Married to the Kellys
Married to the Kellys is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from October 3, 2003 to April 23, 2004 with a run of 22 episodes. Set in a Kansas suburb of Kansas City, Kansas, the series stars Breckin Meyer and Kiele Sanchez. The show was a part of the TGIF Friday night line up, after Hope & Faith, airing at 9:30 EST. The show earned fair enough ratings to get picked up for a whole season, but it was cancelled at the end of the season.
The series followed the adventures of a single-child New Yorker adjusting to life with his wife's large, close-knit suburban family.
The show was originally to be titled Back to Kansas.
Premise
The sitcom centers on New York novelist and loner Tom who was raised as an only child. After he marries Susan, a woman raised in the Midwest by a large family, the couple moves to Kansas so they can be closer to them. Tom has to quickly adjust to life with a big, caring, and somewhat creepy family. He initially dislikes and is uncomfortable around the family, but Susan forces him to spend time with the Kellys and try to please them.When Tom married Susan he thought he was only getting a new wife. He never even considered that he would be getting a brand-new family as well. Sandy is the mother and rule-maker of the house and Bill, the father and an only child himself, could be the person Tom can relate to the most. Mary is Susan's competitive, condescending, and envious sister and both she and her whipped, frat-boy type husband Chris, who considers himself Bill and Sandy's favorite son-in-law, find Tom as somewhat of a threat. Susan's brother Lewis, a shy and awkward young man, has made a career of collecting bugs. He is the only family member Tom finds a real relationship with. Other family members who occasionally drop by include Uncle Dave, the big-shot banker of the family, and Lisa, the youngest daughter who wants to backpack around Europe and become an art major.
When Married to the Kellys premiered Fridays at 8:30pm/7:30 central during ABC's fall 2003 season, it aired after George Lopez, where ABC brought back its famed TGIF block along with the new Kelly Ripa comedy Hope & Faith and Life with Bonnie. Originally bought by ABC as The Untitled Tom Hertz Project the show needed a quick title in order for the series to be promoted in time for the network to unveil its new line-up. So they decided on the tentative title Back to Kansas. Although the series does take place in Kansas the title didn't quite work since the main character isn't really returning to Kansas and the show wasn't really about the wife's "return" to Kansas but more about the entire Kelly family and the main character's efforts in trying to fit into a new situation. The show soon acquired the more appropriate and fitting title “Married to the Kellys“.
Producer Tom Hertz loosely based this comedy on his life experiences. Not only were real-life situations used as inspiration for this sitcom, he also used real-life family members. All the characters in the series were named after Tom Hertz, his wife, and his in-laws.
Married to the Kellys also starred Josh Braaten, Nancy Lenehan, Emily Rutherfurd, Sam Anderson, and newcomer Derek Waters.
Cast
- Breckin Meyer as Tom Wagner
- Kiele Sanchez as Susan Wagner
- Nancy Lenehan as Sandy Kelly
- Emily Rutherfurd as Mary
- Joshua "Josh" Braaten as Chris
- Derek Waters as Lewis Kelly
- Sam Anderson as Bill Kelly
- Richard Riehle as Uncle Dave
Guest stars
- Ashley Johnson as Shari
- Eddie McClintock as Bob
- Seth Green as Dr. Jim Coglan
- Stephen Tobolowsky as Henry Conway
- Tinsley Grimes as Lisa Kelly
- Lee Majors as himself
- Tony Gonzalez as himself
- Michele Lee as Maggie Wagner
- Tony Roberts as Martin Wagner
- Keith Coogan as Customer