September 11, 1986 (1986-09-11) – May 8, 1988 (1988-05-08)
Our House is an American drama television series that aired on NBC for two seasons from September 11, 1986, to May 8, 1988. The series centers on the Witherspoon family and the challenges they face adjusting to life with three generations living in the same house.
The series was created by James Lee Barrett, who died the year after its cancellation.
Synopsis
After his son John dies, retired widower Gus Witherspoon (Wilford Brimley) invites his daughter-in-law Jessica Witherspoon (Deidre Hall) and her three children to move to Los Angeles and live with him until Jessie gets back on her feet financially.
Despite protests from her children, fifteen year old Kris (Shannen Doherty); twelve year old David (Chad Allen); and eight year old Molly (Keri Houlihan) they, Jessie, and their basset hound Arthur leave Fort Wayne, Indiana, to start a new life in California. As they settle in with Gus, they realize just how difficult he can be to live with. The majority of the plots each week centers on the conflicts which tend to arise when an extended family must live together in the same house. As man of the house, Gus imposes rules on his three grandkids the same way he had raised John (and also John's brother Ben, who is seen in a two part episode); ultimately, however, he learns ways of conveying lessons to the kids without being gruff. Jessie and the kids eventually learn that beneath Gus' stern facade is a wise man, well versed in the ways of the world, who cares about them very much.
Each of the episode's five acts (before the commercial break) ends with a freeze frame shot which then occupies one of several rooms in an abstract rendering of a house figure. As the episode unfolds, more rooms are filled until finally—when the dilemma has been resolved—the final piece is put in place, completing the house.
John Witherspoon (played by Patrick Duffy) is seen in one episode and in the occasional flashback.
Gus feels progress has spun out of control and challenges his family to spend a weekend using only nothing invented or contrived within "the last 100 years". The family enjoys understanding the quaint ways of their Scottish ancestors, but David and Kris confess to breaking it when in town people crowded around an electronics store where a big screen TV broadcast news of a heightened US/Soviet tensions.
18
18
"Past Tense, Future Tense: Part 1"
Ray Austin
William Blinn & Jerry McNeely
February 8, 1987 (1987-02-08)
Kris wins a radio contest and gets a trip to Edwards Air Force base along with Gus as her chaperone. An airman offers to take her flying in a light plane, which turns into a disaster when mechanical failure causes them to crash into the mountains.
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19
"Past Tense, Future Tense: Part 2"
Ray Austin
Lee H. Grant & Parke Perine
February 15, 1987 (1987-02-15)
Gus and a forest ranger (William Katt) explore the mountain range in search of Kris and the lost airman.
Upon the show's 1986 premiere, the Associated Press called it "a family show suitable for framing." Despite positive reviews, the series was not a ratings success in spite of a promising start, likely owing to being scheduled Sundays at 7 PM (EST) opposite CBS's powerhouse 60 Minutes and numerous overruns by NFL games on its own network. The series ranked 59th in its first season (12.9 rating) [1] and 71st in its second season (10.9 rating).[2]
