"Charles in charge of our day and our nights,
Charles in charge of our wrongs and our rights...
I want Charles in charge of me!"

Scott Baio was a hot ticket item, fresh off of his stints on Happy Days and Joanie Loves Chachi.  Though the latter was ultimately a failure, TV execs knew the time was right to put him on a new series, something without the baggage a spin-off takes with it.  Girls were just dying to get more of the hunky Baio on television… something had to be done soon.  Enter Charles in Charge. 

The series debuted in the fall of 1984.  Baio portrayed Charles, who was trusted with the Pembroke kids in exchange for room and board while he was going to college.  Jill and Stan were busy working, so their children, 14-year old Lila, 12-year old Douglas and ten-year old Jason, were left to cause general havoc for Charles who usually could make things right before mom and pop came home.   These kids weren’t just boring ‘filler’ kids; they had personalities all their own; Lila was boy crazy, but really didn’t know how to handle herself; Douglas, on the other hand, was a straight-up nerd, into sci-fi and just… geeky; Jason seemed the most ‘normal’ of the three, but was the youngest, thus suffering as a result.  The 19-year old Charles suddenly had to provide answers to these ‘coming-of-age’ questions he’s only just starting to figure out, himself. 

Then there was Buddy Lembeck.  As Charles’ zany best friend, he caused as many problems as he helped solve for poor Charles.  And, of course, what show would possibly have Baio be babe-less.  While she was always just out of his reach, the girl of his dreams was Gwendolyn Pierce.  Each week, Charles was left with the challenge of balancing his complex life, keeping all aspects at bay… while going to school.

At the same time Charles in Charge was on the air, another similar program was on ABC, the Tony Danza hit, Who’s the Boss?  Despite the promise the show held, CBS cancelled Charles in Charge after just one season, much to the chagrin of Baio-holics around the country.  Somehow, through the miracle of the TV gods, Charles in Charge was back on the air in 1987 after its success in syndication.  New episodes were created, but where did the Pembrokes go?

Well, by Season 2, picking up two years later, the Pembrokes sold their house to the Powells.  Along with the house came Charles, ‘a male college student who loves taking care of children.’  The Powell kids included 14-year old Jamie, 13-year old Sarah and 12-year old Adam.  Mom Ellen worked all day and dad was at sea.  The kids’ grandfather, Walter, was the ‘man of the house’ – a retired Navy man who often disagreed with Charles when it came to the kids, despite both of them having the best of intentions.  The new series also gave Charles a mom, who coincidentally played Chachi’s mom prior to this role.  Never meaning harm, her greatest desire was to meddle in her son’s life.  She moved into the area and bought up the kids’ favorite pizza place.  She turned it into a 50s diner called The Yesterday Café… how very Happy Days of her.

When he wasn’t dealing with the trouble that would come about from the children’s extremely varied personalities, Charles was often left trying to figure out what was going on in Buddy’s brain.  And some things just never change.  While there was no Gwendoyln, there were plenty of pretty girls to drive Charles crazy, one of which was a very young Meg Ryan.  Of course, life can’t be easy for Charles, with most dates ruined because of some issue with the kids.

The series remained on the air for three and a half year, closing with Charles getting accepted to grad school at Princeton.  By 1990, it seemed Charles was ready to be in charge of his own life, giving the chance for his TV family and viewers at home to say one last goodbye.