History Series / EmptyNest

* OnceASeason: Crossovers with either parent series ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'' or daughter series ''Series/{{Nurses}}'' generally happened once or twice per season, excluding season 1 (when each of the four Golden Girls appeared once), season 7 (the only year ''Empty Nest'' was not running alongside either ''The Golden Girls'' or ''Nurses'', both of which had ended by then, though Sophia had become a regular {{Transplant}} by that point), or, curiously, season 3.

* OnceASeason: CrossoverEpisodes with either parent series ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'' or daughter series ''Series/{{Nurses}}'' generally happened once or twice per season, excluding season 1 (when each of the four Golden Girls appeared once), season 7 (the only year ''Empty Nest'' was not running alongside either ''The Golden Girls'' or ''Nurses'', both of which had ended by then, though Sophia had become a regular {{Transplant}} by that point), or, curiously, season 3.

* BackForTheFinale: Barbara, albeit in only a single scene. To date, it is the last onscreen acting role for Creator/KristyMcNichol.

* DropInCharacter: Charlie is practically a poster child for the trope; he frequently drops into Harry's kitchen just to raid his fridge and hit on his daughters.

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''Empty Nest'' was an Creator/{{NBC}} sitcom which ran from 1988 to 1995. The series began as a spin-off of ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'', and its pilot ran as an episode of that show (season 2, episode 26), although it was dramatically changed before becoming its own series. Nevertheless, the two households were established as neighbors and characters regularly crossed between the two. ''Empty Nest'' was one of the year's top 10 most-watched programs for its first three years.

The show centered around Dr. Harry Weston (Creator/RichardMulligan), a Miami pediatrician. When Harry's wife passes away, his two adult daughters, neurotic divorcee Carol (Creator/DinahManoff) and tough party-girl policewoman Barbara (Creator/KristyMcNichol) move back in with Harry to help support him. A third daughter was mentioned as being away at college, but was not seen until 1992 - when [=McNichol=] left the series due to suffering from bipolar disorder, Emily (Lisa Rieffel) was introduced to the cast for one season. Rounding out the cast was the Westons' wacky, womanizing neighbor Charlie Dietz (Creator/DavidLeisure), Harry's tough Southern nurse Laverne Todd (Creator/ParkOverall), and Dreyfuss the dog. Creator/EstelleGetty also reprised her role as Sophia Patrillo from ''The Golden Girls'' and ''Series/GoldenPalace'', including as a regular cast member in the final two seasons after ''Golden Palace'' ended. Another plot point that occurred around the time the final two seasons began was that Harry and Laverne left the hospital where they initially worked at to work for a struggling inner-city medical clinic run by the tough-talking Dr. Maxine Douglas (Creator/MarshaWarfield).

Episodes generally centered around the relationship between Harry and his daughters, who were highly competitive for 'Daddy's' attention. Harry's career as a children's doctor was also a major focus. The series ran for seven seasons and spawned its own spin-off, ''Nurses'', which revolved around a group of nurses who also worked at the hospital where Harry worked. The show was a big hit in its early run, finishing in the Top 10 for each of its first three seasons, and won Mulligan his second Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series[[note]]He won for his performance in the first season; this would be the only Emmy the show ever received[[/note]]. However, ratings declined after several cast changes and the loss of ''The Golden Girls'' as a lead-in, and the series ended in 1995.

Episodes generally centered around the relationship between Harry and his daughters, who were highly competitive for 'Daddy's' attention. Harry's career as a children's doctor was also a major focus. The series ran for seven seasons and spawned its own spin-off, ''Nurses'', which revolved around a group of nurses who also worked at the hospital where Harry worked. However, ratings declined after several cast changes and the loss of ''The Golden Girls'' as a lead-in, and the series ended in 1995.

* BackForTheFinale: Barbara, albeit in only a single scene.

* RequiredSpinoffCrossover: All four leads from ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'' appeared in various episodes (albeit never at the same time), with each making an appearance in season 1 alone. Although Creator/BeaArthur and Creator/RueMcClanahan each made only the one obligatory appearance, Creator/BettyWhite appeared three times total, and Creator/EstelleGetty appeared once more prior to becoming a regular {{Transplant}} in season 6. Conversely, all five of the original cast members appeared at least once as their respective characters on ''The Golden Girls'', and all but Kristy [=McNichol=] on ''Nurses'' as well.

* RequiredSpinoffCrossover: All four leads from ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'' appeared in various episodes (albeit not at the same time), and Sophia became a regular {{Transplant}} in season 6. Conversely, characters from this show made guest appearances on ''The Golden Girls'' as well as ''Nurses''.
* {{Spinoff}}: ''Nurses''. Unfortunately, however, ''Nurses'' did not have the same ratings success that ''Empty Nest'' did, and suffered from tragic ExecutiveMeddling constantly throughout the run.

The show centered around Dr. Harry Weston (Richard Mulligan), a Miami pediatrician. When Harry's wife passes away, his two adult daughters, neurotic divorcee Carol (Dinah Manoff) and tough party-girl policewoman Barbara (Creator/KristyMcNichol) move back in with Harry to help support him. A third daughter was mentioned as being away at college, but was not seen until 1992 - when [=McNichol=] left the series due to suffering from bipolar disorder, Emily (Lisa Rieffel) was introduced to the cast for one season. Rounding out the cast was the Westons' wacky, womanizing neighbor Charlie Dietz (David Leisure), Harry's tough Southern nurse Laverne Todd (Park Overall), and Dreyfuss the dog. Estelle Getty also reprised her role as Sophia Patrillo from ''The Golden Girls'' and ''Series/GoldenPalace'', including as a regular cast member in the final two seasons after ''Golden Palace'' ended. Another plot point that occurred around the time the final two seasons began was that Harry and Laverne left the hospital where they initially worked at to work for a struggling inner-city medical clinic run by the tough-talking Dr. Maxine Douglas (Marsha Warfield).

* YourCheatingHeart: Carol's husband cheated on her, prompting their divorce. In another episode, Harry suspects that Barbara's latest boyfriend is married and turns out to be right.

The show centered around Dr. Harry Weston (Richard Mulligan), a Miami pediatrician. When Harry's wife passes away, his two adult daughters, neurotic divorcee Carol (Dinah Manoff) and tough party-girl policewoman Barbara (Kristy [=McNichol=]) move back in with Harry to help support him. A third daughter was mentioned as being away at college, but was not seen until 1992 - when [=McNichol=] left the series due to suffering from bipolar disorder, Emily (Lisa Rieffel) was introduced to the cast for one season. Rounding out the cast was the Westons' wacky, womanizing neighbor Charlie Dietz (David Leisure), Harry's tough Southern nurse Laverne Todd (Park Overall), and Dreyfuss the dog. Estelle Getty also reprised her role as Sophia Patrillo from ''The Golden Girls'' and ''Series/GoldenPalace'', including as a regular cast member in the final two seasons after ''Golden Palace'' ended. Another plot point that occurred around the time the final two seasons began was that Harry and Laverne left the hospital where they initially worked at to work for a struggling inner-city medical clinic run by the tough-talking Dr. Maxine Douglas (Marsha Warfield).

The show centered around Dr. Harry Weston (Richard Mulligan), a Miami pediatrician. When Harry's wife passes away, his two adult daughters, neurotic divorcee Carol (Dinah Manoff) and tough party-girl policewoman Barbara (Kristy [=McNichol=]) move back in with Harry to help support him. A third daughter was mentioned as being away at college, but was not seen until 1992 - when [=McNichol=] left the series due to suffering from bipolar disorder, Emily (Lisa Rieffel) was introduced to the cast for one season. Rounding out the cast was the Westons' wacky, womanizing neighbor Charlie Dietz (David Leisure), Harry's tough Southern nurse Laverne Todd (Park Overall), and Dreyfuss the dog. Estelle Getty also reprised her role as Sophia Patrillo from ''The Golden Girls'' and ''Series/GoldenPalace'', including as a regular cast member in the final two seasons after ''Golden Palace'' ended. Another plot point that occurred around the time the final two seasons began was that Harry and Laverne left the hospital where they initially worked at to work for a struggling inner-city medical clinic run by the tough talking Dr. Maxine Douglas (Marsha Warfield).

Episodes generally centered around the relationship between Harry and his daughters, who were highly competitive for 'Daddy's' attention. Harry's career as a children's doctor was also a major focus. The series ran for seven seasons and spawned its own spin-off, ''Nurses'', which revolved around a group of nurses whom also worked at the hospital where Harry worked at. However, ratings declined after several cast changes and the loss of ''The Golden Girls'' as a lead-in, and the series ended in 1995.

* ArtifactTitle: Possibly the record for a title becoming one of these! The kids move back in when his wife dies at the very start. (The PoorlyDisguisedPilot in an episode of ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'' featured a very different family, a couple indeed being recent empty nesters with their daughter going off to college. Heavy {{retool}}ing makes it a very different show from what we were given in the Golden Girls episode, to the point that even the name no longer made sense. All that remains from the Golden Girls episode, and thus the original plan for the series, is the house set and an annoying neighbor played by David Leisure - there called Oliver, not Charlie.)

* BigFun: [[{{Deconstruction}} Deconstructed]] in ''More to Love.'' Danny appears to be this, but is actually a StepfordSmiler.

* TheCasanova: Charley
* CompositeCharacter[=/=]SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Emily had a lot of the character traits of Barb and Carol.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Dumb, goofy Dreyfus instantly goes into attack mode when he senses a prowler outside the house--as does Charley.
* TheDeterminator: [=LaVerne=] refuses to take a sick day from work, even after getting a broken arm and 2 broken legs.
* DropInCharacter: Charley would frequently drop into Harry's kitchen just to raid his fridge and hit on his daughters.
* DroppedAfterThePilot: As a spin-off to ''Series/TheGoldenGirls'', almost everything about ''Series/EmptyNest'' was dropped after the pilot, including its premise. The pilot starred an older married couple dealing with the fact that their children had all left home; The series was about a widower whose two adult daughters still lived at home. The only things which carried through to the series were the main character's job as a doctor, and the wacky neighbor played by David Leisure (although that character also changed name and career).

* TheGhost: Youngest sister Emily, frequently referred to but never seen for the first few seasons. Only when Barbara was PutOnABus did she show up in order to fill the void.
* TheGloriousWarOfSisterlyRivalry: The smart but neurotic Carol and the strong and attractive (but not so bright) Barbara Weston compete for their father's affections.

* InkblotTest: Lothario Charley finds Carol's inkblots and asks why she has pictures of naked women.

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Charlie. For all his womanizing, there have been several women who he's genuinely liked, including Barbara and Carol, whom he's often taken on a protective attitude to as well.

* PostRobberyTrauma: [=LaVerne=] is mugged and initially reacts like her usual wisecracking self. Only after giving her statement to the cops does she realize how terrified she was and that she could have been killed. She goes into a HeroicBSOD for the rest of the episode until Harry snaps her out of it.

* RashomonStyle: Harry and Laverne recall their first meeting at her job interview in a dispute over whether she ever promised to wear a nursing cap. In Harry's version, Laverne is a naive country bumpkin, in Laverne's she is competent and professional (perhaps overly so) and a weak and indecisive Harry defers to her.

* {{Spinoff}}: ''Nurses''. Unfortunately, however, ''Nurses'' did not have the same ratings success that ''Empty Nest'' had and thus suffered from tragic ExecutiveMeddling constantly throughout the run.

* TheUnfavorite: Carol is convinced she's this to everyone in comparison to her two sisters. It doesn't help that her overwhelming neuroses--of which this is one of--''does'' make it harder for people to have a relationship with her.

* YourCheatingHeart: Carol's husband cheated on her, prompting their divorce. In another episode, Harry suspects that Barbara's latest boyfriend is married and turns out to be right.

* TheDeterminator: LaVerne refuses to take a sick day from work, even after getting a broken arm and 2 broken legs.

* ArtifactTitle

* Artifact Title

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Charlie. For all his womanizing, there have been several women who he's genuinely liked-including Barbara and Carol, whom he's often taken on a protective attitude to as well.