MovieChat Forums > Mr. Belvedere (1985) Discussion > They go kind of heavy on the fat jokes (...

They go kind of heavy on the fat jokes (pun intended).


I watched the show in it's original run as a kid and now, watching it with adult eyes, I kind of cringe at all the fat comments made toward Mr. Belvedere. It seems like they put in one at every other line in the current seasons on Antenna TV. I just feel bad for the guy.

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One reason it stands out is because it looks like Bob Uecker enjoys bullying him. Like he really gets a kick out of putting Belvedere down with the weight issue. And even Ilene Graff and Rob Stone seem to get a bit of pleasure out of Uecker saying those lines.

One thing I do notice is that he does eat a lot of sweets on the show. I mean, this is not a case of an actor pretending. He really does seem to be eating a lot of that food on camera. And imagine how many rehearsals and takes were required for certain scenes. So he was probably eating a lot on set. There's a reason he is very big and out of shape. I notice that he died of diabetes. People who eat sweets like that for many years can worsen their health if they are genetically predisposed to diabetes. These are bad dietary habits and sometimes difficult to break. I wonder if that is what happened to him after the show ended.

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It's just humor before it got all PC in the world. The producers or network actually wanted him to lose weight and he refused.
Check this interview with him and the others out.
http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20131620,00.html

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I do not like how Angela keeps making fun of his name. Every episode and it's annoying

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