''The New Gidget'' 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 ...

sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...

to the original 1965–66 sitcom ''

Gidget Gidget () is a fictional character created by author Frederick Kohner (based on his teenaged daughter, Kathy) in his 1957 novel, ''Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas''. The novel follows the adventures of a teenaged girl and her surfing fri ...

''. 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 September 15, 1986, to May 12, 1988. The series was produced by original ''Gidget'' series producer

Harry Ackerman Harry Stephen Ackerman (November 17, 1912 – February 3, 1991) was an American television producer, credited with creating or co-creating twenty-one series, seven of which were at one time being broadcast simultaneously. Some of the sitcoms in ...

and was launched after the

made-for-television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made fo ...

'' Gidget's Summer Reunion'', starring

Caryn Richman Caryn Richman is an American actress and singer who is best known for her role as Gidget in the TV series, ''The New Gidget'', which evolved out of her lead role in the 1985 television movie ''Gidget's Summer Reunion''. She played Elena Dekker ...

, aired in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

Plot

The series features Gidget, who is in her late 20s and married to her idol, "Moondoggie" ( Dean Butler). The couple live in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...

, where Moondoggie works as an architect and Gidget runs the "Gidget Travel Agency" with her long-time best friend, Larue (

Jill Jacobson Jill Jacobson is an American actress, best known for her performances on television. Her credits include the television series '' Crazy Like a Fox'', ''Falcon Crest'', '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', ''Quantum Leap'', '' Who's The Boss?'', ...

). Gidget and Moondoggie take care of Gidget's niece, Dani (

Sydney Penny Sydney Margaret Penny (born August 7, 1971) is an American actress. She is known for her portrayal of Julia Santos Keefer on the soap opera ''All My Children'' and Samantha "Sam" Kelly on the CBS soap opera ''The Bold and the Beautiful''. She ...

), who lives with the couple while her parents (Gidget's sister, Anne and husband John) are overseas. Dani is similar to Gidget when she was a teen and was always getting into trouble with her best friend, Gail ( Lili Haydn). Gidget's father, Russ (

William Schallert William Joseph Schallert (July 6, 1922 – May 8, 2016) was an American character actor who appeared in dozens of television shows and films over a career spanning more than 60 years. He is known for his roles on '' Richard Diamond, Privat ...

), is on hand to provide advice to the young couple and to remind Gidget that Dani's exploits were similar to the ones she experienced (and sometimes caused) as a teen.

Cast

Main

as Francine "

" Lawrence Griffin * Dean Butler as Jeff "

Moondoggie Moondoggie is a fictional character created by Frederick Kohner in his 1957 novel '' Gidget, The Little Girl with Big Ideas''.''Gidget'' (2001) by Frederick Kohner, Berkley Publishing Group, New York, NY (first edition 1957) He appears as a pri ...

" Griffin *

as Danielle "Dani" Collins * Lili Haydn as Gayle Baker *

as Russell "Russ" Lawrence *

Don Stroud Donald Lee Stroud (born September 1, 1943) is an American actor, musician, and surfer. Stroud has appeared in over 100 films and 200 television shows. Early years Stroud was the son of vaudeville actor Clarence Stroud (of "The Stroud Twins" team ...

as The Great Kahuna *

Larue Wilson Larue Wilson is a fictional character introduced in the Frederick Kohner novel ''Gidget, the Little Girl with Big Ideas'' (1957). She also appears in much of the television work involving Gidget. The Novel Larue is first mentioned as described ...

* Richard Paul as Wilton Parmenter * David Preston as Murph the Surf

Notable guest stars

Judith Barsi Judith Eva Barsi (June 6, 1978 – July 25, 1988) was an American child actress. She began her career in television, making appearances in commercials and television series, as well as the 1987 film '' Jaws: The Revenge''. She also provided the ...

Nina Blackwood Nina Blackwood is an American disc jockey and music journalist, who was the first of the original five MTV VJs (along with Mark Goodman, J. J. Jackson, Alan Hunter, and Martha Quinn). She has been an actress and model. Early life and career Bl ...

Bob Denver Robert Osbourne Denver (January 9, 1935 – September 2, 2005) was an American comedic actor who portrayed Gilligan on the 1964–1967 television series ''Gilligan's Island'', and beatnik Maynard G. Krebs on the 1959–1963 series ''The Ma ...

Elinor Donahue Elinor Donahue (born Mary Eleanor Donahue, April 19, 1937) is an American actress, best known today for playing the role of Betty Anderson, the eldest child of Jim and Margaret Anderson on the 1950s American sitcom ''Father Knows Best''. Early ...

Alice Ghostley Alice Margaret Ghostley (August 14, 1923 – September 21, 2007) was a Tony Award-winning American actress and singer on stage, film and television. She was best known for her roles as bumbling witch Esmeralda (1969–70; 1972) on ''Bewitched'' ...

* Alan Hale *

Jan and Dean Jan and Dean was an American rock duo consisting of William Jan Berry (April 3, 1941 – March 26, 2004) and Dean Ormsby Torrence (born March 10, 1940). In the early 1960s, they were pioneers of the California Sound and vocal surf music style ...

* Patricia Morison *

The Safaris The Safaris were an American pop group of the early 1960s from Los Angeles, California. The Safaris formed in 1959, and the following year released their debut single, " Image of a Girl". The song was a hit in the United States, peaking at #6 o ...

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 ...

Frank Stallone Francesco Stallone Jr. (born July 30, 1950) is an American actor and musician. He is the younger brother of actor Sylvester Stallone and has written music for Sylvester's movies. His song " Far from Over" appeared in the 1983 film '' Staying Al ...

* Jesse White *

Wolfman Jack Robert Weston Smith (January 21, 1938July 1, 1995), known as Wolfman Jack, was an American disc jockey active from 1960 till his death in 1995. Famous for his gravelly voice, he credited it for his success, saying, "It's kept meat and potatoes ...

Episodes

Season 1 (1986–87)

Season 2 (1987–88)

Stations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:New Gidget, The 1986 American television series debuts 1988 American television series endings 1980s American sitcoms English-language television shows First-run syndicated television programs in the United States Gidget American sequel television series Television series by Fremantle (company) Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television shows set in Santa Monica, California