List of Mama's Family characters
The following is a list of the characters appearing on the television show Mama's Family (1983–1990) and The Family (1974–1978) sketches on the The Carol Burnett Show which preceded it.[1]
Thelma Harper (Mama)
See Thelma Harper
Eunice Harper Higgins
Vinton Harper
| Vinton Harper | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | "Vint and the Kids Move In" |
| Last appearance | "Bye-bye–Baby!" |
| Portrayed by |
Ken Berry David Friedman as Young Vint Harper |
| Information | |
| Aliases | Vinton Ray Harper (birth name) |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Locksmith |
| Family |
Thelma Harper (mother) Carl Harper (father; deceased) Ellen Jackson (sister) Eunice Higgins (sister) |
| Spouse(s) |
Mitzi Harper (divorced) Naomi Oates (current) |
| Children |
Sonja Harper (daughter, with Mitzi) Vinton "Buzz" Harper, Jr. (son, with Mitzi) Tiffany Thelma Harper (daughter, with Naomi) |
| Relatives |
Fran Crowley (aunt) Ed Higgins (brother-in-law) Bubba Higgins (nephew) Billy Joe Higgins (nephew) |
Vinton Ray Harper, played by actor Ken Berry, was the youngest of the three children of Thelma Harper and her late husband, Carl. As a child and as an adult, he was often at the mercy of his older sisters, snobbish Ellen and temperamental, tempestuous Eunice.
Vinton worked as a locksmith at a store called "Kwik Keys." Prior to the series' run, Vinton had been married to a woman named Mitzi, siring two children, Vinton "Buzz" Harper, Jr. and Sonja Harper. Mitzi had just abandoned Vinton and her family to move to Las Vegas as the series began, finding work there as a cocktail waitress, and Vinton and his two children moved in with his mother after being evicted from their house. He soon reconnected with former schoolmate, and his mother's next door neighbor, Naomi Oates. They fell in love after a one-night stand, exacerbating the neighborly rivalry between Thelma and Naomi, and they married in his mother's house. Their plan after marriage had been to move to Arizona to run a trailer park, but their business partner absconded with their money, leaving them destitute with no other alternative but to move into his mother's basement.
During the NBC run of the series (1983-1984), Vinton was portrayed as clumsy, temperamental, and unafraid of confrontation. As a blue-collar worker from the heartland, a few episodes during the NBC run revolved around his family's inability to act with grace and class in public, much to the embarrassment of the more cultured members of the family. This changed during the series' run in syndication (1986-1990); Vinton was portrayed as dumbfounded and naïve, with a peaceable demeanor and a fear of confrontation.
Toward the end of the third season, Vinton became a member of the Mystic Knights of the Cobras, a fictitious men's order similar to the Shriners and the Elks Club.
A running gag throughout the series was that the Vinton and Naomi characters were relegated to living in his mother's basement while other family members occupied the rooms upstairs. When the series began running in syndication, Vinton's children Buzz and Sonja had moved out of the house, and his aunt (Thelma's sister Fran) had recently died. The season three premiere had Vinton's nephew Bubba Higgins, the son of Eunice and Ed Higgins, released from juvenile hall to Thelma's custody after his parents had left Raytown for Florida; Bubba was given Thelma's deceased sister's spacious room, complete with pink floral wallpaper. A season four episode addressed the unusual living arrangements between the family members as they switched rooms, but Vinton and his wife ultimately chose to move back into the basement and remained there without further complaint. In the penultimate episode of the series, Vinton and Naomi finally moved out of the basement and into a recreational vehicle parked in his mother's backyard.
A recurring theme throughout the fifth season had Vinton and his wife planning and attempting to conceive a child, culminating in the announcement at the season finale that Naomi was pregnant. The sixth season saw the family's preparation for the upcoming new addition, and the series ended with Vinton's wife giving birth to a daughter, Tiffany Thelma Harper.
Naomi Harper
| Naomi Harper | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | "Vint and the Kids Move In" |
| Last appearance | "Bye-bye–Baby!" |
| Portrayed by | Dorothy Lyman |
| Information | |
| Nickname(s) | "Skeeter" |
| Aliases | Naomi Oates |
| Occupation |
Cashier at Food Circus Assistant Manager at Food Circus |
| Spouse(s) |
Vinton Harper, Leonard Oates (ex-husband), Tommy Ray/Lee (ex-husband) |
| Children |
Tiffany Thelma Harper (daughter) Vinton Harper Jr. AKA Buzz (step-son) Sonja Harper (step-daughter) |
| Relatives |
Thelma Harper (mother-in-law), Bubba Higgins (nephew), Ellen Jackson (sister-in-law), Eunice Higgins (sister-in-law), Ed Higgins (brother-in-law) |
Naomi Harper (formerly Oates), played by actress-director Dorothy Lyman, was the second wife of Vinton Harper and the bane of Thelma Harper's existence. Thelma thinks that Naomi is a floozy; but Vint adores her and calls her "Skeeter". At first, Naomi was Thelma's neighbor, always complaining about the sap from Thelma's tree dripping on her car, but later she becomes family. Naomi is a very amorous, touchy-feely woman, who's often seen openly showing her love and affection towards Vinton by rubbing and feeling all over him. She almost always either wears the color yellow and/or off-the-shoulder dresses and blouses.
She met Vinton, an old schoolmate, after he moved in with his mother, and the two hit it off. They even shared a night together, which truly infuriated Thelma. When they announced their marriage plans, Thelma wanted the paramedics called, because she was going to kill Vinton.
In fact, her wedding ceremony was almost ruined by the over-the-top antics of her hateful sister in-law, Eunice Harper Higgins. Eunice begged both Vinton and Naomi to let her sing. Naomi reluctantly agreed, basically to keep Eunice quiet. However, the straw broke for Eunice when Naomi showed her a ring that her mother had given Vinton. It turned out to be a sapphire ring that had belonged to her father, and she had coveted for some time. Naomi tied the ring around her neck (it was the something old, something borrowed and something blue, her dress was the something new).
This led to Eunice going off on every single member of her family, and particularly her mother, leading Ed, Eunice's long-suffering husband, to carry her out of the house. During this argument, Naomi wasn't spared Eunice's tongue-lashing and neither was Vinton. She called her younger brother, "Tinker Bell" and referred to Naomi as a "recycled bride". This set the stage for animosity between Eunice and Naomi. To Eunice, Naomi is a Bleach Blond Bimbo, and Naomi counters with that she buys her clothes from a dime-store dummy.
At first, Naomi, with Vint and her new family, was set to move to Arizona to run a trailer park, but her so-called "partner" ran off with the money she had made selling her house.
Naomi worked as a cashier at Food Circus, a local grocery store in Raytown, and continued to do so, even after her marriage. Later on, she was promoted to Assistant Manager. She worked under three managers, Mr. Frank Palmer (who hired Thelma Harper as head of customer relations), Mr. Carruthers, and Mr. Archie Woods, who sexually harassed Naomi.
She had been married two previous times, most notably to Leonard Oates (played by Jerry Reed), but despite that, Vint is her soul-mate and the love of her life. She and Vint remain a solid couple, even though their across the street neighbor, Iola Boylen, makes no secret that she wants Vint.
Although she established a bond between her and her two stepchildren, (from Vint's first marriage) Vinton "Buzz" Harper, Jr. and Sonja Harper; she had her own child by Vint, Tiffany Thelma Harper, named after her grandmother. After years of living in the basement of the Harper home, they purchased a trailer and lived in the backyard, out of the house, but never out of Thelma's shadow.
The character of Naomi underwent a change after the series went to first run syndication. Naomi became less assertive and more dumb. During the run on NBC Naomi was not shown to be a pushover and quite often stood up to Mama. Indeed, at one point she sued Mama. This side of Naomi was dropped when the series entered syndication.
There is also a continuity error with how many prior times Naomi has been married. Most say Vinton was her third marriage but several instances (such as in the episode regarding the chili cook-off), Naomi names four prior ex-husbands so that would make Vinton her fifth. Naomi says she married Tommy Lee when she was 17, then names Rick, Leonard and George as her other husbands. It was Leonard (played by Jerry Reed) who had the last name of Oates.
Naomi boasts about her cooking, but it's really canned food with a few added ingredients. Her "Famous International Stew" is canned stew, canned peas, canned Mexican corn, canned sauerkraut and SpaghettiOs. Another time is when Mama, Iola and Naomi competed in a chili cookoff, Naomi's ingredients consisted of canned chili, Beer Nuts, beef jerky, and Fritos. Despite having limited cooking skills, Naomi briefly worked as a caterer with disastrous results.
Vinton "Buzz" Harper, Jr.
Vinton Harper, Jr. better known by his nickname, "Buzz", played by actor Eric Brown, was the youngest of the two children of Vinton Harper (whom he was named after) and his first wife, Mitzi. Right after Mitzi had run off to Las Vegas to work in show business, (in actuality, she worked at a bar as a cocktail waitress) he, along with his father and his sister, Sonja Harper moved in with his grandmother, Thelma Harper, after they were evicted from their house. He shared a very good relationship with his grandmother and his great aunt Fran Crowley.
The reason for this is that he didn't constantly drive his grandmother crazy as Sonja was often wont to do, and as his father had to his mother when he was Buzz's age. He found favor with Aunt Fran because they shared a bathroom and at least, he was extremely neat and orderly, unlike Sonja, who strewed her makeup all over the counter.
The thing about Buzz was that he was extremely obedient, very patient, and was always willing to do the right thing, no matter what. In short, he was quite respectful to everyone. Although, he could be head-strong, like most of his family, he was never outright mean.
This didn't please Sonja, who like her aunts before her, felt that he was overshadowing her. On the other hand, Buzz was himself, and it earned him favor from his great aunt and his grandmother.
Buzz also seemed to have a close bond with his grandmother. One example was when she was lining up help to clean the attic. After everyone else gave some ridiculous and even some not-so-subtle excuses for not wanting to doing so, Buzz said that he had no excuse, and so said he would help her. "You've got no imagination, Buzz" his grandmother said, "but I love you."
Together the two shared stories from her earlier days when his dad and aunts were children, and even though they never got the attic (where Buzz slept) cleaned up, it mattered not, it was a fun time for both of them. As it turned out, it was a surprise for Thelma, who received a freezer that she had coveted for a long time, as a birthday present, and everyone had pitched in.
Another sore spot with Sonja was that even though she was older, she perceived Buzz to be favored by his father. In fact, he told his father, after he had told them that he was planning to remarry, that no matter what situations that he dragged them into, that they were his for the dragging. In his mind, other fathers would have given up on them and dumped them, but his father never did, and that was good enough for him.
Buzz and Sonja were on the receiving end of their sharp-tongued aunt, Eunice Harper Higgins's ire when she told them to "go soak their heads in Clearasil!!" This occurred at his father's wedding.
Buzz will defend his family, when push comes to shove. This was shown as Buzz had shouted at Eunice as she was being carried out by his Uncle Ed.
After two years of living with his grandmother, he and Sonja moved to an unknown location. They did establish a bond with their father's second wife, Naomi Harper, however. In fact, Buzz outright said that he liked Naomi.
Ellen Harper
| Ellen Harper Jackson | |
|---|---|
| First appearance |
The Carol Burnett Show (November 22, 1975) |
| Last appearance |
Episode: "Best Medicine" (July 1986) |
| Portrayed by | Betty White |
| Information | |
| Aliases | Mary Ellen Harper (birth name) |
| Gender | Female |
| Occupation | Socialite |
| Family |
Carl Harper (father; deceased) Thelma Harper (mother) Eunice Higgins Vinton Harper |
| Spouse(s) | Bruce Jackson (divorced) |
| Children |
Mary Beth Jackson Debbie Jackson (daughters with Bruce; mentioned on The Carol Burnett Show) |
| Relatives |
Fran Crowley (maternal aunt; deceased) Bubba Higgins (nephew) Sonja Harper (niece) Buzz Harper (nephew) Billy Joe Higgins (nephew) |
Ellen Jackson (née Mary Ellen Harper), who made sporadic appearances in the sketch comedy, The Family, and its spin-off sitcom, Mama's Family, was played by Betty White.
Mary Ellen Harper (usually called Ellen) was born on December 19 in Raytown to Carl Harper and Thelma Crowley Harper. Snobbish by nature, affluent by marriage, Ellen is the oldest of Carl and Thelma Harper's three children. Even as a child, her snobbish tendencies asserted themselves. Typically, she prefers not to associate with anyone in her family—-unless it benefits her in some way. She was married to an often spoken of but never seen husband named Bruce Jackson, whom she later divorced. Her ability to do anything well irritated her resentful younger sister, Eunice, to no end. This, added to the fact that Ellen was Carl and Thelma's clear favorite, added to the explosive rivalry between the two sisters. Ellen later learned of Bruce's infidelity from Eunice, who gleefully exposed it to her face. Ellen's relationship with her brother Vinton "Vint" Harper tends to be amicable, although like the rest of the family, she usually dismisses him for being a bit dim.
Shortly after her divorce from Bruce Jackson, Ellen began to date a much younger man named Glenn, to which Thelma vehemently objected. She later began seeing Alvin Tutweiler, mayor of Raytown. Ellen saw him as the ticket back into the high society that she missed since her divorce. When confronted on this conniving by her mother, she flippantly replied: "it worked for Nancy Reagan." Ellen was clearly resentful towards her mother when she decided to run against her boyfriend for mayor. Despite Ellen's conniving, Thelma won the Mayor's race. However, Thelma realized that she couldn't run Raytown, so she relinquished the Mayor's office back to Tutweiler.
When the show went into syndication, it was presumed that Ellen still lived in Raytown, but she wasn't seen much after the second season (Betty White was, by this time, starring in The Golden Girls.)
Despite being her mother's favorite, Ellen (like her siblings) isn't spared Thelma's criticism, insults or wrath. When Fran died and Ellen's presence was not at her funeral, this caused a huge rift in Thelma and Ellen's relationship, and Thelma threatened to not speak to her again. Afterwards, Ellen made an attempt to mend fences with her mother by showing up with a peace offering, but Thelma remained unmoved and ordered her out of the house. Thelma let go of her animosity when she soon after learned that Ellen had been checked into the hospital for surgery (in reality, she had a mere fanny tuck). It was there that Thelma admitted to Ellen that she had always favored her the best of her three kids.
Ellen was chosen as Raytown Country Club's Woman of the Year, and was embarrassed when Thelma, Vint, and Naomi showed up at the awards ceremony. She has also dated a successful businessman named Glenn, who was so young that Thelma observed "She's old enough to have lived two of his lives."
However, in "The Family" sketches on the Carol Burnett Show, Ellen has no qualms about snapping back at her mother, when she is annoyed with her. In those sketches, she was also near gleeful whenever she got something that Eunice wanted, like a Tiffany lampshade, or a box of fine china. She also tended to rub it into Eunice's face that she was favored, and Eunice was not.
In The Family sketches, her husband's name was Arthur and they had two spoiled daughters, named Mary Beth and Debbie.
Ed Higgins
Ed Higgins is a character in "The Family" sketches on The Carol Burnett Show and, to a lesser extent, on the sitcom spinoff Mama's Family. In both cases, he was played by Harvey Korman.
Among other things, Ed is a fiercely ill-tempered, slovenly, unsuccessful buffoon in The Family sketches. In his appearances on Mama's Family, however, the intensity of the character is toned down and he is more of an affable, buffoonish dolt. Ed is the owner of Central Hardware store in Raytown. He was married to the most trying of women, Eunice Harper Higgins. They eloped, much against her mother Thelma Harper's wishes, and that set up years of contention. In his wife's eyes, he was an insonsiderate, worthless goon. At the Hardware store, he had an assistant named Mickey Hart (Tim Conway), but he was only seen on The Carol Burnett Show.
He had a lot of troubles, some would say more than his share, married to a woman who was not only always thinking she was better than everyone else, but she also felt she could do no wrong when in reality, she always managed to ruin everything.
Ed was asked by his brother in-law's soon-to-be wife, Naomi Harper to give her away at her wedding. This earned him the wrath of Eunice, who wanted to do some singing at the wedding, but was told by everyone, no.
During said wedding, Eunice, typically, decided to destroy the festivities, by railing and ranting at every member of her family, because once again, she was overshadowed by them, and the spotlight was never on her.
However, it is possible Ed has some relief from Eunice, in the form of prostitutes. We know this from the episode where Thelma and Eunice are in jail together, with a prostitute who sets them both straight (briefly). When Ed comes to bail the women out, he and the prostitute recognize each other suggestively.
The couple, for all their contention, had two sons, Bubba and Billy Joe, but had abandoned Bubba while he was in juvenile hall, and they moved to Florida, without even telling him.
Bubba Higgins
| Bubba Higgins | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | "Farewell Frannie" |
| Last appearance | "Bye Bye Baby" |
| Created by | Dick Clair |
| Portrayed by | Allan Kayser |
| Information | |
| Occupation | College student |
| Family |
Eunice Higgins (mother) Ed Higgins (father) Billy Joe Higgins (brother) |
| Relatives |
Thelma Harper, neé Crowley (grandmother) Carl Harper (grandfather; deceased) Vint Harper (uncle) Naomi Harper (aunt) Vinton "Buzz" Harper, Jr. (cousin) Sonja Harper (cousin) Tiffany Thelma Harper (cousin) Ellen Jackson (aunt) Bruce Jackson (former uncle) Fran Crowley (great-aunt; deceased) |
Bubba Higgins is a fictional character in the television situation comedy, Mama's Family. He was played by Allan Kayser.
Character overview
Bubba was the son of Ed and Eunice Higgins. Some time prior to his first appearance, he had stolen a car, and was sent to juvenile hall. Which was no surprise, given that his mother was often contentious and very selfish.
He was released early from juvie on good behavior, only to return home and find that it was locked up tight. Then he was told that his parents had basically left him in Raytown while they went off to Florida. This characteristically selfish act of Eunice's was enough to incur the wrath of her mother, Thelma Harper, who swore that she would kill Eunice for leaving Bubba in Raytown, and also for missing her own son's graduation.
Bubba was quite a switch from Vinton "Buzz" Harper, Jr., his cousin. Whereas Buzz was patient, and easy to get along with, Bubba was a lot like his mother. He wasn't as selfish as she was, but he was temperamental and stubborn. He was also very girl-crazy, something that his grandmother couldn't understand. One time, she found a porno magazine in his bedroom, and she formed MOP (Mothers Opposing Pornography) to quash that.
Bubba's two best friends were a duo named Dwayne and T-Boy, obviously guys he knew from his days in Juvenile Hall. Thelma thoroughly disliked the two from the outset, and often forbade Bubba from hanging out with them, but he usually wound up doing so and angering her in the process.
When he first arrived, he didn't win any favor with his uncle Vinton and aunt Naomi Harper, when he got the prized bedroom that was left open when Thelma's sister, Fran Crowley died. Thelma had indeed promised him his own room. They had wanted that room, and were angered that Bubba got it, promise or no promise. They remained, under protest, in the basement.
Bubba nearly caused a serious breach in his relationship with his grandmother, when he came home drunk on a few beers. It hurt Thelma to see Bubba drunk and it reminded her all too clearly of the first time Eunice drank. During a mother-daughter banquet, where Eunice and Thelma were supposed to sing "MOTHER," they instead got into a violent argument about all the things that her mother had thought she had done, and wrecked. That was why Thelma was so strident against drinking. Iola had told Bubba, Vint, and Naomi the story the day after Bubba's drinking incident and he tearfully apologized to Thelma, telling her she was the last person in the world he ever wanted to hurt. Thelma happily accepted and Bubba swore off drinking from that point on. During a sarcastic remark, Thelma tells Bubba that the only beer he'll be drinking is root beer.
Although he regularly drives his family crazy, they truly do love Bubba. He got through his probation, and started to attend junior college. By this time, he did break away from Dwayne and T-Boy. He was also instrumental in saving his grandmother's home, when he discovered that the house was a former brothel that the founder of Raytown had died in it. This made the house a Raytown historical landmark.
Fran Crowley
| Frances Marie Crowley | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | "Vint and the Kids Move In" (January 1983) |
| Last appearance | "A Grave Mistake" (April 1984) |
| Created by | Dick Clair |
| Portrayed by | Rue McClanahan |
| Information | |
| Nickname(s) |
"Fran" (nickname) "Frannie" (nickname) |
| Occupation | Reporter for The Raytown Bugle |
| Title | Miss Crowley |
| Family |
Grandma Crowley (mother; deceased) Grandpa Crowley (father; deceased) Thelma Harper (sister) Clyde Crowley (brother; lives in Amarillo, Texas) Ellen Jackson (niece) Eunice Higgins (niece) Ed Higgins (nephew-in-law) Vint Harper (nephew) Naomi Harper (niece-in-law) Sonja Harper (great-niece) Buzz Harper (great-nephew) Bubba Higgins (great-nephew) Billy Joe Higgins (great-nephew) Tiffany Thelma Harper (great-niece) |
| Relatives |
Ina (aunt; deceased) Gert Corey (cousin) Don (uncle) Lorraine (aunt) Leroy (cousin; deceased) |
Frances Marie Crowley, commonly known as "Fran Crowley", is a fictional character on the television series, Mama's Family. She was portrayed by Rue McClanahan during the show's first two seasons.
Fran is the uptight spinster younger sister of acid-tongued Thelma Harper. At first, she was the only one living with Thelma, until the arrival of her nephew, Vinton Harper and his children, Vinton "Buzz" Harper, Jr. and Sonja Harper. She was a reporter for one of Raytown's newspapers, "The Bugle". She was also a budding author, and had her own writing studio, which had been yanked from her by Thelma who needed the room for Sonja. (The room had originally belonged to Ellen Harper and Eunice Harper Higgins, Vinton's older sisters.)
At times, Fran had felt that her privacy had been invaded because of Vint and his family moving in, namely because Sonja had read her manuscript. Another particular cross was that she had to share a bathroom with the kids. At least, Buzz kept his things in an orderly fashion, and for this won favor from Fran; while Sonja was a typical teenager, messy and earning more wrath from Fran.
Fran always looked like that she was one step away from a nervous breakdown, and she often stood up to her opinionated sister. At times though, she would unbend, and let her hair down and have some fun. She showed this side of herself when she indulged in some wine at the wedding preparations for Vint and Naomi Oates. Also, when she chaperoned Sonja's slumber party when Thelma was out of town.
However, after two years, (and because Rue McClanahan and Betty White, who played Ellen, had been asked to join the cast of The Golden Girls), Fran had died as a result of swallowing a toothpick in the ladies room at the local bar and grill, The Bigger Jigger. Her room eventually went to her great nephew, Bubba Higgins, which caused Vint and Naomi great consternation, since they had been angling for that room.
Fran Crowley's Last Will and Testament
After Fran's funeral in "Farewell Frannie", it was later revealed in "Where There's a Will" that she left a last will and testament and Thelma contacted the executor of Fran's last will and testament, Larwin P. Finstadler. According to Finstadler, Fran Crowley was worth an estimated $35,000 dollars through six bank accounts, stock and land holdings.
- 10% of her estate is set aside for her favorite charity, the Ray of Hope Home for Wayward Girls. ($3,500)
- To her sister Thelma Harper, she is bequeathed half of the remainder of her estate. ($15,750)
- To her nephew Vint Harper and niece-in-law Naomi Harper, they are bequeathed half of the remainder of her estate. ($15,750)
There is one stipulation that Thelma must fill out Fran's one final wish: which is to not lose her temper for a period of 2 weeks. If she fails, which she did, the entire estate goes to the Ray of Hope Home for Wayward Girls.
Iola Boylan
| Iola Lucille Boylan | |
|---|---|
| First appearance | Farewell, Frannie |
| Last appearance | Bye Bye Baby |
| Information | |
| Nickname(s) | Miss Boylan |
| Gender | Female |
| Title | Miss Boylan |
| Family |
Tommy Boylan (father) Harriette Iola Boylan (mother) Verne Boylan (brother) |
| Relatives |
Vernilia Boylan (cousin) Vernette Boylan (niece) |
Iola Lucille Boylan, a character on Mama's Family, was played by Beverly Archer during the series' syndicated run (1986-1990).
During the NBC years (1983-1984), there was no mention of Iola by name; however, various references to the Boylan family were made, including "Tommy Boylan" and "Mrs. Boylan," who appeared briefly as a neighbor who lived across the street from Thelma Harper and her family. After Iola's introduction in season three, she was portrayed as having lived across the street from and knowing the Harper family for all of her life. With the exception of her niece, Vernette (played by Penelope Sudrow), the rest of her family members and the inside of her home were unseen. References were made throughout the series to her father and morbidly obese and disabled mother, Mr. and Mrs. Boylan; her brother, Verne, and her cousin, Vernelia, who worked at an adoption agency in the neighboring town of Hinckley. Thelma's daughter Ellen had limited interaction with Iola in the syndicated version of the series, and through flashbacks, it is revealed that Thelma's daughter Eunice disliked her. Thelma's grandson Bubba always referred to her as "Miss Boylan," and Iola's catchphrase was a friendly "Knock, knock!" whenever she entered the Harpers' house, usually around dinner time.
Iola would often be the only other person whom Thelma would spend time with, outside of her family. They would often be involved in civic work together, most notably the Church Ladies' League (CLL). Although the two women were best friends, multiple episodes and story lines would depict conflicts that would arise between the two when fighting over the same things (e.g., a position as president of the CLL; a rose-growing contest; a chili cook-off; a winning lottery ticket, etc.). When first introduced, the character of Iola seemed to be an antagonist for Mama, but this role was quickly dropped and most episodes depicted Iola as a second banana to Thelma in her schemes throughout the series' run.
From the character's introduction at the beginning of season three until the middle of season four, the Iola character was infatuated with Vinton, a crush that was revealed to have existed since they were children. Her open flirtatiousness around Vinton and her disdain of Naomi led to an acrimonious and somewhat formal relationship between the two women. However, after a season four episode ("I Do, I Don't") in which various characters fantasized about married life with the objects of their affections, Iola's attitude towards Vinton changed from that point forward in the series. With Iola no longer displaying any overt interest in Vinton, relations between her and Naomi greatly improved, with episodes in seasons five and six depicting the two women spending time together at the theater and the mall.
Iola was depicted as mobile, having the ability to drive a car and the church van, which were both never seen. As a home economics major, she was frequently portrayed as an excellent cook, baker, gardener, housekeeper, and sewer of clothes, drapes, and slipcovers. However, she was also a frequent maker of handicrafts that ranged from the impractical to the ridiculous; she would bestow these unwanted items regularly upon the Harper family, much to their chagrin. It was never explained if Iola ever had a job outside of her house, or if she was a full-time caregiver for her parents; in several episodes, Iola alluded to selling her handicrafts at events, and one episode had her almost getting a job as an inventor.
In every episode in which Iola appeared, her character wore pink gingham shirtwaist dresses. However, depending on the plot lines, she would also change from her everyday dress into pink overalls (when working in the garden), black gingham shirtwaist dresses (while in mourning for characters who had died, including her cat), and during dream sequences, a pink off-the-shoulder dress (in the style of Naomi) and a vixen dress (in film-noir femme-fatale style).
Lloyd Meechum
Rev. Lloyd Meechum is a fictional character on the television sitcom, Mama's Family. He was played by Earl Boen.
Lloyd Meechum is the reverend for the church (unnamed) that Thelma Harper and her family attend. He is married to the often overbearing Alberta Meechum and has a grandson named Eugene. Reverend Meechum, in fact, married Vinton "Vint" Harper and Naomi Harper and officiated at Fran Crowley's funeral.
In fact, it was an incident with little Eugene that warranted him the most time on the show. During one Sunday in church, Eugene carved initials into the pews; and ran up and down, screaming and throwing paper airplanes at the choir. While the Harpers behavior wasn't sterling; Mrs. Meechum was sitting there with a smile which butter wouldn't melt, to coin the sarcastic phrase of Iola Boylan. Then, while the Meechums were visiting the shut-ins, the Harpers were saddled with Eugene.
To say that he was a holy terror would be a grievous understatement. He doctored Thelma's stew with a bottle of hot sauce; locked Vinton and his nephew, Bubba Higgins in the garage; and tormented Naomi, Thelma and Iola. There was no respite for the Harpers, since Lloyd was injured in the hospital.
Eugene was still a terror. He tied up Thelma, and it took Lloyd and Alberta to untie the thoroughly livid Thelma. While she held Eugene down, Lloyd spanked him, for kicking his sore leg. The milquetoast finally grew a spine.
Alberta Meechum
Alberta Meechum is a fictional character on the television sitcom, Mama's Family. She was played by Anne Haney.
Alberta is the catty, judgmental, and gossipy wife of the reverend Lloyd Meechum. As a church leader, she was well known in her parish. She was a former president of the Church Ladies League, or the CLL. She was also stuck-up by virtue of her strong position in the church. This allowed her to somewhat control her husband. Because of her nature, she was considered Thelma Harper's nemesis.
They had a very bratty grandson named Eugene (aka Little Eugene), whom she spoiled unabashedly, and allowed to misbehave so dreadfully. Whenever he did anything wrong, she would simply sit there and smile a smile "like butter wouldn't melt". During one Sunday, she decided to foist the unwilling Eugene on the even more unwilling Harpers. She said that he wouldn't be no trouble. Grammatically she was more than right; he indeed wasn't no trouble; in fact he was ALL trouble! And the trouble he unleashed on them was terrible.
Among his crimes, he doctored Thelma's stew with a whole bottle of Hot Sauce; locked Vinton "Vint" Harper and Bubba Higgins in the garage; tormented Vint's wife, Naomi Harper; ruined Thelma's best tablecloth; wrecked a gift of Iola Boylan's; ruined Thelma's downstairs bathroom, by spraying a whole can of Vint's shaving cream; and tying up Thelma during the night.
Even with all the proof of the crimes he committed, Alberta refused to do anything about Eugene, thinking that anything he did was perfect. In short, she tried to turn things around on Thelma by trying to blame her for all that happened, even though the idea of the Harpers babysitting Eugene had been Alberta's idea at the outset.
When Eugene kicked Lloyd in his broken leg, that was the final straw. While Thelma grabbed him when he tried to run for it, and held him in place; Lloyd finally spanked the unruly child as he deserved, to Alberta's horror.
When Thelma made an attempt at an unprecedented second term as president of the Church Ladies League, the conniving Alberta, presumably in retaliation for Thelma helping her husband punish their grandson, did everything in her power to stop her, by putting up Iola as a candidate, and nearly destroying Thelma and Iola's friendship. As it turned out, neither of them won, both defeated by Lolly Perdue, the only member of the CLL big enough to separate the two squabbling combatants.
Alvin Tutweiler
Alvin Tutweiler is a fictional character in the television series Mama's Family. He was played by Alan Oppenheimer.
Tutweiler was the mayor of the fictitious community of Raytown, where Thelma Harper lived for many years. Despite his often pompous ways and tendency to rub his constituents the wrong way, he was a somewhat decent mayor.
He had met Ellen Harper not long after she had divorced her husband, Bruce Jackson, and the two bonded. To the snobbish and very conniving Ellen, she saw him as a step to becoming possibly the first lady of the state. Her claim to this was "it worked for Nancy Reagan!"
As always, trouble began when, during a senior citizen's group meeting at Thelma's house, she challenged the usually unopposed Mayor in his next election. This was a shock to Ellen, who refused to have any part of it, and fought her own family to try to stop it. Obviously her heart was set for Alvin to win, but in the end, despite Ellen's machinations, Thelma defeated him by a shocking landslide.
However, she discovered that campaigning for mayor, and actually running a city are two very different things, and Thelma realized that she couldn't run Raytown, so she resigned and handed the reins of the city back to Alvin, who remained mayor all during the rest of the show's run.
Another time where the mayor made things tough for Thelma was when he was about to demolish the neighborhood she lived in to put in another landfill. Making Raytown distinguished by having two landfills! However, her neighborhood (and her house in particular) was a former house of ill-repute where the founder of Raytown, James A. Ray, had died. It was located at Number One Old Decatur Road, and although the street system had changed, the house that she lived in was purchased back when it was Number One Old Decatur Road, and so the house was saved, to Tutweiler's chagrin, by making it a historical landmark. The neighbors were furious about this because they were hoping for a ton of money, and also to be rid of Thelma as a neighbor.
References
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