Everyone is familiar with the long-standing film series Friday the 13th starring hockey mask-wearing, zombie-robot creature of chaos Jason Vorhees. But there’s another series called Friday the 13th which ran on television from 1987 until 1990. Though the show had nothing to do with the film series, they shared a connection beyond the name, and the show had a charm and a premise that deserve a little more attention.
Friday the 13th: The Series or Friday’s Curse as it was known in the UK, starred cousins Micki (Robey) and Ryan (John D. LaMay), who inherit their uncle’s antique shop. Little do they know, their Uncle Vendredi (or Friday in French) made a pact with the Devil (YOLO!) who cursed many of the items. Micki and Ryan set out to recover the items before they can cause harm. It was Warehouse 13 long before Warehouse 13 was even a blank sheet of paper. In fact, The Series would even store its recovered items in a vault.
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Both Friday the 13th the film series and the television series shared a producer, Frank Mancuso, Jr., who purposefully borrowed the film’s title to help sell the show to networks and find an audience. The series did find an audience for three seasons and 70+ episodes. The show even earned several nominations, including the 12 Gemini nominations and two Emmy Award nominations for visual effects.
So, why doesn’t the series get more love? For starters, it was inconsistent. Friday the 13th: The Series was a sort of Twilight Zone or Outer Limits, with cursed items featuring at the heart of morality stories. Some were well-done, others, not-so-much. As the series went on, it introduced a larger story arc and a new love interest for red-hot lead actress Robey. But in 1990, the show was abruptly canceled without any closure.
Friday The 13th: The Series Fun Fact
Legendary Director David Cronenberg, who appeared in a cameo in Jason X, also directed an episode of the series called “Faith Healer.”
