He first appears on October 14th, 1979, as the best man at elder daughter Julie's wedding -- who falls in love with Julie himself. She calls the wedding off to date him, and eventually they marry and have a child.
By the last season, Julie has run away, leaving Max a single dad. In an interesting triangulation, he is sharing a house with Barbara and her husband Mark (Boyd Gaines).
I wasn't watching One Day at a Time by that point -- it was suffering from "we're out of ideas, so let's change the entire premise" syndrome -- so I don't know if Anne's adopted son Alex (Glenn Scarpelli) lived there, too.
Born in 1948, Michael Lembeck was the son of Harvey Lembeck, famous as the juvenile delinquent foil in the Frankie-and-Annette beach movies. He was visible through the 1970s, with guest spots on The Partridge Family, Happy Days, Love American Style, and Room 222, and a recurring role on Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (1976), as newcaster Clete Mizenheimer. Plus several important movie appearances.
In Blood Sport (1973), mooning over high-school football star Gary Busey.
In the war drama The Boys in Company C (1978), as the wise-guy Vinnie Fazio, who buddy-bonds with Billy Ray (Andrew Pike).
More after the break
In Gorp (1980), a spoof of summer-camp sex comedies, as muscular camp waiter Kavell, who buddy-bonds with the nerdish Bergman (Philip Casnoff, right) as they try to get laid and befuddle the authorities.
But he was most familiar to Boomer kids as Kaptain Kool, androgynous glam-rock lead singer for Kaptain Kool and the Kongs, the Saturday morning tv rock group that appeared on The Krofft Supershow and its various spinoffs in the late 1970s.
After One Day at a Time, Michael starred in Foley Square (1983-84), a sitcom about an assistant district attorney trying to get assigned the big cases, and voiced episodes of Pound Puppies, The Smurfs, and Fish Police.
But he worked primarily as a director, putting his mark on Coach, Major Dad, Ellen, Jesse, Veronica's Closet, Hot in Cleveland, 24 episodes of Friends, and 97 episodes of Baby Daddy, with Jean-Luc Bilodeau and Derek Theler (left) as brothers who co-parent a baby.
A lot of gay content, including including Connie and Carla (2004), about two women who hide out disguised as drag queens; episode of Baby Daddy in which the brothers' Dad turns out to be gay; and a coming-out episode of the new One Day at a Time.
Michael, who celebrated his 78th birthday in January 2026, has retired from show business, leaving us with a lot of memories, and that darn theme song going through my head.
This is it. This is life, the one you get, so go and have a ball.
With Michael's help, we did.
See also: One Day at a Time
Michael Lembeck was my first crush. But back then I didn't notice the basket. Talk about gifted!
ReplyDeleteBasket? Where? This guy was 1970s sexy.
DeleteYou can see his bulge in the top photo. He dresses left. It was visible in many episodes of "One Day at a Time"
ReplyDeleteHe looks smoking hot in the first photo reminds me of high school teacher I had crush on
ReplyDelete