Fired Up | |
---|---|
Created by |
Arleen Sorkin Paul Slansky |
Starring |
Sharon Lawrence Leah Remini Mark Feuerstein Jonathan Banks Francesca P. Roberts |
Composer(s) | Mark Mothersbaugh |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 28 (5 unaired) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) |
Kelsey Grammer Rudy Hornish |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 30 minutes |
Production company(s) | Grammnet Productions Paramount Television |
Distributor | CBS Television Distribution |
Release | |
Original network | NBC |
Original release | April 10, 1997 – February 9, 1998 |
Fired Up is an American sitcom that aired on NBC for two seasons and 28 episodes. The series, the first from Grammnet Productions, starred Sharon Lawrence as a self-centered promotions executive and Leah Remini as her mouthy assistant. When the pair got fired from their jobs, they teamed up to create a business as equal partners. The tagline of the series was "First she got fired, then she got fired up."
Gwendolyn Leonard epitomized the term "self-involved." After being fired from her corporate job, she was reduced to moving in with her former assistant, spunky Terry Reynolds, and starting up a new promotions business as her partner. Terry and her brother Danny shared a loft apartment atop a clock tower in New York City, and Danny worked as bartender at Clockworks, the restaurant below, while he pursued his dream of becoming a writer. Clockworks was owned by Guy Mann, an average Joe who adamantly pursued Gwen, though she kept him at arm's length (his response to each of her blow-offs was "Oh, yeah!").
Also regularly seen was Mrs. Francis, a crotchety unemployment agent whom Gwen ultimately inspired to quit her job and open an eggroll shop; Ashley Mann, Guy's son who worked as a female impersonator; Scott Bickley, Danny's lecherous agent who moonlighted as a suit salesman; and Steve Summer, a former classmate of Gwen's who'd carried a torch for her for decades. Infrequently seen were Gwen's snobbish mother Rita (Dixie Carter) and Terry and Danny's loud-mouthed mother Tina (Randee Heller).
Fired Up was a mid-season replacement on NBC. It premiered on April 10, 1997, and ended the first season on June 23 after 8 episodes. The second season premiered on September 22, 1997, and the last episode aired on February 9, 1998. It was a contemporary of shows like Caroline in the City and Suddenly Susan, and at one point, all three shows were part of a Monday-night promotion: "The Ladies of Monday Night."
Caryn James of The New York Times said the series had a "topical premise and an edgy lead character, just what most sitcoms lack" but that after a promising start, its first season episodes lost the "sharp writing this series needs."