Hot In Cleveland Sizzles in the Ratings

Saturday September 04, 2010

Starring on a sitcom with legendary actress Betty White might seem like a dream come true, but there is at least one downside to working with the former “Golden Girls” star.

“I can never complain about being tired,” jokes Jane Leeves, who works alongside White in “Hot in Cleveland,” TV Land’s first original scripted comedy.

“It is such an inspiration to go to work with someone who’s nearly 90 years old and just so vibrant and witty and makes everyone feel at ease immediately,” adds Leeves. “I don’t know what her secret is, but I’m going to find out.”

“Hot in Cleveland,” premiering Wednesday night at 10,  features Leeves, Valerie Bertinelli and Wendie Malick as Los Angeles women of a certain age who literally crash-land in Cleveland, discover they are still desirable in the Midwest and decide to stay. The home they rent comes with one catch, however: a sassy caretaker, Elka, played by White.

Executive producer Todd Milliner says casting for the series came together perfectly. Bertinelli, Leeves and Malick were the production’s first choices all around, but there were backup plans if any of the women turned them down. It was a different story for White.

Milliner wasn’t sure White would want to take on a full-time job as a regular on the series, so he lured her in with an offer to do the pilot and a couple of episodes scattered throughout the season, “hoping she’d have so much fun she’d stay,” he says. “Thankfully, that’s what happened.”

“We were really going to be in trouble if we didn’t get her,” he says. “We would have had to completely rethink the character or gotten rid of it altogether.”

Leeves, for her part, had an important decision to make right off the bat. The producers weren’t set on which character they wanted her to play — soft-spoken novelist Melanie Moretti or cynic Joy Scroggs, eyebrow specialist to the stars.

Leeves, however, knew exactly which part she wanted.

“I usually play the Melanie character, but I love Joy,” says Leeves. “She’s so complicated and she has so many issues — it’s a complete turnaround from playing Daphne [on ‘Frasier’] for all those years. Daphne was the glass-half-full girl, now I’m playing the glass-half-empty girl.”

Bertinelli ended up playing Melanie, which worked out well for the former child star.

“She’s like a heightened version of me,” Bertinelli says. “She wrote this book about things to do before you die, and I have my own list,” which includes appearing on Broadway, climbing a mountain and going on an African safari.

After loads of promotion, TV Land has now debuted their original sitcom, Hot in Cleveland. Starring a quartet of sitcom veterans, is the TV show worth watching?

Hot in Cleveland follows three women from Los Angeles who’ve supposedly passed their prime. They’re on their way to Paris to check another item off their “bucket list” when their plane has to land in Cleveland. They quickly learn to love the Midwestern city and take up residence, living in a house that’s got a sassy caretaker. The series stars Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick, and Betty White. Future guests include Wayne Knight, Shirley Knight, Huey Lewis, Hal Linden, Susan Lucci, Juliet Mills, Carl Reiner, and Amy Yasbeck.

Executive produced by Sean Hayes (Will & Grace), Todd Milliner, and Suzanne Martin, Hot in Cleveland debuted on June 16th. The first episode attracted 4.75 million viewers with a 1.9 rating in the 25-54 demographic.

While those numbers aren’t great for a regular network, they make Hot in Cleveland the most-watched and highest-rated broadcast in TV Land’s history.

The sitcom got mixed reviews so the big question is, “How many viewers will keep tuning in week after week?” The ratings for new shows typically drop off 10-20% in the second week but even if that many viewers don’t return, TV Land will still likely be very happy with the show’s ratings. There are nine episodes left in season one. Even if the ratings take a big nosedive, they’ll all surely air.

What do you think? Does Hot in Cleveland live up to your expectations? Will you keep watching or should the series be canceled already?