| Platypus Man | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Barry Fanaro Mort Nathan |
| Directed by | Dick Brown Andy Cadiff |
| Starring | Richard Jeni Ron Orbach Denise Miller David Dundara |
| Composers | Rich Eames Scott Gale |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Barry Fanaro Mort Nathan |
| Producers | Michael Davidoff Marica Govons Bill Rosenthal Michael Rotenberg |
| Cinematography | Frank Raymond |
| Editors | Robert Bramwell Richard Rodono |
| Running time | 30 mins. (approx) |
| Production companies | Fanaro-Nathan Productions Paramount Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | UPN |
| Release | January 23 (1995-1-23) – May 15, 1995 (1995-5-15) |
Platypus Man is an Americansitcom that aired onUPN from January 23 to May 15, 1995, during the network's first season.[1][2] StarringcomedianRichard Jeni, the television series was based on an hour-longHBO special of Jeni's filmed in 1992. The series lasted one season, with a total of thirteen episodes.
Platypus Man premiered January 23, 1995. The concept of a "Platypus Man" (a solitary male, like the male platypus), the concept of a "cooking show for guys" and the scenes involving the main character's social life were drawn from Jeni's stand-up routines.[3]
The show, paired withPig Sty, followedStar Trek: Voyager on UPN's Monday schedule. BothPig Sty andPlatypus Man were canceled in July 1995.[4]
In the early 1990s, Jeni developed a comedy routine where he watched aNational Geographic special on theplatypus. In the routine, Jeni went on to describe how he found himself relating to the TV show, and the concept of a "platypus man" was expanded to become the theme behind Jeni's 1992 HBO comedy special.
The HBO special was taped in 1992 at the Park West Theater inChicago,Illinois and covered topics such as news ("the bad news"), sports (including Jeni's "NFLFootball Referee" routine), politics, music and sex. Executive producers on the project were Richard Jeni and Michael Rotenberg, it was produced by Tom Bull and Sandy Chandley, andpost-production was handled by Steve Sharp and Juniper Recording Studios.
The set design for the special was created by Norm Dodge and included a checkered tile floor, a backdrop with painted-on palm trees, arefrigerator andmicrowave at one end of the stage (provided by Aronson Furniture, for a comedic bit entitled "Bill the Belching Gourmet"), and a black sofa at the other end of the stage. This design was reproduced in clay for the opening sequence ofPlatypus Man, in which art director Rick Toone of D&K Group/Claymagic used the process ofclaymation to introduce the show with the help of a duck-billed clay version of Richard Jeni and footage from the platypus exhibit atTaronga Zoo inSydney.
The live-action portions of the opening sequence were shot inside and outside of Jeni's house in theHollywood Hills (in the bedroom, bathroom, hallway, driveway, balcony and pool area) and on the streets ofWest Hollywood,California. The song "Platypus Man" that opened and closed the special was created with the combined efforts ofScott May, Richard Jeni, and fellowcomedianRondell Sheridan and sung in ablues-like voice by Jeni.
In the series, Jeni played a fictitious version of himself and was host of a cooking show calledCooking with the Platypus Man. Ron Orbach played Lou, executive producer of his cooking show and his best friend since childhood.Denise Miller played Paige, his sportswriter neighbor. David Dundara played Tommy, his bartending younger brother.
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| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | Andy Cadiff | Barry Fanaro &Mort Nathan | January 23, 1995 (1995-1-23) |
| 2 | "9½ Days" | Gary Brown | Michael Davidoff & Bill Rosenthal | January 30, 1995 (1995-1-30) |
| 3 | "The Apartment Show" | Gary Brown | Marc Sotkin | February 6, 1995 (1995-2-6) |
| 4 | "NYPD Nude" | Andy Cadiff | Barry Fanaro & Mort Nathan | February 13, 1995 (1995-2-13) |
| 5 | "Sweet Denial" | Gary Brown | Gail Parent | February 20, 1995 (1995-2-20) |
| 6 | "New York on $2,000 a Day" | Gary Brown | Michael Davidoff & Bill Rosenthal | February 27, 1995 (1995-2-27) |
| 7 | "Lou's the Boss" | Gary Brown | Jonathan Aibel & Glenn Berger | March 6, 1995 (1995-3-6) |
| 8 | "The Crush" | Gary Brown | Mary Ann Barnes & Sheila Barnes | March 13, 1995 (1995-3-13) |
| 9 | "Both Sides Now" | Gary Brown | Danny Smith | March 20, 1995 (1995-3-20) |
| 10 | "Without a Hitch" | Gary Brown | Jonathan Aibel & Glenn Berger | April 10, 1995 (1995-4-10) |
| 11 | "Lower East Side Story" | Gary Brown | Bill Prady | May 1, 1995 (1995-5-1) |
| 12 | "Out of the Mouths of Babes" | Gary Brown | Billiam Coronel & Robert Bruce | May 8, 1995 (1995-5-8) |
| 13 | "Dying to Live" | Gary Brown | Marc Sotkin & Gail Parent | May 15, 1995 (1995-5-15) |