Powerhouse (TV series)

PowerHouse

Title card of the "PowerHouse" television series.
Created by Mark Johnson
Developed by Educational Film Center
Written by Ruth Pollak
Directed by John Gray
Michael Switzer
Creative director(s) Johnson B. Gordon
Presented by Elizabeth Johnson
Starring Sandra Bowie
Domenica Galati
Jason Kravits
Michael Mack
Jessica Prentice
Michael Wikes
Voices of Mark Gordon
Narrated by Mark Johnson
Theme music composer Richard Paul Brier (theme)
Opening theme "The PowerHouse Is You!" (Opening Theme)
Ending theme "The PowerHouse Is You!" (Closing Theme)
Composer(s) Fred Karns (score)
Country of origin USA
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 18 (2 never aired) (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Simon Spenscer
Producer(s) Ira H. Klugerman
Martin Sonnenberg
Location(s) Washington, DC
Cinematography Tom Richmond
Editor(s) Terry Halle
Camera setup 16-millimeter film
Running time 28 minutes
Release
Original network PBS
Nickelodeon
Picture format 1.37:1
Audio format Mono
Original release December 12, 1982 – January 3, 1983

PowerHouse is a United States television series produced by the Educational Film Center at Northern Virginia ETV and aired on PBS for 16 episodes in 1982 (two episodes never aired). It billed itself as "a 16-part series for young people and their families," with the target audience being primarily kids, preteens, teenagers,& young adults, and it was widely praised by educational groups. The series was later rerun by Nickelodeon in the mid-1980s.

Description

Set in Washington, DC, Powerhouse is focused on the adventures of a racially and ethnically diverse group of five teenagers and one adult from the inner city, based at a former boxing and sports gym headquarters turned community center for kids and teens. The center was founded by Brenda Gaines, a woman who inherited the place from her late father, a former boxing champion. The basic theme of the series is that every person is a source of creativity and power. “We all have a Powerhouse deep down inside,” it says in the theme song of the show.

Each Powerhouse episode dealt with significant personal issues that affected both kids and teenagers such as alcoholism, peer pressure, physical fitness, and more, but they were combined with fast-paced action-adventure stories in which the group often had to solve a mystery or prevent a crime. For instance, in one episode they had to uncover the head of a racketeering operation that threatened to put Brenda and PowerHouse out of business. In another episode, they tried to track down the source of a potentially lethal food-poisoning epidemic, a task that took on even greater urgency when one of the group became infected.

Uncommercials

One of Powerhouse's innovations was the use of what the show called Uncommercials. Since the show ran on PBS, which is commercial-free, the producers created 30- to 90-second commercial-like breaks that would air during the broadcast. Instead of selling products, uncommercials would sell a theme, often in entertaining or humorous ways.

One uncommercial, for example, featured a 12-year-old boy who asked, “How do I get a girl to like me?” Several boys and girls of around the same age then offered suggestions. Another one asked, “What is a friend?” and several teenagers answered, one of which was future Saturday Night Live star Ana Gasteyer (her answer: “Someone you can be weird with.”) in her first-ever TV appearance.

Another uncommercial featured Henry Winkler as a celebrity organ who gave advice on how to take care of your lungs.

Another popular uncommercial theme was Don't Just Sit There—Do Something! which encouraged viewers to do something active or constructive.

Other features

Another Powerhouse features was a salute to a particular youth organization, such as the Boy Scouts of America; these salutes preceded at least one of the uncommercials.

The Powerhouse gang

Episode list

  1. "With a Little Help From My Friends (Part 1)"
  2. "With a Little Help From My Friends (Part 2)"
  3. "Life or Breath"
  4. "Master of the Art"
  5. "You Make Me Sick"
  6. "Celebration"
  7. "Something for Nothing"
  8. "Cheers"
  9. "Name of the Game"
  10. "One of the Gang"
  11. "Something Ventured" (the pilot episode of the Powerhouse series)
  12. "Help Wanted"
  13. "What Have You Got to Lose?"
  14. "Big Devil"
  15. "Fit to be Tied"
  16. "The Short Life of Lolo Knopke"
  17. "The Missing Horse" (1984)
  18. "Hyperactivity" (1984)
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