a closeup of Shelley from a promo pic
for Jack and Mike, 1986
Shelley's third foray into series TV was Jack and Mike in 1986. Executive producer David Gerber believed so much in Shelley that he wanted to give her her own TV series. It was initially called Jackie O'Shea, with Shelley in the title role. But when it aired, it was retitled Jack and Mike - alluding to the names of the main characters Jackie Shea and her husband Mike Brennan (played by Tom Mason) - with both Shelley and Tom getting equal billing. Shelley was happy and excited about her new TV series. "I saw in the script a modern woman who really loves her job and really loves her husband and is trying to balance the two," she told ET in 1986. "I read this and I liked it so much," she added, "that I signed on the dotted line for five years, which is a big chunk of your life. And you don't sign on the dotted line for five years unless you really, really want to do it." Shelley also said that, "This is a couple with a growing relationship that becomes an adventure. And that's not easy."
Shelley in a promo pic
for Jack and Mike, 1986
