Good Morning, Miss Bliss facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Good Morning, Miss Bliss |
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| Genre | Teen sitcom |
| Created by | Sam Bobrick |
| Starring | Hayley Mills Dennis Haskins Joan Ryan Max Battimo Dustin Diamond Mark-Paul Gosselaar Heather Hopper Lark Voorhies T.K. Carter |
| Theme music composer | Charles Fox |
| Opening theme | "These Are the Best of Times" |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 (+ original pilot) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Peter Engel |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 22–24 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Peter Engel Productions NBC Productions |
| Distributor | NBCUniversal Television Distribution |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC (pilot only) Disney Channel |
| Picture format | NTSC |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | July 11, 1987 – March 18, 1989 |
| Chronology | |
| Followed by | Saved by the Bell |
Good Morning, Miss Bliss was a fun American TV show about junior high school students and their teacher. It is also sometimes called Saved by the Bell: The Junior High Years. The show aired on the Disney Channel from 1988 to 1989. It starred Hayley Mills as Miss Carrie Bliss, a teacher at John F. Kennedy Junior High School in Indianapolis, Indiana.
After just one season, the show changed quite a bit. It was then remade into the very popular show Saved by the Bell, which aired on NBC. Good Morning, Miss Bliss was special because it was one of the first shows a big TV network (NBC) made for a cable channel (Disney Channel).
Contents
Meet the Characters and Story
This TV series focused on the daily life of Miss Carrie Bliss (Hayley Mills). She was a junior high school teacher at John F. Kennedy Junior High in Indianapolis. Miss Bliss often found herself in tricky situations at work. She was usually the person her students could trust and talk to.
Her eighth grade students included:
- Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar): Zack was a charming and clever kid. He was often a bit lazy and always looked for the easiest way out of things. However, Miss Bliss believed he had a lot of potential.
- Lisa Turtle (Lark Voorhies): Lisa loved to shop and was best friends with Nikki. Many boys at school, especially Screech, had a crush on her.
- Samuel "Screech" Powers (Dustin Diamond): Screech was a bit awkward but very smart. He was an excellent student and always honest. He also had a big crush on Lisa.
- Mikey Gonzalez (Max Battimo): Mikey was Zack's best friend. He was a good student, especially in math and history. Mikey could be shy around girls and sometimes disagreed with Zack.
- Nikki Coleman (Heather Hopper): Nikki was outspoken and often tried to do the right thing. She would speak up when her friends planned something mischievous.
The show also featured other important characters:
- Mylo Williams (T. K. Carter): He was the school's maintenance supervisor.
- Miss Tina Paladrino (Joan Ryan): She was a quirky teacher and a good friend to Miss Bliss. They often talked about their lives, and Miss Paladrino was always there to listen.
- Mr. Richard Belding (Dennis Haskins): He was the school principal.
The show only made 13 episodes before it was canceled. NBC then decided to change Good Morning, Miss Bliss into Saved by the Bell. Some characters, like Zack, Lisa, Screech, and Mr. Belding, moved to the new show. In Saved by the Bell, they attended a fictional school called Bayside High in California.
Later, when Saved by the Bell episodes were shown again, the Miss Bliss episodes were added too. Before each Miss Bliss episode, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, playing Zack, would appear. He would explain that these episodes happened earlier than the rest of Saved by the Bell. The opening song and video were also changed to look like Saved by the Bell's.
Meet the Cast
Here are the main actors and the characters they played:
- Hayley Mills as Miss Carrie Bliss
- Dennis Haskins as Mr. Richard Belding
- Joan Ryan as Miss Tina Paladrino
- Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Zachary "Zack" Morris
- Max Battimo as Michael "Mikey" Gonzalez
- Dustin Diamond as Samuel "Screech" Powers
- Heather Hopper as Nicole "Nikki" Coleman
- Lark Voorhies as Lisa Turtle
- T. K. Carter as Mylo Williams
Episode Guide
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
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| – | "Pilot" | Peter Bonerz | Sam Bobrick | July 11, 1987 | |
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On the first day of school, Miss Bliss (Hayley Mills) tries to help a student who is dealing with his older brother dying. This pilot episode aired only once and is not usually shown in reruns. It is also the only episode in the series that does not feature Zack Morris or Screech Powers. Note: While the later episodes aired on the Disney Channel, this first Good Morning, Miss Bliss pilot aired on NBC during their regular evening TV time. |
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| 1 | "Summer Love" | Burt Brinckerhoff | Peter Engel | November 30, 1988 | |
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Zack told everyone he was with an older girl, Karen (Carla Gugino), at summer camp. When she transfers to JFK High, Zack tries to pretend he is also in 9th grade.
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| 2 | "Love Letters" | Burt Brinckerhoff | David Garber & Bruce E. Kalish | December 7, 1988 | |
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Screech asks Zack to write a love letter for him to Lisa.
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| 3 | "Wall Street" | Burt Brinckerhoff | Jake Weinberger & Mike Weinberger | December 14, 1988 | |
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The class is doing a project on stocks. Zack invests the class's money in some very risky stocks.
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| 4 | "Leaping to Conclusions" | Burt Brinckerhoff | Susan Sebastian & Diana Ayers | December 21, 1988 | |
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Nikki refuses to take part in the science class's frog dissection.
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| 5 | "Parents and Teachers" | Gary Shimokawa | Lawrence H. Levy | December 28, 1988 | |
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Zack's dad, Peter (Robert Pine), meets Miss Bliss at a parent/teacher meeting. They find that they like each other.
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| 6 | "Showdown" | Gary Shimokawa | R.J. Colleary | January 4, 1989 | |
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Screech's friends encourage him to stand up to the school bully, Deke Simmons (Andras Jones).
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| 7 | "Save the Last Dance for Me" | Gary Shimokawa | Gwyn Gurian & Skip Frank | February 4, 1989 | |
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Zack and Mikey both like Shana (Alexondra Lee). Mikey likes her, but she asks Zack to a dance, causing a fight between the friends.
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| 8 | "The Boy Who Cried Rat" | Gary Shimokawa | Robert Burris & Michael Ware | February 11, 1989 | |
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Miss Bliss is being considered for Teacher of the Year. Zack lets Screech's pet rat out in the school to avoid a midterm exam.
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| 9 | "Let's Get Together" | Burt Brinckerhoff | Michael Poryes | February 18, 1989 | |
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Zack and Nikki are arguing, but then they are paired up for a class project. Tina moves in with Miss Bliss after her boyfriend breaks up with her, and she starts to drive Miss Bliss crazy.
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| 10 | "Practical Jokes" | Gary Shimokawa | Howard Ostroff | February 25, 1989 | |
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A mock trial is held after a series of jokes. One joke finally breaks Miss Bliss's "unfooled" streak. Miss Bliss then reveals a joke she played on the students to get them to study the Constitution. But she ends up falling for Screech's prank.
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| 11 | "Stevie" | Burt Brinckerhoff | Jake Weinberger & Mike Weinberger | March 4, 1989 | |
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Zack bets Nikki that he can kiss the pop singer Stevie (Suzanne Tara).
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| 12 | "Clubs and Cliques" | Burt Brinckerhoff | Michael Poryes & R.J. Colleary | March 11, 1989 | |
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Zack is embarrassed by some older students who invite him to join a "cool" club. Meanwhile, Miss Bliss and Mr. Belding switch jobs for a week.
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| 13 | "The Mentor" | Gary Shimokawa | Story by : Jim Carlson & Terrence McDonnell Teleplay by : Jim Carlson, Terrence McDonnell, & Michael Poryes |
March 18, 1989 | |
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Miss Bliss's old teacher, Mr. James Lyman (Robert Donner), comes back. He causes some arguments with his unusual teaching methods.
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How the Show Was Broadcast
The First Pilot Episode
The very first episode of Good Morning, Miss Bliss was a pilot. It aired on July 11, 1987, on NBC. Hayley Mills was the only actress from this pilot who continued to be in the main series. Other actors in the pilot included Brian Austin Green, Jaleel White, and Jonathan Brandis. Brian Austin Green played Adam Montcrief, who was the main student in this pilot.
Some characters from the series were in the pilot but played by different actors. For example, Mr. Gerald Belding was played by Oliver Clark. Miss Tina Paladrino was played by Maria O'Brien.
Reruns and Syndication
After Saved by the Bell became a huge hit, the Good Morning, Miss Bliss episodes were added to its rerun package. Before each Miss Bliss episode, Mark-Paul Gosselaar (as Zack Morris) would introduce it. He would explain that these episodes happened before the main Saved by the Bell story. The opening theme song and video were also changed to match the Saved by the Bell style.
These reruns aired on channels like TBS and later on The N. Even on Netflix in 2015, the Saved by the Bell collection included these modified Miss Bliss episodes. However, the animated sunglasses in the opening still showed scenes from Bayside High and The Max. These places were not in Good Morning, Miss Bliss, which was set in Indiana.
Home Video Release
The full collection of Good Morning, Miss Bliss episodes was released on DVD. It came out as part of the Saved By The Bell: The Complete Collection DVD set on October 2, 2018.
