Under One Roof

Under One Roof (2008)

Genres - Comedy  |   Sub-Genres - Sitcom [TV]  |   Run Time - 30 min.  |   Countries - Canada, United States  |  
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Synopsis by Hal Erickson

MyNetwork's first contribution to the urban-sitcom genre, Under One Roof bore no relationship to the 1995 series of the same name beyond the fact that both shows featured predominantly African American casts. The later Under One Roof was actually a perverse spin on the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air format, tailored to the talents of Public Enemy's Flavor Flav. The star was cast as Calvester Hill, a paroled convict who moved in with his wealthy, conservative and very uptight brother, real estate broker Winston Hill (Jesse Reid). The humor arose from that old reliable device known as "culture clash", especially whenever Calvester invited his old prison buddies over to Winston's lavish suburban home, much to the dismay of Winston's snooty, materialistic wife Ashley (Carrie Genzel). Of course, the Hills' teenage children, aspiring gangsta rapper Winston Jr. (Kelly Perine) and flirtatious, provocatively garbed Heather (Marie Michel), adored the footloose and fancy-free Uncle Calvester--as, presumably, did the viewer, inasmuch as Calvester was basically good at heart and (nearly) always looking after the best insterests of his family. Critics generally derided Under One Roof for its ethnic stereotyping, taking special aim at the character of the Hills' housekeeper Su Ho (Emily Kuroda), who spoke in the sort of fractured English not heard since the days of Charlie Chan. Cocreated by Fresh Prince of Bel-Air writer Darryl Quarles, Under One Roof debuted April 16, 2008.