Everybody Loves Raymond (TV series)

Everybody Loves Raymond is an American sitcom television series created by Philip Rosenthal that aired on CBS from September 13, 1996, to May 16, 2005, with a total of 210 episodes spanning over nine seasons. It was produced by Where's Lunch and Worldwide Pants, in association with HBO Independent Productions. The cast members are Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton, Brad Garrett, Doris Roberts, Peter Boyle, Madylin Sweeten, and Monica Horan. Most episodes of the nine season series were filmed in front of a live studio audience, with a few exceptions.
== Series overview ==
The show is centered on the life of an Italian-American everyman named Raymond Barone, a sportswriter for Newsday living with his family on Long Island. Beleaguered, diffident and dryly sarcastic, Raymond takes few things seriously, making jokes in nearly every situation, no matter how troubling or serious. He often avoids responsibilities around the house and with his kids, leaving this to wife, Debra.
Raymond and Debra have a daughter Ally (Alexandra) and twin sons Michael and Geoffrey (originally Matthew and Gregory in the pilot). The Barone children are regular characters but not a major focus. Raymond's parents, Marie and Frank, live across the street with older son Robert (who, later in the series, has his own apartment). All Barone relatives frequently make their presence known to the annoyance of Raymond and Debra; Debra's justifiable complaints about Raymond's overbearing family serve as one of the show's comedic elements. Out of the three unwanted visitors, Debra is particularly intimidated by Marie, an insulting, controlling, manipulative (though ultimately caring) woman who criticizes Debra passive-aggressively and praises Ray, clearly favoring him over other son "Robbie," whose birth necessitated her marriage (a fact revealed in the episode "Good Girls").
Raymond typically falls in the middle of family arguments, incapable of taking any decisive stand, especially if it might invoke his mother's disapproval. Robert, a miserable gentle giant, jealous of his younger sibling's position as favorite son and also of the success his brother has achieved both professionally and personally, is Ray's biggest rival. Robert and Raymond frequently argue like overgrown children, focusing much of their energy on picking on or one upping each other, although deep down they love each other dearly.
Frank Barone is a fiery retiree prone to directing insults and merciless put-downs at any and all targets. Largely an absentee father when the boys were growing up, Frank buries his feelings and rarely yields to sentiment. As the series progresses, however, several episodes demonstrate that the senior Barone loves his family immensely. Unlike everyone else, Frank has no problem comically criticizing Marie and often comes to Debra's defense whenever Marie comments disparagingly about their daughter-in-law.
Raymond and Debra's marriage is fraught with conflicts. Raymond prefers sports television over discussions with Debra on marital matters. Like his father, Raymond works full-time, leaving most child-rearing responsibilities to his wife; and he is often forced to help around the house. One of the show's recurring elements finds the couple having a long discussion in bed each night before going to sleep.
== Episodes ==
Season	Season	Episodes	Episodes	Originally aired 	Originally aired	Nielsen ratings[1]	Nielsen ratings[1]
Season	Season	Episodes	Episodes	First aired 	Last aired 	Rank 	Rating
 	1 	22 	22 	September 13, 1996	April 7, 1997 	N/A 	N/A
 	2 	25 	25 	September 22, 1997	May 18, 1998 	30 	9.2[a]
 	3 	26 	26 	September 21, 1998	May 24, 1999 	11 	10.6
 	4 	24 	24 	September 20, 1999	May 22, 2000 	12 	11.4
 	5 	25 	25 	October 2, 2000 	May 21, 2001 	5 	12.6[b]
 	6 	24 	24 	September 24, 2001	May 20, 2002 	4 	12.8
 	7 	25 	25 	September 23, 2002	May 19, 2003 	7 	11.9[c]
 	8 	23 	23 	September 22, 2003	May 24, 2004 	9 	11.2[d]
 	9 	16 	16 	September 20, 2004	May 16, 2005 	9 	11.2
# ^ Tied with The Simpsons
# ^ Tied with Friends and Monday Night Football
# ^ Tied with Survivor
# ^ Tied with Monday Night Football
== Characters ==
=== Main characters ===
Actor 	Role 	Seasons	Episodes
Ray Romano 	Raymond "Ray" Barone 	All 9 	210
Patricia Heaton 	Debra Barone 	All 9 	209
Brad Garrett 	Robert Charles Barone 	All 9 	209
Doris Roberts 	Marie Barone 	All 9 	210
Peter Boyle 	Frank Barone 	All 9 	206
Madylin Sweeten 	Alexandra "Ally" Barone 	All 9 	146
Sullivan and Sawyer Sweeten	Michael and Geoffrey Barone	All 9 	136
Monica Horan 	Amy MacDougall-Barone 	All 9 	64
=== Ray Barone ===
Raymond Albert "Ray" Barone (Ray Romano) is the protagonist of the sitcom. Most of the series’ storylines revolve around him, hence the title of the show. He lives on Long Island, with his wife Debra and their three children Ally and twin boys, Michael and Geoffrey Barone. He attended St. Johns University (New York) in Queens, New York. Ray is well-known through the community due to his profession as a sportswriter for Newsday. In some episodes, he is seen reviewing a famous sportsman. However, this is shown to have subsided in the later seasons. Due to the nature of his work, Ray is often seen on the couch, watching sports, rather than assisting Debra with household duties and the children.
At times Raymond appears rather introverted. He often rants in a nasal, whiny voice. His fears include not being liked by everyone and confronting his parents, particularly his mother. He often gets annoyed because he feels that he and Debra lack intimacy. He is also promoted as chief sports writer.
Parts of the backstory of his childhood have explained Raymond’s attitude and personality as an adult. Raymond and Robert were spoiled by their mother. However, their father, who worked long hours, had been neglectful in showing them affection and instead showed verbal abuse. Ray has sometimes shown this pattern of behavior in his reluctance to participate with his own children.
A running gag in the show is how much Ray was mothered and spoiled by his mother, while Robert was neglected. Raymond was pampered by Marie, which in turn, made him lazy and causing him to act like a child, and very often, to defend himself to Debra, he goes to Marie for advice and protection. He is also very scared of her and often sides with her instead of Debra.
In 2004, TV Guide ranked Ray Barone number 10 on its '50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time' list.[1]
The character has made several crossover appearances:
* 1997: Cosby – "Lucas Raymondicus"
* 1998: The Nanny – "The Reunion Show"
* 1998–2005: The King of Queens (4 episodes)
* 1999: Becker – "Drive, They Said"
=== Debra Barone ===
Debra Louise Barone (Patricia Heaton), is the wife of Ray. She was raised by wealthy parents, Lois (Katherine Helmond) and Warren Whelan (Robert Culp), and grew up in an upper-class background, unlike the other major characters in the sitcom. She has a sister, Jennifer Whelan (Ashley Crow), who is seen only once in the entire series. Following her graduation from high school, she traveled a lot and dated many famous sportsmen. Before marrying Ray, she worked in public relations for the New York Rangers hockey team.
Debra is vulnerable and emotionally sensitive. She is unhappy as a housewife, having to put up not only with Ray’s immature jokes and lazy behavior, but more with his intrusive family members, who often barge in uninvited, leaving havoc in their wake. Though Ray's parents frustrate her, she rarely shows her feelings to them, resulting in occasional bursts in private of yelling, stomping, and throwing objects.
Debra has a feud with Marie, who shows a large amount of distaste of her ability to be a mother and a wife. Throughout the series, Debra often finds Robert the most patient of the Barones, and at times she is shown to get along well with Frank, who thinks of her as a daughter and understands Debra's intolerance towards Marie.
She is also depressed about her parents when they were in an argument, and she was distraught when they were divorcing. Even though she grew up in a traditional conservative family, she was a free-spirited and a popular teen in her early years. Ray once noted that, during college, she went to Mardi Gras and flashed her breasts to many people who gave her beads and also ended up topless in the newspaper.
Her main catchphrase is, usually addressed to Ray in an ominous voice when he has done something bad, "What did you do?"
The character has also appeared in the King of Queens episode "Dire Strayts".
=== Barone children ===
* Alexandra "Ally" Barone (154 episodes; played by Madylin Sweeten) – Ray and Debra's only daughter. She is six years old at the beginning of the series, and is fourteen by the series finale. She was named for Romano's real-life daughter. In the beginning, she is somewhat mischievous and naughty much like her brothers, but becomes loyal and helpful by the end. However, she still occasionally fibs and answers back to her parents if she doesn't get what she wants, such as a $250 silk dress which would only be worn once.
* Geoffrey and Michael Barone (130 episodes; played by Sullivan and Sawyer Sweeten) – Ray and Debra's identical twin sons. They are two years old at the beginning of the series and are ten years old by the series finale. A running joke is Frank's insistence that Geoffrey may have homosexual tendencies, such as when he walks in on the two boys rehearsing to play fairies in a school production. The two are playful, energetic, and prone to causing chaos even without trying but in general are well-behaved. (In the pilot episode, they were played by a different set of twins plus a set of triplets and were called "Gregory" and "Matthew" after Romano's real-life twin sons.)
=== Marie Barone ===
Marie Barone (Doris Roberts) is the wife of Frank, and matriarch of the Barone family. As a housewife, she excels in household duties, including cooking, cleaning, and generally keeping and maintaining a good household. Marie appears to have narcissistic personality disorder, and her treatment of people due to this becomes a focal point of several episodes of the show. She is very nosy, snobbish, arrogant, insulting, and has a strong hold over her family due to her penchant for her likely narcissistic abuse, bullying those around her with guilt and a victim complex to get her way. She has very high self-esteem and regards herself as a positive example of what every wife, mother and woman should be, but in reality is responsible for a majority of the misery and conflict within the Barone family. She takes special pride in her Italian background and even arranges a tour of Italy for the whole family out of her own savings.
Throughout the series, she is shown to have favorites with certain people, with her son Raymond being the first and Debra being possibly the last. Other than Frank, everyone has a hard time standing up to Marie due to her ability of making people feel guilty, although Debra does occasionally take a stand. She is well aware of Raymond’s reluctance to stand up to her, and in many situations takes advantage of this to achieve her own interests.
It is established in the flashbacks of "How They Met" that she has never liked Debra ever since Debra asked Ray to fix her futon at dinner time, but Marie has never admitted her dislike of Debra outright and is careful about not saying it out loud, but she never ceases the chance to annoy her or indirectly insult her on many occasions just for her own pleasure.
She has saved a little money on the side every day and admitted to Debra that she collected over $46,000 since her wedding. She also sends money to South America to a fundraiser. She is also shown to actually control the family's finances in front of Frank, who always thought he was the one in charge and remained oblivious to much of her savings or expenses.
As her boys were growing up, she spoiled her younger son while completely cutting Robert out of the picture. (In a later episode, she claims that this was because Robert was able to take care of himself and was independent, in contrast to Ray who was a sensitive, timid, needy little boy; but this was said just to manipulate Robert into getting Amy pregnant, as both he and Raymond note and Marie herself winks to Ray, indicating this is another manipulation). In some cases, however, she is shown to care and be overprotective of Robert as well. This includes when he had nightmares growing up, when he was gored by a bull, when he was interviewing for an FBI position, and her frequent attempts to get Robert out of the police force in effort to keep him safe.
Marie is also seen constantly arguing with her husband Frank in nearly every episode, with them constantly fighting and annoying each other. However, in some situations, there have been times when they do evidence their love for one another, despite their reluctance to be open with it. Much to Debra's annoyance, even Debra's parents find them more interesting, since they are honest to each other.
Her catchphrase is "I don't like that, [insert name]." whenever anyone says anything inappropriate.
The final episode reveals that her birthday is December 9 (this was one of Frank's classic "one-liners" as he adds "1802").
The character has also appeared in the King of Queens episode "Rayny Day".
=== Frank Barone ===
Francis Oscar "Frank" Barone (Peter Boyle) is the husband of Marie and a retired bookkeeper. In the episode "The Gift" (season 2), it is Frank's 65th birthday, making his year of birth 1932. He can be seen as aggressive, selfish, uncaring, and masculine. Although it is briefly mentioned that he has a sensitive side, Frank refuses to accept it. In episodes like "Pet the Bunny", "Christmas Present", "Fathers Knows Least" and "Frank Goes Downstairs", he indicates that, though capable of patience and kindness, he deliberately cultivates a tough guy persona. However, Frank is sometimes shown to be a good family man, such as taking the fall for Debra when Marie's prized canister goes missing or even trying to console Robert after he becomes morose from a breakup.
He is always seen at Ray and Debra’s house on the black armchair with his pants unbuttoned and zipper open watching sports or at home ordering Marie to prepare his meals while sitting and reading the paper. During his sons’ childhood, Frank was virtually absent and had refused to show any sign of affection and love to either boy. He was constantly at loggerheads with his wife Marie to how the boys were to be raised. He is very opinionated, outspoken, and has no problem insulting family members and strangers out in the open (this applies in particular to his wife, Marie). He calls men names like "Nancy", "Shirley", "Peaches", and "Mary" who do not live up to his standards to what it takes to be a man. His main catchphrase on the show is "Holy crap".
Throughout the sitcom, Frank is shown to have socially conservative values, particularly regarding minority groups such as gays and lesbians, and ethnic groups such as the Koreans and Japanese to which he occasionally mutters "Japanese crap". He doesn’t follow or accept anything outside the social norms, to which Marie proclaims "Frank lives in blissful ignorance". Despite Marie’s constant self-regard, she is accepting of these minority groups. Much to other characters' dismay, he's not above engaging in illegal or dubious activities such as gambling or stealing cable from Ray.
In his spare time, Frank is a skilled handyman and a history buff, with a particular interest in the American Civil War. He's frequently seen making repairs in Ray and Debra's house, and in "Frank Goes Downstairs" is injured while fixing their staircase. His regular get-away activity is having naked pool bath with his elderly friends at a community center referred to as "the lodge". On every other Saturday, he takes Raymond's children to The Happy Zone.
Frank is also a war veteran. He fought in the Korean War and he uses this as a reference for recounting stories of survival and how he came to be a "man". In one particular incident, where all three Barone men were pretending to go to counseling sessions it was revealed that Ray and Robert had a long line of physically disciplinarian grandparents. However, Frank vowed to never be physically abusive towards his sons, never enforcing corporal punishment on them and never engaging in anything more than yelling at them.
Though for the most part largely anti-social and honest in his relationships with others, he is often depicted as the only member of the family who is not only unafraid of Marie, but the only one who will put his foot down and stand up to her, much to the combined relief and horror of the other characters. Many of their arguments revolve around trivial and even irrational subjects, such as who invented the lawn and literally comparing apples and oranges.
They also come into conflict over Debra, whom Frank, unlike Marie, overwhelmingly loves, and even tends to be more affectionate with than he is with either of his sons. True to his blunt personality, in one episode in which the entire family (the adults) were at a counseling session with their church priest Father Hubley, he yelled out in front of everyone that the main reason why Marie looks down on Debra – "She [Debra] married him [Raymond], and [Marie] still can't deal with it."
=== Robert Barone ===
For the American economist, see Robert N. Barone.
Robert Charles Barone (Brad Garrett) is Raymond's older brother (4 years older than Ray) and the first-born son of Frank and Marie. His birthday is April 6 and his birth weight was 12 lb (5.4 kg). At 6 ft 8.5 in (2.045 m), he is the tallest Barone. Robert has several quirks, the biggest being a nervous habit of touching food to his chin before eating it, commonly known as the "Crazy Chin", which he developed to cope with anxiety which started when Raymond was born and all of Marie's attention turned to Raymond. Robert is a loving uncle and still deeply cares for his little brother Raymond. Robert has been a police officer with the New York City Police Department (NYPD) for 27 years, eventually attaining the rank of Sergeant and then, by the end of the series, Lieutenant. His height, appearance and demeanor are the source of much humor, but despite his imposing size, Robert is a very skilled dancer.
After divorcing his first wife Joanne in 1995, Robert moved back in with his parents, became a workaholic, and was acknowledged by the NYPD for never being absent one day of his career for three years. Robert's advanced skills as a police officer even got him an interview with the FBI, but his mother intentionally interfered in the interview process. Robert was passed over but simply because the other candidates were more qualified. He was injured on the job when he was gored in the bottom by a bull. When he returned, he left the police force out of a lack of self-confidence, and became a telemarketer. Later, he took a side job as an alarm salesman for a brief time (one episode) but returned to the NYPD, mainly with Raymond's help.
Robert dated Debra's best friend Amy MacDougall for several years, despite a number of breakups. After a bad date with yet another woman, Robert ran into Amy in a bar and they soon got back together and married in 2003. In 2004, they purchased Frank and Marie's home for $26,000, but they had to welcome them back in when the elder Barones were kicked out of a retirement community in New Jersey in the episode "Not So Fast."
Robert is very jealous of his brother Raymond, who was favored by their mother, and though Robert is four years older than Ray and much taller, he constantly feels as if he's stuck in Ray's shadow. Despite the obvious favoring of Ray, Marie has claimed that there was never any favoritism. He has a very dark sense of humor and will make fun of Raymond to no end to get a little belated revenge. He is also known for being very passive-aggressive.
While he enjoys taunting Ray himself, Robert is very protective of his younger brother; in one episode, he overhears a radio sports show host insulting Ray at length and angrily humiliates the man in retaliation. He also respects Ray as a well-meaning, if generally absent, father, in the pattern of Frank. Robert serves as the moral conscience in the family, as the most virtuous of the characters, and often pleads with others when they are considering doing something questionable.
Robert's catchphrase in the show is when he finds the family gathered together silent and says: "Is this about me?"
Robert also appears in the King of Queens episode "Road Rayge".
=== Amy MacDougall-Barone ===
Amy Louise MacDougall (Monica Horan) is Robert's on-and-off girlfriend, and eventual wife. They met because Amy is Debra's best friend. She and Debra share the same middle name. Although Amy marries Robert in Season 7, Episode 24: "Robert's Wedding", she also appears in the previous seasons. Many issues have caused Amy and Robert to break up in the first six seasons, with one being caused by Raymond and another being that Robert had sex with another woman. Frequently, Amy apologizes to someone even if she didn't do anything wrong.
She is a confident woman who was raised in a family of devout Protestants, who live in Pennsylvania. She describes her parents as "people who wouldn't yell if they were on fire." Amy was a virgin when she met Robert, which Ray had a hard time understanding, as Amy was 33 at the time. She eventually lost her virginity to Robert before they were married, but they were spotted having sex by their neighbors, causing Robert's neighbors to sign a sheet mandating bedroom curtains in the apartment building.
== Recurring ==
* Hank and Pat MacDougall (13 episodes; played by Fred Willard and Georgia Engel) are Amy's parents. They first appear in "Just a Formality" (episode 7.14). Devout conservative Presbyterians, they oppose their daughter's marriage because of Robert's previous marital status and Catholic faith. These matters are not helped as they soon learn that the MacDougalls and the Barones are not the most compatible of families; the two sides still do not like each other after many tries at truce, although the Barones have always loved Amy, and the MacDougalls come to tolerate Robert.
Hank is a former professor and is now a high school principal. He is known to be opposed to smoking, and his line when he sees someone smoking is "Why don't you just drink poison?". Pat is a housewife, and has a high-pitched, gentle voice. She is shown to be a protective and loving mother.
* Peter MacDougall (10 episodes; played by Chris Elliott) is Amy's older brother. He has a strange, psychologically unstable personality (Robert once stated that "There are squirrels juggling knives in his head") and a duplicitous, quick-witted mind. Opposed to his sister's marriage, he insists that he will keep trying to break it up, which explains the reason why during Robert's wedding that Robert and Ray looked at him when the pastor asked if anyone objected to Robert and Amy's marriage. Peter is single but lives with his pet house cat, Miss Puss. At first, Peter and Robert hate each other, but in "Peter on the Couch," the two find common ground in the fact that they both suffered from being the overshadowed older sibling and living with their parents. He is fond of Ray, although the feeling isn't mutual. Peter was originally introduced as "Russell", the owner of a comic book shop (played by comedian Paul Reubens) in a one-time appearance. Russell abruptly became Peter because in "Just a Formality" (episode 7.14), Peter mentions meeting Ray at the comic book store (which was Russell).
* Lois and Warren Whelan (14 and 11 episodes, played by Katherine Helmondand Robert Culp) are Debra's parents. Even though they are an authoritarian conservative family, they are shown to have a breakdown and actually hate their marriage and hobbies. They are from Connecticut. They are also upper class, and have different beliefs from the middle class Barones. However, the Whelans have a huge amount of respect towards them for their bluntness and start to imitate them, angering Debra.
Lois is a housewife, and traveled around on fundraisers. Her line of work was not mentioned. She is friendly and patient, but easily insulted. She also appears to be nervous around Robert, who feels the same way. She has a struggling relationship with Warren, and even though she suggested and went to counseling in New Jersey, he eventually files in for a divorce, which she accepts, since she cannot find love in her marriage anymore.
Warren is a businessman, achieving success at a young age, and a caring, happy-go-lucky father. He is very passionate about antiques, and, in a running joke on the show, is often referred to as having a problem with alcohol. He had problems with Lois about their marriage. They agreed to go on counseling in New Jersey, but they eventually divorced. Debra was distraught and furious with Lois because she thought that she filed it, but Warren tells her the truth.
* Andy (26 episodes; played by Andy Kindler) – A fellow sportswriter and friend of Raymond's, and a bachelor. He is known to have bad luck with women.
* Gianni (25 episodes; played by Jon Manfrellotti) – A contractor, ex-futonrepairman, and friend of Raymond's. He briefly dated Amy, much to Robert's consternation, and is disliked by Debra as immature. He worked with Ray when they were younger. He also appeared on The King of Queens. Jon Manfrellotti first appeared as a cable guy from Lynbrook cable in "The Game" (episode 1.17).
* Bernie and Linda Gruenfelder (17 and 11 episodes; played by Tom McGowanand Maggie Wheeler) – Married couple, friends of Ray and Debra. They are very happy together and express their love in public.
* Kevin Daniels (9 episodes; played by Kevin James) – Announcer for the Mets, and friend and golf buddy of Raymond. He also hosts "Sports Talk with Roy Firestone" in "Ray's on TV" (episode 2.1).
* Stan (9 episodes; played by Victor Raider-Wexler) – Friend of Marie and Frank.
* Garvin (9 episodes; played by Len Lesser) – A friend of Frank's. A running gag is that when he sees Raymond, he shouts, "Hey, Ray's here! Ha-ha-ha!" while shaking his arms in the air. Lesser used a similar gag on Seinfeld when he portrayed Uncle Leo, enthusiastically saying "Jerry! Hello!" while holding out his arms every time he greeted his nephew Jerry.
* Sgt. Judy Potter (9 episodes; played by Sherri Shepherd) – Robert's NYPDpatrol partner.
== Minor ==
* Nemo (7 episodes; played by Joseph V. Perry, Robert Ruth) – Pizza restaurant owner. Disappears when Marco takes over his pizzeria and calls it Marco's.
* Gerard (7 episodes; played by Fred Stoller) – Ray and Robert's annoying, unintelligent and hypochondriacal cousin who makes several appearances. He plays the accordion (mostly the first notes of Deep Purple's Smoke on the Water or The Carpenters' (They Long to Be) Close to You).
* Father Hubley (6 episodes; played by Charles Durning) – The local parish priest. He loves Marie's lasagna. Very wary of the Barones, his long-time parishioners, but usually has helpful advice to offer.
* Stefania Fogagnolo (6 episodes; played by Alex Meneses) – Robert's hot and jilted Italian ex-girlfriend he met while vacationing with the Barone clan in Italy. He had a fling with her in Italy while he was still with Amy, which later causes breakups with both girlfriends.
* Marco Fogagnolo (6 episodes; played by David Proval) – The intimidating and threatening Italian father of Stefania, who takes over Nemo's Pizza after the family moves to America, jokingly implying that he "did away with" Nemo. Although he dislikes Robert, he befriends Frank and Marie but the two end up fighting for his friendship.
* Molly Ardolino (6 episodes; played by Ray Romano's actual daughter, Alexandra Romano) – Daughter of Peggy Ardolino (Ray's archenemy and Debra's friend) and Ally's best friend. However, she was first seen as a flower girl in a flashback of Ray and Debra's wedding.
* Max (5 episodes; played by executive producer and main writer Phil Rosenthal's real-life father, Max Rosenthal) – A lodge friend of Frank, seen in various lodge-related episodes.
* Angelina (4 episodes; played by Tina Arning) – a very attractive waitress from Nemo's. Ray often goes to the restaurant just to fantasize about her beauty. She appears in four episodes.
* Uncle Mel Barone (4 episodes; played by Phil Leeds) – Frank's older brother. Mel is mean and always seems agitated. A running gag is since he was never married, and sometimes shows up at family events with other men, he mentions at least once in every episode he is in fact, not gay.
* Bill Parker (3 episodes; played by David Hunt) – Ray's nemesis neighbor. Parker is often seen showing-up Ray as a father, and Ray often makes jokes that Debra wishes she had married him instead, (the in-joke being that he is played by Patricia Heaton's real-life husband). Ray's character has said lines that has him thinking out loud that his kids are possibly Bill Parker's doing, because all the kids playing his children on the show are blond, like Bill Parker.
* Albert (3 episodes; played by Ray Romano's real-life father, Albert Romano) – A lodge friend of Frank, seen in various lodge-related episodes.
* Lee (3 episodes; played by Debra Mooney) – Friend of Marie and Frank's
* Dave (2 episodes; played by Dave Attell) – A friend of Raymond and a member of the Nemo's sponsored basketball team in "Captain Nemo" (episode 1.11).
* Joanne Glotz (2 episodes; played by Suzie Plakson) – Robert's first wife, who is depicted very negatively. She and Robert divorced before the beginning of the series. She formerly worked as a stripper in Atlantic City named Cinnamon. Marie knew about her former job since she appeared on the show, but kept quiet for Robert's sake until Joanne asked for a divorce.
* Bryan Trenberth (2 episodes; played by Dan Castellaneta) – The T-ball "healthy snacks" overseer that Debra tangled with and Ray finally blew up on in "T-Ball" (episode 2.42). He was also Coach Bryan in "It's Supposed To Be Fun" (episode 6.8).
* Harriet Lichtman – Marie's bridge partner, and Frank's fantasy woman. Often talked about but only appears in Season 7, Episode 20: "Who's Next".
* Abe Warchiser aka "Bullethead" (John David Conti) – Frank's worst enemy at his lodge, seen in various lodge-related episodes. He proved he hated Frank in the episode "Franks Tribute" by telling Robert and Raymond "I don't like Frank Barone!"
* Peggy Ardolino (Amy Aquino) – Single mother of Ally's best friend who has bullied Ray and later becomes Peter's girlfriend. Referred to as "The Cookie Lady" and "Peggy Hitler" by Ray. Whenever they see each other, Peggy says, "Hello, Ally's dad," while he just says "Hello... Peggy," in a very intimidating way. Debra ends up scaring Peggy off so she would leave Ray alone saying, "Nobody beats up my husband." Her characteristics are similar to Hitler, according to Ray.
* Shamsky II – the bulldog Robert gets in Season 1, Episode 19: "The Dog" after having him neutered and later finding out he was a pure bred used for breeding stock. Shamsky II, named for Robert's favourite baseball player Art Shamsky, makes brief cameos in other episodes.
* Jennifer Whelan (Ashley Crow) – Debra's wayward sister who finally becomes a nun in "The Sister" (episode 4.6).
== Connection to The King of Queens ==
Kevin James was an actor and writer on Everybody Loves Raymond. Once James got his own show, The King of Queens, the two shows crossed over.
The first crossover happened on The King of Queens. In it, Ray Barone and Doug Heffernan become friends. Later on the same night, Kevin James showed up on Everybody Loves Raymond as Doug Heffernan.[2] The shows would go on to crossover several more times.
There are two continuity errors in this universe. Kevin James played a different character in earlier seasons of Everybody Loves Raymond than on The King of Queens. The second one is that Chris Elliott appeared as one character on Everybody Loves Raymond, and another on The King of Queens.
== Foreign remakes ==
=== Russian version and documentary ===
In 2009, series creator/producer Philip Rosenthal traveled to Russia to adapt the show for local audiences. His experience was documented by a film crew and released as the documentary feature Exporting Raymond.[3] The Russian version is titled ‹See Tfd›(in Russian) Воронины[4] (Voronin's Family, a Russian surname sounding similar to the family's name, The Barones).[5]
=== Other versions ===
The show was adapted in Poland under the title Wszyscy kochają Romana(Everybody Loves Roman).[6] It was picked up by TVN and premiered on September 2, 2011. However, due to low ratings (less than 2 million viewers a week), the station put the show on hiatus after four episodes.[7]
In Egypt, a sitcom called El Bab Fil Bab (الباب في الباب ), which means "Close Doors" in Arabic, is produced by Sony Pictures Television, translating Everybody Loves Raymond with minor changes to adapt the Eastern Culture. The first season aired in the month of Ramadan 2011; second season in 2012.
A Dutch remake called Iedereen is gek op Jack (Everybody is crazy about Jack) premiered in 2011. The second season started airing in March 2012.
An Israeli remake called "Mishpacah Lo Bochrim" (משפחה לא בוחרים) (You Can't Choose Your Family) premiered in October 2012, and was cancelled after 10 episodes aired.
A pilot for a British remake, titled The Smiths, has been commissioned to be produced for BBC One and was filmed in May 2013 at Elstree Studios. Lee Mackwrote and starred in the pilot, as Michael Smith. The pilot also starred Catherine Tate, Tom Davis, Gwen Taylor and David Troughton.[8]
An Indian remake, titled "Sumit Sambhal Lega" ("सुमित संभाल लेगा" – "Sumit Will Handle Everything"), premiered on August 31, 2015 on STAR Plus.
A Czech remake called "Rudyho Má Každý Rád" (Everybody Loves Rudy) premiered on ČT1 on 31.08.2015, comprising 12 episodes.[9]
== Reruns ==
The show reruns in syndication on various channels, such as TBS, TV Land, and in most TV markets on local stations.[10] The show is still broadcast regularly in the UK. From 2000 to 2007, King World distributed the show for off-network syndication and Warner Bros. International Television handled international distribution. In 2007, CBS Television Distribution took over King World's distribution. CBS only owns American syndication rights; ancillary rights are controlled by HBO and Warner Bros. Television (WBIT distributes the series outside the US in conjunction with HBO; while HBO Home Entertainment and Warner Home Video own DVD rights worldwide). The show airs every morning on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom.
Everybody Loves Raymond has aired in Australia on Seven Network (seasons 1-3), on Network Ten (season 4-9), on Eleven (a sub-channel of Network Ten) and on Foxtel's Pay TV network TVH!TS previously called TV1 (formerly aired on FOX Classics). The show reruns in India on the channel Romedy Now.
== Home media ==
HBO released the Complete Series of Everybody Loves Raymond on DVD in Regions 1, 2 and 4. Region 4 Complete Box Set was released on August 13, 2008. In Australia, the first five seasons were re-released in 2006 in slimmer packaging (originals were wide spine cases). Also, some were released with a cardboard slip cover. Also, in North America, the first two seasons were each re-released in 2010 in standard keep cases with cardboard slipcovers in a double-season pack. It is unknown whether or not they will be sold individually like this. Also, in 2012, the sixth and seventh season two-pack was reissued in the keep case packaging. Recently, Season 9 was re-released in standard keep cases. It is also unknown whether or not the remaining seasons will be reissued in the slimmer packaging. As of September 2012, all episodes are available on Netflix for streaming. Also on September 14, 2004 The Complete 1st Season was released on VHS. The sixth-season DVD set contained the episode "Marie's Sculpture", which previously had not aired in the United Kingdom and was not released until almost five years after the end of the 6th season.
DVD name 	Ep #	Release dates 	Release dates 	Release dates
DVD name 	Ep #	Region 1 	Region 2 	Region 4
The Complete 1st Season 	22 	September 14, 2004	January 17, 2005 	December 16, 2004
The Complete 2nd Season 	25 	December 14, 2004 	July 4, 2005 	April 27, 2005
The Complete 3rd Season 	26 	May 3, 2005 	January 16, 2006 	July 12, 2005
The Complete 4th Season 	24 	September 13, 2005	May 1, 2006 	April 5, 2006
The Complete 5th Season 	25 	December 6, 2005 	July 3, 2006 	July 5, 2006
Holidays with the Barones	3 	December 10, 2005 	 	
The Complete 6th Season 	24 	May 9, 2006 	October 2, 2006 	October 4, 2006
The Complete 7th Season 	25 	September 19, 2006	January 15, 2007 	April 4, 2007
The Complete 8th Season 	23 	May 8, 2007 	July 16, 2007 	October 3, 2007
The Complete 9th Season 	16 	September 18, 2007	November 12, 2007	October 3, 2007
The Complete Series 	210 	October 30, 2007 	September 5, 2011	August 13, 2008
== Reception ==
=== Critical response ===
Two Entertainment Weekly reviews of the show have been posted. Ken Tucker's review shortly after the show's debut awarded it a B+; he stated the show's writing wasn't "top-notch", but "Romano manages to communicate something distinctive."[11] A 1997 review by Bruce Fretts, which gave the show the same score, said that the show "may now be the best sitcom on the air."[12] Common Sense Media's Betsy Wallace, who awarded the show four out of five stars, wrote: "the cast is stellar and plotlines shed light on universal human insecurities, such as doubting that your spouse still finds you attractive as you grow older." However, she warned that the show's "intimacy issues of married couples -- including (in)frequency of sex -- often take center stage," as well as the show's mild language.[13] Plugged In said in their review, "Seven years and a mantle full of Emmys later, Raymond is still smartly scripted, now with new characters added to a maturing, expanding family."[14] In 2013, Complex ranked the show as 49th of "The 50 Funniest TV Comedies of All Time", with writer Matt Barone saying that "You'd want to pat Ray on the shoulder and say, 'We feel for you, man,' if you weren't laughing so hard."[15] Also in 2013, TV Guide ranked it #60 on its list of the "60 Best Series of All Time".[16]
=== Accolades ===
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Everybody Loves Raymond
During its nine seasons, Everybody Loves Raymond was nominated for 69 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning 15 of them, including 10 for acting. The series was also nominated for 21 Screen Actors Guild Awards (1 win) and won the Writers Guild of America Award for Episodic Comedy for "Italy" in 2002.
=== American television ratings ===
: Note: Each U.S. network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May sweeps. All times mentioned in this section were Eastern & Pacific
The series finale scored a 20.2 household rating, 32.94 million viewers[17] (29% of all viewers at the time) and an 11.2 rating among adults 18–49. At 8pm, Everybody Loves Raymond: The Last Laugh averaged a 15.3 household rating, 24.52 million viewers and a 7.5 among adults 18–49. Throughout the latter six seasons of the show, Everybody Loves Raymond maintained its position on the top ten rankings.
The highest average rating for the series is in italic text.
Season	Timeslot (EST) 	Season premiere 	Season finale	TV season 	Rank	Rating
1 	Friday 8:30 p.m.
(September 13, 1996 – February 28, 1997)
Monday 8:30 p.m.
(March 3, 1997 – April 7, 1997)	September 13, 1996	April 7, 1997	1996–1997 	#84 	7.8
2 	Monday 8:30 p.m.	September 22, 1997	May 18, 1998 	1997–1998 	#30 	9.2
3 	Monday 9:00 p.m.	September 21, 1998	May 24, 1999 	1998–1999 	#11 	10.6
4 	Monday 9:00 p.m.	September 20, 1999	May 22, 2000 	1999–2000 	#12 	17.8
5 	Monday 9:00 p.m.	October 2, 2000 	May 21, 2001 	2000–2001 	#8 	19.0
6 	Monday 9:00 p.m.	September 24, 2001	May 13, 2002 	2001–2002 	#6 	20.0[18]
7 	Monday 9:00 p.m.	September 23, 2002	May 19, 2003 	2002–2003 	#8 	18.39
8 	Monday 9:00 p.m.	September 22, 2003	May 24, 2004 	2003–2004*	#10 	17.38
9 	Monday 9:00 p.m.	September 20, 2004	May 16, 2005 	2004–2005 	#10 	17.4