Wendell & Vinnie

Wendell & Vinnie
Genre	Comedy
Created by	Jay Kogen
Starring	Jerry Trainor Buddy Handleson Nicole Sullivan Haley Strode
Theme music composer	Mauli B Mateo Laboriel
Opening theme	“Never Felt So Good”
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	20 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Jay Kogen Aaron Kaplan Co-executive producers: Steve Skrovan Susan Beavers
Producer(s)	Jerry Trainor Matt Fleckenstein Richard G. King
Location(s)	Warner Bros. Studios Burbank, California
Running time	23 minutes
Production company(s)	Passable Entertainment Kapital Entertainment Nickelodeon Productions
Release
Original network	Nickelodeon[1]
Picture format	480i (SDTV) 1080i (HDTV)
Original release	February 16 – September 22, 2013
External links
Website

Wendell & Vinnie is an American sitcom television series that premiered on Nickelodeon on February 16, 2013 and ran until September 22, 2013.^[2][3] The series stars Jerry Trainor and Buddy Handleson. The first official promo for the show was released on December 21, 2012.

On August 15, 2013, Nickelodeon cancelled Wendell & Vinnie after one season and the remaining six episodes began airing on August 18, 2013.^[4][5]

Production

After Cartoon Network began programming shows with an PG rating, Nickelodeon started development on TV shows that were more 18+-oriented than their regular programming. Writing and filming of Wendell & Vinnie began in late 2011/early 2012 at Warner Brothers Studios,^[6] and the show had its first official promotion on December 21, 2012. It premiered on February 16, 2013.

Plot

Vinnie is the owner of a pop culture memorabilia store and lives in Los Angeles without a care in the world. After his nephew's parents suddenly die six months before the setting of the show, Vinnie finds himself as the legal guardian of his wise-beyond-his-years nephew, Wendell. With a little help from Vinnie's sister, Wilma, and his next-door neighbor, Taryn, Vinnie gets the hang of being a parent. At the same time, Wendell finds himself trying to keep his immature uncle under control.^[7][8]

Cast

• Jerry Trainor as Vinnie, the true child of the two. He even says in one episode, "I know what 12-year-old boys like 'cause I've been one for 20 years!" He runs a pop culture memorabilia business, and is fond of video games, comic books, and eating junk food. He realizes that he was given custody for Wendell because Wendell’s parents wanted to give Vinnie a chance and knew that Wendell is making his way no matter where he lives.
• Buddy Handleson as Wendell Bassett, an intelligent 12-year-old who has a number of hobbies. His parents died six months before the events of the show, so he lives with his uncle. He is stereotypically nerdy and does not have many friends. He enjoys magic tricks and homework (so much so that he even created a fictional student named Jeremy in order to get more homework).
• Nicole Sullivan as Wilma Bassett, Vinnie's older sister, Wendell’s aunt, and personal injury attorney. She does not understand why Wendell’s parents left Vinnie in charge and wants to be Wendell’s legal guardian for herself. She often tries to get men to date her, even if it means she must be dishonest—as in pretending she went to the same high school as a man she was attracted to or using a fake profile picture on an online dating website and claiming to be Persian.
• Haley Strode^[9] as Taryn Kleinberg, the beautiful recently divorced new neighbor of Wendell and Vinnie and close friend of the two. She comes from Houston, Texas. Vinnie was originally attracted to her but she rejected him after Vinnie stopped on asking her out he asks out someone else and she said yes. In the series finale, Taryn noticed that she loves Vinnie and shares a kiss with him but then Vinnie tells her that he's involved with someone else.
• Angelique Terrazas as Lacy, Wendell's best friend whom he met in detention. She threatened him at first, but then she revealed that she is not really mean, but just wanted to look tough in front of her friends. She sometimes gets Wendell into trouble—Wendell's grandfather considers her a bad influence—but Wendell still likes her. She enjoys eating corn dogs. It is revealed that Vinnie is in a scrapbook club with Lacy's grandmother.

Episodes

The series was canceled by Nickelodeon on August 15, 2013.

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code	U.S. viewers (millions)
1	"Vinnie & Wendel"[10]	John Fortenberry	Jay Kogen	February 16, 2013	101	2.3[11]
Vinnie is a guardian of his twelve-year-old nephew Wendell. Vinnie tries to ask his new neighbor Taryn out, but she refuses. When Wendell is bullied in school because of his intellectual appearance, Vinnie tries to help him be more popular by teaching him to ride a skateboard. But at the park, Vinnie gets distracted while talking to Taryn, and Wendell gets hurt. Wilma comes to the hospital to visit her nephew. Social Services comes to the apartment investigate the accident and to determine whether Vinnie is a good guardian. Taryn helps him to prepare and cook dinner, but they make kung pao chicken, which has peanuts, to which Wendell is allergic. He has to go to the hospital again. The inspector from Social Services Department sees the reports of twelve recent visits to the emergency room, and wants to take Wendell away from Vinnie and give him over to Wilma's care, but they all three inform him that Vinnie had been the patient for the earlier visits. Vinnie remains Wendell's guardian.
2	"Rule Breakers & Date Makers"[12]	Adam Weissman	Matt Fleckenstein	February 23, 2013	106	2.4[13][14]
3	"Mock Law & Order"	John Fortenberry	Steven James Meyer	March 2, 2013	102	2.3[15][16]
4	"Abra & Cadabra"[17]	Victor Gonzalez	Andrew Hill Newman	March 9, 2013	109	2.4[18]
When Wendell wants to become an amateur magician, Vinnie is afraid that Wendell will fail, as he did.
5	"Valentine's & the Cultural Experience"[17]	Rob Schiller	Steve Skrovan	March 16, 2013	105	2.1[19]
6	"Big Dogs & Bicycles"[17]	Leonard R. Garner, Jr.	Steve Skrovan	March 30, 2013	110	1.4[20]
7	"Wendell & The Sleepover"[17]	Rob Schiller	Susan Beavers	April 6, 2013	104	1.6[21]
8	"Baseball & Bad Dates"[17]	Jon Rosenbaum	Harry Hannigan	May 2, 2013 [22]	103	1.6[23]
Vinnie wants to teach Wendell to love baseball, but dislikes how Wendell likes the Yankees. Note: This episode was originally meant to air on April 20, 2013 but was rescheduled due to unknown reasons. Some websites incorrectly list it as S01E10. This was the first new episode to air on a Thursday rather than Saturday.
9	"Fathers Of Fathers & Sons"[17]	Victor Gonzalez	Susan Beavers	May 9, 2013	114	1.5[24]
Vinnie's father believes that Lacy is a bad influence on Wendell, so he tells him to tell Wendell to make some other friends, but they end up being jerks.[25]
10	"Pick Ups & Drop Offs"	Rob Schiller	Harry Hannigan	May 16, 2013	117	1.3[26]
11	"The Dutch & Us"	Victor Gonzalez	Elliott Owen	May 23, 2013	108	1.5[27]
Wendell bonds with a new Dutch student, who then ditches Wendell for the popular kids. However, Vinnie finds a way to reunite the two of them.
12	"Sick & Tired"	Rob Schiller	Matt Fleckenstein	May 30, 2013	115	1.1[28]
13	"Lost & Found"[29]	Jay Kogen	Allan Rice	June 6, 2013	118	1.4[30]
The guys find a tote bag and try to locate its owner, but Wendell underestimates Vinnie's detective skills.
14	"Swindle & Vinnie"[29]	Victor Gonzalez	Jay Kogen	June 13, 2013	119	1.3[31]
The guys have a twist and Wendell ends up selling one of Vinnie's most beloved collectibles for an unreasonably low price, hoping to get his uncle angry with him. However, Vinnie is just disappointed and Wendell feels sorry for his actions. He tries to get the collectible back, but it seems like swindling is the only way.
15	"Vinnie & The Toad"[29]	Rob Schiller	Shawn Simmons	August 18, 2013	111	1.1[32]
Vinnie meets up with an old friend the toad, who attempts to get them tickets to Vinnie's hero Jack White. Meanwhile, Wilma takes care of Wendell. Note: This episode premiered in June 2013 on Nickelodeon (UK & Ireland).
16	"Vinnie & The Man Crush"[29]	Leonard R. Garner, Jr.	Laurie Parres	August 25, 2013	116	0.8[33]
The irresponsible uncle pushes Wendell to hang out with a comic-book writer's son. While the boys become firm friends, Vinnie gets bored of his hero's company.
17	"Of Mothers & Gardens"[17]	Adam Weissman	Max Burnett	September 1, 2013	107	0.8[34]
Wendell asks Vinnie for help convincing the PTA to build a school garden, and Vinnie soon discovers PTA politics. Vinnie and Wilma help him fulfil his dream.[35] Note: This episode premiered in June 2013 on Nickelodeon (UK & Ireland).
18	"Smart Girls & Dumb Guys"[17]	Rob Schiller	Chuck Hayward	September 8, 2013	113	1.0[36]
Vinnie uses Wendell's talking points to impress a woman; Vinnie asks Wendell to pretend that everything in the apartment belongs to him.
19	"Wendell's & Vinnie's"[17]	Victor Gonzalez	Shawn Simmons	September 15, 2013	112	0.7[37]
The boy genius goes to work with his uncle - but ends up making the shop a less enjoyable place to hang out in.
20	"First Dances & Last Chances"	Rob Schiller	Max Burnett & Andrew Hill Newman	September 22, 2013	120	0.6[38]
Wendell becomes head of the dance committee and enlists Vinnie and Wilma's help to make it successful; Vinnie reconnects with a former crush.

International broadcast

Country	Channel	Release Date	Title in Country
United States	Nickelodeon Nick at Nite	February 16, 2013	Wendell & Vinnie
United Kingdom	Nickelodeon	June 10, 2013	Wendell & Vinnie
Canada	YTV	August 12, 2013[39]	Wendell & Vinnie
Brazil	Nickelodeon Rede Bandeirantes	December 9, 2013[40] January 3, 2015	Wendell & Vinnie
Russia	Nickelodeon	2013	История Венделла и Винни
Netherlands  Belgium	Nickelodeon (Netherlands)	October 14, 2013
South Africa	Nickelodeon	January 26, 2014	Wendell & Vinnie
Germany	Nickelodeon	October 4, 2014	Wendell & Vinnie

Reception

Wendell & Vinnie received some negative reviews. Common Sense Media gave the show 2 out of 5 stars saying "Lackluster sitcom has mixed messages about parenting."^[41]

References

1. Andreeva, Nellie. "Nick At Nite Comedy Pilot 'Wendell & Vinnie' Picked Up To Series With 20-Episode Order". Deadline.com. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
2. ""iCarly's" Jerry Trainor Stars in Brand New Nick Family Comedy Series "Wendell & Anthony" Premiering Saturday, Feb. 16, at 8 P.M.". the Futon Critic. Retrieved February 15, 2013. The timeslot was Sunday at 8:00pm. Then in "Baseball & Baddads" moved to Thursdays at 8:30pm due to saying "damn".
3. "Emmy Award-Winning Rob Schiller Directs Wendell & Vinnie, the Brand New Nick at Nite Family Comedy Series Premiering February 16". SF Gate. Hearst Communications Inc. February 16, 2013. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
4. "Wendell & Anthony cancelled". Deadline Hollywood.
5. Etkin, Jaimie (August 15, 2013). "'Wendell & Vinnie Cancelled: Nickelodeon Axes Series". Huffington Post. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
6. "Young actor Buddy Handleson gets big break in Nickelodeon's 'Wendell & Anthony'". Mercurynews.com. Retrieved 2013-11-05.
7. Busis, Hillary (21 December 2012). "'iCarly' alum Jerry Trainor stars in new Nick at Nite comedy 'Wendell & Anthony'". Entertainment Weekly.
8. "Nickelodeon Greenlights 14 New Live-Action and Animated Series, TV Movies and Pilots". the Futon Critic. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
9. Goldberg, Lesley (October 10, 2012). "'Secret Life of the American Teenager' Actress to Co-Star in Nick's 'Wendell & Vinnie' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 16, 2013.
10. "Wendell & Vinnie Episode: "Vinnie & Wendell"". TV Guide. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
11. "Ratings - Saturday's Cable Ratings: Nickelodeon Tops Originals with Premiere of "Wendell & Vinnie"". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-02-16. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
12. "Wendell & Vinnie: Season 1 episodes". TV Guide. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
13. "Ratings - Saturday's Cable Ratings: Nickelodeon's "Wendell & Vinnie" Tops Originals in Viewers". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-02-23. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
14. "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Walking Dead' Wins Night + 'Live From the Red Carpet', 'Ax Men', 'Bar Rescue', 'Shameless' & More". tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. 25 February 2013. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
15. "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'The Walking Dead' Wins Night, 'The Bible, 'Vikings', 'Shameless', 'Real Housewives of Atlanta', 'Pawn Stars' & More". tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. 5 March 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
16. "Ratings - Saturday's Cable Ratings: ESPN Tops Charts with College Basketball Doubleheader". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-03-02. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
17. "Shows A-Z Wendell & Vinnie". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
18. "Ratings - Saturday's Cable Ratings: College Basketball, "Wendell & Vinnie" Top Viewers". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-03-09. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
19. "Saturday's Cable Ratings: College Basketball, UFC Prelims Top Demos". TheFutonCritic.com. March 19, 2013. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
20. "Ratings - Saturday's Cable Ratings: Nickelodeon Tops Viewers with "Marvin Marvin," "Wendell & Vinnie"". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-03-30. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
21. "Saturday's Cable Ratings: "Marvin Marvin," "Wendell & Vinnie" Top Viewers for Nickelodeon". TheFutonCritic.com. April 9, 2013. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
22. "Wendell & Vinnie S01E10". Zap2it.com. Retrieved April 23, 2013.
23. Thursday's Cable Ratings: NBA Playoffs, "Swamp People" Top Charts TheFutonCritic.comMay 3, 2013
24. "Ratings - Thursday's Cable Ratings: "Swamp People" Pulls Back in Front for History". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-05-09. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
25. "Wendell & Vinnie S01E12". Zap2it.com. Retrieved May 6, 2013.
26. "Ratings - Thursday's Cable Ratings: TNT, ESPN Top Charts with NBA Playoffs". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-05-16. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
27. "Ratings - Thursday's Cable Ratings: "Swamp People" Tops Demos, Viewers for History". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-05-23. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
28. Thursday's Cable Ratings: "Pawn Stars" Return No Match for NBA Playoffs TheFutonCritic.com
29. "Shows A-Z Wendell & Vinnie". The Futon Critic. Retrieved May 23, 2013.
30. Thursday's Cable Ratings: "Pawn Stars", "Burn Notice" Top Charts
31. Thursday's Cable Ratings: "Pawn Stars," "Burn Notice" Once Again Top Charts
32. Sunday's Cable Ratings: "Breaking Bad" Holds Off "True Blood" Finale
33. Sunday's Cable Ratings: MTV Overshadows Competition with "Video Music Awards"
34. "Ratings - Sunday's Cable Ratings: "Breaking Bad" Tops Demos, NASCAR Leads Viewers". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-09-01. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
35. "Wendell & Vinnie S01E13". Zap2it.com. Retrieved May 6, 2013.
36. "Ratings - Sunday's Cable Ratings: "Breaking Bad" Pulls Back in Front for AMC". TheFutonCritic.com. 2013-09-08. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
37. Son of the Bronx on 9/21/2013. "Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., NickToons, TeenNick and Nick at Nite ratings". Sonofthebronx.blogspot.ca. Retrieved 2013-09-21.
38. Son of the Bronx on 9/28/2013. "Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., NickToons, TeenNick and Nick at Nite ratings". Sonofthebronx.blogspot.ca. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
39. "YTV Canada Inc. | YTV Fast Forwards to Fall with Eight Side-Splitting New Series". Newswire.ca. 2013-06-27. Retrieved 2013-02-16.
40. "Wendell e Vinnie estreia na Nickelodeon do Brasil - ANMTV". Anmtv.xpg.com.br. Retrieved 2013-11-08.
41. "Wendell & Vinnie TV Review". Commonsensemedia.org. Retrieved 2014-08-03.

External links

• Wendell & Vinnie at the Internet Movie Database
• Common Sense Media Age-Appropriate review of Wendell and Vinnie