Armistead Maupin's classic series, which started as a serial in The San Francisco Chronicle, comes to life in "Tales Of The City," a love letter to the city by the bay, San Francisco, during the late 1970's.
Mary Ann Singleton (Laura Linney), came to S.F. for a vacation and is so enthralled by what she sees that she gives up her life in Cleveland. After being introduced to the dating scene by former High School pal Connie Bradshaw (Parker Posey), she decides to move into an apartment on 28 Barbary Lane, run by the full-of-life Mrs. Anna Madrigal (Olympia Dukakis), who treats her tenant like her children, and tapes a joint on each door. Among them Mona Ramsey (Chloe Webb), who seems drugged and out of sync with life; her roommate Michael "Mouse" Tolliver (Marcus D'Amico), who searches for love in interesting places; and Brian Hawkins (Paul Gross), a former lawyer now a waiter, whose always on the prowl.
Intertwined in their lives is Edgar Halcyon (Donald Moffat), who is dying and meets Anna and have a wonderful romance; His daughter, DeDe (Babara Garrick), whose marriage to Beauchamp Day (Thomas Gibson) is a sham. He strays off in affairs with Mary Anne and Dr. Fielding (Bill Campbell), who ends up with Mouse. Then there's D'orothea (Cynda Williams), a fashion model with a connection to Mona. Finally, there's the mysterious new tenant Norman Neal Williams (Stanley DeSantis), who has a fractured romance with Mary Anne who discovers his connection to Anna.
This is a very interesting miniseries, with lots of twists and turns. By the end of the series, many lives are altered and changed forever. The cast is stellar, but it is Dukakis who shines as Anna, a woman with an interesting secret. If you are uncomfortable with homosexual themes (This is San Francisco in the 70's, you know), then you may want to skip this, but it's your loss, because this is still a wonderful story of lives and love in San Francisco.
Mary Ann Singleton (Laura Linney), came to S.F. for a vacation and is so enthralled by what she sees that she gives up her life in Cleveland. After being introduced to the dating scene by former High School pal Connie Bradshaw (Parker Posey), she decides to move into an apartment on 28 Barbary Lane, run by the full-of-life Mrs. Anna Madrigal (Olympia Dukakis), who treats her tenant like her children, and tapes a joint on each door. Among them Mona Ramsey (Chloe Webb), who seems drugged and out of sync with life; her roommate Michael "Mouse" Tolliver (Marcus D'Amico), who searches for love in interesting places; and Brian Hawkins (Paul Gross), a former lawyer now a waiter, whose always on the prowl.
Intertwined in their lives is Edgar Halcyon (Donald Moffat), who is dying and meets Anna and have a wonderful romance; His daughter, DeDe (Babara Garrick), whose marriage to Beauchamp Day (Thomas Gibson) is a sham. He strays off in affairs with Mary Anne and Dr. Fielding (Bill Campbell), who ends up with Mouse. Then there's D'orothea (Cynda Williams), a fashion model with a connection to Mona. Finally, there's the mysterious new tenant Norman Neal Williams (Stanley DeSantis), who has a fractured romance with Mary Anne who discovers his connection to Anna.
This is a very interesting miniseries, with lots of twists and turns. By the end of the series, many lives are altered and changed forever. The cast is stellar, but it is Dukakis who shines as Anna, a woman with an interesting secret. If you are uncomfortable with homosexual themes (This is San Francisco in the 70's, you know), then you may want to skip this, but it's your loss, because this is still a wonderful story of lives and love in San Francisco.