TV - Movies
The Bizarre
Treatment Of
Jerry Garcia
Conner On The
Conners
By VICTORIA MILLER
Fans of “Roseanne” fondly remember the birth of a fourth Connor kid, Jerry Garcia Conner, on Halloween. Not only did baby Jerry arrive on the Conners’ favorite holiday, but he was named after the Grateful Dead’s legendary singer-guitarist. Jerry Garcia Connor appeared in Seasons 8 and 9 of “Roseanne,” but when the series was revived in 2018, Jerry was nowhere in sight.
When ABC resurrected "Roseanne" 20 years after the original series wrapped, the characters Dan, Roseanne, Becky, Darlene, and D.J. were all back alongside a slew of significant others and grandkids. However, youngest son Jerry Garcia Conner was noticeably missing, and in the first episode, Roseanne noted that Jerry, now in his 20s, was "on a fishing boat in Alaska."
When "Roseanne" was canceled and revamped as "The Conners," Jerry was still fishing, or something, and was never mentioned again. In the third season, Jerry's absence from the family was really confirmed when Dan made it clear that he only has three kids — not four. The Conner dad joked that he has "one favorite and two backups."
In an interview with TVLine, executive producer Bruce Helford explained why Jerry was mentioned in the first episode. "We didn't really have room to add Jerry Garcia, but we had a soft spot in our hearts for him, so we put him on a fishing boat and said he rarely contacted the family," he said — but also added that anything could still happen with the unseen Conner kid.