In Case of Emergency
(Wednesdays, 9:30-10:00 p.m., ET)
There’s a question on every job application, every health questionnaire, every insurance form that we’ve all answered a million times -- whom to contact in case of emergency? Most of the time we all know the answer. But there are times in all of our lives when the answer isn’t so obvious.
Jason (David Arquette), Harry (Jonathan Silverman), Sherman (Greg Germann) and Kelly (Kelly Hu) are old friends from high school who find themselves at that stage where they realize that their lives didn’t turn out exactly the way they’d planned. Unhappily divorced greeting card writer Harry goes for a relaxing “massage” only to discover his scantily clad “therapist” is Kelly, their high school valedictorian, who’s had her own fall from grace. Diet Guru Sherman returns home to discover his wife has left him and taken everything he owns; devastated by the loss, he hijacks a bakery truck and binges on all its contents. Faced with imprisonment for his role in a corporate scandal, financial whiz Jason botches his suicide attempt only to shoot himself in the foot – literally. Over the course of one crazy evening, a series of calamities reunites this hapless brood at Los Angeles Westside Hospital, where they all find themselves under the care of a reluctant Dr. Joanna (Lori Loughlin). This band of misfits must now start their lives over with the new realization that they’ve only got each other, “In Case of Emergency.”
The concept for “In Case of Emergency” sprang from the real lives of both Howard J. Morris and Emile Levisetti over a lunch in 2005. Morris, a forty-year old newly divorced single father, had just come from the doctor’s office, where for the first time in his life he had not known whose name to write down as his emergency contact. This resonated with Levisetti, a forty-year old life-long bachelor, who volunteered that he had faced the same uncertainty for the last twenty years. The two marveled over the fact that even though they had completely opposite life experiences to date, they both had reached the same common ground. Morris’ vision was to showcase the comedic, high-stakes emotional lives of four friends who reunite and bond in the same way he had done with Levisetti. Through these four characters, the show also explores some universal truths that come with age -- when things get bad, they can always get worse; and that what doesn’t kill you will certainly bring laughter to your friends.
“In Case of Emergency” stars David Arquette (“Scream”) as Jason Ventress, Jonathan Silverman (“Jekyll”) as Harry Kennison, Greg Germann (“Ally McBeal)” as Sherman Yablonsky and Kelly Hu (“The Scorpion King) as Kelly Lee, a fresh quartet of emotionally and physically injured oddballs. Also starring are Lori Loughlin (“Full House,” “Summerland”) as Dr. Joanna and Jackson Bond (“The Invasion”) as Harry’s young son, Dylan.
This unique laugh-out-loud comedy proves that any colossal mistake can be overcome with a lot of help from your friends… and pain killers.
Created by Howard J. Morris, “In Case of Emergency” is a production of ABC Television Studio, Bushwacker Productions and Howard J. Morris Productions.