''On Our Own'' 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 ...

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 September 13, 1994 until April 14, 1995. The series stars Ralph Louis Harris and six real life siblings: Jazz, Jocqui,

Jake Jake may refer to: Name * Jake (given name), including a list of persons and fictional characters with the name * Katrin Jäke (born c. 1975), German swimmer * Jake (gamer), American ''Overwatch'' player and coach Animals * Jake (rescue dog), a ...

, Jojo, Jurnee, and

Jussie Smollett Jussie Smollett (, born June 21, 1982) is an American actor and singer. He began his career as a child actor in 1991 debuting in ''The Mighty Ducks (film), The Mighty Ducks'' (1992). In 2015, Smollett portrayed musician Jamal Lyon in the Fox Bro ...

. The series was created and executive produced by David W. Duclon, one of the executive producers of ''

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 ...

''. The series was also produced by Thomas L. Miller and Robert L. Boyett, who developed the show. Suzanne de Passe (who also executive produced '' Sister, Sister'' and later ''

Smart Guy ''Smart Guy'' is an American sitcom television series centering on the exploits of child prodigy T.J. Henderson (Tahj Mowry), who moves from being an elementary school student in the fourth grade to a high school student in the tenth grade, atte ...

'') and Suzanne Coston were additional executive producers, with Duclon's longtime colleague Gary Menteer acting as co-executive producer (who also was a producer/writer on ''Family Matters'', to which he returned when ''On Our Own'' was canceled). The series was produced by

Miller-Boyett Productions Miller-Boyett Productions (or simply Miller-Boyett) is an American television production company that mainly developed television sitcoms from the 1970s through the 1990s. It was responsible for family-oriented hit series such as '' Happy Days'' ...

, with associates Lightkeeper Productions (Duclon's company) and

de Passe Entertainment de Passe Entertainment was an American film and television production company run by entertainment executive Suzanne de Passe. The company was founded by Berry Gordy Jr., in 1968, as Motown Productions, the film and television arm of Gordy's ...

. ''On Our Own'' was the first Miller-Boyett sitcom to be produced by

Warner Bros. Television Warner Bros. Television Studios (operating under the name Warner Bros. Television; formerly known as Warner Bros. Television Division) is an American television production and distribution studio of the Warner Bros. Television Group division of ...

for its entire run.

Synopsis

The series centers on the Jerrico family, consisting of seven brothers and sisters (all of whom have names that start with "J") in the O'Fallon Park neighborhood of

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

who lose their parents and are being raised by the eldest brother, Josh (Harris). The early episodes focused on the siblings attempting to not be split up by authorities. This leads to Josh, the eldest brother who was trying to raise the family alone, to dress in drag and pose as older guardian, Aunt Jelcinda (also known as "Mama J"), to fool their case worker, Alana Michaels (

Kimberley Kates Kimberley Kates (born August 15, 1969) is an American actress and film producer. Kates is best known for her role as Princess Elizabeth in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. She founded and is currently the CEO of Big Screen Entertainment Group, ...

). Alana quickly sees through the charade, but decides to help the family stay together. Alana and the family attempt to fool Alana's boss, Mr. Gordon Ormsby (

Roger Aaron Brown Roger Aaron Brown (born June 12, 1949) is an American character actor known for his role as Deputy Chief Joe Noland on the hit CBS drama television series '' The District'' from 2000 to 2004, and for his minor role in the 1988 science fiction fi ...

), that "Mama J" is actually taking care of the family. Problems arise when Mr. Ormsby becomes enamored with "Mama J" and pursues her. Ultimately, "Mama J" tells Mr. Ormsby that she cannot enter into a relationship with him because she is focused on the well being of the children. The pilot episode also featured

Rae'Ven Larrymore Kelly Rae'Ven Larrymore Kelly (born June 28, 1985) is an American actress. Life and career Kelly was born in Fairfax, Virginia. She later moved to Atlanta, Georgia for better exposure in her film career. Kelly was taught by Janet Lawing at Covenant ...

as Hannah, a young neighbor girl and friend of the Jerricos. She was originally slated to be a regular cast member, as she was credited in the opening title sequence (with "and Rae'Ven Kelly as Hannah" appearing last in the cast credit procession), but she did not appear ever again after the prologue segment of the pilot. In December 1994, the series was put on hiatus and retooled. When it returned to the air in March 1995, Josh was granted full custody of his siblings, thus ending the need for the Aunt Jelcinda/Mama J character. The characters of Alana Michaels and Mr. Ormsby were also written out of the show, and a new character, Scotti Decker (

T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh (born Crystal Walker; October 13, 1962) is an American actress and singer. In addition to her status as an original cast member of the Fox sketch comedy series ''In Living Color'' (1990–1994), Keymáh is also known for ...

) was introduced. Scotti, a young, attractive professional contractor, rented a room from the Jerricos in exchange for the work she was doing on their home (in her debut episode, rotted beams caused the bathroom tub to crash through the living room ceiling). She became a sister figure to the younger kids, while fighting off sexual advances from Josh and Jimi and turning them into more responsible "men of the house". Suki (Karen Kim) and Nails (Laura Ponce) were the carpenters who worked for Scotti. Having aired on Sunday nights at 7:30/6:30c during the first half of the season, ''On Our Own'' was moved to the 9:30/8:30c time slot following '' Step by Step'' on '' TGIF'' when it returned in March 1995. The changes to the series in the spring didn't help ratings, and after six more episodes, the show had the plug pulled by ABC.

Cast

Main

*Ralph Louis Harris as Josh Jerrico/Aunt Jelcinda ("Mama J") *

Jurnee Smollett Jurnee Diana Smollett (born October 1, 1986) is an American actress. She began her career as a child actress appearing on television sitcoms, including ''On Our Own (1994 TV series), On Our Own'' (1994–1995) and ''Full House'' (1992–1994). Sh ...

as Jordee Jerrico *

as Jesse Jerrico * Jake Smollett as Joc Jerrico *Jazz Smollett as Jai Jerrico *Jocqui Smollett as Jarreau Jerrico *Jojo Smollett as Jimi Jerrico *

as Alana Michaels (1994) *

as Mr. Gordon Ormsby (1994) *

as Hannah (pilot only) *

as Scotti Decker (1995) *Karen Kim as Suki (1995) *Laura Ponce as Nails (1995)

Recurring

Cindy Herron Cynthia Ann Herron (born September 26, 1961), professionally known as Cindy Herron and sometimes credited as Cindy Herron–Braggs is an American singer and actress. Herron is best known as a founding member of the R&B/pop group En Vogue, one of ...

as Shannon *

Deon Richmond Deon Richmond (born April 2, 1978) is an American actor from New York City who is best known for his recurring roles as Rudy Huxtable's friend Kenny (nicknamed "Bud") on the NBC sitcom ''The Cosby Show'' and Jordan Bennett on the ABC/The WB sit ...

as Kevin * Bumper Robinson as Nat

Episodes

Syndication

The series was briefly re-aired on TV One in 2007.

Award nominations

References

External links

* * {{TGIF (ABC) 1990s American black sitcoms 1990s American sitcoms 1994 American television series debuts 1995 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming Cross-dressing in television English-language television shows Television series about families Television series about siblings Television shows set in St. Louis Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios TGIF (TV programming block)