''Kendra'' is an American

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

series that debuted on the E! cable network, on June 7, 2009. The program is the first

spin-off Spin-off may refer to: *Spin-off (media), a media work derived from an existing work *Corporate spin-off, a type of corporate action that forms a new company or entity * Government spin-off, civilian goods which are the result of military or gove ...

of '' The Girls Next Door'', and documents the life of model Kendra Baskett, a former girlfriend of ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

'' founder

Hugh Hefner Hugh Marston Hefner (April 9, 1926 – September 27, 2017) was an American magazine publisher. He was the founder and editor-in-chief of ''Playboy'' magazine, a publication with revealing photographs and articles which provoked charges of obsc ...

, after moving out of the Playboy Mansion, including her engagement and marriage to

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player

Hank Baskett Henry Randall Baskett III (born September 4, 1982) is a former American football wide receiver who played in the National Football League for the Minnesota Vikings, Philadelphia Eagles and Indianapolis Colts. A native of Clovis, New Mexico, Ba ...

and her adjustment to being a first-time mother. On March 21, 2012, Kendra announced that she had parted ways with E!, as the network "went in a different direction". This was following comments made by then-new E! president Bonnie Hammer in July 2011, where she vowed to "get rid of the more Playboy trashy element" from the network while the final season was completing production. This pledge also led to the cancellation of ''

Holly's World ''Holly's World'' is an American reality television series starring former ''Girls Next Door'' co-star Holly Madison. The series, which follows Madison's new life and career in Las Vegas, premiered December 6, 2009 on the E! cable network with ...

''. The series was then followed up with '' Kendra on Top'', which aired on

WE tv We TV (stylized as WE tv) is an American pay television channel. Owned by AMC Networks since its September 1997 launch, it is oriented mainly towards lifestyle and entertainment programming. As of February 2015, approximately 85.2 million Ameri ...

from 2012-2017.

Synopsis

''Kendra'' follows the antics of '' The Girls Next Door's'' Kendra Wilkinson. The blonde bombshell finds herself at a crossroads in her life as she leaves behind the luxuries and amenities of the legendary Playboy Mansion and ventures out to live on her own for the very first time. Newly married to

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

wide receiver

, Kendra struggles to find a balance between being a housewife, her new-found domestic duties and the fun, uninhibited lifestyle she has always lived.

Development

While shooting Season Five of "The Girls Next Door", Kendra confided to Executive Producer

Kevin Burns Kevin Burns (June 18, 1955September 27, 2020), was an American television and film producer, director, and screenwriter. His work can be seen on A&E, National Geographic Channel, E!, Animal Planet, AMC, Bravo, WE tv, Travel Channel, Lifetim ...

that she would like to move out of the Playboy Mansion and move on with her life. Burns asked her if she was open to the idea of having a show of her own and, with her blessing, took the idea to E! The concept would involve "Kendra ...

oving Oving may refer to: *Oving, Buckinghamshire *Oving, West Sussex Oving is a small village, and civil and ecclesiastical parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. The village lies about east of the city of Chichester. The civil p ...

out and

iving Iving may refer to: *Intravenous therapy Intravenous therapy (abbreviated as IV therapy) is a medical technique that administers fluids, medications and nutrients directly into a person's vein. The intravenous route of administration is commonly ...

with two roommates and it would be something like

Three’s Company ''Three's Company'' is an American sitcom television series that aired for eight seasons on ABC from March 15, 1977, to September 18, 1984. It is based on the British sitcom ''Man About the House''. The story revolves around three single roomm ...

with her being a hot, hip-hop version of

Suzanne Somers Suzanne Marie Somers (née Mahoney; born October 16, 1946) is an American actress, author, singer, businesswoman, and health spokesperson. She appeared in the television role of Chrissy Snow on ''Three's Company'' and as Carol Foster Lambert on ...

". However once Kendra revealed to Burns in September 2008 that she was in fact in a relationship (and weeks later, engaged), he realized the show he had envisioned wouldn't be viable and, instead, "ended up

ith The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...

a romance between endraand Hank and their engagement".

Cast

* Kendra Baskett (b."Kendra Leigh Wilkinson" June 12, 1985

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

) She is the former star of ''The Girls Next Door'' (along with

Holly Madison Holly Madison (born Holly Sue Cullen; December 23, 1979) is an American television personality, best known as a former girlfriend of Hugh Hefner and for her appearance in the reality television show ''The Girls Next Door''. She also starred in h ...

and

Bridget Marquardt Bridget Marquardt (born September 25, 1974) is an American television personality and model, known for her role in the reality TV series ''The Girls Next Door'', which depicted her life as one of ''Playboy'' founder Hugh Hefner's girlfriends. A ...

) and a former girlfriend of

. She has moved out of the Playboy Mansion and had rented a house in the valley of Los Angeles, California. In mid-2009 Kendra gave birth to a baby boy named Henry Baskett IV (born December 11, 2009) with husband Hank Baskett while living in Indianapolis, Indiana. *

(b."Henry "Hank" Baskett III" September 4, 1982 Clovis, New Mexico) He is Wilkinson's new husband. He moved in with Wilkinson on his off season from football, and the two were wed on June 27. The couple decided to move to Philadelphia to raise their baby boy due to Baskett's football commitments; they later moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, and then back to Philadelphia. The two divorced in 2018. *Hank Baskett IV, aka Baby Hank (b."Henry Baskett IV" December 11, 2009 Indianapolis, Indiana). Little Hank adds excitement and challenges to his parents' lives, from non-stop diaper changes and sleepless nights to first plane trips and separation anxiety.

Supporting cast

*Brittany Binger – Kendra's friend and also a former Playboy Model. *Eddie Bochniak – Kendra's assistant. * Patti Wilkinson – Kendra's mother * Henry Randall "Hank" Baskett, Jr. – Hank's father * Judy Baskett – Hank's mother

Guest stars

(season 1–2,4) * Mary O'Connor (season 1–2,4) – Hugh Hefner's personal assistant at the playboy mansion *

Crystal Harris Crystal Hefner (née Harris, born April 29, 1986) is an American model and television personality. She was the ''Playboy'' Playmate of the Month for December 2009, and is the widow and the third wife of ''Playboy'' publisher Hugh Hefner from D ...

(season 2) * Stacy Burke (season 1) *

Destiny Davis The following women have appeared in the American or international edition of ''Playboy'' magazine as Playmate of the Month. Those who were also named Playmate of the Year are highlighted in green. A common misconception is that Marilyn Monroe w ...

(season 2) *

Amber Campisi The following women have appeared in the American or international edition of ''Playboy'' magazine as Playmate of the Month. Those who were also named Playmate of the Year are highlighted in green. A common misconception is that Marilyn Monroe wa ...

(season 1) * Tiffany Fallon (season 2) *

Aaron Francisco Aaron Francisco (born July 5, 1983) is a former American football safety. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2005. He played college football at BYU. He was also a member of the Carolina Panthers, Indianapolis Co ...

and his wife – Aaron was Hank's former teammate

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

* Jon Dorenbos and his wife, Julie (season 4) – Jon was Hank's former teammate Philadelphia Eagles * Too Short (season 1)

Episodes

Ratings

''Kendra'' premiered as the highest-rated series debut on the network since ''

The Anna Nicole Show ''The Anna Nicole Show'' is an American reality sitcom starring former model and Playboy Playmate Anna Nicole Smith. The series debuted on August 4, 2002 on E! and ran for three seasons. The first season was the most watched show on the network ...

'' in 2002. The show out-performed all premiere episodes of ''The Girls Next Door'' including last season's debut by 76% in the adult demographic. Its success had a knock on effect, helping to boost the second-season premiere of another show on the E! network, '' Denise Richards: It's Complicated'' which attracted a series high of 1.5 million viewers. The first season averaged 2.6 million viewers and a 1.8 rating among adults 18–49. The final episode of the season, which featured Kendra's wedding, averaged more than 2.1 million total viewers and scored a 1.7 household rating, the highest first-season finale since ''The Anna Nicole Show'' in 2002. The second season premiered to 2.7 million viewers, but this later dropped to 1.7 million by the eighth episode and then continued to drop in subsequent episodes. The third-season premiere was viewed by 2.27 million viewers which was down from the previous season premiere. By the third episode, ratings were down 41.85% from the premiere and reached a then-season low with only 1.320 million viewers but quickly rebounded the following week giving the highest ratings since the premiere. By the seventh episode, the season reached a new low with 1.243 million viewers. To date the season has averaged 1.720 million viewers. For the fourth and final season on E!, ''Kendra'' was initially moved from her regular 10pm time slot to 11pm where she managed to pull in more than one million viewers per week. But when the show's 10pm lead-in, ''Dirty Soap'' failed to deliver an audience, ''Kendra'' was moved back to its original time slot where it peaked to a 2.0HH rating following the hugely rated Kim Kardashian wedding special.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kendra (TV Series) 2009 American television series debuts 2000s American reality television series 2010s American reality television series 2011 American television series endings E! original programming English-language television shows Television shows set in Los Angeles Television series by 20th Century Fox Television Reality television spin-offs Television series by Alta Loma Entertainment American television spin-offs