Jennifer Slept Here
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Jennifer Slept Here | |
|---|---|
 Jennifer Slept Here title screen |
|
| Genre | Fantasy Sitcom |
| Starring | Ann Jillian John P. Navin Jr. Georgia Engel Brandon Maggart Mya Stark Glenn Scarpelli |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Larry Rosen Larry Tucker |
| Running time | 30 mins. |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC |
| Original run | October 21, 1983 – September 5, 1984 |
| External links | |
| IMDb profile | |
| TV.com summary | |
Jennifer Slept Here is an American fantasy sitcom series that ran for one season on NBC from October 21, 1983 to September 5, 1984. The show was produced by Columbia Pictures Television.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
In the series, Ann Jillian played Jennifer Farrell: a once-popular movie actress who made the unfortunate, mortal mistake of chasing an ice cream truck near her Los Angeles, California home. When the ice cream truck accidentally backed up, it ran her over, killing her. Years later, the Elliot family from New York City moved into Jennifer's home. Father George was a lawyer who had handled Jennifer's posthumous affairs, including the house. George's wife, Susan, was a concerned and understanding figure. Daughter Marilyn was a typical 8-year-old with an attitude.
The driving story behind the series was that Jennifer haunted the Elliot house--ostensibly to mentor the family's teenage son, Joey, who was the only person to whom she made herself visible. Naturally, Joey had a hard time convincing his family and friends of Jennifer's ghostly existence. They not only refused to believe Joey's claim, but often concluded Joey needed psychiatric or other help. In one episode, they hired a phony exorcist (played by Zelda Rubinstein in a parody of her Poltergeist character Tangina Barrons) to rid the house of Jennifer's spirit by capturing it in a jar. Ironically, the exorcism was successful.
Jennifer often caused Joey more trouble than he could handle. In one episode, Jennifer poured a pitcher of milk over George after he'd scolded Joey for asserting Jennifer's spirit still existed. No matter how sticky the situations got, Jennifer and Joey always found ways to prevail.
[edit] Reception
Although the show had mixed reviews and a tough Friday night timeslot (its competition was The Dukes of Hazzard on CBS and Webster on ABC), it attracted decent ratings. The show cracked the top 20 during the summer of 1984, but that was not enough to guarantee a second season.
[edit] Cast
- Ann Jillian as Jennifer Farrell
- John P. Navin Jr. as Joseph "Joey" Elliot
- Georgia Engel as Susan Elliot
- Brandon Maggart as George Elliot
- Mya Akerling as Marilyn Elliot
- Glenn Scarpelli as Marc
[edit] Episodes
| Ep # | Title | Airdate |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot | October 21, 1983 |
| 2 | "Jennifer the Movie" | October 28, 1983 |
| 3 | "Not with My Date You Don't" | November 4, 1983 |
| 4 | "Boo" | November 11, 1983 |
| 5 | "Calendar Girl" | November 18, 1983 |
| 6 | "One Of Our Jars Is Missing" | November 25, 1983 |
| 7 | "Trading Faces" | December 2, 1983 |
| 8 | "Rebel With a Cause" | December 16, 1983 |
| 9 | "Risky Weekend" | April 14, 1984 |
| 10 | "Do You Take This Ghost?" | April 21, 1984 |
| 11 | "Life With Grandfather" | April 28, 1984 |
| 12 | "The Tutor Who Came to Dinner" | May 5, 1984 |
| 13 | "Take Jennifer, Please" | May 12, 1984 |
[edit] Awards and nominations
| Year | Result | Award | Category | Recipient |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Winner | Young Artist Awards | Best Young Actor in a New Television Series | John P. Navin Jr. |
| 1984 | Nominated | Young Artist Awards | Best New Television Series | |
| 1984 | Nominated | Young Artist Awards | Best Young Actor in a New Television Series | Glenn Scarpelli |
| 1984 | Nominated | Primetime Emmy Award | Outstanding Technical Direction/Camerawork/Video for a Series | For episode "Life with Grandfather" |
