Meego (TV series)

Did You Know?

• The exterior of the Parker family home was recycled from the earlier Miller-Boyett series On Our Own.
• The home exterior footage was filmed in a suburb of St. Louis, though one episode references the greater Chicago area.
• Seven additional episodes produced but unaired in the United States aired in some international markets, such as on Sky1 in the United Kingdom.

Synopsis

Meego, a 9,000-year-old shape-shifting alien from Marmazon 4.0, crash-lands on Earth and is found by three children: Trip, Maggie, and Alex Parker. They live with their single father, Dr. Edward Parker. Meego passes as human, telling people he is from Canada, and plans to return home once his ship is repaired. He grows attached to the children and decides to stay to care for them.

Cast

Bronson Pinchot played the title role of Meego. Ed Begley Jr. portrayed Dr. Edward Parker. Michelle Trachtenberg played Maggie Parker. Trip Parker was played by Erik von Detten in the pilot and by Will Estes in episodes 2 through 13. Jonathan Lipnicki played Alex Parker. Jaleel White appeared uncredited in two episodes as a disgruntled repossessor and a man blowing a whistle at a pinewood derby race. Three cast members of Gilligan's Island—Bob Denver, Dawn Wells, and Russell Johnson—guest-starred in the unaired episode "Mommy 'n' Meego."

Broadcast

Meego was commissioned for the CBS Block Party, an effort to compete with ABC's TGIF. Incoming CBS head Les Moonves offered Miller-Boyett Productions $40 million to bring Family Matters and Step by Step to CBS, and as part of the deal Miller-Boyett could produce a new show, which became Meego. Unlike other Block Party shows, Meego targeted children rather than the whole family, a factor in its failure. Its lead-in, Family Matters, featured mostly young adults, and its lead-out, The Gregory Hines Show, was adult-oriented. It faced direct competition from Boy Meets World, which peaked in viewership during the 1997–98 season. Meego was pulled after six episodes. After holiday specials filled the slot, Kids Say the Darndest Things replaced it in January 1998.