Emeril (TV series)

Emeril is an American sitcom television series created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason, starring Emeril Lagasse as himself. It aired on Tuesday nights on NBC from September 25, 2001, to December 11, 2001, from 8:00-8:30 EST. A total of 10 half-hour episodes were produced over one season, but only 7 aired.

Emeril
GenreSitcom
Created byLinda Bloodworth-Thomason
Starring
ComposerBruce Miller
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes11 (3 unaired ep., 1 unaired pilot)
Production
Executive producers
  • Linda Bloodworth-Thomason
  • Harry Thomason
  • Emeril Lagasse
Producers
  • Adrienne Crow
  • Barbara Stoll
EditorLeo Papin
Camera setupMulti-camera
Running time22 minutes
Production companies
Release
Original networkNBC
Original releaseSeptember 25 (2001-09-25) –
December 11, 2001 (2001-12-11)

Cast

Development

Having lost her development deal at CBS, Linda Bloodworth-Thomason sought to build a show around TV chef Emeril Lagasse. ABC passed on the show, even though Lagasse was appearing at that time on Good Morning America as a food correspondent.

NBC had high hopes for the show, as it was created by the once-respected Bloodworth-Thomason, however the show was savaged by many critics, one calling it a train wreck. Lagasse was said to be hesitant to participate in the project.[1] The show was in the middle of filming when the September 11 terrorist attacks occurred;[2] the show was scheduled to premiere on September 18, a week after the attacks, but was delayed by a week. Despite this, the opening sequence still featured the World Trade Center towers standing. Those involved with the show blamed the continuous news coverage of the terrorist attacks as the reason the show was never able to find much of an audience. Others blamed its non-acting leading man and unfunny scripts.[3] The sitcom quietly went off the air by December 2001, with seven of its 10 episodes having been aired.

Bloodworth-Thomason had planned for the show to be "a very sophisticated, grown up comedy" that would "do for men what the women did for Designing Women."[4] However, a regime change at NBC left the show without any defenders at executive levels.[2]

After the poorly received first pilot,[5] the show was revamped turning the focus from Emeril's fictionalized home life to life on the set of a fictional version of Lagasse's Food Network show. A food stylist was added to the cast, as well as the additional casting of Robert Urich as Emeril's agent.[1] The show was produced by Mozark Studios in association with NBC Studios.[6]

The kitchen on the show was fully functional, and Lagasse would cook for the cast and staff.[2]

Episodes
No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code
1"Fat"Harry ThomasonDan Cohen & F.J. PrattSeptember 25, 2001 (2001-09-25)TBA
2"Fifteen Minutes"Harry ThomasonPamela NorrisOctober 2, 2001 (2001-10-02)TBA
3"Blind Dates"Harry ThomasonDavid NicholsOctober 9, 2001 (2001-10-09)TBA
4"Whose Life Is It Anyway?"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonOctober 16, 2001 (2001-10-16)TBA
5"The Sopranos Come to Dinner"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonOctober 23, 2001 (2001-10-23)TBA
6"Halloween"Harry ThomasonLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonOctober 30, 2001 (2001-10-30)TBA
7"The Sidekick"Harry ThomasonDan Cohen & F.J. PrattDecember 11, 2001 (2001-12-11)TBA
8"Snow Day"Harry ThomasonPamela NorrisUnairedTBA
9"The Retreat"TBDTBDUnairedTBA
10"One Man's Cornbread"TBDTBDUnairedTBA

Reception

The E! show 101 Biggest Celebrity Oops ranked the sitcom at No. 51.[7] The LA Times called the show "pretty dreadful."[5] USA Today was kinder to the show, giving it 2 1/2 out of 4 stars. The review cited the show's improvement, stating that it may yet be a great sitcom and "but it's moving in the right direction, notch by notch. Like many series of late, this sitcom for star cable chef Emeril Lagasse has gone through a near-total overhaul since its barely-a-work-in-progress pilot was previewed to general dismay".[8] The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present noted that show was at its best when Emeril was cooking.[9]

Awards

The show received an Emmy nomination for Art Direction For A Multi-Camera Series.[6]

The retooling of the show was parodied on the October 13, 2001 episode of Saturday Night Live.[10] The show was also referenced on Madtv in a sketch starring Christopher Titus.

References
  1. From Scratch:Inside the Food Network (2013) Allen Salkin
  2. Nemetz, Dave (August 17, 2017). "A Look Back at NBC's Infamous Flop Emeril, From Co-Star Carrie Preston".
  3. "This Looks Terrible: Emeril". Nathan Rabin's Happy Place. 19 April 2023.
  4. "Tuned In: NBC still stirring 'Emeril' sitcom". Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  5. ROSENBERG, HOWARD (25 September 2001). "NBC Sitcom 'Emeril' Missing Some Essential Ingredients". Retrieved 29 September 2016 – via LA Times.
  6. "2002 Emmy nominees – Part III". July 18, 2002.
  7. "101 Biggest Celebrity Oops". 2 March 2004. Retrieved 29 September 2016 – via IMDb.
  8. "'Emeril' has right recipe". Retrieved 29 September 2016.
  9. Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable Shows 1946-Present, (2007) Brooks, M and Marsh, E. Ballentine
  10. "Watch TV Funhouse: Fun with Real Audio - NBC Retools Emeril from Saturday Night Live on NBC.com". Retrieved 29 September 2016.
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