Pink Lady (TV Series) - Production

Production

The show was the brainchild of Fred Silverman, then President and CEO of NBC, who was desperate to replicate the success he'd had at ABC and CBS. After seeing a Walter Cronkite story about Pink Lady on the CBS Evening News, Silverman thought their Japanese success could be translated to the American market, so he brought in Sid and Marty Krofft to produce a variety show for them. At the time, Pink Lady had recently achieved their first, and only, top-40 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, when their song "Kiss in the Dark" peaked at #37 on August 4, 1979. The Krofft brothers were told that the ladies were fluent in English, but within moments of meeting them, it was apparent that they weren't. Unsure of how to stage the show, Sid Krofft developed the concept of making "the strangest thing that's ever been on television... The whole show was gonna come out of a little Japanese box." Silverman's response was, "No, that's just too different. Let's just do Donny & Marie." (That show also moved to NBC the same year, though without Donny, and under the title Marie.) Sid bowed to Silverman's wishes.

Comedian Jeff Altman had a contract with NBC, and, on that basis, he was offered work hosting the show to compensate for the fact that the leads were un-versed in English. Writer Mark Evanier previously worked with Kroffts on The Krofft Superstar Hour and the pilot Bobby Vinton's Rock 'n' Rollers, so he was brought aboard as head writer and seasoned variety show director Art Fisher (The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour) was brought in to direct. But according to Evanier, the late Fisher hated the show and only did it because he was contractually obligated, which resulted in many behind the scenes battles.

Meanwhile, the language barrier provided the biggest obstacle for everyone involved. Mie and Kei had to hold English conversations through an on-set translator. The writers, meanwhile, struggled because once dialogue had been written for and learned by the ladies, it was set in stone and could not be changed. This was particularly problematic when a guest star would be booked at the last minute, such as Lorne Greene, who agreed to appear on the show a scant four hours before the episode was taped. Mie and Kei wanted to sing the songs that had made them famous on the other side of the globe, but the network insisted they sing songs in English, so they phonetically pre-recorded English songs and performed lip-synchronization at the show's live tapings. Lip-synchronizing was already a common practice on American variety shows, but it was especially noticeable since the ladies were performing in a language that was foreign to them. Additional problems were caused when the network insisted the writers develop separate identities for Mie and Kei. The established Pink Lady act was that they were so much in unison that they performed as one entity, so the ladies never felt comfortable having separate stage personalities.

Because Mie and Kei were commuting back and forth to Japan to appear in sold-out concerts, their time on the set was spent memorizing lines and routines, so the brunt of the comedy skits were carried by Altman and ensemble players Jim Varney, Cheri Steinkellner and Anna Mathias. On rare occasions when Mie and Kei appeared in any of the sketches, their time (and dialogue) was minimal.

Booking guests for the show was also a huge problem. Variety shows were vanishing by 1980, and that the series headliners were an act of which no one in America had heard did not help matters. Larry Hagman and other big name stars were coerced into appearing with sizable paychecks. Alice Cooper was friends with the Krofft brothers and submitted an original performance both as a favor to them and to promote his upcoming album release. Other stars who had previously worked with Kroffts were also brought in, including Florence Henderson (The Brady Bunch Hour), Donny Osmond (Donny & Marie), Red Buttons (Side Show) and Bobby Vinton (Bobby Vinton's Rock 'n' Rollers). Cheap Trick and two-time guest Blondie had no actual involvement with the show — Cheap Trick's music video for "Dream Police" was shown, as were Blondie's videos for "Shayla" and "Eat to the Beat," which were both shot for a then newly-released home video.

Each show closed with a tuxedo-clad Jeff getting lured, pushed or pulled into the on-set hot tub by Mie and Kei. This gag originated with Sid Krofft, who had used a similar device on The Brady Bunch Hour; on each episode, Greg would push Peter into the swimming pool. Altman felt it would have been an amusing one-time gag, but by employing it each week, it became contrived. Altman tried to convince the writing staff to do away with this segment, but he was vetoed, most probably because this segment afforded everyone the opportunity to see Mie and Kei in skimpy bikinis.

The show's title has often been the source of confusion. On-screen, the show was simply titled Pink Lady, but the series is most commonly referred to as Pink Lady and Jeff--even on the cover of the DVD release. Altman felt that since he carried the show, his name should appear in the title, and the network agreed, but Pink Lady's manager strongly protested and threatened a lawsuit if "and Jeff" appeared on the show's title. In NBC's on-air promos, sometimes the show was referred to as Pink Lady, whereas at other times the voice-over announcer referred to it as Pink Lady and Jeff. In print advertisements for TV Guide and the like, however, the show was always titled Pink Lady and Jeff, though it was cited merely as Pink Lady in the text TV listings.