four episodes airing on Lifetime on September 8, 1995. The series starred Delta Burke, reprising her role of Suzanne Sugarbaker, who had reconciled with producers of Designing Women after a bitter, highly publicized, off-screen battle.

Contents

Premise

Suzanne Sugarbaker's latest husband has died, and as his widow, she assumes his political office for the remainder of his term. Washington, D.C. was ill-prepared for the outspoken, "big, dumb, hick beauty queen's" arrival to the United States House of Representatives, though she did form an unusual bond with then-current President Bill Clinton, who was frequently heard off-screen. Along with her, Suzanne dragged her mentally disabled brother Jim (Jonathan Banks); her young, adopted daughter Desiree (Brittany Parkyn); and her often mentioned (but only once seen) maid, Sapphire Jones (Barbara Montgomery).

Teri Garr starred as Suzanne's press secretary Sissy Emerson, a washed up reporter who had turned to the bottle a few years earlier, but was starting to clean up her act. Patricia Heaton portrayed Natty Hollingsworth, Suzanne's snooty, conservative administrative assistant whose married Congressman boyfriend was serving a prison sentence. Jennifer Malone (Valerie Mahaffey, Julie Hagerty), known to her co-workers as "Malone", was a vivacious, naïve housewife who was recently left by her husband, and whose children were tyrants. Years of sexual repression had taken their toll on Malone and she was becoming obsessed with sex.

Malone was later replaced by Veda Walkman (Lisa Rieffel), a ditzy young woman who took an internship at the office. In more minor roles were William Newman as Dave, an older gentleman with bad arthritis who worked in the office and Adam Carl as Adam, another intern (which was not the same-named character Carl played in several episodes of Designing Women).

Cast

Main

Recurring

Notable guest stars

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date Viewers
(millions)
1"Miss Sugarbaker Goes to Washington" Harry Thomason Linda Bloodworth-ThomasonJanuary 4, 1995 (1995-01-04)17.0 [1]
2

Suzanne arrives in Washington to fill her husband's seat in Congress. She agrees to go on CNN's political Crossfire TV series, on which she gets herself involved in a scandal dubbed Knickknackgate.

Note: This episode is double-length.
3"Guess Who's Sleeping in Lincoln's Bed"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonJanuary 9, 1995 (1995-01-09)19.0 [2]
When the Clintons cancel their dinner engagement at the last moment, they invite Suzanne to stay at the White House. Once there, she promptly destroys the historic Lincoln Bed. Meanwhile, Malone begins obsessively sketching nude men.
4"That's What Friends Are For"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonJanuary 11, 1995 (1995-01-11)12.0 [2]
Sissy finds herself homeless just as her deprecating rival comes to town. Meanwhile, Suzanne decides to write an article about the "interracial bond" she shares with her maid, Sapphire.
5"Men Are Good"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonJanuary 18, 1995 (1995-01-18)11.9 [3]
Malone, who has never dated anyone but her high school sweetheart, is asked out by a handsome widower.
6"You Talk Too Much"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonJanuary 25, 1995 (1995-01-25)10.2 [4]
The staff convenes at Suzanne's house to randomly monitor violence against women on television for an upcoming congressional hearing. Meanwhile, Suzanne is trying to diet, and Natty and Sissy feud over the Republican Party's new control of the House.
7"Bad Girl"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonFebruary 1, 1995 (1995-02-01)10.4 [5]
Malone has a pregnancy scare, Suzanne arranges a meeting with Alaskan fishermen, and Sissy sells obscene lingerie.
8"The Afternoon Wife"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonMarch 20, 1995 (1995-03-20)14.6 [6]
Suzanne's ex-husband Dash Goff (Gerald McRaney) writes a novel based on their marriage, but Suzanne becomes jealous when he flirts with all of her staffers. McRaney reprises his recurring role from Designing Women .
9"Veda"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonAugust 18, 1995 (1995-08-18)4.9 [7]
Young, sweet, bubbly, "potty-mouth" Veda Walkman joins the office on an internship and instantly annoys her co-workers. Meanwhile Sissy and Natty engage in practical jokes.
10"Women in Film"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonSeptember 8, 1995 (1995-09-08)N/A
Suzanne's staff gathers to again to review violence against women on film for a congressional hearing. A bevy of female stars have cameos, speaking out against violent and exploitive films.
11"Conjugal Cottage"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonSeptember 8, 1995 (1995-09-08)N/A
Natalie becomes violently ill the same weekend that she's planned to spend with her imprisoned lover. Sissy takes her place to keep Ed (Charles Frank) from losing the privilege of the conjugal cottage. Meanwhile the ladies try out a line of indestructible pantyhose. Charles Frank reunites with his Filthy Rich co-star Delta Burke and writer Linda Bloodworth-Thomason.
12"North to Alaska"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonSeptember 8, 1995 (1995-09-08)N/A
Suzanne, Sissy and Natty are sent to Alaska to investigate the spawning habits of salmon. The ladies are awed by the abundance of attractive, eligible bachelors, and they each wind up being bitten by the love bug.
13"Dear Diary"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonSeptember 8, 1995 (1995-09-08)N/A
Congresswoman Kirby Seizmore (Susan Powter) from the Ethics Committee launches an investigation into Suzanne's activities, so Suzanne turns to visiting friend Anthony Bouvier to dispose of her diary. Meshach Taylor reprises his role from Designing Women .

Home media

Mill Creek Entertainment had secured the rights to the complete series, which was slated to be released on DVD in early 2011. [8] In April 2011, it was announced that the DVD release had been cancelled due to "issues surrounding the source material delivery." [9] On February 6, 2018, Questar Entertainment released Women of the House: The Complete Series on DVD in Region 1. [10]

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References

  1. ↑ "Nielsen ratings". Life. USA Today . January 11, 1995. p. 3D.
  2. 1 2 DeRosa, Robin (January 18, 1995). "'ER' rolls into the No. 1 spot". Life. USA Today . p. 3D.
  3. ↑ DeRosa, Robin (January 25, 1995). "'ER' helps NBC to No. 1". Life. USA Today . p. 3D.
  4. ↑ DeRosa, Robin (February 1, 1995). "Super Bowl kicks ABC to the top". Life. USA Today . p. 3D.
  5. ↑ "Nielsen ratings". Life. USA Today . February 8, 1995. p. 3D.
  6. ↑ "Nielsen ratings". Life. USA Today . March 29, 1995. p. 3D.
  7. ↑ "Nielsen ratings". Life. USA Today . August 23, 1995. p. 3D.
  8. ↑ "Women of the House DVD News". TVShowsOnDVD.com . October 15, 2010. Archived from the original on October 18, 2010.
  9. ↑ "Women of the House - Mill Creek's Planned DVD Release is Off the Schedule". TVShowsOnDVD.com. April 19, 2011. Archived from the original on September 12, 2011.
  10. ↑ "Women of the House - 'Complete 12 Episode Series,' Starring Delta Burke, is Now Available on DVD". TVShowsOnDVD.com. 2018-02-08. Archived from the original on 2018-02-09.
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