Silver Spoons

Wealthy, young-at-heart business owner Edward Stratton III is stunned to discover his brief marriage several years ago produced a son, Richard Bluedhorn-Stratton, now 12 and standing in Edward's living room, wanting to live with the father he never knew. Although Edward's first impulse is to send Ricky to boarding school, he soon relents and let his son move in with him and Kate, his love-struck secretary.

Silver Spoons (1982-1987) is an American network sitcom created by Ben Starr for NBC. Wealthy, young-at-heart business owner Edward Stratton III (Joel Higgins) is stunned to learn that a brief marriage years earlier produced a son, Ricky Stratton (Ricky Schroder), who arrives at his living room wanting to live with the father he never knew. Edward's first instinct is to send the boy to boarding school, but he relents and lets Ricky move in with his household, where his love-struck secretary Kate Summers Stratton (Erin Gray) is already part of the picture. The engine of the series is the clash between Edward's privileged, self-centered routines and the responsibilities of raising a child, with the household staff and neighborhood friends adding a steady supply of mishaps and misunderstandings. Episodes are self-contained case-of-the-week comedies built around everyday kid problems and the adult chaos around them. Across five seasons the series keeps a breezy, warm register, with wealth gently satirized rather than condemned. Its mix of family comedy and a precocious child lead places it in the lineage of Diff'rent Strokes and Who's the Boss, and fans of those shows will find the same comforting, tidy domestic humor here.

Audience reception is negative, with the show seen as a lightweight family sitcom whose later seasons drew weak ratings.

• Diff'rent Strokesshared light family sitcom comedy, wealthy household fish out of water, kid-centered humor
• Who's the Boss?shared 1980s family sitcom tone, single parent household comedy with a young lead
• The Fresh Prince of Bel-Airshared wealth-versus-ordinary-life comedy and warm sitcom family dynamics

Created by

Ben Starr

Release Date

1982-09-25

Episode runtime

22 min

Rating

6.2 / 10 (55)

What is Silver Spoons about?

A wealthy young-at-heart businessman is forced to raise the twelve-year-old son he never knew he had.

What is Silver Spoons like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Silver Spoons as brisk, its intensity as mild and its storytelling as simple.

Is Silver Spoons violent?

No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Silver Spoons.

What did critics think of Silver Spoons?

Audience reception is negative, with the show seen as a lightweight family sitcom whose later seasons drew weak ratings.

Which shows are like Silver Spoons?

Shows with a similar feel include Diff'rent Strokes, Who's the Boss?, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

How long is Silver Spoons?

Silver Spoons: 5 seasons, 116 episodes.

Is Silver Spoons still running?

No, Silver Spoons has ended.

Where can I watch Silver Spoons?

In United States, Silver Spoons streams on The Roku Channel, Tubi TV.