''Aliens in the Family'' is an American
science fantasy sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...
that aired on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
from March 15 to August 31, 1996, conceived as part of its ''
TGIF'' lineup.
Premise
The show was about single dad Doug Brody (
John Bedford Lloyd
John Bedford Lloyd (born January 2, 1956) is an American character actor.
Life and career
Lloyd was born in New Haven, Connecticut, the son of Ann Storrs Lloyd and Edward B. Lloyd of Southport, Connecticut. His father was an architect.
He has a s ...
), who is abducted by single alien mom Cookie (Margaret Trigg). The two fall in love, get married, and try to live a normal life on Earth as a mixed family.
Cast
*
John Bedford Lloyd
John Bedford Lloyd (born January 2, 1956) is an American character actor.
Life and career
Lloyd was born in New Haven, Connecticut, the son of Ann Storrs Lloyd and Edward B. Lloyd of Southport, Connecticut. His father was an architect.
He has a s ...
as Doug Brody
* Margaret Trigg as Cookie Brody
* Paige Tiffany as Heather Brody
*
Chris Marquette
Chris Marquette (born October 3, 1984) is an American actor. He is known for his roles in such films as '' The Tic Code'', ''Freddy vs. Jason'', '' The Girl Next Door'', ''Just Friends'', ''Alpha Dog'' and '' Fanboys''. He is also known for his ...
as Adam Brody
*
Julie Dretzin
Julie Dretzin (born May 24, 1968) is an American actress and audiobook reader. She made her professional acting debut in the 1993 Broadway production ''The Sisters Rosensweig''. Her roles in the television series ''Breaking Bad'' (2010) and ''The ...
as Sally Hagen
Puppeteers
*
Alice Dinnean
Alice Catherine Dinnean (born May 23, 1969) is an American puppeteer, voice actress and creative writer who works at The Jim Henson Company. Dinnean has performed on many children's television shows such as '' The Puzzle Place'', ''Sesame Street ...
as Snizzy (face and voice)
*
Michael Gilden as Snizzy (body)
*
John Kennedy as Bobut (face)
*
Bruce Lanoil as Spit (face)
*
Peter Linz
Peter Linz (born June 28, 1967) is an American puppeteer. His most prominent role is being the performer for the character Walter who was introduced in the 2011 feature film ''The Muppets''. Since 1991, Linz has performed on ''Sesame Street'', ...
as Varch, Elder of the Nertron Galactic Federation (in "Respect Your Elders"), Red Yukkle (in "Dissected and Neglected")
*
Joey Mazzarino
Joseph Mazzarino (; born June 4, 1968) is an American actor, puppeteer, writer and director. He is best known for his roles on ''Sesame Street'' as Murray Monster, Stinky the Stinkweed and other Muppets, and being Head Writer and Director on ' ...
as Spit (voice), Green and Yellow Yukkles (in "Dissected and Neglected")
*
David Rudman
David Rudman (born June 1, 1963) is an American puppeteer, puppet builder, writer, director, and producer known for his involvement with the Muppets and ''Sesame Street''.
Career
David Rudman has been a ''Sesame Street'' Muppet performer since ...
as Bobut (body and voice), Orange and Purple Yukkles (in "Dissected and Neglected")
*
Michelan Sisti as Spit (body)
Production
The series was created, written and executive produced by Andy and Susan Borowitz.
Brian Henson
Brian Henson (born November 3, 1963) is an American puppeteer, director, producer, voice actor and the chairman of The Jim Henson Company. He is the son of puppeteers Jim and Jane Henson.
Early life
Henson was born on November 3, 1963, in Ne ...
, son of
Jim Henson
James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, cartoonist, actor, inventor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notice as the creator of The Muppets and '' Fraggle Rock'' (1983–1987) and ...
, also served as co-executive producer. The series theme song was written and performed by
Todd Rundgren
Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, multimedia artist, sound engineer and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the band Ut ...
. The series was shot in its entirety at Lifetime Studios in New York City.
Episodes
Cancellation
The show premiered on March 15, 1996; ABC pulled the series from its ''TGIF'' lineup after two weeks, replacing the show's scheduled third airing with re-runs of other ''TGIF'' programs. The show did not return for over four months and aired the rest of its episodes on Saturday mornings in the summer of 1996.
Jaleel White, who starred as
Steve Urkel
Steven Quincy Urkel is a fictional character on the American ABC/ CBS sitcom ''Family Matters'', portrayed by Jaleel White. Originally slated to be a one-time-only character on the show, he broke out to be its most popular character and gradual ...
on another ''TGIF'' program (''
Family Matters
''Family Matters'' is an American television sitcom that debuted on ABC on September 22, 1989, and ended on May 9, 1997. However it moved to CBS, where it was shown from September 19, 1997, to July 17, 1998. A spin-off of '' Perfect Strangers, ...
''), was a vocal critic of ''TGIF'' adding Jim Henson programs onto the ''TGIF'' block (''Aliens in the Family'' debuted the same year as ''
Muppets Tonight
''Muppets Tonight'' is an American live-action/ puppet family-oriented television series created by Jim Henson Productions and featuring The Muppets. Much like the "MuppeTelevision" segment of ''The Jim Henson Hour'' (1989), the show was a conti ...
'') and speculated that their addition ruined the block's credibility by changing its target demographic from whole families to children.
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aliens In The Family
1996 American television series debuts
1996 American television series endings
1990s American comic science fiction television series
1990s American sitcoms
American Broadcasting Company original programming
American fantasy television series
American television shows featuring puppetry
English-language television shows
Television series about alien visitations
Television series about families
Television series by The Jim Henson Company
TGIF (TV programming block)
Television series created by Andy Borowitz
Television series created by Susan Borowitz
Television shows set in Minnesota