Featured Person From Cleveland - Patricia Heaton
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On any given weeknight in my home, the living room television has been changed to channel 44. Channel 44 on our cable system happens to be TVLand. Every evening there’s a mini-marathon of Everybody Loves Raymond. The sitcom aired on CBS from 1996-2005. It’s one of those shows that I have watched so regularly over the years that I have probably seen every episode multiple times. It’s hilarious and it’s comforting. Ray Romano is the main character, Ray Barone, who is married to Debra, played by Patricia Heaton. They have a daughter and twin sons and live across the street from Ray’s parents, Frank and Marie. Ray’s older brother, Robert, lives with Frank and Marie. The ensemble cast works magic, but the way Heaton portrays Debra as a mother, wife, and daughter-in-law is so relatable. She’s small in stature but can tear Ray a new one when he acts like an ass and plays the frustrated daughter-in-law role to perfection in her never-ending battles with Marie. Oh, and that Midwest-Cleveland accent is unmistakable. Heaton is a huge part of the reason why this is one of my all-time favorite sitcoms.
But Heaton didn’t stop there. She later portrayed another wife and mother named Frankie Heck on The Middle, which aired on ABC from 2009-2018. This family dynamic is a bit different than the Barones were. Let’s just say Frankie didn’t quite have it together like Debra. The way she would come home with greasy fast food bags and announce, “I made dinner!” still makes me laugh.
Heaton has won two Emmy© Awards, is a World Vision Celebrity Ambassador, has been in numerous productions on stage and screen, and authored a book entitled, “Your Second Act.” Patricia Heaton Home is her line of homewares and Heaton also had a series on the Food Network. She’s dope! You can read more about her on her website. I can’t fail to mention that Heaton’s brother, Michael Heaton, was an award-winning journalist and wrote a column in The Plain Dealer.
