Gimme A Break! - Premise

Premise

The sitcom took place in the fictional Los Angeles, California, suburb of Glenlawn. Nellie Ruth "Nell" Harper (Nell Carter) agrees to be a housekeeper for the Kanisky household as a special favor to her late friend, Margaret Kanisky (née Huffman) (played in flashback by Sharon Spelman), who was the wife of police chief Carl Kanisky (Dolph Sweet). Nell also served as a confidante to the chief's three daughters, 17-year-old Katie (Kari Michaelsen), 15-year-old Julie (Lauri Hendler), and 13-year-old Samantha (Lara Jill Miller). A foster son, Joey (Joey Lawrence) was added in season 3.

Over the six-year run, a number of celebrities appeared on the show, including singer Whitney Houston, Andy Gibb, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Ray Parker, Jr.. In some of these episodes, the guest would eventually perform a song with Nell. During the third season, Pat Sajak guest-starred as himself when Nell and her friend Addy (Telma Hopkins) were contestants on Wheel of Fortune.

Two episodes were particularly noteworthy. The episode "Cat Story" was performed and broadcast live on March 2, 1985, as a promotional gimmick, which the cast was able to pull off without a hitch. Another episode that aired earlier in the 1984–85 season, "Baby of the Family", ranked No. 38 on TV Land's list of "The 100 Most Unexpected TV Moments"; the latter episode depicted Joey dressing and performing in blackface at Nell's church benefit at Sam's behest after Nell did not allow Sam to go on an unchaperoned fishing trip.