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In the 1996-1997 season, ABC launched
a brand-new show geared towards the twentysomething
audience...Relativity, with Kimberly Williams
and David Conrad starring as the main characters who
fell in love on vacation in Italy, and continued their
romance back in the states. The show dealt with their
romance, their families, their friends and their lives.
Relativity generated a lot of fan interest and loyalty.
To this day, you can still find a few fan sites out
there.
Unfortunately, ABC had scheduled this
"twentysomething" show on Saturday nights
at 10pm, with little-to-no advertising to generate interest.
ABC pulled the plug way too soon, due to low ratings.
Loyal fans created the Save Relativity Team, trying
to save a show that was lost way before it's time, even
to the tune of sending cans to the ABC studios that
stated, Don't Can Our Show. They were inventive, determined
and ultimately, the show was lost. (this fan sent in
a can of her own!) However, the show touched a number
of people..a large part of that was due to Kimberly
William's portrayal of a young 24 year old girl who
was struggling to learn who she was. The show and the
actors brought to light issues that many 20-something-year-olds
face, then and now. It's a show that is greatly missed.
(See some Relativity photos in the Photo
Album)
Taken from an Ultimate
TV news article:
``The premise of `Relativity,' '' Marshall Herskovitz
(director of Relativity) says, ``is, one, to explore
a young relationship, and, two, to try and understand
the way in which every relationship is influenced by
the families on either side. Nobody exists in a vacuum.
They are the product of their families, and they continue
to relate to their families.''
Separation from family and the complexities
associated with that split are a primary issue for ``Relativity's''
leading female character. At 24, Isabel still lives
at home; she works for her father at Epicenter magazine;
she is every inch the good daughter. Then Leo (David
Conrad), the love of her life, enters the picture. His
love frees her to take risks. Similarly, Williams belongs
to a loving, tight-knit family. Her mother and father
are both writers; her sister Ashley (``As the World
Turns'') is an actress; her brother Jay is a cameraman
who worked with her for a few months on ``Relativity.''
Their lives are interwoven personally and professionally.
Like her character Isabel, the actress
is achieving independence in stages. Choosing Northwestern
University as the place to pursue her drama studies
represented the first step. It relocated Williams geographically
from her hometown of Westchester, N.Y., and inspired
her to create a life of her own. ``I went to Chicago
to visit, and I loved it,'' Williams says. ``I loved
the idea of it, the resources in the theater community.
The first time I felt a sense of freedom was in Chicago.
I was far away from home; it was my first break with
the family. Chicago inspired that in me.''
Her most significant assertion of independence
came two years ago when she took over managing her finances
and making her own career decisions. Williams had begun
performing in commercials while still a freshman in
high school, and her parents were actively involved
in her professional life because of her age and because,
she says, ``I was always doing two things at once --
working and going to school. I needed them to read scripts
and give me input, handle my money. When I got out of
college, I realized this is all wrong. I gotta do this
myself. I cut them off. It was hard, but I think it
was necessary. I remember telling them I'd rather make
a mistake right now and do something really foolish
than have them decide everything for me.''
Williams and her character do have their
differences. ``Isabel is confused about what she wants
to do,'' Herskovitz says. Williams, on the other hand,
has wanted to be an actress for as long as she can remember.
Even as a child, she wrote, produced and starred in
plays for her family. She also knows how she wants to
accomplish her goal. That was evident in a career decision
she made early on.
...When Williams was 19 years old and
still a sophomore at Northwestern University, fate offered
her the kind of break actors pray to the gods for. She
was offered the role of Steve Martin and Diane Keaton's
daughter in ``Father of the Bride.'' The film hit big,
Williams charmed the critics, and Hollywood beckoned.
Then the actress made a surprising choice. Instead of
succumbing to the lure of the bright lights, she decided
to put Hollywood on hold and complete her studies. ``It
was really important to me to finish,'' Williams says.
``It was not even a decision to make. I think I had
a lot of growing up to do. I felt I wasn't the person
I wanted to be when I presented myself to the world.
I knew when I came out here that would be what happened.
It would be a coming out. Hello, this is who I am. And
I didn't know who I was yet.''
``That decision says a lot about her,''
Herskovitz observes. ``It reminds me of another actress
named Jodie Foster who made the same decision. To realize
what your own priorities are at that age and be able
to resist the temptations of celebrity says so much.''
What lies ahead for Williams and her
character Isabel? The producers are taking their cue
from the name of their production company, Bedford Falls,
the fictional town in Frank Capra's classic film ``It's
a Wonderful Life''. ``It will continually be about the
wonderful struggle to stay in a relationship with family
members and with a loved one -- with the emphasis on
wonderful,'' Herskovitz says. ``There is something essentially
comical about love. The show works best when it understands
that. We won't be afraid of tackling the darker issues,
but it will be leavened by the essential humor of love.''
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