Now days, most people only recognize Mr. Belvedere as a frequent butt of Family Guy jokes. On the surface, it was just another 80s sitcom, one of the founding members of ABC's classic TGIF line-up, but for those of us who have come to love this show, we realize that it was so much more.Mr. Belvedere is an English butler, who was created in a 1947 novel, starred in a 1948 movie, and modernized for television in 1985. The show centers on Lynn Belvedere (Christopher Hewitt), a British Royal butler, who has been hired to work for a middle class family in suburban Pittsburgh. Most of the time, it's your every day run of the mill sitcom, but what made this show extremely different, was it's very special episodes, which occurred several times a season.The show ran from 1985-1990, yet it still managed to be the first television show to tackle issues such as AIDS, bullying, stranger danger, elder rights, and even homosexuality. Often times the family would come into conflict and face three choice, Mrs. Owens, who always does the right things, Mr. Owens, who never does the right thing, and Mr. Belvedere the voice of reason that lies somewhere in the middle.As for the cast, they are as unique and strange a mix as ever seen on television. The main sources of comedy come from Mr. Belvedere (played by Christopher Hewitt, between known for his performances on Broadway than anything else) and his dealings with Wesley T. Owens (Brice Beckham), who is as twisted and psychotic as any sitcom child could ever be. Mr. Belvedere has frequent run-ins' and a contentious relation with head of the household, George (played by Bob Uecker, a former baseball player), which usually lead to some quick one liners, and even more laughs.Mr. Belvedere was really ahead of it's time and extremely underrated as far as television history is concerned. It may forever be remembered as that show with the butler, that led into Full House, but for it me, it has always been an image of how the not so perfect family should function and work together. It is a mixture of laughter, tears, and life lessons that is as relevant today as it was back then.

I recently got familiar again with this 1980s sitcom after watching several episodes in the past week. The middle-class Owens family from 'Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania' couldn't have scored a better housekeeper than a former British butler. After all, he served the Queen of England and was the personal valet to Winston Churchill. While the wife Marsha studies to be a lawyer, Mr. Belvedere cooks, cleans, grocery shops and meddles in family affairs and always, without fail, manages to give the right advice to help set things straight. As cultured and upper crust as he was, he carried the ability to relate to the family and rightfully so. The hilarious conflict and equally hilarious exchanges between him and his nemesis, the youngest child, Wesley Owens, was a treat.The show, you have to admit, had excellent casting. Bob Uecker as the dad was perfect for locking horns with the 'big guy' and Rob Stone and Brice Beckham have such a strong resemblance to each other that you can't help, but think they're really brothers.When watching this sitcom, you can easily see that Mr. Belvedere is there to help out and to help out in more ways than he can. He was so perfect that you can't help, but see how much he spoiled the Owens family with his servitude:Marsha once complained that he didn't bring her the 'right type' of coffee. The family also sits at the table first thing in the morning, expecting to be served right away. Mr. Belvedere also served an elegant Thanksgiving dinner, but after Grace is said, bows out and wishes everyone a 'happy feast'.They expected service and got it. Not only that, but Mr. Belvedere was a source to turn to whenever they had their troubles and they always got it without fail.All that clearly shows what a 100% ideal employee he was. I wish I had a Mr.Belvedere in my household. He had the solutions to everything. The most unforgettable moment was when it was time for him to leave and Wesley said, "I'm losing my best friend." He couldn't have been more right.

After a whirlwind period of two years where the American Broadcasting Company went from riding "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" in being the top network overall in the Nielsen's for 1999-2000 to having their worst season ever in 2001-02 where everything fell apart, ABC has decided that family-oriented T.V. will be their focus over the "mild raunch" (to us Canadians) of NBC and FOX and the reality-T.V. obsessed CBS. They've had a track record in the mid to late 80's and early 90's with Perfect Strangers, Head Of The Class, Full House, America's Funniest Home Videos, Growing Pains, and this cult comedy, still revered by many.Mr. Belvedere is still a big favorite of the college crowd who have set up websites for it, and many people believed that Rob Stone, who played the oldest son, was the man who'd later become the infamous Marilyn Manson.The late Christopher Hewitt is the title character, a very British butler who has served for many people over the years, including Queen Elizabeth II, who somehow finds himself lost in Pittsburgh. He gets a job with his latest bosses, the Owens family. The show worked because of its fish-out-of-water situation and the fact that the wacky Bob Uecker was in it. Although not a classic sit-com, it was decent enough, the acting was very good, and it relied on dry British comedy as well as family sit-com situations. Hey, any show where Uecker has to try to keep himself under control is enough reason to watch. I'd love to check this show out again someday, maybe when I go digital.

One of the more enjoyable family shows of the 80s, this one had a twist. One snowy December night, Englishman Lynn Belvedere shows up at the Owens residence looking for work as a housekeeper. He's heard theyre in need of someone to help out and all take an instant liking to him, except macho head of the household, George (Uecker). The two have their friendly moments over the years, but mostly butt heads most of the run of the show. They had great chemistry over the years, considering we're talking a trained theatrical actor (Hewett) and an ex baseball player (Uecker) playing the parts. But the core of the show was the relationship between Belvedere and the youngest child, Wesley. Played terrificly by Brice Beckham, the two worked so well off each other, the older uptight codger and the rambunctious, wild pre-teen. Together both of them had a lot of great moments over the shows 6 year run, the strongest probably being the final episode of year 5. Belvedere, in a coma after a car crash set in motion by Wesley, lies motionless as Beckham delivers an emotional, expertly acted passage of dialogue of how sorry he is. One of many notable spots from the six seasons. Others featured were Ilene Graff as mother Marsha, Rob Stone as older brother Kevin, and the gorgeous (ok so I had a big crush on her) Tracy Wells as middle child Heather. The show had several tough spots over the years, being yanked a number of times and then brought back to fill the Friday night gaps on ABC. But they managed to crank out over a 100 episodes and have a respectable farewell, with Belvedere ultimately getting married and leaving the family. Some good ones to look for are Wesleys night alone when lies pile up the next day, Belvedere and George delivering a baby, and a great tornado episode set in the family basement. Though not a ratings monster, Mr. Belvedere will always be recognizable and was one of the more underrated shows of recent years.