On this day April 6, 1981, the television adaptation of Private Benjamin premiered on CBS, bringing the hit film’s story to the small screen. Inspired by the 1980 movie that starred Goldie Hawn, the series followed the misadventures of Judy Benjamin, a pampered woman who joins the U.S. Army and finds herself completely out of her element.
The show starred Lorna Patterson in the title role and featured a cast that included Eileen Brennan, who reprised her role as the tough but memorable Captain Doreen Lewis. The series leaned into both comedy and character development, focusing on Judy’s journey from spoiled civilian to someone learning to stand on her own. Private Benjamin ran for 3 seasons with a total of 39 episodes. It was part of a wave of early 80s sitcoms that adapted popular movies for TV and brought familiar stories into weekly living rooms.
Fun fact: Eileen Brennan won an Emmy Award for her performance on the show, making her one of the few actors to win awards for both film and television versions of the same role.
Trivia question: What actress played Judy Benjamin in the original 1980 movie that inspired the TV series?
The show starred Lorna Patterson in the title role and featured a cast that included Eileen Brennan, who reprised her role as the tough but memorable Captain Doreen Lewis. The series leaned into both comedy and character development, focusing on Judy’s journey from spoiled civilian to someone learning to stand on her own. Private Benjamin ran for 3 seasons with a total of 39 episodes. It was part of a wave of early 80s sitcoms that adapted popular movies for TV and brought familiar stories into weekly living rooms.
Fun fact: Eileen Brennan won an Emmy Award for her performance on the show, making her one of the few actors to win awards for both film and television versions of the same role.
Trivia question: What actress played Judy Benjamin in the original 1980 movie that inspired the TV series?
