List of Jem characters

Jem and the Holograms

• Jem/Jerrica Benton – Jem is the leader of the Holograms where she provides the lead vocals. She is the alter-ego of Jerrica Benton, owner of Starlight Music and a foster home for girls known as "Starlight House". Jerrica was inherited both Starlight Music and Starlight House from her late father, Emmett Benton. Using the power of Synergy, a powerful computer with holographic capabilities, Jerrica can become Jem by touching her special star-shaped earrings. Most stories of the series consist of Jerrica hiding her identity from others, especially Rio Pacheco, her long-time boyfriend. Synergy's holograms are integral to maintaining the illusion that Jerrica and Jem are two different people. Jerrica tends to compartmentalize her life in some respects and even occasionally shows jealousy toward the alter-ego of Jem she created, as she is able to indulge in her inhibitions far more freely than she can as Jerrica.
• Kimber Benton – Kimber is Jerrica's younger sister and the primary songwriter of the Holograms. Kimber is also the keyboards, synthesizers, and backup vocals for the band. Episodes in which Kimber is the main focus often involve romance and rebellion, such as her jealousy towards the media attention that Jem gets. She has extreme emotions and is very sensitive, often shown by her tantrums, which appear from time to time. These emotional outbursts are due largely in part to the impact of the death of Kimber and Jerrica's father, Emmett had on her—something, as seen in "Father's Day", Kimber still grieves over to this day. Kimber also has a close friendship with Mary "Stormer" Phillips, one of the Misfits. A hopeless romantic, Kimber has many boyfriends and love interests on the show but is not very serious about any of them. In the "Hollywood Jem" two-parter, Kimber nearly marries Jeff Wright, a stuntman who makes appearances from time to time on the show as one of her many boyfriends, but both of them agree to call off the ceremony and remain friends after she realizes she is truly in love with Sean. Kimber becomes an equal partner in Starlight Music after the Misfits lose the Battle of the Bands to Jem and Eric Raymond was forced to relinquish his ownership of half of the company to Jerrica, who in turn gives it to Kimber.
• Aja Leith – Aja is a foster girl who grew up with the other Holograms at Starlight House. She is the lead guitarist and backup vocals for the Holograms. Aja was the first foster child adopted by Jacqui and Emmett Benton, Jerrica and Kimber's parents. She is romantically involved with Craig Phillips, the brother of the Misfit's keytarist, Stormer. Aja is almost always the driver of the Rockin' Roadster, the primary vehicle of the group. In the series, Aja is described as being a tomboy and the second in the command of the group and also has considerable knowledge of electronics. In "Out of the Past", it is revealed that she had a friendship with Rio when they were younger, mainly due to her interest in tinkering with mechanics and technology. This caused some mild feelings of jealousy in Jerrica, but this didn't last very long. Aja is the only one of the Holograms who has some experience with the inner workings of Synergy, and using her knowledge, she helps retrieve her foster mother's song tracks in "Out of the Past".
• Shana Elmsford – Shana is a foster girl who grew up with Kimber, Jerrica and Aja at Starlight House and was the second child to be adopted by the Bentons. Shana provides the synth drums, bass guitar, and backup vocals for the group. Despite Shana's shy demeanor she eventually became good friends with the other girls. Shana's boyfriend is music producer Anthony Julian; she also designs many of the Holograms' clothes. Shana briefly left the group to pursue a career in fashion as a designer for actress Liz Stratton, wrongly assuming she was not wanted. Shana later walked off the production when she decided she'd had enough of Stratton's ego. She returns to the band and switches instruments playing the bass guitar while Raya takes over on drums. Shana sometimes expresses doubts in her talents as a designer, particularly in "In Stitches" when she is needled over this by Roxy and the other Misfits. She has great respect for Danielle DuVoison, who has taken a personal interest in Shana's work and often gives her helpful advice.
• Carmen 'Raya' Alonso – Raya is the Mexican American drummer of the Holograms and one of the back-up singers. Quiet, kind and unassuming, Raya won the position of drummer for the Holograms during a nationwide talent search, beating close competitor Craig Phillips in a drum duel. Raya inadvertently learned Jem's identity and was pursued by Eric Raymond and the Misfits to reveal Jerrica; however, Raya never gave in. After Shana returns to the group, Raya continues on as the Holograms' drummer while Shana takes up the bass guitar. Raya is the only member of the Holograms who comes from a family and whose parents are still alive and has three brothers. She is also the only Hologram who doesn't have a romantic interest.

  The Misfits

• Phyllis "Pizzazz" Gabor – Pizzazz is an archetypal spoiled rich girl who is the lead vocals and guitarist of the Misfits. Pizzazz was raised by her tycoon father Harvey Gabor and spoiled as a child. Pizzazz is the primary antagonist of the show, constantly trying to upstage Jem and the Holograms, she has been shown to be attracted to Rio, Sean Harrison, and Riot. Pizzazz despises her real name "Phyllis" and is prone to fits of rage if things don't go her way. Although Pizzazz has been raised in the presence of wealth and privilege her entire life and does enjoy the comforts it affords, she doesn't truly crave them as one would expect and instead desires to be famous and the object of adoration. Pizzazz's anger issues and obsession with fame/attention could be linked to her relationship with her parents. In "Father's Day", Pizzazz's father, Harvey, explains that she was never the same emotionally after her mother left them when Pizzazz was young. In addition, in the same episode, Pizzazz tries to plan an outing with her father on Father's Day, which he declines This action/response from Harvey shows the pattern of parental neglect and emotional detachment and shows that he does not acknowledge Pizzazz's own earned success/fortune/career. The episode ends with Harvey borrowing a friend's jet to fly Jem and the Holograms to play at an event The Misfits are attending, going as far as to exit the jet with Hologram, Kimber, in arm. In "The Day the Music Died", she and Eric Raymond succeeded in wresting control of Starlight Music away from Jerrica and Kimber, but it proved to be a short-lived and hollow victory as Pizzazz found herself struggling heavily with the company's debts and business demands. That, coupled with the Starlight Girls deliberately harassing them so much, forced them to relinquish control back to Jerrica. She is Hungarian-American.
• Roxanne "Roxy" Pelligrini – Roxy is the Misfits' Italian-American tough-as-nails bassist who also provides the backup vocals. A high school dropout from Philadelphia, she was almost completely illiterate until one of the Starlight girls, Ba Nee, gave her a children's book to learn to read. She takes an instant dislike to new Misfit Jetta, and the two are often at odds with each other.
• Mary "Stormer" Phillips – Stormer is the primary songwriter of the Misfits, Keytarist for the band, and overall creative force behind the group. While Stormer does seem to enjoy causing mostly harmless mischief, she has never done anything truly malicious to Jem and the Holograms and often expressed concern over some of the Misfits' more ambitious attempts to upstage them. Sweet-natured and compassionate, Stormer is often pushed around by the other Misfits. In the episode, "The Bands Break Up", she and Kimber forge a friendship when both women, feeling unappreciated by their bandmates, strike out on their own, join forces, and record an album together. Though Stormer eventually returns to The Misfits, she does so with new-found self-assurance, and remains friends with Kimber. She also has a sweet tooth and is good with children.
• Sheila "Jetta" Burns – Jetta became the newest Misfit when Stormer hears Jetta playing the saxophone in a seedy dance club during a search for new talent. Jetta is originally from England and comes from a poor family; despite this, she likes telling people her family has close ties with the British Royal Family. Jetta is also a skilled pickpocket. Extremely perceptive and calculating, Jetta almost immediately begins a rivalry with Roxy for status in the band. Jetta's parents, Bertie and Flo, made an appearance in the episode "Britrock" and, like their daughter, are always looking to make a quick buck.

  The Stingers

• Rory "Riot" Llewelyn – The lead singer of the Stingers. Riot grew up in a strict household with his mother and army officer father who tried to force his values onto him. Riot displayed natural musical talent at a young age but was discouraged by his father who saw it as a sign of weakness. To escape his father's stronghold Riot joined the army but went AWOL in West Germany where he met Minx and began to play in a band. Upon realizing his own skill, Riot leaves the band to form his own with Minx joining him. Rapture soon joined and the Stingers were born. Riot is charming but aloof and arrogant. He is confident with his looks, believing he is the perfect man. Riot commands respect and demands devotion from his band-mates and fans alike, he is aware of the power he has over people and uses it for his own advantage. Riot's romantic interest in the show is Jem, he believes she is the perfect woman for him and pursues her relentlessly. Riot's relationship with his father was deeply strained over the years but, due to his mother's temporary illness and the efforts of Jem to reconcile them in the episode, "Riot's Hope", their relationship greatly improved. The two help the Holograms look for Ba Nee's long-lost father in the episode "A Father Should Be". Riot's image and appearance were allegedly based on David Coverdale from Whitesnake.
• Phoebe "Rapture" Ashe – Joining Riot and Minx in West Germany, Rapture makes up the third of the Golden Triumverate where she was the guitarist and backup vocals. Rapture is a skilled con artist and is quite knowledgeable in matters of the occult and uses that knowledge to further her own agenda, and often that of the Stingers, as well. She persuaded Mrs. Farnsworth to let the Stingers play a charity concert by pretending to channel the spirit of Houdini. She bilked several Greek townspeople out of their money pretending to be an Oracle. Rapture even maneuvered herself into a position to exchange a "chunk of crummy quartz" that she got from Pizzazz for a bracelet made of gold and diamonds. While self-centered and arrogant, Rapture is intelligent, quick-thinking and has a great deal of performance ability to pull off her scams. She cares greatly for her bandmates and willingly takes orders from Riot on a business level—she knows all too well that his charm and charisma will take him places where she wants to go too. She has no romantic interest on the show.
• Ingrid "Minx" Kruger – The German synthesizers and backup vocals for the Stingers. Like the other members of The Stingers, Minx is arrogant and only interested in herself, but will take orders and advice from the charismatic Riot, as she knows he is a man with a future and she wants to be there when it happens. She is cunning and manipulative, and prides herself on being able to have her pick of men, only to toss them away once she gets bored, which happens with alarming regularity. Minx is also very technologically minded and can work wonders with any computer or synthesizer. The only character in the show that she shows any genuine affiliation towards is Techrat, due to his similar interest in computers. Her romantic interest in the show is Rio, whom she seduces, teases and flirts with despite his constant rejections, she sees him as a challenge because she can usually have any man she wants and relishes the prospect of stealing him from both Jerrica and Jem.

  Rio Pacheco

Eric Raymond

Additional characters

• Synergy – An extraordinarily sophisticated holographic computer possessing a highly advanced artificial intelligence and designed to be the ultimate audio/visual entertainment synthesizer. Synergy was created by Emmett Benton, and is in many ways considered to be his life's work. Synergy can generate holographic images that are extremely lifelike and synched to accompanying sound-effects; rendering them flawlessly convincing, despite the fact that they aren't solid. As such, they often serve as Jem's secret weapon in times of distress. Synergy's images can be generated over vast distances, with Jem having utilized them even when in other countries/continents. Synergy's artificial intelligence, appearance, and voice are all based on the likeness of Emmett's late wife Jacqui. Synergy was intended to be a surrogate mentor, friend, and maternal figure to Jerrica and Kimber. She manifests herself physically as a hologram in the form of a light purple-skinned woman with dark purple hair and eyes, when she chooses to physically interact; and communicates with Jem remotely via a pair of star-shaped earrings. While she normally follows Jerrica's instructions, Synergy is fully capable of independent thought and action.
• Mrs. Bailey – The caretaker of Starlight House.
• Emmett Benton – The late father of Jerrica and Kimber Benton. He was the co-founder of Starlight House and Starlight Music with his wife Jacqui, created Synergy, and provided the initial equipment for the Holograms which they discovered after his death.
• Constance "Clash" Montgomery – The Misfits' groupie and biggest fan and henchwoman, she gets her nickname due to the miniature cymbals she wears around her wrists to get attention. Clash is a master of disguise and usually does undercover work for the Misfits. She is also Video's cousin.
• Danielle DuVoisin – A very wealthy countess and a friend of producer Howard Sands. The lively sophisticated French fashion designer who frequently takes young designers such as Shana Elmsford and Regine Cesaire under her wing.
• Giselle "Danse" Dvorak – A gifted Yugoslav-American dancer and choreographer, who is a friend and constant collaborator with the Holograms. She also does charity work and volunteers at "Haven House", a home for troubled teens. She relates to the teens in that she was raised in a foster home shortly after her mother disappeared. In the episode, "Homeland, Heartland", Danse travels to Zagreb with the Holograms to search for her missing mother and meets her long-lost father, she also finds out that her mother's dance teacher, Victor Krosach, was obsessed with her and went to extreme measures to drive her parents apart.
• Harvey Gabor – Pizzazz's rich father who spoils her to make up for the fact that he is usually more concerned with his business interests than with her. This may be due to the resentment he harbors for having his own wife leave him and Pizzazz behind that lead to this. Helping Kimber cope with her father's loss, Harvey finally realizes what he has done and tries to reconcile with Pizzazz, only to find that she is uninterested in doing the same for him.
• Sean Harrison – A British teen idol who is one of Kimber's many boyfriends. He seems to be the only one who truly has genuine affections toward Kimber, but he is a bit weak physically compared to Jeff Wright, her other boyfriend. Although he is an on-and-off boyfriend, Kimber seems to be most serious about him as far as her love life is concerned. It is hinted in the episode "The World Hunger Shindig" that Sean had a wild past with Pizzazz of the Misfits.
• Joanie – Starlight Music's business manager and longtime friend of the Benton Family.
• Anthony Julian – One of the industry's most talented directors he and Shana quickly develop a romantic relationship and remain the most stable romance in the series. Anthony supports Shana in her pursuit becoming a fashion designer. When he is put in charge of a mini-series and the original designer is fired by star/producer Liz Stratton, Anthony brings Shana in to meet Stratton, earning her a position. Shana quits the project due to Stratton's inflated ego and rejoins the Holograms. Anthony remains at Shana's side throughout the series.
• Lindsey Pierce/Lin-Z – The popular host of Lin-Z TV, a music video/news/talk show which regularly features the Holograms and Misfits videos and interviews. While Lindsey is usually impartial to the rivalry between the two groups while on the air, she is a good friend and ally to Jem.
• Craig Phillips – Stormer's older brother, who resides overseas in Europe. He is a professional drummer who meets Aja while she is searching for a new drummer to replace Shana in the two part episode "The Talent Search". Eric and the Misfits learned of this when Stormer introduced him to them. They immediately tried to influence Craig into using his budding relationship with Aja to find out Jem's secret identity, only to be later threatened by Craig into paying restitution to the Alonso Family when Jetta used Eric's money to hire a group of thugs to vandalize the Alonso's plant nursery, pressure Raya into revealing Jem's secret identity and not to kick Stormer out of the Misfits when Pizzazz threatened to do so. Craig made another appearance in the episode "Britrock" when Jem and the Holograms were appearing at a benefit concert in London. At this time Aja learned that Stormer was Craig's sister.
• Howard Sands – One of Hollywood's foremost producers, and a close friend of Jem. Sands sweetens the rivalry between Jem and the Holograms and the Misfits by offering a movie contract and a mansion to the winner of the contest. Even-tempered and firm on fair-play he does his best not to favor either band. However, when the Starlight House burns down and Jerrica appeals to him for a place to house her foster girls, he bends the rules enough to allow the Starlight Girls to stay in the mansion that is part of the prize. Throughout the series he involves himself in many projects with Jem and the Holograms.
• Techrat – An anti-social technical genius, he is Eric Raymond's secret weapon. Techrat invents various gadgets that could be used against Jem and the Holograms. He's noted for not wanting to be physically touched by anyone; although in later appearances, he doesn't seem to mind so much.
• Vivian "Video" Montgomery – A talented young filmmaker from Florida who makes and produces The Holograms' music videos. She is Clash's cousin.
• Jeff Wright – A stuntman, another of Kimber's boyfriends and one of the most prominent in the series besides Sean. He is hot-headed, very athletic and carefree, and he proposes marriage to Kimber in the "Hollywood Jem" two-parter, but the wedding is called off during the ceremony when Kimber realizes it is Sean that she truly loves. He first appears in the "Starbright" arc. Kimber rejects his advances at first, but comes to like him after he saves her life from explosions on the set of the film that Jem and the Holograms starred in.
• Zipper – A henchman of Eric Raymond who performs his dirty work during the first season of the show. He is responsible for burning down the original Starlight House although Eric only wanted him to make Jerrica nervous. He appeared in the first five episodes with blond hair but in later episodes, he has black hair.
• Maeve "Astral" Eldrich - Astral is a magician, and also a debunker of paranormal scams. She is intelligent, and intolerant of con artists such as Rapture preying on the gullible. She only appeared in the episode That Old Houdini Magic.
• Regine Cesaire - Regine is a fashion designer from the island of Martinique and friend of Countess Danielle Du Voisin. She is an avid fan of Jem and The Holograms. Her only appearance is in the episode Straight From The Heart.

  Starlight Mansion residents

• Ashley Larsen – A rebellious young girl and the newest member of the Starlight Girls at the start of the series. She is introduced as a troublemaker, having trouble adjusting to her new life and is a bit greedy. She eventually tries to leave the group in order to live with the Misfits, while becoming close friends with Stormer, Ashley quickly becomes disgusted with the Misfits' vendetta against Jem and returns to Starlight House, having seen the error of her ways. While she retains her feisty streak throughout the series, Ashley becomes one of the most trusted members of the household. She also dreams of being a fashion designer like Shana and a rock singer like Jem, even going as far as to start a fledgling band called Ashley and the Starlights with fellow Starlight Girls Deirdre, Becky, and Lela.
• Ba Nee O'Carolan : A young Vietnamese American girl who would be the focus of many episodes of the series, most notably her quest to locate her American soldier father named Martin O'Carolan, who went missing in action after he secured her then-pregnant mother, Kieu Chinh, a Vietnamese villager he met and fell in love with, safe passage to America. Kieu Chinh died under unknown circumstances before she reached America, leaving Ba Nee orphaned. Ba Nee is a major source of the plot for "Starbright", as she develops a degenerative eye condition that threatens to leave her blind, causing Jem and the Holograms to continue with the making of the movie in order to raise the funds to give Ba Nee the operation needed to save her eyesight. She becomes a major supporter of Jem's literacy campaign and ultimately convinces Roxy to learn how to read at the end of "Roxy Rumbles". Ultimately, in the series finale, Ba Nee is reunited with Martin, who had been suffering from partial amnesia due to injuries he sustained in Vietnam helping Kieu Chinh escape from her village, with help from Stinger frontman Riot.
• Deirdre – The third oldest of the Starlight Girls, Deirdre is an aspiring musician. While normally level-headed, she ultimately runs away from the group home when Jerrica/Jem and her bandmates inadvertently begin to neglect the girls in order to concentrate upon the upcoming music awards ceremony in the two-parter "The Music Awards". She ultimately returns when she, Krissie, and Ba Nee befriends a homeless boy named Danny, convincing him to seek help rather than live on the streets.
• Krissie – A young African American girl who often serves as the voice of reason within the Starlight Girls. Krissie is close friends with Ba Nee and is protective of her.
• Terri – One of the Starlight Girls, identified by her signature hat and blonde pigtails. She was heavily featured in "Trick or Techrat", which revealed that she was very superstitious and hated Halloween, due to the fact that she was easily scared. She ultimately overcomes her fear by the end of the episode, when she is forced to engage in battle with Eric Raymond and Techrat, rescuing Frederick Vincent from the basement of an abandoned opera house, and exposing their latest scheme to hurt Jem and the Holograms.
• Lela – The oldest of the Starlight Girls, and the first girl to arrive at Starlight House, after Aja and Shana. She takes charge when Jerrica, Kimber, Aja, and Shana aren't around. She plays the drums and piano. She is African-American.
• Anne – An 11-year-old girl who arrived to Starlight House when she was very young.
• Marianne – A 9-year-old Cuban girl.
• Joellen – A 9-year-old girl.
• Becky – The second oldest of the Starlight Girls. She practices the keyboard and drums with the other Starlight Girls Lela, Ashley, and Deirdre.
• Nancy – A 10-year-old girl.
• Delaree – A 13-year-old girl who arrived to Starlight House when she was very young. This is probably the most anonymous of all the girls. Although she appears in as much as 19 episodes, she is barely seen or heard of in the entire series.
• Laura Holloway – A 14-year-old girl who arrived at Starlight Mansion when she lost her parents in a car accident. "Alone Again" was her only appearance in the series. She didn't feel at home there, and eventually her low self-esteem caused her to start using drugs. When Jem discovers this, she encourages Laura to overcome her drug addiction.

  Others

• Danny– A 13-year-old boy who becomes very good friends with the Starlight Girls - particularly Deirdre, Ba Nee, and Krissie. He is taken in by Jem, after his temperamental father drives him away from home during a violent fit.
• Jacqui Benton - Jerrica and Kimber's deceased mother and Emmett's wife. She became a foster child herself at a very young age, having grown-up without any parents her hardships of being an orphan inspired her help to other homeless children from suffering the same fate. Just like her daughters, she was a famous pop singer but then she decided to give up singing so she that she can focus more on her family. With her husband's, she and Emmett decided to start adopting orphans to give them a home and a family. Their own house served for this purpose, which from then became known to this day as The Starlight House. After Jerrica's 11th birthday, Jacqui finally decided to go back to her singing career. Then, she and Emmett launched their own record company: Starlight Music. After opening their company, Emmett started the Starlight Foundation, an organization intended on using the profits generated by Starlight Music to support the children from Starlight House. She died in a plane crash during the '70s. After her tragic death, Emmett found a new purpose in life by trying to continue Jacqui's legacy and procuring to give the girls everything they wanted/needed. His various business were doing great and he continued adopting more orphaned kids.
• Bobby Braddock-A delinquent teenage boy who attends high school and the person responsible for getting Laura hooked up on illegal drugs and later charging her for the extra doses. He is the type of person who preys on youngsters that are going emotional issues with the intention of getting them addicted to drugs; after offering the first few doses for free, he then starts charging his customers. The drugs that he was are severely debilitating to the victim, causing hallucinations and even heightening existing emotional problems. Bobby then encounters Ashley at school just after she had accidentally dropped her papers down the stairs. After hearing her complain, he gives her the same introductory spell he gives all his victims, which is overheard by a tearful Laura. Like with all his clients, Bobby offers Ashley the drugs, which she accepts. However, this is discovered to be a ruse, as Ashley's acceptance was just to get Bobby to verbally admit his crimes in front of Laura, who is wearing a wire. After giving the drugs to Ashley, he is then arrested by undercover police officers. Because of his crimes, he is possibly serving jail time.