The Nanny (TV series)
Encyclopedia : T : TH : THE : The Nanny (TV series)
The Nanny was an American sitcom that first aired on November 3, 1993 on CBS. It starred Fran Drescher as "the nanny named Fran" (as Ann Hampton Callaway sang in the theme she wrote). Six seasons were aired; the show ended its run in 1999.
The show was produced by Sternin/Fraser Ink, Inc. and High School Sweethearts Productions, in association with and distributed by TriStar Television. The Nanny was executive produced by Drescher and her then-husband Peter Marc Jacobson, who was her high school sweetheart.
Along with Rhoda, Seinfeld, and Will & Grace it is one of a handful of successful American comedies with an explicitly Jewish main character. Many of the characters in the series (e.g. Yetta, her grandmother) were named after Fran Drescher's real family.
The plot
The plot revolved around nasal-voiced Fran Fine (Fran Drescher) from Flushing, Queens, who, fresh out of her job as a bridal consultant in her boyfriend's shop, was peddling cosmetics on the Upper East Side doorstep of a wealthy and widowed Englishman, Broadway producer Maxwell Sheffield (played by former Days of our Lives star Charles Shaughnessy). When he mistakenly believes Fran has been sent by a nanny agency, she quickly seizes upon the opportunity to become the nanny for his three children. But soon Fran, with her off-beat nurturing and no-nonsense honesty, touched Maxwell as well as the kids. It was a situation of blue collar meets blue blood, as Fran gave the prim-and-proper Maxwell and his children a dose of "Queens logic," helping them become a healthy, happy family.
Proudly running the Sheffield household is the butler, Niles (Daniel Davis), who watches all events with a bemused eye and levels problems with his quick wit. Niles quickly recognizes Fran's gift for bringing warmth into the family and becomes fast friends with her. He does his best to undermine Maxwell's socialite business partner, C.C. Babcock (Lauren Lane), in their ongoing game of one-upmanship. C.C. views Fran with a mixture of skepticism and jealousy, as they both have designs on the very available Mr. Sheffield.
From the outset, Mr. Sheffield is clearly smitten with Fran, even if he is too shy to admit it, and Fran is equally taken with Mr. Sheffield. For the first few years, the writers teased viewers with a series of '"will they or won't they?" situations. Throughout that plotline, they still always address each other professionally, as "Miss Fine" and "Mr. Sheffield" (or more accurately, and often self-lampooned, "MIS-TUH Sheffield"). At the end of the fifth season, the two wed, and in the sixth - and final - year, the two welcomed twins into the family. Far more unexpected was the pairing of Niles and C.C., whose antagonism towards each other apparently masked their true feelings.
Perpetually hovering close by were Fran's typically obsessive and food-loving "Jewish mother" Sylvia (who would, when hungry, steal from or demand food from other characters, citing anything from her slow metabolism to their well-being ("It's too big for you") as a reason); her never seen but oft-mentioned father Morty; her cigarette-addicted senile grandmother Yetta, dispensing nonsensical advice and often erroneously believing Sheffield to already be Fran's husband and his children to be hers as well, a belief she did not keep to herself); and her dim-witted best friend Val, keeping her company on her perpetual quest for a husband, and being a constant reminder that things can always get worse (as Val is much more unlucky than Fran).
The comedy
The comedy in The Nanny was heavily formulated, something that contributed to the success of the series. The most obvious example of this is character-based, with all major characters possessing a specific trait (sometimes more than one) which would be referenced at least once an episode (though not always). For instance; Fran's constant references to eccentric family members, Mr. Sheffield's rivalry with Andrew Lloyd Webber, Sylvia's excessive love for and knowledge of food, Niles' one-liners that are often at the expense of Ms. Babcock, Ms. Babcock's cold-hearted reaction to usually sentimental situations, Maggie's initial shyness around boys and her eagerness to date, Brighton's "whimpering" reaction to adversity, Gracie's psychological analysis of various situations, Val's less than intelligent understanding of what's happening around her, and Yetta's senility. This, coupled with the development of each major character, made the show very accessible when compared to other TV Shows which can often revolve exclusively around one or two characters. The conflicting elements of each character's own comedy were often played off against one another (Fran and Mr. Sheffield, Niles and Ms. Babcock, Maggie and Brighton).
The cast
(in alphabetical order)
- Daniel Davis (Niles)
- Fran Drescher (Fran Fine Sheffield)
- Lauren Lane (Chastity Claire "C.C." Babcock)
- Benjamin Salisbury (Brighton Sheffield)
- Charles Shaughnessy (Maxwell Sheffield)
- Nicholle Tom (Margaret "Maggie" Sheffield)
- Madeline Zima (Grace "Gracie" Sheffield)
Recurring characters
- Renée Taylor . . . Sylvia Rosenberg Fine
- Rachel Chagall . . . Valerie "Val" Toriello
- Ann Morgan Guilbert . . . Yetta Rosenberg
Trivia
- Ann Morgan Guilbert (Yetta) had previously portrayed neighbor Millie Halper on The Dick Van Dyke Show. On more than one occasion Yetta was heard commenting on the character of Millie, and even once mistaking her reflection in the mirror for the character.
- Fran Drescher's dog Chester occasionally appeared as C.C.'s pet, most notably in an episode where he destroyed Shari Lewis's sock puppet, "Lamb Chop."
- Fran Fine's Uncle Stanley and Aunt Rose were played by Fran Drescher's real-life parents, Morty and Sylvia Drescher.
- Fran's father "Morty" remained off camera for the first 5 seasons of the show. Viewers were occasionally shown the back of his head or one of his toupes when he was required for a scene, but his face was never shown. Although the Sheffields had met Morty off-camera, once staying in the Fine's home during a blizzard and later sharing a cruise with Morty, Sylvia and Yetta, Maxwell once joked "I've never met your father. No one has. I'm not sure he even exists." In the 6th and final season, Morty was given screen-time and played by Steve Lawrence.
- American actor Daniel Davis' English accent was reportedly so convincing, that some fans suggested that he coach Shaughnessy, who is actually a native Briton.
- Nick at Nite hopes to have this show airing on its nightly block by 2009.[link]
- The first episode's set was extremely different from the season episode's, as instead of an elegant staircase next to a closet-type thing on the right of the set, there was a normal staircase on the left directly against the door, and the living room furniture and look was different also.
Guest appearances
Characters
- Pamela Anderson - Fran's nemesis, Heather Biblow
- Bess Armstrong - Maxwell's deceased first wife, Sara Sheffield
- Scott Baio - Dr. Frankie Cresitelli
- Roseanne Barr - Fran's cousin Sheila
- Corbin Bernsen - Glen Mitchell
- Milton Berle - Fran's lawyer, Uncle Manny
- Cloris Leachman- Nanny Mueller, Maxwell's childhood nanny
- Ray Charles - Yetta's Fiance, Sammy
- Margaret Cho - Caryn
- Joan Collins - Maxwell's stepmother, Joan Sheffield
- Coolio - Irwin
- Nancy Frangione - Fran's cousin, Marsha
- Spalding Gray - Fran's therapist, Dr. Jack Miller
- Lainie Kazan - Fran's aunt, Freida
- Steve Lawrence - Fran's father, Morty Fine
- Dorothy Lyman - Flight attendant (first appearance), Socialite (later appearance)
- Rich Little - IRS Agent
- Lisa Loeb - Chloe
- Jonathan Penner - Fran's ex-boss & ex-beau, Danny Imperiali
- Twiggy (first appearance), Sophie Ward (later appearances) - Maxwell's sister Jocelyn
- Robert Vaughn - Maxwell's father, James Sheffield
- Ray Romano - Raymond Barone
- Jon Stewart - Bobby
- Lorna Luft - Fran's cousin, Susan
- Tyne Daly - Mona
- Maria Conchita Alonso - Concepcion
People playing themselves
| Country | Local title | Channel | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | The Nanny | Ten, TV1 | |
| Austria | Die Nanny | ORF1 | |
| Brazil | SBT | ||
| Canada | The Nanny | TVtropolis | Began 1 June 2006 |
| Croatia | Dadilja | RTL Televizija | |
| Denmark | Alle tiders barnepige | TV3 | |
| France | Une nounou d'enfer | M6 | |
| Germany | Die Nanny | VOX, RTL Television | |
| Italy | La Tata | Canale 5 |
The original version was redubbed with very heavy edits by the private network Mediaset, a common network policy for anime, but never used before for a sitcom. Major changes:
|
| Malaysia | The Hallmark Channel | ||
| Mexico | La Niñera | TV Azteca | |
| Netherlands | The Nanny | RTL 5 | |
| New Zealand | The Nanny | ||
| Norway | TV3 | Discontiniued spring 2005 | |
| Philippines | The Hallmark Channel | ||
| Poland | Pomoc Domowa | Polsat | |
| Portugal | Competente e descarada | ||
| Russia | Моя прекрасная няня | STS | |
| Serbia | Dadilja | B92 | |
| Slovenia | Varuška | ||
| Spain | La Niñera | Antena 3 | |
| Sweden | TV4 AB | ||
| Switzerland | Die Nanny | SF1, SF2 | |
| Turkey | The Nanny | ComedyMax-Digiturk | |
| United Kingdom | The Nanny |
Foreign adaptations
The Nanny has been broadcast in more than eighty countries. In addition, several local versions of the show have been produced in other countries. These shows follow the original scripts very closely, but with minor alterations in order to adapt to their respective country's culture.
Argentina
La Niñera- Set in Buenos Aires
- Stars Florencia Peña as Florencia Finkel ("Fran") and Boy Olmi as Juan Manuel Iraola ("Max")
- Florencia is from Lanús
- Juan Manuel lives in Barrio Parque
- Broadcast on Telefé beginning in 2004
- [La Niñera] at the Internet Movie Database
Chile
La Nany
- Set in Santiago
- Stars Alejandra Herrera as Eliana Tapia Cárdenas ("Fran") and Alex Zisis as Max Valdivieso ("Max")
- Eliana is from La Florida
- Max is a publicist
- Broadcast on MEGA (Red Televisiva Megavisión) beginning in 2005
- [La Nany official home page]
- [La Nany] at Internet Movie Database
Ecuador
La Niñera
- Set in Guayaquil
- Stars Paola Farías as María "Mary" ("Fran") and Frank Bonilla (First Season)/ Juan Carlos Salazar (Second Season) as Carlos Eduardo Sáenz de Tejada ("Max")
- Mary is from Chone
- Carlos Eduardo is a hotelier
- Broadcast on Ecuavisa
Greece
Η Νταντά
- Stars Maria Lekaki (Μαρία Λεκάκη) as Mary ("Fran") and Kostas Apostolidis (Κώστας Αποστολίδης) as Aris ("Max")
- Broadcast on Mega Channel seasons 2003-2004 and 2004-2005
- [Η Νταντά official home page]
- [Η Νταντά] at Internet Movie Database
Indonesia
Neny- in development
Mexico
La Niñera
- Set in Mexico City
- Stars Ingrid Coronado as "Fran" and Rafael Sánchez Navarro as "Max"
- In development with TV Azteca. See news story [here].
Poland
-->Niania
- Set in Warsaw
- Stars Agnieszka Dygant as Franciszka Maj ("Fran") and Tomasz Kot as Maksymilian Skalski ("Max")
- Maksymilian Skalski ("Max") became a movie and TV series producer, as opposed to a theatrical producer
- The origins of Franciszka Maj ("Fran") are not clear, she comes from Praga (poor and old district on the other side of Vistula river.)
- "Niania" is the closest to "The Nanny" of all the foreign remakes as far as possible (including sets, food and actors' costumes!)
- Broadcast on TVN beginning in 2005
- [Niania official home page]
- [Niania] at Internet Movie Database
- [Niania] at the Polish Wikipedia
Russia
Моя Прекрасная Няня
- Set in Moscow
- Stars Anastasiya Zavorotnyuk (Анастасия Заворотнюк) as Vicka ("Fran"), Sergei Zhigunov (Сергей Жигунов) as Maxim ("Max"), Olga Prokofieva (Ольга Прокофьева) as Zhanna ("C.C.") and Boris Smolkin (Борис Смолкин) as Konstantin ("Niles")
- Vicka is from Biryulevo (Бирюлево) and her heritage has been changed from Jewish to Ukrainian
- Title translates as "My Beautiful Nanny"
- Broadcast on STS beginning in 2004
- The most successful television show in the history of Russian television.
- The sixth season was put on hiatus for over a year due to the extremely poor health of the actress playing Vicka's mother. Some episodes actually ended up re-written with the Grandma Yeta character taking over for much of the Sylvia character.
- At the beginning of the sixth season, it is revealed that Maxim's proposal to Vicka was just a dream she had and from that episode on, all the episodes in the series are brand new and are not adapted from the original U.S. version, with Vicka still trying to desperately win Maxim's heart and him trying to hide his true feelings for the Nanny.
- [Моя Прекрасная Няня official home page]
- [Моя Прекрасная Няня] at Internet Movie Database
Turkey
Dadi
- Set in Istanbul
- Stars Gülben Ergen as Melek ("Fran") and Kenan Isik as Ömer ("Max")
- All of the Jewish stereo-type jokes were explained away as Muslim stereo-type jokes.
- Broadcast on Show TV beginning in 2001
- [Dadi official home page]. First ten episodes are available online as streaming video. The show ended two or three episodes after the marriage of Ömer and Melek.
- [Dadi] at Internet Movie Database
External links
- [The Nanny Home Page]
- [The Nanny at Sony Pictures Television]
- [The Nanny at Lifetime Television]
- [The Nanny] at Internet Movie Database
- [The Nanny] at TV.com
- [The Really Unofficial Nanny Home page]
- [The Nanny: (Unofficial) Home Page & Episode Guide]
- [Laura's The Nanny Zone]
- [The Nutler Presents...The Nanny]
- [The Nanny Museum]
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.