Step by Step (TV series)

Step By Step is an American television sitcom which aired on ABC from September 20, 1991 to August 15, 1997 and with a network change moved to CBS from September 19, 1997 to June 26, 1998. The series starred Patrick Duffy and Suzanne Somers as the heads of a large stepfamily. The show was a part of ABC's TGIF lineup from 1991 until 1997 before moving to the CBS Block Party lineup from 1997–1998.

Premise

The premise of the show, set in Port Washington, Wisconsin, is about re-building one's life one step at a time after things have fallen apart. Frank Lambert, a divorced contractor with three children, impulsively marries Carol Foster (Suzanne Somers), a widowed beautician who has three children of her own. Both of them were residents of Port Washington, and the two met while vacationing separately in Jamaica. In the pilot episode, Frank mentions that he "followed" Carol to Jamaica after speaking with her travel agent, Velma. Their children were surprised and angered when they learned of the marriage.

The title of the show has a double meaning. One meaning deals with the main idea of the show, which is getting re-married after the divorce/death of a spouse, and putting your life back together. The other meaning is that every family member is "step-" to half of the rest of the family as in stepbrother, stepmother, stepsister, stepfather, stepdaughter, and stepson.

Stories depicted typical situations of a new blended family trying to get to know each other and become friends. This was often easier said than done, especially in the case of J.T. and Dana, who could barely stand each other. Many situations mirrored those of The Brady Bunch.

The show lasted for seven seasons, and the main cast changed as the storyline progressed. Cody, who Dana liked even less than she did J.T., left Port Washington in 1996 to travel the world. This was done because series star Sasha Mitchell (a regular appearance since the first season), was forced out following allegations of domestic violence; he was later acquitted of those allegations. Mitchell returned for the final episode of the series in 1998.

The show's biggest change came in 1995, when Carol announced she was pregnant. In the 1994–1995 season finale, she gave birth to Lilly, the only child to take both the "Foster" and "Lambert" surnames. Like many other sitcom babies, Lilly (Emily Mae Young, 1997–98) was suddenly aged five years after one season as an infant (Kristina & Lauren Meyering, 1995–96). In 1997, J.T.'s friend Rich Halke (Jason Marsden, who became a permanent fixture in the opening credits) moved in with the family after becoming Dana's boyfriend; also during that time, Al took a serious interest in acting.

Josh Byrne (Brendan Lambert) appeared less and less as the show progressed, especially after Lilly's birth. When the show moved from ABC to CBS, his character disappeared; the series' producers later admitted in a TV Guide interview that despite his absence, the Lamberts would still refer to their "seven children", making Brendan an unseen character for the final season.

Cast

Foster family

• Carol (Suzanne Somers) – high-strung wife/mother who eventually learns to "cut loose". Carol owns her own beautician studio with her mother Ivy and her sister Penny which is connected to her home. Eventually, with Frank's help, she opens a bigger studio at a stand-alone location. Carol also enjoys singing and is seen doing so in a couple of episodes.
• Dana (Staci Keanan) – smart, but a perfectionist. She is also known as a feminist and wisecracker and is openly hostile to the Lamberts, particularly J.T., Frank and Cody. Later in the series, she dates J.T.'s best friend, Rich. She also made a small appearance in the Boy Meets World episode "The Happiest Show on Earth". Her biggest flaw is her prejudicial unwillingness to accept that intelligent people are not always going to fit within her mold, although she later learns to live and be patient with them, particularly after Rich (who in many ways is very much like J.T.) becomes her boyfriend. She also has a strong sense of morals and is quick to call on someone when she thinks they are wrong.
• Karen (Angela Watson) – an aspiring model, who is very vain, yet could be level-headed at times.
• Mark (Christopher Castile) – A nerd, who is into computers and academics. Later on, he matures to be "a normal teenager" with "manly" friends and even a girlfriend, although he remains a very high academic achiever. Also constantly wears sweatshirts around his waist, sometimes with a fanny pack to match.

During the first season, the Foster family has two additional characters — Aunt Penny Baker (Patrika Darbo), Carol's man-hungry younger sister; and "Grandma" Ivy Baker (Peggy Rea), their outspoken mother. Both characters were dropped for the second season.

Lambert family

• Frank (Patrick Duffy) – A laid-back husband and father, who was an avid sports fan, especially of the Milwaukee Bucks and Green Bay Packers. Frank was also a Contractor who had his own construction company. Carol helps him to become more responsible and serious while he teaches Carol to loosen up.
• John Thomas, a.k.a. "J.T." (Brandon Call) – A slacker who was into sports and was academically challenged. Like his stepsister Dana, he resented his new stepfamily members, particularly Dana (his favorite name to insult her was "Barky"). During the fourth season, it is revealed he is dyslexic. In his very well remembered quote he exclaims, "Hey great news everyone, I have dyslexia!"
• Alicia, aka "Al" (Christine Lakin) – A tomboyish all-American girl, who later matured in her own right, and learned to be feminine without giving up who she was. Several episodes during the series' final season centered on her newfound interest in acting.
• Brendan (Josh Byrne; eventually disappeared from the series after season 6) – shy, carefree youngster
• Cody (Sasha Mitchell; appearances in season 1, seasons 2–5, and 1 episode in season 7) – Frank's nephew, whom J.T. looked up to. An eccentric adolescent, Cody had a crush on Dana and lived in his van in the driveway. However, he showed bouts of wisdom on numerous occasions and had a heart of gold. He had a few catchphrases, such as "Dude!" "Dude-sy!" "No way!" and "Ch-yeah!" Cody's off-screen departure in Season 6 was explained as him taking a job overseas. He later returned without warning in a Season 7 episode – much to the other characters' surprise.

Other cast members

• Lilly Foster-Lambert (Lauren and Kristina Meyerling; season 5, Emily Mae Young; seasons 6–7) – first child conceived by Frank and Carol together.
• Rich Halke (Jason Marsden; appearance in season 5, seasons 6–7) – J.T.'s best friend. He could be both a slacker and seriously devoted. He later dated Dana (to the others' dismay). The character was named after a former writer of the series.
• Samantha "Sam" Milano (Alexandra Adi; seasons 6–7) – J.T.'s one-time girlfriend, introduced in the season six episode "She's the One". She worked as a mechanic in a garage.
• Jean-Luc Rieupeyroux (Bronson Pinchot; season 6) – a male beautician, and Carol's business partner. He was brought in to replace Sasha Mitchell's character on the series, but disappeared when Pinchot took the title role in Meego.
• Matt Crawford (Andrew Keegan; season 5) – Al's boyfriend for a few episodes. In the episode "Snow Bunnies," he turned down an unforgettable evening with a popular blond named Stephanie Leifer, who was nicknamed the "Love Boat", showing his deep loyalty to Al.
• Jake "Flash" Gordon (Jeff Juday; season 5) – One of Frank's employees, he only appears in the final three episodes of Season 5 and in the two-part season five finale "We're Going to Disney World", tries to break a Russian man's world record for riding all Disney World's rides and attending their attractions.

Episodes

Production

The series was created and executive produced by William Bickley and Michael Warren, and developed and executive produced by Thomas L. Miller and Robert L. Boyett, who also produced the popular sitcoms Family Matters, Full House, Perfect Strangers, Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, Mork & Mindy and The Hogan Family.^[1] The series was produced by Bickley-Warren Productions, Miller-Boyett Productions in association with Lorimar Television (who produced the show from 1991 to 1993, when the show became produced by Warner Bros. Television). The casting of Patrick Duffy fulfilled a contract obligation Lorimar made to give him a new show after his previous one, Dallas (also produced by Lorimar), had ended its run. The show was created off of the idea of combining two of the most popular TV stars from the 1970s known for their good looks (Duffy and Somers) to star as parents to attract adult viewers with current teen celebrities (Keanan from My Two Dads and Going Places, Call from Baywatch and Mitchell from Dallas) to star as their children to attract kids and teen viewers.

Christopher Castile and Staci Keanan had previously appeared on the Miller/Boyett-produced ABC sitcom Going Places, which debuted the season prior to Step by Step. Keanan was the first of the two Going Places stars to join the development of Step by Step in the spring of 1991. Castile, who had played a gawky child on Going Places, brought the same character traits to the Mark Foster role, which was speculated to be Miller/Boyett's continued attempt to give Steve Urkel of Family Matters a white counterpart.

When Step by Step was originally cast, child actor Jarrett Lennon had the role of Mark Foster. After shooting the first pilot, which remains unaired, Lennon was dismissed from the role, leading to the producers replacing him with Castile (who had blonde hair like on-screen mother Somers, as opposed to Lennon having brown hair). Most of Lennon's pilot scenes were reshot with Castile, but during Step by Step's first season, footage of Lennon remained in the show's opening title sequence. Lennon only appeared in far away shots with the Lambert/Foster family or, in the case of Suzanne Somers' credit scene, fleetingly appearing at the bottom of camera view as the kids huddled around Somers. All traces of Lennon were edited out by season two. In 1996, these two actors had the tables turned on each other; Castile was the original voice of Eugene Horowitz on the Nickelodeon cartoon Hey Arnold!, but after a few episodes was replaced by none other than Lennon, who voiced Eugene for the remainder of the first season.

The creators of Going Places, Howard Adler and Robert Griffard, would end up as the show's co-executive producers and writers until the fifth season of Step by Step; Adler and Griffard later wrote an episode as freelancers in the seventh season. Patrick Duffy directed several episodes of the series, starting with the second season. The house shown in establishing shots for scenes set at the Lambert-Foster house is located at 2011 Fletcher Ave. in South Pasadena, California though the series was actually filmed at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California.

Along with Family Matters, Step by Step moved to CBS in the fall of 1997, as that network attempted to build its own Friday night lineup of family-friendly situation comedies called "The CBS Block Party". The ratings, which had been declining for several seasons, continued to fall, and the show ended its run in June 1998. There was no official series finale, although the last show was about Frank and Carol considering selling the house.

Theme song and opening sequence

Theme song

The show's theme song "Second Time Around" was performed by Theresa James and Jesse Frederick, which the latter co-wrote with Bennett Salvay (both wrote the themes for other Miller-Boyett sitcoms, such as Full House, Perfect Strangers and Family Matters). Season one was the only season using the full version, becoming progressively shorter afterwards until it was down to 1 minute, 6 seconds in season four. The fourth verse was cut and the chorus was truncated in season two, the kid chorus accompanying Jesse Frederick was reduced by season three and in season four, was cut entirely along with the beginning guitar portion. The theme was dropped entirely by season six (the final season on ABC). However, when the show moved to CBS for its final season, along with Family Matters, the theme returned with only the chorus and the long instrumental at the end (which was lengthened from the season five version) remaining.

Opening sequence

The opening sequence featured the Lambert-Fosters at an amusement park, with the cast's first names and surnames sliding together from opposite sides of the screen (save for Angela Watson, Christine Lakin, Christopher Castile and Josh Byrne, who were credited together; Lakin and Castile's names slid from the right side of the screen, while Watson and Byrne's slid from the left). From seasons one through three near the end of the sequence, the family, except for Mark and Ivy (in season one; Cody from then on until early season four), were shown on a roller coaster with Mark and Ivy (later Cody) waving at the rest of the family and vice versa, cutting to a shot of the coaster as the camera zooms out with the names of the producers shown over it. For the first three seasons and season four's first two episodes, the credits began with the family SUV passing a sign, "Port Washington, Wisconsin. Population: 9,338"; this scene was actually filmed on Meridian Ave. in South Pasadena, California (note the museum and antiques shop, nearby the Metro Gold Line station). For season four, the scenes featuring the six younger cast members were reshot; while Patrick Duffy, Suzanne Somers and Sasha Mitchell's videoshots were left unchanged, the end of the sequence went straight to the pan shot of the roller coaster (this end scene was also used in the closing credits for several episodes during the first five seasons). After the second episode of season four, the early portion was dropped; the sequence started with the real theme park's main coaster zooming down the track toward the camera, and also dropped was the portion where Carol and Frank are standing on a bridge next to a water ride, splashing them as it came down the track.

The scenes comprising the opening credits were filmed at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. A CGI lake is inserted into the space in the foreground where the park's parking lot really is, as the camera pans away from the park (this is noticeable as when the camera aimed at the coaster shifts slightly right, the lake shifts slightly to the left). The names of cast members and some producers were shown in the opening teaser for season six and the theme song was dropped entirely. When the show moved to CBS for season seven, an opening sequence returned that featured the amusement park, now with the cast members shown in still pictures on a photo booth picture strip.

The portion of the sequence showing the Lambert-Fosters walking through the amusement park with the show title animation was used as a beginning-of-show bumper, shown immediately before the teaser scene for the show's first five seasons (for the final two seasons, it was replaced with a kitchen scene with the Lambert-Fosters as they watch Lilly blow the candles out of a birthday cake).

Syndication

In September 1995, Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution began distributing Step by Step for broadcast in off-network syndication.

In the United States, reruns of the series aired on ABC Family from 2001–2010, and became one of the cable channel's longest-running off-network syndicated programs in its history. Reruns began in 2001 (on what was then known as Fox Family), airing in various timeslots during its run ranging from late afternoon to the morning hours. For much of its run on the channel, Step by Step aired twice daily in an hour-long block, but by early 2009, weekday reruns had been reduced to a single airing on weekdays (at 9 a.m./ET, as the lead in to the CBN-produced Living the Life). However, for several months afterward, episodes continued to be double-run on weekend mornings until September 2009, when it was replaced by Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and family-oriented movies. In March 2010, ABC Family's contract expired after nine years, and Step by Step was replaced by Grounded for Life in its 9 a.m./ET weekday timeslot).^[2]

Throughout its run on ABC Family, the tag scene was generally omitted, replaced by marginalized credits to allow the airing of promos for ABC Family programming, even though the shorter instrumental version of the show's theme was heard over the closing credits for all episodes only during the first season and most episodes from season two onward replaced the instrumental theme with a tag scene over the closing credits.

DVD releases

Warner Home Video released a 6-episode Television Favorites collection on June 27, 2006.^[3] Much like other TV shows from the Television Favorites series, SBS has gone out of print. There are no current plans by Warner Home Video for complete season releases.

References

External links

• Step by Step at the Internet Movie Database
• Step by Step at TV.com
• Step by Step at epguides.com