''Parker Lewis Can't Lose'' is an American

teen sitcom A teen situation comedy, or teen sitcom, is a subgenre of comedic television program targeted towards young people. In general, these type of programs focus primarily on characters between 11 and 19 years of age and routinely feature characters inv ...

that originally aired on

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

from September 1990 to June 1993. It was produced by Clyde Phillips Productions in association with

Columbia Pictures Television Columbia Pictures Television, Inc. (abbreviated as CPT) was launched on May 6, 1974, by Columbia Pictures as an American television production and distribution studio. It is the second name of the Columbia Pictures television division Screen Gem ...

. During the last season, the series rebranded to ''Parker Lewis''. The series depicts the tribulations of the title character Parker Lewis (played by

Corin Nemec Joseph Charles Nemec IV (born November 5, 1971), known professionally as Corin Nemec, is an American actor, producer, and screenwriter. He was billed as Corin "Corky" Nemec or Corky Nemec until 1990. Nemec is known for playing the title characte ...

), a Santo Domingo

High School A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

student, for whom nothing is impossible. It was strongly influenced by the feature film ''

Ferris Bueller's Day Off ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' is a 1986 American teen comedy film written, co-produced, and directed by John Hughes and co-produced by Tom Jacobson. The film stars Matthew Broderick, Mia Sara, and Alan Ruck with supporting roles by Jennifer ...

''.

Premise

The title character Parker Lewis often narrates episodes. Parker Lewis, Jerry Steiner, and Mikey Randall are mainly concerned with fitting in. Their efforts are often thwarted by Parker's little sister, Shelly, and principal Grace Musso. The show focuses on teenage life and has a living-cartoon-like quality but contains human actors and actresses. There are clever camera angles and filming techniques (dissolves from one scene to the next were done by ever larger pixels). Many episodes contain subtle references to movies, politics, and celebrities. The surrealism was toned down in the series' final season, with even Parker acknowledging this fact by breaking the

4th wall The fourth wall is a performance convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this ''wall'', the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. From the 16th cen ...

and 'canceling' a dissolving pixel scene. The 3,100 students at Santo Domingo High School are called Flamingos, after their school mascot. The school motto is "E Pluribus Flamingus", mimicking USA's motto

E Pluribus Unum ''E pluribus unum'' ( , , ) – Latin for "Out of many, one" (also translated as "One out of many" or "One from many") – is a traditional motto of the United States, appearing on the Great Seal along with '' Annuit cœptis'' (Latin for "he ...

Episodes

Characters

Main

*Parker Lloyd Lewis (played by

) – Parker Lewis is very popular at school. A smart guy with a penchant for garish shirts and cutting classes, Parker usually has a plan up his sleeve, and in turn, it usually involves outsmarting someone else. Plans put into effect begin with the command: "Synchronize

Swatch Swatch is a Swiss watchmaker founded in 1983 by Ernst Thomke, Elmar Mock, and Jacques Müller. It is a subsidiary of The Swatch Group. The Swatch product line was developed as a response to the "quartz crisis" of the 1970s and 1980s, in which ...

es." Parker is famous for his catch phrase, "Not a problem," which he often says when faced with trouble. He and his two "buds" have their high-tech headquarters hidden above the gym. In the final season, Parker finally settles down with one girl, Annie, and appears more mature and less reliant on his "Not a problem" attitude. *Michael Patrick "Mikey" Randall (played by

Billy Jayne William Jayne Jacoby (born April 10, 1969), known professionally as Billy Jayne and previously Billy Jacoby is an American actor. His siblings, Robert Jayne, Susan Jayne, Laura Jacoby, as well as his half-brother Scott Jacoby are also actors. ...

) – A

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...

rebel without a cause and by far the most emotionally driven of the trio, he often quotes or paraphrases famous songs (for example, "To quote Don Henley, this is ' The End of the Innocence'" (episode two), or suggesting to "

Paint It, Black "Paint It Black" is a song recorded in 1966 by the English rock band the Rolling Stones. A product of the songwriting partnership of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it is a raga rock song with Indian, Middle Eastern, and Eastern European in ...

" when Jerry betrays the group's trust). Mikey at one point considered

dropping out Dropping out refers to leaving high school, college, university or another group for practical reasons, necessities, inability, apathy, or disillusionment with the system from which the individual in question leaves. Canada In Canada, most ind ...

of school at Santo Domingo HS when a prank by Shelly causes Mikey to unknowingly play a love song he composed for a girl for whom he had feelings to be broadcast before the entire school, resulting in embarrassment for him. *Jerry Steiner (played by

Troy Slaten Troy William Slaten (born February 21, 1975) is an American attorney, media pundit, candidate for Los Angeles Superior Court Judge, former actor, former Managing Attorney of Slaten Lawyers, APC, and Administrative Law Judge for the State of Cal ...

) – A stereotypical

nerd A nerd is a person seen as overly intellectual, obsessive, introverted or lacking social skills. Such a person may spend inordinate amounts of time on unpopular, little known, or non-mainstream activities, which are generally either highly tec ...

, in the first two seasons, he wears a

trench coat A trench coat or trenchcoat is a variety of coat made of waterproof heavy-duty fabric, originally developed for British Army officers before the First World War, and becoming popular while used in the trenches. Originally made from gabardine, ...

(said to be made by NASA) from which he produces almost any object imaginable, apparently fixed inside with

Velcro Velcro, officially known as Velcro IP Holdings LLC and trading as Velcro Companies, is a British privately held company, founded by Swiss electrical engineer George de Mestral in the 1950s. It is the original manufacturer of hook-and-loop fast ...

. He addresses everyone formally by last name, e.g., "Mr. Lewis", "Mr. Randall", and even "Mr. Kubiac", or collectively as "sirs". At the end of the credits of the pilot episode, Jerry hid in the locker next to Parker's, talking endlessly to Parker through the door, not knowing that he had left, causing him to plaintively call out: "Mr. Lewis? Mr. Randall? Mr. Phillips? ( Clyde Phillips, the series' creator and executive producer) Hello?" One notable episode dealt with Parker and Mikey confiscating Jerry's trench coat for him to stop hiding and get to know a female nerd as a potential girlfriend. *Grace Musso (played by

Melanie Chartoff Melanie Barbara Chartoff (born December 15, 1948) is an American actress and comedian. She first became famous for her comedy work on the ABC series '' Fridays'' (1980–82), and in the 1990s Fox sitcom ''Parker Lewis Can't Lose''. She voiced b ...

) – Principal of Santo Domingo High, she is Parker's arch- nemesis; at , she is said to be in her mid-thirties, but is actually older. She wants to get Parker expelled. Often, she breaks the glass on her office door when she makes her distinctive "thumb swoosh" gesture. She has a racy side which is sometimes exposed; her turn-ons include beards and large hands. She was portrayed as a

spinster ''Spinster'' is a term referring to an unmarried woman who is older than what is perceived as the prime age range during which women usually marry. It can also indicate that a woman is considered unlikely to ever marry. The term originally den ...

at first, but seemed to have a skill in men, one time having dated an officer of each of the armed forces. She has many secrets which she would rather be kept quiet, such as living in a $600,000 house on a $38,000 a year salary (episode six), which Parker uses as the necessity arises. However, Parker's blackmail ideas have sometimes backfired on him; one of his actions resulted in Musso's suspension. When a tougher principal is brought in to replace her, Parker cannot handle it going "from bad to worse", and works to get Musso reinstated. *Shelly Ann Lewis (played by

Maia Brewton Maia Luisa Brewton (born September 30, 1977) is an American actress who enjoyed success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. She is best known for her roles as the Mighty Thor-obsessed Sara Anderson in the 1987 film '' Adventures in Babysitting' ...

) – Parker's other nemesis, she is his little sister, who attends the same school as a freshman. She likes to manipulate teachers and parents to her benefit and tries to get Parker into trouble. Shelly also teams up with Musso if she sees a chance to ruin Parker. Most of the time, she is on friendly terms with Jerry and the two seem to end up in a constant relationship at the end of the series. Her favorite saying is: "My brother is a dead man!" whenever she finds an opportunity to bring Parker into an embarrassing situation. She has a tendency to call out "Mom!" when Parker gets one over on her, as seen at the start or end of various programs. *Martin Lloyd "Marty" Lewis (played by

Timothy Stack Timothy Clifton Stack (born November 21, 1954) is an American actor, producer and screenwriter. Life and career Education Timothy was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, the son of Joan and Tom Stack. He graduated from the Philadelphia-area prep ...

) – Parker's father, he owns a

video rental A video rental shop/store is a physical retail business that rents home videos such as movies, prerecorded TV shows, video game discs and other media content. Typically, a rental shop conducts business with customers under conditions and terms a ...

store called Mondo Video with his wife, and is helped by Parker and Shelly on weekends. He tries hard to keep some of the coolness that he had in his own school days when he was a self-described "young hoodlum". It is shown that he graduated from Santo Domingo High School and had two friends who were similar to Jerry and Mikey. Martin also had played mean pranks on Grace Musso, who had been a classmate of his at Santo Domingo, hence explaining Musso's resentment of Parker. The role of Mr. Lewis was played by

Sherman Howard Sherman Howard (born June 11, 1949) is an American actor. He is best known for his performance as the zombie Bub in George A. Romero's ''Day of the Dead'' (1985) and Lex Luthor on ''Superboy'' (1990–92). He also voiced Derek Powers (a.k.a. Bli ...

in the pilot episode. *Judy Lewis (played by

Anne Bloom Anne Bloom (born Anne Pearson on April 18, 1947) is an American former film and television actress. Biography Bloom's television acting career, which spans three decades, began with an appearance on ABC's medical drama ''Marcus Welby, M.D. ...

in season one and

Mary Ellen Trainor Mary Ellen Trainor (July 8, 1952 – May 20, 2015) was an American character actress best known for her roles as LAPD psychiatrist Dr. Stephanie Woods in the '' Lethal Weapon'' films, newscaster Gail Wallens in '' Die Hard'' and '' Ricochet'', ...

in the pilot episode and seasons two and three) – Parker's mother, she can be loving and gentle, but if her family is threatened, she is ready for battle. *Francis Lawrence "Larry" Kubiac III (played by

Abraham Benrubi Abraham Rubin Hercules Benrubi (born October 4, 1969) is an American actor. He is known for his appearances as Jerry Markovic on the long-running medical television drama '' ER'', for his first role as Larry Kubiac on the series '' Parker Lewis C ...

) – Known as "Kube", at tall and in weight, he is built like a

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

with a brain to match, yet with a surprisingly sweet disposition. While walking, Kubiac causes earth tremors. His favorite line is, "Eat now?" In the series' beginning, he was initially introduced as a pure bully, aggressive and hostile towards other characters, but within a few episodes, his character was quickly changed into a more benign and friendly one – a "gentle giant", and he quickly became a helpful character who would often help Parker and his friends in their schemes. Later, it becomes revealed in a moment of confidence with Parker that Larry is more intelligent than he appears, and his dim-witted persona is merely an act. *Franklin "Frank" Lemmer (played by Taj Johnson) – Principal Musso's ultra-conservative sidekick and "

lapdog A lap dog or lapdog is a dog that is both small enough to be held in the arms or lie comfortably on a person's lap and temperamentally predisposed to doing so. ''Lapdog'' is not a specific breed, but a generic term for a type of dog that is sma ...

" with vampiric tendencies, he has been in school 16 years (episode nine), wears black, and seems to have a

telepath Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...

ic connection to the principal and is obsessed with war, strategy, and politics. Musso can summon him with a dog whistle. He is able to teleport at will. Despite him largely being an adversary to Parker, at one time Parker actually agreed to help Frank Lemmer win over a girl named Denise (

Andrea Elson Andrea Hope Elson (born March 6, 1969) is an American former actress. Beginning her professional career as a child actress and model, Elson is perhaps best known for her television roles as Alice Tyler on the CBS science-fiction adventure series ...

), who turns out to be a blood relative of Grace Musso's. He was absent without explanation in the show's final season. *Annie Faith Sloan (played by Jennifer Guthrie) – She is Parker's love interest from the middle of the second season to the show's end. When Parker's parents were out of town one weekend, he invited Annie to his house with the intent to go all the way, only for Kubiac, Mikey, Jerry and others to show up to his house unannounced all at once and ruining his plans, but ultimately grateful when he learns Annie values abstinence.

Recurring

*Dr. Norman Pankow (played by

Gerrit Graham Gerrit Graham (born November 27, 1949) is an American stage, television, and film actor as well as a scriptwriter and songwriter. He is best known for his appearances in multiple films by Brian De Palma as well as appearances in two '' Star Trek' ...

in seasons one and two) – The principal of rival El Corrado High School with a doctorate in

penology Penology (from "penal", Latin '' poena'', "punishment" and the Greek suffix '' -logia'', "study of") is a sub-component of criminology that deals with the philosophy and practice of various societies in their attempts to repress criminal activiti ...

, he is Musso's primary adult rival and a devotee of the sculpting of bonsai trees. As tough as Musso is, Pankow is regarded as much worse. One of Parker's stunts had caused Musso's suspension; when Dr. Pankow replaced her Parker admits he got more than he bargained for and needed to bring about Musso's reinstatement. *Nick Comstock (played by Paul Johansson) – Manager of the Atlas Diner during the second season, he is very attractive and possesses a supernatural ability to help people with their problems, often dishing out sage advice to Parker. *Bradley 'Brad' Penny (played by

Harold Pruett Harold P. Pruett (April 13, 1969 – February 21, 2002) was an American film and television actor. He appeared in over 30 films and TV series in the 1970s to the 1990s. Career Born in Anchorage, Alaska, Pruett made his acting debut at age fiv ...

) – He appeared in the show's final season. He works as a bricklayer, and is athletic and good-looking. Parker sees him as a nemesis, but Brad often only wants to be friends, though misunderstandings come between them. Shelly is intrigued by him. *Coach Hank Kohler (played by

John Pinette John Paul Pinette ( ) (March 23, 1964 – April 5, 2014) was an American stand-up comedian, actor, and Broadway performer. He toured the comedy club circuit beginning in the 1980s and appeared in cinema and on television. Besides stand-up, Pine ...

). Joining during the show's final season, Hank Kohler served as a father figure for Larry Kubiac and the new owner of the Atlas Diner, which he eventually loses in the show's final episode, "The Last Supper". He is obsessed with Grace Musso, who is completely repulsed by him.

Production

When the show was originally developed, it was meant to be for

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

, but it was rejected, and sent in to the new

network.

Broadcast and syndication

The show premiered in syndication on September 14, 1993, on the

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...

. As of February 2009, minisodes are available on

Crackle Crackle or crackling may refer to: Foods * Cracklings, the tissue remaining after lard and tallow have been extracted from animal fats ** Pork rinds in American English, pork scratchings in British English when served in small pieces as a snac ...

. In late 2015 the show is airing in syndication on the Family Network on Saturday mornings.

Home media

On June 30, 2009, Shout! Factory released the complete first season of ''Parker Lewis Can't Lose'' on DVD in Region 1. The 4-DVD set includes special features including exclusive interviews with the cast, crew, and creators. Although the cast and crew discuss both

and her character, Grace Musso, Chartoff herself does not appear in any of the supplementary materials. Shout! Factory released Season 2 on January 26, 2010. All 3 seasons have been released on SD Blu-Ray (in DVD quality) in Germany in 2015.

Awards and nominations

Internet support

''Parker Lewis'' was one of the first shows with fan support on

the Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

. It was done through an email list called ''The Flamingo Digest''. Several people from the list were invited to the set.

Legacy

Fall Out Boy Fall Out Boy is an American rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer Andy Hurle ...

released a song called "Parker Lewis Can't Lose (But I'm Going To Give It My Best Shot)" on their album ''

Fall Out Boy's Evening Out with Your Girlfriend ''Fall Out Boy's Evening Out with Your Girlfriend'' is the debut mini-LP and the second extended play (EP) by American rock band Fall Out Boy. Recorded in two days around February to September 2002 on a low budget, the rushed schedule left the b ...

''. On

SWV SWV (Sisters with Voices) is an American R&B vocal trio from New York City whose members are Cheryl (Coko) Gamble, Tamara (Taj) Johnson, and Leanne (Lelee) Lyons. Formed in 1988 as a gospel group, SWV became one of the most successful R&B g ...

's 1992 debut album ''It's About Time'', there is a song called "Blak Puddin which includes the line "Parker Lewis can't Lose in Santa Domingo." Hip-hop group Naughty By Nature refers to the Parker Lewis character in their 1992 hit "

Hip Hop Hooray "Hip Hop Hooray" is a song by American hip hop group, Naughty by Nature. The song spent one week at number one on the US R&B chart, and reached number eight on the US Pop chart. It contains samples from "Funky President" by James Brown, "Don't C ...

". Childish Gambino refers to the show on his well-known Poundcake Freestyle, performed in October 2013 on Sway in the Morning hosted by

Sway Calloway Sway Calloway is an American journalist, radio personality, executive producer and former rapper. Known as Sway, he is known for hosting music, news, and culture programming. He was the co-host of the nationally syndicated radio show ''The Wake U ...

in the Morning with the line "I'm makin moves, couldn't lose, doin Parker Lewis" The 1992

House of Pain House of Pain was an American hip-hop trio that released three albums in the 1990s. The group consisted of DJ Lethal, Danny Boy, and Everlast. The group's name is a reference to the H. G. Wells novel '' The Island of Dr. Moreau'', a refer ...

song, "Feel It" includes the line "I can't lose like Parker Lewis, I'm undefeated." The

Royce da 5'9 Markus Bennett is an American hip-hop recording artist. People Surname * Ed Royce (born 1951), American politician * Elwyn E. Royce (1868–1960), American politician * Henry Royce (1863–1933), cofounder of the Rolls-Royce automobile company * H ...

song "Caterpillar" contains the lyrics "I'm a product of Parker Lewis and Kubiac." In the '' Family Guy'' episode "

Family Goy "Family Goy" is the second episode of the eighth season of the animated comedy series '' Family Guy''. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on October 4, 2009. In the episode, Lois discovers that her mother is Jewish and begins her str ...

", a cutaway has

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

going through a "Parker Lewis" phase, sporting Parker's haircut and shirt. At dinner time, Peter tells Lois that it reminds him of "the ''Parker Lewis'' episode where Parker Lewis eats dinner!", to which Lois tells Peter, "no one cares about your canceled show." Peter then rants to

Chris Chris is a short form of various names including Christopher, Christian, Christina, Christine, and Christos. Chris is also used as a name in its own right, however it is not as common. People with the given name *Chris Abani (born 1966), Nige ...

about how Parker Lewis can't lose.

Similar shows

* '' Lucy Lewis Can't Lose'' * ''

Saved by the Bell ''Saved by the Bell'' is an American television sitcom created by Sam Bobrick for NBC. The series premiered, in primetime, on August 20, 1989, a Sunday night. Targeted at kids and teens, ''Saved by the Bell'' was broadcast in the United States ...

References

External links

* * {{epguides, id=ParkerLewisCantLose
''Parker Lewis'' Theme – TelevisionTunes.com
1990s American high school television series 1990s American teen sitcoms 1990s American single-camera sitcoms 1990s American surreal comedy television series 1990 American television series debuts 1993 American television series endings English-language television shows Fox Broadcasting Company original programming Television series about families Television series about teenagers Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television shows set in Los Angeles