7th Heaven
Genre
Created byBrenda Hampton
Starring
Theme music composerJohnny Rivers, Jack Tempchin and Steve Plunkett[1]
ComposerDan Foliart
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons11
No. of episodes243 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
Camera setupFilm; Single-camera
Running time44 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network
ReleaseAugust 26, 1996 (1996-08-26) –
May 13, 2007 (2007-05-13)

7th Heaven is an American family drama television series created and produced by Brenda Hampton. The series debuted on August 26, 1996, on The WB, where it aired for ten seasons, making it the longest-running series in the history of the network. Following the shutdown of The WB and its merger with UPN to form The CW, the series aired on the new network on September 25, 2006, for its eleventh and final season, airing its final episode on May 13, 2007. 7th Heaven was one of the network's first major successful shows and, alongside Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dawson's Creek, helped in the early success of the WB during the mid to late ‘90s. It was also the last series to be produced by Spelling Television (later produced by CBS Paramount Network Television for the eleventh and final season) before the company was shut down and became an in-name-only unit of CBS Television Studios.

Premise

The series follows Reverend Eric Camden, a Protestant minister living in the fictional town of Glen Oak, California, and his wife Annie as they deal with the drama of raising seven children ranging in age from babies to adults with families of their own.

Main cast and characters

Main article: List of 7th Heaven characters

Episodes

Main article: List of 7th Heaven episodes
SeasonEpisodesOriginally airedAverage viewership
(in millions)
First airedLast airedNetwork
122August 26, 1996 (1996-08-26)May 19, 1997 (1997-05-19)The WB3.24
222September 15, 1997 (1997-09-15)May 11, 1998 (1998-05-11)6.10
322September 21, 1998 (1998-09-21)May 24, 1999 (1999-05-24)8.40
422September 20, 1999 (1999-09-20)May 22, 2000 (2000-05-22)7.22
522October 2, 2000 (2000-10-02)May 21, 2001 (2001-05-21)7.66
622September 24, 2001 (2001-09-24)May 20, 2002 (2002-05-20)7.89
722September 16, 2002 (2002-09-16)May 19, 2003 (2003-05-19)8.11
823September 15, 2003 (2003-09-15)May 17, 2004 (2004-05-17)6.67
922September 13, 2004 (2004-09-13)May 23, 2005 (2005-05-23)6.26
1022September 19, 2005 (2005-09-19)May 8, 2006 (2006-05-08)5.62
1122September 25, 2006 (2006-09-25)May 13, 2007 (2007-05-13)The CW3.44

Reception

Critical reception

The Parents Television Council (PTC) often cited 7th Heaven among the top ten most family-friendly shows.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] The show was praised for its positive portrayal of a cleric and for promoting honesty, respect for parental authority, and the importance of a strong family and a good education through its storylines.[2] It was proclaimed the best show in 1998-1999 by the PTC.[3] The council also explained "7th Heaven manages to provide moral solutions to tough issues facing teenagers without seeming preachy or heavy-handed. Additionally, unlike most TV series, 7th Heaven shows the consequences of reckless and irresponsible behavior."[4] It was also noted that "While addressing topics such as premarital sex and peer pressure, these parents [Annie and Eric] are eager to provide wise counsel along with love and understanding."[6]

However, other critics feel differently about the show, citing 7th Heaven as "arguably one of the worst long-running shows on television".[10] Reasons given include heavy-handed moralizing, Christian propaganda,[11] and depiction of a caricature of a real family, that is "so clean it is obscene".[12]

Some criticize the predictable plotlines of each episode, that follow always the same pattern: "One of the Camden family has a problem and/or secret; some sort of Three's Company-esque misunderstanding ensues as a result of that problem and/or secret; a confrontation and/or intervention takes place, usually involving a short sermon delivered by one of the Camden parents; and whoever stands at the center of the drama eventually figures out how to 'do the right thing.'"[10] On top of this, implausible scenarios are seen to be regularly included, such as the daughter Mary's absence from the show for several seasons being scarcely explained with the character being busy, wayward or in New York.[13]

According to one critic,[clarification needed] "the sappiness and sanctimony of the characters often made the moral lessons impossible to swallow".[10] Also, the show is said to show an obsession with premarital sex.[14] In this regard, the parents and the oldest son Matt sometimes depict a sense of ownership of the sexuality of their daughters (respective sisters) Lucy and Mary, by threatening potential romantic interests or negotiating their daughters' romantic rights.[12]

U.S. ratings

7th Heaven was one of the first major hits for the WB and would go on to become most watched TV series ever on the network.[15] While the first season had modest success with around 3 million viewers, the later seasons often averaged 5 to 7 million viewers. It holds the record for the WB's most watched hour at 12.5 million viewers, on February 8, 1999; 19 of the WB's 20 most watched hours were from 7th Heaven. On May 8, 2006, it was watched by 7.56 million viewers, the highest rating for the WB since January 2005. When the show moved to the CW, ratings dropped. Possible reasons for the decline include an aired "Countdown to Goodbye" ad campaign for the last six months of the 2005–06 season, which promoted it as the final season ever; though the CW announced the series' unexpected renewal, it didn't promote the new season strongly via billboards, bus stops, magazine or on-air promos. Lastly, the network moved 7th Heaven from its long-established Monday night slot to Sunday nights, causing ratings to drop further. The series had a season average of just 3.3 million on the new network, losing 36% of the previous year's audience. It was the third most watched scripted show on the CW. Overall, it was the seventh most watched show.

Viewership and ratings per season of 7th Heaven
Season Timeslot (ET) Network Episodes First aired Last aired TV season Viewership
rank		 Avg. viewers
(millions)
Date Viewers
(millions) 		Date Viewers
(millions)
1 Monday 8 p.m. The WB 22 August 26, 1996 (1996-08-26) 2.8[16] May 19, 1997 (1997-05-19) 4.15[17] 1996–97 154[citation needed] 3.2[citation needed]
2 22 September 15, 1997 (1997-09-15) 4.63[18] May 11, 1998 (1998-05-11) 9.33[19] 1997–98 131[20] 5.8[20]
3 22 September 21, 1998 (1998-09-21) 6.29[21] May 24, 1999 (1999-05-24) 9.60[22] 1998–99 106[citation needed] 7.6[citation needed]
4 22 September 20, 1999 (1999-09-20) 8.67[23] May 22, 2000 (2000-05-22) 7.43[24] 1999–2000 94[25] 6.4[25]
5 22 October 2, 2000 (2000-10-02) 6.93[26] May 21, 2001 (2001-05-21) 8.09[27] 2000–01 100[28] 6.9[28]
6 22 September 24, 2001 (2001-09-24) 8.34[29] May 20, 2002 (2002-05-20) 8.38[30] 2001–02 101[31] 7.0[31]
7 22 September 16, 2002 (2002-09-16) 9.16[32] May 19, 2003 (2003-05-19) 8.28[33] 2002–03 106[34] 6.6[34]
8 23 September 15, 2003 (2003-09-15) 8.08[35] May 17, 2004 (2004-05-17) 6.86[36] 2003–04 132[37] 5.5[37]
9 22 September 13, 2004 (2004-09-13) 7.26[38] May 23, 2005 (2005-05-23) 5.54[39] 2004–05 103[40] 5.3[40]
10 22 September 19, 2005 (2005-09-19) 5.42[41] May 8, 2006 (2006-05-08) 7.56[42] 2005–06 111[43] 5.2[43]
11 Monday 8 p.m. (Episodes 1-2)
Sunday 8 p.m. (Episodes 3-22)		 The CW 22 September 25, 2006 (2006-09-25) 4.19[44] May 13, 2007 (2007-05-13) 3.32[45] 2006–07 133[46] 3.3[46]

Awards and nominations

Availability

Syndication

CBS Media Ventures handles the domestic and international distribution of the series. Season one episodes were retitled 7th Heaven Beginnings. Although the series did not receive a rating other than TV-G throughout its 11-season run, reruns on some cable/satellite channels have been given either a TV-PG or TV-14 rating (depending on the subject matter).

In the United States, the show began airing reruns in off-network syndication on September 25, 2000, but ceased to air in syndication in September 2002, while the series was still in first-run broadcast on The WB and later on The CW. The show then aired on the ABC Family channel from the fall of 2002 until 2008. Then, it was announced on April 1, 2010, that ABC Family had re-obtained the rights to the series, and would begin airing it at 11 a.m. (ET/PT) on weekdays beginning April 12, 2010.[48] However, after one week, ABC Family abruptly pulled the show and replaced it with a third daily airing of Gilmore Girls.

As of 2012, GMC (now known as UP) is the first network to air 7th Heaven in the United States since 2010 and began airing the series with a marathon on July 7, 2012.[49] Due to allegations of child molestation against Stephen Collins, the network pulled the series from its schedule as of the afternoon of October 7, 2014.[50] 7th Heaven briefly returned to UP in December 2014; however, it was quickly removed from the schedule. UP CEO Charley Humbard stated, "We brought the show back because many viewers expressed they could separate allegations against one actor from the fictional series itself. As it turns out, they cannot."[51] However, in the summer of 2015, UP brought back the series, where from then until 2019 it aired weekdays from 12:00PM to 3:00 PM. It was again pulled from UP's schedule afterwards. Previously, it aired on GetTV and Hallmark Drama.

Home media

CBS DVD (distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment) has released 7th Heaven on DVD. They have released all 11 seasons in Region 1. In region 2, seasons 1-7 have been released while in region 4 the first 6 seasons have been released on DVD.

On August 22, 2017, it was announced that the complete series would be released on DVD for November 14.[52]

Title Episode # Year Region 1 Region 2 Region 3 Region 4 (Australia) Discs
1 22 1996–1997 September 14, 2004 September 4, 2006 September 7, 2006 September 7, 2006 6
2 22 1997–1998 February 8, 2005 March 11, 2008 March 24, 2008 January 10, 2008 6
3 22 1998–1999 November 28, 2006 May 27, 2008 May 8, 2008 June 5, 2008 6
4 22 1999–2000 March 27, 2007 August 8, 2008 November 13, 2008 November 6, 2008 6
5 22 2000–2001 December 4, 2007 March 11, 2009 March 26, 2009 July 2, 2009 6
6 22 2001–2002 June 10, 2008 September 30, 2009 2009 December 24, 2009 6
7 22 2002–2003 November 11, 2008 January 26, 2011 November 19, 2009 TBA 5
8 23 2003–2004 March 3, 2009 TBA TBA TBA 5
9 22 2004–2005 November 17, 2009 TBA TBA TBA 5
10 22 2005–2006 March 23, 2010 TBA TBA TBA 5
11 22 2006–2007 November 23, 2010 TBA TBA TBA 5
The Complete Series 243 1996–2007 November 14, 2017 TBA TBA TBA 61

References

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External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to 7th Heaven (TV series).


Wikimedia Commons has media related to 7th Heaven (TV series).
7th Heaven
Teen Choice Award for Choice Drama Series
Works produced by Aaron Spelling
The WB
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