Taxi (1978-1983)

Genre: TV / Comedy


Starring: Judd Hirsh, Danny DeVito, Marilu Henner, Tony Danza


Number of seasons: 5

Last Christmas, I received the boxset for this particular comedic TV series and, as I have just finished viewing the whole thing, I have decided to review it for this site.

This show focused on the lives and adventures of the crew of a fictional taxi company, the Sunshine Cab Company.

It is the show that gave Andy Kaufman his biggest exposure. Though the late comedian was miserable all the way through and made the whole cast feel his pain, his character of Latka is very entertaining. From the voice to the made-up language, he was a sure bet to create laughter any time he appeared on screen. Down the line, to motivate Kaufman and shut him up, the creators gave his character a Multiple Personality Disorder, giving the comedian a chance to be creative and go in different directions.

The main star is Judd Hirsh, as Alex Rieger. He’s the only one in the bunch who does not aspire to be more than a cab driver and he is the one everyone relies on for advice.

That being said, Danny DeVito is the one who shines out the most out of this Sunshine Cab Company, as the overbearing, loud-mouth and cruel taxi dispatcher. Many other actors would have given us a character in which there is no redeemable quality to find, but DeVito makes Louie DePalma somewhat charming when he has these moments of sensitivity. I could not help root for that guy in the end, in spite of all the venom he could spew at any given time. He is the one who gave me the most laugh-out-loud moments.

The rest of the crew did a good job also, all having their moments in the sun. Tony Danza was playing the dumb jock boxer to a tee and Marilu Henner as the woman in a man’s world brought some good acting chops of her own. I give honorable mention to Christopher Lloyd, as Reverend Jim Ignatowski, a man spaced-out and burnt-out from all the drugs consumed in his life as a former hippie. He made me laugh quite often with his funny, though over-the-top, antics. He came later in the series and was a solid replacement for Jeff Conaway, whose character was going nowhere.1978-

The interaction between DeVito’s character and Elaine Nardo (Marilu Henner) will make quite a few feminists wince. That was another era and it sure would not fly these days.

Taxi was a very good TV show. Some good old-fashioned entertainment that made you laugh, all the while pulling on your heartstrings from time to time. Sometimes, storylines seemed to be abandoned from one episode to another, which bothered me a little, but I was greatly entertained all the way through, and it is all you can ask for from such a TV show.


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