Brothers

Brothers was developed in 1982 by writer David Lloyd (known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Taxi and Cheers), with producers Ed. Weinberger and Stan Daniels originally suggesting the premise of a family confronting a relative's coming out.

NBC agreed to screen the pilot thanks to Lloyd's ties to Taxi and Cheers, but ultimately passed on it in favor of Weinberger's Mr. Smith, and ABC rejected the project outright because of its gay themes; the show only got made after Showtime picked it up, making it the first original sitcom on cable TV.

Showtime gave Brothers a full 26-episode order from the start and paid the cast at the same rate as network stars, then in spring 1985 renewed it for an unprecedented 50 more episodes, a bigger vote of confidence than any broadcast network had given a freshman series.

Showtime's decision to simultaneously syndicate Brothers to broadcast TV starting in November 1985 was publicly criticized by rival HBO, which argued it would hurt subscription revenue; Showtime later scaled back the plan but defended its long-term syndication strategy.

Because the show's development was delayed after being rejected by NBC and ABC, original leads Paul Regina and Brandon Maggart briefly took other TV roles (in Zorro and Son and Jennifer Slept Here respectively), but both projects were canceled in time for the actors to return to Brothers when Showtime picked it up.

Baby Caroline, Joe and Sam's daughter born in a December 1988 episode, was named after executive producer Gary Nardino's real-life daughter, and was played in her birth episode by twins Charles and Cathryn Hacker before Cathryn alone took over the role.

The two-part fourth-season episode 'Las Vegas Serenade' was shot on location largely at the Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas and featured cameo appearances by Paul Anka and Jerry Lewis.

In the show's opening credits montage of childhood photos, the picture used to represent young Lou was actually a baby photo of actor Brandon Maggart's real-life son, Garett Maggart.