Billy is an American situation comedy

Situation comedy

A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...

 that aired on ABC

American Broadcasting Company

The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...

 for half a season from January to May 1992. A spin-off of Head of the Class

Head of the Class

Head of the Class is an American sitcom that ran from 1986 to 1991 on the ABC television network. The series follows a group of gifted students in the Individualized Honors Program at the fictional Monroe High School in Manhattan, and their history teacher Charlie Moore...

, the series stars Billy Connolly

Billy Connolly

William "Billy" Connolly, Jr., CBE is a Scottish comedian, musician, presenter and actor. He is sometimes known, especially in his native Scotland, by the nickname The Big Yin...

 as Billy MacGregor, a Scottish

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 teacher who moves to America in order to build a new life for himself.

Synopsis

Following the end of the Head of the Class series, Billy moves to Berkeley, California

Berkeley, California

Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...

 where he marries Mary Springer (played by Marie Marshall), a single mom with several children, so he could get his green card

United States Permanent Resident Card

United States lawful permanent residency refers to a person's immigration status: the person is authorized to live and work in the United States of America on a permanent basis....

. The marriage is arranged in order to prevent Billy from being deported back to the UK. Billy becomes Mary's boarder

Boarder

A boarder may be a person who:*snowboards*skateboards*bodyboards*surfs*stays at a boarding house*attends a boarding school*takes part in a boarding attackThe term may also refer to*The Boarder...

, living in her basement apartment

Basement apartment

A basement apartment is an apartment located below street level, underneath another structure—usually an apartment building, but possibly a house or a business. Rent in basement apartments is usually much lower than it is in above-ground units, due to a number of deficiencies common to basement...

 with the strictest of rules: no drinking, no smoking, no pets, and no sex.

The series follows Billy's misadventures as he adjusts to life in California while staying one step ahead of immigration officials seeking to prove his marriage is a sham. Meanwhile, his relationship with Mary's children (played by Johnny Galecki

Johnny Galecki

John Mark "Johnny" Galecki is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as David Healy in the ABC sitcom Roseanne, Rusty Griswold in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, and as Leonard Hofstadter in the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory.-Early life:Galecki was born in Bree, Belgium, of...

, Natanya Ross

Natanya Ross

Natanya Ross is an actress who is most famous for playing Robyn Russo, a regular character in The Secret World of Alex Mack. She has also starred in The Baby-Sitters Club and the 1995 television version of Freaky Friday....

, and Clara Bryant

Clara Bryant

Clara Bryant is an American actress. She is an alumna of Columbia University.-Film:-Television starring role:*Billy playing Annie MacGregor...

) deepens to a parental level, and Billy and Mary likewise find themselves drawing closer together, although the series was cancelled before this subplot could be carried out.

Scheduling and cancellation

Billy premiered as the sitcom that completed ABC's TGIF lineup, Fridays at 9:30/8:30c. After two months in this time period, the show moved to Saturday night (just one week after ABC abruptly ended the failed TGIF sister lineup, I Love Saturday Night), at 8:30/7:30c. While on Saturdays, the program would switch time slots a few more times, but none of the moves heralded better ratings; Billy folded after one season.

Episodes

Episode #	Episode title	Original airdate
1-1	Pilot	January 31, 1992
1-2	"Hot Stuff"	February 7, 1992
1-3	"Parenting 101"	February 14, 1992
1-4	"Poker Face"	February 21, 1992
1-5	"Billy Gets the Bird"	February 28, 1992
1-6	"Gimme Some Credit"	March 6, 1992
1-7	"Futile Attraction"	March 13, 1992
1-8	"Billy Flunks Mary"	March 21, 1992
1-9	"Out All Night"	March 28, 1992
1-10	"Home Alone, Almost"	April 4, 1992
1-11	"Love Me, or Leave Me (Part 1)"	April 11, 1992
1-12	"Love Me, or Leave Me (Part 2)"	April 18, 1992
1-13	"Thunder from Down Under"	May 30, 1992