Editing My Secret Identity

{{Short description|Canadian-American television series}}
{{Infobox television
| image              = My Secret Identity.jpg
| caption            = The Cast of ''My Secret Identity''
| genre              = [[Action (genre)|Action]]/[[Adventure (genre)|Adventure]]/[[Science fiction|Sci-fi]]
| creator            = {{Plainlist|
* Fred Fox Jr.
* [[Brian Levant]]
}}
| writer             = {{Plainlist|
* Wilson Coneybeare
* Fred Fox Jr.
* David Garber
* Richard Marcus
* John May
* Dawn Ritchie
* Eric Weinthal
}}
| starring           = {{ubl|[[Jerry O'Connell]]|[[Derek McGrath]]|[[Wanda Cannon]]|Marsha Moreau|Christopher Bolton}}
| opentheme          = "My Secret Identity"
| composer           = {{ubl|Fred Mollin (S1-2)|Brad MacDonald (S3)}}
| country            = Canada<br>United States
| language           = English
| num_seasons        = 3
| num_episodes       = 72
| list_episodes      = List of My Secret Identity episodes
| executive_producer = Martin J. Keltz
| producer           = {{Plainlist|
* John Delmage
* Brian Levant
* Paul Saltzman
* Patrick Doyle (S3)
}}
| editor             = Christopher Cooper
| cinematography     = {{Plainlist|
* Peter Benison
* Brian R.R. Hebb
}}
| runtime            = 30 minutes
| company            = {{Plainlist|
* Sunrise Films
* [[Scholastic Productions]]
* Telefilm Canada
* [[Universal Television]]
}}
| first_aired        = {{Start date|1988|10|9}}
| last_aired         = {{End date|1991|5|25}}
| channel            = {{Plainlist|
* [[CTV Television Network|CTV]] (Canada)
* [[Broadcast syndication|Syndication]] (United States)
}}
}}

'''''My Secret Identity''''' is a television series starring [[Jerry O'Connell]] and [[Derek McGrath]]. Originally broadcast from October 9, 1988 to May 25, 1991 on [[CTV Television Network|CTV]] in Canada, the series also aired in [[Broadcast syndication|syndication]] in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://open.salon.com/blog/zakiscorner/2012/06/22/nostalgia_theater_my_secret_identity_--_its_all_in_a_days_work_for_ultraman|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121013214408/http://open.salon.com/blog/zakiscorner/2012/06/22/nostalgia_theater_my_secret_identity_--_its_all_in_a_days_work_for_ultraman|archive-date=October 13, 2012|title=Nostalgia Theater: My Secret Identity -- "It's All In a Day's Work For Ultraman"|publisher=[[Salon.com]]|work=Zaki's Corner|date=June 22, 2012|access-date=July 1, 2012|last=Hasan|first=Zaki|url-status=dead}}</ref> It was later shown in reruns on the [[Syfy|Sci-Fi Channel]]. The series won the 1989 [[International Emmy Awards|International Emmy Award]] for Outstanding Achievement in Programming for Children and Young People.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jerryoconnellfansite.com/interviews/no_secret_12-15-90.htm|title=No Secret To Show's Success|work=The Spectator TV Times|date=December 15, 1990|access-date=July 1, 2012|last=Greer|first=Sandy}}</ref>

==Synopsis==
O'Connell stars as 14-year-old Andrew Clements, who while looking one day for his friend, Dr. Benjamin Jeffcoate (McGrath), trips and is hit by a photon beam, causing him to develop superpowers. He uses these abilities to fight crime, to solve personal problems, and to help others. He hides his powers from his mother, sister, and friends with the exception of Jeffcoate. Andrew initially called himself Ultraman, but this was later dropped.

==Powers==
In the first season, Andrew must carry around [[aerosol spray]] containers and use them to move through the air, as his flying ability is limited; he can make himself nearly weightless, and move up without any problems, but he cannot propel himself through the air or move down without some external force. He can jump quite high and do amazing flips. In the second season, unexplained, Andrew gains the ability to move through the air without the use of aerosol cans. Later in that season, after being struck by the photon beam a second time, Andrew develops [[superhuman strength]] but loses his invulnerability.

For the entirety of the series, Andrew loses his powers when exposed to radiation (e.g. electromagnetic waves and x-rays). Starting in episode 10, he loses his powers for 2–3 days after exposure to an x-ray at the dentist. Later in the series, he regains them immediately after the exposure stops.

==Setting and characters==
The main setting of the show is [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]], in the fictional suburb of Briarwood. Andrew goes to Briarwood High and his sister Erin goes to another school.

Dr. Jeffcoate (supposedly the fourth-smartest man in the world) is a close friend of the family who lives next door. He is attracted to Mrs. Clements but never tells her.

== Cast ==
*[[Jerry O'Connell]] as Andrew Clements
*[[Derek McGrath]] as Dr. Benjamin Marion Jeffcoate
*Christopher Bolton as Kirk Stevens (1989–1991)
*Marsha Moreau as Erin Clements
*[[Wanda Cannon]] as Stephanie Clements
*Elizabeth Leslie as Ruth Schellenbach

==Episodes==
{{main|List of My Secret Identity episodes}}

==Novel==
A novelization of the pilot episode, written by [[R. L. Stine|Jovial Bob Stine]] (R. L. Stine), was released in 1989.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stine |first=Jovial Bob |url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/ocm19653556 |title=My secret identity: a novelization |last2=Levant |first2=Brian |last3=Fox |first3=Fred |date=1989 |publisher=Scholastic |others=Copyright Paperback Collection (Library of Congress) |isbn=978-0-590-42414-1 |location=New York |oclc=ocm19653556}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb title|id=0094516}}

{{InternationalEmmyAward Children and Young People}}

[[Category:1988 American television series debuts]]
[[Category:1991 American television series endings]]
[[Category:1980s American comic science fiction television series]]
[[Category:1990s American comic science fiction television series]]
[[Category:1990s American superhero comedy television series]]
[[Category:1980s American teen sitcoms]]
[[Category:1990s American teen sitcoms]]
[[Category:1988 Canadian television series debuts]]
[[Category:1991 Canadian television series endings]]
[[Category:1980s Canadian science fiction television series]]
[[Category:1990s Canadian comic science fiction television series]]
[[Category:1980s Canadian sitcoms]]
[[Category:1990s Canadian teen sitcoms]]
[[Category:Canadian superhero comedy television series]]
[[Category:CTV Television Network original programming]]
[[Category:First-run syndicated sitcoms]]
[[Category:American television series about teenagers]]
[[Category:Canadian television series about teenagers]]
[[Category:Television shows filmed in Toronto]]
[[Category:Television series by Universal Television]]
[[Category:Canadian English-language television shows]]
[[Category:Teen superhero television series]]