| Behind the Screen | |
|---|---|
 Cast of Behind The Screen | |
| Created by | David Jacobs |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Original release | |
| Network | CBS |
| Release | October 9, 1981 – January 8, 1982 |
Behind the Screen is an American late-night weekly serial which aired on CBS (Fridays, 11:30 PM EST) from October 9, 1981 to January 8, 1982.
Behind the Screen was created by David Jacobs (Dallas, Knots Landing) for CBS, which wanted a late night counterpoint to ABC and NBC's more successful efforts in that timeslot. Drawing upon his experience with the prime-time serials, Behind the Screen was a dramatization of the goings-on at a fictional TV soap opera called Generations. This was not the first attempt to explore the concept of a "soap within a soap" as radio soaps had used the idea as far as back as the 1940s (A Woman To Remember). Ryan's Hope had also done a similar storyline in the early 1980s.[1]
The show premiered as an hour-long special, and regular episodes were 30 minutes. It revolved around the beautiful young star of Generations, Janie-Claire Willow (Janine Turner), who was a pawn in a power struggle between her wheelchair-using mother Zina (Joanne Linville), her powerful agent Evan (Mel Ferrer) and her show's leading man, Brian (Michael Sabatino).
The show's early pacing was described as "a bit meandering"[1] and it had problems finding an audience. Eventually the show was canceled after only 3 months on the air. The last episode concerned a backstage party where starlet Joyce Daniels was poisoned. Suspicion quickly fell on Lynette Porter (Debbi Morgan). In a bit of levity, Michele Lee (a star on Jacobs' Knots Landing) appeared as herself, playing a guest at the party; when questioned by police, she was mistakenly identified by the cops as Mary Tyler Moore.[1][2]
The cast included Generations creator and producer Gerry Holmby (Joshua Bryant); his screenwriter wife Dory Ranfield (Loyita Chapel); his son, Brian Michael Sabatino, a cast member on Generations; Brian's lover Janie-Claire Willow, star of Generations; Janie-Claire's brother Jordan (Scott Mulhern); Janie-Claire's invalid mother Zina (Joanne Linville); her actress roommate Lynette Porter (Debbi Morgan); Janie-Claire and Lynette's conniving manager Evan Hammer (Mel Ferrer); movie mogul Merritt Madison (Warren Stevens); Merritt's son Karl (Mark Pinter), who is Dory's former lover; and Bobby Danzig (Bruce Fairbairn), a married lawyer who is struggling with his homosexuality.
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | US viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Episode 1" | William E. Glenn | David Jacobs | October 9, 1981 | 7.4[3] |
| 2 | "Episode 2" | William E. Glenn | Ronnie Wenker-Konner | October 16, 1981 | 5.8 |
| 3 | "Episode 3" | William E. Glenn | Peggy Schibi | October 23, 1981 | 6.7 |
| 4 | "Episode 4" | William E. Glenn | Margaret DePriest | November 6, 1981 | 5.1 |
| 5 | "Episode 5" | William E. Glenn | Peggy Schibi | November 13, 1981 | 5.7 |
| 6 | "Episode 6" | William E. Glenn | Ronnie Wenker-Konner | November 20, 1981 | 6.2 |
| 7 | "Episode 7" | William E. Glenn | Margaret DePriest | November 27, 1981 | 5.8 |
| 8 | "Episode 8" | William E. Glenn | Peggy Schibi | December 4, 1981 | 5.4 |
| 9 | "Episode 9" | William E. Glenn | Peggy Schibi | December 11, 1981 | 5.1 |
| 10 | "Episode 10" | William E. Glenn | Peggy Schibi | December 18, 1981 | 5.5 |
| 11 | "Episode 11" | William E. Glenn | Ronnie Wenker-Konner | December 25, 1981 | 4.4 |
| 12 | "Episode 12" | William E. Glenn | Peggy Schibi | January 1, 1982 | 6.8 |
| 13 | "Episode 13" | William E. Glenn | Ronnie Wenker-Konner | January 8, 1982 | 5.8 |
