''Harry and the Hendersons'' is an American

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 ne ...

based on the film of the same name, produced by

Amblin Television Amblin Television is the television production division of Amblin Partners. It was established in 1984 by Amblin Entertainment as a small-screen production arm for Steven Spielberg's ''Amazing Stories'' anthology series for NBC. The company ha ...

for

Universal Television Universal Television LLC (abbreviated as UTV) is an American television production company that is a subsidiary of Universal Studio Group, a division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It serves as the network television production arm of NBC; a predeces ...

. It aired in

syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...

from January 13, 1991, to June 18, 1993, with 72 half-hour episodes produced. It is about a family who adopts a

Bigfoot Bigfoot, also commonly referred to as Sasquatch, is a purported ape-like creature said to inhabit the forest of North America. Many dubious articles have been offered in attempts to prove the existence of Bigfoot, including anecdotal claims o ...

called Harry.

Synopsis

Bruce Davison Bruce Allen Davison (born June 28, 1946) is an American actor and director. Davison is well known for his starring role as Willard Stiles in the cult horror film '' Willard'' (1971) and his Academy Award-nominated and Golden Globe-winning perfor ...

and

Molly Cheek Molly Cheek (born March 2, 1950) is an American actress. A Connecticut College graduate she worked in ‘dinner-theater productions and summer stock’ before finding television and film work. Cheek is best known for her roles in the televisio ...

played the parents George and Nancy (in the film, they were played by

John Lithgow John Arthur Lithgow ( ; born , 1945) is an American actor. Lithgow studied at Harvard University and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art before becoming known for his work on the stage and screen. He has been the recipient of numerous ...

and

Melinda Dillon Melinda Dillon (born October 13, 1939) is a retired American actress. She received a 1963 Tony Award nomination for her Broadway debut in the original production of ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'', and she was nominated for the Academy Award ...

respectively) with Carol-Ann Plante and

Zachary Bostrom Zachary Bostrom also credited as "Zach", (born January 15, 1981) is an American actor. As a child actor, he was best known for his role as Ernie Henderson in the sitcom ''Harry and the Hendersons (TV series), Harry and the Hendersons'' and Kevin Br ...

as the children Sarah and Ernie (in the film, they were played by

Margaret Langrick Margaret Langrick (born 1971) is a Canadians, Canadian writer and retired actress. She is now known as Maggie Langrick, and is the CEO of the publishing company Wonderwell. Filmography Films *''My American Cousin'' (1985) as Sandy Wilcox *''Ha ...

and Joshua Rudoy respectively).

Kevin Peter Hall Kevin Peter Hall (May 9, 1955 – April 10, 1991) was an American actor. Hall stood tall, and frequently played monster characters during his career. He was the original title character in the science fiction ''Predator'' franchise, appearing ...

played the role of Harry in both the film and TV series, until his death late in the production of the first season. He was replaced first by Dawan Scott and then by

Brian Steele Brian Steele is an American actor who has had many roles as monsters and creatures on television and in films. In 2018, he appeared as The Robot in ''Lost in Space''. Steele stands at 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m). Career On television, Steele was t ...

in the third season (Steele had filled in for Scott in the Harry costume for numerous scenes during season two, before taking over the role full-time). Harry's vocal effects were provided by

Patrick Pinney Patrick Cullen Pinney (born June 30, 1952) is an American television, film and voice actor. Early life, family and education Pinney was born in San Francisco County, California. His mother's maiden name is his middle name. He attended college a ...

, where the vocal effects were previously provided by Fred Newman in the film. In the series, George and Nancy were an upwardly mobile two-career couple, with the former working for a sporting goods company. George eventually launched his own magazine, ''The Better Life'', late in the second season. Initially helping the Hendersons with Harry's care, and Sasquatch research, was Walter Potter, a biologist working for the Department of Animal Control. Also seen early on were the Glicks, neighbors of the Hendersons; Samantha was a pretty, young single mother and reporter, and Tiffany was her precocious little girl, a classmate of Ernie's who had an obvious crush on him. Samantha, Tiffany, and Walter were all written out after the first season, but the aspect of having a girl next door who chased after Ernie was retained through a new character, Darcy Payne, for the 1991–92 season. Darcy was more annoying than her predecessor, and spent all her waking hours trying to make the Hendersons' young son hers. However, she did catch on to the fact that the family was hiding a bigfoot, and had several close encounters with Harry; fortunately, Darcy disappeared from the show before she could have exposed the secret about him. Nancy's younger brother Brett, a photographer, moved in with the Hendersons in the second season, and was also sworn to secrecy about Harry. When George began ''The Better Life'' in the spring of 1992, Brett was hired as the publication's chief photographer and a financial beneficiary. The following year brought many changes, as in the season premiere Harry's existence was accidentally exposed. Just as the Hendersons feared he would be captured by the government and possibly killed, he was rather embraced by the public and received overnight regional fame. For a while, Harry had to adjust to a high-profile life full of exhibition and additional scientific studies, but at the same time the entire family got used to resting more comfortably now that they did not have to hide the big creature from view anymore. Hilton, a friend of Ernie's and the son of a local police chief, joined the cast in the third season. The TV series credits contains an artistic representation of key scenes from the

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

Cast

as Harry (1991) * Dawan Scott as Harry (1991–1992) *

as Harry (1992–1993) * N. Brock Winkless IV as Harry (face performer, 1991–1993) *

as Harry (vocal effects, 1991–1993) *

as George Henderson *

as Nancy Henderson * Carol-Ann Plante as Sarah Henderson *

as Ernie Henderson *

Gigi Rice Georgeanne Marie Rice is an American actress. Biography Rice graduated from The Ohio State University, with a bachelor of fine arts in musical theatre. Following her graduation, Rice served as an apprentice at Burt Reynolds's Maltz Jupiter The ...

as Samantha Glick (1991) * Cassie Cole as Tiffany Glick (1991) * David Coburn as Walter Potter (1991) * Noah Blake as Brett Douglas (1991–1993) *

Courtney Peldon Courtney Peldon (born April 13, 1981) is an American television and film actress. Early life and education Peldon was born in New York City, New York. Her younger sister Ashley is also an actress. Both she and Ashley became involved in the ent ...

as Darcy Payne (1991–1992) * Mark Dakota Robinson as Hilton Woods, Jr. (1992–1993) * Jared Henderson as Himself (1992)

Episodes

Season 1: 1991

Season 2: 1991–92

Season 3: 1992–93

Production

Among the series' directors were series star Bruce Davison,

Scott Baio Scott Vincent James Baio (; born September 22, 1960) is an American actor. He is known for playing Chachi Arcola on the sitcom ''Happy Days'' (1977–1984) and its spin-off ''Joanie Loves Chachi'' (1982–1983), the title character on ...

Frank Bonner Frank Bonner (born Frank Woodrow Boers Jr.; February 28, 1942 – June 16, 2021) was an American actor and television director widely known for his role as sales manager Herb Tarlek on the television sitcom ''WKRP in Cincinnati''. Personal li ...

Tony Dow Anthony Lee Dow (April 13, 1945 – July 27, 2022) was an American actor, film producer, director and sculptor. He portrayed Wally Cleaver in the iconic television sitcom '' Leave It to Beaver'' from 1957 to 1963. From 1983 to 1989, Dow repri ...

Richard Kline Richard Kline (born April 29, 1944) is an American actor and television director. His roles include Larry Dallas on the sitcom ''Three's Company'', Richie in the later seasons of ''It's a Living'' and Jeff Beznick in '' Noah Knows Best''. Early ...

Dwayne Hickman Dwayne Bernard Hickman (May 18, 1934 – January 9, 2022) was an American actor and television executive, producer and director, who worked as an executive at CBS and had also briefly recorded as a vocalist. Hickman portrayed Chuck MacDonald, Bo ...

, and Donna Pescow. The series' theme song was "

Your Feet's Too Big "Your Feet's Too Big" is a song composed in 1936 by Fred Fisher with lyrics by Ada Benson. It has been recorded by many artists, notably the Ink Spots and by Fats Waller in 1939. The song became associated with Waller who ad-libbed his own lyric ...

", performed by

Leon Redbone Leon Redbone (born Dickran Gobalian; August 26, 1949 – May 30, 2019) was a singer-songwriter and musician specializing in jazz, blues, and Tin Pan Alley classics. Recognized by his hat (often a Panama hat), dark sunglasses, and black tie, Red ...

Broadcast stations

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, id=0098818, title=Harry and the Hendersons 1991 American television series debuts 1993 American television series endings 1990s American sitcoms American fantasy television series Television about Bigfoot First-run syndicated television programs in the United States English-language television shows Fantasy comedy television series Live action television shows based on films Television series about families Television series by Universal Television Television shows set in Washington (state) Cryptozoological television series Television series by Amblin Entertainment