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The Powers That Be (TV series)

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The Powers That Be
GenreSitcom
Created byDavid Crane
Marta Kauffman
Directed byHal Cooper
Art Wolff
StarringJohn Forsythe
Holland Taylor
Eve Gordon
Peter MacNicol
Valerie Mahaffey
David Hyde Pierce
Elizabeth Berridge
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Robin Bartlett
Opening theme"The Powers That Be" performed by Stephen Bishop
ComposerMarvin Hamlisch
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes21 (5 unaired)
Production
Executive producerNorman Lear
ProducersRon Burla
Patricia Fass Palmer
CinematographyDan Kuleto
Camera setupMulti-camera
Production companiesAct III Television
ELP Communications
Castle Rock Entertainment
Columbia Pictures Television
Original release
NetworkNBC
ReleaseMarch 7, 1992 (1992-03-07) –
January 2, 1993 (1993-01-02)

The Powers That Be is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC, premiering on March 7, 1992. It was created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, with Norman Lear as executive producer. It aired for two seasons, with 21 episodes filmed, with 16 of them airing on the network, with its final episode being broadcast on January 2, 1993. During the week of January 18-22, 1993, USA Network aired the remaining 5 episodes that never aired on NBC.

Premise

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At the center of the series is U.S. Senator William Powers, a parody of the political establishment in Washington, D.C. Margaret, the senator's status-hungry wife, treats Charlotte, their maid, with comedic disdain. Caitlyn, the senator's daughter, has an eating disorder and is married to Representative Theodore Van Horne, who is suicidal; their son, Pierce, is mature beyond his years from having to care for his unbalanced parents. Sophie Lipkin, the senator's illegitimate daughter, is a loud, crass New Jerseyan who surprises the family when she moves to Washington and begins to bond with her father. The senator's staff includes an intelligent and beautiful aide, Jordan Miller — who is also Powers' mistress — and the feckless aide Bradley Grist.

Cast

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Episodes

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Series overview

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SeasonEpisodesOriginally released
First releasedLast released
18March 7, 1992 (1992-3-7)April 18, 1992 (1992-4-18)
213November 7, 1992 (1992-11-7)January 2, 1993 (1993-1-2)

Season 1 (1992)

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No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date Viewers
(millions)
11"The Love Child"Norman LearT : Charlotte Brown;
S/T : David Crane & Marta Kauffman
S : Charlotte Brown;
T : David Crane & Marta Kauffman		March 7, 1992 (1992-3-7)18.5[1]
22Hal Cooper
Senator Powers, in the middle of a tough re-election campaign with a local hero, finds that he has an additional potential obstacle to his re-election—an illegitimate daughter. Being accepted in Washington takes a back seat when Sophie goes head-to-head with the rest of the family.
33"Bill Gets Shot"Art WolffGraham YostMarch 14, 1992 (1992-3-14)15.3[2]
It's Caitlyn and Theodore's anniversary and Margaret is insistent that Sophie not join the family for dinner. Meanwhile, the campaigning Senator is in need of some publicity, but he didn't expect it to come from Theodore's botched suicide attempt—which results in Bill being shot in a very undignified location.
44"My Mother, My Self"Art WolffRon BurlaMarch 21, 1992 (1992-3-21)16.9[3]
Not being asked to a White House luncheon for Princess Diana is bad enough, but Margaret really gets upset when her efforts only result in Caitlyn being invited instead. Margaret then tries to play on Caitlyn's insecurities to secure the invitation for herself, including playing her trump card—Sophie. Meanwhile, Bill just wants the family to get along.
55"Dirty Politics"Art WolffBob SandMarch 28, 1992 (1992-3-28)14.2[4]
Margaret, Jordan and Bradley scheme to discredit the Senator's opponent, the now-handicapped, former-pro footballer, Joe Bowman (Craig Bierko). The result is a faked videotape of Bowman hopping out of his chair. The press discovers that the tape is a fake. Bill visits Bowman in a last-ditch effort to save his aids from being fired, and Bill is startled by what he finds.
66"Kiss Me Caitlyn"Art WolffGraham YostApril 4, 1992 (1992-4-4)13.8[5]
The Senator and his aides have no choice but to offer Joe Bowman a public apology—in spite of his paralysis secretly being a sham. Meanwhile, Bowman sets his sights on seducing Caitlyn to have someone inside the Senator's camp. Caitlyn finds herself simultaneously charmed and repulsed by Mr. Bowman while she contemplates having an affair with him. Meanwhile, Bill and Margaret share a spontaneous night of passion.
77"Bill and Margaret's Excellent Adventure"Art WolffAnne ConvyApril 11, 1992 (1992-4-11)13.2[6]
After Bill & Margaret's unexpected night of passion, Bill considers ending his relationship with Jordan in favor of the chance at rekinding the fire in his marriage—leaving Jordan fuming and shocked. Meanwhile, Caitlyn can't get Joe Bowman out of her head, and Bradley gets high from pain killers that he is taking for a kidney stone.
88"Charlerella"Art WolffRon BurlaApril 18, 1992 (1992-4-18)15.4[7]
The Powers household is invited to attend a ball in the Senator's honor, but Margaret conveniently forgets to invite Charlotte until it's too late. Theodore stays behind to wait for Caitlyn, but winds up spending a romantic evening with Charlotte when they get snowed in. Caitlyn, meanwhile, slinks off to Joe Bowman's hotel room, and the blizzard keeps the rest of the Powers clan trapped in their limo.

Season 2 (1992–93)

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No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date Viewers
(millions)
91"A Chicken in Every Pot"Hal CooperMady JulianNovember 7, 1992 (1992-11-7)12.7[8]
To curry favor, Margaret donates her chicken salad to the favorite charity of the new First Lady, who falls ill after eating it. Meanwhile, Theodore and Charlotte try to fight their attraction for each other.
102"Bill's Dead...Not"Hal CooperNancylee MyattNovember 7, 1992 (1992-11-7)12.7[8]
The Senator takes a road trip to visit his elderly mother, Enid Powers (Cloris Leachman) and picks up a hitchhiker—who turns out to be a carjacker. As Bill then tries to make his way to his mother's home, the carjacker crashes the car into a gas tanker, leaving the family and the press to believe that the Senator has been killed. As the Powers camp mourns Bill, Margaret contemplates accepting her husband's Senate seat.
113"I'm Your Dummy"Hal CooperJulie ThackerNovember 14, 1992 (1992-11-14)10.9[9]
Theodore volunteers to be the Senator's dummy in a ventriloquist act that everyone else finds embarrassingly bad.
124"How Sharper Than a Servant's Tooth"Hal CooperRon BurlaNovember 21, 1992 (1992-11-21)11.6[10]
A crisis back in the Senator's home state is nothing compared to the crisis in the Senator's household—Charlotte wants to quit because of her secret feelings for Theodore. Meanwhile, Jordan is frustrated that Margaret's problems are more important to Bill than celebrating the anniversary of their relationship together.
135"The Intern"Hal CooperRon BurlaNovember 28, 1992 (1992-11-28)11.6[11]
Jordan and Margaret both suspect that the Senator's new female intern (Tiffani-Amber Thiessen) has designs on him.
146"Sophie's Big Decision"Hal CooperGraham YostDecember 5, 1992 (1992-12-5)9.9[12]
Just as Sophie asks Margaret for some tips on fitting into the Washington scene, Larry (Robert Picardo), the boyfriend who always kept her down shows up to take her back to New Jersey. Meanwhile, Margaret is desperate to get a Supreme Court Justice to show up at her party, and Bradley and Jordan try to show each other up by getting the most influential guests at the event.
157"Oh, Mack"Hal CooperRod ParkerDecember 12, 1992 (1992-12-12)9.6[13]
A visiting Hollywood mogul (Victor Garber) charms everyone in the Senator's household—except the Senator, who starts to suspect that something is amiss. Meanwhile, each of the ladies thinks that she's the object of their guest's desires.
168"St. Caitlyn of Shears"Hal CooperNancylee MyattJanuary 2, 1993 (1993-1-2)8.9[14]
A bad haircut causes Caitlyn to come to a personal crisis and decide she is too caught up in materialism. Meanwhile, Bradley is desperate to get the Senator media attention after his name is not included on the list of the most influential Democrats in the new administration.
179"Having a Ball"Hal CooperGraham YostJanuary 18, 1993 (1993-1-18) (USA Network)N/A
The Powers are ecstatic when they are invited the Presidential motorcade for Clinton's inauguration, but when Jordan is excluded, she tries to make Bill jealous by making plans with an old boyfriend. As the delayed Powers and a bicycling Bradley brave the icy roads in hopes of catching up with the President, Theodore worries that Charlotte thinks he forgot her birthday.
1810"Bradley Gets Fired"Hal CooperRod BurtonJanuary 19, 1993 (1993-1-19) (USA Network)N/A
When a malingering Bradley is fired, Mrs. Powers takes over as press liaison.
1911"Grammargate: Part 1"Hal CooperRod BurtonJanuary 20, 1993 (1993-1-20) (USA Network)N/A
While drunk, Bradley makes the mistake of his life; as does Pierce when he hacks into the school's computer. Meanwhile, Theodore has troubles of his own.
2012"Grammargate: Part 2"Hal CooperRod BurtonJanuary 21, 1993 (1993-1-21) (USA Network)N/A
While trying to rectify the situation for Pierce, Margaret and Caitlyn find they have their own trouble. Consummation is the answer to Bradley's problems, and Theodore conquers his fear.
2113"Grandma's Big Decision"Hal CooperGraham YostJanuary 22, 1993 (1993-1-22) (USA Network)N/A
Bill's mother (Cloris Leachman), shows up just before her 93rd birthday and announces that she's moving in until she dies. Then she asks her already frustrated daughter-in-law to kill her off! Meanwhile, Sophie surprises Jordan when she moves into her apartment building, leaving Jordan concerned that the Senator's nosy daughter will discover their affair.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Donlon, Brian (March 11, 1992). "'Indy' boosts ABC". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  2. ^ "Hit comedies lift ABC". Life. USA Today. March 18, 1992. p. 3D.
  3. ^ "CBS ticks off another win". Life. USA Today. March 25, 1992. p. 3D.
  4. ^ Donlon, Brian (April 1, 1992). "'Room' in the top 10 for ABC". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  5. ^ Gable, Donna (April 8, 1992). "Oscar sweep extends to ABC". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  6. ^ Gable, Donna (April 15, 1992). "CBS' historic jump". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  7. ^ Gable, Donna (April 22, 1992). "'Roseanne' leads ABC's way". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  8. ^ a b Gable, Donna (November 11, 1992). "Election news, football kick up ABC's ratings". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  9. ^ Gable, Donna (November 18, 1992). "'Jacksons,' solid gold for ABC". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  10. ^ Gable, Donna (November 25, 1992). "Jacksons help as-easy-as-ABC win". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  11. ^ Gable, Donna (December 2, 1992). "'Weapon 2' serves CBS well". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  12. ^ Gable, Donna (December 9, 1992). "ABC's Tuesday lineup ends up rosy". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  13. ^ Donlon, Brian (December 16, 1992). "No royal ratings for ABC's 'Charles and Diana'". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
  14. ^ Gable, Donna (January 6, 1993). "Amy Fisher tales find followings". Life. USA Today. p. 3D.
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