Gimme a Break!
Sam Goes to College (1)
TV Flash files “Sam Goes to College (1)” as the first listed hour of season 6 — Gimme a Break! (1981–1987) on NBC, season 6, episode 1, aired 1986-09-24, 30 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S06E01: listed hour 113 of 137 in the Gimme a Break! guide, first listed hour of season 6. It aired 1986-09-24 (30 min). The listed hour before it is “The Purse Snatcher” (S05E24). Next is “Sam Goes to College (2)” (S06E02).
Viewer FAQ
Where does Sam Goes to College (1) sit in the Gimme a Break! guide?
S06E01 is listed hour 113 of 137 — first listed hour of season 6, season 6 episode 1.
When did Gimme a Break! S06E01 air?
Sam Goes to College (1) aired 1986-09-24 and is listed at 30 minutes.
Is it a housekeeper sitcom in the old sense?
The job is the setup; Nell is the center of gravity. Black woman lead multi-cam, found-family warmth with steel. Carter's presence is the plot; the chief's house orbits.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Nell Carter is the show: a voice that can split a studio wall, a housekeeper who becomes the family's actual center of gravity, and musical breaks that refuse to be cute. Black woman lead multi-cam in a police chief's house, found-family warmth with real steel. Carter's presence is the plot; everything else orbits.
The voice is the architecture. NBC, 1981–1987: Nell Carter as Nell Harper, a housekeeper who is the actual center of gravity in a widowed police chief's house, a voice that can split a studio wall, musical breaks that refuse to be cute. Gimme a Break! is Mort Lachman and Sy Rosen blending sitcom with musical numbers — Dolph Sweet as Carl Kanisky, Lara Jill Miller and Kari Michaelsen among the kids. Working woman as family center. Black woman lead multi-cam. Found-family warmth with real steel. If you came for a…
Filed against
- Nell Carter as Nell Harper
Nell Carter’s Nell Harper split studio walls on Gimme a Break! — 1980s Black woman lead multi-cam in a police chief’s house, a housekeeper who becomes the family’s actual center of gravity, musical breaks that refuse to be cute. TV Flash…
- Dolph Sweet as Carl Kanisky
Dolph Sweet’s Carl Kanisky was Gimme a Break!’s police-chief house — Nell Carter the actual center of gravity, a voice that can split a studio wall, musical breaks that refuse to be cute. Black woman lead multi-cam, found-family warmth…
- Lara Jill Miller as Samantha Kanisky
Lara Jill Miller's Samantha Kanisky lived in Gimme a Break!'s police-chief house — Nell Carter as the actual center of gravity, musical breaks that refuse to be cute, Black woman lead multi-cam with found-family steel. TV Flash files her…
- Kari Michaelsen as Katie Kanisky
Kari Michaelsen’s Katie Kanisky grew up in Gimme a Break!’s found-family house — Nell Carter as a voice that can split a studio wall, a housekeeper who becomes the family’s actual center of gravity, musical breaks that refuse to be cute.…