| Punky Brewster |
Cast of "Punky Brewster", starting from the bottom-right going counter-clockwise: Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brewster), Casey Ellison (Allen Anderson), George Gaynes (Henry Warnimont), Susie Garrett (Betty Johnson), Cherie Johnson (Cherie Johnson), Brandon (Brandon, the Wonder Dog), and (center) Ami Foster (Margeaux Kramer) |
| Genre |
Situation Comedy |
| Camera setup |
| Picture format |
| Running time |
approx. 0:24 (per episode) |
| Creator(s) |
David W. Duclon |
| Developer(s) |
| Executive Producer(s) |
| Starring |
Soleil Moon Frye
as Punky Brewster
George Gaynes
as Henry Warnimont
Susie Garrett
as Betty Johnson
Cherie Johnson
as Cherie Johnson
Ami Foster
as Margeaux Kramer
Casey Ellison
as Allen Anderson
Brandon
as Brandon, the Wonder Dog
T.K. Carter
as Michael "Mike" Fulton |
| Narrated by |
| Country of origin |
USA |
| Original network/channel |
NBC |
| Original run |
September 16, 1984 – May 27, 1988 |
| No. of episodes |
88 |
About the Show
Punky Brewster was a popular children's television comedy show in the 1980s. The show was run on NBC from 1984 to 1986 and again in first-run syndication from 1987 to 1988. Overall, there were a total of 88 episodes produced. The show had an extended life in reruns until it stopped airing in 1996.
The title character was named after a childhood crush of then-NBC programming chief Brandon Tartikoff. The real-life Punky was tapped to play a teacher in one episode.
Story
Penelope "Punky" Brewster was a warm, funny and bright girl, orphaned by her parents at the age of 7. Punky's father walked out on her family. Soon later, Punky was abandoned by her mother who took her to a Chicago supermarket and disappeared. Punky was alone with her only companion, and faithful dog, Brandon (named after Tartikoff).
Afterwards, Punky discovered a vacant apartment in a building managed by Chicago photographer Henry Warnimont (George Gaynes). Punky quickly became friends with Cherie Johnson (Cherie Johnson), an African-American girl who lived upstairs in Henry's building with her grandmother Betty Johnson (Susie Garrett). Once Henry discovered Punky in the empty apartment adjacent his, the older bachelor heard her story. The relationship between the two blossomed, and Henry ended up adopting Punky. Her other friends were geeky Allen Anderson (Casey Ellison) and stuck-up rich girl Margeaux Kramer (Ami Foster).
Trivia
Punky Brewster was played by Soleil Moon Frye. Fred Gwynne auditioned to play Henry, but lost to George Gaynes. Gaynes later became well-known as the elderly, bumbling commandant in the Police Academy movies.
Probably one of the most memorable episodes was built around the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, in which Punky hears about the deaths and her dreams of being an astronaut are nearly squashed. In the end, however, her schoolteacher and Henry, along with guest star Buzz Aldrin, both tell her that she should still follow her dreams. The show also launched the Just Say No anti-drugs awareness campaign, following from an episode where older children offer Punky drugs.
Seasons one and two of Punky Brewster are currently available on DVD in Region 1.
Lyrics
Every Time I Turn Around
Written by Judy Hart Angelo and Gary Portnoy
Maybe the world is blind,
Or just a little unkind.
Don't know.
Seems you can't be sure
Of anything anymore.
Although,
You maybe lonely and then,
One day you're smiling again.
Every time I turn around,
I see the girl who turns my world around
Standing there ...
Everytime I turn around,
Her spirit's lifting me right off the ground.
What's gonna be?
Guess we'll just wait and see.
Spin-Off
Punky Brewster and the Glomer from the cartoon series.
It's Punky Brewster!, an animated spin-off with the original cast appeared on Saturday Mornings, produced by Ruby-Spears Productions in the mid-1980s.
This series included the addition of one new animal character known as the Glomer; a creature that came from a world at the end of the rainbow. The Glomer had various magical powers and one of them was the ability to transport Punky and her friends, Margaux, Cherie and Allen, to any part of the Earth instantly.
The series ran from 14 September 1985 to 5 September 1987, and a total of 26 episodes were produced.
Lyrics:
I ran to the end of a rainbow's eye
There wasn't any pot of gold.
And there I found a new friend who's two feet tall
One hundred and four years old
Glomer is an orphan
He was left behind
And a lot like Punky
He was one of a kind
Punky Brewster
Come on it's just a fantasy, you know-uh-oh
Punky Brewster
I always want you here with me I know-uh-oh
Punky Brewster
No one's gonna understand
Punky Brewster
Together we're the best of friends
Punky Brewster
I always want you here with me you know-uh-oh.
External link
The content of this page is retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punky_Brewster under GFDL
