Info:
Premiere Date: Wednesday, January 3, 2007 (Touchstone Television)
Network: ABC
Time: Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. et/pt
Cast: Starring Jonathan Silverman, Kelly Hu, David
Arquette, Greg Germann, Lori Loughlin and Jackson
Bond.
Introduction:
There's a question on every job application, every
health questionnaire, every insurance form that we’ve
all answered a million times -- whom to contact in
case of emergency? Most of the time we all know the
answer. But there are times in all of our lives when
the answer isn’t so obvious.
Harry (Jonathan Silverman), Jason (David Arquette),
Sherman (Greg Germann) and Kelly (Kelly Hu) are old
friends from high school who find themselves at that
stage where they realize that their lives didn’t turn
out exactly the way they’d planned. Unhappily divorced
greeting card writer Harry goes for a relaxing
“massage” only to discover his scantily clad
“therapist” is Kelly, their high school valedictorian,
who’s had her own fall from grace. Diet Guru Sherman
returns home to discover his wife has left him and
taken everything he owns; devastated by the loss, he
hijacks a bakery truck and binges on all its contents.
Faced with imprisonment for his role in a corporate
scandal, financial whiz Jason botches his suicide
attempt only to shoot himself in the foot literally.
Over the course of one crazy evening, a series of
calamities reunites this hapless brood at Los Angeles
Westside Hospital, where they all find themselves
under the care of a reluctant Dr. Joanna (Lori
Loughlin). This band of misfits must now start their
lives over with the new realization that they’ve only
got each other, “In Case of Emergency.”
Did you know: The concept for “In Case of Emergency”
sprang from the real lives of both Howard J. Morris
(creator, executive producer) and Emile Levisetti
(executive producer) over a lunch in 2005. Morris, a
forty-year old newly divorced single father, had just
come from the doctor’s office, where for the first
time in his life he had not known whose name to write
down as his emergency contact. This resonated with
Levisetti, a forty-year old life-long bachelor, who
volunteered that he had faced the same uncertainty for
the last twenty years. The two marveled over the fact
that even though they had completely opposite life
experiences to date, they both had reached the same
common ground. Morris’ vision was to showcase the
comedic, high-stakes emotional lives of four friends
who reunite and bond in the same way he had done with
Levisetti. Through these four characters, the show
also explores some universal truths that come with age
-- when things get bad, they can always get worse; and
that what doesn’t kill you will certainly bring
laughter to your friends.
Cast Details:
"In Case of Emergency" stars Jonathan Silverman as
Harry Kennison, Kelly Hu as
Kelly Lee, David Arquette
as Jason Ventress, Greg Germann as Sherman Yablonsky,
Lori Loughlin as Dr. Joanna and Jackson Bond as
Harry’s young son, Dylan.
Jonathan Silverman (Harry Kennison) has starred in
over 30 motion pictures, several Broadway plays and
his own Top 10 television series. Silverman starred in
Showtime's "Bobbie's Girl," opposite Rachel Ward and
Bernadette Peters, and in "The Medicine Show,"
opposite Natasha Gregson Wagner. He also completed the
Showtime film "Deacons for Defense" with Forest
Whitaker and Ossie Davis, directed by Bill Duke. he
made his executive-producing debut alongside co-star
Louis Gossett, Jr. in "The Inspectors." On television
he starred in "The Single Guy" from 1995-1997, which
was created for him by Castle Rock Entertainment and
Brad Hall. Other television appearances include
"Friends" and "ER."
Kelly Hu (Kelly Lee) is best known for her role in
"X-Men 2," the sequel to the sci-fi blockbuster
"X-Men," as the villainess Yuriko Oyama (a.k.a Lady
Deathstryke), Kelly Hu demonstrates her character's
mutant powers in an extraordinary fight scene opposite
Hugh Jackman. Hu was catapulted into the spotlight in
1985 when she was crowned Miss Teen USA. Her exposure
on the pageant stage led to numerous modeling
assignments and a guest-starring role on "Growing
Pains." She later captured the Miss Hawaii USA crown
before becoming a finalist in the Miss USA Pageant. Hu
then went on to star in the blockbuster "Scorpion
King." In the lead role of Cassandra, she shared the
screen with The Rock. She can also be seen in the
series "CSI: NY." Past series include the action
dramas "Martial Law" and "Nash Bridges."
David Arquette (Jason Ventress), one of the most
versatile working actors today, recently completed
production on "The Tripper," which he wrote, directed
and starred in. He became a household name as Deputy
Dewey in the "Scream" trilogy; original plans called
for his character to be killed off in the first
installment, but his scene-stealing efforts assured
his longevity. For his roles in "Never Been Kissed"
and "Scream II," Arquette was recognized with
Blockbuster Awards. He also starred in "Eight Legged
Freaks" for Warner Bros. Recent roles include
"Slingshot" with Thora Birch and Julianna Margulies;
Fox Searchlight's "Never Die Alone," co-starring with
rap star DMX; Lions Gate's Holocaust drama, "The Grey
Zone," which won him critical praise for his role as a
Jewish prisoner; "Stealing Sinatra," opposite William
H. Macy for Showtime Films, and "Happy Here and Now."
On the small screen he was most recently seen in the
movie "Timebomb" with Richard T. Jones and Angela
Bassett.
Greg Germann (Sherman Yablonsky) is not only an
extraordinary actor, he is also an accomplished writer
and director. He endeared himself to viewers worldwide
with his portrayal of the shark-like Richard Fish for
several seasons on the hit series "Ally McBeal," as
well as for two seasons opposite Thomas Hayden Church
on "Ned & Stacy." He also appeared with Kevin Spacey
in the American Playhouse presentation of "Darrow,"
and opposite Samuel L. Jackson in Showtime's "Conduct
Unbecoming." In addition to acting, Germann also
devotes himself to writing and directing. He directed
on "Ally McBeal," and his short film, "Pete's Garden,"
for which he also served as writer and star, premiered
in competition at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival and
went on to air on The Sundance Channel in January
1999. On the big screen Germann can currently be seen
starring in the Sony Pictures Classics film "Friends
with Money," and in the blockbuster comedy "Talladega
Nights," opposite Will Ferrell. He co-starred opposite
Chris Rock in the Farrelly brothers' "Down to Earth"
for Paramount, in the Warner Bros. film "Sweet
November" with Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron,
opposite Burt Reynolds in the independent feature "The
Last Producer," and had a very memorable cameo role in
the award-winning "Jesus' Son," starring Billy Crudup.
Lori Loughlin (Dr. Joanna) is best recognized for her
role as Rebecca Donaldson on the long-running hit ABC
comedy series "Full House," is currently shooting the
feature film "Moondance Alexander." In addition to
"Full House," Loughlin was a regular in "Hudson
Street," a comedy starring Tony Danza. She was the
star and producer of the family drama "Summerland."
Other television roles have included the after-school
special "No Means No," for which she received an Emmy
nomination for Best Actress. More recently she has
guest-starred in "Ghost Whisperer" and "Jake in
Progress" -- reuniting her with John Stamos. She also
worked with Jim Carrey in the television movie "Doing
Time on Maple Drive," and starred in "In the Line of
Duty: Blaze of Glory." She made repeat performances in
a number of series, including "The Drew Carey Show"
and "Spin City," and guest-starred in such series as
"Seinfeld," "Suddenly Susan," "The Larry Sanders Show"
and the drama "Birds of Prey."
Jackson Bond (Dylan Kennison) is a young actor that
got his start in the feature film, "The Invasion,"
opposite Nicole Kidman. Less than a year later he has
landed the role of Jonathan Silverman's quick-witted
son, Dylan, on ABC's "In Case of Emergency." He has
also guest starred on "CSI Miami."
Show Info:
"Pilot"
Wednesday, January 3, 2007 at 9:30PM ET/PT
Jason (David Arquette), Harry (Jonathan Silverman),
Sherman (Greg Germann) and Kelly (Kelly Hu) are old
friends from high school who find themselves at that
stage where they realize that their lives haven't
turned out exactly the way they'd planned. Unhappily
divorced greeting card writer Harry goes for a
relaxing "massage" only to discover his scantily clad
"therapist" is Kelly, their high school valedictorian,
who's had her own fall from grace. Diet Guru Sherman
returns home to discover his wife has left him and
taken everything he owns; devastated by the loss, he
hijacks a bakery truck and binges on all its contents.
Faced with imprisonment for his role in a corporate
scandal, financial whiz Jason botches his suicide
attempt only to shoot himself in the foot - literally.
GUEST STARS: Lee Reherman as Frank, Charlie Hartsock
as gunstore clerk, Gary "G Thang" Johnson as officer,
George Sharperson as Omar, Jennifer Echols as Mrs.
Minivitz and Natsuko Ohama as Madam.
We also received the second episode that will air
January 10:
"It's Got to be the Morning After"
Wednesday, January 10, 2007 at 9:30PM ET/PT
Kelly's crazed cop boyfriend, Frank, catches Harry
helping her move her things out of his place.
Meanwhile Sherman's staff refuses to help him as his
professional reputation spirals down, and Jason, now
seriously smitten with Dr. Joanna, doggedly pursues
her at the hospital.
GUEST STARS: Lee Reherman as Frank, George Sharperson
as Omar, Gary Johnson as G-Thang, Sonya Eddy as
beating woman, John Enos III as big CAA guy, Eric Kan
as patient and Jackie Geary as Toni.
Analysis:
I think the pilot is pretty funny and interesting! It
has a lot of physical comedy even. Something not
really seen on single-camera sitcoms. There are also
some hilarious moments, too. Some include Sherman's
raiding of the sweets truck and Harry's "massage." We
learn a lot about these four people who meet reunite
after a wild night. All of their lives have not turned
out how they would have liked. The entire pilot is
very interesting to watch and entertaining. It is not
as funny as The Knights of Prosperity, but this duo
will air back-to-back on ABC for a fun-filled comedy
hour. The only thing that annoyed me was how much of
a baby Harry is. He is a bit annoying. I really like
Kelly Lee and Sherman. They both are great. Harry
seems very nervous and lets it show around Kelly. I do
like the constant pursuing of Dr. Joana by Jason...he
is relentless! The pilot runs just under 22
minutes...so it is over 2 minutes shorter than the
Knights of Prosperity pilot.
As for the second episode that is airing. It is titled
"It's Got to be the Morning After." It runs under 22
minutes and it leaves off where we left off from the
pilot. As the title says, it is the morning after that
crazy and wild night. Both Harry and Kelly ponder if
last night was a dream or not, but they quickly
realize it isn't and panic. In this episode Kelly
wants to get her stuff out of Frank's house, but Harry
is too scared to go in. Frank, who punched Harry in
the pilot, is again after him in this episode when he
spots him on the roof of his own house. Hilarious
stuff happens. Also, I love David's scenes in the
hospital. He even purposely got a fat heavy set black
woman to beat him to get injured to see Dr. Joanna.
It was so hilarious! Again the annoying Harry was the
only flaw, but he is at least likable.
Conclusion:
This show is very good and well done. It is not
boring like many of the single-camera sitcoms these
days. Any average American can get into this. It is
more like a comedy movie than TV show, so that might
help. It is funny, but I don't think it is funnier
than The Knights of Prosperity, but it has great
physical comedy from Arquette and Germann in
particular. The four main characters are all great,
despite Silverman's character (Harry) being way too
annoying. Kelly Lee is very dreamy and I'm sure she
and Harry will end up with each other soon. It is
funny how she doesn't remember Harry at all from high
school, but remembers just about everyone else! What
an hour 9 p.m. will be for ABC Wednesdays--laugh out
loud sitcoms. Let's hope these are hits, because the
quality is certainly there.
The show will be airing Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m.
starting January 3. I am sure the premiere will be
well-watched, as both this and The Knights of
Prosperity have gotten huge promotion. Let's just
hope it continues each week. ABC has put it face to
face with American Idol's Results Show, which will
start Jan. 17 and likely be an hour for a few weeks.
So, like the Knights, this show has two weeks to find
a big audience and then let's hope most of the viewers
stick around the third week and beyond against
American Idol. If you watch The Class, you will love
this even more. Both shows sort of have a similar plot
theme. I watched The Class on CBS the first few weeks,
but it didn't really draw me each week (though I do
plan to catch up). This show is similar to that, but
it is more funnier, I think. The Class has way too
many stories going on at once. With this show it is
based on the four main characters and the supporting
cast revolve around them, which include the great
dreamy Dr. Joanna. We now have a new McDreamy, the
female McDreamy--Dr. Joanna! So, make sure you know
who your emergency contacts are because you will never
know 'in case of emergency'!
Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):
Watchability: 5/5
Funniness: 4.5/5
Overall: 4.5/5
-- Reviewed by pavanbadal on 12/29/06
Related Links:
ABC.com Official Site
TV.com
Internet Movie Database
Wikipedia
Sitcoms Online Message Board
Sitcoms Online Photo Gallery
