This is a list of fictional characters from Everybody Loves Raymond, an American sitcom, originally broadcast on CBS from September 13, 1996 to May 16, 2005.
The show revolves around the life of Italian-American Ray Barone, a sportswriter from Long Island, and his wife, Debra Barone. Other main characters include Ray's parents, Frank and Marie, Ray's children Ally, Michael and Geoffrey and his brother Robert, wife Amy.
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| Raymond Albert Barone | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | "Pilot" |
| Last appearance |
Final Everybody Loves Raymond appearance: "The Finale" |
| Created by | Ray Romano & Philip Rosenthal |
| Information | |
| Occupation | Sportswriter/Head of Sports Features |
| Spouse(s) | Debra Barone (1988-present) |
Raymond Albert "Ray" Barone, (Ray Romano) is the protagonist of the sitcom. Most of the series’ storylines revolve around him, hence the title of the show.
He lives in New York, Lynbrook, Long Island with his wife Debra and their three children Ally and twin boys, Michael and Geoffrey Barone. Ray is well-known through the community due to his profession as a writer for a sports column. In some episodes, he is seen reviewing a famous sportsperson. However, this is shown to have subsided in the later seasons. Due to the nature of his work, Ray is often seen on the couch watching sports rather than assisting Debra with household duties and the children.
Raymond is also shown to have a rather weak/timid and neurotic personality. He is often heard complaining in a nasally whiny voice that he has a serious illness; in one particular incident Debra had to put up with Ray when he faked an illness to avoid responsibility. His fears include not being liked by everyone and confronting his parents, particularly Marie. Ray often gets annoyed because he and Debra rarely have sex, which causes him to occasionally flirt with other women, though he would never cheat on his wife.
Parts of backstory have explained Raymond’s attitude and personality as an adult. During their childhoods, Raymond and Robert were raised in a dysfunctional family, with their mom spoiling them and being over-nurturing (at least with Raymond) and their father showing no love or affection for either boy and cutting them both out of picture, which Ray has ironically mimicked with his own reluctance to participate with his children.
Ray attended St. Johns University (New York) in Queens, New York.
He has a habit of saying "shut up" whenever frustrated or irritated at anyone, particularly Robert. He's also a liar for his own selfishness.
Ray is also shown to be a dumb person, lacking any general knowledge such as thinking the Tortoise in The Tortoise and the Hare said "I think I can. I think I can." but that was actually said by The Little Engine That Could. He also thinks that Tiny Tim, whose name he doesn't know, said "Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night." in A Christmas Carol, when this was actually the last line of The Night Before Christmas. What Tiny Tim actually said was "God bless us, everyone." Raymond's stupidity is confirmed when radio personality Jerry Musso claims to have a low standard for dumb. Debra even calls Ray an idiot whenever he says or does something stupid.
Note- In 2004, TV Guide ranked Ray Barone number 10 on it's '50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time' list.[1]
| Debra Louise Barone | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | "Pilot" |
| Last appearance | "The Finale" |
| Information | |
| Occupation | Housewife |
| Family | Warren Whelan (father) Lois Whelan (mother) Jennifer Whelan (sister) |
| Spouse(s) | Raymond Barone (1988-present) |
Debra Louise Barone (Patricia Heaton), is the deuteragonist of the sitcom and the wife of Ray.
Debra was raised by wealthy parents, Lois and Warren Whalen, and grew up in an upper-class background, unlike the other major characters in the sitcom. She has a sister, Jennifer Whalen, who is seen only once in the entire series. Following her graduation from high school, Debra travelled a lot and dated many famous sportspeople. Before marrying Ray, she worked in public relations for the New York Rangers hockey team.
Debra is emotional and very sensitive. She is stressed out as a housewife, because she has to put up not only with Ray’s corny jokes and unwillingness to help, but also with his obnoxious, intrusive family members, who often barge in uninvited and harass the couple, leaving emotional havoc in their wake.
She is frequently at odds with her mother-in-law, Marie, who shows a large amount of distaste with Debra as a mother and as Raymond's wife. Throughout the series, Debra often finds Robert the most understanding of the Barones, which tightens their relationship. At times, she is also shown to get along well with Frank, who thinks of her as a daughter and understands her attitude toward Marie. Debra’s hairstyles and wardrobe constantly changed throughout the course of the series.
| Marie Janella Barone | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | "Pilot" |
| Last appearance | "Finale" |
| Information | |
| Occupation | Housewife |
| Spouse(s) | Frank Barone (1957-) |
Marie Janella Barone (Doris Roberts) is the main antagonist of the sitcom, wife of Frank, and matriarch of the Barone family.
As a housewife, she excels in household duties, including cooking, cleaning, and generally keeping and maintaining a good household. Marie is shown to be very narcissistic, arrogant, self-centered, conceited, and snobbish throughout the series, particularly towards her daughter-in-law Debra, and others as well, including her friends Lee and Stan, Robert’s dates, and people with whom Ray works. She has very high self-esteem and believes herself as a positive example of what every wife, mother and woman should be. She takes special pride in her Italian background and even arranges a tour of Italy for the whole family out of her own savings.
Throughout the sitcom, Marie is shown to have favorites with certain people, with her son Raymond being the first and Debra being possibly the last. Other than Frank, everyone has a hard time standing up to Marie, although Debra does finally take a stand. Marie is well aware of her son Raymond’s reluctance to stand up to her, and in some situations takes advantage of this to achieve her own interests.
As her boys were growing up, Marie smothered her youngest son while completely cutting Robert out of the picture. However, in a later episode, she claimed that this was because Robert was able to take care of himself and was independent, in contrast to Ray who was a soft, weak, needy little boy. In some cases, however, Marie is shown to care and be overprotective for her other son Robert. This includes when he had nightmares growing up, when he was gored by a bull in the line of duty, when he was up for an FBI promotion, and her frequent attempts to get Robert out of the police force in effort to keep him safe.
Marie is also seen constantly arguing with her husband Frank in nearly every episode of the sitcom. However, in some situations, there have been times when they do devote their love for one another, despite their reluctance to be open with it.
Her catchphrase is "I don't like that, [insert name]." whenever anyone says anything inappropriate.
The final episode reveals that Marie's birthday is December 9, 1929 (this was one of Frank's classic "one-liners"), which would explain her inability to grasp with change and her technophobia.
| Frank Oscar Barone | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | "Pilot" |
| Last appearance | "Finale" |
| Information | |
| Occupation | Bookkeeper (retired) |
| Spouse(s) | Marie Barone (1957-) |
Francis Oscar "Frank" Barone (Peter Boyle) is the secondary antagonist of the sitcom, husband of Marie, and a retired bookkeeper.
During the course of the series, Frank is seen as stubborn, hungry, outspoken, and rigidly masculine. Although it is briefly mentioned that he has a soft side, Frank refuses to accept it. In episodes like "Pet the Bunny" and "Christmas Present" he indicates that, though capable of kindness and sensitivity, he deliberately cultivates a tough guy image.
He is always seen at Ray and Debra’s house on the black armchair with his pants unbuttoned and zipper open watching sports or at home ordering Marie to prepare his meals while sitting and reading the paper. During his sons’ childhood, Frank was virtually absent and had refused to show any sign of affection and love to either boy. He was constantly at odds with his wife Marie to how the boys were to be raised. He is very opinionated, outspoken, and has no problem insulting family members and strangers out in the open (this applies in particular to his wife, Marie). He calls men names like “Nancy”, “Shirley”, "Peaches", and "Mary" who don’t live up to his standards to what it takes to be a man. His main catchphrase on the show is "Holy Crap".
Throughout the sitcom, Frank is shown to have socially conservative values, particularly regarding minority groups such as gays and lesbians, and ethnic groups such as the Koreans and Japanese to which he occasionally mutters “Japanese crap”. He doesn’t follow or accept anything outside the social norms, to which his wife proclaims “Frank lives in blissful ignorance”. Despite his wife’s constant self-regard, she is accepting of these minority groups. Much to other characters' dismay, he's not above engaging in illegal or dubious activities such as gambling or stealing cable from Ray.
In his spare time, Frank is a skilled handyman and a history buff, with a particular interest in the American Civil War. He's frequently seen making repairs in Ray and Debra's house, and in "Frank Goes Downstairs" is injured while fixing their staircase. His regular get-away activity is having naked pool bath with his elderly friends at a community centre referred to as "the lodge". On every other Saturday, he takes Raymond's children to The Happy Zone.
He is a troublesome driver and the family is concerned about the way he passes remarks to other people on the road.
Frank is also a war veteran. He fought in the Korean War and he uses this as a reference for recounting stories of survival and how he came to be a “man”. In one particular incident, where all three Barone men were pretending to go to counselling sessions it was revealed that Ray and Robert had a long line of physically disciplinarian grandparents. However, Frank vowed never to be physically abusive towards his sons.
| Robert Charles Barone | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Police Officer (NYPD) |
| Spouse(s) | Joanne Glotz (1994–1996,divorced) Amy MacDougall-Barone (2003-present) |
Robert Charles Barone (Brad Garrett) is the tertiary antagonist. He is Ray's older brother and the first born son of Frank and Marie, conceived out of wedlock. Standing at 6' 8½", he is the tallest Barone, and has several quirks, the biggest being a nervous habit of touching food to his chin before eating it, commonly known as the "Crazy Chin", which he developed to cope with stress which started when Raymond was born and all of Marie's attention turned to Raymond. Robert is a caring uncle and still deeply cares for little brother Raymond. Robert has been a Police Officer with the New York City Police Department for 27 years, eventually attaining the rank of Sergeant and then, by the end of the series, Lieutenant. His height, appearance and demeanor are the source of much humor, but despite his huge size, Robert is a very skilled dancer.
After divorcing his first wife Joanne, Robert moved back in with his parents, became a workaholic and was acknowledged by the NYPD for never being absent one day of his career. Robert's diverse skills as a police officer even got him an interview with the FBI, but his mother intentionally interfered in the interview process. Robert was passed over but simply because the other candidates were more qualified. He was injured on the job when he was gored in the bottom by a bull. When he returned, he left the police force out of fear, and became a telemarketer. Later he took a side job as an alarm salesman for a brief time (one episode) but returned to the NYPD, mainly with Raymond's help.
Robert dated Debra's best friend Amy MacDougall for several years, despite a number of breakups. After a bad date with yet another woman, Robert ran into Amy in a bar and they soon got back together and married in 2003. In 2004, they purchased Frank and Marie's home for $26,000, but they had to welcome them back in when they were kicked out of a retirement community in New Jersey in the episode "Not so Fast".
Robert is very jealous of his brother Raymond, who was favored by their mother, and though Robert is four years older than Ray and much taller, he constantly feels as if he's stuck in Ray's shadow. Despite the obvious favoring of Ray, Marie has claimed that there was never any favoritism. He has a very cruel sense of humor and will make fun of Raymond to no end to get a little belated revenge. He is also known for being very passive-aggressive. While not averse to picking on Ray himself, Robert does seem, however, to be protective of his younger brother; in one episode, he overhears a journalist insulting Ray at length and angrily tells him off. He also respects Ray as a well-intentioned, if generally absent, father, in the pattern of Frank. Robert serves as the moral conscience in the family, as the most virtuous of the characters, and often pleads with others when they are considering doing something questionable.
| Amy Louise MacDougall-Barone | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Gender | Female |
| Family | Hank MacDougall (father) Pat MacDougall (mother) Peter MacDougall (brother) |
| Spouse(s) | Robert Barone (2003-present) |
Amy Louise MacDougall (Monica Horan) is Robert's on-and-off girlfriend, and eventual wife. They met because Amy is Debra's best friend. She and Debra share the same middle name. Although Amy marries Robert in Season 7, Episode 24: "Robert's Wedding", she also appears in the previous seasons. Many issues have caused Amy and Robert to break up in the first six seasons, with one being caused by Raymond and another being that Robert had sex with another woman. Quite often, Amy apologizes to someone even if she didn't do anything wrong.
She is a bubbly girl who was raised in a family of devout Protestants, who live in Pennsylvania. She describes her parents as "people who wouldn't yell if they were on fire". Amy was a virgin when she met Robert, which Ray had a hard time believing, as Amy was 33 at the time. She eventually lost her virginity to Robert before they were married, but they were spotted having sex by their neighbors, causing Robert's neighbors to sign a sheet mandating bedroom curtains in the apartment building.
Henry "Hank" and Patricia "Pat" MacDougall (Fred Willard and Georgia Engel) are Amy's parents and they first appear in Season 7, Episode 14: "Just a Formality". Devout conservative Protestants, they oppose their daughter's marriage because of Robert's previous marital status and Catholic faith. These matters are not helped as they soon learn that the MacDougalls and the Barones are not the most compatible of families; the two sides still do not like each other after many tries at truce, although the Barones have always loved Amy, and the MacDougalls come to accept Robert. Hank refers to his wife as "mother." A running gag is the continuity of which arm Pat's purse is on, often changing several times in one scene.
Peter MacDougall (Chris Elliott) is Amy's older brother. He has a strange, psychologically unstable personality - Robert has stated that "There are squirrels juggling knives in his head" - and a sneaky, clever mind. Also opposed to his sister's marriage, he insists that he will keep trying to break it up, which explains during Robert's wedding that Robert and Ray looked at him when the pastor asked if anyone objected to Robert and Amy's marriage. Peter is single but lives with his pet house cat, Miss Puss. At first, Peter and Robert do not get along very well, but in "Peter on the Couch," the two find common ground in the fact that they both suffered from being the overshadowed older sibling and living with their parents. He is also fond of Ray, although the feeling isn't mutual.
Peter was originally introduced as "Russell", the owner of a comic book shop, and was played by comedian Paul Reubens in a one-time appearance. Russell abruptly became Peter because in Season 7, Episode 14: "Just a Formality", Peter (Chris Elliott) mentions meeting Ray at the comic book store (which was Russell).