BENSON: AND THE WINNER IS ... {SERIES FINALE} (TV)
Summary
The series finale in this comedy series about Benson DuBois, who manages the chaotic household of the state's honest yet inept governor. In this episode, as the election approaches, Benson is exasperated at the tardiness of an important photographer, though the surprisingly tall man eventually arrives to take pictures of him during his many upcoming speeches and interviews. Clayton arrives with a recorded message from the Governor, who is refusing to speak to Benson in person, though Clayton notes that they are both behaving like "nitwits." Senator Hartford takes Benson through his busy and boring day, and he is later amused to learn that Senator Gate has broken both legs in a bizarre accident involving an elephant. Tyler stops by with some "dirt" on the Governor, reminding Benson that they are a "long shot" to win, in part because of race, but Benson ignores him. In the morning, Kraus reports that Tyler made highly disparaging comments about the Governor on television and implied that Benson could confirm them, though Benson informs an angry Governor that he was uninvolved in the "mud-slinging." They begin arguing anew, and the Governor vows to humiliate his former associate during an on-air debate.
Benson and the Governor appear on "Prove It!", hosted by the annoying Clinton Peak, though Peak is taken aback to find that their "competing" platforms are actually very similar. The Governor accuses Benson of conducting an offensive smear campaign against him, and Kraus ends up calling into the show "anonymously" to defend them both. Benson states that the Governor "flip-flopped" in his promise to support his, Benson's, campaign by suddenly choosing to run against him, though the Governor admits that he believed Benson would withdraw, and the two old friends finally hear one another out and decide to make up live on television. Later, the news reports that the race is extremely close, thanks to Gate's last-second "sympathy vote," and Benson and the Governor reflect that whatever the outcome, the night marks the "end of an era," thinking back fondly over their seven years together. The reporter then announces that the projected winner has been determined, and the series concludes on a cliffhanger as they await the results. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: April 22, 1986 8:30 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:22:39
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:07083
- GENRE: Comedy
- SUBJECT HEADING: Comedy; African-American Collection - Comedy
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 1979-1986
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Paul Junger Witt … Executive Producer
- Tony Thomas … Executive Producer
- Bob Fraser … Producer
- Rob Dames … Producer
- Ron Landry … Co-Producer, Writer
- Tom Biener … Co-Producer, Writer
- Greg Giangregorio … Associate Producer
- Susan Harris … Created by
- Gary Brown … Director
- George Aliceson Tipton … Music by
- Robert Guillaume … Cast, Benson DuBois
- James Noble … Cast, Governor Eugene Xavier Gatling
- Inga Swenson … Cast, Gretchen Wilomena Kraus
- Missy Gold … Cast, Katherine 'Katie' Olivia Gatling
- Billie Bird … Cast, Mrs. Rose Cassidy
- Rene Auberjonois … Cast, Clayton Runnymede Endicott III
- Donna LaBrie … Cast, Sen. Diane Hartford
- Bob Fraser … Cast, Sen. Leonard Tyler
- Linden Chiles … Cast, Clinton Peak
- Efrain Figueroa … Cast, José K. Smith
- Dawan Scott … Cast, Henry Brooks