Was it a blessing in disguise that Mona wasn't given her own spin-off

[TMC]

The second to last episode of the third season was actually a backdoor pilot for a possible spin-off series where Mona helps her brother run an old hotel.

The network apparently got cold feet because they were worried that Mona's absence from Who's the Boss? would've hurt that show.

Plus, you would've known for sure that Mona's character would've had to have been "watered down" to make her more palatable as a lead character instead of essentially, the "comic relief".

['80sSitcoms]

Oh, it was definitely a blessing. That show needed Mona. Thank goodness the spin-off didn't work! (sorry for all those involved)

It's always boggled me that there was never a sitcom set in a hotel or a shopping mall, where you could have rotating doors of cast members and/or guest stars (though the UK did have "Are You Being Served?")

[icecream]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

It's always boggled me that there was never a sitcom set in a hotel or a shopping mall, where you could have rotating doors of cast members and/or guest stars (though the UK did have "Are You Being Served?")

UK also has the great classic Fawlty Towers which was set in a hotel. There was a Fawlty Towers US remake Payne that flopped in 1999 despite starring John Laroquette.

['80sSitcoms]

Originally Posted by icecream

UK also has the great classic Fawlty Towers which was set in a hotel. There was a Fawlty Towers US remake Payne that flopped in 1999 despite starring John Laroquette.

Oh, and there was Bea Arthur's "Amanda's" ("Amanda's by the Sea") that was a mid-season half-season in 1983. I watched all those episodes on YouTube a couple of years ago.

[DJM77]

Don't forget Checking In and The Golden Palace.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by DJM77

Don't forget Checking In and The Golden Palace.

The Jamie Foxx Show was also primarily set at a hotel as well as The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. It's a Living was technically, also set in a hotel even though the primary action took place at said hotel's upscale restaurant.

['80sSitcoms]

Oh wow, more than I thought! But not all successful.

[DJM77]

Originally Posted by TMC

The Jamie Foxx Show was also primarily set at a hotel as well as The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. It's a Living was technically, also set in a hotel even though the primary action took place at said hotel's upscale restaurant.

I've watched some of all of those shows. If I had thought about it long enough then I would've mentioned The Jamie Foxx Show and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. I wouldn't include It's a Living in the conversation since like you said, the primary action took place in the hotel's restaurant.

[TMC]

I also wonder if Katherine Helmond was perfectly fine with the idea of a spin-off for Mona? I mean, when Three's Company planned on giving Mr. and Mrs. Roper a spin-off, Norman Fell and Audra Lindley were not completely comfortable with the idea of a spin-off since they enjoyed the security of already being on an established and popular show.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by '80sSitcoms

Oh, it was definitely a blessing. That show needed Mona. Thank goodness the spin-off didn't work! (sorry for all those involved)

It's always boggled me that there was never a sitcom set in a hotel or a shopping mall, where you could have rotating doors of cast members and/or guest stars (though the UK did have "Are You Being Served?")

I kind of get where Tony Danza said when he expressed skepticism over the idea of rebooting Who's the Boss? without Katherine Helmond. Mona was basically gave the show an edge that maybe other family shows of time didn't have. To put it in another way, Mona was like the show's hot sauce on its meal.

While I don't necessarily like how Mona's character evolved and was written in the later years (where she seemed to become a decidedly more one-dimensional and mean-spirited character), her character was still important because she served as a perfect contrast to her rigid, uptight prude of a daughter. So I don't exactly know how her character would work if you took her out of Angela's world and environment.

[Novera]

Originally Posted by TMC

The second to last episode of the third season was actually a backdoor pilot for a possible spin-off series where Mona helps her brother run an old hotel.

Oh my God how did I forget about this attempt at a spin off. As entertaining as Mona was, she wasn't enough to carry her own show unless she had a REALLY strong supporting cast. Sitcom pros or people who have experience in theatre work (like Laurie Metcalf) would've been needed.

As bad as this attempt was, it wasn't nearly as awkwardly horrible as the "Brian and Sylvia" spin off attempt from Facts of Life.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by DJM77

Don't forget Checking In and The Golden Palace.

Isabel Sanford's first big post-Jeffersons project was a syndicated sitcom called Isabel Sanford's Honeymoon Hotel. It only made it through a five episode-long "pilot week" in January 1987. It was supposed to come back in the fall of 1987 with an additional 100 episodes, but the show's production company De Laurentiis Entertainment Group, went bankrupt before more episodes could be made.