Brothers (US)

BROTHERS is the story of three diverse but close-knit siblings who live in south Philadelphia. The older two receive a surprise when the youngest comes out of the closet on his wedding day.

THE WATERS BROTHERS:

Lou is the eldest brother. He is a Korean War veteran and a staunch conservative, blue collar construction worker. He's also not the brightest bulb in the pack: he had to quit school in the seventh grade because he got drafted.

Joe is a former football kicker who returned to his hometown to open a restaurant named "The Point After" once his football career was done. He is divorced but a loving, overprotective father to his daughter.

Cliff, age 24 at the beginning of the series, leaves his high school sweetheart at the altar. When asked why, he drops a bombshell on his brothers: he's gay.

THEIR FRIENDS AND FAMILY:

Donald Maltby is an intelligent, world-traveling writer and editor. He's also flamboyantly gay and Cliff's best friend. Lou blames Donald for putting the "gay" thoughts in Cliff's head.

Kelly Hall works as a waitress at the Point After. She and Joe have a brief romantic relationship, but mostly she is just a friend to the men.

Penny Waters is Joe's daughter, a high school senior at the beginning of the series who loves her father even if she feels he is too overprotective.

Sam Booke Waters became Joe's new wife in the fifth season. She was originally a salesperson who could get Joe to buy the Brooklyn Bridge with no problem. She and Kelly were always arguing. In the final season Joe and Sam had a baby.

THE ACTORS:

Robert Walden came to Brothers fresh from a five-year stint as Joe Rossi in the acclaimed show Lou Grant. This was his first sitcom. He wrote one episode and directed two episodes of this series.

Brandon Maggart is a veteran performer with a long history of acting credits to his name. Before Brothers he was in Jennifer Slept Here. He is the father of two well-known performers: singer Fiona Apple, and actor Garett Maggart. His official website is BrandonMaggart.com.

Paul Regina had his only starring role in this show. He continued to act in plays and movies. He died on January 31, 2006 of liver cancer at the young age of 49.

Robin Riker left the show in the fourth season, but before her departure she contributed some classic moments to the program. She was the one-time girlfriend of comedian Gallagher (and is credited on his 1979 comedy album). She was also featured in the cult classic sitcom Get a Life. She also has an official site.

Hallie Todd made her first appearance on television before she was even born! Her mother, Ann Morgan Guilbert, played Millie Helper on The Dick Van Dyke Show at the time she was pregnant with Hallie. Hallie is still busy acting, most recently starring in Lizzie McGuire.

Philip Charles MacKenzie was originally set to play the outrageous Donald Maltby character only in the first episode, but the audience reaction was so great he became a central part of the show. His first major success was a small role as the medic sent in to administer insulin to the bank manager in the classic Al Pacino film Dog Day Afternoon. A number of failed TV series followed, along with guest star appearances (including an episode of Lou Grant with future co-star Robert Walden) before Brothers. MacKenzie made his directing debut in the episode “Leave It to Cleavage” and ended up directing a number of episodes in the final two seasons. Following a stint in the short-lived series Open House with wife Alison LaPlaca, MacKenzie focused his attention solely on directing. His directing credits include several episodes of Frasier, According to Jim, and George Lopez Show.

Mary Ann Pascal joined the cast in the third season (although she had a guest appearance in the second season episode “The Fourth Ball”). Brothers was her first series and her only regular series role to date. Her husband, David Pascal, wrote one episode of the show.

THE LEGACY:

The success of Brothers opened the door to made-for-pay TV series