Original title
Cracking Up
Released
3/9/2004
Origin country
US
Genre
Comedy
Production companies
20th Century Fox Television, Brad Grey Television, Go Mike Go Productions
Status
Ended
Number of seasons
1
Number of episodes
12
Cracking Up is an American television sitcom created and written by Mike White. It aired on the Fox Network on Monday nights from March 9–May 5, 2004; it only aired six of the twelve produced episodes. Psychiatrist Dr. Bollas is assigned to examine Tanner Shackleton, a child of a Beverly Hills family, only to discover that Tanner doesn't have any problems — his family does. The story is in fact about Ben Baxter, a student who moves into the Shackletons' guest house, interacting with Tanner and his crazy family.
Nicholas D'agosto and Nathan Norton originally played the roles of Ben and Tanner in the first pilot presentation of Cracking Up.
In Beverly Hills, Calif., a psychology student counsels a wealthy couple's introverted son.
Ben decides to tell Ted and Lesley that Tanner walked in on him and his new girlfriend during an intimate moment but finds that they're uncomfortable with the subject of sex. Meanwhile, Liam learns that Preston has no experience with women so he sets Preston up on a date with a more experienced girl.
Lesley and Ted hire Bruce, a substance abuse counselor, to scare their kids out of trying drugs but soon find themselves hiding from the terrifying man after they, along with Ben, accidentally eat a marijuana cake that Liam brought.
Lesley creates a panic room after a break-in at the house and then proceeds to forget the password after accidentally locking the family in it along with Ben.
Ben tries to teach Tanner that winning isn't everything while trying to show Lesley and Ted that the boy is actually a talented artist. Also, Lesley tries to teach Chloe and her cheer sqaud some of her old cheerleading moves during a game of basketball in which Ted gets very corruptive.
Ted invites Lesley's old high school prom date to their home after Ben learns that Ted is still jealous of him. Liam is asked to chaperone Chloe, Preston and their dates to the prom.
When Ted insists that work is more important than spending time with his family, Liam decides to throw a keg party while Ted is out of town.
Lesley and Ted's lack of involvement in their children's education prompts Ben to invite Tanner's stern teacher over to dinner, but unfortunately it's the same night Lesley decides to test Tanner's new medication. Meanwhile Chloe and Preston fight for the attention of their new tutor.
Ben's mother Carol is invited to stay at the Shackletons', where she goes on to dish on Ben's childhood and then to counsel the rest of the family against Ben's wishes, causing mayhem. At the same time, Ted is hosting an important work event and it goes from bad to worse due to Carol's meddling.
When the family's pool-cleaning guy suddenly drops dead right before Tanner's birthday party, Ben grapples with the emotional aftermath and encourages everyone to express their feelings much to his regret.
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