217: Frank’s Place Makes Hanukkah Gay

“Season’s Greetings” (December 14, 1987)

Perhaps you haven’t heard of Frank’s Place. All the incentive you need for this episode is that Frank’s Place is that it won Emmys, it won critical praise, and it’s still remembered today as a showcase for a type of black American who wasn’t often depicted on the small screen. Despite all that, it only lasted a single season. Brian Cronin joins us to discuss perhaps the only sitcom episode to feature a Hanukkah dinner ruined by a coming out. And BTW, there is a twist ending we are still unsettled by.

Read Brian’s work at CBR but also at his website, Pop Culture References, which frequently dives deep into sitcom history.

Watch this Frank’s Place (and all episodes, if you want) at archive.org.

Read the LA Times piece we cite in this discussion here.

Episode artwork by Ian O’Phelan.