Series Description

thirtysomething was a 60 minute romantic drama series on ABC about a group of baby boomers who, at the time, just happened to be "thirty-some-years-old". Many of the show's themes detailed the (often frustrating) changes in their lives from the 1960s when they were peacenik, hippy, lovechild types to the 1980s where they had turned into career-oriented, conservative, Volvo-driving yuppies.

thirtysomething Cast

Ken Olin .... Michael Steadman
Mel Harris .... Hope Steadman
Melanie Mayron .... Melissa Steadman
Timothy Busfield .... Elliot Weston
Patricia Wettig .... Nancy Weston
Peter Horton .... .. Professor Gary Shepherd
Polly Draper .... ... Ellyn Warren
Jordana Shapiro .... Brittany Weston
Luke Rossi .... Ethan Weston
Terry Kinney .... Steve Woodman (1987-1988)
Richard Gilliland .... Jeffrey Milgrom (1988-1989)
David Clennon .... Miles Drentell (1989-1991)
Patricia Kalember .... Susannah Hart (1989-1991)
Erich Anderson .... Billy Sidel (1990-1991)

thirtysomething Trivia

The 1983 film, "The Big Chill" was almost certainly the inspiration for thirtysomething.

Just in case you're wondering how we missed capitalizing the first letter in the title, "thirtysomething" and why we haven't seperated the words, it's not a mistake. The title was originally going to be "Thirty Something" but it was changed to "thirtysomething".

thirtysomething was produced by the Bedford Falls Company who also produced, "My So Called Life".

Apparently, the name change was effective! Soon after thirtysomething began airing, it became a commonly used catchphrase for people in their thirties. In 1993, the Oxford English Dictionary added the term (under the word "thirty") and, thereby, made it an official part of the English language! They even added a note attributing the new word to the thirtysomething TV show by stating that it was, "popularized as a catch-phrase by the U.S. television program thirtysomething, first broadcast in 1987"!

It wasn't long before those members of "Generation X" found that they needed their own descriptive term and "twentysomething" also became commonly used.

thirtysomething was set in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Ken Olin has had a pretty amazing career! Not only has he starred and directed on thirtysomething, he's also had major recurring roles on popular series including, "Hill Street Blues" and "Falcon Crest". He was also an Executive Producer and Director on the hit series, "Alias" and "Brothers and Sisters"!

Viewers and critics seemed to either love thirtysomething or they despised it! Real-world Yuppies, of course, appreciated it because it was the first time that television showed their particular past and current lifestyle. Other viewers felt it was a story about a bunch of people who gave up on their desire to make THE world a better place and changed into people who only cared about making THEIR world better. There's no doubt that thirtysomething was a "artsy" show, however. It won 2 Golden Globes and 13 Emmys during its run plus another 13 miscellaneous award wins and 45 more nominations! The New York Times said that thirtysomething was, "as close to the level of an art form as weekly television ever gets".

Timothy Busfield starred on the series, "Trapper John, M.D." before joining the cast of thirtysomething. He's also well recognized from his role as reporter "Danny Concannon" on the series, "West Wing". He also starred on the short-lived "Saturday Night Live" parody series, "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" and he directed on that show. Timothy ws also a Co-Executive Producer and Director on the "Ed TV Show" and "Without A Trace".

Episodes List With Original Air Dates

thirtysomething - The First Season

1. Pilot Episode (9/29/1987)
2. The Parents Are Coming, the Parents Are Coming (10/6/1987)
3. Housewarming (10/13/1987)
4. Couples (10/27/1987)
5. But Not for Me (11/3/1987)
6. We Gather Together (11/17/1987)
7. Nice Work If You Can Get It (12/1/1987)
8. Weaning (12/8/1987)
9. I'll Be Home for Christmas (12/15/1987)
10. South by Southeast (1/5/1988)
11. Therapy (1/12/1988)
12. Competition (1/19/1988)
13. Separation (1/26/1988)
14. I'm in Love, I'm in Love, I'm in Love with a Wonderful Gynecologist (2/2/1988)
15. Business as Usual (2/9/1988)
16. Accounts Receivable (3/1/1988)
17. Whose Forest Is This? (3/15/1988)
18. Nancy's First Date (3/22/1988)
19. Undone (4/12/1988)
20. Tenure (5/3/1988)
21. Born to Be Mild (5/10/1988)

22. We'll Meet Again (12/6/1988)
23. In Re: the Marriage of Weston (12/13/1988)
24. The Mike Van Dyke Show (12/20/1988)
25. Trust Me (1/3/1989)
26. No Promises (1/10/1989)
27. Politics (1/17/1989)
28. Success (1/31/1989)
29. First Day / Last Day (2/7/1989)
30. About Last Night (2/14/1989)
31. Elliot's Dad (2/28/1989)
32. Payment Due (3/7/1989)
33. Deliverance (3/21/1989)
34. Michael Writes a Story (4/4/1989)
35. New Job (4/11/1989)
36. Be a Good Girl (4/25/1989)
37. Courting Nancy (5/2/1989)
38. Best of Enemies (5/16/1989)

39. Nancy's Mom (9/19/1989)
40. Love and Sex (10/3/1989)
41. Mr. Right (10/10/1989)
42. New Baby (10/24/1989)
43. Legacy (10/31/1989)
44. Strangers (11/7/1989)
45. Pilgrims (11/21/1989)
46. The Burning Bush (11/28/1989)
47. New Parents (12/5/1989)
48. Michael's Campaign (12/12/1989)
49. Pulling Away (1/9/1990)
50. Another Country (1/16/1990)
51. Post-Op (1/23/1990)
52. Once a Mermaid (2/6/1990)
53. Fathers and Lovers (2/13/1990)
54. Her Cup Runneth Over (2/20/1990)
55. Good Sex, Bad Sex, What Sex, No Sex (2/27/1990)
56. The Other Shoe (3/20/1990)
57. The Three Year Itch (4/3/1990)
58. I'm Nobody, Who Are You? (4/10/1990)
59. Arizona (4/17/1990)
60. Going Limp (5/1/1990)
61. Towers of Zenith Part 1: The Go-Between (5/15/1990)
62. Towers of Zenith Part 2: Samurai Adman (5/22/1990)

63. Prelude to a Bris (9/22/1990)
64. Life Class (10/2/1990)
65. Control (10/9/1990)
66. The Distance (10/16/1990)
67. The Haunting of DAA (10/30/1990)
68. The Guilty Party (11/13/1990)
69. Photo Opportunity (11/27/1990)
70. Never Better (12/4/1990)
71. Guns & Roses (12/11/1990)
72. Happy New Year (12/18/1990)
73. Melissa and Men (1/8/1991)
74. Advanced Beginners (1/22/1991)
75. Sifting the Ashes (2/5/1991)
76. A Second Look (2/12/1991)
77. Fighting the Cold (2/19/1991)
78. The Difference Between Men and Women (2/26/1991)
79. The Wedding (4/9/1991)
80. Closing the Circle (4/16/1991)
81. Out the Door (4/30/1991)
82. Hopeless (5/7/1991)
83. A Stop at Willoughby (5/14/1991)
84. Melissa in Wonderland (5/21/1991)
85. California (5/28/1991)

Inside thirtysomething Seminar(7/16/2001)