Retro TV1: Two and Half a men

Two and a Half Men is an Emmy- and Golden Globe Award-nominated American television sitcom, which premiered on CBS on Monday, September 22, 2003 at 9:30 p.m., ET/PT. The series centers around a freewheeling bachelor, Charlie, whose carefree lifestyle is interrupted when his newly separated brother Alan moves in, along with his son, Jake. The show was co-created by executive producers Chuck Lorre and Lee Aronsohn. In its third season, starting September 2005, it moved to Mondays at 9:00 p.m. (taking Everybody Loves Raymond's time slot). Two and a Half Men debuted in local syndication in September 2007, also soon to be syndicated on the FX cable network in 2010. Production on the show was halted on November 6, 2007 due to the 2007 WGA strike. The show returned March 17, 2008 with nine episodes to conclude the fifth season. CBS also renewed the show for a sixth season, which premiered on September 22, 2008, five years after the first episode of the series initially aired.

Cast and characters

The main cast of Two and a Half Men, from left to right: Melanie Lynskey as Rose, Conchata Ferrell as Berta, Charlie Sheen as Charlie Harper, Holland Taylor as Evelyn Harper, Angus T. Jones as Jake Harper, Jon Cryer as Alan Harper, and Marin Hinkle as Judith Harper

Main Characters
Charlie Sheen as Charles Francis "Charlie" Harper, a hedonistic ladies man, never married [although he once was about to get married to Mia (Emmanuelle Vaugier)], jingle/children's song writer who tends to pick on his younger brother Alan but ultimately loves him. He is the exact opposite of his little brother: relaxed and affluent. He likes his nephew Jake and gives him advice (much of which is not age-appropriate), but the two often trade barbs as well.

Jon Cryer as Alan Jerome Harper, Charlie's divorced chiropractor brother, who is anally retentive but continually stricken with bad luck and teased by Charlie. After losing his house to wife, Judith, during the divorce, he permanently resides with Charlie. He is generally a nice and polite person but seems to have a weakness for women who treat him poorly, which may stem from the non-nurturing relationship he had with his and Charlie's mother. The most practical character on the show, Alan's scruples and frugality are frequent joke-fodder. Jon Cryer plays the part of the younger brother, by two years, yet in real life he is a few months older than Charlie Sheen.

Angus T. Jones as Jacob David "Jake" Harper, spends most of his free time playing video games, eating, and watching television. He loves his father and uncle but is often surly toward them. Jones does not sing the show's catchy theme song, though it's a popular belief; in fact, neither do Sheen nor Cryer. The voice Jones is lip-synching is actually that of female singer and voice-over artist Elizabeth Daily.
Conchata Ferrell (Season 2–; Recurring in Season 1), as their sarcastic housekeeper Berta. Throughout the series, hints have been made of her being bisexual. She has flirted with Teddy Leopold and several other men who enter the house. She has a sister named Daisy, played by Camryn Manheim, with whom she does not get along. She also has a number of daughters and granddaughters who she herself states are "sleazy and easy" and sometimes brings along to work, with the example of Prudence, who is played by Megan Fox.

Marin Hinkle as Judith Harper, Alan's vindictive first ex-wife. She seems to despise Alan and takes any chance to humiliate him. She was the first woman Alan ever slept with, but their marriage was cold and she said that the only time she was ever happy being sexual was when she was pregnant with Jake. Alan often calls out her hypocritical behavior (mostly directed at her disapproval of him having girlfriends around Jake, when she has had relationships with another woman and various men herself) but also seems to still have feelings for her, going as far as having visions of her and her new husband when he began dating a mutual friend of theirs. She made no secret of living luxuriously with Alan's alimony, going as far as to get breast implants. She has since remarried to Dr. Herb Melnick (Ryan Stiles), Jake's pediatrician, a union that brought joy to Alan because it meant he no longer had to pay alimony. She still makes Alan pay child support for activities she doesn't want to trouble Herb with. As of season 6 episode 6 she is pregnant with either Alan's or Herb's child. It hasn't been mentioned since then, but very will be resolved by the end of the season or in an episode in the 7th season.

Holland Taylor as Evelyn Harper, Charlie and Alan's conceited and self-centered mother and Jake's grandmother. She expresses a superficial fondness for her sons and grandson, but rarely lives up to her act of a devoted, but misunderstood, matriarch. Her sons and grandson generally return the favor and go out of their way to avoid interacting with her on most occasions. Her wide-ranging sex life is a recurring gag throughout the series. The family frequently refers to her as "the devil." Charlie keeps her phone number on speed dial as "666. Cute, huh?" and when asked if he knew her favorite perfume, he asked a store clerk if she carried "Chanel No. 666". Once she showed up in a black cloak and Grim Reaper-like staff. Alan asked "Who is it?" and Charlie replied, "It's death." Alan then called out, "Hi, Mom!" Her latest romance ended disastrously when her new husband (Teddy) had a heart attack while sleeping with his "stepdaughter," only for the police to reveal that Teddy was a con artist who had planned to steal all of Evelyn's money and share it with the young woman, who was his much younger partner and lover.

Recurring Characters
Melanie Lynskey (Starring Seasons 1-2; Recurring Season 3-), as their neighbor Rose, a former girlfriend and stalker of Charlie's. She enters and exits Charlie's house by climbing onto the patio and has five ferrets, all named Charlie. Rose earned her undergraduate degree from Princeton University in two years and has a Masters Degree in behavioral psychology from Stanford University. Her family is involved in banking and oil, making them - and implicitly her - wealthy. Rose eventually left for London, England but has since returned to the U.S. and found new ways to woo and stalk Charlie. Rose's father is played by Charlie Sheen's real-life father Martin Sheen. She is shown hanging out with Alan occasionally and they get along very well. They discussed going further in their relationship, but decided to remain friends. Lynskey's character has surprising depths that belie her absurdity. She once created a website devoted to hating Charlie, which turned out to be a social experiment provoking Charlie to understand the emotional damage he tends to leave behind in his relationships.

Ryan Stiles (Recurring Season 2-), as Dr. Herb Melnick, Judith's new husband and Jake's new stepfather. Though he is married to Judith, he is a laid-back guy and he and Alan seem to get along. Alan is just happy that he no longer has to pay Judith alimony, as she used it for selfish purposes. An inconsistency in the story line is the first time he appears, he is named as Greg. A Season 5 episode implied that Herb, though not particularly bright, is remarkably good at cunnilingus.

Former Main Characters
April Bowlby (Season Four; Recurring Season 3), as Kandi, Alan's young, dimwitted ex girlfriend. After an impromptu wedding in Las Vegas, Kandi divorced him and kept their condominium, but they continued to have a semi-regular sexual relationship. When she got a role on a CSI-spoof drama, she signed divorce papers so that Alan wouldn't be able to claim her new-found fortune. She has appeared once more in an episode where the guys, Judith, Herb, Berta, Rose, Evelyn, and Kandi go to Charlie's house for Christmas. It has been claimed that she has a new fiancé. Interestingly, she first appeared as one of Charlie's girlfriends in the episode "Madame and Her Special Friend" in November, 2005 but was listed as "Kimber" in the closing credits.

Notable Guest Stars
Guest stars so far have included Emmanuelle Vaugier as Mia, Jane Lynch as the therapist Dr. Freeman, Jeri Ryan as Sherri, Martin Sheen as Rose's father, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe as Gail, Cloris Leachman as Norma, Denise Richards as Lisa, Richard Lewis as Stan, Teri Hatcher as Judith's sister Liz, Judy Greer as Myra, Heather Locklear as Laura Lang, Megan Fox as Berta's granddaughter Prudence, Gail O'Grady as Kandi's mother Mandi, Kevin Sorbo as Kandi's father Andy, Josie Davis as Sandy, Robert Wagner as Teddy, Jenny McCarthy as Teddy's daughter, Courtney, Ming-Na as Judge Linda Harris, Jenna Elfman as Frankie, Camryn Manheim as Daisy, Brooke Shields as Danielle, Michael Clark Duncan as neighbor Jerome (a fictitious ex-NFL great), Katherine LaNasa as Lydia (one of Charlie's latest ex-girlfriends who is essentially a younger version of his mother) and Enrique Iglesias as the handyman Fernando. Sean Penn, Elvis Costello, Harry Dean Stanton, Steven Tyler have all appeared as themselves, among other guests

As part of a crossover from the writers and executive producer of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, George Eads made a brief cameo appearance on the May 5, 2008 episode.

On November 3, 2008, TV Guide reported that James Earl Jones is due to make a guest appearance on an upcoming episode as a clergyman officiating at a funeral for Charlie.

On November 6, 2008, TV Guide reported that Sheen’s real-life brother Emilio Estevez will guest-star as an old friend of Charlie’s.

Episodes
The show currently has five seasons, with a sixth season in production. The show's 100th episode ("City of Great Racks") aired on October 15, 2007. To celebrate this, a casino-inspired party was held at West Hollywood's Pacific Design Center. Warner Brothers Television also distributed blue Micargi Rover bicycles adorned with the Two and a Half Men logo along with the words "100 Episodes." Each bicycle came with a note saying "You've made us very proud. Here's to a long ride together." The cast also gifted the crew with sterling silver key rings from Tiffany & Co. The key rings were attached to small pendants with "100" inscribed on one side and Two and a Half Men on the other.

Crossover with CSI
Further information: Two and a Half Deaths and Fish in a Drawer
"When Chuck pitched the idea to me … I thought it was an intriguing idea and walked into Naren's office and he said 'what a nut'"
—- Carol Mendelsohn

In 2007, Two and a Half Men creator Chuck Lorre contacted CSI: Crime Scene Investigation executive producer Carol Mendelsohn, about a crossover. At first, the idea seemed unlikely to receive approval; however, it resurfaced when Mendelsohn and Lorre were at the World Television Festival in Canada and they decided to get approval and run with it. Even though the casts' eyebrows raised when they heard about the crossover, they all jumped on board. When Mendelsohn was giving a talk, he accidentally mentioned about the crossover, that same day Variety Magazine was already inquiring about the crossover episodes. Mendelsohn later stated: "We're all used to being in control and in charge of our own shows and even though this was a freelance-type situation … there was an expectation and also a desire on all of our parts to really have a true collaboration. You have to give a little. It was sort of a life lesson, I think." "The biggest challenge for us was doing a comedy with a murder in it. Generally our stories are a little lighter," stated Lorre in an interview. "Would our audience go with a dead body in it? There was a moment where it could have gone either way. I think the results were spectacular. It turned out to be a really funny episode." "Fish in a Drawer" was the first part of the crossover to air, on May 5, 2008, and was written by Sarah Goldfinger, Evan Dunsky, Carol Mendelsohn and Naren Shankar. George Eads is the only CSI: Crime Scene Investigation main cast member to make a cameo on Two and a Half Men. Three days later (May 8, 2008) the second part of the crossover, "Two And a Half Deaths" aired, following Gil Grissom (William Peterson) as he investigates the murder of a sitcom diva named Annabelle (Katey Sagal), who was found murdered while she was filming her show in Las Vegas, Nevada, Sheen, Cryer and Jones all made cameos in this episode.

Awards and nominations
The show has received multiple nominations, including 23 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and two Golden Globe nominations. Conchata Ferrell and Holland Taylor were each nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress - Comedy Series, in 2005 and 2007 (and Taylor again in 2008). Jon Cryer was nominated three times for Outstanding Supporting Actor - Comedy Series (in 2006, 2007 and 2008) and Charlie Sheen was nominated for the Outstanding Lead Actor - Comedy Series in 2006, 2007 and 2008, along with two Golden Globe nominations in 2005 and 2006 for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy. Picture Editor Joe Bella received two Emmys in the category Outstanding Multi-Camera Picture Editing for a Series, for the episodes "That Special Tug" (2006) and "Release the Dogs" (2007). Martin Sheen was nominated for the Outstanding Guest Actor - Comedy Series Emmy in 2006

Two and a half men Theme