Benson
Lifesaver
TV Flash files “Lifesaver” as the last listed hour of season 2 — Benson (1979–1986) on ABC, season 2, episode 22, aired 1981-05-22, 30 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S02E22: listed hour 46 of 158 in the Benson guide, last listed hour of season 2. It aired 1981-05-22 (30 min). The listed hour before it is “All Shook Up” (S02E21). Next is “Benson's Appointment” (S03E01).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
When Gretchen chokes on a doughnut and Benson uses the Heimlich maneuver to save her life, she starts to smother him with attention, in an attempt to show her gratitude.
Viewer FAQ
Where does Lifesaver sit in the Benson guide?
S02E22 is listed hour 46 of 158 — last listed hour of season 2, season 2 episode 22.
When did Benson S02E22 air?
Lifesaver aired 1981-05-22 and is listed at 30 minutes.
Do I need Soap first?
Helpful for the butler's origin bite, not required. Benson is a governor's-mansion sitcom that outlasted the parent and promotes the character.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Robert Guillaume takes Soap's butler into a governor's mansion and wins on deadpan competence. A spin-off that promotes a Black supporting player to long-running lead without punching-bag dignity. Guillaume controlling every scene, then climbing the statehouse ladder while political chaos stays the joke around him.
Open on a promotion. Benson DuBois moves from household butler to state budget director and beyond, outclassing politicians with dry wit: ABC's Benson (1979–1986), from Susan Harris, Paul Junger Witt, and Tony Thomas, spun Robert Guillaume out of Soap and outlasted the parent series. James Noble's Governor Eugene Gatling, Inga Swenson's Gretchen Kraus, Missy Gold's Katie, René Auberjonois's Clayton Endicott III supply the political chaos. Guillaume won an Emmy; the character rose in political rank over seasons.…
Filed against
- Robert Guillaume as Benson DuBois
Robert Guillaume’s Benson DuBois walked out of Soap’s primetime parody and into a governor’s mansion without becoming a punching bag — 1970s catalog deadpan competence, then Sports Night’s 1990s walk-and-talk. TV Flash files him as the…
- James Noble as Governor Eugene Gatling
James Noble’s Governor Eugene Gatling let Benson run a mansion on deadpan — Robert Guillaume promoted from Soap’s butler to long-running lead, 1970s spin-off politics with a governor who photographs as mild and plays as the job. TV Flash…
- Inga Swenson as Gretchen Kraus
Inga Swenson's Gretchen Kraus sparred through Benson — Robert Guillaume taking Soap's butler into a governor's mansion, deadpan competence, a Black supporting player promoted to long-running lead without punching-bag dignity. Statehouse…
- Missy Gold as Katie Gatling
Missy Gold’s Katie Gatling was the kid weather in Benson’s governor’s mansion — Robert Guillaume taking Soap’s butler into a long-running lead, 1970s deadpan competence, a Black supporting player promoted without punching-bag dignity. TV…
- René Auberjonois as Clayton Endicott III
René Auberjonois played Clayton Endicott III on Benson, the 1970s governor’s-mansion spin-off that promoted Soap’s butler into long-running lead weather — Robert Guillaume on deadpan competence, a Black supporting player climbing the…