BEL AIR—Lauralee Bell’s web series “Family Dinner” is an official hit. The series that Bell and her talented husband Scott Martin created is blowing the critics and fans away. In episode four we saw even more of Karen and her nutty mother Gladys played by the Oscar winning star Cloris Leachman and Emmy winning actor Aaron Lustig, who just makes you feel sorry for his character. Lauralee tells Canyon News, “I’m so happy to be working with such professionals and having a great crew that is so easy to work with also makes things ideal. Having Cloris [Leachman] and Phyllis [Diller] on the show has been incredible. My mom [Lee Phillip Bell] has been friends with Phyllis for years, but I was initially star struck by her as well as Cloris; however, the two of them have been the easiest actors to work with. Imagine, two legends who are so easy going.”

Courtesy: Martin Bell Productions

The on screen chemistry between Bell and her costars is incredible. Bell honed her acting craft during her two decades run as Christine Blair on her father’s hit series, “The Young and the Restless.” Fans however knew Lauralee was one of the great actresses of her generation, but they had no clue she would be able to follow the family’s groundbreaking abilities to create her own series of wonderful rich characters. “My dad would be proud of the fact that we have one set, Tommy. As you knew him well, you know he believed the most important part of making a great show was to create wonderful and exciting characters and build the show around them, not special effects or anything else. He believed if you had organic characters fans cared about, liked or even disliked, that as long as you had a great plot or storyline you could tell a great story,” said Bell.

The set is perfect for the series and between Bell and her eagle-eyed co-director husband, Scott Martin, who is one of Hollywood’s most sought after photographers, they’ve created a setting with perfect props, most of which were already in the Toluca Lake, Calif. home they shoot in. No one is going to drive by this house and see a “Brady Bunch” family. They are going to see Karen O’Connell’s juvenile delinquents, a husband who is not shown enough love and attention, a grandmother who is a sexpot and a mother-in-law who thinks her grandkids would have been better off not being born.

Don’t just take my word for it. TV Guide’s Michael Logan tells Canyon News, “’Family Dinner’ is rude, crude, lewd and funny as hell—and it's all the more astonishing because it comes from one of the nicest, classiest and most well-raised actresses in the business. Who knew what naughty nutsiness was lurking inside Lauralee Bell, daughter of the revered soap creators Bill and Lee Bell? Both as star and producer, Bell is one twisted sister. And this is one ‘Dinner’ that'll leave you hungry for more.”

Bell’s series is destined for the small screen. With a show that is funnier than “Seinfeld” and really about something. Unlike the show about nothing, this series has a woman played by Bell who is so obsessed with her 15 minutes of fame that she’ll do anything to get it. Her only problem? A dysfunctional family which she hopes will appear on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” yet they all belong on “The Jerry Springer Show” instead. This series is perfect for The CW Network, VH1, E or even Showtime. It’s not reality, it’s much better.

Having grown up with Lauralee, I cannot figure out where this trashy side of her began. Bell tells Canyon News, “Come on, Tommy, you have to know that we all have that side that we would love to express as Karen expresses them. Even growing up in Beverly Hills, everyone has that side to them. Admit it, don’t you turn on ‘Jerry Springer’ now and then?” I am not answering, I had to remind Ms. Bell that she’s the one being interviewed. Not me. That being said, I do think Bell’s new comedy and webisode four are a sure hit. To catch an episode of “Family Dinner” go to familydinneronline.com or funnyordie.com. Though be forewarned. This show is going to leave you in hysterics. Lauralee Bell may have grown up in a household with classy parents who believed in education, raising their kids properly and training them for the family business. They are however still proud of her for breaking away from the family’s dynasty and creating her own hit show, that is nothing like the posh elegance of the Newman family on “Y&R” or the Forrester royalty on “B&B.” Lauralee is a class act who belongs on television, but Karen belongs in a straight jacket.

Lauralee promises Canyon News readers more updates in the future on upcoming webisodes. “Family Dinner” airs on the Internet.