''Here and Now'' 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 ...

television series that aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

from September 19, 1992 to January 2, 1993. The series starred

Malcolm-Jamal Warner Malcolm-Jamal Warner (born August 18, 1970) is an American actor. He rose to prominence for his role as Theodore Huxtable on the NBC sitcom ''The Cosby Show'', which earned him a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series a ...

in the lead role, who prior to this series co-starred in ''

The Cosby Show ''The Cosby Show'' is an American television sitcom co-created by and starring Bill Cosby, which aired Thursday nights for eight seasons on NBC between September 20, 1984, until April 30, 1992. The show focuses on an upper middle-class African- ...

'' which ended its run in April 1992.

Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...

served as one of the show's executive producers along with Warner serving as executive consultant credited as M.J. Warner. The song "

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

" by

Arrested Development The term "arrested development" has had multiple meanings for over 200 years. In the field of medicine, the term "arrested development" was first used, ''circa'' 1835–1836, to mean a stoppage of physical development; the term continues to be use ...

was used as the show's theme song.

Synopsis

Alexander "A.J." James (

) is a recent college graduate who majored in psychology now attending post graduate school. He returns to his old neighborhood in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

to become a counselor at a local youth center. While working at the center he is living with Sydney ( Charles Brown), his non-biological uncle who works as a doorman for a living. The series co-stars included

S. Epatha Merkerson Sharon Epatha Merkerson (born November 28, 1952) is a film, stage, and television actor. Known by her stage name S. Epatha Merkerson, she has received numerous high-profile accolades for her work, including an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, ...

as Ms. St. Marth as the head of the youth center (Brenda Pressley played the role in the pilot episode),

Daryl "Chill" Mitchell Daryl "Chill" Mitchell (born July 16, 1965) is an American actor and rapper. He is known for such roles as Dexter Walker on ''The John Larroquette Show'', Tommy Webber in ''Galaxy Quest'', Leo Michaels on ''Veronica's Closet'', Eli Goggins III o ...

as T, a former delinquent now working at the center,

Rachael Crawford Rachael Crawford (born c. 1969 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is an actress best known for her roles in '' Brewster Place'', '' Here and Now'', and ''Show Me Yours'', as well as guest appearances on various television series such as ''Cold Squad' ...

as Danielle, Sydney's daughter, A.J's "cousin" and occasional love interest and Jessica Stone as Amy a fellow post grad student attending the same school as A.J., also working at the center. Pee Wee Love and

Shaun Weiss Shaun Herman Weiss (born August 27, 1978) is an American actor, well known for his roles in '' The Mighty Ducks'' movies. Early life Weiss was born and raised in Montvale, New Jersey, and attended Pascack Hills High School. He is of Jewish de ...

also co-starred as A.J.'s counselees, Ramdall and William respectively. The series bore many similarities with Warner's previous series ''

'', mostly in relation to Warner's characters.

Theo Huxtable Theodore Aloysius "Theo" Huxtable is a fictional character who appears in the American sitcom ''The Cosby Show'', portrayed by actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner. Conception Theo Huxtable was based on Bill Cosby's only son Ennis Cosby. He also gave th ...

on '' The Cosby Show'' and A.J. on this series were both psychology majors and worked at youth centers. Warner stated that difference between A.J. and Theo was that A.J. was "more hip and street wise".

Cast

as Alexander "A.J." James * Charles Brown as "Uncle" Sydney *

as Claudia St. Marth * Daryl Mitchell as T *

as Danielle *Jessica Stone as Amy *Pee Wee Love as Ramdall Freeman *

as William

Episodes

Broadcast history

The series aired on Saturday nights on

premiering on September 19, 1992 leading off the network's Saturday night lineup at the time. It was ultimately canceled on January 2, 1993 due to low ratings with two episodes unaired out of the fifteen episodes that were produced.

later admitted that he felt the show's cancellation was justified due to the series not being very well written.Life After The Cosby Show
(Article on Bill Cosby), Ebony May 1994

References

External links

* *{{Epguides, HereandNow, Here and Now 1990s American black sitcoms 1990s American sitcoms 1992 American television series debuts 1993 American television series endings English-language television shows NBC original programming Television shows set in New York City Television series by Universal Television