One Day at a Time | |
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Genre | Sitcom |
Created by |
Whitney Blake Allan Manings |
Developed by | Norman Lear |
Directed by | |
Starring | |
Theme music composer |
Jeff Barry Nancy Barry |
Opening theme | "This is It" performed by Polly Cutter |
Ending theme | "This is It" (instrumental) |
Composer(s) | Jeff Barry |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 9 |
No. of episodes | 209 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) |
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Producer(s) |
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Camera setup | Multi-camera setup, videotape |
Running time | 24 minutes |
Production company(s) |
T.A.T. Communications Company (1975–82) Embassy Television (1982–84) |
Distributor |
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Release | |
Original network | CBS |
Audio format | Monaural |
Original release | December 16, 1975 | – May 28, 1984
One Day at a Time is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from December 16, 1975, until May 28, 1984. It starred Bonnie Franklin as a divorced mother raising two teenage daughters, played by Mackenzie Phillips and Valerie Bertinelli, in Indianapolis.
The series was created by Whitney Blake and Allan Manings, a husband-and-wife writing duo who were both actors in the 1950s and 1960s. The series was based on Whitney Blake's own life as a single mother, raising her three children (Including future actress Meredith Baxter) after her divorce from her first husband.
Ann Romano, a divorced mother, moves from their home in Logansport, Indiana to Indianapolis with her daughters, the rebellious Julie and the wisecracking Barbara. Ann frequently struggles with maintaining her role as mother while affording her daughters the freedom she never had as a young woman. David Kane, Ann's divorce lawyer and neighbor, takes a romantic interest in her, but she isn't ready to remarry. Dwayne Schneider, the building's quirky superintendent (most often referred to only by his last name), provides usually-unwanted advice to the tenants.
After David takes a job in Los Angeles, the focus squarely rests on Ann's dilemmas as a single mother and career woman as well as the girls' growing pains, with Schneider becoming a more welcomed part of the family. Ann's strained relationship with her ex-husband Ed slowly mends, as does the girls' relationship with his new wife, Vickie. Julie and Barbara advance through high school and into the working world, and Julie eventually marries flight attendant Max Horvath. Alex, the orphaned son of Ann's deceased boyfriend, moves in, changing the dynamics in the female-dominated apartment. Later in the series run, Julie gives birth to a daughter, "Little Annie" Horvath, Barbara marries dental student Mark Royer, and Ann's mother Katherine moves nearby.
In the penultimate episode, Ann decides to take a job in London, leaving her daughters in Indianapolis to raise families of their own. In the series finale, Schneider also leaves town, moving to Florida to take care of his niece and nephew.
For its entire run, the series was taped in Hollywood before a studio audience. Originally, it was taped at CBS Television City. Shortly after its premiere, the series began taping at Metromedia Square, where it remained until 1982. From 1982 to 1984, the series was taped at Universal Studios Hollywood.