But if I were to pitch it, I think it would be picked up by TBS. Characters welcome, after all.
So here's my pitch.
Normal middle class family. Dad is a dryly comic geeky type. Like a less creepy Jeff Goldblum. Mom is a cute and perky and overbooked. Courtney Thorne-Smith, but funnier. 9 year old son is a bit of a scamp/troublemaker with a heart of gold. 7 year-old daughter is his rival and provides the emotional center of the show.
Then, enter the parents. The granparents come from California to live with the above family for possibly six months. Seriously.
You've got the fish out of water stuff with the Californians learning about life among hicks. You've got the guest becomes live-in comedy. And here's the difference. The grandpa has partial alzheimer's-ish condition. Sometimes funny, sometimes touching. It's that spice of life touch. I see a Donald Sutherland or Michael Caine type in that role. Maybe James Brolin.
So it's begun. They got here almost 2 weeks ago. We weren't ready. We had planned to paint the kitchen, clean the carpets. rake the leaves, warn our neighbors about a Winnebago coming into their neighborhood.
All of that didn't amount to much. Mom and Dad have decided to help us. They raked the leaves, they are painting the kitchen. In less than 2 weeks, they made friends with our neighbors to nearly the same extent that we have. Walked the neighborhood selling Cubscout popcorn. They have been tireless. So much so that it's gotten me in trouble for letting them do stuff and not making them stop working and cooking and doing everything. I guess it's come naturally to me since a I was a kid to let mom cook for me. It'll be hard getting her to stop. Shhh. I might not even try.
They have come along to soccer games, and church services at school where Zane sang in the choir, and come to a scouts campout.
I have seen Dad have gaps here and there, but nothing too bad. I'll explain more as I go along.
Really so far so good. All is going well. I'm still listening for the laugh track.
So here's my pitch.
Normal middle class family. Dad is a dryly comic geeky type. Like a less creepy Jeff Goldblum. Mom is a cute and perky and overbooked. Courtney Thorne-Smith, but funnier. 9 year old son is a bit of a scamp/troublemaker with a heart of gold. 7 year-old daughter is his rival and provides the emotional center of the show.
Then, enter the parents. The granparents come from California to live with the above family for possibly six months. Seriously.
You've got the fish out of water stuff with the Californians learning about life among hicks. You've got the guest becomes live-in comedy. And here's the difference. The grandpa has partial alzheimer's-ish condition. Sometimes funny, sometimes touching. It's that spice of life touch. I see a Donald Sutherland or Michael Caine type in that role. Maybe James Brolin.
So it's begun. They got here almost 2 weeks ago. We weren't ready. We had planned to paint the kitchen, clean the carpets. rake the leaves, warn our neighbors about a Winnebago coming into their neighborhood.
All of that didn't amount to much. Mom and Dad have decided to help us. They raked the leaves, they are painting the kitchen. In less than 2 weeks, they made friends with our neighbors to nearly the same extent that we have. Walked the neighborhood selling Cubscout popcorn. They have been tireless. So much so that it's gotten me in trouble for letting them do stuff and not making them stop working and cooking and doing everything. I guess it's come naturally to me since a I was a kid to let mom cook for me. It'll be hard getting her to stop. Shhh. I might not even try.
They have come along to soccer games, and church services at school where Zane sang in the choir, and come to a scouts campout.
I have seen Dad have gaps here and there, but nothing too bad. I'll explain more as I go along.
Really so far so good. All is going well. I'm still listening for the laugh track.
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