David Sicherman's
Me and Gramma's Carcass
Otterbinder Productions
1984-1984

 


 

David's last venture into television in the early eighties was again the result of Israeli influences. This time, however, it was Fishlipz's intern cum legal owner of Israeli Childrens' Television, Marshalle Otterbinder. Otterbinder had been let go from Israeli Childrens' Television just as Frankenfamily was going off the air for the second time. As a means of establishing himself in the American marketplace, he grabbed the first idea he had, and set out for California with a pot of gold and a treatment for Me and Gramma's Carcass.

After trying to connect with Steven Spielberg and Maya Angelou, both former Bim Bom writers, Otterbinder found little response in the harsh climate of the Los Angeles of 1984. That is, until he received a surprise phone call from David Sicherman. He had heard through the rumor mill that Otterbinder was in town, and the two hastily set up a meeting.

"I always knew that kid had something special." Otterbinder said recently. "Especially when he called me."

Otterbinder pitched the idea of Me and Gramma's Carcass to Sicherman who virtually leaped at the chance to be a part of the project. But, in a patented show of restraint, he held out until he could be assured of an executive producership, and his name above the title. Given his demands, Sicherman and Otterbinder set immediately to work on what would be one of the shortest lived sitcoms in history.

The concept was simple, and eventually gave birth to what would be the monumental Weekend at Bernie's franchise. A young boy gains a large inheritance from his grandmother with the stipulation that he show her dead body the good time that it never had in life. As his initial foray into non-children's broadcasting, David thought it was important that he be involved every step of the way. He insisted that the carcass be portrayed by a real carcass, and production was stalled until Arthur Mayes of Terra Haute, Indiana, offered up his wife's corpse with a single instruction. "Make her famous, goddangit."

And famous they made her. The show never reached the air, but Otterbinder was sentenced to over sixty years of community service after bitter lawsuits were filed on behalf of the deceased by the remainder of her family. Sicherman escaped unharmed, as it was decided that a minor could not be held accountable for the countless unspeakable crimes with which he and Otterbinder were initially charged. It was soon after, that David packed his bags and returned to New York.

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