The Wonder Years (Wonder Girls Album)
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''The Wonder Years'' is an American
coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can ...
comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
/
drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
television series created by
Neal Marlens Neal (Neil) is a given masculine name and surname of Gaelic and Irish origin. The name is an Anglicisation of the Irish Niall which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "hono ...
and Carol Black. It ran 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 January 31, 1988, until May 12, 1993. The series premiered immediately after ABC's coverage of
Super Bowl XXII Super Bowl XXII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Washington Redskins and American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for th ...
. The series stars
Fred Savage Frederick Aaron Savage (born July 9, 1976) is an American actor and director. He is known for his role as Kevin Arnold in the American television series ''The Wonder Years'' (1988 to 1993). He has earned several awards and nominations, such as ...
as Kevin Arnold, a teenager growing up in a suburban
middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...
family in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It co-stars
Dan Lauria Daniel Joseph Lauria (born April 12, 1947) is an American actor, known for playing the role of Jack Arnold in ''The Wonder Years'' (1988–1993), Jack Sullivan on '' Sullivan and Son'' (2012–2014), and Al Luongo on '' Pitch'' (2016–2017). Ea ...
as his father Jack,
Alley Mills Allison Mills (born May 9, 1951), also known as Alley Bean, is an American actress best known for her role as Norma Arnold, the mother in the coming-of-age series ''The Wonder Years'', her role as Pamela Douglas, the sister of the late Forreste ...
as his mother Norma,
Jason Hervey Jason Robert Hervey (born April 6, 1972) is an American actor and television producer. He is best known for his role as Wayne Arnold on ''The Wonder Years''. Early life and acting Hervey was born in Los Angeles, the son of Marsha, a talent agent, ...
as his brother Wayne, Olivia d'Abo as his sister Karen,
Josh Saviano Josh Saviano (born March 31, 1976) is an American lawyer and former child actor who played Kevin Arnold's best friend, Paul Pfeiffer, in the ABC television show ''The Wonder Years''. Early life Saviano was born in White Plains, New York and ra ...
as his best friend Paul Pfeiffer, and
Danica McKellar Danica Mae McKellar (born January 3, 1975) is an American actress, mathematics writer, and education advocate. She played Winnie Cooper in the television series ''The Wonder Years'' from 1988 to 1993, and since 2010 has voiced Miss Martian in th ...
as his girlfriend Winnie Cooper, with narration by Daniel Stern as an adult version of Kevin. The show earned a spot in the Nielsen Top 30 during its first four seasons. ''
TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...
'' named it one of the 20 best shows of the 1980s. After six episodes, ''The Wonder Years'' won a
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series is an annual award given to the best television comedy series of the year. From 1960 to 1964, this category was combined with the Comedy Specials (one time programs) category so that both type ...
in 1988. In addition, at age 13, Fred Savage became the youngest actor ever nominated as Outstanding Lead Actor for a Comedy Series. The show was also awarded a
Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...
in 1989 for "pushing the boundaries of the sitcom format and using new modes of storytelling". In total, the series won 22 awards and was nominated for 54 more. In 1997, "My Father's Office" was ranked number 29 on ''TV Guide''s 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time, and in the 2009 revised list, the pilot episode was ranked number 43. In 2016, ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' ranked ''The Wonder Years'' number 63 on its list of 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. In 2017, James Charisma of '' Paste'' ranked the show's opening sequence number 14 on a list of the 75 Best TV Title Sequences of All Time. As of recent years, many critics and fans consider ''The Wonder Years'' to be a classic with tremendous impact on the industry over the years, inspiring many other shows and how they are structured.


Plot

The series depicts the social and family life of a boy in a stereotypical American suburban middle-class family from 1968 to 1973, covering the ages of 12 through 17. Where the Arnold family lives is never specified other than being a suburb, but some episodes have license plates showing
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
and New York. Each year in the series takes place exactly 20 years before airing (1988 to 1993). The show's plot centers on Kevin Arnold, son of Jack and Norma Arnold. Kevin's father holds a management job at NORCOM, a
defense contractor The arms industry, also known as the arms trade, is a global industry which manufactures and sells weapons and military technology. It consists of a commercial industry involved in the research and development, engineering, production, and serv ...
, while his mother is a
housewife A housewife (also known as a homemaker or a stay-at-home mother/mom/mum) is a woman whose role is running or managing her family's home—housekeeping, which includes caring for her children; cleaning and maintaining the home; making, buying an ...
. Kevin also has an older brother, Wayne, and an older sister, Karen. Two of Kevin's friends and neighbors are prominently featured throughout the series: his best friend, Paul Pfeiffer, and his crush-turned-girlfriend Gwendolyn "Winnie" Cooper. Storylines are told through Kevin's reflections as an adult in his mid-30s, voiced by Daniel Stern. In the pilot episode, Winnie's older brother Brian, whom Kevin admires, is killed in action in
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
in 1968. Kevin meets Winnie in a nearby wooded area called Harpers Woods, and they share what is implied to be each other's first kiss. This unsaid relationship between Winnie and Kevin remains dormant for a long while, with Winnie starting to date a popular eighth-grader named Kirk McCray and Kevin briefly going steady with Becky Slater. After Kevin breaks up with Becky due to his feelings for Winnie, Becky becomes a recurring nuisance for Kevin. Winnie eventually dumps Kirk, as well, and Kevin and Winnie share a second kiss at the start of the 1969 summer vacation. Around Valentine's Day 1970, Winnie temporarily dates Paul, who has broken up with his girlfriend Carla. Winnie and Kevin start dating each other soon after. Just before the summer break, Winnie and her family move to a house four miles away. Although Winnie attends a new school, Lincoln Junior High, she and Kevin decide to remain together and maintain a successful long-distance relationship. A beautiful new student named Madeline Adams joins Kevin's school and quickly catches Kevin's eye, but it is Winnie who breaks up with Kevin after meeting Roger, a jock at her new school. Neither relationship lasts long, but Winnie and Kevin don't reunite until she is injured in a car crash. After graduating from junior high, Kevin and Winnie both go to McKinley High and Paul attends a prep school. Paul would later transfer to McKinley High and join Kevin and Winnie. Earlier seasons of the show tended to focus on plots involving events within the Arnold household and Kevin's academic struggles, whereas later seasons focused much more on plots involving dating and Kevin's friends. Kevin has several brief flings during the summer of 1971 and the 1971–1972 academic year. After Kevin's grandfather gets his driver's license revoked, he sells his car to Kevin for a dollar. Paul transfers to McKinley High after his first semester at preparatory school when his father runs into financial troubles. Wayne decides to join the army as a result of his inability to do well in school. This gets turned around when Wayne is not able to pass his physical. Winnie and Kevin are reunited when they go on a double date to a school dance, and find themselves more attracted to each other than their respective partners. In late 1972, Kevin's older brother Wayne starts working at NORCOM, and dates his co-worker Bonnie, a divorcée with a son, but the relationship does not last. Kevin's father quits NORCOM, and buys a furniture-manufacturing business.


Final episode and epilogue

In the series finale, Winnie decides to take a job for the summer of 1973 as a lifeguard at a resort. Kevin, meanwhile, is at his job at his father's furniture factory and calls Winnie, who is distant and seems to be enjoying her time away from Kevin. Eventually, Kevin and his father fight and Kevin announces that he is leaving, reasoning that he needs to "find himself". Kevin drives to the resort where Winnie is working, hopeful that she can secure him a job and they can spend the rest of the summer together. Kevin eventually secures a job at the resort and plays a round of poker with the house band. He wins big and goes out to search for Winnie to tell her of his good fortune. To his surprise, he sees Winnie engaged in a passionate kiss with another lifeguard. The next day, Kevin confronts her and they fight. Kevin then plays another round of poker, losing his car in a bet. Desperate, Kevin confronts Winnie and her new boyfriend at the restaurant and ends up punching him in the face. Kevin then leaves the resort on foot. On a desolate stretch of highway, Kevin decides to begin hitchhiking. He finally gets picked up by an elderly couple and much to his surprise finds Winnie in the backseat. Winnie was fired over the fight Kevin instigated at the resort. Kevin and Winnie begin to argue and the elderly couple lose patience and kick them out of the car. A rainstorm begins and Kevin and Winnie search for shelter. They find a barn and discuss how much things are changing and the future. They make up and kiss passionately (it is heavily implied that they lose their
virginity Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...
to each other). The narrator's monologue states: They soon find their way back to their hometown and arrive hand-in-hand to a Fourth of July parade. During this parade, the adult Kevin ( Daniel Stern) describes the fate of the show's main characters. Kevin makes up with his father, graduates from high school in 1974, and leaves for college, later becoming a writer. Paul studies law at Harvard. Karen, Kevin's sister, gives birth to a son in September 1973. Kevin's mother becomes a businesswoman and corporate board chairwoman. Kevin's father dies in 1975 and Wayne takes over his father's furniture business. Winnie studies art history in Paris while Kevin stays in the United States. Winnie and Kevin end up writing to each other once a week for the next eight years. When Winnie returns to the United States in 1982, Kevin meets her at the airport, with his wife and eight-month-old son. The final sounds, voice-over narration, and dialogue of the episode and series is that of Kevin as an adult, with children heard in the background: A little boy (Stern's real life son,
Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) *Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
) can be heard asking "Hey, Dad, want to play catch?" during a break in the final narration. Kevin responds, "I'll be right there." In 2011, the finale was ranked number 11 on the
TV Guide Network The American cable television, cable and satellite television network Pop (American TV channel), Pop was originally launched in 1981 as a barker channel service providing a display of localized electronic program guide, channel and program listings ...
special, ''TV's Most Unforgettable Finales''.


Episodes


Cast

* Kevin Arnold (
Fred Savage Frederick Aaron Savage (born July 9, 1976) is an American actor and director. He is known for his role as Kevin Arnold in the American television series ''The Wonder Years'' (1988 to 1993). He has earned several awards and nominations, such as ...
): Character born March 18, 1956, Kevin grew up in the turbulent late 1960s and early 1970s. The voice of Kevin as an adult (and the show's narrator) is supplied by Daniel Stern (
Arye Gross Arye Gross (; born March 17, 1960) is an American actor, who has appeared on a variety of television shows in numerous roles, most notably Adam Greene in the ABC sitcom ''Ellen''. Personal life Gross was born on March 17, 1960, in Los Angeles ...
in the original broadcast of the pilot). * John "Jack" Arnold (
Dan Lauria Daniel Joseph Lauria (born April 12, 1947) is an American actor, known for playing the role of Jack Arnold in ''The Wonder Years'' (1988–1993), Jack Sullivan on '' Sullivan and Son'' (2012–2014), and Al Luongo on '' Pitch'' (2016–2017). Ea ...
): Character born on November 6, 1927, died in 1975. Kevin's father was a gruff,
laconic A laconic phrase or laconism is a concision, concise or wikt:terse, terse statement, especially a wikt:blunt, blunt and wikt:elliptical, elliptical rejoinder. It is named after Laconia, the region of Greece including the city of Sparta, whose anci ...
man and a
Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
veteran; he grew up during
the Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
, served in the
US Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
, and is seen in photographs wearing the uniform of a
First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a s ...
. He works at NORCOM, a large military defense corporation, in a
middle management Middle management is the intermediate management level of a hierarchical organization that is subordinate to the executive management and responsible for ‘team leading’ line managers and/or ‘specialist’ line managers. Middle management is i ...
position he loathes. Later, he starts his own business, building and selling handcrafted furniture. The series's last episode reveals that he dies in 1975 near the end of Kevin's freshman year of college – that is, two years after the time of the show's finale – although in a previous episode, an adult Kevin says his father would later be the grandfather of Kevin's sons. Jack represents the viewpoint of the "
Silent Generation The Silent Generation, also known as the Traditionalist Generation, is the Western demographic cohort following the Greatest Generation and preceding the Baby Boomers. The Silent Generation is generally defined as people born from 1928 to 1945. ...
" that grew up during the Depression and came of age during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
; it was confused and angered by the rapid changes taking place in the 1960s. He is described as a
Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
who voted for
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
twice in the presidential elections of
1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...
and
1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...
. * Norma Arnold (née Gustavson) (
Alley Mills Allison Mills (born May 9, 1951), also known as Alley Bean, is an American actress best known for her role as Norma Arnold, the mother in the coming-of-age series ''The Wonder Years'', her role as Pamela Douglas, the sister of the late Forreste ...
): Character born March 22, 1928, Kevin's housewife mother. Unlike her husband, Norma is friendly and upbeat. She met Jack as a college freshman. When he graduated, she moved across the country with him and did not finish college. She eventually gets her degree late in the series and begins work at a software startup called Micro Electronics. Although she came of age at the same time as her husband, she is less conservative than her husband and increasingly yearns to break out of her homemaker role, reflecting the rise of
feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
in the 1960s. * Karen Arnold ( Olivia d'Abo): Character born circa 1952, Kevin's hippie, but mature older sister. Her free-spirited ways clash with her overbearing father's conservatism, and she depends upon her mother as a mediator. When Karen moves in with her boyfriend Michael (
David Schwimmer David Lawrence Schwimmer (born November 2, 1966) is an American actor, director and producer. He gained worldwide recognition for portraying Ross Geller in the sitcom '' Friends'', for which he received a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Prime ...
) during her freshman year of college, she has a falling out with her father. The pair marry one year later and move to
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
, where Michael has secured a good job. Karen ultimately accepts some of her parents' viewpoints and has a baby, while her husband learns to support his wife and child. * Wayne Arnold (
Jason Hervey Jason Robert Hervey (born April 6, 1972) is an American actor and television producer. He is best known for his role as Wayne Arnold on ''The Wonder Years''. Early life and acting Hervey was born in Los Angeles, the son of Marsha, a talent agent, ...
): Character born April 6, 1954, Kevin's annoying older brother. Wayne enjoys physically tormenting Kevin and Paul, calling Kevin " butthead" or " scrote". He ultimately takes over the family furniture business, after his father passes away. (Wayne attempted to follow in Jack's footsteps by joining the military, but
psoriasis Psoriasis is a long-lasting, noncontagious autoimmune disease characterized by raised areas of abnormal skin. These areas are red, pink, or purple, dry, itchy, and scaly. Psoriasis varies in severity from small, localized patches to complete ...
kept him out.) Wayne is usually portrayed as a loser in romantic relationships. For a time, he dated a girl named Dolores, but that was more casual than serious. In later seasons, Wayne matures. In the final season, he begins a serious relationship with a divorcée named Bonnie, but is left heartbroken when she reconciles with her husband. * Paul Joshua Pfeiffer (
Josh Saviano Josh Saviano (born March 31, 1976) is an American lawyer and former child actor who played Kevin Arnold's best friend, Paul Pfeiffer, in the ABC television show ''The Wonder Years''. Early life Saviano was born in White Plains, New York and ra ...
): Character born March 14, 1956, Paul is Kevin's long time best friend, a bright and excellent student, and an allergy sufferer. He is also Jewish and in one episode celebrates his Bar Mitzvah. Although Kevin and Paul are best friends in the series's early seasons, their relationship becomes somewhat strained later. Kevin begins to spend more time with Chuck and Jeff, causing tension with Paul. Paul also attends a private prep school for one season, leaving Kevin alone to start public high school. In another episode, Kevin is frustated and conflicted with Paul after the latter loses his virginity before him. In the final episode, it is revealed that Paul eventually attends
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
and becomes a lawyer (in real life, Saviano quit acting, went to Yale, and became a lawyer). * Gwendolyn "Winnie" Cooper (
Danica McKellar Danica Mae McKellar (born January 3, 1975) is an American actress, mathematics writer, and education advocate. She played Winnie Cooper in the television series ''The Wonder Years'' from 1988 to 1993, and since 2010 has voiced Miss Martian in th ...
): Winnie is Kevin's main love interest and neighbor. Her older brother's death in the Vietnam War plays a big part in the pilot. In another episode, Winnie's parents separate in grief over the death of their son. In the epilogue of the final episode, Winnie travels overseas to study art history in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. Kevin and Winnie write to each other every week for eight years until she returns; in the concluding moments of the finale, Kevin says that when Winnie returned to the States, Kevin met her accompanied by his wife and first child, despite the hope among ''Wonder Years'' fans that Kevin and Winnie would themselves marry. Kevin says at the end, "things never turn out exactly the way you plan them." As suggested in an episode entitled "The Accident" and in the finale episode of the series, every important event in Kevin's life has somehow involved Winnie.


Production


Conception

The series was conceived by writers Neal Marlens and Carol Black. They set out to create a family show that would appeal to the baby-boomer generation by setting the series in the late '60s, a time of radical change in America's history. They also wanted the series to tie this setting in to the life of a normal boy growing up during the period. After writing the script for the pilot episode, Marlens and Black began pitching the series to television networks. None of them were interested, except for
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 ...
, with whom Marlens and Black reached an agreement. Marlens had originally wanted the setting to be
Huntington, Long Island Huntington is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located within the Town of Huntington in Suffolk County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 18,406 at the 2010 census. The hamlet serves as ...
, where he grew up. Elements were also taken from Black's childhood from the White Oak section of
Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially unincorporated, in practice it is an edge city, with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 censu ...
. ABC, however, insisted that the location remain nonspecific (the colloquial "Anytown, USA").


Writing

When they started writing the series, Marlens and Black took a script for a future film with which they had been toying, which featured an off-screen narrator. Black explained, "We liked the concept that you could play with what people think and what they're saying, or how they would like to see themselves as opposed to how the audience is seeing them." They based the show, in part, on their own childhood growing up in the suburbs. Black recalled that "we naturally
ook Ook, OoK or OOK may refer to: * Ook Chung (born 1963), Korean-Canadian writer from Quebec * On-off keying, in radio technology * Toksook Bay Airport (IATA code OOK), in Alaska * Ook!, an esoteric programming language based on Brainfuck * Ook, th ...
elements of our experience and hrewthem into the pot. The basic setup, the neighborhood, the era – that's the time and place where we grew up." The show's title was a satirical nod to a famous 1970s
Wonder Bread Wonder Bread is a brand of sliced bread which originated in the United States in 1921 and was one of the first to be sold pre-sliced nationwide in 1930. The brand is currently owned by Flowers Foods in the United States. History The Taggart Bak ...
ad campaign promoting the highly processed white bread as perfect for "The Wonder Years," ages 1 through 12.


Casting

The search for the main lead of the show did not take long. Marlens and Black went to five casting directors and interviewed them for recommendations. All five of them recommended Fred Savage, who at the time was famous for his roles as the grandson in ''
The Princess Bride The Princess Bride may refer to: * ''The Princess Bride'' (novel), 1973 fantasy romance novel by American writer William Goldman William Goldman (August 12, 1931 – November 16, 2018) was an American novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. He ...
'' and as Charlie/Marshall in ''
Vice Versa References Additional references * * {{Latin phrases V ca:Locució llatina#V da:Latinske ord og vendinger#V fr:Liste de locutions latines#V id:Daftar frasa Latin#V it:Locuzioni latine#V nl:Lijst van Latijnse spreekwoorden en ui ...
''. Marlens and Black, having never heard of Savage, decided to see the rough cut of ''Vice Versa''. Said Marlens, " e sawa marvelous actor with a natural quality – which essentially means he has no quality at all except being a kid. It sounds funny, but it's a rare thing to find in a child actor." Marlens and Black took this approach when casting the other kids for the show, looking for natural ability rather than professionalism. According to Marlens, they saw 300 to 400 kids before narrowing it down to 70. "My wife and I made the final choice ... each of whom had to be approved by the network." For the choice of Savage's character's main love interest, the choice came down to actress Danica McKellar and her sister, Crystal McKellar. With just days to go before shooting, the producers eventually selected Danica to play Winnie Cooper. However, Mary Buck, the head of casting, noted, "it was practically a tossup". Crystal McKellar was liked so much by the producers that they eventually created the character of Becky Slater so that they could have her on the show. Danica later reflected on the experience, "I auditioned, like everyone else. They had read lots of girls but hadn't found their 'Winnie' yet, and I was thrilled to be chosen."


Filming

At the end of the first season, Marlens and Black departed from the show. Although they never gave a reason for their sudden departure, it may have been due to Black's pregnancy. She hinted at it in an interview in April 1988, saying "We have secret plans to leave Los Angeles before our kids reach the age of cognizance." One challenge for the cast and crew was filming around a child actor, meaning that the show had to obey child labor laws. Savage at the time explained, "You have to get at least three hours of school in every day. So whenever I'm on a break, I go to school. It's really intense because I have to get a lot done in short periods. And it's hard because if they need you back on the set, they pull you away every 20 minutes. If you're writing an essay and suddenly get inspired, you've got to stop and go back to work." Many exterior shots were filmed in Burbank, California.


Title sequence

Three different versions of the opening were made, each set to the
Joe Cocker John Robert "Joe" Cocker (20 May 1944 – 22 December 2014) was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice and dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. Most of his best known singles were recordings of son ...
rendition of "
With a Little Help from My Friends "With a Little Help from My Friends" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, from their 1967 album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and sung by drummer Ringo Starr (as Sgt. Pe ...
".


First version (pilot)

This first version of the opening was very basic: Nothing but a black screen was shown, after the title logo, with each cast member's name appearing in the center one by one. Much like the Arye Gross narration, this version of the opening was only used once when the pilot first aired after Super Bowl XXII.


Second version (seasons one through five)

This opening consists of home-movie footage from the pilot, after the title logo is shown, ending with the "Created by" credit. In season five, more footage is added to show how much the cast has aged.


Third version (season six)

The opening was overhauled completely in this version. It consisted of stock footage and images of various moments throughout 1960s and early 1970s culture (i.e.
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
and
Yoko Ono Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野 洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up i ...
's
Bed-in The Bed-ins for Peace were two week-long nonviolent protests against wars, intended as experimental tests of new ways to promote peace. As the Vietnam War raged in 1969, John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono held one protest at the Hilton Amsterdam, H ...
, the
Kent State shootings The Kent State shootings, also known as the May 4 massacre and the Kent State massacre,"These would be the first of many probes into what soon became known as the Kent State Massacre. Like the Boston Massacre almost exactly two hundred years bef ...
, the Moon Landing, and an antiwar protest), and was set to a new edit of Cocker's rendition of the song (starting with the chorus, versus the opening of the song, as was the case in seasons one through five). The final image in this version is of Kevin, Paul, Winnie, and presumably some of their classmates in a group photograph edited to look like it belonged in the time period.


Music

The official soundtrack released in 1988 by Atlantic/WEA contains a total of 13 tracks, featuring Joe Cocker's cover of
The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
' "With a Little Help from My Friends", which is the show's theme song. After the series' original run was over, Laserlight Digital released a five-disc compilation box set under the title ''Music from 'The Wonder Years'' in 1994. This same company later released the first two DVDs for the series, ''The Best of The Wonder Years'' and ''The Christmas Wonder Years''. The disc included 40 oldies favorites and five original songs (each is repeated twice in the set) written exclusively for the series by
W. G. Snuffy Walden William Garrett Walden, known as W. G. Snuffy Walden (born February 13, 1950), is an American musician and composer of film and television soundtracks. Walden is an Emmy Award winner for the theme music to ''The West Wing'' (NBC), has been nomin ...
. In 2014,
Time Life Time Life, with sister subsidiaries StarVista Live and Lifestyle Products Group, a holding of Direct Holdings Global LLC, is an American production company and direct marketer conglomerate, that is known for selling books, music, video/DVD, ...
released a new soundtrack for the show that accompanies deluxe versions of its complete series DVD set. The CD is not available for purchase separately from the DVD box set, however.


DVD music replacements

The Time Life DVD releases feature around 96% of the original music soundtrack, including Joe Cocker's cover of "With a Little Help From My Friends" at the opening. Fourteen songs were replaced, in most instances featuring generic studio replacement music in place of the original song, while on a few occasions, the original soundtrack song was replaced with another version of the same song. None of the necessary music replacements resulted in footage from the episodes being removed. *In the episode "The Phone Call", the " Love Theme from ''Romeo and Juliet''" was replaced with a song called "Star Crossed Lovers", which has been used in many other TV shows and movies, including ''
The Brady Bunch ''The Brady Bunch'' is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz that aired from September 26, 1969, to March 8, 1974, on ABC. The series revolves around a large blended family with six children. The show aired for five seasons and, after ...
''. *In "Dance With Me", Joe Cocker's cover of " The Letter" was replaced with the original version by
The Box Tops The Box Tops is an American rock band formed in Memphis in 1967. They are best known for the hits " The Letter", "Cry Like a Baby", "Choo Choo Train," and " Soul Deep" and are considered a major blue-eyed soul group of the period. They perform ...
, while the
Herman's Hermits Herman's Hermits are an English beat, rock and pop group formed in 1964 in Manchester, originally called Herman and His Hermits and featuring lead singer Peter Noone. Produced by Mickie Most, the Hermits charted with number ones in the UK a ...
version of " There's a Kind of Hush" was replaced with a rerecording by the Craggy Blue Project. *The episode "Heart of Darkness" had two replacements: "
Riders on the Storm "Riders on the Storm" is a song by American rock band the Doors. It was released in June 1971, as the second single from ''L.A. Woman'', their sixth studio album and the last with lead singer Jim Morrison. The song reached number 14 on the U.S ...
" by
The Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...
was replaced with "Children of the Night", while
Richie Havens Richard Pierce Havens (January 21, 1941 – April 22, 2013) was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music encompassed elements of folk, soul (both of which he frequently covered), and rhythm and blues. He had a rhythmic guitar style ...
' cover of The Beatles' "
Here Comes the Sun "Here Comes the Sun" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1969 album ''Abbey Road''. It was written by George Harrison and is one of his best-known compositions. Harrison wrote the song in early 1969 at the country house o ...
" was replaced by "Train to Nowhere". *In the episode "Whose Woods Are These?", the
Blood, Sweat & Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is a jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. In addition to original music, the group has performed popular songs by Laura Ny ...
recording entitled "Variations on a Theme" by
Erik Satie Eric Alfred Leslie Satie (, ; ; 17 May 18661 July 1925), who signed his name Erik Satie after 1884, was a French composer and pianist. He was the son of a French father and a British mother. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire, but was an und ...
(1st and 2nd Movements, adapted from Satie's " Three ''Gymnopédies''") was replaced with "Le Suenne Fite". *The episode "How I Am Spending My Summer Vacation" replaced the Doors' "
Light My Fire "Light My Fire" is a song by the American rock band the Doors. It was recorded in August 1966 and released in January 1967 on their eponymous debut album. Released as an edited single on April 24, 1967, it spent three weeks at number one on t ...
" with "Love's on Fire", while the episode "Summer Song" replaced Blood, Sweat and Tears' "
Spinning Wheel A spinning wheel is a device for spinning thread or yarn from fibres. It was fundamental to the cotton textile industry prior to the Industrial Revolution. It laid the foundations for later machinery such as the spinning jenny and spinning f ...
" with a rerecording by former BS&T frontman
David Clayton Thomas David Clayton-Thomas (born David Henry Thomsett, 13 September 1941) is a Grammy Award-winning Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the American band Blood, Sweat & Tears. Clayton-Thomas has been inducte ...
. *In "Family Car", The Stills-Young Band's "
Long May You Run ''Long May You Run'' is a studio album credited to the Stills–Young Band, a collaboration between Stephen Stills and Neil Young, released in 1976 on Reprise Records. It peaked at #26 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and was certified gold in the United ...
" was replaced with "Keep Your Motor Running". *In "Wayne on Wheels", "Love Theme from ''Romeo and Juliet''" was again replaced by "Star Crossed Lovers". *In the episode "The Treehouse",
Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress, singer, and activist. She began her career as a big band singer in 1939, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, " Sent ...
's "
Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) "Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)" is a song written by the team of Jay Livingston and Ray Evans that was first published in 1955. Doris Day introduced it in the Alfred Hitchcock film '' The Man Who Knew Too Much'' (1956), singing it as ...
" was replaced with "Call the Whole Thing Off". *In the episode "Little Debbie", " Tammy" by
Liberace Władziu Valentino Liberace (May 16, 1919 – February 4, 1987) was an American pianist, singer, and actor. A child prodigy born in Wisconsin to parents of Italian and Polish origin, he enjoyed a career spanning four decades of concerts, recordi ...
was replaced with a song called "Sammy". *"Clip Show" contains the scene from "Heart of Darkness" in which "Here Comes the Sun" is replaced with "Train to Nowhere". *The episode "Kevin Delivers" dropped Blood, Sweat and Tears' "
You've Made Me So Very Happy "You've Made Me So Very Happy" is a song written by Brenda Holloway, Patrice Holloway, Frank Wilson and Berry Gordy, and was released first as a single in 1967 by Brenda Holloway on the Tamla label. The song was later a huge hit for jazz-rock ...
" with a re-recording by David Clayton Thomas. *In the episode "Alice in Autoland",
Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...
's " Let's Stay Together" was replaced with a re-recording by him. *In the final episode "Independence Day", the
Ennio Morricone Ennio Morricone (; 10 November 19286 July 2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and trumpeter who wrote music in a wide range of styles. With more than 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as more than 100 classica ...
song "Brothers" from the 1986 motion picture '' The Mission'', which was played over the pivotal barn scene featuring Kevin and Winnie's last kiss, was replaced with the generic tune "Pastorale" (for this instance alone, the same replacement was used in the 1998 ''The Best of The Wonder Years'' DVD release). Also, not a music change per se, but the Daniel Stern redub of the pilot is used, with the standard opening sequence. Other than the above music changes, all other music is intact. The UK DVD release from Fabulous Films was intended to have no replaced music, but reviews on online retailers and fan websites show that this is not the case.


Cancellation

''The Wonder Years'' wrapped its sixth and final season in May 1993. Its cancellation was partially blamed on conflict between producers and executives at ABC. As Kevin matured, the producers wanted the storylines to mature, as well. The executives at ABC, though, felt uncomfortable with more explicit content given the time slot, saying, "We felt it was inappropriate to present Kevin's awakening because of the setting in the 1970s, the gentle tone of the series, and most importantly, the 8 pm time period." Bob Brush noted, "When Kevin became 16 and 17, there were really things he needed to get to that we couldn't do at 8 pm, especially with the kind of venerable cachet that the show had obtained with its audience. We would get notes from the network saying, "You could do this on any show besides ''The Wonder Years''." Other reasons for the show's cancellation were escalating costs and declining ratings. The cast's salary increases, coupled with location shooting (which was due to the producers wanting to reflect Kevin obtaining his driver's license), led to Brush claiming that they were spending $1.2 million an episode. The final episode aired on May 12, 1993. Bob Brush noted that the finale was not what he would have wanted it to be, but because the cast and crew were unsure at the time of filming if the sixth season would be the last, he was forced to have the ending be open-ended until the recording of Daniel Stern's narration.Archived a
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Wayback Machine
Fans were somewhat disappointed with the ending, in particular the revelation that Kevin and Winnie do not end up as a couple. Brush acknowledged this disappointment, saying, "Some viewers eresurprised that nothing works out the way your fondest wish would be," and explained, "The message I wanted in there is that that's part of the beauty of life. It's fine to say, 'I'd like everything to be just the way it was when I was 15 and I was happy,' but it seemed more nurturing to me to say that we leave these things behind and we go on to forge new lives for ourselves."


Lawsuit

As the show was in the process of wrapping its final season, a costume designer on the show named Monique Long filed a sexual harassment charge against stars Fred Savage and Jason Hervey. The suit brought forward unwanted publicity to the show. In the end, the case was settled out of court with Savage stating that he was "completely exonerated" and adding that it was a "terrible experience". In January 2018, Alley Mills said that a "completely ridiculous" sexual harassment lawsuit against Savage and Hervey was a significant factor in the show's cancellation.


Release


Syndication and streaming

Reruns of the show aired in syndication between September 1992 and September 1997.
Nick at Nite Nick at Nite (stylized as nick@nite) is an American nighttime basic cable television channel that broadcasts over the channel space of Nickelodeon. It typically broadcasts Mondays to Thursday nights from 9 p.m. - 6:30 a.m. Eastern Time Zone, ET/Pac ...
then reran the show from October 13, 1997, to January 21, 2001. It also reran on
The New TNN Paramount Network is an American basic cable television channel owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Media Networks. The network's headquarters are located at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Los Angeles. The channel was o ...
(January 22, 2001, to September 28, 2001),
ABC Family The American cable television, cable and satellite television network that is now known as Freeform (TV channel), Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through several different owners (and s ...
(November 12, 2001, to October 2, 2004),
Ion Television Ion Television is an American broadcast television network owned by the Katz Broadcasting subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company. The network first began broadcasting on August 31, 1998, as Pax TV, focusing primarily on family-oriented enter ...
(April 2, 2007, to October 4, 2007), and
The Hub The Hub may refer to: Places * The Hub, Bronx, an area of the South Bronx, New York, known for its convergence of subway and bus lines * The Hub (Edinburgh), former church in Edinburgh that is now home to the Edinburgh International Festival * T ...
(October 11, 2010, to August 31, 2012). The complete series is currently available on streaming service,
Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...
. In Canada, the show aired on CTS Ontario from September 2010 until September 2, 2011. In Australia, the show aired on Network Ten between 1989 and 1995, then from March 31, 2012 on
ABC1 ABC TV, formerly known as ABC1, is an Australian national public television network. It is owned and operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and is the flagship ABC Television network. The headquarters of the ABC TV channel an ...
. In the Philippines, the show aired on
GMA Network GMA Network (Global Media Arts or simply GMA) is a Philippine free-to-air television and radio network. It is the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network, Inc. Its first broadcast on television was on October 29, 1961. GMA Network (f ...
. In Spain, the series initially aired Mondays 9:30 pm on TVE2 (now
La2 LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on Figure 8 ( ...
) as part of the Monday-night comedy block, which also featured ''
Murphy Brown ''Murphy Brown'' is an American television sitcom created by Diane English that premiered on November 14, 1988, on CBS. The series stars Candice Bergen as the eponymous Murphy Brown, a famous investigative journalist and news anchor for ''FYI'', a ...
''. The series was later promoted to main channel
TVE1 La 1 (, ''The One'') is a Spanish free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Televisión Española (TVE), the television division of state-owned public broadcaster Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE). It is the corporation's flagship te ...
, where it aired Fridays 9:00 pm. Years later, in the late '90s, commercial station
Antena 3TV Antena 3 is a Spanish terrestrial television channel part of Atresmedia Televisión, of which it is the flagship station. Its current headquarters are located in San Sebastián de los Reyes. Some of the most popular programmes broadcast by Ant ...
recovered the series and aired it first in its 2:00 pm comedy hour, later relocating it to a 5:30 pm slot as part of the youth macroshow ''La Merienda''.


Home media

Initially, the first four episodes were released on two VHS cassettes by Anchor Bay in 1997, with most of the music intact (a select few songs, however, were re-recordings). In the coming years, fees for licensing music prevented further episodes from being released on VHS. The two volumes that were released on VHS were later released on DVD in 2000. Four episodes of the series were also included in two official "best-of" DVD sets (''The Best of The Wonder Years'' and ''The Christmas Wonder Years''), without much of the original music. For many years, full seasons of ''The Wonder Years'' remained unreleased on DVD due to
music licensing Music licensing is the licensed use of copyrighted music. Music licensing is intended to ensure that the owners of copyrights on musical works are compensated for certain uses of their work. A purchaser has limited rights to use the work without ...
issues. Because of this issue, ''The Wonder Years'' routinely appeared on the list of TV shows in high demand for a DVD release. In a blog update on the
Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
website on March 30, 2011, and a press release issued the next day, Netflix stated that they would be adding ''The Wonder Years'' to their instant streaming service. The other three
20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...
series noted as part of the deal were added to the
Watch Instantly Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
service by April 2, 2011 while ''The Wonder Years'' remained unavailable. On October 1, 2011, 114 full-length episodes of the series were added to Netflix. The clip show from the end of Season 4, which was released on DVD, was not included. On September 26, 2011,
Amazon Prime Amazon Prime is a paid subscription service from Amazon which is available in various countries and gives users access to additional services otherwise unavailable or available at a premium to other Amazon customers. Services include same, one- ...
's
streaming video Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos without a traditional video playback device and the constraints of a typical static broadcasting schedule. In the 20th century, broadcasting in the form of o ...
service announced it would be adding ''The Wonder Years'', describing the series as "available on digital video for the first time", although Netflix added the series ahead of Amazon's release. All 115 episodes (including the clip show) became available to Prime members starting October 6, 2011. On both digital streaming services, portions of the soundtrack have been replaced. The show's opening theme has been replaced on Netflix and Amazon with the version of the song that played in the UK and other overseas airings. The majority of the show's soundtrack remains unchanged. Songs such as "
Light My Fire "Light My Fire" is a song by the American rock band the Doors. It was recorded in August 1966 and released in January 1967 on their eponymous debut album. Released as an edited single on April 24, 1967, it spent three weeks at number one on t ...
" by The Doors and "
Foxy Lady "Foxy Lady" (or alternatively "Foxey Lady") is a song by the Jimi Hendrix Experience. It first appeared on their 1967 debut album ''Are You Experienced'' and was later issued as their third single in the U.S. with the alternate spelling. It is o ...
" by Jimi Hendrix have been replaced by generic sound-alikes with different lyrics. On February 11, 2014, StarVista/Time Life announced the upcoming DVD release of the complete series in the second half of the year, noting that it was "painstakingly securing the rights for virtually every song." On June 11, packaging details for complete set were revealed. The packaging consists of a miniature school locker featuring a replica yearbook with signatures from cast members, behind-the-scenes photos, and classic show memorabilia. Also included are two notebooks similar to those carried by the two lead characters, each featuring detailed episode information, production photos, all 115 episodes, and over 15 hours of bonus features on 26 DVDs. Customized ''Wonder Years'' magnets are also included. On September 30, 2014, the complete series was released to those who ordered the set through mail order from Time Life/Star Vista. A box set for the first four seasons was also released. October 10, 2014, though, was considered the official release date. On October 7, 2014, Star Vista released season one on DVD in Region 1 for the first time. Season two was released on February 3, 2015. Season three was released on May 26, 2015. Season four was released on January 12, 2016. Season five was released on May 24, 2016. Season six was released on September 27, 2016. On October 6, 2015, Star Vista released ''The Wonder Years- The Complete Series: Collectors Box Set'' and ''The Wonder Years- The Complete Series'' DVD collections in a wide general retail release. On May 9, 2016, Fabulous Films released ''The Wonder Years - The Deluxe Edition'' on 26 DVDs in the UK. It was intended to be the first release to contain every episode in its original transmission presentation, although in the end this did not happen. The set includes over 23 hours of bonus material.


Reception


Critical reception

On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the series has an approval rating of 100% with an average rating of 10.00/10 based on 9 reviews. On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, the series has a score of 82 out of 100, based on 9 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim." In 1997, "My Father's Office" was ranked number 29 on ''TV Guide''s 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time, and in the 2009 revised list, the pilot episode was ranked number 43. In 2016, ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' ranked ''The Wonder Years'' number 63 on its list of 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. In 2017, James Charisma of '' Paste'' ranked the show's opening sequence number 14 on a list of the 75 Best TV Title Sequences of All Time. As of recent years, many critics and fans consider ''The Wonder Years'' to be a classic with tremendous impact on the industry over the years, inspiring many other shows and how they are structured.


Accolades


Book

In 1990, the book ''The Wonder Years - Growing up in the Sixties'' by Edward Gross was published by
Pioneer Books New Media Distribution/Irjax Enterprises was a comic book distributor and publisher active from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s. In 1978, the company's legal actions against the dominant distributor of the era, Sea Gate Distributors, widened the fi ...
(). It contains information about the creation and production of the show, interviews with cast and crew, and an extensive episode guide (up to the middle of the 4th season when the book was published). While long out of print and hard to find, the author gave permission to a fan website to publish the book online for free in its entirety.


Remake

In
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
, the production company BE-TV made a version for
Caracol Televisión Caracol Televisión (known as Caracol and previously as Canal Caracol) is a Colombian free-to-air television network owned by Caracol Medios, a unit of Grupo Valorem. It is one of the leading private TV networks in Colombia, alongside Canal RCN ...
also titled ''Los años maravillosos'' (''The Wonder Years''), set in the 1980s and with a Colombian cast. The series was a critical failure.


Reboot

On July 8, 2020, ABC announced that they were rebooting the series with film director, producer, and screenwriter
Lee Daniels Lee Daniels (born December 24, 1959) is an American film and television producer, director and screenwriter. His first producer credit was '' Monster's Ball'' (2001), for which Halle Berry won the Academy Award for Best Actress, making Daniels ...
, longtime television writer and producer Saladin Patterson, and original series star Fred Savage as executive producers. Savage would also direct the pilot episode, and original series co-creator
Neal Marlens Neal (Neil) is a given masculine name and surname of Gaelic and Irish origin. The name is an Anglicisation of the Irish Niall which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "hono ...
will be a consultant on the project. The new series would once again take place in the late 1960s—but this time, it would focus on the life of a black middle-class family living in
Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...
. In March 2021, it was announced that
Don Cheadle Donald Frank Cheadle Jr. (; born November 29, 1964) is an American actor. He is the recipient of  multiple accolades, including two Grammy Awards, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. He has also earned ...
would serve as the series narrator. In May 2021, ABC officially picked up the series. The series premiered on September 22, 2021.


See also

*
Young Sheldon ''Young Sheldon'' is an American List of coming-of-age stories, coming-of-age sitcom television series created by Chuck Lorre and Steven Molaro for CBS. The series, set in the late 1980s and early 1990s, is a Spin-off (media), spin-off prequel ...


References


External links

*
Episode and Music Guide
plus the official ''The Wonder Years'' book by Edward Gross
Documentary ''The Wonder Years – Coming of Age''
at the-wonder-years.com


The Show "The Wonder Years", Cast, Pictures, and Trivia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wonder Years, The 1980s American comedy-drama television series 1980s American high school television series 1980s American teen drama television series 1980s American teen sitcoms 1988 American television series debuts 1990s American comedy-drama television series 1990s American high school television series 1990s American teen drama television series 1990s American teen sitcoms 1993 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming Best Musical or Comedy Series Golden Globe winners Coming-of-age television shows English-language television shows Middle school television series Peabody Award-winning television programs Period family drama television series Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series winners Super Bowl lead-out shows Television series about families Television series about teenagers Television series by New World Television Television series created by Carol Black Television series created by Neal Marlens Television series set in the 1960s Television series set in the 1970s Television shows set in the United States