You Can't Take It with You (TV series)

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You Can't Take It with You is an American sitcom that aired in syndication from 1987 to 1988. It’s based on the 1937 play You Can’t Take It with You by George Kaufman and Moss Hart, as adapted into a 1938 film. The show is set in a contemporary Staten Island home.

The series stars Harry Morgan as Martin Vanderhof, a quirky, elderly family patriarch, and Lois Nettleton as his daughter Penny. Richard Sanders plays Penny’s inventor husband Paul, Lisa Aliff is their older daughter Alice, and Heather Blodgett is their younger daughter Essie (Elizabeth Townsend appears in the pilot). Theodore Wilson plays neighbor Durwood Pinner. The show ran 22 episodes, each about 30 minutes.

You Can’t Take It with You was produced for syndication by Harps Productions, Procter & Gamble Productions, and LBS Communications, with Bob LaHendro directing and Hal Kanter as developer. Tom Bahler composed the music.

The program was part of NBC’s short-lived syndication package called “Prime Time Begins at 7:30,” which included five sitcoms: Marblehead Manor, You Can’t Take It with You, She’s the Sheriff, Out of This World, and a revival of We Got It Made. The idea was to bring viewers to NBC stations before prime time, following changes in FCC and syndication rules. The shows often didn’t beat popular game shows in ratings. After the 1987–88 season, Marblehead Manor, We Got It Made, and You Can’t Take It with You were canceled; She’s the Sheriff lasted one more season, and Out of This World ran for three seasons and was the package’s most successful entry.

As of 2019, some episodes are available on streaming services.