Diehard ‘Scarecrow & Mrs. King’ Fans Enjoyed a 40th Anniversary Reunion Surprise
The hit CBS TV ’80s series, Scarecrow & Mrs. King (SMK) celebrated its 40th Anniversary last year on October 13-14, 2023 and legions of diehard fans journeyed to Los Angeles, CA to celebrate the show they love.
The convention is held about every five years and is a two-day event with a meet and greet with the show stars. This time it included Bruce Boxleitner (Lee “Scarecrow” Stetson), Martha Smith (Francine Desmond), Greg Morton (Jamie King), Dennis Duckwall (Producer) and about eight other guest stars of the series.
Friday fans were able to take the Warner Brothers tour to see where the show was filmed in the ’80s. After meeting up for a group shot at Amanda King’s home they caravaned to other SMK filming locations. On Saturday, the group met in the host hotel ballroom to meet their favorite stars, get autographs, and take photos. They also enjoyed a table reading and later celebrated with a dinner including a Q&A with the show’s stars.
Scarecrow & Mrs.King Facebook page
One star of the cast the fans have always wanted to meet is Kate Jackson, who played Amanda King. The event committee has extended an invitation for her to attend for years, yet her schedule never allowed it. But that Friday, October 13th, 2023, Kate Jackson surprised the Scarecrow and Mrs. King fans while the group was checking out SMK filming locations. The fans were all told they had to return to Amanda King’s season 1 & 2 home in Burbank, CA under the impression that they needed to re-take the group shot. As the group gathered again and took another photo, Ms. Jackson appeared with a box in hand saying, “Can you give this to the man in the red hat?” which was one of her very first lines she said in the pilot episode of the series.
Mike Pingel
Mike Pingel
Mike Pingel
Mike Pingel
Mike Pingel
Mike Pingel
Mike Pingel
The SMK fans went wild! There were cheers, happy tears, and shaky hands. Jackson greeted the group with a speech of how wonderful her feelings were toward them. “The best… the best fans… I feel the love, I hope you feel it back,” she told the fans. Kate spent over an hour chatting, taking photos, and giving complimentary autographs to each of the 70+ diehard fans.
Scarecrow and Mrs. King first aired on CBS-TV on October 3, 1983, and ran for 4 years until September 10, 1987. Jackson played the divorced housewife who was thrown into the world of spies and worked side-by-side with Lee Stetson aka Scarecrow (played by Bruce Boxleitner).
Mike Pingle
Mike Pingel is an author, actor, photographer, reporter, collector and host. He has written six books including “Channel Surfing: Charlie’s Angels,” “Betty White Rules the World,” “Channel Surfing: Wonder Woman,” and “Angelic Heaven” which you can buy here. He was also Farrah Fawcett’s personal assistant from 2005-2007. He currently hosts “Collector’s Heaven” a new internet show where he interviews other collectors and runs CharliesAngels.com.
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