My Wife and Kids
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My Wife and Kids is an ABC sitcom that premiered from March 28, 2001 until May 17, 2005 and stars Damon Wayans and Tisha Campbell-Martin.
It is set in Stamford, Connecticut, and chronicles the Kyle family and their trials and tribulations. Wayans stars as the patriarch of the family, Michael Kyle, and Campbell-Martin stars as his wife Janet "Jay" Marie Kyle. George O. Gore II stars as Michael Kyle, Jr., Jennifer Nicole Freeman plays Claire Kyle, and Parker McKenna Posey plays Kady Kyle. Andrew McFarlane was added as a regular guest star in the second season as Tony, Claire's boyfriend. Noah Gray-Cabey guest starred in a third-season episode as Kady's friend-turned-boyfriend, and Brooklyn Sudano, who is Junior's wife and mother to his baby, Junior Junior. Recently, the story has shifted to the kids and their relationships, but in the end, it's still about Michael Kyle and his wife and kids.
Some have compared the show to a current-day version of The Cosby Show; while there are many similarities, there are also some differences. The main similarity is that both are situation comedies that chronicle the day-to-day lives of an upper-middle class African-American family. However, the plotlines of My Wife and Kids tend to be "darker" (though in a very humorous way); for example, the plotline of Junior getting his girlfriend pregnant and then marrying her would probably never happen on The Cosby Show (though some may argue that it could if the show aired today instead of in the 1980s). Also, both parents on The Cosby Show were white-collar professionals, whereas the Kyle family's income comes from self-made blue-collar business ownership (Michael Kyle owns and runs a trucking company. However, Janet Kyle was a Wall Street stockbroker before deciding to be a stay-at-home mom).
Cast
- Parker McKenna Posey — Kady Kyle
- Damon Wayans — Michael Kyle
- Tisha Campbell-Martin — Jay Kyle
- Jazz Raycole/Jennifer Freeman — Claire Kyle
- Noah Gray-Cabey — Franklin Aloysius-Mumford
- Megan Good/Brooklyn Sudano — Vanessa Kyle
- George O.Gore II — Junior Kyle
- Andrew McFarlane — Tony
As an aside, this show was cancelled as part of ABC's lineup in May 2005.