Shelley starred in her third TV series Jack and Mike in 1986. The series (initially titled Jackie O'Shea and then Our Kind of Town) was a dramady produced by respected Hollywood bigwig David Gerber who believed in Shelley's talent and star power so much that he gave her her own TV series. The series was about a journalist wife (Jackie Shea) and her restaurateur husband (Mike Brennan) trying to balance their careers with their married life. It was about a generally happy couple... which was a departure from the bickering sexual-tension-filled couples popular on TV during the era in shows such as Moonlighting and Remington Steele. Also, to add freshness to the show, subjects like preferential treatment in organ transplant allocation and illiterate university basketball stars were tackled. The location was fresh as well with the couple living in Chicago instead of New York or L.A. "David Gerber liked Chicago as a newspaper town," Shelley disclosed. For the part of Mike, Tom Mason (who played Shelley's boyfriend Caleb in the 1985 TV movie Kicks) made the cut. Shelley found Tom comfortable to work with and reliable. "It's so nice to have a steady person playing opposite you," she said.
