MovieChat Forums > Mama's Family (1983) Discussion > Color scheme for the show?

Color scheme for the show?

posted 8 years ago by BoyWiththeGreenHair
2 replies | jump to latest

I notice when the show goes into syndication (and to a lesser extent in the first two seasons) there seems to be a regular color scheme assigned to the five main characters

Thelma - Purple/Violet
Vint - Grey/Brown
Naomi - Yellow (shades of orange)
Iola - Obviously pink (Fran almost always wore something pink prior to Iola)
Bubba - Shades of green/blue/turquoise

Is this a common thing on sitcoms like this, or do they explain it more on the disc set? I don't have a problem with it or anything, but I do find it interesting - what would be the reasoning for it storytelling-wise

[–] tinkerbell_jonna 8 years ago

The show became much more formalic in syndication. It could have to do with their personalities. Mama usually wore purple or blue, and purple can be a color of control. Vint's Brown and/or beige could represent an average Joe, Iola's pink could represent femininity, Bubba wore green, I always assumed to reflect Eunice, his mom who also wore green all the time, Green can be a color of envy. Ellen always wore white, white I suppose could be a color of PERFECTION.

Also if you notice in the syndicated episodes they all had a certain place at the dining room table, in the NBC episodes they usually just sat any and everywhere around the table.

[–] Iaaat 8 years ago

There was mention of it in the special features on the DVDs, but I can't remember whether there was any significant reasoning other than to use the colors to differentiate the characters from one another. Other shows have done it before, if not with clothes than with things like hair, usually for the women (Desperate Housewives - of the main four, one was brunette, one a red head, one a blonde and the other was also a brunette but Hispanic as well, so that differentiated her from Teri Hatcher, Friends - of the three women, one was a blonde, one a brunette and one had black hair, Designing Women - one was a blonde, one a red head, and the other two were brunette but sisters and with easily distinguishable personalities, etc).