Bonnie (TV series)

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Bonnie
Also known asThe Bonnie Hunt Show
GenreSituation comedy
Created byBonnie Hunt
Rob Burnett
Written byBonnie Hunt
Directed byJohn Bowab
StarringBonnie Hunt
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13 (2 unaired)
Production
Executive producersBonnie Hunt
Rob Burnett
David Letterman
ProducersRobert Wright
John Bowab
EditorEvan Wright
Production companiesBob & Alice Productions
Worldwide Pants Incorporated
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseSeptember 22, 1995 (1995-09-22) –
April 7, 1996 (1996-04-07)
Related
The Building (1993)

Bonnie (originally titled The Bonnie Hunt Show) is an American sitcom television series that aired on CBS from September 22, 1995 to April 7, 1996. Bonnie Hunt plays Bonnie Kelly, a television reporter who moves from Wisconsin to take a job with a Chicago television station where she encounters an eclectic group of coworkers.[1]

In addition to the stories concerning Bonnie's life inside and out of the station, each episode includes one of Bonnie's television news features, in which Hunt would improvise interviews with real people attending or involved in current real local events.

Cast[edit]

Production notes[edit]

The series premiered as The Bonnie Hunt Show in September 1995 and aired under that title for the first six episodes before being placed on hiatus in November. Upon returning to the air in March, the show was retitled Bonnie and ran for an additional five episodes in a new Sunday-night timeslot.[2] Despite improved ratings, the show was canceled, and the last two episodes were never aired.[citation needed]

As with Bonnie Hunt's previous short-run 1993 sitcom The Building, The Bonnie exhibited a theatrical sensibility and minor mistakes, accidents and forgotten lines were often preserved in the aired episodes.[citation needed] Cast members Hunt, Don Lake, Tom Virtue and Holly Wortell had all starred in The Building, which was also set in Chicago, produced by David Letterman's Worldwide Pants production company and directed by John Bowab.[3] Hunt created Bonnie with Rob Burnett and wrote most of the episodes.[citation needed]

Hunt's next sitcom Life With Bonnie, created by Hunt and Lake, also featured Hunt, Derwin and Wortell, and it also focused on a Chicago news personality. Virtue had a recurring role on the show and Bowab directed several episodes.[citation needed]

Episodes[edit]

No. Title Directed by Written by Original air date
1"First Day"UnknownRob Burnett and Bonnie HuntSeptember 22, 1995 (1995-09-22)
2"Another Day at the Office"UnknownBonnie HuntSeptember 29, 1995 (1995-09-29)
3"The Phone Call"UnknownSteve Faber and Bob FisherOctober 6, 1995 (1995-10-06)
4"True Lies"UnknownMichael ShortOctober 13, 1995 (1995-10-13)
5"Better Offer"John BowabBonnie Hunt (as Alice Jatczak)October 20, 1995 (1995-10-20)
6"Here's a Little Halloween Twist"UnknownElaine ArataOctober 27, 1995 (1995-10-27)
7"Up All Night"John BowabBonnie Hunt, Elaine Arata, Steve Faber and Bob FisherMarch 10, 1996 (1996-03-10)
8"On the Streets Where You Live"John BowabBonnie HuntMarch 17, 1996 (1996-03-17)
9"Hair Today, Gone Merlot"UnknownBonnie HuntMarch 24, 1996 (1996-03-24)
10"To See or Not to See"UnknownElaine ArataMarch 31, 1996 (1996-03-31)
11"Beginning of the Beginning"UnknownBonnie Hunt and Elaine ArataApril 7, 1996 (1996-04-07)
12"Queen of Hearts"TBDTBDUnaired
13"The Bermuda Triangle"TBDTBDUnaired

Reception[edit]

Kirk Nicewonger called the show "daring" in his review for United Feature Syndicate, he stated the show "has the nerve to shrug off the joke-every-seven-seconds sitcom straitjacket, and it recreates the the way people really speak". He noted how the characters "interrupt each other, and step on one another's lines, creating a naturalistic, almost improvisational atmosphere that works brilliantly".[1] Frazier Moore wrote for the Associated Press that the show is about "friends, faith and cutting the other guy a little slack", and as a result, the show is a "charming sitcom free of sarcasm, breast jokes, insults, gags, meanness and goofballs pretending to be people".[3]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Nicewonger, Kirk (September 22, 1995). "Small-town life runs amok as American Gothic has debut". Hartford Courant. United Feature Syndicate. p. E4.
  2. ^ Moore, Frazier (March 9, 1996). "Quirky but funny 'Bonnie' returns". Television/Radio. The Berkshire Eagle. Associated Press. p. C4.
  3. ^ a b Moore, Frazier (September 26, 1995). "The Bonnie Hunt Show breaks sitcom TV mold". The Beaufort Gazette. Associated Press. p. 10A.

External links[edit]