Shelley starred in her third TV series Jack and Mike in 1986. The series was initially called Jackie O'Shea as it was going to be a star vehicle for Shelley. Series producer David Gerber believed in her talent and star power so much that he wanted to give her her own TV series. Shelley was going to play the title role, a woman journalist who had a supportive husband waiting at home - kind of like a reverse gender role thing which was a fresh idea in the 1980s. Tom Mason, who played Shelley's boyfriend in the 1985 TV movie Kicks and with whom Shelley had great on-screen chemistry, was offered the role of Mike Brennan, Jackie's husband. Initially, he turned down the role as it was merely window dressing for the title character - a sort of stay-at-home cheerleader for Jackie. After a lot of talks with David Gerber, the husband was developed into a more well-rounded character, with more to do in the storylines. It was then retitled Our Kind of Town. "Maybe it will lean more heavily toward me (Mike) one week, and Shelley (Jackie) the next," Mason explained. "The real focus will be on the marriage and how two people who work cope and how their professional entanglements affect them," he added. When it aired, it was again retitled Jack and Mike, and both Shelley and Tom got equal billing.
