"NewsRadio" (1995) TV series 1995-1999

Creator:

Paul Simms

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

21 March 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Fifty-thousand watts of pure Comedy

Plot:

"NewsRadio" is a sitcom that explores office politics, relationships, and crises through a group of co-workers at WNYX NewsRadio...

Plot Keywords:

New York | Office | Sitcom | Boss | Sarcasm

Awards:

Won Primetime Emmy. Another 5 nominations

Cast

Dave Foley	...	Dave Nelson (97 episodes, 1995-1999)
Stephen Root	...	Jimmy James (97 episodes, 1995-1999)
Andy Dick	...	Matthew Brock (97 episodes, 1995-1999)
Maura Tierney	...	Lisa Miller (97 episodes, 1995-1999)
Vicki Lewis	...	Beth (96 episodes, 1995-1999)
Joe Rogan	...	Joe Garrelli (96 episodes, 1995-1999)
Phil Hartman	...	Bill McNeal (75 episodes, 1995-1998)
Khandi Alexander	...	Catherine Duke (58 episodes, 1995-1998)

Also Known As:

The Station

Runtime:

USA:23 min (97 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

CBS Studio Center - 4024 Radford Avenue, Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Brillstein-Grey Entertainment

Trivia:

The show was on brink of cancellation every season that it was on.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Bill McNeal frequently misattributes quotes to John Keats. In Season One, Episode 10, "Rat Funeral," Hartman attributes the line "Gather ye rosebuds while ye may..." to Keats; the line is actually from "To the Virgins, to Make Most of time" written by Robert Herrick. In Season Two, Episode 11, "Station Sale," Hartman attributes the line "Yours is not to reason why, yours is but to do and die;" to John Keats, 1776; Hartman's version is actually slightly adapted from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "Charge of the Light Brigade" published in 1870.

Quotes:

Bill: You know what it's like? It's like taking your daughter to the fair and buying her cotton candy and winning prizes for her and then you get on the Ferris wheel and she wants to make out.
Lisa: Ok...
Bill: Well how could she do that to me, Lisa? How could she... french her daddy?

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in One Man Newsradio (2006) (V)

Brilliant!

Newsradio was a fish out of water. In a time of oversexed young white sitcoms, Newsradio relied on brilliant writing, expert character development, and excellent plots to drive it along. No gimmicks needed. Each character had a role to fill, and they filled it well. All of the cast members are excellent, with no misfires. Everyone has classic episodes they like to talk about.

Still, as excellent as this is, there are a few minor flaws. For one, Khandi Alexander never got as much screen time as she deserved, and this is no doubt why she left the show. She tried to be a Bill McNeal foil, but Dave served that function already. She seemed like an excellent actress, and her character seemed to be geniune, but nothing ever seemed to happen--in fact, I cannot readily recall any episode where the plot line was based on her save for her departure and maybe some of the Joe-Catherine romance episodes.

I like Jon Lovitz, and, unlike others, I found him to be just as capable as Phil Hartman to be in Newsradio. I believe that his performance did, in fact, grow as the last seasoned progressed (watch his hire date vs. some of the later shows--his character certainly changes). He did serve better playing off of other characters, such as Beth and (surprisingly) Lisa, and the few shows that center on him are indeed subpar. Still, some of the best episodes (in my opinion) are in the last season (the apartment hunt, Matthew's 30th birthday, Joe Jitzu), so Lovitz's appearance couldn't have changed the show that much.

Some shows just didn't work. Some of the very early ones are heavy on the Dave/Lisa romance, and did use just as many sex-related jokes as other sitcoms of the time. Some shows try to cram three plot lines in one episode, and Newsradio needs time to develop. Some rely way too heavily on Andy Dick's slapstick or Jimmy's over-the-top schemes. And some just don't make sense (the Dilbert episode did little for me).

All this, however, is little detriment to the show at large. I would much rather watch reruns of Newsradio than any new sitcoms out there right now. I can't say I blame NBC for cancelling it--pure business reasons; the show wasn't making money for them--but creatively, they blew it.

Newcomers may want to watch a few episodes before they cast judgement. It took me a few episodes to really enjoy it. It requires that you know the characters before it becomes interesting and funny.