List of Private Benjamin episodes
This is a list of episodes for the television series Private Benjamin.
Series overview
| Season | Episodes | Original broadcast | Nielsen ratings | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiered: | Ended: | ||||
| 1 | 4 | April 6, 1981 | April 27, 1981 | N/A | |
| 2 | 22 | October 12, 1981 | April 26, 1982 | 37[1] | |
| 3 | 13 | September 27, 1982 | January 10, 1983 | 45[2] | |
Episodes
Season 1 (1981)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Benjamin to the Rescue" | Bob Sweeney | Don Reo | April 6, 1981 | |
|
Fearing Private Benjamin will make the troops look bad during General Thrustmore (Charles Napier)'s visit, Captain Lewis tries unsuccessfully to keep her out of sight. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Jungle Swamp Survival" | Bob Sweeney | Don Reo | April 13, 1981 | |
|
Private Benjamin and the girls capture an AWOL soldier during their jungle survival course and return to the base as heroines. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Party" | Bob Sweeney | Paul R. Hunter Jr. | April 20, 1981 | |
|
When Private Benjamin decides she's going to throw a party, neither Captain Lewis, Army regulations, nor anything else can stop her. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Captain's Helper" | Bob Sweeney | Judith D. Allison | April 27, 1981 | |
|
Captain Lewis can barely cope when an experimental aide program is launched in their outfit and she finds herself with Private Benjamin as her personal aide for three days. | ||||||
Season 2 (1981–82)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 1 | "Judy in the Driver's Seat" | Marc Daniels | Garry Ferrier, Aubrey Tadman | October 12, 1981 | |
|
Captain Lewis tries to cure Benjamin's clumsiness by appointing her squad leader. | ||||||
| 6 | 2 | "Judy Got Her Gun" | Marc Daniels | Bob Illes, James R. Stein | October 19, 1981 | |
|
Captain Lewis bets $300 that Hubble will win a shooting match. | ||||||
| 7 | 3 | "So Long, Sergeant Ross" | Bruce Bilson | Garry Ferrier, Aubrey Tadman | October 26, 1981 | |
|
Benjamin and Captain Lewis try to persuade Sergeant Ross to reenlist. | ||||||
| 8 | 4 | "Give Me Liberty: Part 1" | Howard Morris | Mike Weinberger | November 2, 1981 | |
|
Benjamin's unit gets its first pass, and Gianelli refuses to go back after finding the man of her dreams. To be continued... | ||||||
| 9 | 5 | "Give Me Liberty: Part 2" | Howard Morris | Mike Weinberger | November 9, 1981 | |
|
Benjamin tries to trick Gianelli into returning home before they're AWOL. | ||||||
| 10 | 6 | "For the Love of Judy" | Herbert Kenwith | Simon Muntner | November 16, 1981 | |
|
A mess cook aims to marry Benjamin whether she wants to or not. | ||||||
| 11 | 7 | "Bye, Bye Benjamin" | Marc Daniels | Bob Illes, James R. Stein | November 30, 1981 | |
|
Benjamin's mother and father (Barbara Barrie and William Daniels) come to the base with a plan to get their daughter out of the Army. | ||||||
| 12 | 8 | "Undercover Judy" | William Asher | Len Kaufman | December 7, 1981 | |
|
Benjamin rigs a poker game to win back Sims' IOU from a loan shark. | ||||||
| 13 | 9 | "Gone with the Jeep" | William Asher | Max Katz, David Reiss, Andy Ruben, Toni Wunsch | December 21, 1981 | |
|
Captain Lewis' life is in Benjamin's hands when their jeep crashes in the middle of the desert. | ||||||
| 14 | 10 | "A Bath for Benjamin" | Marc Daniels | Mark Tuttle | December 28, 1981 | |
|
Sick of showers, Benjamin schemes to slip into Captain Lewis' house and use her bathbub, but she gets caught and ends up losing her towel in front of everyone. | ||||||
| 15 | 11 | "Man on the Floor" | Marc Daniels | Mark Tuttle | January 4, 1982 | |
|
Hubble's boyfriend comes to visit and hides out in the girls' room. Hubble is on guard duty, so Benjamin figures out a way so he can talk with Hubble. | ||||||
| 16 | 12 | "Not for Men Only" | Gabrielle Beaumont | Bob Illes, James R. Stein | January 18, 1982 | |
|
Benjamin bucks the system when Winter is refused assignment to a tactical squad because she's a woman. | ||||||
| 17 | 13 | "Moments to Remember" | Bruce Bilson | Nick Arnold | January 25, 1982 | |
|
The end of boot camp spells relief for Captain Lewis — she's being promoted, transferred, and liberated from Benjamin forever. Or is she? | ||||||
| 18 | 14 | "I Wonder Who's Blackballing Her Now?" | Gabrielle Beaumont | Hank Bradford | February 1, 1982 | |
|
Captain Lewis is denied promotion because of a black mark on her record put there by Colonel Fielding: Lewis once sent an entire division to Turkey for Thanksgiving instead of sending turkey dinners to the division. | ||||||
| 19 | 15 | "Are You Sure Mike Wallace Started Like This?" | Bruce Bilson | Nick Arnold | February 8, 1982 | |
|
Benjamin spills her guts to an investigative TV reporter looking for proof of a chemical dump under Fort Bradley. | ||||||
| 20 | 16 | "Beauty and the Brass" | William P. D'Angelo | Nick Arnold | February 15, 1982 | |
|
Sims is arrested for stealing gasoline, and a beautiful private (Rebecca Holden) accuses Colonel Fielding of sexual harassment. | ||||||
| 21 | 17 | "When It's Hot, It's Hot" | William Asher | Eric Cohen | March 1, 1982 | |
|
Benjamin can't convince anyone that she saw a big missile smuggled onto the base. | ||||||
| 22 | 18 | "Reds and Blues" | Gabrielle Beaumont | Hank Bradford | March 15, 1982 | |
|
Colonel Fielding goes up against Colonel Hogan (Craig T. Nelson) in the war games competition. The Inspector General's office (i.e., Captain Lewis) is in charge of refereeing. But Benjamin and the others overhear Colonel Hogan bribe Captain Lewis. Benjamin, Sergeant Ross and the others hatch a plan to make sure that Colonel Hogan loses so Captain Lewis won't get into trouble for taking the bribe. | ||||||
| 23 | 19 | "Profiles in Courage" | Gabrielle Beaumont | Eric Cohen | April 5, 1982 | |
|
A man reports that he has a bomb in his living room, and a member of the Ordnance Disposal Unit is sent in to disarm it, but ends up blowing up the man's house instead. | ||||||
| 24 | 20 | "S*M*A*S*H" | William Asher | Nick Arnold | April 12, 1982 | |
|
Lewis is letting her responsibilities slide and Benjamin is concerned. | ||||||
| 25 | 21 | "Me, Me, Me" | Gabrielle Beaumont | Nick Arnold, Eric Cohen | April 19, 1982 | |
|
The influence of a self-assertiveness guru (Tim Thomerson) hinders preparation for a general's inspection. | ||||||
| 26 | 22 | "Real World" | Alan Myerson | Nick Arnold, Eric Cohen | April 26, 1982 | |
|
Captain Lewis and Colonel Fielding attend a seminar on civilian life. | ||||||
Season 3 (1982–83)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | 1 | "Astro-Chimp" | Leslie H. Martinson | Bob Brunner, Ken Hecht | September 27, 1982 | |
|
An astro-chimpanzee is brought to the base, and Judy learns the next stop for the chimpanzee is an experimental lab. Judy attempts to save the chimpanzee's life, but almost finds herself court-martialed. | ||||||
| 28 | 2 | "Judy's Army" | Alan Cooke | Laura Levine | October 4, 1982 | |
|
Private Benjamin, by computer error, is promoted to major, then general, over Colonel Fielding. Meanwhile, war games are in progress and Fielding is prepared to surrender his troops, but Benjamin has a plan. | ||||||
| 29 | 3 | "You Oughta Be in Pictures" | Bruce Bilson | Arnold Kane | October 11, 1982 | |
|
A famous Hollywood director arrives at Fort Bradley to direct a women's recruiting film, and Captain Lewis is determined to be the film's star. | ||||||
| 30 | 4 | "Ross Versus the Robot" | Gabrielle Beaumont | Lynne Kelsey, Kenny Rich | October 18, 1982 | |
|
When a robot is brought to the base for combat testing, Sergeant Major Ross fears this automation will put an end to his career. But Private Benjamin and her friends have a plan. | ||||||
| 31 | 5 | "Chariots of Ire" | Alan Bergmann | Lynne Kelsey, Kenny Rich | November 1, 1982 | |
|
When Colonel Fielding learns that a general's daughter, who hates to lose, is competing against Fort Bradley in the upcoming track meet, he orders Captain Lewis to ensure her win. To guarantee the girl's victory, Lewis convinces Private Benjamin to enter the race. | ||||||
| 32 | 6 | "The Triangle" | Alan Cooke | Arnold Margolin | November 8, 1982 | |
|
Judy and Stacy's friendship is almost destroyed when Stacy thinks Judy has stolen her boyfriend. | ||||||
| 33 | 7 | "Fielding's Crisis" | Alan Bergmann | Mara Lideks | November 15, 1982 | |
|
After Colonel "Iron Man" Fielding is mugged and does not defend himself, he feels he is unfit to be a leader and decides to retire. | ||||||
| 34 | 8 | "Be All That You Can Be" | Tony Mordente | Linda Morris, Vic Rauseo | November 22, 1982 | |
|
Private Benjamin wants to prove to Captain Allen that she is a good soldier, and almost dies doing so. With this episode, Polly Holliday joins the cast. | ||||||
| 35 | 9 | "The Talent Show" | Tony Mordente | Bob Brunner, Ken Hecht | November 29, 1982 | |
|
When Fort Bradley holds its annual talent show for the children of a local orphanage, Captain Lewis becomes emotionally involved with a little boy who hasn't spoken since becoming an orphan. | ||||||
| 36 | 10 | "Tank's Soldier" | Leslie H. Martinson | Linda Morris, Vic Rauseo | December 13, 1982 | |
|
When a soldier saves Captain Lewis' life, Private Benjamin persuades Colonel Fielding to publicize this act of heroism, only to find out the soldier is an illegal alien who has become a squatter on the base. | ||||||
| 37 | 11 | "Sacred Land" | Alan Cooke | Laura Levine | December 27, 1982 | |
|
A Native American tribe declares that part of the base, where a gymnasium is being constructed, is their sacred burial ground. Colonel Fielding refuses to stop construction, and Private Benjamin comes to the rescue. | ||||||
| 38 | 12 | "Take My Mother, Please" | Arnold Margolin | Stephanie Garman, Hollace White | January 3, 1983 | |
|
Judy's mother Harriet arrives at the base after leaving her husband. Colonel Fielding, hoping to gain a NATO command, decides to reunite the feuding couple. | ||||||
| 39 | 13 | "Judy's Cousin" | Tony Mordente | Bob Brunner, Ken Hecht | January 10, 1983 | |
|
Private Benjamin's klutzy cousin Sherry is transferred to Fort Bradley, and immediately annoys Captain Allen. | ||||||
References
- ^ Lina. "The TV Ratings Guide: 1981-82 Ratings History -- Primetime is Awash in a Bubble Bath as Nighttime Soaps Become the Rage". Retrieved 1 April 2018.
- ^ Lina. "The TV Ratings Guide: 1982-83 Ratings History -- Soap Bubbles Rise, Several Veterans Part and NBC Renews Poorly Rated Masterpieces". Retrieved 1 April 2018.