Life with Louie

Life with Louie is an American animated series loosely based on the childhood of stand-up comedian Louie Anderson, growing up with his family in Wisconsin, although Anderson himself is from Minnesota. The pilot of the series, a Christmas special, premiered on Fox on December 18, 1994. The first season began airing on June 18, 1995.

The series received seven Emmy award nominations during its run and won two, both for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program in 1997 and 1998.

Plot
The series follows the adventures of Louie Anderson as a child, growing up with his sweet-hearted mother, his loud and war crazed father, his 10 siblings, and children at school who love to tease him.

Characters
Louis "Louie" Anderson — The main character of the series, based on series producer and creator Louie Anderson's younger self. Louie is an eight-year-old child, living in fictional Cedar Knoll town, Wisconsin. He's a very sensitive and impressionable, but also intelligent young boy. He often uses his gifted sense of humor to deal with difficult situations. He always stands up for his own rights and principles, but also for those of others.

Andrew "Andy" Mortimer Anderson — Louie's difficult, but caring father. He is a veteran of World War II and likes to tell his family stories about his experience on the frontline in Europe. Much of the humor regarding Andy, involved his comic superiority complex and equally comical unawareness of his own limitations. Though he often appeared out of touch with reality, Andy was secretly a very gifted chess player, a skill Louie briefly displayed possessing. Despite his appearance, he is a very caring and loving person.

Ora Anderson — Louie's kind, loving and sweet natured mother. She usually acts as the voice of reason for Louie and Andy.

Thomas "Tommy" Anderson — Louie's youngest brother that Louie teases a lot in the beginning of the series.

Jeannie Harper — Louie's best friend, she often defends Louie from local bullies. Louie has a crush on her.

Michael "Mike" Grunewald — One of Louie's friends that has a sarcastic sense of humor. He has a somewhat chill attitude and comes from a rather wealthy family, much to Louie's jealousy.

Toddler — One of Louie's friends that is somewhat shorter than the others, about the same height as Louie, and loves activities like recess.

Scott Jensen — One of Louie's friends that appears quite often in the 1st and 3rd seasons, but is rarely seen in the 2nd season.

Glen Glenn — A local bully who teases Louie and the other children.

Episodes
Life with Louie has a total of 39 episodes spread over 3 seasons that were produced from December 1994 to March 1998. A christmas special titled "A Christmas Surprise for Mrs. Stillman" aired on December 18, 1994 and served as the series' pilot.

Merchandise
Based on the popularity of the show, various merchandise was released including apparel, videos of various episodes, a "Lake Winnibigoshish" CD-ROM comic book, and a book series for children. The book series was based on the various episodes of the show and contained six books in total. Kids' meal toys were also produced for several fast-food restaurant chains including Taco Bell (1996), Hardee's (1997), Jack in the Box (1997), and Dairy Queen (1999).