Remember WENN
Encyclopedia
Remember WENN is a comedy-drama
television series that aired from 1996 to 1998 on the cable channel American Movie Classics. Created and written by Rupert Holmes
(with music also by Holmes) and set at the fictional Pittsburgh
radio station
WENN in the early 1940s, it depicted events (both dramatic and comic) in the personal and professional lives of the station's staff in the era before and during World War II
. It is not related to the real radio station in Alabama
known as "WENN
" from 1997 to 2008. The series title is a play on the phrase "remember when".
The show ran for four seasons totalling 56 episodes, including an hour-long Christmas
episode. The series was slated for a fifth season, but was cancelled when new management took over AMC. Holmes says that it was his favorite writing experience in his career.
Comedy-drama
Comedy-drama is a genre of theatre, film and television programs which combines humorous and serious content.-Theatre:Traditional western theatre, beginning with the ancient Greeks, was divided into comedy and tragedy...
television series that aired from 1996 to 1998 on the cable channel American Movie Classics. Created and written by Rupert Holmes
Rupert Holmes
Rupert Holmes is an American-British composer, singer-songwriter, musician and author of plays, novels and stories. He is best known for his number one pop hit "Escape " and the song "Him", which reached the number 6 position on the Hot 100 U.S. pop chart in 1980...
(with music also by Holmes) and set at the fictional Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
WENN in the early 1940s, it depicted events (both dramatic and comic) in the personal and professional lives of the station's staff in the era before and during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It is not related to the real radio station in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
known as "WENN
WERC-FM
WERC-FM — branded News Radio 105.5 WERC — is an news/talk radio station licensed to Hoover, Alabama and serving the Birmingham market. It operates at an effective radiated power of 29.5 kilowatts...
" from 1997 to 2008. The series title is a play on the phrase "remember when".
The show ran for four seasons totalling 56 episodes, including an hour-long Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
episode. The series was slated for a fifth season, but was cancelled when new management took over AMC. Holmes says that it was his favorite writing experience in his career.
Major characters
- Elizabeth "Betty" RobertsElizabeth "Betty" RobertsBetty Roberts was a fictional character on the AMC original comedy series Remember WENN. The character was created and written by Rupert Holmes, and played by actress Amanda Naughton.-Fictional Character Biography:...
(Amanda Naughton) - Originally an unpaid writing intern at WENN, Betty is hired as a salaried writer after resolving a crisis at the station in the first episode. While she primarily remains a writer during the course of the show, she also acts, sings, does announcements and advertisements on the air, negotiates with sponsors, and runs the station on many occasions. Throughout the series, Betty shares romantic and reciprocated feelings for both Victor Comstock and Scott Sherwood. - Victor Comstock (John Bedford Lloyd) - The station manager of WENN during the first season of the series. Victor leaves WENN to broadcast for the BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in London, and is reported to have been killed during a bombing raid. Victor revisits WENN at the end of season two, revealing to Betty that he survived the bombing and is working for the American government. - Scott SherwoodScott SherwoodScott Sherwood was a fictional character on the AMC original comedy series Remember WENN. The character was created and written by Rupert Holmes, and played by actor Kevin O’Rourke.-Fictional character biography:...
(Kevin O'Rourke) - Introduced at the end of the first season as Victor Comstock's chosen successor as station manager. In the third season, it is revealed that Scott bluffed his way into his position and is fired. Betty re-hires Scott as an actor for the station. - Jeff Singer (Hugh O'Gorman) - An actor at the station who plays the romantic lead on most of the station's programs. Jeff travels to London to participate in Victor's broadcasts, but returns to WENN after the air raid, having sustained minor injuries. He has a complicated romantic relationship with Hilary Booth throughout the series.
- Hilary Booth (Melinda MullinsMelinda MullinsMelinda Mullins is an American film, television and theatre actress.-Early life and education:She was born in Clanton, Alabama....
) - An actress at WENN who plays the female lead on most of the station's programs. A former BroadwayBroadway theatreBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
star, Hilary makes several attempts to return to the stage. - Mackie Bloom (Christopher MurneyChristopher MurneyChristopher Murney is an American actor and vocal artist. He is the father of singer and actress Julia Murney.Murney attended several universities before picking up several undergraduate degrees , and one graduate level degree .Murney has worked on...
) - The "Man of a Thousand Voices" who plays many of the character roles on WENN's programs. - Maple LaMarsh (Carolee CarmelloCarolee CarmelloCarolee Carmello is an American actress best known for her performances in Broadway musicals.She made her Broadway debut in a small role in City of Angels...
) - An actress and fill-in organist for WENN. A former burlesque dancer, Maple is initially hired by friend Scott Sherwood in the second season of the series. - Tom Eldridge (George HallGeorge Hall (actor)George Hall was a theater, TV, and film actor best remembered by his role as the 93 year old Indiana Jones in the TV series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles . He debuted on Broadway in 1946. He had a memorable and engaging role as Mr...
) - A retired Broadway doorman who does general chores for WENN and fills in occasionally as an actor for the station. - Gertrude "Gertie" Reese (Margaret Hall) - The station's switchboard operator. Gertie writes two scripts that serve as "fantasy" plots for two separate episodes of the series.
- Eugenia Bremer (Mary Stout) - The station's organist who also briefly serves as the host of a short-lived nighttime program. Eugenia begins to develop a romantic relationship with Mr. Foley late in the series.
- Mr. Foley (Tom Beckett) - WENN's foley artistFoley artistFoley is the reproduction of everyday sounds for use in filmmaking. These reproduced sounds can be anything from the swishing of clothing and footsteps to squeaky doors and breaking glass. The best foley art is so well integrated into a film that it goes unnoticed by the audience. It helps to...
. Mr. Foley has no on-screen dialogue throughout the series, though his off-screen speech is often noted by other characters to a generally comedic effect. - C.J. McHugh (C.J. Byrnes) - WENN's sound engineer for the first three seasons of the series.
- Celia Mellon (Dina SpybeyDina SpybeyDina Spybey is an American actress, known as Dina Waters since her 2000 wedding to director Mark Waters. She has appeared in more than 20 films, including John Q., subUrbia and The Haunted Mansion. She is perhaps best known for her role as Tracy Montrose Blair on the first season of Six Feet Under...
) - An ambitious young actress who works at WENN during the series' first season. Celia leaves station to pursue a career as a film actress in Hollywood.
Notable guest stars
- Jason AlexanderJason AlexanderJay Scott Greenspan , better known by his professional name of Jason Alexander, is an American actor, writer, comedian, television director, producer, and singer. He is best known for his role as George Costanza on the television series Seinfeld, appearing in the sitcom from 1989 to 1998...
- Betty BuckleyBetty BuckleyBetty Lynn Buckley is an American theater, film and television actress and singer. She is a Tony Award winner and Grammy Award nominee.-Early life:...
- David CanaryDavid CanaryDavid Hoyt Canary is an American actor, who starred in both soap operas and prime time television. He is best known for his roles as the ranch foreman, Candy Canaday on Bonanza and identical twins Adam Chandler from 1983 to 2010 and Stuart Chandler from 1984 to 2009 on the daytime serial, All My...
- Tony DanzaTony DanzaTony Danza is an American actor best known for starring on the TV series Taxi and Who's the Boss?, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award and four Golden Globe Awards...
- Daniel DavisDaniel DavisDaniel Davis is an American stage, screen, and television actor best known for portraying Niles the butler on the popular sitcom The Nanny and his guest appearances as Professor Moriarty on Star Trek: The Next Generation, affecting an upper class English accent for both roles.-Biography:Davis was...
- Malcolm GetsMalcolm GetsHugh Malcolm Gerard Gets is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Richard in the American television sitcom Caroline in the City. Gets is also a dancer, singer, composer, classically trained pianist, vocal director, and choreographer. He has a small part in the film adaptation of...
- Julie HagertyJulie HagertyJulie Hagerty is an American actress and former model.-Early life:Hagerty was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, the daughter of Harriet Yuellig, a model and singer, and Jerry Hagerty, a musician. Her brother Michael Hagerty was also an actor. Her parents later divorced. Hagerty attended Indian Hill High...
- Harry HamlinHarry HamlinHarry Robinson Hamlin is an American film and television actor, known for his role as Perseus in the 1981 fantasy film Clash of the Titans, and as Michael Kuzak in the legal drama series L.A...
- Simon JonesSimon Jones (actor)Simon Jones is an English actor, most famous for his appearances in the television and radio series of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, in which he played the lead role of Arthur Dent from 1978 to 2005...
- Patti LuponePatti LuPonePatti Ann LuPone is an American singer and actress, known for her Tony Award-winning performances as Eva Perón in the 1979 stage musical Evita and as Madame Rose in the 2008 Broadway revival of Gypsy, and for her Olivier Award-winning performance as Fantine in the original London cast of Les...
- Peter NoonePeter NoonePeter Noone is an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, pianist and actor, best known as "Herman" of the successful 1960s rock group Herman's Hermits.-Early life:...
- Rue McClanahanRue McClanahanRue McClanahan was an American actress, best known for her roles on television as Vivian Harmon on Maude, Fran Crowley on Mama's Family, and Blanche Devereaux on The Golden Girls, for which she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in 1987.-Early life:McClanahan was born Eddie Rue...
- Roddy McDowallRoddy McDowallRoderick Andrew Anthony Jude "Roddy" McDowall was an English actor and photographer. His film roles included Cornelius and Caesar in the Planet of the Apes film series...
- Russell MeansRussell MeansRussell Charles Means is an Oglala Sioux activist for the rights of Native American people. He became a prominent member of the American Indian Movement after joining the organisation in 1968, and helped organize notable events that attracted national and international media coverage...
- Donna MurphyDonna MurphyDonna Murphy is an American stage, film, television actress and singer.Murphy has won two Tony Awards for Best Actress in a Musical for her roles in Passion as Fosca and in The King and I as Anna Leonowens...
- John RatzenbergerJohn RatzenbergerJohn Deszo Ratzenberger is an American actor, voice actor, and entrepreneur. He is best known for his role as Cliff Clavin in Cheers.-Early life:...
- Dan ResinDan ResinDan Resin was an American actor.-Early life:Resin was born in South Bend, Indiana. He was three years old when his parents divorced. Resin met his future wife in the seventh grade. He graduated from Indiana University in 1954. While at Indiana University, Resin became a member of the Alpha Iota...
- Molly RingwaldMolly RingwaldMolly Kathleen Ringwald is an American actress, singer and dancer. Having appeared in the John Hughes movies Sixteen Candles , The Breakfast Club , and Pretty in Pink , Ringwald has been frequently named the greatest teen star of all time...
- Howard RollinsHoward RollinsHoward Ellsworth Rollins, Jr. was an American television, film, and stage actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Coalhouse Walker, Jr...
- Mickey RooneyMickey RooneyMickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...