Shelley with Tom Mason in a promo pic
for their 1986 TV series Jack and Mike
Shelley's third foray into series television was Jack and Mike in 1986. The show explored the life of journalist Jackie Shea (played by Shelley) and restauranteur Mike Brennan (played Tom Mason), a married couple with busy careers trying to make their marriage work. The yuppie phenomenon exploded in the 1980s when more and more women began entering the workforce, climbing up the corporate ladder and holding positions previously held exclusively by men in past generations. The other cast members were: Nora Adler (Jacqueline Brookes), Jackie’s editor; Anthony Kubecek (Kevin Dunn), Jackie's assistant; Carol (Holly Fulger), the head waitress at Mike's restaurant, Brennan's Grill; and Rick Scotti (Vincent Baggetta), an attorney who appeared occasionally. The series was filmed on location in Chicago, Illinois.
Cracked listed Jack and Mike as one
of the Great Chicago Dramadies in 2023
Following the resounding success of the TV series The Bear, which started airing on FX on Hulu starting in 2022, the Cracked website (an American website based on Cracked magazine) came up with a list of the "10 Great Chicago Sitcoms And Dramedies That Aren't 'The Bear'" in July of 2023. It listed down some of best shows that have been set in Chicago aside from the very popular comedy-drama The Bear. The shows included in the list are as follows:
1. Shameless (2011-2021)
2. Sirens (2014-2015)
3. Happy Endings (2011–2013)
4. South Side (2019–2022)
5. The League (2009–2015)
6. Good Times (1974–1979)
7. The Bob Newhart Show (1972–1978)
8. Perfect Strangers (1986–1993)
9. My Boys (2006–2010)
10. Andy Richter Controls the Universe (2002–2003)
Honorable Mentions:
Jack and Mike (1986-1987)
Anything but Love (1989-1992)
It said that following the success of the TV series Moonlighting (starring blonde Cybill Shepherd and brown-haired Bruce Willis), the ABC network greenlit the hour-long dramady Jack and Mike which was about another blonde woman (Shelley Hack as Jack/Jackie) and her brown-haired husband (Tom Mason as Mike), but with a twist... they liked each other. The idea of having a show that showcased a happy couple was revolutionary for the time, for that pre-Mad About You time. In an interview, Shelley said, "It's about a modern woman who is doing something her contemporaries are doing - holding down a job and keeping a relationship." She added, "This is a couple with a growing relationship that becomes an adventure. And that's not easy." Tom Mason said that the focus of the show is "on the marriage and how two people who work cope and how their professional entanglements affect them." Let's hope Jack and Mike is finally streamed somewhere.
