Roseanne
Roseanne is an American television sitcom created by Matt Williams that originally aired on ABC from October 18, 1988 to May 20, 1997, and was briefly revived from March 27 to May 22, 2018. Starring Roseanne Barr as Roseanne Conner, the series revolves around her family in the fictional town of Lanford, Illinois. Receiving generally positive reviews for its realistic portrayal of a working-class American family, the series reached No. 1 in the Nielsen ratings from 1989 to 1990 in its second season.
During the initial run, the series remained in the top four for six of the nine seasons, and in the top 20 for eight. During the short-lived revival, the series reached No. 3, with an average of 18 million viewers per episode within the span of its nine episodes. In 1993, the episode "A Stash from the Past" was ranked No. 21 on TV Guides 100 Greatest Episodes of All-Time. In 2002, Roseanne was ranked No. 35 on TV Guides 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. In 2013, it was ranked No. 32 on TV Guides 60 Best Series of All Time.
In 2018, a revived, 10th season of the show was broadcast, with the original cast returning. Following the success of its premiere, Roseanne was renewed for an 11th season of 13 episodes. ABC reversed its renewal decision and canceled Roseanne on May 29, 2018, after Barr likened former Obama administration official Valerie Jarrett to Planet of the Apes, in a series of comments on Twitter.
A spin-off continuation involving the Conner family without Roseanne, titled The Conners, premiered in October 2018, and became a ratings success, running until 2025.
Production history
In coming up with ideas for new shows, Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner of Carsey-Werner Productions decided to look into the concept of the working mother as a central voice. Up until that point, there had been countless shows with working mothers, but few treated them as anything other than an adjunct to the father in the family. Werner had suggested that they take a chance on Barr whom they had seen on The Tonight Show. This was because he saw the unique "in your face" voice that they were looking for and he contacted her agent and offered her the role. Barr's act at the time was the persona of the "domestic goddess", but as Carsey and Werner explains, she had the distinctive voice and attitude for the character and she was able to transform herself into the working-class heroine they envisioned. Many early scripts were written by women: Grace McKeaney, Lauren Eve Anderson, and Laurie Gelman, and directed by Ellen Gittelsohn.Barr maintained that the characters of "Roseanne" and her family were based heavily on Roseanne herself and her own children and lived experience. Matt Williams, the original showrunner hired by Carsey and Werner, maintained that the show had been created before Barr's involvement, based on his own family experiences. Under Writers Guild of America regulations, only someone who wrote a series' pilot episode can receive creator credit on that series; consequently, Williams received on-screen credit as the show's sole creator. A subsidiary credit noted that the work was based on Barr's stand-up comedy.
In 1993, it was made public that Barr would refer to each of her 19 writers by a number rather than their name. The writers would wear shirts with their assigned number.
Premise
The series is centered on the Conners, an American working-class family struggling to get by on a limited household income. Dan, Roseanne, and their three young children, Becky, Darlene, and D.J. live at 714 Delaware Street in the drab fictional mid-state exurb of Lanford, in Kane County, Illinois. Although initially nominally located in Fulton County, more than three hours away from Chicago, later on-air references over the years suggested the town is in the vicinity of Aurora and Elgin, which are less than one hour away from Chicago, and DeKalb, just over one hour away. In a 2018 interview, Barr stated that the series setting was based on Elgin. The family consisted of outspoken Roseanne, married to husband Dan, and their three children: Becky, Darlene, and DJ. Later in the series, Roseanne and Dan have their fourth child, Jerry Garcia Conner.Many critics considered the show notable as one of the first sitcoms to realistically portray a blue-collar American family with two parents working outside the home, as well as lead characters who were noticeably overweight without their weight being the target of jokes.
Establishing shots were photographed in Evansville, Indiana, the hometown of first-season producer Matt Williams. Exterior shots of the Conner household were based on a real home located in Evansville, located at 619 S. Runnymeade Avenue, a few blocks from Williams' alma mater, the University of Evansville. Interior shots primarily feature an octagonal kitchen table, used in the introductory title sequence and a living room sofa draped with a crocheted granny square afghan blanket.
Barr's real-life brother and sister are gay, which inspired her to push for introducing gay characters and issues into the show. "My show seeks to portray various slices of life, and homosexuals are a reality," said Barr. Provocative storylines have been an integral part of the series throughout its existence; Barr has stated that they were issues that working-class Americans experience in their everyday lives and that very few scripted programs ever address them.
Cast and characters
Episodes
Original series
Season 1
Roseanne is a line worker at Wellman Plastics, along with her sister Jackie and friend Crystal. Jackie has a brief relationship with Booker, the foreman at Wellman. Roseanne's husband Dan finds sporadic work as a construction contractor. Dan has a strained relationship with his divorced father, Ed, a traveling salesman who was often absent during Dan's childhood. Roseanne and Jackie's meddlesome parents Beverly and Al, consider moving to Lanford, panicking both sisters, although this is quickly dismissed as just an "idea".Middle Conner child Darlene, a tomboy, often struggles with her femininity as she enters puberty and gets her first period. Eldest child Becky faces dating problems with her first boyfriend Chip, who is introduced in the "Lover's Lane" episode. Youngest child David Jacob, known as "D.J.", has to work hard to be noticed amid all the family's activities. Season one also finds the Conners experiencing, and surviving, a tornado. In the "Death and Stuff" episode a door-to-door salesman dies in the Conners' kitchen, and in the season finale Roseanne stands up to the new abusive foreman when she leads Jackie, Crystal, and other coworkers as they quit Wellman Plastics. D.J. is played by Sal Barone in the pilot episode, then by Michael Fishman for the remainder of the series. This season includes a running gag where the word "corn" is used in every episode.
Notable Season 1 guest stars include Bill Sadler as Dan's friend Dwight, Robert Harper as Chip's father, Andrea Walters as Chip's mother, and Tony Crane as Becky's love interest "The Tongue Bandit". Bill Pentland, Roseanne Barr's first husband, made a cameo as one of Dan's friends in the "Saturday" episode.
Season 2
After quitting Wellman Plastics, Roseanne and Jackie must find new jobs. Jackie becomes a police officer. Roseanne cycles through numerous menial jobs including telemarketer, secretary for Dan's boss, bartender, a fast-food restaurant cashier, and, finally, sweeping floors at a beauty parlor. At home, Dan's poker buddy Arnie makes a startling debut when he plants a kiss on Roseanne. The Conners celebrate an outrageous Halloween that becomes an annual series feature. Roseanne wants ten relaxing minutes to herself in the bathtub; this turns into a bizarre dream sequence that has the entire cast singing parodies of songs from musical comedies. Later, at Thanksgiving dinner, Roseanne unexpectedly discovers a budding romance between Dan's father, Ed, and Crystal. Jackie gets serious with her new boyfriend, Gary. Becky grows rebellious against Roseanne and Dan's parental authority, staying out late and breaking into the liquor cabinet and getting drunk with her friend, Dana. When old biker buddy, Ziggy reappears, it reminds Roseanne and Dan of their own rebellious past. Darlene shows writing talent after receiving recognition for her poem. Roseanne's own writing aspirations are given a boost after Dan builds her an office in the basement. This is the first season Roseanne is heard thinking out loud.Other notable guest stars during the season include Stephen Dorff as Becky's boyfriend Jimmy, Jenny Lewis as Becky's friend Diane, Stephen Root as Roseanne's lawyer Peter, and Bert Parks as a judge. Ann Wedgeworth played Dan Conner's mother in the Thanksgiving episode.
Season 3
The season opens with the Conner family confronting Roseanne's possible pregnancy. The pregnancy turns up negative. Roseanne takes a waitress job in the luncheonette at Rodbell's Department Store, working with her boss, Leon, and co-worker, Bonnie. Jackie is injured on the job, resulting in her leaving the police force and breaking up with Gary. Becky begins dating Mark Healy ; when her parents forbid her to see him, she temporarily moves in with Jackie. Dan is floored to learn his father, Ed and Crystal plan to marry; Crystal is pregnant with Ed's baby.Roseanne locks horns with snooty new neighbor Kathy Bowman. Bev's mother, Nana Mary makes her first appearance at a family barbecue. In the season finale, Ziggy reappears, proposing to open a motorcycle repair shop with Dan. While they attempt to procure a loan for business, Ziggy backs out and leaves town, not wanting Dan and Roseanne to risk their house if the business fails. However, he leaves enough money behind for Dan to open it by himself. He is never heard about again.
Other notable guest stars during the season include Dann Florek as Principal Hiller, Leonardo DiCaprio as Darlene's classmate, Brad Garrett as Doug, Judy Gold as Amy, Alyson Hannigan as Becky's friend Jan, and Tobey Maguire as Jeff.