Good Luck Charlie

Good Luck Charlie is an American sitcom that originally aired on Disney Channel from April 4, 2010, to February 16, 2014. The series' creators, Phil Baker and Drew Vaupen, wanted to create a program that would appeal to entire families, not just children. It focuses on the Duncan family of Denver as they adjust to the births of their fourth and fifth children, Charlotte "Charlie" (Mia Talerico) and Toby (Logan Moreau). In each episode, Teddy Duncan (Bridgit Mendler) adds to a video diary that contains advice for Charlie about their family and life as a teenager. Teddy tries to show Charlie what she might go through when she is older for future reference. Each video diary ends with Teddy (or another family member, even Charlie) saying the eponymous phrase, "Good luck, Charlie".
Among other decisions, executives included adult-centric scenes and changed the series title from "Oops" to "Love, Teddy" and finally to "Good Luck Charlie" in order to ensure the series would appeal to all family members. "Good Luck Charlie" premiered on Disney Channel in the United States on April 4, 2010, in Canada on April 5, 2010, in the United Kingdom and Ireland on May 14, 2010, and in Australia and New Zealand on July 23, 2010. In March 2011, a feature-length Christmas Disney Channel Original Movie based on the series, entitled "Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas!", began production for a December 2011 premiere.
In June 2013, Disney Channel announced that the series would end its run after four seasons. The finale aired on February 16, 2014, with a one-hour episode.
Premise.
Set in Denver, Colorado, the series focuses on the Duncan family, who are still adjusting to the birth of their fourth child, Charlotte "Charlie" Duncan (Mia Talerico). When parents Amy (Leigh-Allyn Baker), a nurse, and Bob (Eric Allan Kramer), an exterminator, return to work, they ask their three older children—PJ (Jason Dolley), Teddy (Bridgit Mendler), and Gabe (Bradley Steven Perry)—to help raise their little sister. At the same time, Teddy, PJ, and Gabe try to deal with school and general social challenges in their lives.
The events in each episode become material for a video diary that Teddy is making for Charlie. Teddy hopes the videos will provide useful advice for Charlie after they have both grown up and Teddy has moved out. At the end of each video, she (and/or other cast members) says, "Good luck, Charlie" or may even say it indirectly such as "Wish them good luck, Charlie." During the movie, Amy reveals to Teddy that she is pregnant with her fifth child, but this story plot is not brought into the series until the third season, during which Amy gives birth to a baby boy, Toby. Each episode ends, after the video diary, with an event that is weird and usually cannot happen in real life.
Development and production.
The "Good Luck Charlie" pilot, entitled "Study Date", was shot in February 2009, at Sunset Bronson Studios (where "[[Hannah Montana]" was taped) and the series was picked up later that year. The show's production occurs at [[Sunset Bronson Studios]] in Los Angeles even though the show is set in [[Denver]], Colorado. The house that is used as the Duncan's house throughout the show is located in Pasadena, CA. Starting with the 2nd season, the series is taped at [[Los Angeles Center Studios]], where "[[Shake It Up (U.S. TV series)|Shake It Up]]" is also taped. The show operates on a weekly schedule. Scripts for a new episode are issued on Monday before a [[read-through]], Wednesdays are [[rehearsal]] and network run-through day, final scripts are issued on Thursday, and the episode is shot in front of a live studio audience on Friday night. According to Mendler, occasionally "episodes are too big to handle with a live audience [and are] taped without an audience, but mostly they're live".
"Good Luck Charlie" was created by [[Phil Baker and Drew Vaupen]], who have been writing together since 1993 on shows ranging from "[[Suddenly Susan]]" to "[[Sonny with a Chance]]". The pair aspired to create a program that would appeal to entire families rather than simply kids. Inspired by the success of reruns of shows such as "[[Full House]]" and "[[George Lopez (TV series)|George Lopez]]" with young audiences, Vaupen and Baker turned to [[sitcom|family sitcoms]]. "We wanted to do a show about a family, to bring back a family sitcom and make it about a real family, not wizards, nobody's a pop star, nobody has a TV show", said Vaupen, referring to "[[Wizards of Waverly Place]]", "[[Hannah Montana]]", and "[[Sonny with a Chance]]".
Veteran writer-producer [[Dan Staley]] ("[[Cheers]]") later joined the show as executive producer. Disney's Gary Marsh said "because most network television abandoned the traditional sitcom, Disney has been able to snatch up a lot of experienced talent for behind the camera, including executive producer Dan Staley..."
"Good Luck Charlie"s central family, the Duncans from [[Denver]], Colorado, was carefully crafted for broad appeal. While the series is still told primarily through the view point of the Duncan children, the children's parents, Amy and Bob, are less on the periphery and writers attempt to add scenes that adult viewers can relate to. For example, in one scene in the pilot episode Amy confesses to Bob that she is overwhelmed with becoming a working new mother again. "She's not sure she can pull this off", says Bonnet. "And just playing that scene the way we did, a very real scene between husband and wife, kind of makes this show different". The writers also try to include jokes for adult viewers while remaining chaste enough for their young target audience. Unlike most previous Disney Channel series such as "[[Sonny with a Chance]]", "[[Hannah Montana]]", or "[[Cory in the House]]", both parents are seen in the Duncan family. "It felt like the right time to have a show with two parents, to debunk the myth that Disney never has the mom in the picture", says Adam Bonnett, Senior Vice President of original programming for Disney Channel. "Because it is a myth".
Because a series about the rich and famous might alienate viewers in a [[Great Recession|troubled economy]], the Duncans were made [[American middle class|middle class]]. According to [[Gary Marsh]], Entertainment President of Disney Channel Worldwide, "What we want to do is acknowledge the reality of the times in which we live, where two parents work, where kids are expected to help out around the house in meaningful ways. Real-life issues happen. Everyone isn't living 'The Life of Riley' all the time."
Naming.
Broadening Disney Channel's appeal was a concern when choosing the names of the characters and the title of the program. "You want a title that says, a) this is a sitcom and, b) this is something that will interest the main demographic but also we're trying to expand the Disney brand beyond just girls", Vaupen commented. The series' title was originally ""Love, Teddy", the phrase Teddy had used to end her video diary entries during development. However, "Love, Teddy"" immediately felt feminized and almost excludes boys", Vaupen said. "We also didn't want to have the word 'Baby' in the title because that would exclude certain people". The Duncan baby was originally named "Daisy" during development, but producers thought that "Charlie", which is generally a masculine name, would attract more boys.
Casting.
As "Good Luck Charlie" is low concept and character-driven, "the actors not only had to carry the show, they also had to have "pitch-perfect" chemistry with each other to make the family dynamic believable". Bonnet says Disney Channel executives "just fell in love with" [[Bridgit Mendler]], who stars as teenaged Teddy Duncan. "She has all the attributes of a Disney star", said Bonnet. Mendler first heard about "Good Luck Charlie" in late November 2008. After several rounds of auditions and cast reads, she finally secured the part in January 2009. Mendler and [[Jason Dolley]], who plays Teddy's older brother PJ, have starred in preceding Disney Channel series and movies before both were cast in Good Luck Charlie; Mendler had a recurring role on "[[Wizards of Waverly Place]]" and Dolley starred in "[[Cory in the House]]" and numerous Disney Channel television movies. "Variety" magazine's Brian Lowry says their careers "[reflect] the Disney Channel's knack for identifying young performers and rolling them from one project to the next, in a fashion reminiscent of the old studio system". Both [[Eric Allan Kramer]], who plays Bob Duncan, and [[Leigh-Allyn Baker]], who plays Amy Duncan, have also guest starred in preceding Disney Channel shows, and both Kramer and Baker had respectively guest starred in one episode each of the [[NBC]] sitcom "[[My Name Is Earl]]", where "Charlie" writers Erika Kaestle & Patrick McCarthy had served as writers and supervising producers. Both Baker and Kramer were in the same episode of the [[NBC]] sitcom "[[Will and Grace]]", entitled "[[Will & Grace (season 7)#ep156|Sour Balls]]". Baker says Disney had been "courting [her] to play a mom", but she had always felt too young. "I kind of feel like hey, you know what? When I'm done with this stint, I'll actually be the age everyone thinks I am to be able to play the part". Baker, who was a new mother herself, was nine months pregnant at the time she was auditioning for the role.
 – Like most series featuring baby actors, producers of "Good Luck Charlie" had originally intended to have identical twins play Charlie Duncan, the title character and the Duncans' new baby. Hiring two babies would allow for longer work days without violating child labor laws as well as the ability to substitute one child for the other if one was unavailable. However, the show makers were unsuccessful in finding the proper set of twins and decided to cast Mia Talerico instead. Marsh says casting Talerico, who was ten months old at the time of her casting for the role, was their highest risk while creating the show: "It's like flying without a net. She may have a bad day and we can't shoot and it'll cost us tens of thousands of dollars. But so far, so good. She's the most obedient actor I've ever worked with".
Film.
"Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas!" also known as "Good Luck Charlie: The Road Trip Movie" is a 2011 [[Christmas film]] based on the series. The film premiered December 2, 2011, on the Disney Channel. The film was directed by [[Arlene Sanford]] and written by [[Geoff Rodkey]]. The [[List of Disney Channel Original Movies|Disney Channel Original Movie]] follows the Duncan family on their road trip to Amy Duncan's parents' house for Christmas.
International adaptation.
An Indian adaptation of the show titled "[[Best of Luck Nikki]]", premiered on [[Disney Channel India]] on April 3, 2011. [[Sheena Bajaj (actor)|Sheena Bajaj]] plays [[Best of Luck Nikki#Dolly Singh|Dolly Singh]], a character similar to that of Teddy Duncan, Ananya Kolvankar portrays [[Best of Luck Nikki#Nikita "Nikki" Singh|Nikita "Nikki" Singh]] a character similar to that of Charlie and [[Gurdeep Kohli]] portrays [[Best of Luck Nikki#Himani Singh|Himani Singh]], a character similar to that of Amy. The series ran successfully for 4 seasons, 104 episodes and 3 special episodes and ended on April 16, 2016.
A Pakistani adaptation of the show titled "Peek-A-Boo Shahwaiz" premiered on [[Play Entertainment]] from 15 July 2018.
Broadcast.
Worldwide the series airs on [[Disney Channel]]. In Canada it previewed on April 5, 2010 and premiered on May 14, 2010. In Australia and [[New Zealand]] it previewed on May 14, 2010 and premiered on July 23, 2010. In the United Kingdom and Ireland it previewed on the same date and premiered on June 12, 2010. It premiered in [[Singapore]], [[Malaysia]], and the [[Philippines]] on August 14, 2010.
Music.
Although a soundtrack for the show was not released, several songs were produced for the show.
Reception.
The series earned positive reviews. Robert Lloyd of "[[The Los Angeles Times]]" described it as a "professional sitcom from sitcom professionals" with efficient jokes and typical sitcom characters, and situations which are "willfully arranged". However, Lloyd praised the series for offering a "contextually novel picture of a teenage girl taking care of her baby sister with a persuasive nonchalance and practical ease that transcends the strenuous comedy that surrounds it". Neal Justin of the "[[Star Tribune]]" said the "slapstick heavy, laugh-track fueled sitcom" had no redeeming qualities other than "keeping your 11-year-old sedated for a half hour". Rob Owen of the "[[Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]]" said "Good Luck Charlie" would appeal to kids, but not adults. "Parents have seen the same sort of show done before and better in [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s 1980s-era [[TGIF (ABC)|TGIF]] lineup", wrote Owen. Contrarily, Brian Lowry of "[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]" magazine said "Good Luck Charlie" was "a surprisingly refreshing throwback to ABC's "TGIF"-style sitcoms". He commented that while the series did not "push sitcom boundaries", it was "sprightly" and "pleasantly handled".
Viewership.
The series premiered to 4.7 million viewers, making it the highest-rated series premiere for a [[List of Disney Channel series|Disney Channel Original Series]] since "[[The Suite Life on Deck]]" in 2008, and the week's highest-rated cable program. "[[Maclean's]]" reported that overall, the first season "has been doing about as well as Disney's more successful shows – "The Suite Life" and so on".
On June 24, 2012, the episode "Special Delivery" became the most watched episode ever of "Good Luck Charlie", earning 7.48 million viewers, surpassing the episode "Snow Show (Part 1)" which had 7.24 million viewers as well as the episode "Good Luck Jessie NYC Christmas" that garnered 5.8 million viewers and the series' pilot episode "Study Date" which had 4.68 million viewers.
The most-watched episode of the series was "Special Delivery" with 7.5 million viewers. The least watched episode was "The Unusual Suspects" with 1.9 million viewers.
The most viewed episode in the United Kingdom and Ireland was "Special Delivery" with 602,000 viewers when it aired on October 12, 2012.
Episode featuring a lesbian couple.
On June 20, 2013, [[Disney Channel]] announced that Season 4 Episode 19, "[[List of Good Luck Charlie episodes#ep96|Down a Tree]]", would feature a [[same-sex marriage|married lesbian couple]], making "Good Luck Charlie" the first Disney Channel series to do so. [[LGBT rights]] organization [[GLAAD]] as well as actresses [[Miley Cyrus]] and [[Evan Rachel Wood]] expressed their support and lauded Disney for the inclusion of the characters. By contrast, the [[American Family Association#One Million Moms/One Million Dads project|One Million Moms]] division of the [[American Family Association]] protested and asked Disney not to air the episode. In a statement to "[[TV Guide]]", a Disney Channel spokesperson stated that the episode was "developed to be relevant to kids and families around the world and to reflect themes of diversity and inclusiveness." [[Disney]] aired the episode as planned on January 26, 2014.
External links.
[[Category:Good Luck Charlie| ]]
[[Category:2010 American television series debuts]]
[[Category:2010s American comedy television series]]
[[Category:2010s American teen sitcoms]]
[[Category:2014 American television series endings]]
[[Category:Disney Channel original programming]]
[[Category:English-language television shows]]
[[Category:Television series about families]]
[[Category:Television series by It's a Laugh Productions]]
[[Category:Television shows set in Colorado]]