# Just the Ten of Us
**Just the Ten of Us** is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from April 26, 1988, to May 3, 1990, as a spin-off of the network's comedy *Growing Pains*. It follows Coach Graham T. Lubbock, a recurring character on the parent series, who moves his wife and eight children from New York to [Eureka, California](https://www.edgepedia.org/eureka-california), to take a teaching and coaching job at the all-boys St. Augustine's Academy, where his four teenage daughters become the school's only female students.[1](https://epguides.com/JusttheTenofUs/) • [2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Network and run | ABC, April 26, 1988 to May 3, 1990; 47 episodes of 30 minutes in three seasons[1](https://epguides.com/JusttheTenofUs/) |
| Created by | Dan Guntzelman and Steve Marshall[3](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/just-the-ten-of-us/) |
| Origin | Backdoor pilot in the *Growing Pains* episode "How the West Was Won," first broadcast April 20, 1988[3](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/just-the-ten-of-us/) |
| Premise | Coach Lubbock, his wife Elizabeth, and their eight children relocate to Eureka, California, where he works at the all-boys St. Augustine's Academy[2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0) • [4](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/just-the-ten-of-us/1000003921) |
| Final-season ratings | 42nd place for 1989–90 with a 12.5 rating, comparable to its Friday companions *Perfect Strangers* (13.2) and *Family Matters* (13.7)[2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0) |
| Awards | Primetime Emmy, Outstanding Lighting Direction (Electronic) for a Comedy Series, 1990; ASCAP Top TV Series award, 1989[4](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/just-the-ten-of-us/1000003921) |
## Origin as a Growing Pains spin-off
The character of Graham Lubbock, played by Bill Kirchenbauer, first appeared on *Growing Pains* as the basketball coach and teacher of Mike Seaver. In the two-part episode "How the West Was Won," broadcast April 20, 1988, district budget cuts threaten Lubbock's job while he supports a large family; Mike and his sister Carol lead a protest on his behalf, and the episode ends with Lubbock accepting a position at St. Augustine's Academy in Eureka, California, setting up the new series.[3](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/just-the-ten-of-us/) • [2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0) A test pilot, "Yo Coach (The Screen Test)", had been produced in 1987.[5](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/just-the-ten-of-us/episodes-season-1/1000003921/)
The series premiered on Wednesday, April 26, 1988, at 8:30, scheduled alongside the ratings strength of *Growing Pains*. After its first short season of five episodes, it moved to ABC's developing Friday comedy block, the lineup that became known as TGIF, where it ran for two further seasons.[2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0) • [1](https://epguides.com/JusttheTenofUs/)
## Premise and characters
The household counts ten people: Graham, his wife Elizabeth (Deborah Harmon), and eight children. The four teenage daughters drive much of the comedy: the pious eldest Marie ([Heather Langenkamp](https://www.edgepedia.org/heather-langenkamp)), who is considering becoming a nun; twins Cindy ([Jamie Luner](https://www.edgepedia.org/jamie-luner)) and Wendy (Brooke Theiss); and the youngest sister Connie (JoAnn Willette), who works on the school newspaper. The younger children are pre-teens J.R. ([Matt Shakman](https://www.edgepedia.org/matt-shakman)) and Sherry (Heidi Zeigler) and toddlers Harvey and Melissa.[1](https://epguides.com/JusttheTenofUs/) • [2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0)
The school setting supplies the show's central situation: the four daughters attend St. Augustine's as its only girls, to the delight of the male students and the dismay of their father. Supporting roles include [Frank Bonner](https://www.edgepedia.org/frank-bonner) as Father Robert Hargis and Evan Arnold as the student Gavin Doosler; [Dennis Haysbert](https://www.edgepedia.org/dennis-haysbert) played Coach Duane Johnson in the first two seasons.[1](https://epguides.com/JusttheTenofUs/) • [6](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/7639/just-the-ten-of-us/episodeguide)
The Lubbocks are a Catholic family, and religion appears in the comedy alongside the daughters' romantic entanglements; later episodes gave the four girls a singing act, the Lubbock Girls.[2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0)
## Casting connections and self-referential humor
Three of the four actresses playing the Lubbock daughters had appeared in the *A Nightmare on Elm Street* horror films: Heather Langenkamp played heroine Nancy Thompson in the first and third entries, JoAnn Willette had a role in the second, and Brooke Theiss played a victim in the fourth. The series made several references to the horror franchise in its humor.[2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0)
The show also drew on its own television origins. Episodes contained in-jokes about *A Nightmare on Elm Street*, *Growing Pains*, and the production company itself, and occasionally crossed into self-referential comedy, such as a storyline in which actors hired to play Wendy's family in Hollywood turned out to be the cast as themselves.[7](https://sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=317517) After the launch, no further crossovers with *Growing Pains* were made, since the parent series was set in New York and the spin-off in [Northern California](https://www.edgepedia.org/northern-california).[2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0)
## Production
The series was created and executive produced by Dan Guntzelman and [Steve Marshall](https://www.edgepedia.org/steve-marshall), with Mike Sullivan also serving as executive producer; directors included John Tracy, Guntzelman, Jonathan Weiss, Sullivan, and cast member Frank Bonner.[8](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-1284-un-toit-pour-dix.html) Filming locations included the Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch in Burbank and a house in Santa Clarita used for the Lubbock house exteriors.[9](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094490/locations/)
## Cancellation
The show was a modest ratings success in its Friday slot. In the 1989–90 season it finished 42nd overall with a 12.5 rating, close to its blockmates *[Perfect Strangers](https://www.edgepedia.org/perfect-strangers-tv-series)* (38th, 13.2) and the freshman *Family Matters* (33rd, 13.7). It was nevertheless canceled in May 1990. Miller-Boyett Productions, which produced *Full House*, *Family Matters*, and *Perfect Strangers*, wanted ABC's Friday schedule devoted to its own shows, and with only 47 episodes produced, well below the usual syndication threshold, the series had little leverage. ABC replaced it with *Going Places*, a Miller-Boyett vehicle.[2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0) • [7](https://sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=317517)
The replacement did not match it: *Going Places* lost direction mid-season and lasted one season, and few later shows succeeded in the 9:30 Friday slot at the same level during the 1990s.[2](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0)
## Episode structure
[The 47](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-47) episodes divide into a five-episode first season (1988), a second season (1988–89), and a third season (1989–90). The final episode, "Slaughter House Ten," aired May 3, 1990, with a plot in which Graham and J.R. bring home a cow and the daughters try to save it from slaughter.[1](https://epguides.com/JusttheTenofUs/) • [6](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/7639/just-the-ten-of-us/episodeguide)
## References
1. [Just the Ten of Us (a Titles & Air Dates Guide), epguides.com](https://epguides.com/JusttheTenofUs/)
2. [Beyond the TV Grave – ABC's Just the Ten of Us, The TV Ratings Guide](https://www.thetvratingsguide.com/2017/12/tvrgs-beyond-tv-grave-abcs-just-ten-of.html?m=0)
3. [Just the Ten of Us Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/just-the-ten-of-us/)
4. [Just the Ten of Us, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/just-the-ten-of-us/1000003921)
5. [Watch Just the Ten of Us Online | Season 1 (1987) | TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/just-the-ten-of-us/episodes-season-1/1000003921/)
6. [Just the Ten of Us – Episode Guide, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/7639/just-the-ten-of-us/episodeguide)
7. [Just the Ten of Us Boned the Fish When..., Sitcoms Online Message Boards](https://sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=317517)
8. [Un Toit pour Dix, Planète Jeunesse](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-1284-un-toit-pour-dix.html)
9. [Just the Ten of Us – Filming & production, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094490/locations/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Sitcom and comedy series › American sitcoms and comedy series › 1980s and 1990s network sitcoms*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license