Freddy serves as hosts for an anthology of macabre occurrences centered around the people of Springwood and their bad dreams.
After the success of Nightmare 3, and in anticipation of the success of Nightmare 4, Newline's president Robert Shaye set out to get into television using their most successful franchise character. The idea of turning a slasher series that thrives on sex and violence into a weekly broadcast TV show would strike many as laughable. The people at Newline knew that a show about Freddy that was like the movies would not work, if for no other reason than the story is too limited (introduce characters, Freddy kills characters, a few characters survive). They came up with the idea of doing an anthology show, like The Outer Limits or The Twilight Zone with Freddy as the host. Robert Shaye & TV producer Scott A. Stone served as executive producers.
One difference between this and most other anthology shows is the fact that all of the episodes take place in the town of Springwood, which means no eps set in the future or in alternate worlds as was frequently done on The Twilight Zone. Also since it is Freddy nightmares have to play a part in each story. Each episode was devided into a two act structure. The stories from each act were connected, but different enough that either one could stand alone as its own story. This was done so that each hour long episode could be devided into 2 separate half hour shows. For most of the shows Freddy's part was limited to "bumper" sequences. He would introduce the episode, than pop up at the half way point between the two acts and make some wise-ass comments, than at the end he would pop up again with some more one-liners. An advantage to this approach was that Robert Englund did not have to commit a large amount of time to the show. He could shoot the "bumpers" for several episodes at once, and in a short period of time. Only a few of the shows directly involved Freddy. In the rest of them he only appeared in the "bumper" segments. All of those non-Freddy episodes still featured bad dreams prominently, dreams that were supposed to come from Freddy, even if he was not in them.
The series was not distributed by a TV network (i.e. ABC, NBC, FOX); it was first-run syndication, which means that Warner Bros Television Distribution set up the deals directly with local TV stations to air the show. This kept it out of "prime time" (the most watched period between 8:00PM & 11:00PM). Because of its dark nature most stations put it on in late night time slots, which get lower ratings than daytime slots. Lower ratings mean commercials are sold for cheaper rates, which mean less money for the people who made the show. It premiered on October 9, 1989, just 2 months after Nightmare 4 came out in theaters. The episode was called No More Mr. Nice Guy and it is about Freddy getting killed by a lynch mob, and becoming a dream killer. That episode was directed by Tobe Hopper of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre fame.
Reactions to the show can be described at best as mixed. For one thing the show was very low budget, and it shows. The episodes were shot on video (most weekly shows are shot on film and transferred to video because filmed images have a better look to them). This video image and cheap sets give it the look and of a daytime soap opera. The acting, writing, and direction was about as subtle as a brick through a glass window, which can be good or bad depending of the situation, and how well it is handled. Fans of the original more quiet mysterious Freddy did not like the new wise-cracking Freddy of the series and of the later sequels. On the plus side, since horror is not a common genre to see on TV several horror film directors including Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre ) Dwight H. Little (Halloween 4), Tom McLoughlin (Friday the 13th part VI) helmed episodes. Freddy himself Robert Englund directed 2 episodes Cabin Fever and Monkey Dreams. Also, directors Mick Garris (Stephen King's The Stand) & William Malone (The House on Haunted Hill) got their starts directing for this show. Writer/producer/director Gilbert Adler and writer/producer A.L. Katz got their start working on this show and went on to great acclaim with another anthology series, HBO's Tales From the Crypt.
On March 11, 1990 after 2 seasons and 44 episodes the show was canceled, having never found a wide audience. It has never been re-run in the US. It has been shown in some other nations. In the US 5 of the episodes have been released on home video. Most retailers do not stock the videos, but you can order them on-line from places like amazon.com. The episodes are No More Mr. Nice Guy, Freddy's Tricks and Treats, Lucky Stiff, Dreams that Kill, and It's My Party and You'll Die If I Want You To.
Freddy's Nightmares @ epguides.com
A petition to get the Sci-fi channel to pick up this show