Compiled by James H. Vipond--1998 January 18
(A quickie digest that should be followed up for detail inside -ED)

THE QUESTIONS:

1. What is Small Wonder?
2. Everyone says Small Wonder was on only a short time. How good were the ratings?
3. Wasn't this show made for kids?
4. Why a home page about a little girl robot?
5. You're kidding, right?
6. What does V.I.C.I. stand for?
7. Who owns Small Wonder?
8. Why did Tiffany Brissette always speak in that annoying robot monotone voice?
9. Is there any Small Wonder merchandise?
10. How do I get Small Wonder where I live?
11. Can I get Small Wonder episodes on video?
12. What's this rumor about a Small Wonder movie?
13. You've a Mac-based site. I've a PC and Windows. Can I download and view your video files?
14. Did Jerry Supiran (who played Jamie) grow up to become Billy Corgan, lead singer of Smashing Pumpkins?
15. I have another question.

Small Wonder was a 1985-1989 syndicated science-fiction situation comedy about the misadventures of a family when Ted Lawson, the family head and cybernetics genius, secretly builds and brings home for beta-testing from his robotics plant a domestic aide robot in the form of a very pretty 10-year-old girl. 

Small Wonder had an unbroken four-year run with an option for a fifth that was denied by Fox Television during its furious trial-by-fire entry into TV networkhood. It was not cancelled from low ratings (check out our "Series Background" and "Post Mortem" features). The show hit an unprecedented 8.2 rating for a first-run syndicated show in its first year, which surpassed other first-run syndicated shows with well-known top billing names, and averaged a very respectable 7.1 for the remainer of its run. 

Small Wonder's initial target audience was from 12 to 20, but it quickly became evident that a far greater range was viewing the show. By mid-season of the first year, the show slowly began to reflect this with more urbane puns and veiled blue jokes, and by season two it was catering a mainstream viewership. Small Wonder's audience eventually ranged from kids to senior citizens and sci-fi fans. (See the articles in our Fan Mail Keyhole feature.) 

If Gilligan's Island and The Simpsons can have one, why not? Besides, this page doesn't just celebrate (and critique) an unsung and unique sitcom of squandered socio-sci-fi potential and a surprise (closet) college following, but also its fascinating concept that, unlike Star Trek's Commander Data and Not Quite Human, we can build a robotic domestic aide just like V.I.C.I. today. Moreover, real market research shows that a robotic domestic aide in the form of a girl-child is most likely for success and social acceptance (sorry R2D2). 

Nope. Real story tech consultants checked it out. See our Vicki on Dunahue feature for real-world techie basics. 

Voice Input Child Identicant. 

Originally Small Wonder's creator, Metromedia Producers (check out our "Series Background" feature). When 20th Century Fox acquired Metromedia in 1986 to break into TV network building, it got Small Wonder as part of the acquisition, meaning that Small Wonder--not Married...with Children--was Fox's first sitcom. It's most likely that Small Wonder's success in pioneering non-network produced shows hastened Fox's hand. 

She didn't always, but the producers had Tiffany speak in monotone so we wouldn't forget she was playing a robot. Voice mimicry was, in fact, one of Tiffany's less exploited talents. Vicki did eventually break out into intermittent normal speech. (See our Vicki on Dunahue" feature.) The robotic voice gag was part comedic gimmick and part venture marketing survey: Some would like such a child robot to have a robotic voice to "remind" them that this "child" is really a machine. (See our Why Moms Doted on Vicki" Fan Mail Keyhole feature). 

The only known manufactured item was a Vicki Halloween costume. There were all kinds of product ideas back then, the most anticipated being a Vicki doll that boys could plug into their Nintendo game console. (See our "Small Wonder Fallout" feature.) 

Send e-mail to askfox@foxinc.com and ask that your local Fox station add Small Wonder to its schedule. You can also call, fax, or write to your local Fox station directly. 

Not commercially. Consider yourself lucky if you owned a VCR in the late 1980s and your video library contains even one episode of Small Wonder. You can always ask a fan in "Vicki's Cabinet" to freely provide you a copy... 

At present it's all speculation; 20th Century Fox hasn't said anything officially about a Small Wonder feature film. Check Vicki's Cabinet under "WONDER NEWS" to see JimWG's actor choices for the Lawsons, Vicki and Harriet. (Just a casting of whimsey - ED) 

All you need is the latest versions of QuickTime. Macheads be sure to use the latest Explorer because that browser has formatting problems. Other browsers, our apologies and please try Lynx. This page is meant to be very Lynx-friendly. 

No. They do look quite a bit alike, but they're nowhere near the same age. 

No problem! Just post it on Vicki's Cabinet!

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