P: Parenthood (1990 Series)

 

Parenthood (1990 Series)

A year after Ron Howard's hit film Parenthood hit the cinemas, a TV adaptation was made. Like the previously mentioned Ferris Bueller TV show, Parenthood debuted on NBC in August of 1990 and was cancelled just before Christmas, with one leftover episode airing late the following summer.  The now-defunct cable network Trio named Parenthood as part of their Brilliant But Cancelled series in 2005 (the episode below was recorded from that series).

Unlike the later Parenthood TV series, the 1990 one carried over most the same characters from the film, except the brother Larry (Tom Hulce's role in the movie) and his son. Two of the kids from the movie reprised their roles on TV, and one of the TV children was played by an actor who'd played Steve Martin's character as a youngster in the film. The cast of the series is so large I can't mention them all here, but there are few of note. Thora Birch, Leonardo DiCaprio, and David Arquette all had early roles on this series, with Arquette taking on the Keanu Reeves part from the movie, and DiCaprio standing in for Joaquin Phoenix. Other notable cast members included former St. Elsewhere star Ed Begley Jr., in the Steve Martin film role, and MTV personality Ken Ober (Remote Control) taking on the Rick Moranis part. Click the link above to see a side-by-side table of the TV cast and the movie cast.

Not to be confused with The Parent 'Hood, one of the first sitcoms to air on the now-defunct WB network.