Games - Maude

	Games - Maude

For other uses, see Maude (disambiguation)

Maude is a half-hour American television sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS network from September 12, 1972 until April 29, 1978. The program was a spin-off of All in the Family
and, like that show, it was a topical sitcom created by producer Norman Lear.

Maude starred Beatrice Arthur as Maude Findlay, a middle-aged, politically liberal married woman living in Tuckahoe, Westchester County, New York, who embraced the tenets of women's liberation, always voted for Democratic Party candidates, strongly supported legal abortion, and advocated for civil rights and racial and gender equality.

Characters

Maude had been married three times before: two of her husbands had died and she had divorced the other. Her current husband, Walter (played by Bill Macy), ran an appliance store called Findlay's Friendly Appliances. Maude and Walter met during the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Maude usually got in the last word during their many arguments, in the form of her trademark catchphrase, "God'll getcha for that, Walter." Maude's divorced daughter, Carol Traynor (from her first marriage; played by Adrienne Barbeau), and Carol's son, Phillip (played by Brian Morrison and later by Kraig Metzinger), also lived with the Findlays. Though single, Carol maintained an active sex life, as evidenced by her weekend "business trips" with various boyfriends. She dated various men throughout early seasons, eventually forming a serious relationship with a man named Chris (played by Fred Grandy) in the later seasons. Like her mother, Carol was an outspoken feminist who was not afraid to speak her mind.

The Findlays' next-door neighbors were Dr. Arthur Harmon (a stuffy, sardonic conservative who clashed with Maude's political views; played by Conrad Bain) and his sweet but scatterbrained wife Vivian (played by Rue McClanahan, who in the 1980s would star again with Beatrice Arthur in The Golden Girls). Arthur had been Walter's best friend since they served together in World War II; he "affectionately" called Maude "Maudie." Vivian had been Maude's best friend since they both attended college together. When the series began, Arthur was a widower and Vivian was a recent divorcée (her previous last name was Cavender); they began dating at the beginning of the show's run and were married during the middle of the second season.

Also present in the cast was Maude's housekeeper. When the series began, this role was filled by Esther Rolle, who played Florida Evans, a no-nonsense African American woman who often had the last laugh at Maude's expense. Maude made a point of conspicuously demonstrating to everyone that, despite her status as Maude's maid, she nonetheless regarded Florida as an "equal," to the point of insisting she enter and exit the Findlay house via the front door, even though the back door was more convenient. The character of Florida proved so popular that, in 1974, she became the star of a new series - the Maude spin-off (and grandchild spin-off of All in the Family) Good Times
. After Florida's depature in 1974, Mrs. Nell Naugatuck (played by Hermione Baddeley), an elderly British woman who drank excessively (both while on duty and off), took over. Unlike Florida, who commuted, Mrs. Naugatuck was a live-in maid. She married elderly Bert Beasley (played by J. Pat O'Malley) in 1977 and they moved to Ireland to care for Bert's mother. Maude then hired Victoria Butterfield (played by Marlene Warfield), a native of island St. Norman in the West Indies, whom Maude initially accused of stealing her wallet. Victoria remained until the end of the series in 1978.

Series history and topicality

Maude spun off from All in the Family after the character of Maude Findlay appeared on two episodes of the first program, the first of which aired in December 1971. Maude was Edith Bunker's cousin, and she represented everything Archie Bunker did not: she was a liberal, a feminist, and upper-middle class whereas Archie was none of those things. Although Maude's political beliefs certainly mirrored those of the series creators more than did those of Archie Bunker (the character of Maude was in fact said to be based on creator Norman Lear's wife Frances), episodes of Maude sometimes lampooned Maude and did not show her beliefs and attitudes in an entirely complimentary light. While the show was written as very funny in nature, scripts also incorporated much darker humor and even drama, to the point where the show, in some episodes, could be seen as depressing rather than humorous.

Maude had an abortion in November 1972, and the episodes which dealt with the situation are probably the series' most famous and certainly its most controversial. Maude, at age 47, found herself pregnant, and she and Walter did not want to become parents again. Her daughter, Carol, brought to her attention that abortion was now legal in New York state. After some soul-searching, Maude decided at the end of the two-parter that the abortion was probably for the best. Noticing the wide controversy around the episode, CBS decided to rerun the episodes in August 1973, and an all-out war waged between the network and the country's clergy. At least 30 stations dropped the show.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Maude ]

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