"Fresno" (1986) TV mini-series

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Director:

Jeff Bleckner

Writers:

Mark Ganzel (writer)
Barry Kemp (writer)

Release Date:

16 November 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

The Power!...The Passion!... The Produce!

Plot:

A long-format spoof of 1980s prime-time soap operas, set in raisin town Fresno, California.

Plot Keywords:

Raisin | Spoof | Matriarch | Fresno California | Male Female Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for 5 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Carol Burnett	...	Charlotte Kensington
Dabney Coleman	...	Tyler Cane
Gregory Harrison	...	Torch
Teri Garr	...	Talon Kensington
Charles Grodin	...	Cane Kensington
Luis Avalos	...	Juan
Pat Corley	...	Earl Duke
Valerie Mahaffey	...	Tiffany Kensington
Anthony Heald	...	Kevin Kensington
Teresa Ganzel	...	Bobbi Jo Bobb
Bill Paxton	...	Billy Joe Bobb
Jerry Van Dyke	...	Tucker Agajanian
Charles Keating	...	Charles
Melanie Chartoff	...	Desiree DeMornay
Michael Richards	...	2nd Henchman

Runtime:

360 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Fresno, California, USA

Company:

MTM Enterprises

Quotes:

Spanish Conquistador: [with disgust, as he spits out the grapes he is tasting] These grapes taste like Fresno!

Movie Connections:

Spoofs "Dallas" (1978)

Why Isn't This on Video???

After so many years, I still get these spontaneous flashbacks about "Fresno" - like LSD, except this is even tripier! Think of an extended Carol Burnett skit as the most outlandish take-off, with the most insane dialogue and characters; and think of all of this as dead on target - the soap opera mini-series à la "Dallas" and "Dynasty," with a little "Santa Barbara" thrown in, and you get (I'm laughing as I type this) "Fresno".

Usually, after the premise has worn off, this kind of satire doesn't have the inventiveness or the talent to sustain a feature. But with "Fresno," the idiocy, the inanity, the hilarity is indeed sustained throughout: for the whole ride you really don't know what new goof is around the corner.

I would love to have seen Harvey Korman in the cast. Hey, can't have everything, though with "Fresno," I almost do. Something else outrageous, though un-funny, about "Fresno" is that no video has been issued for this, one of the greatest comedies in television history.