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Jem (TV Series)

 
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Jem (stylized as Jem and the Holograms in some contexts) is an American
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 animated television series that ran from 1985 to 1988 in U.S. first-run syndication
Television syndication

In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows to multiple individual stations, without going through a broadcast network....
. The show is about music company owner Jerrica Benton, her singer alter-ego, Jem, her band the Holograms, and their adventures.

The series was a joint collaboration by Hasbro
Hasbro

Hasbro is an United States toy company. It is one of the largest toy makers in the world, second only to the toy giant Mattel. Hasbro is also the publisher of the world's most popular board game, Monopoly ....
, Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics

Marvel Comics is an American comic book and related media company owned by Marvel Publishing, Inc., a subsidiary of Marvel Entertainment, Inc. Marvel counts among as its List of Marvel Comics characters such well-known properties as Captain America, the Fantastic Four, the Hulk , Iron Man, Spider-Man, the X-Men, and many others....
, and Sunbow Productions
Sunbow Productions

Sunbow Entertainment is an animation studio, founded in 1980 and owned up until 1998 by Griffin-Bacal Advertising in New York. The first animation efforts by Griffin-Bacal were producing the animated commercials for Hasbro's G.I....
, the same team responsible for G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero

G.I Joe : A Real American Hero is a military-themed line of action figures and toys. Produced by Hasbro, the toyline lasted from 1982 to 1994, producing well over 500 figures and 250 vehicles and playsets....
 and Transformers.






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Encyclopedia


Jem (stylized as Jem and the Holograms in some contexts) is an American
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 animated television series that ran from 1985 to 1988 in U.S. first-run syndication
Television syndication

In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows to multiple individual stations, without going through a broadcast network....
. The show is about music company owner Jerrica Benton, her singer alter-ego, Jem, her band the Holograms, and their adventures.

The series was a joint collaboration by Hasbro
Hasbro

Hasbro is an United States toy company. It is one of the largest toy makers in the world, second only to the toy giant Mattel. Hasbro is also the publisher of the world's most popular board game, Monopoly ....
, Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics

Marvel Comics is an American comic book and related media company owned by Marvel Publishing, Inc., a subsidiary of Marvel Entertainment, Inc. Marvel counts among as its List of Marvel Comics characters such well-known properties as Captain America, the Fantastic Four, the Hulk , Iron Man, Spider-Man, the X-Men, and many others....
, and Sunbow Productions
Sunbow Productions

Sunbow Entertainment is an animation studio, founded in 1980 and owned up until 1998 by Griffin-Bacal Advertising in New York. The first animation efforts by Griffin-Bacal were producing the animated commercials for Hasbro's G.I....
, the same team responsible for G.I. Joe
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero

G.I Joe : A Real American Hero is a military-themed line of action figures and toys. Produced by Hasbro, the toyline lasted from 1982 to 1994, producing well over 500 figures and 250 vehicles and playsets....
 and Transformers. The creator of the series was Christy Marx
Christy Marx

'Christy Marx' grew up in Danville, Illinois and is an United States writer and a photographer. She has written scripts for various episodes of TV-series, mainly for kids' shows, including Jem , Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Conan the Adventurer , G.I....
, who also had been a staff writer for the aforementioned programs. The animation was provided by a Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
ese animation studio called Toei Doga (now Toei Animation
Toei Animation

is a anime studio owned by Toei Company. The studio was originally founded in 1948 as Japan Animated Films . In 1956, Toei purchased the studio and it was reincorporated under its current name....
).

The show was originally designed to appeal to both girls and boys, with a mix of action
Action genre

The word action has more than one meaning in fiction. Action is one of the Fiction-writing modes authors use to present fiction. The term is also used to describe a subset of creative works emphasizing action rather than other aspects of storytelling....
/adventure
Adventure

An adventure is an activity that comprises risky, dangerous or uncertain experiences. The term is more popularly used in reference to physical activities that have some potential for danger, such as skydiving, mountain climbing, and extreme sports....
, drama
Drama

Drama is the specific Mode of fiction Mimesis in performance. The term comes from a Ancient Greek word meaning "Action " , which is derived from "to do" ....
, music
Music

Music is an art form whose media is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics , and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture ....
, and fashion
Fashion

Fashion refers to the styles and customs prevalent at a given time. In its most common usage, "fashion" exemplifies the appearances of clothing, but the term encompasses more....
. As the show progressed, the audience gradually became almost entirely girls.

Production

Hasbro hired advertising agency Griffin-Bacal to create the 65-episode animation series. Griffin-Bacal had previously created the successful G.I. Joe series for Hasbro. G.I. Joe writer Christy Marx
Christy Marx

'Christy Marx' grew up in Danville, Illinois and is an United States writer and a photographer. She has written scripts for various episodes of TV-series, mainly for kids' shows, including Jem , Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Conan the Adventurer , G.I....
 was hired to create the series based on the line of dolls and the original concept, which consisted of the two girl bands, Cynergi, the boyfriend Rio, and the Rockin' Roadster. Marx created the full character biographies and relationships (including the love triangle aspect between Jem/Jerrica and Rio), Starlight Music and Starlight House, the Starlight Girls, the villain Eric Raymond and various secondary characters. Later, Marx was asked to develop new characters as they were introduced. Marx wrote 22 of the 65 shows. Other writers for the series included Cary Bates
Cary Bates

Cary Bates is a comic book, animation television and film writer....
, Greg Weisman
Greg Weisman

Greg Weisman is an American animation writer and television producer most famous as the creator of the animated television series Gargoyles ....
, Paul Dini
Paul Dini

Paul Dini is an United States television producer of animated cartoons. He is best known as a producer and writer for several Warner Bros./DC Comics series, including Star Wars: Ewoks, Tiny Toon Adventures, Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, The New Batman/Superman Adventures, Batman Beyond an...
, Buzz Dixon, Ellen Guon
Ellen Guon

Ellen Guon Beeman is an United States fantasy and science fiction author, television scriptwriter and computer game writer/Game producer. She has published four novels and has worked on over 40 computer and video games....
, Steve Mitchell
Steve Mitchell

Steve Mitchell is a retired United States basketball player for the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He was selected with the 12th pick in the second round of the 1986 NBA Draft by the Washington Wizards....
, Michael Reaves
Michael Reaves

Michael Reaves is an American writer, known for his contributions as producer and story editor to a number of 1990s animated television series, including Gargoyles and Batman: The Animated Series....
, David Wise
David Wise (writer)

David Wise is an Emmy-award winning television and animation writer, tutored by writers such as Ursula K. Le Guin, Frank Herbert, Harlan Ellison and Theodore Sturgeon whilst attending the Clarion Workshop....
, and Marv Wolfman
Marv Wolfman

Marvin A. "Marv" Wolfman is an award-winning United States comic book writer. He is best known for lengthy runs on The Tomb of Dracula, creating Blade for Marvel Comics, and Titans for DC Comics....
.

The producers were Joe Bacal, Jay Bacal, Tom Griffin, and Carole Weitzman. The story editor was Roger Slifer
Roger Slifer

Roger Slifer is a writer of comic books, animation, and video games, well-known for a run on Omega Men in the 1980s. While working there, he co-created the Extraterrestrial life mercenary anti-hero Lobo with artist Keith Giffen....
 and the voice director was industry veteran, Wally Burr
Wally Burr

Wally Burr is an American voice actor and director. The voice director for the Transformers: Generation 1 cartoon and Transformers: The Movie....
. The show's directors and supervising animators included many veterans of the DePatie-Freleng
DePatie-Freleng Enterprises

DePatie-Freleng Enterprises was a Hollywood-based American animated production company, active from 1963 to 1981. They produced theatrical cartoons, animated series, commercials, title sequences and television specials ....
 cartoon studio including Gerry Chiniquy
Gerry Chiniquy

Germain Adolph "Gerry" Chiniquy was an United States animator. He is best known for his work with Friz Freleng, at both Warner Bros. and DePatie-Freleng Enterprises....
, John Gibbs, Norm McCabe
Norman McCabe

Norman McCabe was an American animator who enjoyed a long career which lasted into the 1990s.McCabe was born in England and raised in the United States....
, Warren Batchelder
Warren Batchelder

Warren Batchelder was an animator on many Warner Bros. and DePatie-Freleng cartoons. He also worked as animation director on the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon show....
 and Tom Ray
Tom Ray

Tom Ray is an United Statesn animator who began work at Warner Bros. Cartoons in 1937. Over the first two decades of his career, he was a junior animator who received no screen credit until Destination Earth in 1956....
.

Originally the main character was called "Misty", then "M," but that idea was dropped because a letter could not be trademark
TradeMark

TradeMark is a tall, primarily residential, skyscraper in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was completed in 2007 and has 28 floors. There are 200 hundred residential units....
ed. The show was originally designed to appeal to both girls and boys, with a mix of action
Action genre

The word action has more than one meaning in fiction. Action is one of the Fiction-writing modes authors use to present fiction. The term is also used to describe a subset of creative works emphasizing action rather than other aspects of storytelling....
/adventure
Adventure

An adventure is an activity that comprises risky, dangerous or uncertain experiences. The term is more popularly used in reference to physical activities that have some potential for danger, such as skydiving, mountain climbing, and extreme sports....
, drama
Drama

Drama is the specific Mode of fiction Mimesis in performance. The term comes from a Ancient Greek word meaning "Action " , which is derived from "to do" ....
, music
Music

Music is an art form whose media is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch , rhythm , dynamics , and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture ....
, and fashion
Fashion

Fashion refers to the styles and customs prevalent at a given time. In its most common usage, "fashion" exemplifies the appearances of clothing, but the term encompasses more....
. It was first slotted as a 6-minute cartoon that aired during Super Sunday
Super Sunday (TV series)

Super Sunday was a 1980s animated television series produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions....
 (or "Super Saturday" depending on the market) along with the boy-oriented properties Bigfoot and the Muscle Machines
Bigfoot and the Muscle Machines

Bigfoot and the Muscle Machines was a special animated TV mini-series that was aired on the animated half-hour TV series "Super Sunday " and Super Saturday " containing 9 segments that ran for 6 minutes each and every weekend, along with Jem , Robotix, and Inhumanoids....
, Robotix
Robotix

Robotix may refer to:* Robotix, a 1986 cartoon produced by Sunbow & Marvel Productions* Robotix , a robotics competition organized by the students of IIT Kharagpur...
, and Inhumanoids
Inhumanoids

'Inhumanoids' was an animated series based on a Hasbro toy property in 1986. In the tradition of other Hasbro properties such as Transformers , G.I....
. Although it was the only girl-oriented show in the lineup, Jem proved to be the most popular of the four.

Plot

The central "secret" of the series is that Jem is in fact the alter ego of Jerrica Benton, owner/manager of Starlight Music, who adopts this persona
Persona

A persona, in the word's everyday usage, is a social role or a Character played by an actor. This is an Italy word that derives from the Latin for "mask" or "character", derived from the Etruscan language word "phersu", with the same meaning....
 with the help of Synergy, a holographic
Holography

A hologram is a picture that changes when looked at from different angles.Holography is a technique that allows the light scattered from an object to be recorded and later reconstructed so that it appears as if the object is in the same position relative to the recording medium as it was when recorded....
 computer designed to be the ultimate visual entertainment synthesizer built by her father, who left it to her on his death.

The other Holograms are Kimber Benton, Jerrica's younger sister, keyboard
Keyboard instrument

A keyboard instrument is any musical instrument played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include various types of organ s as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic musical instrument....
ist and main songwriter
Songwriter

File:Beethoven.jpgA songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics, as well the musical composition or melody to songs. One who writes only lyrics is a lyricist, while one who writes only music is a composer....
 for the band; Aja Leith, guitar
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
ist; and Shana Elmsford, who plays the synth drum
Drum

The drum is a member of the percussion instrument group, technically classified as a membranophone.. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with parts of a player's body, or with some sort of implement such as a drumstick, to produce sound....
s. Aja and Shana are also childhood friends and adopted foster
Foster care

Foster care is a system by which a certified, stand-in "parent" cares for minor children or young people who have been removed from their birth parents or other custodial adults by state authority....
 sisters of Jerrica and Kimber. Shana briefly left the group in a two-part episode called "The Talent Search", where a new character, Carmen "Raya" Alonso, is introduced as her replacement. When Shana returns, Raya Alonso remains the Holograms' drummer while Shana takes up the guitar. Only the Holograms are aware of Jem's secret identity, although Jerrica revealed it to the United States President in a season 2 episode, "The Presidential Dilemma", an old Tibetan woman in the episode "Journey to Shangri-La", and the princess Adrianna of Morvania (who is mistaken for Kimber) in the episode "The Princess and the Singer". Episodes of the series frequently revolve around Jerrica's efforts to keep her two identities separate. Jerrica's other main concern is Starlight House, a home for foster girls run by the Holograms. The Holograms' main purpose is to fund the Starlight Foundation and support the Starlight Girls. Jerrica's childhood home, where the foster girls were housed was accidentally burned down by Zipper, one of Eric Raymond's not-too-bright henchmen. Jem and the Holograms later got possession of the Starlight Mansion when they won the Battle of the Bands as well as a movie contract which were offered by movie producer Howard Sands.

The Holograms' rival band are the Misfits: petulant rich girl Pizzazz (Phyllis Gabor) and her cohorts: no-nonsense Roxy (Roxanne Pelligrini) and kind-hearted, sensitive keytar
Keytar

A keytar is a relatively lightweight Electronic keyboard or synthesizer that is supported by a strap around the neck and shoulders, similar to the way a guitar is supported by a guitar strap....
 player Stormer (Mary Phillips), who are later joined by the manipulative British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 saxophone
Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-Bore transposing instrument musical instrument considered a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and are played with a Single-reed instrument mouthpiece similar to the clarinet....
 player, Jetta (Sheila Burns). (This group should not be confused with the real-life band The Misfits, led by Glenn Danzig
Glenn Danzig

Glenn Danzig is an United States of America singer, songwriter, musician, entrepreneur and a progenitor of the horror punk subgenre of music. He is the founder of bands Misfits , Samhain , and Danzig ....
.) Most episodes of the series involve a plot by the Misfits to upstage Jem and the Holograms' latest glamorous escapade. This rivalry is encouraged and manipulated by their manager, the ruthless Eric Raymond. In the middle of the third season a new group, the Stingers, appears and shakes things up for both groups. In the final episode of the series, all three groups seemed to have declared a truce between them.

Characters


Episodes


Music

No official Jem "Soundtrack" was ever released, although all but one of the songs released on cassette in any form were featured in the first season. The cassettes released included:

Love Is Here - (included in the Video Madness playset of the same name)
  1. "Jem Theme"
  2. "Love Is Here"
  3. "Can't Get My Love Together"


Show Me The Way - (included in the Video Madness playset of the same name)
  1. "Jem Theme"
  2. "Show Me The Way" (TV edit)
  3. "People Who Care"


It's Workin' Out - (included in the Video Madness playset of the same name)
  1. "Jem Theme"
  2. "It's Workin' Out/It's Doing Me In" Jem and the Holograms/ The Misfits
  3. "We Can Change It"


Welcome To The Jungle - (included in the Video Madness playset of the same name)
  1. "Jem Theme"
  2. "Welcome To The Jungle" - The Misfits
  3. "Gimme, Gimme, Gimme" - The Misfits


Kimber - (included with the Kimber doll)
  1. "Jem Theme" - Jem and the Holograms
  2. "Only the Beginning" - Jem and the Holograms
  3. "Twilight in Paris" - Jem and the Holograms
(instrumental versions of songs on side B)

Rio - (included with the Rio doll)
  1. "Jem Theme" - Jem and the Holograms
  2. "Deception" - Jem and the Holograms
  3. "I Got My Eye on You" - Jem and the Holograms
(instrumental versions of songs on side B)

Synergy - (included with the Synergy doll)
  1. "JEM Theme" - Jem and the Holograms
  2. "Friend or Stranger" - Jem and the Holograms
  3. "We Can Change It" - Jem and the Holograms
(instrumental versions of songs on side B)

Glitter ’N Gold JEM - (included with Glitter ’N Gold Jem/Jerrica doll)
  1. "Glitter ’N Gold Theme Song" - Jem and the Holograms
  2. "Depends on the Mood I'm In" - Jem and the Holograms
  3. "Love is Here" - Jem and the Holograms
(instrumental versions of songs on side B)

Glitter ’N Gold - (Second year mail-in offer)
  1. "Glitter ’N Gold" (extended TV version)
  2. "Back ’N Shape" (extended version)
  3. "Jem Theme" (extended version)


Jem and Friends Dream Tour - (mail-in offer for Glitter ’N Gold Jem/Jerrica or Glitter ’N Gold Rio dolls)
  1. "How You Play the Game" - Jem and the Holograms
  2. "Doctor, Doctor" - The Thompson Twins
  3. "One Things Leads to Another" - The Fixx
  4. "Rock ’N Roll Forever" - Jem and the Holograms
  5. "Crush on You" - The Jets
  6. "The Kid is Hot Tonight" - Loverboy
  7. "Walkin’ on Sunshine" - Katrina and the Waves
  8. "Electric Avenue" - Eddy Grant
  9. "Rosanna" - Toto
  10. "Cool it Now" - The New Edition
  11. "Glitter ’N Gold" - Jem and the Holograms


VHS and DVD releases

In the 1980s, various episodes were released on VHS
VHS

The Video Home System, better known by its abbreviation VHS, is a recording and playing standard developed by JVC and launched in Europe and Asia in September 1976, and the United States in June 1977....
 by Family Home Entertainment
Family Home Entertainment

'Family Home Entertainment' was an United States home video company founded in 1981. It releases children's and family-oriented programming, most notably the popular 1980s Marvel/Sunbow television series The Transformers, G.I....
 in the USA and released by Tempo Video in the UK. The Glitter and Gold video is the only Jem video to have been released in both the USA and the UK.

On March 30, 2004, Rhino Entertainment
Rhino Entertainment

Rhino Entertainment Company is an United States specialty record label and production company, owned by Warner Music Group....
 released The Complete 1st and 2nd Seasons on DVD in Region 1 for the very first time. On September 14, 2004 the released Season 3, Part 1 which featured the first 19 episodes of Season 3. Both releases were digitally remastered and contained Dolby Digital 5.1 audio. Rhino subsequently lost the rights to the series before they could release the remaining episodes of Season 3, the final season of the series. In 2008, Hasbro
Hasbro

Hasbro is an United States toy company. It is one of the largest toy makers in the world, second only to the toy giant Mattel. Hasbro is also the publisher of the world's most popular board game, Monopoly ....
 acquired the distribution rights for all Sunbow
Sunbow Productions

Sunbow Entertainment is an animation studio, founded in 1980 and owned up until 1998 by Griffin-Bacal Advertising in New York. The first animation efforts by Griffin-Bacal were producing the animated commercials for Hasbro's G.I....
 series including Jem.

DVD NameEp #Release DateAdditional Information
The Complete 1st & 2nd Seasons26 March 30 2004
  • Interviews With Samantha Newark, the Speaking Voice of Jem and Writer/Creator Christy Marx
  • Commentary On Four Episodes by Writer/Creator Christy Marx
  • View All the Music From the Show In order, Uninterrupted
  • Excerpts From the Jem Bible
Season 3, Part 119 September 14 2004
  • Commentary tracks on episodes "KJEM" and "The Talent Search" by writer/executive story editor Christy Marx
  • Interview with the singing voice of Jem Britta Phillips
  • Interview with writers Roger Slifer
  • Commentary track for "Father's Day" by writer Roger Slifer
  • "B" - Roll Footage
  • "Play Songs" feature


    • Jem was first released on DVD in the US in 2004 remastered and in 5.1 Audio. Since then Australia
    Australia

    Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
     and France
    France

    France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
     have also released Jem on DVD. The UK had the "Jem: Truly Outrageous" movie released on DVD.

    In September 2004, Cartoon Network Australia bought the TV rights to Jem and aired the show for ten months on their classics network, Boomerang
    Boomerang (TV channel)

    Boomerang is a 24-hour United States cable television television channel owned by Turner Broadcasting System . The network debuted April 1, 2000....
    . Australia also had the first and second season of Jem released on DVD.

    Current status of franchise

    Almost 20 years after the Jem toy line was introduced to the U.S. market and 17 years after its demise, Hasbro has shown some legal activity in maintaining their trademarks and intellectual property
    Intellectual property

    Intellectual property are law property over creations of the mind, both artistic and commercial, and the corresponding fields of law. Under intellectual property law, owners are granted certain exclusive rights to a variety of intangible assets, such as musical, literary, and artistic works; ideas, discoveries and inventions; and words, phra...
    , leading some fans to believe they may be reviving the line via the trademark renewal "for the purpose of selling dolls and doll clothes". However, this may just be standard practice, as if they had not renewed the trademarks they would have lost any future rights to their creation. As of August 2008, the Jem series have not been released in any further DVDs.

    Christy Marx has long expressed a desire to make a modern day revival of the animated series, but stated in a 2004 interview that there are a great deal of complications concerning the rights to the Jem properties.

    "I would like to see that happen. I don't want to go into a lot of detail, but the whole rights situation for Jem is very, very complicated. Believe me, if there were a simple straightforward way to do it, it would be done. But there are some very big complications that are in the way at the moment." - Christy Marx


    Forbes.com has reported that Hasbro has recently re-acquired distribution rights to the Sunbow library of Hasbro Classics, which includes Jem. This has led to speculation that Jem may be re-released on DVD in the future.

    External links