Sitcom Characters That Changed

[Gothampc]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 4:51pm

With reruns showing every night, you can see how some of the sitcom characters changed from the initial episode.

On Laverne & Shirley, in the first episode or two, Shirley had a Brooklyn accent to match Laverne's. It was dropped in all the other episodes.

In the initial episode of Will & Grace, Megan Mullally plays Karen differently. She's not using the high pitched, breathy voice. She uses a more white-bread Upper East Side Meredith Viera voice.

Updated On: 5/21/08 at 04:51 PM

[Calvin]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 4:53pm

Waylon Smithers used to be black.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 4:57pm

"Waylon Smithers used to be black."

The first season of The Simpsons is interesting. Several characters were drawn differently. I also don't like how their teeth were so crudely drawn.

[Calvin]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 4:58pm

Lenny's voice also was really weird in the early episodes. He sounded like Moe in one of them.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:00pm

Megan Mullally's Karen Walker was the first that came to mind when I read the thread title, Gothampc. The character is definitely different through the first part of season 1.
Wasn't Phoebe from FRIENDS conceived a bit differently in the first episode? I don't remember that well.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:01pm

Check out the Tracy Ullman Show to see how crudely drawn the Simpsons used to be.

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:02pm

On Bonnie Hunt's sitcom from a couple of years ago, her daughter on the show dissapeared without explanation.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:03pm

She probably ran away after she saw the ratings!

[BigFatBlonde]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:04pm

The Will and Grace writers used Karen's new "pills" as the reason for her character shift.

Anyone remember the earlier episodes of ALICE? The Vera character was this gloomy mouse of a girl skulking around Mel's diner.

Beth Howland said it took her a whole season how to figure out how to play her.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:18pm

"Anyone remember the earlier episodes of ALICE? The Vera character was this gloomy mouse of a girl skulking around Mel's diner."

I think that was a hold over from the movie. In the movie, Vera was sort of a strange, more darker character. Beth Howland made the character dingy.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:25pm

Valerie Curtin played Vera in the film...very gloomy, then we meet her "Daddy Duke".

She played Judy Bernly in the sitcom of 9 to 5.

I couldnt stand Beth Howland.

[KelRel]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:30pm

In Back to You the daughter of Chuck and Kelly, Gracie is played by two different actresses. The first actress was a little older looking/acting and had more attitude and then after the show returned after the writer's strike a younger looking/acting girl replaced her. Not that it really matters since the show is being canceled after this season ends.

[Calvin]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 5:35pm

Sophia Petrillo was initially imagined as a fat old lady with a bun. At any rate, she had that awful wig in the first few episodes.

[MisterRussell]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 6:00pm

Fonzie in HAPPY DAYS was supposed to be a completely peripheral character. That changed when the ratings came in.

Meg Griffin was voiced by Lacey Chabert for most of the first season of FAMILY GUY, then by Mila Kunis.

I think Niles Crane started off a bit ineffectual in FRASIER, only growing and changing as his infatuation for Daphne developed.

Kramer started off almost a simpleton in SEINFELD, once again, gaining some smarts as Michael Richards developed the character.

[thatgirl712]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 6:04pm

I think you're right about Phoebe.

[Mrs Mangel]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 6:07pm

Blake Carrington is kind of nasty in the first season of "Dynasty".
He abuses and rapes Krystle. Then after they brought in Alexis, he calms down a bit.

[Mekroth]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 8:03pm

Granny in "The Beverly Hillbillies."
Originally, she's a bit more low-key, and Irene Ryan uses her normal (lower) voice in the first few episodes.
Updated On: 5/21/08 at 08:03 PM

[madbrian]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 8:23pm

On Gilmore Girls, it took awhile for Kirk to turn into a quirky character. In the first season, he showed up in a couple of episode, but he wasn't eccentric at all.

[mauriposa]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 8:25pm

He wasn't even Kirk at first. He had another name, that is escaping me at the moment.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 8:28pm

They dumped Kevin Dunn from Bette Midler's sitcom mid-season.

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 9:31pm

Phoebe started out only mildly wackier, toned down by episode three and by "The One With the Thumb" was the Phoebe we know and love.

Not that anyone else will care, but the original Pink Ranger, Kimberly, was supposed to be a total airhead, but Amy Jo Johnson decided to go a different way.

They chagned a *lot* of characters from Clueless for it's TV series.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 10:04pm

"They dumped Kevin Dunn from Bette Midler's sitcom mid-season."

Was there any reason why? Was he just the scapegoat for a series that wasn't working?

[Marianne2]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 10:06pm

Three's Company-Chrissy became dumber as the seasons went on, and finally was written off in the 5th season. I have to say, she was really really funny in seasons 1-3, but 4 she just became unbearable, and hardly appeared in season 5.

[mattnyc2]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 10:10pm

The character Audrey on "Ellen" originally was portrayed as an upper-middle class snob. However once she became a regular cast member she was changed to a ditsy bookstore employee.

[Trekkie2]

Posted: 5/21/08 at 10:14pm

On Scrubs, Eliot has (in my opinion) become more and more insecure.