7th Heaven (season 1)

7th Heaven (season 1)
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	22
Release
Original network	The WB
Original release	August 26, 1996 – May 19, 1997

The first season of The WB American television drama series 7th Heaven premiered on August 26, 1996 and concluded on May 19, 1997, with a total of 22 episodes.

Cast and characters

Main Cast

• Stephen Collins as Eric Camden
• Catherine Hicks as Annie Camden
• Barry Watson as Matt Camden
• Jessica Biel as Mary Camden
• Beverley Mitchell as Lucy Camden
• David Gallagher as Simon Camden
• Mackenzie Rosman as Ruthie Camden

Episodes

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Director	Writer(s)	Original air date	Production code
1	1	"Anything You Want"	Sam Weisman	Brenda Hampton	August 26, 1996	01496003
The Camdens are introduced in this episode. They are a family of seven, who live in Glen Oak, California. Protestant minister Eric Camden, and homemaker Annie, enjoy a very loving and happy marriage as they raise their five children: rebellious Matt, athletic Mary, emotional Lucy, inquisitive Simon, and adorable little Ruthie—ages ranging from five to sixteen. Eric and Annie's children keep them on their toes with their various problems. As if that was not enough, Annie learns that her mother was diagnosed with acute leukemia, and is refusing treatments.
2	2	"Family Secrets"	Mark Sobel	Brenda Hampton	September 23, 1996	04296001
Eric and Annie fear the worst when they find out that Matt is friends with a pregnant teenager, Renee. While Mary attempts to keep her new boyfriend, Jeff (a close friend of Matt) a secret from the family, Lucy cannot wait to tell everyone about her new crush, Jimmy Moon. Eric has no idea where his shoes keep disappearing to, and Annie doesn't know how to break the news of her mother's illness to the children.
3	3	"In the Blink of an Eye"	Duwayne Dunham	Catherine LePard	September 30, 1996	04296002
Annie worries that her mother's condition has gotten worse when they call to postpone their visit for the upcoming weekend; so, she hops on the next plane headed for Phoenix to check things out for herself. With Annie gone, Eric has to pull out of a volunteer event to watch the kids, and makes the mistake of allowing Matt to take his place. Lucy and Jimmy Moon start going out, just as Mary breaks up with Jeff. Finally, big changes are on the horizon for all the Camdens when Annie arrives home with some special visitors.
4	4	"No Funerals and a Wedding"	Mark Jean	Molly Newman	October 7, 1996	04296003
Annie feels abandoned when her father says he is going straight home to Phoenix after the funeral. Mary starts feeling suffocated by Jeff, and contemplates breaking up with him. Lucy is having a hard time coping with the loss of her grandmother, and Ruthie desperately wants to hear her grandmother's "favorite" song, as a way to hold onto the memory of her Grandma Jenny. Simon starts driving everyone nuts with a difficult question: Where is Heaven? Elsewhere, Matt has to help Renee deliver her daughter when the baby's father cannot be reached. As all this is going on, Eric must counsel a troubled young married couple who are having problems communicating with each other.
5	5	"The Color of God"	Burt Brinckerhoff	Brenda Hampton	October 14, 1996	04296004
When a local African-American church is burned down by an unknown racist group, the Camdens invite longtime friend Reverend Morgan Hamilton and his family to share Sunday services with them and move into their home temporarily. In the midst of these tragic and hateful events, the kids struggle with everything from getting along to defending their friendships with one another in a racist society. Meanwhile, Eric and Annie are determined to help solve the marital troubles between Morgan and Patricia, whose relationship is not quite as lovey-dovey as their own.
6	6	"Halloween"	Nick Havinga	Molly Newman	October 28, 1996	04296006
As Halloween approaches, Eric struggles with some old memories that have haunted him every Halloween since he was a kid. Lucy uncovers the truth about a reclusive neighbor, Mike Mitchell (Richard Moll), who is said to murder one child every Halloween. Simon prepares for a pumpkin carving contest and will go to any lengths to take first place. As the family gets ready to attend a costume party at their church, there's only one way that Mary wants to spend her Halloween night—and she resorts to schemes and lies to make sure she gets it. Before the episode ends, Mary takes a bath.
7	7	"Saturday"	David Semel	Jack LoGiudice	November 4, 1996	04296005
Mary un-invites her family to an important basketball game of hers, rationalizing that it will only make her more nervous. Unsure of what to do with themselves at that point, the family must find another way to spend their day. Most notably, Lucy loses track of her younger siblings while baby-sitting, and Eric attempts to coax a teenage drug addict back into rehab. Eventually, the whole family, except for Lucy, ends up at Mary's basketball game. Noticing that Lucy is feeling left out again, Eric invites her to have dinner with him.
8	8	"What Will People Say?"	Duwayne Dunham	Brenda Hampton	November 11, 1996	04296007
Rumors start spreading around town when Eric is seen walking into a hotel with a married woman. The family wants to trust Eric, but even they start to worry when Eric refuses to tell them what he was doing there. Matt tries to keep things moving slowly between Mary and her new boyfriend. When a note gets intercepted and read aloud, Simon is embarrassed, and starts plotting ways to get out of school.
9	9	"See no Evil, Hear no Evil, Speak no Evil"	Harry Harris	Catherine LePard	November 18, 1996	04296008
After Annie and Matt are car-jacked, Matt is afraid to leave the house, while Annie resumes her normal activities with no apparent emotional damage. Meanwhile, Lucy fears that running against Jimmy Moon for class president will harm their relationship, and Mary contemplates getting a tattoo against her parents' wishes.
10	10	"The Last Call for Aunt Julie"	Joel J. Feigenbaum	Ron Zimmerman	November 25, 1996	04296009
The whole family is psyched to have Eric's baby sister, Julie, come visit for Thanksgiving. In addition, Matt, Mary and Lucy have plans to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with their friends, but all of that changes when the Camdens learn a secret about Julie that physically threatens Simon and throws the entire family into turmoil.
11	11	"Now You See Me"	Harvey S. Laidman	Charles Lazer	December 16, 1996	04296010
The Camdens become suspicious when Matt's new girlfriend, Tia, wants to spend more time with the family than being alone with Matt. Meanwhile, Lucy desperately wants to make it onto the cheerleaders squad, and is less than thrilled by Mary's lack of support for her. Also, Annie yearns for more surprises in her marriage with Eric, as she has become bored with their everyday routines. Lastly, Simon tries to convince the whole family that he can make himself invisible.
12	12	"With a Little Help from my Friends"	Burt Brinckerhoff	Brenda Hampton & Jack LoGiudice	January 13, 1997	04296011
Matt extends his help to an elderly parishioner, Mrs. Gladys Bink, who doesn't want anyone to know that she is struggling, which is fine until he starts skipping church and school to assist her. Meanwhile, Eric works hard to help an out-of-work family living in their van. Lucy is afraid that nobody cares about her upcoming birthday, and the family dog delivers puppies.
13	13	"America's Most Wanted"	Mark Jean	Brenda Hampton	January 27, 1997	04296013
As part of a basketball team ritual at her school, Mary is elected to steal a drinking glass from the local teen hangout, The Varsity, but in an unfortunate twist of events, Matt is faced with theft charges and potential jail time. Lucy is ridden with guilt after using one of Mary's old papers. After overhearing Eric rant about people not knowing the "Star-Spangled Banner", Ruthie is concerned that she will have to leave the country if she does not learn it, so she enlists Simon to teach it to her.
14	14	"Seven is Enough"	Harry Harris	Catherine LePard & Ron Zimmerman	February 3, 1997	04296012
All three Camden generations dread the annual visit of Eric's parents, "The Colonel" and Grandma Ruth Camden. Tension mounts between father and son when the Colonel harshly criticizes Eric's children, then scoffs at Eric and Annie's desire to adopt a troubled nine-year-old boy who has been hiding out at Eric's office. Meanwhile, Annie makes a shocking discovery at a local store and struggles to deal with Lucy, who can't seem to connect with her grandparents.
15	15	"Happy's Valentine"	David Semel	Brenda Hampton	February 10, 1997	04296014
While Annie & Eric, and Patricia & Morgan Hamilton spend a romantic Valentine's Day camping, Matt is left in charge of the rest of the family. Matt and John Hamilton make plans to have a double date at the house. Mary and Keesha's plans to invite some friends over to watch movies spirals out of control when a huge party breaks out. Matt and John start neglecting their dates to watch out for their sisters, and somewhere in the midst of all this Happy slips out of the house in search of her puppies. When she is hit by a car and taken to an animal hospital, the family holds a vigil, aided by a caring veterinarian (June Lockhart). Simon blames Matt for everything, but soon retracts those words upon further inspection. Meanwhile Eric and Annie are conflicted about what to do when Patricia's ex calls, killing the mood.
16	16	"Brave New World"	Harvey S. Laidman	Catherine LePard	February 17, 1997	04296015
Lucy worries that something might be wrong at her best friend Suzanne's house, and asks her father to check it out. Elsewhere, Matt tries to protect Mary from a jerk's harassment, but she insists on taking care of it herself. Ruthie's first day of pre-kindergarten creates some problems.
17	17	"Choices"	Kevin Inch	Sue Tenney	April 14, 1997	04296016
Mary pays a rare visit to detention and meets Camille—a wild, free-spirited girl who loves to break all the rules. Against Mary's better judgment, the girls become friends, and Camille talks her into making a foolish decision. Back at home, Eric and Annie counsel a man who used to work with Eric and is harboring a painful secret. Lucy confuses her father with a desire to research other religions, while Simon and Ruthie run into trouble at the pet store.
18	18	"Faith, Hope and the Bottom Line"	Burt Brinckerhoff	Catherine LePard	April 21, 1997	04296017
Eric wants to hire an ex-convict to be the new organist, but the church vestry think that the money in the budget would be better used to put up a security system. Acting church treasurer, Annie must determine whether there is enough money in the church's budget to hire a new organist. Meanwhile, Lucy's imagination runs wild after she makes Mary tutor her boyfriend, Jimmy Moon. Simon tries to get Matt to let him out of getting a tetanus shot that he needs for his upcoming little league season. Lastly, Ruthie feels empowered by her new class phone list and decides to test the emergency phone numbers.
19	19	"It's About George"	Harry Harris	Ron Zimmerman	April 28, 1997	04296018
Eric's difficult-to-please parents arrive with their newly adopted young son in tow. Everyone is pleased to discover that the Colonel and Ruth seem positively different since taking in a new child, but things get messy when George's biological father shows up with a desire to be part of the boy's life. Meanwhile, Julie is out of rehab and terrified to reconnect with her family, and with a little help from Matt and Mary, Lucy prepares her boyfriend to meet their formidable grandparents.
20	20	"Say Good-Bye"	Gabrielle Beaumont	Brenda Hampton & Sue Tenney	May 5, 1997	04296019
Matt is uneasy when his mother's oldest friend—a boy crazy divorcee named Rachel, makes a pass at him. Mary goes with Matt and Rachel to a coffeehouse, and makes her public singing debut when she learns the band's singer didn't show up. When Mary gets a phone call asking her to fill in again, Eric and Annie are shocked by the news, but they agree with one specific condition: they are going with her. Back at home, Ruthie has a going-away party for her longtime imaginary friend, Hooey, and Lucy tries to cope with the fact that her best friend, Suzanne, is moving away.
21	21	"Dangerous Liaisons" (Part 1)	Harvey S. Laidman	Teleplay by: Brenda Hampton & Ron Zimmerman Story by: Brenda Hampton	May 12, 1997	04296020
Annie is thrilled that her father is coming to visit for the first time since her mother's death, but she is furious when he shows up with a new girlfriend. Elsewhere, Simon convinces Lucy that she would look good with a blonde rinse, but is prepared to run for his life when it does not come out as good as Lucy thought it would. Mary meets a handsome young man who is harboring a few secrets, and Matt becomes attracted to a girl who is deaf. Lastly, a potential tragedy in the family puts everyone's trivial problems into perspective. To be continued...
22	22	"Dangerous Liaisons" (Part 2)	Harvey S. Laidman	Teleplay by: Brenda Hampton & Catherine LePard Story by: Brenda Hampton	May 19, 1997	04296021
As Mary faces surgery and a long recovery, she and her family must face the reality that her basketball career might be over. Meanwhile, Annie has only one option left if she wants to maintain her relationship with her father. Matt drives Heather even further away when he gets into an ugly confrontation with a classmate. Lucy gradually recognizes the truth about Jimmy's feelings for her. Wilson is eager to start dating Mary, but there are a few important details he must share with her father first.