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Pendelton State University

3rd Rock from the Sun
3rd Rock From the Sun logo.png
Genre Sitcom
Science fiction
Created by Bonnie Turner and Terry Turner
Starring John Lithgow
Kristen Johnston
French Stewart
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Jane Curtin
Simbi Khali
Elmarie Wendel
Wayne Knight
Theme music composer Ben Vaughn
(seasons 1–3)
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
(seasons 4-5)
Ben Vaughn & Jeff Sudakin
(season 6)
Composer(s) Quincy Jones III
(seasons 1-3)
Jonathan Wolff
(seasons 4-5)
Paul Buckley
(seasons 4-5)
Jeff Sudakin
(season 6)
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 6
No. of episodes 139 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) John Lithgow
Bonnie Turner
Terry Turner
Marcy Carsey
Tom Werner
Caryn Mandabach
Linwood Boomer (season 1)
Bill Martin
Mike Schiff (seasons 4–5)
David Sacks (seasons 4–5)
Bob Kushell
Christine Zander (seasons 5–6)
David Goetsch
Jason Venokur (season 6)
Producer(s) Patrick Kienlen
David Goetsch
Jason Venokur
David M. Israel
Jim O'Doherty
Andrew Orenstein
Michael Glouberman
Gregg Mettler
Tim Ryder
Aron Abrams
Gregory Thompson (co-producer)
Camera setup Film; Multi-camera
Running time 22 minutes
Production company(s) You're a Jackass! Productions
Bonter Productions
The Carsey-Warner Company
Distributor Carsey-Werner Distribution
The Program Exchange
Release
Original network NBC
Original release January 9, 1996 (1996-01-09) – May 22, 2001 (2001-05-22)
External links
Website www.3rdrock.com

3rd Rock from the Sun (sometimes referred to as simply 3rd Rock) is an American sitcom that aired from 1996 to 2001 on NBC. The show is about four extraterrestrials who are on an expedition to Earth, which they consider to be a very insignificant planet. The extraterrestrials pose as a human family to observe the behavior of human beings.

The premise of the show revolves around an extraterrestrial research expedition attempting to live as a normal human family in the fictional city of Rutherford, Ohio, said to be 52 mi (84 km) outside of Cleveland, where they live in an attic apartment. Humor was principally derived from the aliens' attempts to study human society and, because of their living as humans themselves while on Earth, to understand the human condition. This show reflects human life from the perspective of aliens and many sources of humor are from the learning experiences the alien characters have. Most of the episodes are named after the protagonist "Dick". In later episodes, they are more accustomed to Earth and often are more interested in their human lives than in their mission.

The show also takes humor from its mirroring of all human anthropological expeditions and their assumptions of superiority to the "natives", as well as their inability to distinguish themselves from the natives. Dr. Mary Albright (Jane Curtin) is a professor of anthropology at (fictional) Pendelton State University, and many of the issues with which the four aliens struggle appear in her conversation and work. Furthermore, these four alien researchers end up looking more or less like joyriders as they get drawn further and further into human life.

Dick Solomon (John Lithgow), the High Commander and leader of the expedition, is the family provider as a physics professor at Pendelton (with Ian Lithgow, John Lithgow's oldest son, playing one of his less successful students). Information officer and oldest member of the crew Tommy (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) has been given the body of a teenager and is forced to enroll in high school (later college), leaving security officer Sally (Kristen Johnston) and "the one with the transmitter in his head", Harry (French Stewart) to spend their lives as 20-somethings hanging out at home and bouncing through short-term jobs. The show also involves their relationships with humans, mostly their love interests.


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