netflix avatar
The Duck Factorywatch trailer

The Duck Factory

30min

Comedy

The Duck Factory is a 1984 NBC television series produced by MTM Enterprises that is perhaps most notable for being Jim Carrey's first lead role in a Hollywood production. The show was co-created by Allan Burns. The premiere episode introduces Skip Tarkenton, a somewhat naive and optimistic young man who has come to Hollywood looking for a job as a cartoonist. When he arrives at a low-budget animation company called Buddy Winkler Productions, he finds out Buddy Winkler has just died, and the company desperately needs new blood. So Skip gets an animation job at the firm, which is nicknamed "The Duck Factory" as their main cartoon is "The Dippy Duck Show". Other Duck Factory employees seen regularly on the show were man-of-a-thousand-cartoon voices Wally Wooster; comedy writer Marty Fenneman; artists Brooks Carmichael and Roland Culp, editor Andrea Lewin, and business manager Aggie Aylesworth. Buddy Winkler Productions was now owned by his young, ditzy widow, Mrs Sheree Winkler, who had been married to Buddy for all of three weeks before his death. The Duck Factory lasted thirteen episodes; it premiered April 12, 1984. The show initially aired at 9:30 on Thursday nights, directly after Cheers, and replaced Buffalo Bill on NBC's schedule. Jay Tarses, an actor on The Duck Factory, had been the co-creator and executive producer of Buffalo Bill, which had its final network telecast on Thursday, April 5, 1984.

Episodes

Cast

Season 1

Goodbye Buddy, Hello Skip

1. Goodbye Buddy, Hello Skip

30min

12th Apr 1984

Skip Tarkenton finds his dream of being an animator coming true a lot sooner than he expected when he hops a bus to L.A.

Filling Buddy's Shoes

2. Filling Buddy's Shoes

30min

19th Apr 1984

Someone must fill Buddy's shoes as the Dippy Duck showrunner. But who?

The Annies

3. The Annies

30min

26th Apr 1984

A series of mishaps arise when the staff attend the Annies, where Buddy is to receive a posthumous award.

No Good Deed

4. No Good Deed

30min

3rd May 1984

Skip learns that no good deed goes unpunished when he gives Ginger a job she doesn't deserve and Marty's script a kinder review than it deserves.

The Way We Weren't

5. The Way We Weren't

30min

10th May 1984

Aggie plans to attend a reunion with her old Navy pals, but when she can't scrounge a date, she asks Skip to accompany her.

Can We Talk?

6. Can We Talk?

30min

17th May 1984

Marty's plagiarism becomes Skip's problem.

The Education of Mrs. Winkler

7. The Education of Mrs. Winkler

30min

24th May 1984

In hopes of being smarter, Sheree decides to finally get her high school diploma, and Brooks gives her a helping hand -- and a little something extra.

Ordinary People, Too

8. Ordinary People, Too

30min

6th Jun 1984

Skip helps come up with the cash to fund Andrea's film project, yet doesn't get the thanks one might think.

It Didn't Happen One Night

9. It Didn't Happen One Night

30min

13th Jun 1984

The gang begin to suspect that Skip and Andrea are romantically involved. Meanwhile, Marty isn't happy about his friend's new girlfriend -- Sheree.

The Duck Stops Here

10. The Duck Stops Here

30min

20th Jun 1984

Wally decides to throw his hat into the Shakespeare ring after his Dippy Duck voice escapes him.

The Children's Half Hour

11. The Children's Half Hour

30min

27th Jun 1984

It's Children's Night at the Apollo when Brooks' son and Wally's daughter both want to further their artistic careers -- to the joy of Brooks and the dismay of Wally.

You Always Love the One You Hurt

12. You Always Love the One You Hurt

30min

4th Jul 1984

Roland is pressured to quit the animation biz and follow in his father's footsteps -- as a dentist. Meanwhile, the staff consider changing the show when a parents group vote it one of the most violent kids' programs on TV.

Call Me Responsible

13. Call Me Responsible

30min

11th Jul 1984

The ball is in Skip's hands when the show needs someone to fight for it at the network, or it will be cancelled.

First air date

12th Apr 1984

Last air date

11th Jul 1984

Status

Ended

Type

Scripted

Original language

en

Networks