''State of Grace'' is an American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

series that ran for two seasons on FOX Family Channel, later ABC Family (now Freeform) during 2001 and 2002.

Plot

The show is centered on two 12-year-old girls from very different backgrounds, Hannah and Grace, who are best friends. Hannah is from a middle class

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family and lives with her parents, her grandmother, and her uncle. Her parents are the owners of a furniture factory in the fictitious town of Ashmore,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 28th largest and List of states and territories of the United ...

, to where they have recently moved from

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. Grace is from a wealthy Catholic family and lives with her mother, a socialite. Typically, they are depicted as more intelligent, thoughtful, funny, and rebellious than other children of their age. Set in 1965, the show was compared by some to another look-back-through-the-years show, ''

The Wonder Years ''The Wonder Years'' is an American coming-of-age comedy/drama television series created by Neal Marlens and Carol Black. It ran on ABC from January 31, 1988, until May 12, 1993. The series premiered immediately after ABC's coverage of Super ...

''.

Fred Savage Frederick Aaron Savage (born July 9, 1976) is an American actor and director. He is known for his role as Kevin Arnold in the American television series ''The Wonder Years'' (1988 to 1993). He has earned several awards and nominations, such as ...

, the star of that hit ABC series, even appeared in the series' final episode. The theme song is the original version of " Do You Believe in Magic" by

The Lovin' Spoonful The Lovin' Spoonful is an American rock band popular during the mid- to late-1960s. Founded in New York City in 1965 by lead singer/songwriter John Sebastian and guitarist Zal Yanovsky, the band is widely known for a number of hits, including ...

. The show was taped at Ren-Mar Studios stage 4.

Cast and characters

Main

Alia Shawkat Alia Martine Shawkat ( ; ar, عليا مارتين شوكت; born April 18, 1989) is an American actress. She is known for her roles in '' The Old Man'', '' State of Grace'', Maeby Fünke in the Fox/Netflix television sitcom '' Arrested Devel ...

: 12-year-old Jewish-American girl Hannah Rayburn *

Mae Whitman Mae Margaret Whitman (born June 9, 1988) is an American actress and singer. She began acting in commercials as a child, making her film debut at the age of six in the romantic drama '' When a Man Loves a Woman'' (1994). She achieved recognition as ...

: 12-year-old Emma 'Grace' McKee, Hannah's best friend *

Dinah Manoff Dinah Beth Manoff (born January 25, 1956) is an American stage, film, and television actress and television director. She is best known for her roles as Elaine Lefkowitz on ''Soap'', Marty Maraschino in the film '' Grease'', Libby Tucker in both ...

: Evelyn Rayburn, Hannah's mother *Michael Mantell: David Rayburn, Hannah's father * Faye Grant: Tattie McKee, Grace's mother *

Jason Blicker Jason Blicker is a Canadian film and television actor.Rita Zekas, "Expats: Ice work if you can get it". ''Toronto Star'', July 19, 2003. He has had several small roles in television series including recurring roles on ''Robocop'', '' F/X: The Se ...

: Uncle Heschie, Hannah's uncle * Erica Yohn: Grandma Ida, Hannah's grandmother *

Frances McDormand Frances Louise McDormand (born Cynthia Ann Smith; June 23, 1957) is an American actress and producer. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, McDormand has received numerous accolades, including four Academy Awards, two Primetime Emm ...

: Narrator, voice of adult Hannah

Guest stars

*Bryan Neal: Walker Adams, Grace's older half-brother *Bonnie Bailey-Reed: Shirley, the Rayburns' receptionist *Carl M. Craig: Greer, the McKees' chauffeur *Patricia Forte: Cookie, the McKees' maid *

Tom Verica Tom Verica (born May 13, 1964) is an American actor, director, and producer, best known for his role as Sam Keating in the ABC drama ''How to Get Away with Murder'' (2014-2020). He also played Jack Pryor in the NBC critically acclaimed drama '' ...

: Tommy Austin, Tattie's fiancé *Adrian Neil: Nigel Grenville III, Tattie's friend

Cast collaborations

The two main actresses, Shawkat and Whitman, went on to co-star on Fox's '' Arrested Development''. Shawkat was in the main cast and Whitman was a recurring guest star in season two and the beginning of season three 2004–2005. Shawkat played

Maeby Funke ''Arrested Development'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on the Fox network from November 2, 2003, to February 10, 2006. A fourth season of 15 episodes was released on Netflix on May 26, 2013. Created by Mitchell Hurwit ...

on the show, while Whitman played Ann Veal, the girlfriend of Maeby's cousin George Michael Bluth who was portrayed by

Michael Cera Michael Austin Cera (; ; born June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor and musician. He started his career as a child actor, voicing the character of Brother Bear on the children's television show ''The Berenstain Bears'' and portraying a young Chuck B ...

. Shawkat, Manoff and Mantell would later have roles in the film ''

Bart Got a Room ''Bart Got a Room'' is a 2008 comedy film written and directed by Brian Hecker, and stars Steven Kaplan, Alia Shawkat, William H. Macy, and Cheryl Hines. Also appearing in the film are Ashley Benson, Brandon Hardesty, Kate Micucci, Jennifer Tilly, ...

''.

Episodes

Season 1 (2001)

Season 2 (2002)

Awards and nominations

The series was created by Brenda Lilly and Hollis Rich and was recipient of many awards including The Parents Television Council, the

Humanitas Award The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing, and is given to writers whose work explores the human condition in a nuanced and meaningful way. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser—also the founder of Paulist P ...

, and a Jewish Image Award. Shawkat and Whitman were both nominated for the

Young Artist Award The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...

for the Best Performance in a TV Comedy Series – Leading Young Actress in 2002.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:State Of Grace (Tv Series) 2000s American comedy-drama television series 2000s American teen drama television series 2001 American television series debuts 2002 American television series endings ABC Family original programming Religious comedy television series Religious drama television series Television series about children Television series about families Television series about Jews and Judaism Television shows set in North Carolina Television series set in 1965 Television series by Disney–ABC Domestic Television