The Naked Truth (TV series)
| The Naked Truth | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Chris Thompson |
| Written by |
Jenny Bicks Leslie Caveny Robert Cohen Allan Heinberg Gary Janetti Ken Keeler Carol Leifer Paul Lieberstein Tom Martin Laurie Parres Phoef Sutton Rachel Sweet Chris Thompson Miriam Trogdon James Vallely Mark Wilding |
| Directed by |
Robby Benson Peter Bonerz Matthew Diamond Art Dielhenn Dennis Erdman Michael Lessac Gail Mancuso Rob Schiller |
| Starring |
Téa Leoni Darryl Sivad Holland Taylor Tom Verica Jake Sullivan Mark Roberts Dave Fontaine Jonathan Penner Jack Blessing Amy Ryan |
| Composer(s) |
Dan Foliart Alan Elliott |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 55 (7 unaired) |
| Production | |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
Brillstein-Grey Entertainment Christopher Thompson Productions (season 1) Columbia Pictures Television |
| Distributor | Sony Pictures Television |
| Release | |
| Original network |
ABC (1995–1996) NBC (1997–1998) |
| Original release | September 13, 1995 – May 25, 1998 |
The Naked Truth is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from 1995 to 1996, and on NBC from 1996 to 1998. The series stars Téa Leoni and Holland Taylor. The show took place at the office of a tabloid news publication.
Plot
Pulitzer Prize nominated photographer Nora Wilde (Téa Leoni) divorces her rich, philandering husband Leland Banks, asking for nothing in the settlement except the use of her maiden name. Broke and without prospects for employment, Nora seeks work at The Comet, a sleazy celebrity tabloid owned by Sir Rudolph Halley (Tim Curry) and run by ruthless Camilla Dane (Holland Taylor). Initially, Nora is repulsed by the depths to which she has to sink for her new job – she finds herself in demeaning situations such as stealing Anna Nicole Smith's urine to run a pregnancy test, and staking out the sewer for mutant alligators – but before long, she begins to feel at home. Nora's coworkers include egotistical Nicky Columbus (Jonathan Penner), a potential love interest; T.J. (Darryl Sivad), a humorless African-American man always clad in dark sunglasses; and Stupid Dave (Mark Roberts) who is mentally challenged. At home, Nora deals with deranged building manager Mr. Donner (Jack Blessing) and Chloe Banks (Amy Ryan), her best friend and former step-daughter.
In the second season, the show switched networks and was retooled. Meat-mogul Les Polanski (George Wendt) buys The Comet, intending to make it a respectable publication. Gone were the outlandishly zany antics from the first season, and Stupid Dave was now merely referred to as Dave. Chloe disappears without explanation, as does Mr. Donner (since Nora has a new apartment). Mary Tyler Moore (replacing Dyan Cannon from season one) and George Segal both make frequent guest appearances as Nora's parents in season two, eventually moving into the apartment across the hall.
Season three saw enormous changes. Camilla quits The Comet and moves on to rival tabloid The National Inquisitor, leaving most of the staff behind. By this point, she and Nora had become close, so she asks Nora to join her at the Inquisitor. Also moving to The Inquisitor was Dave, who was no longer mentally challenged. Their new coworkers include smug reporter Jake Sullivan (Tom Verica), photographer Suji (Amy Hill), studious fact checker Harris (Jim Rash), and Bradley Crosby (Chris Elliott), the self-proclaimed illegitimate son of Bing Crosby.
History
The series began on ABC and was canceled after a single season despite ranking at #25 with an 11.4 rating. For its second season, the series moved to NBC[1] with new cast members and a general retooling of the show away from its tabloid settings. The second season ranked at #4 with a 16.8 rating. Its third and final season plummeted to #74 and was canceled at the end of the season.
Episodes
Season 1
| # | Title | Original airdate | Guest-stars |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-1 | "Wilde Again" (Pilot) | September 13, 1995 | Anna Nicole Smith |
| 1-2 | "Bald Star in Hot Oil Fest!" | September 20, 1995 | Tom Hanks |
| 1-3 | "Elvis is Coming!" | September 27, 1995 | Larry Drake |
| 1-4 | "Woman Jokes While Husband Croaks!" | October 4, 1995 | Michael York |
| 1-5 | "Sex Crazed Sitcom Zombie Gropes Shutterbug (In Midnight Morgue Orgy)!" | October 18, 1995 | Rip Taylor |
| 1-6 | "Hero Pig Goes Hog Wild!" | November 1, 1995 | Robert Donner |
| 1-7 | "Real Life Henry Higgins Turns Dork Into Duke!" | November 8, 1995 | Tawny Kitaen |
| 1-8 | "Star and Comet Collide! Giant Bugs Invade!" | November 15, 1995 | Suzanne Somers, Betty White |
| 1-9 | "Girl Buys Soup While Woman Weds Ape!" | November 29, 1995 | George Segal, Dyan Cannon, Bob Saget |
| 1-10 | "Woman Weds Siamese Twins!" | December 5, 1995 | Victoria Jackson |
| 1-11 | "Comet Nails Star and Vice Versa!" | December 13, 1995 | D.W. Moffett |
| 1-12 | "Sewer Gators, Swordplay, Santa from Hell!" | December 20, 1995 | Tim Curry |
| 1-13 | "Shocking Tales of Hollywood Gunplay!" | January 3, 1996 | |
| 1-14 | "Woman Loses Space Alien, Finds God!" | January 10, 1996 | Steven Eckholdt |
| 1-15 | "Man Wakes Up With Stranger in Pants!" | January 17, 1996 | Sheryl Crow |
| 1-16 | "The Bubble Show!" | January 31, 1996 | Rob Lowe |
| 1-17 | "Women Rises in World, Falls on Face!" | February 7, 1996 | George Hamilton |
| 1-18 | "Sisters In Sex Triangle With Gazillionaire!" | February 14, 1996 | Tim Curry, Sally Kellerman |
| 1-19 | "Man Loses Load While Woman Can't Dump!" | February 21, 1996 | |
| 1-20 | "Hollywood Honors Male Prostitute!" | February 28, 1996 |
Season 2
| # | Title | Original airdate | Guest-stars |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-1 | "We're At NBC Now" | January 16, 1997 | Anna Nicole Smith |
| 2-2 | "Woman Gets Plastered, Star Gets Even" | January 23, 1997 | Tom Arnold |
| 2-3 | "Itching For A Cat" | January 30, 1997 | Mo Gaffney |
| 2-4 | "The Sister Show" | February 6, 1997 | Mary Tyler Moore, George Segal, Paula Cale |
| 2-5 | "A Year In the Life" | February 13, 1997 | Mary Tyler Moore, Billy Campbell |
| 2-6 | "The Dating Game (a.k.a. Roommates)" | February 20, 1997 | Paula Cale |
| 2-7 | "Comet Lands In Man's Garage" | February 27, 1997 | Robert Mailhouse |
| 2-8 | "The Scoop" | March 14, 1997 | Jon Lovitz |
| 2-9 | "The Birds" | March 21, 1997 | Stephen Tobolowsky |
| 2-10 | "The Debt" | March 28, 1997 | Carol Leifer |
| 2-11 | "The Parents" (1) | April 3, 1997 | Mary Tyler Moore, George Segal |
| 2-12 | "The Spa" (2) | April 3, 1997 | Mary Tyler Moore, George Segal |
| 2-13 | "The Source" | May 14, 1997 | Kenneth Mars |
Season 3
| # | Title | Original airdate | Guest-stars |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3-1 | "Things Change" | September 22, 1997 | Ian McShane |
| 3-2 | "Her Girl Friday" | September 29, 1997 | |
| 3-3 | "Bully For Dave" | October 6, 1997 | Norman Fell, Charo |
| 3-4 | "Liesl Weapon" | October 13, 1997 | Shannon Kenny |
| 3-5 | "Bridesface Revisited" | October 20, 1997 | Ian McShane, Morgan Fairchild, Garry Marshall |
| 3-6 | "We Almost Had Paris" | November 10, 1997 | John Tesh |
| 3-7 | "Look At Me! Look At Me!" | November 17, 1997 | Sarah Silverman |
| 3-8 | "Going Mein Way" | November 24, 1997 | Christopher Neame |
| 3-9 | "He Ain't Famous, He's My Brother" | December 8, 1997 | Frank Stallone, Bill Daily, Megan Mullally |
| 3-10 | "The Unsinkable Nora Wilde" | December 15, 1997 | |
| 3-11 | "Hooked on Heroine" | January 26, 1998 | Lyle Waggoner |
| 3-12 | "Women on the Verge of a Rhytidectomy" | February 2, 1998 | |
| 3-13 | "8 1⁄2" | February 9, 1998 | |
| 3-14 | "The Neighbor of Bath" | March 9, 1998 | Dom DeLuise |
| 3-15 | "Day of the Locos" | May 25, 1998 | |
| 3-16 | "Muddy for Nothing" | unaired | Conchata Ferrell |
| 3-17 | "Born to Be Wilde" | unaired | Gary Coleman |
| 3-18 | "The Seer and The Sucker" | unaired | |
| 3-19 | "Can't We All Just Get Along?" | unaired | |
| 3-20 | "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, Except With Different Names" (1) | unaired | Jack Coleman |
| 3-21 | "Jake or Fake?" (2) | unaired | Jack Coleman |
| 3-22 | "Up, Up, And Away" | unaired | Fred Stoller |
References
- ↑ Nick Sebek and Russell Wodell. "The Naked Truth" - Epguides.com
External links
- The Naked Truth at epguides.com
- The Naked Truth at the Internet Movie Database
- The Naked Truth at TV.com