January 26, 1979, a television series Turnabout was released by NBC as a mid-season replacement (followed by Hello Larry for the second half hour) in place of The Rockford Files which was on hiatus. In March, Turnabout moved into the second half hour to be preceded by the new show Brothers & Sisters. The Rockford Files returned in April.
Turnabout starred John Schuck and Sharon Gless as Sam and Penny Alston. In the series, this couple purchases an Asian statue from a roadside Gypsy. Unlike Tim and Sally Willows from the original book Turnabout and movie Turnabout, this couple is happily married and argues far less. They are, however becoming bored with their respective careers and make the mistake of discussing near the statue how nice it would be to switch jobs. The statue works its magic, and overnight the couple swaps bodies. From there, they must learn to manage each others' lives and jobs while trying to figure out how to get the statue to switch them back. The other series regulars included, Richard Stahl and Bobbi Jordan as Jack and Judy Obermeyer, the Alstons' nosy neighbors, Bruce Kirby as Al Brennan, Sam's boss, and James Sikking as Geoffrey St. James, Penny's boss. The series lasted all of 7 episodes.
In 1981, episodes 1, 2, 5, and 7 were combined and released as the TV movie The Magic Statue.
Turnabout provides examples of:
- "Freaky Friday" Flip: Sam and Penny wake up in each other's bodies.
- Gender Bender: Sam and Penny wake up in each other's bodies.
- Swapped Roles: Sam must now work as a cosmetics executive while Penny must learn to be a sports writer.
