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Malcolm in the Middle

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Malcolm in the Middle
The Malcolm in the Middle intertitle.
Created byLinwood Boomer
StarringFrankie Muniz
Jane Kaczmarek
Bryan Cranston
Justin Berfield
Christopher Masterson
Erik Per Sullivan
James and Lukas Rodriguez
Opening theme"Boss of Me" by
They Might Be Giants
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons7
No. of episodes151 (list of episodes)
Production
Camera setupSingle camera
Running time23 minutes
Production companiesSatin City, Regency Television and Fox Television Studios (in syndication, Fox Television Studios Is replaced with 20th Television)
Original release
NetworkFox
ReleaseJanuary 9, 2000 (2000-01-09) –
May 14, 2006 (2006-05-14)

Malcolm in the Middle is an American comedy television series created by Linwood Boomer for the Fox Network. The series was first broadcast on January 9, 2000, and ended its six-and-a-half-year run on May 14, 2006, after seven seasons and 151 episodes. The series received critical acclaim and won a Peabody Award, seven Emmy Awards, one Grammy and was nominated for seven Golden Globes.[1]

The series follows a family of six (later seven), and stars Frankie Muniz in the lead role of Malcolm, a more-or-less normal boy who tests at genius level; he enjoys being smart but despises having to take classes for gifted children, who are mocked by the other students as "Krelboynes", after geeky Seymour Krelborn in The Little Shop of Horrors. Jane Kaczmarek is Malcolm's overbearing, authoritarian mother, Lois, and Bryan Cranston plays his disengaged but loving father Hal. Christopher Masterson plays eldest brother Francis, a former rebel who, in earlier episodes, was in military school, but eventually marries and settles into a steady job. Justin Berfield is Malcolm's dimwitted older brother Reese, a schoolyard bully who tortures Malcolm at home even while he defends him at school. Younger brother Dewey is portrayed by Erik Per Sullivan. For the first couple of seasons, the show's focus was on Malcolm. As the series progressed, however, it began to explore all six members of the family rather equally.

It is produced by Satin City and Fox Television Studios (syndicated by 20th Television).

The series has proven popular worldwide and has been syndicated in 57 countries. In the United States, it has been syndicated in the daytime on FX and at nighttime on Nick at Nite, as well as local stations. In the United Kingdom, it airs on Sky1 and its HD counterpart Sky1 HD, as well as Sky2 and Sky3. It has also been syndicated on Network Ten in Australia (originally airing on the Nine Network).

Premise

The show is about a boy named Malcolm and his dysfunctional family. The show stars Frankie Muniz as Malcolm, the third of five boys, his brothers and their parents, Lois (Jane Kaczmarek) and Hal (Bryan Cranston). The oldest, Francis (Christopher Masterson), was sent away to military school, leaving at home his three younger brothers, Reese (Justin Berfield), Malcolm (Frankie Muniz) and Dewey (Erik Per Sullivan), Malcolm being the middle child still at home (hence the show's title). In season four, the character Jamie (James and Lukas Rodriguez) was added to the show as the fifth son. The show's early seasons centered on Malcolm dealing with the rigors of being an adolescent and enduring the eccentricities of his life. Later seasons gradually explored the other members of the family and their friends in more depth, including others such as Craig Feldspar, Stevie Kenarban, and Stevie's dad Abe.

The series was different from many others in that Malcolm broke the fourth wall by talking directly to the viewer, all scenes were shot using a single camera and the show employed neither a laugh track nor a live studio audience. Emulating the style of hour-long dramas, this half-hour show was shot on film instead of video. Another unique aspect of the show is that the cold open of every episode is unrelated to the main story. Exceptions were episodes which were the conclusions of "two-parters"; each part two episode opened with a recap of its part one episode.

Surname

The surname of the family has been revealed only twice in the show. First, in the pilot episode, where Francis wears the name tag "Wilkerson" on his school uniform (it can be seen best in the scene where he is talking with his family on the phone). Also, although unaired, the name appears in a joke from the original pilot script. In that script, Malcolm was walking to school when a neighborhood kid came running up shouting, "Malcolm, Malcolm, Malcolm. I was talking to my parents last night - I was listening to them talk, and what's your last name?" "Wilkerson, why?" Malcolm replied. "Oh. Who are the Pariahs?" said the other kid. The joke was eventually cut. The last name, however, was spoken in the series finale when Malcolm is being introduced for his graduation speech, but it is not heard due to feedback from the microphone. A special feature on the season 1 DVD stated also that their surname was Wilkerson. A trailer on the UK channel Sky One in Early 2006 advised you to spend time with "The Simpsons" and "The Wilkersons." Another trailer was released to advertise the last episodes of 24 and Malcolm in the Middle, calling viewers to "say goodbye to the Wilkersons." In a certain episode, at Hal's company picnic Hal is addressed as "Mr. Landon" by his new boss; however, this was just due to a misunderstanding. Another surname was used in one episode. Reese joined the Army and arrived in another country on a mission. Lois talks to an Army Lt. and calls the lost son "Reese Jetson". After that, the Lt. agreed with her, "Oh yes, Pvt. Jetson.", however in the plot of the episode it is understood that Reese was under an alias and it was in fact not his real name, this was due to his young age and the age restriction to join the army.

Characters

The family

  • Malcolm (Frankie Muniz) is the title character of the series. Malcolm is a genius, and because of this, is placed in a class for gifted students (or Krelboynes as they are known at the school). His intelligence, as well as feelings of not fitting, and his ego are the primary causes of most problems he faces throughout the series. As the title suggests, Malcolm is the middle child of the family, third-born of four at the start of the series, later of five after the birth of Jamie and apparently six after the last episode. His best friend is Stevie, a wheelchair-bound fellow Krelboyne with a severe breathing problem. Malcolm is shown to be going to classes in Harvard in the last episode, earning his way by mopping the halls.
  • Lois (Jane Kaczmarek) is the hot-headed and stubborn mother of Francis, Reese, Malcolm, Dewey, and Jamie, and wife of Hal. She struggles throughout the series to keep her badly behaved boys in check while maintaining a job at the supermarket, Lucky Aide. She is seen by her sons as a somewhat tyrannical figure, a crazed control freak, and indeed she is, but her behavior was caused by Francis's bad behavior as a toddler.
  • Hal (Bryan Cranston) is the somewhat childish but caring father of Francis, Reese, Malcolm, Dewey, and Jamie and husband to Lois. He is a lighter touch with the boys than Lois, but can still hand out discipline when necessary. Hal seems constantly on the edge of some kind of breakdown; when things get to be too much, he often goes into a howling, wailing state of panic and frustration.
  • Reese (Justin Berfield) is the most impulsive member of the family and has remarkably little common sense. He is the older brother of Malcolm, Dewey, and Jamie and younger brother to Francis. Throughout the series, he is shown to be a bully, getting much enjoyment from the misfortune of others and handing out beatings to students at school and to his younger brothers at home. Despite being remarkably unwilling to think, he is gifted at cooking and baking—which he is shown to be very talented at on many occasions—and a natural born soldier.
  • Dewey (Erik Per Sullivan) is the younger brother of Malcolm, Reese, and Francis. His role is usually that of the victim to his brothers. Dewey is very intelligent, even being able to fool and manipulate Malcolm in later episodes. However, his real talent lies in music. Among other accomplishments, he has composed his own opera for his classmates to perform. Despite his intelligence, he is placed in a remedial class for slower students (or Buseys) due to a misunderstanding. This does little to affect his performance, though, and he actually makes the best of the situation by acting as their self-appointed teacher. By the seventh and final season of the show, it seemed to be implied that he was no longer in the Busey class. He was the youngest for several seasons, until Jamie was born.
  • Francis (Christopher Masterson) is the eldest brother. Due to his extremely bad behavior, he is sent to a military school in the U.S state of Alabama, run by the strict Commandant Spangler (Daniel von Bargen). He is there when the series begins. Francis remains at the school until the beginning of the third season, when he has himself legally emancipated and travels to Alaska to work at a logging camp. Here he meets and marries Piama, a woman of Inuit heritage. When the camp closes, he later moves to a Wild West-themed hotel and ranch in the western U.S. called the Grotto, run by kindly but eccentric German Otto Mannkusser and his wife Gretchen. His first words were "No, you shut up" directed to Lois.
  • Jamie (James and Lukas Rodriguez) is the youngest brother until the very last episode. Despite his infancy, he is already shown to have some of his brothers' habits such as stealing, as well as rudeness to his mother.

Episodes

Season Ep # First Airdate Last Airdate
Season 1 16 January 9, 2000 May 21, 2000
Season 2 25 November 5, 2000 May 20, 2001
Season 3 22 November 11, 2001 May 12, 2002
Season 4 22 November 3, 2002 May 18, 2003
Season 5 22 November 2, 2003 May 23, 2004
Season 6 22 November 7, 2004 May 15, 2005
Season 7 22 September 30, 2005 May 14, 2006

Production

Opening titles

The opening titles feature short clips from cult films or television shows, edited together with clips from the early seasons of the TV series. The original opening includes, in order of appearance:

Act breaks

The end of each act break is signified with the sound of a door slamming and then a cut to darkness; the same effect is sometimes used to mark the end of the episode as well. Scene changes are indicated with a quick "whoosh" sound and a fast panning motion of the camera. Whenever a character is shown dreaming or imagining something, the scene changes with an electrical "bzzzt" sound.

Setting

The setting of the show has never been revealed, though their street address – 12334 Maple Blvd. Millbrook – was identified in episode 81 ("Reese's Party"). The house which is used for external shots is privately owned, and is situated in the Studio City district of Los Angeles, California, at 12334 Cantura Street[6], and it can be seen on Google Street View.[7] Filming also took place at 20th Century Fox Studios - 10201-Pico Boulevard in the Century City district of Los Angeles; at Walter Reed Middle School in Los Angeles and in Santa Clarita, California.[8] There are several instances where California license plates are visible, including the family vehicle in "(Traffic Jam)". In "Stock Car Races," when Hal and the boys are entering a race track, the billboard behind the entrance displays the place as Irwindale Speedway, a real race track in Southern California. In seasons six and seven, however, the license plates on the cars are from Oklahoma ("Hal's Christmas Gift" and "Malcolm Defends Reese"). The last episode in the first season ("Waterpark") was filmed at a waterpark called "Wild Rivers" located in Irvine, California, but in the episode the waterpark was called "Wavetown USA". Many of the "Lucky Aide" store scenes were done at a Drug Emporium that used to be at 6020 Lankershim in the North Hollywood district of Los Angeles.

Music

The show's theme song, "Boss of Me", was written and recorded by the alternative rock group They Might Be Giants. The song won the "Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media" award at the 2002 Grammy Awards.[1] The band also performed nearly all of the incidental music for the show in its first two seasons.

Mood setting music is sprinkled throughout the series, in replacement of the laugh track, in a way that resembles feature film more than other TV sitcoms. Some examples of this highly varied music include ABBA, Basement Jaxx, Sum 41, Kenny Rogers, Lords Of Acid, The Getaway People, En Vogue, Phil Collins, Quiet Riot, Queen, Titán and Citizen King whose song "Better Days" is played at the end of both the pilot episode and the series finale. The Southern California pop-punk band Lit have many of their songs featured in several episodes. Lit songs that were never released as singles were also used.

A soundtrack, Music from Malcolm in the Middle, was released on November 21, 2000.[9]

DVD release

Only the first season of Malcolm in the Middle has been released on DVD. Season 2 was going to be released in autumn 2003, but was cancelled due to high costs of music clearances.[10]

DVD name Release date Ep # # of Discs Additional information
The Complete First Season October 29, 2002 16 3 Extended pilot episode, A Stroke of Genius featurette, commentary on select episodes, gag reel, deleted scenes, alternate show openings, bloopers, Dewey's Day Job featurette.

Reception

Ratings

As a midseason replacement for Futurama,[verification needed] the show quickly gained a large viewer base, starting off with ratings of 23 million for the debut episode[11] and 26 million for the second episode.[12]

Fox shuffled the show's air time repeatedly to make room for other shows, eventually giving it a free pass[clarification needed] in its seventh and last season. After moving to Fridays at 8:30 p.m. next to The Bernie Mac Show, Malcolm in the Middle averaged fewer than 3.5 million viewers a week, making it Fox's lowest-rated show. On January 13, 2006, Fox announced that the show would be moving to 7:00 p.m. on Sundays effective January 29, 2006. On January 17, 2006, Fox announced the cancellation of the series, with the 151st and final episode airing at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT (the show's original timeslot) on May 14, 2006. The finale was watched by 7.4 million.

Season Season Premiere Season Finale TV Season Ranking Viewers
(in millions)
1st January 9, 2000 May 21, 2000 2000 #18[13] 15.2[13]
2nd November 5, 2000 May 20, 2001 2000–2001 #22[14] 14.5[14]
3rd November 11, 2001 May 12, 2002 2001–2002 #25[15] 13.0[15]
4th November 11, 2002 May 12, 2003 2002–2003 #43[16] 10.7[16]
5th November 3, 2003 May 18, 2004 2003–2004 #71[17] 8.4[17]
6th November 2, 2004 May 23, 2005 2004–2005 #99[18] 5.6[18]
7th September 30, 2005 May 14, 2006 2005–2006 #127[19] 3.8[19]

In Australia, in 2001 Malcolm in the Middle premiered on Channel Nine, Monday nights at 8:00 p.m. It rated strongly, with the help from its lead in Friends, which at the time rated 2,279,000, 2,031,000 and 2,410,000 as the night's most watched show, and year's 2nd most watched TV program. Malcolm in the Middle's ratings included 1,952,000, 1,925,000, 1,712,000, 1,644,000, and sometimes rating over the 2 million mark: 2,002,000, 2,008,000.

In France, the show first aired daily at 8 p.m. in December 2001, on M6, but didn't find its public and was quickly off schedule. Then, when the show made its comeback in the summer of 2003 at noon, it had a big success. The last seasons had over 1.5 million viewers and a share sometimes over 30%. Due to the show's popularity, the network is currently still broadcasting reruns.

In the UK, in April 2001, 6 months after it was shown on Sky1 it premiered on terristrial television on BBC2 at 6:45pm on Fridays, where the first episode gained 3.3 million. With the success of the first season, season 2 was moved to prime-time the following year, at 8.30pm.

Awards and nominations

Jane Kaczmarek and Cloris Leachman gained the highest honors in the cast for being nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award every year they appeared on Malcolm in the Middle. Cloris Leachman succeeded in winning 2002 and 2006. The show won a total of 7 Emmys during its seven year run.[1]

Syndication

The show entered syndication one month before the 6th season premiered on Fox. When the show entered syndication all of the TV-14 episodes had to be changed to TV-PG since they did not meet the standards for TV-14. It is also aired in local syndication. The show was launched on Nick at Nite on July 5, 2009 at 8:00pm with an all night marathon. However, Nick at Nite uses the changed ratings in order to keep the show family friendly and remove adult content from the episodes. Sky1 (a UK channel) also has Malcolm in the Middle on everyday at 5:30 - 6:00 and 6:30 - 7:00.

International broadcasts

Country TV network(s) Year/Date Series Title in Country
Argentina Argentina Fox Argentina, Canal 13, I-Sat 2000
Fiji Fiji Fiji tv 2000
Australia Australia Nine Network (2001–2008), Network Ten (2009–Present), The Comedy Channel (2002-present) 2001
Belgium Belgium 2BE (TV channel) 2006
Bhutan Bhutan STAR World 2005
Brazil Brazil Rede Record, SBT, Fox, Band 2004 Malcolm
Bulgaria Bulgaria bTV, Fox Life, BTV Comedy 2001 - present Mалкълм
Canada Canada YTV, Global, Télé-Québec 2000 (Global), 2005 (YTV), 2006/2007 (Télé-Quebec) On Télé-Québec: Malcolm
Chile Chile Fox, Televisión Nacional de Chile, I-Sat 2000
Colombia Colombia RCN Televisión 2006
Costa Rica Costa Rica Repretel 11 2007
Denmark Denmark JHM Network 2003 Malcolm i midten
Dominican Republic Dominican Republic Telesistema Canal 11 2008
Ecuador Ecuador Teleamazonas 2004 Malcolm
Estonia Estonia TV3, TV6 2006 Imelaps Malcolm
Faroe Islands Faroe Islands Sjónvarp Føroya 2008
Finland Finland MTV3 2005 Veljemme on nero
France France M6, Paris Première 2001 Malcolm
Germany Germany ProSieben 2001 Malcolm mittendrin
Greece Greece Macedonia TV, Universal Channel 2008
Honduras Honduras Canal 5 de Televicentro 2008
Hong Kong Hong Kong TVB 2001 左右做人難
Hungary Hungary Comedy Central 2009 Már megint Malcolm
Iceland Iceland SkjárEinn 2006
India India STAR World 2005
Indonesia Indonesia STAR World 2005
Republic of Ireland Ireland Sky1, TV3, 3e 2000
Israel Israel Bip 2002 מלקולם באמצע
Italy Italy Italia 1 2004 Malcom
Japan Japan Fox, Fox Life 2000 マルコム in the middle
Kenya Kenya NTV 2005
Lithuania Lithuania TV3 2008 Malkolmas Vidurinysis
Malaysia Malaysia ntv7, STAR World 2008
Mexico Mexico Televisa, Fox 2004, 2008 - present Malcolm el de en medio
Nepal Nepal BBS-Bhutan Broadcasting Service 2005
Saudi Arabia Middle East MBC 4, OSN Comedy, Paramount Comedy 2002
Netherlands Netherlands Veronica Network, Comedy Central 2003
New Zealand New Zealand C4 the box 2008–present.
Norway Norway TV2 2002, 2009 - present Malcolm i midten
Philippines Philippines STAR World, Jack TV 2005
Poland Poland Polsat, Comedy Central Family 2006 (Polsat), 2010 (Comedy Central Family) Zwariowany Świat Malcolma
Portugal Portugal SIC Radical and Fox Portugal 2009 A Vida é Injusta (= Life is Unfair)
Serbia Serbia RTV BK Telecom 2001
Singapore Singapore MediaCorp TV Channel 5 2007
Slovenia Slovenia Kanal A 2005
South Africa South Africa M-Net 2005
Spain Spain Antena 3, Fox, Cuatro 2000
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka MTV Television 2008
Sweden Sweden TV6, TV3, TV4 2006 Malcolm, ett geni i familjen
Switzerland Switzerland SF zwei, TSR 2, 3+ 2000 Malcolm mittendrin (DE), Malcolm (FR)
Austria Austria ORF1 2002
Thailand Thailand True Series, STAR World 2005
Turkey Turkey CNBC-e, TNT 2003
Uganda Uganda NTV 2008
Ukraine Ukraine Novyi Kanal 2004 Малкольм у центрі уваги
United Kingdom United Kingdom BBC Two, Sky1, Sky2 2000
United States United States Fox, FX, Nick at Nite 2000
Venezuela Venezuela Televen 2002
Vietnam Vietnam Vietnam Multimedia Corporation 2005

References

  1. ^ a b c "Awards list". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2007-04-24.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "IMDB Trivia". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
  3. ^ "B Monster Bulletin". The Astounding B Monster Archive. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
  4. ^ "Malcolm in the Middle Voting Community - FAQ: Malcolm in the Middle". Retrieved 2008-06-23.
  5. ^ "Out of the Unknown - Clips guide". Zeta Minor. Retrieved 2008-01-05.
  6. ^ "The actual House location". Malcolm in the Middle Voting Community. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ "Google Street View of the actual house". Google.com.
  8. ^ "Filming locations for Malcolm in the Middle". IMDB.
  9. ^ "Malcolm in the Middle SoundTrack". SoundTrackNet. 2001.
  10. ^ Lambert, David (2003-11-30). "Malcolm in the Middle - Season 2 (plus Other Shows) Hamstrung by Music Clearances". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Retrieved 2007-04-24.
  11. ^ Josef Adalian and Michael Schneider (2000-01-18). "Sitcom savior?". Variety.com. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
  12. ^ Matt Webb Mitovich. "News".
  13. ^ a b "Top TV Shows For 1999-2000 Season". Variety. Retrieved 02-12-2010. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  14. ^ a b "The Bitter End". Entertainment Weekly Published in issue #598 Jun 01, 2001. Retrieved 02-12-2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  15. ^ a b "How did your favorite show rate?". USA Today. May 28, 2002. Retrieved 02-12-2010. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  16. ^ a b "Rank And File". Entertainment Weekly Published in issue #713 Jun 06, 2003. Retrieved 02-12-2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  17. ^ a b "I. T. R. S. Ranking Report: 01 Thru 210". ABC Medianet. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved 02-12-2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  18. ^ a b "Primetime series". The Hollywood Reporter. Nielsen Business Media. May 27, 2005. Retrieved 02-12-2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help) [dead link]
  19. ^ a b "Series". The Hollywood Reporter. Nielsen Business Media. May 26, 2006. Retrieved 02-12-2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help) [dead link]
Preceded by
Survivor: Australian Outback
2001
Malcolm in the Middle
Super Bowl lead-out program
2002
Succeeded by
Alias
2003