Mama Knows Best! Warner Home Video Brings the Hit Comedy Series ``Mama's Family'' to DVD September 26, 2006
"Mama's Family," the delightfully offbeat comedy whose successful run spanned from January 22, 1983 to March 12, 1990, originally began as a skit on the legendary "Carol Burnett Show." Entitled "The Family," the sketch was roughly based on Carol Burnett's childhood and was such a hit that it generated its own spin-off series which premiered on NBC.
"Mama's Family" mined humor from a squabbling family in the Midwestern blue collar suburb of Raytown. The noisy clan was headed by Thelma Harper "Mama" (Vicki Lawrence, "The Carol Burnett Show," "The Vicky Lawrence Show") a buxom, gray-haired widow with sharp opinions and a sharper tongue who shared her small house with her high-strung sister Fran (Rue McClanahan, "The Golden Girls"), a journalist for a local paper. Mama's lazy, dimwitted son, Vint (Ken Berry, "F-Troop"), a locksmith by trade, moved in at the start of the series with his troublesome teenage children, Buzz (Eric Brown) and Sonja (Karin Argoud), after his wife ran off to become a Las Vegas show girl. Much to Mama's disgust, Vint soon took up with the flirtatious neighbor Naomi (Dorothy Lyman, "All My Children"), who works as a checker at the local grocery store, Food Circus.
"Mama's Family" also starred Betty White ("Golden Girls") as Ellen Jackson, Harvey Korman ("The Carol Burnett Show") as Ed Higgins/Carl Harper/Alistair Quince and Carol Burnett ("The Carol Burnett Show," "Carol & Company") as Eunice Higgins.
The first time on DVD, "Mama's Family: The Complete First Season" will include all 13 episodes from the show's premiere season, which aired from January 1983 to May 1983.
"'Mama's Family' is one of those shows that has a unique appeal because of its offbeat humor which pokes fun at the faults and dysfunctions of a quirky mid-western family. The premise of the show was great, the cast was terrific and the storylines were funny," commented Rosemary Markson, WHV Vice President, TV Marketing. She added, "'Mama's Family' is one of those shows that gets better and better season after season. For years fans have anxiously been asking us to release it on DVD and we are delighted to bring it to consumers at last. There is no other series like 'Mama's Family.' It has such character, charm and appeal. It's meant for those who want to take a break from everyday life and just have a great laugh."
For more information on this and other titles distributed by Warner Home Video, visit www.whvdirect.com.
Note to Editors: Artwork is downloadable at www.WHVDirect.com or by request.
