Carlton Your Doorman is a 1980 American television pilot for an animated spin-off of the live-action sitcom Rhoda (1974–1978) that was never picked up as a series. It originally aired as a "CBS Special Presentation" on May 21, 1980, and has never been rebroadcast.[1]

Carlton Your Doorman
Based on"Carlton, the Doorman" created by
James L. Brooks
Allan Burns
David Davis
Lorenzo Music
Written byLorenzo Music
Barton Dean
Directed byCharles Swenson
Fred Wolf
Voices ofLorenzo Music
Jack Somack
Lucille Meredith
Lurene Tuttle
Music byStephen Cohn
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes1
Production
ProducersLorenzo Music
Barton Dean
Running time23 minutes
Production companiesMurakami-Wolf-Swenson
MTM Enterprises
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseMay 21, 1980 (1980-05-21)
Related

Synopsis

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Carlton is a New York City doorman and a misfit who seeks to better himself and his position in society. In the pilot episode, Carlton seeks a replacement for his boss's wife's dog, Punkin, who died while in his care. He tries everything to replace the dog so his boss does not find out.[2]

It was revealed in this episode that Carlton was a relatively young man, with shoulder-length blond hair and mustache. He also has a gray cat named Gringo.

Production

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The episode relates the adventures of Carlton, the Doorman (voiced by Lorenzo Music), the previously off-screen character from Rhoda who was heard via the intercom but almost never seen (except only his arm would occasionally appear from doors and he was once shown dancing while wearing a gorilla mask). It was produced by MTM Enterprises and was the only animated production from MTM, although The Duck Factory – a sitcom set in an animation production company – included cartoon segments, and the closing credits of many MTM series included animated clothing and accessories superimposed on Mimsie the Cat.

It is also one of the last animated pilots to use a laugh track, which was a common practice in the 1960s and 1970s.

Voice cast

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  • Lorenzo Music as Carlton, the Doorman
  • Jack Somack as Charles Shaftman, Carlton's boss
  • Lucille Meredith as Mrs. Shaftman, Charles' wife
  • Lurene Tuttle as Carlton's mother
  • Kay Cole as Darlene, Carlton's girlfriend

Home media

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Shout! Factory released this episode as a bonus feature on Rhoda – Season Five: The Final Season DVD set on October 17, 2017.[3]

Accolades

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Primetime Emmy Awards

References

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  1. ^ Woolery, George W. (1989). Animated TV Specials: The Complete Directory to the First Twenty-Five Years, 1962-1987. Scarecrow Press. pp. 60–61. ISBN 0-8108-2198-2. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
  2. ^ Terrace, Vincent. Encyclopedia of Television Pilots, 1937–2012, retrieved August 23, 2015.
  3. ^ "Rhoda - Delayed Date, New Bonus Item for 'Season 5: The Final Season' DVD release is pushed back due to quality issues that Shout! wants to fix'". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Retrieved 2017-08-03.
  4. ^ Television Academy
  5. ^ BCDB.com[dead link]
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