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Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental.^[1] Post-punk laid the groundwork for alternative rock by broadening the range of punk and underground music, incorporating elements of Krautrock (particularly the use of synthesizers and extensive repetition), Jamaican dub music (specifically in bass guitar), American funk, studio experimentation, and even punk's traditional polar opposite, disco, into the genre.

It found a firm place in the 1980s independent scene, and led to the development of genres such as gothic rock, industrial music, and alternative rock.

Origin of the term[link]

The term "post punk" was used in 1977 by Sounds to describe Siouxsie and the Banshees.^[2] In 1980 critic Greil Marcus referred to "Britain's postpunk pop avant-garde" in a July 24, 1980 Rolling Stone article. He applied the phrase to such bands as Gang of Four, The Raincoats, and Essential Logic, which he wrote were "sparked by a tension, humor, and sense of paradox plainly unique in present-day pop music."^[3]

History[link]

During the first wave of punk, roughly spanning 1974–1978, artists such as Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Damned, Ramones, Patti Smith and The Saints began to challenge the current styles and conventions of rock music by stripping the musical structure down to a few basic chords and progressions with an emphasis on speed. Examples of post-punk outfits include Public Image Ltd, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Joy Division and New Order, The Fall, Magazine, The Cure, Gang of Four, Wire, Subway Sect, The Pop Group, The Birthday Party, Crass, Devo, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Teardrop Explodes, Bauhaus, The Psychedelic Furs, Killing Joke, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Sisters of Mercy, The Lords of the New Church, The Sound, Neu Electrikk. Several bands formed in the wake of traditional punk rock groups: Magazine was formed by Howard Devoto, formerly of Buzzcocks, for instance, and Public Image Ltd derived from the Sex Pistols. A list of predecessors to the post-punk genre of music might include Television, whose album Marquee Moon, although released in 1977 (and recorded in 1976) at the height of punk, is universally considered post-punk in style. Other groups, such as The Clash, remained predominantly punk in nature, yet were inspired by the experimentalism of post-punk, most notably in their album Sandinista!.

Championed by late-night BBC DJ John Peel and record label/shop Rough Trade (among others, including Factory, Cherry Red, Mute, Glass, Fast, Postcard, Industrial, Axis/4AD and Falling A), "post-punk" could arguably be said to encompass many diverse groups and musicians.

Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth, walking over her bass guitar.

Around 1977, in North America, the New York No Wave was also tied in with the emerging eurocentric post-punk movement. Bands and artists included Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, Glenn Branca, Rhys Chatham, Mars, James Chance and the Contortions, DNA, Bush Tetras, Theoretical Girls, Swans, and Sonic Youth. No Wave focused more on performance art than actual coherent musical structure. The Brian Eno-produced No New York compilation is considered the quintessential testament to the history of No Wave.^[4]

The original post-punk movement ended as the bands associated with the movement turned away from its aesthetics, just as post-punk bands had originally left punk rock behind in favor of new sounds. Many post-punk bands, most notably The Cure and Siouxsie and the Banshees, evolved into gothic rock and became identified with the goth subculture. Some shifted to a more commercial New Wave sound (such as Gang of Four),^[5][6] while others were fixtures on American college radio and became early examples of alternative rock. In the United States driven by MTV and modern rock radio stations a number of post-punk acts had an influence on or became part of the Second British Invasion of "New Music" there.^{[7][8][9][10]}

Post-punk revival[link]

The turn of the 21st century saw a post-punk revival in British and American alternative rock, which soon started appearing in other countries, as well. The earliest sign of a revival was the emergence of various underground bands in the mid-'90s. However, the first commercially successful bands - The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand, Interpol and Editors - surfaced in the late 1990s to early 2000s. Modern post-punk is more commercially successful than in the 1970s and 1980s.

See also[link]

• List of post-punk bands
• Art punk
• Cassette culture
• New Music (music industry)
• Ultra

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• Post-Punk at Allmusic
• Julian Cope's Post-punk essay and sampler
• Hour-long public radio interview with Simon Reynolds, author of Rip It Up and Start Again: Post-Punk 1978–1984 on The Sound of Young America
• Simon Reynolds' Rip It Up and Start Again: Post-Punk 1978–1984, Fast 'n' Bulbous review

Further reading[link]

• Hebdige, Dick. 1979. Subculture: The Meaning of Style. London: Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-415-03949-9
• Heylin, Clinton. 2007 Babylon's Burning: From Punk to Grunge. (Initially issued on Viking). Reissued in 2008. 720 pages. Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-102431-8
• McNeil, Legs and Gillian McCain. 1997. Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk. London: Little, Brown Book Group. ISBN 978-0-349-10880-3
• Reynolds, Simon. 2006. Rip it Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978 - 1984. London: Faber&Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-21570-6

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The Gang of Four (simplified Chinese: 四人帮; traditional Chinese: 四人幫; pinyin: Sìrén bàng) was the name given to a political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–76) and were subsequently charged with a series of treasonous crimes. The members consisted of Mao Zedong's last wife Jiang Qing, the leading figure of the group, and her close associates Zhang Chunqiao, Yao Wenyuan, and Wang Hongwen.

The Gang of Four effectively controlled the power organs of the Communist Party of China through the latter stages of the Cultural Revolution, although it remains unclear which major decisions were made through Mao Zedong and carried out by the Gang, and which were the result of the Gang of Four's own planning.

The Gang of Four, together with disgraced Communist general Lin Biao, were labeled the two major "counter-revolutionary forces" of the Cultural Revolution and officially blamed by the Chinese government for the worst excesses of the societal chaos that ensued during the ten years of turmoil. Their downfall in a coup d'état on October 6, 1976, a mere month after Mao's death, brought about major celebrations on the streets of Beijing and marked the end of a turbulent political era in China.

Formation[link]

The group was led by Jiang Qing, and consisted of three of her close associates, Zhang Chunqiao, Yao Wenyuan, and Wang Hongwen. Two other men who were already dead in 1976, Kang Sheng and Xie Fuzhi, were named as having been part of the "Gang". Chen Boda and Mao Yuanxin, the latter being Mao's nephew, were also considered some of the Gang's closer associates.

Most Western accounts consider that the actual leadership of the Cultural Revolution consisted of a wider group, referring predominantly to the members of the Central Cultural Revolution Group. Most prominent was Lin Biao, until his purported flight from China and death in a plane crash in 1971. Chen Boda is often classed as a member of Lin's faction rather than Jiang Qing's.^[1]

Role[link]

The removal of this group from power is sometimes considered to have marked the end of the Cultural Revolution, which had been launched by Mao in 1966 as part of his power struggle with leaders such as Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping and Peng Zhen. Mao placed Jiang Qing, who before 1966 had not taken a public political role, in charge of the country’s cultural apparatus. Zhang, Yao and Wang were party leaders in Shanghai who had played leading roles in securing that city for Mao during the Cultural Revolution.

Around the time of the death of Lin Biao, the Cultural Revolution began to lose impetus. The new commanders of the People's Liberation Army demanded that order be restored in light of the dangerous situation along the border with the Soviet Union (see Sino-Soviet split). The Premier, Zhou Enlai, who had accepted the Cultural Revolution but never fully supported it, regained his authority, and used it to bring Deng Xiaoping back into the Party leadership at the 10th Party Congress in 1973. Liu Shaoqi had meanwhile died in prison in 1969.

Near the end of Mao's life, a power struggle occurred between the Gang of Four and the alliance of Deng Xiaoping, Zhou Enlai, and Ye Jianying.

Downfall[link]

It is now officially claimed by the Communist Party of China that Mao in his last year turned against Jiang Qing and her associates, and that after his death on 9 September 1976, they attempted to seize power (the same allegation made against Lin Biao in 1971). Even decades later, it is impossible to know the full truth of these events.

It does appear that their influence was in decline before Mao's death: when Zhou Enlai died in January 1976, he was succeeded not by one of the radicals but by the unknown Hua Guofeng. In April 1976, Hua was officially appointed Premier of the State Council. Upon Mao's death Hua was named Communist Party chairman as well.

The "Gang" had arranged for Deng Xiaoping's purge in April 1976 (however, he would return and by 1978 become the real power of the Party). They hoped that the key military leaders Wang Dongxing and Chen Xilian would support them, but it seems that Hua won the Army over to his side. On 6 October 1976, Hua had the four leading radicals and a number of their lesser associates arrested. A massive media campaign was then launched against them, dubbing them the Gang of Four and blaming them for all the excesses of the Cultural Revolution.

Han Suyin gives a detailed account of their overthrow:

An emergency session of the Politburo was to take place in the Great Hall of the People that evening. Their presence was required. Since Wang Dongxing had been their ally, they did not suspect him... As they passed through the swinging doors into the entrance lobby, they were apprehended and led off in handcuffs. A special 8341 unit then went to Madam Mao's residence at No. 17 Fisherman's Terrace and arrested her. That night Mao Yuanxin was arrested in Manchuria, and the propagandists of the Gang of Four in Peking University and in newspaper offices were taken into custody. All was done with quiet and efficiency. In Shanghai, the Gang's supporters received a message to come to Beijing "for a meeting". They came and were arrested. Thus, without shedding a drop of blood, the plans of the Gang of Four to wield supreme power were ended.

—^[2]

Although not referred to as such in China because the Communist Party remained in control, this was effectively a coup d'état. Beginning on 21 October, nationwide denunciations of the Gang began, which culminated in the December releases of files related to the Gang's alleged crimes to the public. Celebrations were prominent and not limited to the streets of Beijing and other major cities.

Aftermath[link]

Immediately after the coup d’état, Hua Guofeng, who appeared to be Mao's designated successor, Marshall Ye Jianying, and economic czars Chen Yun and Li Xiannian formed the core of the next party leadership.^[3] These three, together with the newly rehabilitated Deng Xiaoping and bodyguard coup leader Wang Dongxing were elected party Vice Chairmen at the August 1977 11th National Party Congress.^[4] At the politburo level, the membership of all four living marshals, seven other generals and at least five others with close military ties reflected the deep concern for national stability.

Trial[link]

In 1981, the four deposed leaders were subjected to a show trial and convicted of anti-party activities. During the trial, Jiang Qing in particular was extremely defiant, protesting loudly and bursting into tears at some points. She was the only member of the Gang of Four who bothered to argue on her behalf. The defence's argument was that she obeyed the orders of Chairman Mao Zedong at all times. Zhang Chunqiao refused to admit any wrong as well. Yao Wenyuan and Wang Hongwen expressed repentance and confessed their alleged crimes.

The prosecution separated political errors from actual crimes. Among the latter were the usurpation of state power and party leadership; the persecution of some 750,000 people, 34,375 of whom died during the period 1966-76.^[5] The official records of the trial have not yet been released.

Jiang Qing and Zhang Chunqiao received death sentences that were later commuted to life imprisonment, while Wang Hongwen and Yao Wenyuan were given life and twenty years in prison, respectively. They were all later released. All members of the Gang of Four have since died; Jiang Qing committed suicide in 1991, Wang Hongwen died in 1992, and Zhang Chunqiao and Yao Wenyuan died in 2005.

Supporters of the Gang of Four, including Chen Boda and Mao Yuanxin, were also sentenced.

"Little Gang of Four"[link]

In the struggle between the conservative Hua Guofeng's clique and the one of Deng Xiaoping, a new term emerged, pointing to Hua's four closest collaborators, Wang Dongxing, Wu De, Ji Dengkui,and Chen Xilian. In 1980, they were charged with "grave errors" in the struggle against the Gang of Four and demoted from the Political Bureau to mere Central Committee membership.

See also[link]

• Soviet Union's Anti-Party Group

References[link]

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The Nanny is an American television sitcom originally broadcast 1993–1999, starring Fran Drescher as Fran Fine, a Jewish Queens native who becomes the nanny of three children from the New York/British high society.

Created and executive produced by Drescher and her then-husband Peter Marc Jacobson, The Nanny took much of its inspiration from Drescher's personal life growing up in Queens, involving names and characteristics based on her relatives and friends. The show earned a Rose d'Or and one Emmy Award, out of a total of thirteen nominations, and Drescher was twice nominated for a Golden Globe and an Emmy. The sitcom has also spawned several foreign adaptations, loosely inspired by the original scripts.

Plot[link]

Jewish-American Fran Fine, fresh out of her job as a bridal consultant in her fiance's shop, first appears on the door step of Broadway producer Maxwell Sheffield (Charles Shaughnessy) peddling cosmetics, and quickly stumbles upon the opportunity to become the nanny for his three children. Soon Fran, with her off-beat nurturing and no-nonsense honesty, touches the whole family as she gives the prim-and-proper Maxwell and his children a dose of 'Queens logic,' helping them to become a healthy, happy family; a family that she later fully joins when she becomes engaged and then married to Maxwell. She then adds to this family of five when she and Maxwell have fraternal twins.

Other characters include sardonic butler Niles (Daniel Davis), and Maxwell's socialite business partner C. C. Babcock (Lauren Lane), who views Fran with jealousy and skepticism.

Cast[link]

Main cast[link]

The Nanny maintained an ensemble cast, keeping the same set of characters for its entire six-season run. Numerous secondary characters and love interests for these characters appeared intermittently to complement storylines that generally revolved around this core group.

Guest stars[link]

Although largely operating around the main ensemble cast, The Nanny featured an enormous number of guest stars over the years. Notable repeat guests included Lainie Kazan as Fran's paternal aunt Freida Fine,^[2] Steve Lawrence as Fran's never before seen father Morty Fine,^[2] Pamela Anderson as Fran's nemesis Heather Biblow,^[2] Ray Charles as Yetta's fiancé Sammy,^[2] Spalding Gray as Dr. Jack Miller,^[2] Fred Stoller for the frequently featured pharmacist Fred,^[2] and Andrew Levitas as Maggie's boyfriend.^[2]

Some celebrities guested as characters in single episodes, such as John Astin, Roseanne as Fran's cousin Sheila, and Joan Collins as Maxwell's stepmother, Robert Vaughn as Maxwell's father. Others appeared as themselves, primarily in connection with Maxwell's business relations, such as Bob Barker, Chevy Chase, Billy Ray Cyrus, Lesley-Anne Down, Erik Estrada, Dan Aykroyd, Joe Lando, Richard Kline, Bette Midler and Eydie Gorme, Jane Seymour, Cloris Leachman, Elizabeth Taylor, Elton John, Jason Alexander, Lamb Chop and Shari Lewis, Andrew Dice Clay, Lynn Redgrave, Hugh Grant, Margaret Cho, Jeanne Cooper, Melody Thomas Scott, Eric Braeden, Shemar Moore, Joshua Morrow and Hunter Tylo; media personalities Roger Clinton, Jr., Alicia Machado, Rita Moreno (who would later play Fran's mother, Dori, on her later series, Happily Divorced), Jay Leno, David Letterman, and Donald Trump; and musicians Lisa Loeb, Eartha Kitt, Brian Setzer, Celine Dion. Rapper Coolio, Whoopi Goldberg, Steve Lawrence and Rosie O'Donnell guest starred as both characters and themselves in different episodes. Two-time "Survivor" Jonathan Penner appeared as Fran's former fiance, Danny Imperialli. James Marsden appeared as Maggie's boyfriend, Eddie, and Telma Hopkins appeared as Fran's "mother" in the episode Fran's Roots. Scott Baio made an appearance as a rookie doctor who was a former schoolmate of Fran's (Fran was his first patient...ever). Jon Stewart portrayed a Jewish love interest of Fran's until it was discovered at a family wedding that the two were cousins; on the June 29, 2011 airing of The Daily Show, Stewart stated he agreed to make an appearance after receiving a personal call from Fran Drescher.^[3]

Marvin Hamlisch appeared as Fran's former high school music teacher, a Marvin Hamlisch look-alike. Fran Drescher also reprised her role of Bobbi Fleckman from the 1984 film This Is Spinal Tap and made a cameo appearance as actor "Fran Drescher" in the third to last episode. Charles Shaughnessy had a double role as a foreign sultan in one episode. Drescher's real-life parents, Morty and Sylvia, initially appeared as a couple in the waiting room of Grace's therapist and made subsequent appearances as Fran's Uncle Stanley and Aunt Rose; her Pomeranian Chester appeared as C.C.'s pet in more than a dozen episodes. Renée Taylor's husband, actor Joseph Bologna, and their son Gabriel Bologna, had minor roles as doctors on the show. Ray Romano appeared as Fran's former high school classmate Ray Barone, linking The Nanny with his comedy Everybody Loves Raymond. Tom Bergeron appeared as himself, the host of Hollywood Squares, in an episode in which Maxwell appeared as a star on the show's board as a replacement for Andrew Lloyd Webber. Tyne Daly appeared as a fellow nanny facing forced retirement. David Letterman made an uncredited appearance during a fantasy sequence, where Fran describes how she exaggerated her fame to impress a pen pal.

Theme song and opening credits[link]

Theme song[link]

The show's original theme was the song "If My Friends Could See Me Now", performed by Gwen Verdon from the 1966 Broadway musical Sweet Charity,^[4] but this theme was scrapped after the pilot episode, and it was only heard in the pilot episode in the original CBS run (all syndicated airings of the episode replaced the theme, and removed any mention of it in the closing credits).

The second theme song, "The Nanny Named Fran", which was written and performed by Ann Hampton Callaway and her sister Liz Callaway, would be the theme song for the remainder of the series (and would replace the former theme in syndicated reruns of the pilot episode). Two instrumental versions of the theme song were used in the closing credits, one that is a direct instrumental version of the theme (used only in a few season one episodes), and another that sounds slightly different from the theme song (although the end of the closing theme features an instrumental portion taken almost directly from the main title theme).

Opening credits[link]

The opening sequence for the pilot featured Fran in front of a white background, getting herself made up going to work as the nanny; at the end of the sequence, it shows Fran heading toward a stroller and a lipstick print appears to the above right.

Along with the change of the theme song from "If My Friends Could See Me Now" to "The Nanny Named Fran" came the change of the opening sequence, which like the theme, describes (with the main characters in animated form) the story of how Fran Fine went from being fired from the bridal shop by Danny Imperiali to becoming the nanny of the Sheffield children. The opening sequence remained the same even though Renée Taylor, Ann Guilbert and Rachel Chagall began to be credited as "starring" in the in-show credits beginning in season five. The only change to the sequence was in season six when producer Kathy Landsberg was promoted to co-executive producer of the series as her producer credit was moved to the in-show credits, while the creator credits of Drescher and Jacobson, and the developer credits of Sternin and Fraser were added in its place.

The animated opening sequence begins with Fran Fine walking into the bridal shop, only to be kicked out by Danny Imperalli. Then, she hitches a ride in a cab, crosses the bridge from Queens, New York to Manhattan and arrives at the Sheffield mansion. Maxwell Sheffield opens the door and observes Fran. Then, he pulls her inside and she falls into the flower pot. Niles dusts her off and puts a cap on her head that reads Nanny. Fran whistles for Maggie, Brighton and Gracie and the four of them form a conga line. C. C. arrives at the door and Fran bumps the door with her hip to close it in her face. Finally, the Sheffields, Niles and Fran gather on the couch for a group picture similar to that of the One Day at a Time series opening.

Production[link]

Development[link]

It was not until 1991 – the same year Drescher decided to visit friend Twiggy Lawson and her family in London, England, that the pair came up with early drafts for The Nanny. Inspired by a culture-clash shopping tour with Lawson's teenage daughter which saw Drescher actually functioning in a less parental but "humorous [...] kind of Queens logic, self-serving advice" mode,^[5] she convinced her husband starting work of what she called "doing a spin on [the 1965 film] The Sound of Music."^[5] However, it was not until a transatlantic flight to Paris that Drescher persuaded fellow passenger Jeff Sagansky, at the time president of CBS Corporation, for whom she and Lawson had starred in the short-lived TV series Princesses, to meet with her and Jacobson when Drescher returned to Los Angeles.^[6]

Back in Los Angeles, the pair pitched their idea to Tim Flack and Joe Voci, both in comedy development at CBS.^[5] Sagansky brought in experienced producers Robert Sternin and Prudence Fraser,^[5] another husband-and-wife team with whom Drescher had worked before while guesting on Who's the Boss? in 1985 and 1986. Interested, both couples teamed up to write the script for the pilot together, creating a character with the intention to build off Drescher's image. "Our business strategy was to create a show that was going to complement our writing, complement me as a talent,"^[5] Drescher said in a 1997 interview with the Hollywood Reporter. As a result, the characters draw deeply on the Drescher family, including Fran Fine's parents, Sylvia and Morty, and grandmother Yetta, who all were named after their real-life counterparts.^[7]

Crew[link]

7 East 75th Street on the Upper East Side of New York City was used for the exterior shots of the Sheffield townhouse.

Most of all early The Nanny episodes were shot in front of a live studio audience on Stage 6 at the Culver Studios generally on Friday nights. During later seasons the taping was no longer performed before an audience due to the complexities of the fantasy sequences, costume changes, etc. On Mondays, the cast went through the script as a table read. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, they rehearsed before the series' producers and executives. And, on Thursdays and Fridays, the series was shot using a multi-camera set up in front of a live studio audience.^[8]

Nearly 100 crew members were involved in the shooting of a single episode.^[9] Although Drescher, Fraser, Jacobson and Sternin, the show's only executive producers for the first four seasons, coordinated "pretty much everything" at the beginning,^[9] according to Sternin, they eventually found their niche and in the following years, Drescher and Sternin decided to focus on writing story outlines, while Jacobson presided over the writing team, and Fraser observed the run-throughs.^[9] The four of them were later joined by Frank Lombardi, Caryn Lucas and Diane Wilk, who served as the series' executive producer throughout the fifth and sixth season respectively.^[2]

Humor[link]

The comedy in The Nanny was formulated with many running gags, which contributed heavily to the success of the series. Much of this formula was character-based, with all major characters possessing a specific trait or quirks that provided a source of parody for other characters. The conflicting elements of each character's own comedy were often played off against one another (Fran and Maxwell, Niles and C.C., Maggie and Brighton). Occasionally the characters would break the fourth wall and comment on the situations themselves, or Fran would comment to the audience or look into the camera. Other running gags are the many references to Beatles songs and the musicals Fiddler On The Roof and My Fair Lady. Most of the humor Fran uses is aimed toward a Jewish audience. She makes references to Yiddish words and teaches the Sheffield children to be stereotypical Jews (to never pay retail price, to go after men like doctors, etc.) Much of this humor is featured in scenes including her mother Sylvia.

At times, they would also make fun of the star's previous careers or real life off-screen time. This was noticeable when Yetta saw her reflection in the mirror and thought she was seeing Millie Helper from The Dick Van Dyke Show (the role that Guilbert played on that long-running show), Maxwell remembering how he wanted to hire a former cast member from Days of Our Lives but thought he wasn't "British" enough (a reference to Charles Shaughnessy's former series), C.C. using props to hide Lauren Lane's real-life pregnancy at the time, and Fran meeting her idol—Fran Drescher—who gave her a hint on what she (the TV Fran) was going to do in the next scene in the second-to-last episode in the last season.

More running gags include Fran's frequent references to classic TV sitcoms (Such as Gilligan's Island and Bewitched) and her many eccentric family members (some never shown, most of them dying); Fran lying about her age—especially to men; Maxwell fighting through his rivalry with actual Broadway producer Andrew Lloyd Webber; Sylvia loving food in excess; Niles delivering sharp one-liners, often aimed at C.C.; C.C. cold-heartedly reacting to situations that are usually sentimental to others (e.g. the death of Bambi's mother); Gracie psychologically analyzing various situations; Niles getting fired because he embarrasses Maxwell or gives Fran ideas that Maxwell extremely dislikes (like the time when Niles suggested that Max, C.C. and Fran go to the Streisand house); Fran and Val lacking intelligence and obsessing over material possessions (e.g. clothes); Frequent references to Fran's flamboyant wardrobe and her "big hair"; Fran frequently mentioning shopping at Loehmann's; Yetta making disconnected comments revealing her senility; Fran criticizing Maxwell's and Niles' reserved and inhibited British nature; Brighton morphing into a hopeless dork; Fran's attraction to Jewish males; Maxwell passing up the incredibly popular musical, Cats, then becoming upset when such an idiotic idea became a success; Niles' last name never being revealed; C.C. covering her long-unrevealed name (finally given as Chastity Claire in the series finale); C.C. failing to remember the names of the Sheffield children (even convinced by Niles in one episode that there was another child Sydney; note: she didn't have trouble remembering in the early seasons); Sylvia constantly nagging Fran to get married; Fran finding solace in food when she's depressed; Fran's father, Morty often featured in the series but never actually seen (until portrayed by Steve Lawrence in a few later episodes); Morty's only physical trait being the fact that he is bald, in which he is always comically losing his wig, and has several head mannequins to hold different wigs; Niles offering obvious hints to Maxwell and Fran about them realizing they should be together and hints from each other; C.C. pining over her unrequited romantic interest in Maxwell; and Fran obsessing with Barbra Streisand. There was also the occasional tryst between Niles and C.C., contrasting with their typical open disdain for each other, which was actually love. Season 4 featured a running gag where both Fran and Maxwell kept secret from the other household members "The Thing" (the fact that in the season 3 finale Maxwell tells Fran he loves her, but then in the Season 4 premiere he takes it back). It's also following "The Thing" that whenever Maxwell makes comments denying he has feelings for Fran, she is temporary "paralyzed" (she can't feel her arm, her entire left side shuts down, etc.).

In addition, there is also a great deal of physical comedy in The Nanny including exaggerated falls and chases. Drescher's facial expressions, when shocked or surprised, can also be seen as reminiscent of Lucille Ball's portrayals of Lucy Ricardo and Lucy Carmichael. The parallels were suggested in a few episodes, where an exasperated Mr. Sheffield refers to Fran as "Mrs Carmichael," and asks in another: "Mr. Mooney fire you from the bank again?" Another Lucy reference (in which the family travels to Hollywood) is when he alludes to Fran and "Ethel" stealing John Wayne's footprints, and again when Maxwell says "Miss Fine, you got' some 'splaining to do!" like Ricky Ricardo often said to Lucy Ricardo. The episode that featured a visit from Elizabeth Taylor began with Maxwell and Niles trying to hide the visit from Fran ("Boys, boys, boys. Now do you think my mother gave birth to a dummy 25 years ago?") followed by her gripe "You never introduce me to any of the stars that you know; I've got a good mind to take Little Ricky and... oh. Never mind." Also, there was a reference from the episode of I Love Lucy called "Ricky has Labor Pains" where, Lucy and Ethel dress up like men and go to Ricky's daddy shower. In an episode of The Nanny, Fran sees a man watching I Love Lucy on TV and the theme song plays and she gets a sneaky look on her face and she goes to Mr. Sheffield's mens only club dressed as a man. Viewers for Quality Television calls The Nanny "the 90s version of I Love Lucy. It was well written and entertaining".^[10]

Impact[link]

Reception[link]

The show performed poorly its first year. When it was nearly canceled, Sagansky stepped in as its champion. According to Jacobson: "At all those affiliate meetings, he used to say, 'Stick by The Nanny!' He knew it was something special."^[11] The sitcom was the first new show delivered to CBS for the 1993 season and the highest-tested pilot at the network in years.^[5] The series was also hugely successful internationally, especially in Australia,^[11] where it was one of the highest rated programs during the mid-late 1990s.

Although soon emerging as a favorite among the company, sponsors questioned whether the writers had ventured too far in terms of ethnicity and Drescher acted too obviously Jewish.^[5] The actress, however, declined to change Fran Fine into an Italian American: "On TV, you have to work fast, and the most real, the most rooted in reality to me is Jewish. I wanted to do it closest to what I knew."^[12] By contrast, the producers came to the conclusion that to oppose her should be a family of British origin, so "she wouldn't come across as Jewish so much as the American you were rooting for," Sternin explained. "The idea was to make her the American girl who happens to be Jewish rather than the Jewish girl working for the WASPs."^[5]

Ratings[link]

Note: Ratings for the first four seasons are for household ratings, not viewership figures.

Reunion special[link]

Syndication[link]

The show began off-network syndication in September 1998, distributed by Columbia TriStar Television Distribution (now Sony Pictures Television Distribution) on various broadcast television networks in the U.S. The show had aired on Lifetime Television from 2000 until 2008. The show can be seen currently on Nick at Nite in the United States, The Hallmark Channel in the Philippines, Super RTL and VOX in Germany, and Go! and TV1 in Australia. On February 8, 2010, Fran Drescher hosted a week-long marathon of The Nanny, titled "Valentine Schmalentine", on Nick at Nite. The success of the stunt led to Fran hosting "Falling for Fran," a similar week-long Valentine's Day marathon in February 2011. On August 2, 2010, The Nanny began airing on TV Land, commencing with a week-long marathon. On January 1, 2011, The Nanny began airing on Antenna TV, a new digital broadcast network. On August 16, 2011, "The Nanny" began airing on Logo (TV channel).

International syndication[link]

Outside of North America, The Nanny is broadcast in various other countries and television networks, each with their own schedule for the series. In the United Kingdom, the entire series aired on the digital network Living. In France, the show was broadcast and rebroadcast the same multi-and was a huge success on the channel M6. The French title is "Une Nounou d'enfer" (A Nanny from hell/wonderful). The character of Fran Fine is very famous in France.

Other countries where The Nanny airs include the following:

International syndication
Country / Region	Name	Television Network	Dubbing / Subtitles
Austria	Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")	ORF1 (2005),[18] ATV (2006–2010)	German
Australia	The Nanny	Network Ten (1995–1999), Nine Network (2008–2009), Go! (2009–present), GEM (2010–present), TV1	None
Belgium	The Nanny	Eén, Vt4, vijftv	Dutch subtitles
Belgium	Une Nounou d'enfer (English: "A Wonderful Nanny")	Plug RTL (2011–2012)	French
Brazil	Nanny	Rede Record, Rede 21, SET	Portuguese dubbing
Catalonia	La Tata (English: "The Nanny")	TV3	Catalan dubbing
Croatia	Dadilja (English: "Nanny")	RTL Televizija[19]	Croatian subtitles
Czech Republic	Chůva k pohledání (English: "Nanny")	TV Prima[20]	Czech dubbing
Denmark	Alletiders barnepige (English: "Full time nanny")	TV3[21]	Danish subtitles
Estonia	Nanny	TV3	Estonian subtitles
Finland	Nanny	Nelonen	Finnish subtitles
France	Une nounou d'enfer (English: "A Wonderful Nanny")	M6,	French
Germany	Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")[22]	VOX (2002–2010), Super RTL (2007–present), RTL (1995–2002), FOX Germany (2010)	German dubbing
Greece	Ntanta amesou draseos (English: "Urgent nanny")	Mega, Alpha, Macedonia TV	Greek subtitles
Hungary	A dadus (English: "The Nanny")	TV2, RTL Klub, Cool TV	Hungarian
Israel	Nanny	Channel 3	Hebrew subtitles
Italy	La tata (English: "The Nanny")	Canale 5 (1995), Italia 1 (1996–2000)	Italian dubbing
Lithuania	Auklė (English: "Nanny")	TV3	Lithuanian dubbing
Malaysia	The Nanny	TV2, Astro	Bahasa Malaysia subtitles
Netherlands	The Nanny	RTL 5	Dutch subtitles
Norway	Nanny	TV3	Norwegian subtitles
Poland	Pomoc domowa (English: "House helper")	TV Puls, Polsat, TVN7	Polish
Portugal	Competente e Descarada (English: "Competent and shameless")	TVI	?
Romania	Dădaca (English: "Nanny")	Pro TV, Pro Cinema	?
Russia	Няня (English: "Nanny")	Domashny, ДТВ	Russian dubbing
Sweden	Nanny	TV3	Swedish subtitles
Switzerland	Die Nanny (English: "The Nanny")	SF2 (2006–2008)	German
Thailand	The Nanny	Hallamrk, TrueVisions	Thai
United Kingdom	The Nanny	Living TV	None
Canada	The Nanny	TVTropolis	None

DVD releases[link]

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has released seasons 1, 2 & 3 of The Nanny on DVD in regions 1, 2 & 4. Season 3 was released on March 17, 2009 in Region 1, almost 3 years after the release of season 2.^[23]

Awards[link]

Foreign adaptations[link]

Countries with local versions

The Nanny was shown in more than eighty countries worldwide. In addition, several local versions of the show have been produced in other countries. These shows follow the original scripts very closely, but with minor alterations in order to adapt to their respective country's culture. The remake in Russia was so popular that some original American writers were commissioned to write new scripts after all original episodes were remade.^[24]

See also[link]

• List of television show franchises

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: The Nanny

• Official website
• The Nanny at the Internet Movie Database
• The Nanny at TV.com

v t e Nick at Nite Current programs Everybody Hates Chris Family Matters Friends George Lopez The Brady Bunch The Nanny That '70s Show Yes, Dear Previously-aired programs See List of programs broadcast by Nick at Nite Original series Fatherhood (2004–2005) Glenn Martin, DDS (2009–2011) Hi-Jinks (2005–2006) The Search for the Funniest Mom in America (2005–2007) Related articles Nickelodeon TeenNick TV Land Book Television portal / Nickelodeon portal