All of Us is an American sitcom television series that premiered on the UPN network in the United States on September 16, 2003, where it aired for its first three seasons. On October 1, 2006, the show moved to The CW, a new network formed by the merger of UPN and The WB, where it aired for one more season before being cancelled on May 14, 2007.
Synopsis
The series, which was loosely based on creator and executive producersJada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith's own blended family, revolved around Robert James, a divorced television entertainment reporter with a young son, Robert "Bobby" James, Jr., and his fiancée, Tia Jewel, a kindergarten teacher who helped him through the breakup of his first marriage. Robert shares custody of his son with his ex wife Neesee, with whom he shares a tenuously friendly relationship for the sake of their son. Robert also finds himself in a difficult situation, attempting to maintain the peace, however uneasy, between his ex wife and his fiancée. Friends of the couple included Dirk Black, Robert's single best friend and producer, and Tia's best friend and fellow teacher Jonelle Abrahams. In season three, Tia breaks off her engagement to Robert, leaving a newly single Robert faced with a situation wherein Neesee must move in with him and Bobby temporarily after her apartment building is destroyed by fire. In addition to Tia, two other supporting characters, Jonelle and Turtle, were written out of the series. In season four, Laivan Greene joined the cast as Courtney, Dirk's long lost daughter.
Episodes
Production
Cast changes
In June 2005, Elise Neal, who portrayed Tia Jewel, announced that she would not be returning for the third season of the series due to the salary imbalance between her and co star LisaRaye. In August 2005, Terri J. Vaughn who played Jonelle Abrahams, and James Vincent, who played Turtle, also announced they would not be returning to the series due to contract issues. In November 2005, Terri J. Vaughn returned to play Jonelle in a guest appearance for the third season's two part "Legal Affairs" episodes. James Vincent returned to play Turtle in a guest appearance in the third season episode "Creeping With The Enemy".
Cancellation
On May 15, 2007, The CW canceled All of Us. The CW was transitioning to shows that showcased more teenage and young adult dramas as well as Reality, and steering away from sitcoms altogether. While the last season of All of Us averaged about the same viewers as the third season of The Vampire Diaries or the last four seasons of Smallville, it, like every other sitcom, be it an original UPN or WB show, was cancelled, as apparent by the CW not acquiring many sitcoms after the merger and slowly cancelling all sitcoms and not funding any after 2009.
Broadcast
First run
All of Us debuted on UPN on September 16, 2003. The series aired on Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. EST for its first season. The show's second season aired on Tuesday nights at 8pm and was paired up with fellow UPN sitcom Eve. For its third season, UPN moved the series to Mondays at 8:30 p.m. EST airing after One on One. After three seasons of average ratings, and with the fall 2006 launch of The CW necessitating the cancellations of many of UPN and The WB's lower-rated programs, All of Us was originally slated to be cancelled after the 2005-2006 television season. However, the series was saved at the last minute and placed on The CW's fall 2006 lineup, airing on Sundays at 7:30 p.m. EST after Everybody Hates Chris. Due to lackluster ratings, the show moved back to its former Monday night time slot in the beginning of October 2006. During its single season on The CW, All of Us averaged around 2.74 million viewers per week. All of Us finished the season at #140 in the ratings, surpassing only The Game, America's Next Top Model, and the now cancelled Runaway.
Syndication and reruns
On September 24, 2007, The CW began airing reruns of All of Us as part of the network's daytime programming block. Reruns of the show aired weekdays at 3 p.m. EST until September 2008. The series has also aired on TV One. It also aired in Australia on the Nine Network and in United Kingdom.
