Kenan & Kel

Not to be confused with Kevin and Kell.

Kenan & Kel
File:Kenan & Kel intertitle.jpg
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	Kim Bass
Starring	Kenan Thompson Kel Mitchell Ken Foree Teal Marchande Vanessa Baden Dan Frischman
Theme music composer	Victor Concepcion
Opening theme	"Aw, Here It Goes" by Coolio
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	4
No. of episodes	65 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Mike Tollin Brian Robbins Joe Davola (TV movie only) Kim Bass (co-executive, pilot only) Dan Schneider (co-executive, seasons 1–2) Kevin Kopelow (co-executive, seasons 3–4) Heath Seifert (co-executive, seasons 3–4)
Producers	Dan Schneider (pilot only) Kevin Kopelow (seasons 1–2) Heath Seifert (seasons 1–2) Virgil L. Fabian (seasons 3–4) Keiren Fisher (season 4)
Camera setup	Videotape; Multi-camera
Running time	24 minutes
Production companies	Tollin/Robbins Productions Nickelodeon Productions
Original release
Network	Nickelodeon
Release	August 17, 1996 (1996-08-17) – July 15, 2000 (2000-07-15)
Related
All That

Kenan & Kel is an American sitcom created by Kim Bass. The show originally aired on the Nickelodeon network for four seasons, from August 17, 1996, to July 15, 2000. Set in Chicago, Illinois, the series follows mischievous Kenan Rockmore (Kenan Thompson) and his optimistic but dimwitted best friend Kel Kimble (Kel Mitchell), who go on a number of misadventures.

The show features Kenan's family, which consists of his father Roger (Ken Foree), mother Sheryl (Teal Marchande), and younger sister Kyra (Vanessa Baden). The show also features Kenan's boss Chris Potter (Dan Frischman). Moreover, Kenan & Kel is notable for the appearances of a number of guest stars, including game show host/radio disc jockey Bob Eubanks, basketball player Ron Harper, and singer Britney Spears.

It won the "Favorite TV Show" award at the 1998 Kids' Choice Awards. After the conclusion of the series, it was followed by the television film Two Heads Are Better Than None (2000).

Premise

Set in Chicago, Illinois, Kenan & Kel follows Kenan Rockmore and Kel Kimble, a pair of high school students who go on various misadventures, which usually occur as a result of Kenan devising a scheme to get rich quick, or avoid trouble with his elders. These schemes are often foiled as a result of Kel's aloof, happy-go-lucky nature.

The show employs a number of running gags. Episodes open and close with Kenan and Kel breaking the fourth wall by interacting with a studio audience, standing in front of a red curtain that is placed in front of the main set while they are still in character. A running gag of the openings is Kel never knowing what the night's episode would be about and Kenan refusing to tell him, while the closings frequently feature Kenan coming up with a new scheme, often asking Kel to get various assorted items and meet him somewhere. Frazzled both times, Kel exclaims his catchphrase, "Aww, here it goes!".

Production

Kenan & Kel was created by Kim Bass, and stars Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell as the title characters. The actors previously starred in the Nickelodeon series All That. Mitchell and Thompson would joke around on the set of All That, which caught the attention of producers, including Bass, who wished to package Thompson and Mitchell in a series. During a hiatus of All That, the producers kept Thompson and Kel so they could film the pilot for Kenan & Kel. Mitchell later expressed fondness working with Thompson on the series. Kenan & Kel was Mitchell's second professional acting performance, having only worked on All That and in amateur theater productions in Chicago beforehand. Thompson's previous experience included a role in D2: The Mighty Ducks (1994). Kenan is the series' straight man, and Kel is his comedic foil.

The first season contained 14 episodes, filmed between April and August 9, 1996. The season was filmed in front of a studio audience at Universal Studios Florida. The characters of Kenan and Kel make a crossover appearance on the Nickelodeon series Cousin Skeeter.

Broadcast

Reruns of the series briefly aired on Nick GAS in 1999. After the series finished its run, reruns continued to air on Nickelodeon from January 21, 2001, to February 15, 2004.

The series reran on The N (later known as TeenNick) from October 13, 2007, to August 2, 2009. It then returned to the channel from July 25, 2011, to February 3, 2013, and again from March 4, 2013, to May 31, 2014, as part of its The '90s Are All That programming block (later called The Splat, NickSplat and now called NickRewind), which continues to air sporadic reruns. The series also airs reruns frequently on Nickelodeon's Pluto TV channel.

Characters

Main article: List of Kenan & Kel characters

Episodes

Main article: List of Kenan & Kel episodes

Season	Episodes		Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
1	14		August 17, 1996 (1996-08-17)	January 11, 1997 (1997-01-11)
2	13		September 6, 1997 (1997-09-06)	December 27, 1997 (1997-12-27)
3	22		October 10, 1998 (1998-10-10)	May 8, 1999 (1999-05-08)
4	16		August 7, 1999 (1999-08-07)	May 3, 2000 (2000-05-03)

Home media

Kenan and Kel is only available on DVD in the compilations Best of Seasons 1 & 2 and Best of Season 3 & 4. They are DVD-R releases manufacture on demand through Amazon.com. Individual seasons are not available. The Best of Seasons 1 & 2 DVD is missing 3 episodes ("In the Line of Kenan", "Baggin' Saggin Kel", and ""Safe and Sorry"; all from season 1) to complete the set, but Season 2 is complete. The Best of Seasons 3 & 4 DVD is also missing 3 episodes ("The Chicago Witch Trials", "Freezer Burned", and "Who Love Who-ooh?"; all from Season 3), but Season 4 is complete. These DVD releases are absent of any bonus features.

DVD	Episodes	Release Date	Disc 1	Disc 2	Disc 3
The Best of Seasons 1 & 2	23	May 21, 2014	"Pilot" "The Tainting of the Screw" "Doing Things the Heming-Way" "Mental Kel-Epathy" "Duh Bomb" "Mo' Sweater Blues" "Diamonds Are For Roger" "The Cold War"	"Dial 0 for Oops" "Merry Christmas, Kenan" "Twizzles Fizzles" "Pair-Rental Guidance" "Turkey Day" "The Crush" "Ditch Day Afternoon" "Clownin' Around"	"The Lottery" "Who Loves Orange Soda?" "Foul Bull" "A Star is Peeved" "Get the Kel Out of Here" "Bye-Bye, Kenan: Part 1" "Bye-Bye, Kenan: Part 2" "I Haven't Got Time for the Paint"

DVD	Episodes	Release Date	Disc 1	Disc 2	Disc 3	Disc 4
The Best of Seasons 3 & 4	35	November 6, 2014	"Fenced In" "To Catch a Thief" "The Raffle" "Skunkator vs. Mothman" "The Contest" "Surprise, Surprise" "I.Q. Can Do Better" "You Dirty Rat" "Attack of the Bug Men"	"We Are the Chimpions" "Happy B-Day Marc" "Poem Sweet Poem" "Present Tense" "Picture Imperfect" "Clothes Encounters" "Housesitter" "I'm Gonna Get You Kenan" "The Limo"	"He Got Job" "Corporate Kenan" "The Honeymoon's Over" "Girl-Watchers" "Car Trouble" "Futurama" "Three Girls, a Guy, and a Cineplex" "Natural Born Kenan"	"The Graduates" "Aw, Here It Goes To Hollywood : Part 1 & 2" "Oh, Brother" "The April Fools" "Tales from the Clip" "Two Heads Are Better Than None"

On July 28, 2011, the first season of Kenan & Kel was released on the iTunes Store. On November 29, 2011, the second season was released. On February 13, 2012, the third season was released. On August 13, 2012, the fourth season was released. Seasons 1 and 2 were released on the UK iTunes store in September 2013. As of 2021, the whole series is available to watch on Paramount+.

External links

• Kenan & Kel at IMDb