Wild, sexy, innovative and sleek series from CBS that suffered in the ratings and finally folded after appearing sporadically from 1995-1996 and only completing 21 wicked episodes. "Central Park West" is all about rich and crazed socialites in New York City who were doing their best to get ahead ala pieces on a chess set to get more respect, more money, more fame and more power. The whole story centered around two young adult siblings (Madchen Amick and John Barrowman) and everyone connected to them. Amick was Dennis Rodman in a dress (no pun intended). She was unconventional, brash and oh so much fun to watch. Barrowman was a JFK, Jr. clone. He was nice, kind, handsome, loving and totally respectful (polar opposite of Amick). Mother Lauren Hutton and stepfather Ron Leibman (who was the power-player of the series) completed the dysfunctional family. Leibman was blackmailing Michael Michele into a torrid affair while Hutton found love with Gerald McRaney as time passed. Melissa Errico became Barrowman's love interest, but her motives were always unclear. Barrowman's best friend (Justin Lazard) had continuous money and woman woes while the ultra-erotic Kylie Travis steamed up the boob tube every time she came around. Even now-familiar names like Amanda Peet were regulars. The series struggled during its first season with Mariel Hemingway trying to take center-stage as a high-class publicist who had a husband who fell in lust with Amick. Soon though she was written out and players like McRaney, Travis and even Raquel Welch (another bombshell here) took over. It seemed that the show would survive with the changes, but constant schedule changes and terrible timing kept the program grounded. The soap opera age of the 1970s and 1980s (with "Dallas", "Knots Landing" and "Dynasty") had run its course by the mid-1990s and sadly that would be the fatal blow to "Central Park West". It is still fun to think back to what might have been. A hidden treasure that few, perhaps only myself, really cared about. 5 stars out of 5.
