TV SERIES · 1996– · USA
Spin City
21 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (21)
- #001
Michael J. Fox's final episode contained numerous references to his previous series "Family Ties (1982)," including a small role for Michael Gross, who had played Fox's father on that earlier show; the doctor he played had a secretary named Mallory, the name of Fox's sister on the series, and a reference to a Republican Senator named "Alex P. Keaton" (Fox's previous character). Meredith Baxter had also appeared in earlier episodes as his mother, just as she had been his mother on "Family Ties (1982)."
- #002
In one episode, Carter Haywood (Michael Boatman) and Stuart Bondek (Alan Ruck) attend a Rangers game and get a chance to compete in a shootout at center. Stuart is the only one wearing a Detroit Red Wings jersey, a reference to Ruck's role in Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986).
- #003
Most episode titles were a play on famous films.
- #004
Charlie Sheen's father Martin appeared in the series as Ray, the father of Charlie Crawford.
- #005
Carla Gugino was cast a second time as Ashley Schaeffer, a reporter carrying on a secret love affair with Mike Flaherty (Michael J. Fox) in the first season. She was later written out to make Mike single and allow for more storylines.
- #006
Carter Haywood was the first openly gay African-American character to be a regular on a television series who was not a stereotype.
- #007
The first four seasons of the series were filmed in New York, New York. When Michael J. Fox left the series and was replaced by Charlie Sheen, production of the rest of the series moved to Los Angeles, California.
- #008
Despite being set in the world of politics, Mayor Randall Winston's political party affiliation was never explicitly stated. It is difficult to determine, since over the course of the series he was seen passing both conservative and liberal laws.
- #009
Only in the first season, at the end of the theme song, when steam rises from a manhole cover, a different sound could be heard in each episode: wailing sirens, the rumble of a train, a school bell, church bells, barking dogs, hissing cats, and so on.
- #010
Mayor Winston's fourth-season campaign for the US Senate was inspired by the 2000 US Senate election planned by New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
- #011
Mayor Randall Winston was named after the person who inspired Carter Haywood, associate producer Randall Keenan Winston.
- #012
The Mayor's name is "Randall Winston." The associate producer's name is also Randall Keenan Winston.
- #013
This is the first of three sitcoms in which Charlie Sheen played a character named Charlie. The others are Two and a Half Men (2003) and Anger Management (2012).
- #014
Emilio Estevez, Charlie Sheen's older brother in "Young Guns (1988)," shoots a man named Charlie Crawford in this series, which is the name of Sheen's character. Charlie Crawford was shot in an episode of this series.
- #015
Charlie Sheen (who joined in season 5) and Michael Boatman went on to work together again on the sitcom "Anger Management," in which Sheen starred and Boatman stood out as a recurring character.
- #016
Sam Lloyd auditioned for the roles of Stuart Bondek and Paul Lassiter. He later appeared as a guest actor in the second and fifth seasons.
- #017
This is the second series in which Alan Ruck and Heather Locklear appeared together. They had also appeared together in the sitcom "Going Places" (1990-1991).
- #018
Richard Kind played a fictional big-city mayor in "Gotham" (2014).
- #019
Both stars of Spin City who played Deputy Mayor appeared in Vietnam-era war films. Michael J. Fox appeared in Brian De Palma's Casualties of War (1989), while Charlie Sheen appeared in Oliver Stone's Platoon (1986). Co-star Michael Boatman also appeared in John Irvin's Hamburger Hill (1987), and Alan Ruck was cast for a role in the stage production of Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues.
- #020
Michael Boatman and Alan Ruck had previously appeared together in the short-lived WB series Muscle.
- #021
When Betty Ford appeared on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970), it was only one of four occasions in television history that a First Lady appeared in a sitcom. The next was Nancy Reagan on Diff'rent Strokes (1978), followed by Michelle Obama on Jessie (2011) and finally Hillary Clinton on Murphy Brown (1998). Future President Donald Trump's ex-wife Marla Maples appeared in this series. The first time a President appeared in a sitcom was Donald Trump on Suddenly Susan (1996) and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990) (although he was not yet President at that point). Ironically, he appeared alongside comedian and future Trump foe Kathy Griffin. Joe Biden appeared on Parks and Recreation (2009). No President in television history has appeared in a scripted series.
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