| What's Happening Now!! | |
|---|---|
What's Happening Now!! Logo |
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| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Eric Monte |
| Written by | Eric Monte |
| Directed by | Michael Schultz |
| Starring | Ernest Thomas Haywood Nelson Fred Berry (1985-1986) Shirley Hemphill Anne-Marie Johnson Reina King (1985-1986) Danielle Spencer Martin Lawrence (1987-1988) Darius McCrary (1987-1988) |
| Composer(s) | Henry Mancini Bruce Miller |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 66 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Michael S. Baser Mike Milligan Kim Weiskopf |
| Producer(s) | Larry Balmagia Bob Peete Michael S. Baser Kim Weiskopf |
| Running time | 22 Minutes (30 Minutes includes, commercials) |
| Production company(s) | Columbia Pictures Television LBS Communications, Inc. |
| Distributor | Colex Enterprises (1985-1987) Coca-Cola Telecommunications (1987-1988) LBS Communications, Inc. Columbia Pictures Television (1988-1996) Columbia TriStar Television (1996-2002) Sony Pictures Television (2002-present) The Program Exchange (2006-present) |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | Syndication |
| Original run | September 7, 1985 – March 26, 1988 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | What's Happening!! |
What's Happening Now!! is an American television sitcom spinoff of What's Happening!! It ran in syndication from 1985 to 1988. Like the previous series, What's Happening Now!! is loosely based on the motion picture Cooley High (written by Eric Monte and directed by Michael Schultz). The show often aired in transitional hours where stations would go from afternoon cartoons to evening sitcoms.
Contents |
In the series, Roger "Raj" Thomas (played by Ernest Thomas) has become a fledgling writer. He bought half of the restaurant Rob's Place (renamed Rob's) and was running the business with Shirley (Shirley Hemphill), making money for himself and his new wife Nadine (Anne-Marie Johnson), who was a social worker. Dwayne (Haywood Nelson) has become a computer programmer, and Rerun (Fred Berry) a used-car salesman. Raj and Nadine live in Raj's childhood home while Rerun and Dwayne share an apartment.
The antics and sarcastic one-liners were reminiscent of the first series. Raj's little sister Dee (Danielle Spencer) showed up on a sporadic basis in guest spots, with the explanation that she had gone away to college. Raj and Nadine also became foster parents to a young girl named Carolyn, played by Reina King (sister of actress Regina King), who had displayed the sass that was seen in Dee when she was younger.
By the second season, both Fred Berry and Reina King left the series. To cover this, the writers wrote Carolyn finding out she had an aunt to move in with while Rerun disappeared due to Fred Berry asking for more money than the rest of the cast (believing he was the reason people tuned in).[1] Berry's widow, Essie Berry, told Urbanite magazine at Georgia State University that their unwillingness to pay Fred Berry his due in both shows led to their early cancellations.
During the third season, the series introduced a pair of characters that harkened back to the original incarnation of What's Happening!!. Maurice Warfield (Martin Lawrence) was a teenager who spent his afternoons as a busboy at Rob's under the supervision of Shirley and Raj while his best friend Darryl (Ken Sagoes) hung out with him. Together, they had many misadventures not unlike the original trio of Raj, Dwayne, and Rerun.
The show was distributed during its original run by Colex Enterprises, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures Television and LBS Communications on the first two seasons and later by Coca-Cola Telecommunications on its final season. CPT's successor, Sony Pictures Television, now has sole distribution rights.
On June 12, 2007, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released the first season of What's Happening Now!! on DVD in Region 1. To date, no other seasons have been released on DVD.