V.I.P. (American TV series)

V.I.P. is an American action/comedy-drama series starring Pamela Anderson. Created by J. F. Lawton,[1] the series aired in syndication for four seasons from 1998 to 2002.

For the Canadian series, see V.I.P. (talk show).
V.I.P.
Created byJ. F. Lawton
StarringPamela Anderson
Molly Culver
Natalie Raitano
Shaun Baker
Dustin Nguyen
Angelle Brooks
Leah Lail
Theme music composerFrankie Blue
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons4
No. of episodes88 (list of episodes)
Production
ProducersPamela Anderson
J.F. Lawton
Running time45–48 minutes
Production companiesLawton Entertainment
Columbia TriStar Television Distribution
(1998-2001)
(seasons 1-4)
Columbia TriStar Domestic Television
(2001-2002)
(season 4)
DistributorColumbia TriStar Television Distribution
(1998-2001)
(seasons 1-4)
Columbia TriStar Domestic Television
(2001-2002)
(season 4)
Release
Original networkSyndication
Picture format480i (SDTV)
Audio formatStereo
Original releaseSeptember 26, 1998 (1998-09-26) –
May 18, 2002 (2002-05-18)

Synopsis

Anderson stars as Vallery Irons, a woman who accidentally saves a celebrity and then is hired by a real bodyguard agency (V.I.P. aka Vallery Irons Protection) as a famous figurehead while the rest of the agency's professionals work to solve cases. Her lack of investigation skills ends up defeating the antagonists in every episode.[2]

The other team members are an assortment of people of different backgrounds: a former member of the KGB, CIA, FBI, a computer expert, a former law officer, a former street boxer/martial artist and later a karate master/stuntman joined.[3]

The series uses a mixture of action, comedy, and camp, with Anderson often poking fun at her tabloid image.[4] In November, 2001, V.I.P. (the video game) was released on the PlayStation console.

Many first-season episodes opened with cameos of famous celebrities being protected by Vallery. Among them were Stone Cold Steve Austin, Jay Leno, Charles Barkley, Jerry Springer and Alfonso Ribeiro.[4] Loni Anderson guest-starred in one episode as Vallery's mother. In season 2, Lisa Marie Varon had an uncredited appearance as a bodyguard. Kathleen Kinmont-See (Fraternity Vacation) was a guest star in the season 4 episode South By Southwest.

Cast
  • Pamela Anderson — Vallery Irons, the glamorous figurehead
  • Molly Culver — Natasha "Tasha" Dexter, a former spy and model
  • Natalie Raitano — Nicole "Nikki" Franco, a weapons and explosives expert
  • Angelle Brooks — Maxine De La Cruz (Seasons 3-4, recurring seasons 1-2), Vallery's best friend
  • Shaun Baker — Quick Williams, a former boxer and martial artist
  • Dustin Nguyen — Johnny Loh (Seasons 3-4, recurring seasons 1-2), a karate master and stuntman
  • Leah Lail — Kay Simmons, a computer expert

Episodes
Main article: List of V.I.P. episodes

Merchandise

On March 14, 2006, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released the first season of V.I.P. on DVD in Region 1.[5]

Before the DVD, V.I.P. expanded to video game from Ubi Soft, for the PC, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance in 2001 and 2002.

In 2000, Johnny Lightning released two sets of V.I.P. themed diecast cars in 1/64 scale. There were 8 different vehicles issued in total.

The series V.I.P was co-produced with Telewizja Polsat from Poland. This is the first foreign series co-created by this station. This station is the exclusive broadcasting company in Poland.[6]

Awards and nominations

In 1999, the series was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Main Title Theme Music. In 2002, V.I.P. was nominated for three Daytime Emmy Awards, winning one for Outstanding Single Camera Editing.

Syndication

The show premiered in syndication on September 26, 1998. As of February 2009, the show can be streamed for free in the US on Internet Movie Database, Hulu, and Minisodes and full episodes are available on Crackle. In Canada, episodes are available on Netflix. Episodes in Spanish debuted on CineSony on February 14, 2014.

References
  1. "V.I.P." The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2013-10-26.
  2. ENDRST, JAMES (27 December 1999). "Lee Has Campy Sexcapade Genre Down Pat". Retrieved 14 August 2017 – via LA Times.(subscription required)
  3. Terrace, Vincent (9 October 2002). Crime Fighting Heroes of Television: Over 10,000 Facts from 151 Shows, 1949-2001. McFarland. ISBN 9780786413959. Retrieved 14 August 2017 – via Google Books.(subscription required)
  4. "A Show So Dumb, It's Smart". The New York Times. 8 October 2000. Retrieved 14 August 2017.(subscription required)
  5. "V.I.P." TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on 2006-03-03.
  6. "Polsat i Tołstoj". Newsweek.
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