Phyllis
After the death of her physician husband, Lars, Phyllis Lindrstrom (Cloris Leachman) and her teenage daughter Bess (Lisa Gerritsen) move back to Phyllis’ hometown of San Francisco.
They move in with Lars’ scatterbrained mother, Audrey (Jane Rose), and stepfather Judge Jonathan Dexter (Henry Jones). Jonathan’s forthright mother, sharp-tongued “Mother Dexter” (Judith Lowry), dislikes Phyllis and also moves in.
Unaccustomed to holding a job, Phyllis begins working in a photographic studio as the assistant of Julie Erskine (Barbara Colby, later Liz Torres), alongside photographer Leo Heatherton (Richard Schaal).
She later works as an administrative assistant for San Francisco City Supervisor Dan Valenti (Carmine Caridi). Bess finds a boyfriend in Dan’s nephew, Mark Valenti (Craig Wasson).
The series is a spin-off of The Mary Tyler Moore Show sitcom.
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