Although the weekly, one-hour musical drama series
Fame was still one of the most popular syndicated series in America as it entered its sixth season, the show's budget was beginning to outstrip its profits, and thus the difficult decision was made to end production once the season wrapped. This, however, didn't stop the producers from continuing to infuse the cast with new blood, nor from staging spectacular singing and dancing numbers, frequently with top guest stars taking part in the proceedings. The season opener "Back to Something New" brings us up to date on two recently departed regulars: Ms. Elizabeth Sherwood, longtime English teacher at New York's High School for the Performing Arts, has become a successful author of racy romantic novels, while dance major Christopher Donlon has graduated and gone on to professional work. New students include brash British-born musician Ian Ware (Michael Cerveris), spunky Maxie (Olivia Barasch), and neurotic Miltie Horowitz (Robert Romanus). Likewise, the faculty is increased by one when Mr. Paul Seeger (Eric Pierpoint), a disillusioned actor turned cab driver, signs on as the new drama teacher. And in one of the season's most surprising and disturbing developments, gifted musical student Nicole Chapman (
Nia Peeples) is killed in a car accident. Inarguably the series' most celebrated episode is "Reggie and Rose", in which student Reggie Higgins (
Carrie Hamilton) encourages the school's recently laid-off cafeteria lady Rose to enroll as a student. Rose is played by
Carol Burnett, real-life mother of
Carrie Hamilton, with whom she duets in a rousing rendition of
Irving Berlin's "We're a Couple of Swells). And in the series finale "Baby, Remember My Name", several former series regulars are reunited for a gala production number with the current students and faculty members: among these returnees are Erica Gimpel,
Cynthia Gibb, Carol Mayo Jenkins, Valerie Landsburg, P.R. Pauland
Lee Curreri. And on this high note,
Fame comes to a close, but not before collecting its seventh Emmy award, bestowed upon costumer Nanrose Buchman for her contributions to the episode "All Talking, All Singing, All Dancing." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide