The Wilson-Knutson Family

NOTE: The Dostal Family, The Daniels Family and The Tafoya Family (The former two episodes that came before and the latter after this episode), have all had their pages removed, due to privacy requests from all families. Please do not add them back anywhere on the wiki, including this page, nor add their pages back, out of respect for the families privacy, otherwise you will be reported to admins.

The Wilson-Knutson Family is the eighth episode of Season 4 of the American Supernanny show.

Episode summary[]

Jo visits the Wilson-Knutson family in Studio City, California. For the first time, she is working with a celebrity family: singer Wendy Wilson (37) and her husband Dan Knutson (39). They have four sons: 4-year-old Leo, 3-year-old Beau and 6-week-old twins Will & Jesse.

Growing up, Wendy had few boundaries, which led to her becoming a pushover with her kids. On the other hand, Dan grew up with rules and a strict schedule. With the arrival of their newborn twins, the parents are exhausted and realize that their current parenting style isn't going to cut it anymore.

The two older kids, Leo and Beau rough house and get into mischief together. Bedtimes are very chaotic for these two. Beau refuses to give up his binkies, and since the arrival of the twins, he has regressed back into diapers. Leo will also want more time with his mother.

Wendy is also planning on going on tour with her sister Carnie (39), which would leave Dan to parent the four kids alone for a few months. Can Jo help Wendy and Dan out before Wendy heads out on tour?

Submission Reel[]

Jo is very excited to meet the Wilson-Knutson family. For the first time in her life, she is helping a celebrity: Wendy Wilson, part of the musical trio Wilson Philips and daughter of Beach Boys member Brian Wilson. Wendy is married to Dan Knutson, and together, they have four kids: Leo, Beau, and newborn twins Will and Jesse. Wendy admits that going from two kids to four overnight is like a whirlwind, and even Dan is in shock. Because of how mischievous the boys are, the house is like a three ring circus. Jo jokingly states that in musical terms, the family would be 'slightly off-key.'

One of the main issues comes with Wendy and Dan's upbringings. Wendy had a mostly care-free family. With Brian and his band recording songs on most days, and being a key part in the rise of the Rock genre in the 60's, he wasn't around a lot to help Marilyn, his wife most of the time. Due to this, Wendy and her sister Carnie were allowed to do as they pleased, leading to Wendy developing a more passive attitude. Dan's childhood on the other hand, was the polar opposite. Unlike Wendy's family, Dan's was a lot stricter, having clear boundaries and an ordered schedule. Dan is as such, the more authoritative of the two.

The main problem surrounds Beau; whilst having been successfully potty-trained in the past, he would go back to wearing diapers after Will and Jesse's arrival. Bedtime is also a big problem, with Leo and Beau usually getting out of bed, to make their way into the parents' room.

What's worse is that Wendy plans to go on tour with Carnie, leaving Dan to deal with all four kids. The parents hope that Jo can help establish order to this unruly household and give them the tools that they need to take care of their kids.

Observation[]

Almost immediately after Jo arrives and meets the family, Leo and Beau begin playing in the garden. Wendy desperately tried to get them inside, but they ignore her. Eventually, the boys listened and went inside the house. While Jo wasn't pleased with the lack of discipline, she did like how Wendy openly admitted her faults, in particular, being a pushover. She also noticed that Wendy and Dan's upbringings have caused them to have differing parenting styles. Whilst Jo doesn't take issue to this, she does know she needs them both to be on the same page.

Later in the day, Wendy informs Jo about Beau's regression in terms of his potty-training. While he would go to the toilet every day to relieve himself, he began messing himself after the twins arrived. It wasn't long before Dan caught Beau defecating in his diaper. Jo believes Beau is not having actual accidents. The regression is simply a way for him to recieve his parent's attention, as it is currently being put onto the twins.

Later in the day, Wendy shows Jo around the house, whilst Dan plays with Leo and Beau outside. Wendy explains that she went from a career woman to a full-time mother, whilst telling Jo about her plans to return to the music business.

Afterwards, Jo questions what’s next in the day, to which Wendy explains that there isn’t really anything that does happen. Jo realises that Wendy and Dan essentially just make their own schedule everyday, and do whatever it is they feel like. Throughout the day, both are unable to keep the boys in line, do not follow a schedule, and are left unable to keep track of Will and Jesse's feeds. That lack of routine follows through to bedtime.

Things already get off to a hectic start, as Wendy and Dan are forced to search around the house for Beau's pacifier. When Dan eventually finds one, Beau immediately goes to sleep, only for Leo to start demanding more time with Wendy. Out of guilt, she simply engages him. As noted by Jo, Wendy should rather be setting limits, instead of allowing Leo to make her feel as bad as he does. Wendy later admits to Jo she doesn't have time to be with all of her children at once.

Now that Jo has the full picture of this unruly family, she leaves the house and begins preparing for the Parent Meeting.

Parent Meeting[]

Jo explains that the major issue that Wendy and Dan have is their lack of a routine. She then discusses the lack of discipline and the inability of the parents to get on the same page with each other. Before she can help them, she needs total commitment from the parents, which they confidently give her.

Teaching[]

Jo begins her teaching by setting up a routine with the help of Wendy and Dan. Working together, they put in key points such as feeding the babies and bedtime.

Wendy's sister Carnie and her daughter Lola then came over to visit, with Carnie intending on her and Wendy practicing for their upcoming tour. Jo has Dan play with the kids outside while the girls practice indoors. Her activity was a complete success, and the trouble that Dan anticipated never materialized. Before Jo leaves, she brought in The Paci-Fairy (now named Penelope) in hopes of enticing Beau to give up his pacifiers. While he initially refuses, he quickly changed his mind and handed them over to Jo. The next day, Jo is pleased to discover that Beau successfully slept without a pacifier. As a reward, she gives him a letter from Penelope: toy animals.

Jo then implements her Same Page technique, encouraging Wendy and Dan to discuss their problems. They primarily talk about how they will discipline the boys and how their upbringings influenced their parenting techniques. After an insightful discussion, they both write down their challenges and agree to help each other work through them.

Finally, Jo decides to bring in the Stay in Bed technique. As expected, both older boys began resisting this change. Initially, Wendy was a bit sad when she heard Beau say that he wanted her, but followed through and put him back in his bed. Then Leo follows suit and both boys resist. Wendy does not feed into the chaos and successfully gets them to stay in bed.

Having finished giving all of her lessons, Jo leaves the house for a few days, eager to see how Wendy and Dan will get on without her.

DVD Meeting[]

Clip 1: Wendy reads Leo and Beau a bedtime story with a calm voice. When Beau got up because he wanted to read another story, she switched to a firm, authoritative voice, and Beau listened. Wendy finally kisses the boys goodnight using a sweet, soft tone.

Clip 2: Leo, and Beau play a game, with Wendy observing the two. Suddenly, when Beau attempts to talk with Wendy, Leo out of nowhere slaps his brother in an unprovoked attack. Leo is immediately taken the Naughty Chair, and Wendy tells him that what he did was unacceptable. Leo responds well and stays in his timeout. As such, Wendy succeeds with the technique.

Clip 3: Wendy and Dan talk about trying to incorporate Will and Jesse's feeds into their schedule, but struggle to do so with their existing plan. They both come to an agreement on their schedule. Even though Dan sincerely wants to keep following a schedule, he simply doesn't know how. Jo suggests scheduling the twins' feeds for every three hours. In addition to making sure that the babies are fed and establishing order in their daily routine, it has the added benefit of allowing the parents to sleep longer.

Clip 4: Dan finds out that Beau defecated in his diaper and went to go change it. Surprisingly, Beau asks why he's wearing a diaper. Dan explains that it’s due to his refusal of going on the potty.

Reinforcement[]

So far, Wendy and Dan have succesfully implemented all of Jo's techniques, and thanks to that they’re becoming more confident. Jo decides to take the family out to eat. The only problem was that Dan was nervous; he was worried that the kids would be disruptive. Jo easily dispels his fears by implementing the Dining Out technique: Dan would set his expectations for Leo and Beau. Their meal passes without significant trouble, but it is tested when Leo accidentally drops his plate on the floor. Jo tells them to just ignore it because Leo didn't do it on purpose. At the end of the day, accidents sometimes happen. However when Beau causes mischief at the table, Jo tells Dan to use a firm voice. Beau settles down.

Before Jo left the family for good, she wanted to potty-train Beau again. She started giving Dan and Wendy tips on how to help Beau get out of his diapers again. Suddenly, Beau got up and to everyone's surprise, he sat on the toilet, and did what he couldn't do for months. Now confident that Wendy and Dan will be okay while the former would be on tour with Carnie, Jo leaves the Wilson-Knutson family.

Family Members[]

Person	Age (2007)	Age (2024)	Relation to Family
Wendy Wilson	37 (born October 16, 1969)	55	Mother
Dan Knutson	39 (born April 15, 1968)	56	Father
Leo	4 (born September 14, 2003)	21	Son
Beau	3 (born September 23, 2004)	20	Son
Will	6 weeks (born August 17, 2007)	17	Twin Sons
Jesse	6 weeks (born August 17, 2007)	17	Twin Sons
Carnie Wilson	39 (born April 9, 1968)	56	Aunt/Sister to Wendy
Lola Bonfiglio	2 (born April 25, 2005)	19	Carnie's daughter/Niece to Wendy
Chyna Phillips	39 (born February 12, 1968)	56	Member of Wilson Phillips
Brian Wilson	65 (born June 20, 1942)	82	Grandfather/Father to Wendy and Carnie
Marilyn Wilson	59 (born February 6, 1948)	76	Grandmother/Mother to Wendy and Carnie

The child was disciplined via one of Jo Frost's techinques.

Other People[]

Unknown boy; he is likely a preschool friend during the playdate with their female cousin Lola.

Events Pre-Episode[]

Dan was mentioned in an article by People magazine^[1].

Events Post-Episode[]

Carnie gave birth to another daughter named Luciana in June 2009.
Carnie starred on an episode of Celebrity Wife Swap, where she was swapped with Tracey Gold.
The family moved to Vancouver, Washington.
Leo and Beau both started YouTube channels.
As of 2024, Wendy is 55, Dan is 56, Leo is 21, Beau is 20, Will and Jesse are both 17, Carnie is 56, Lola is 19 and Luciana is 15.
All members of Wilson Phillips competed on the eighth season of the U.S version of the show The Masked Singer. A show focusing on celebrities disguising themselves in costumes, and singing against each other to prevent their identities from being revealed. They were disguised as the Lambs, and finished as the season's runner-ups, falling short behind Amber Riley as the Harp. No clues featured throughout their run referenced Wendy and Carnie's Supernanny appearances.
Carnie was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy in 2013.
Lola graduated high school in 2023.

Trivia[]

When Carnie and Lola came over, the camera shows an unnamed boy in a red and white striped shirt. The boy was also briefly scene in two scenes as the montage between Wendy and Carnie practicing, and Dan playing with the kids began. After that, the boy is never seen again. As he was never properly introduced, there is virtually nothing known about him. The most likely explanation for this could be that the boy was a friend of Leo or Beau and had shown up for a playdate.
Whilst celebrities had previously appeared on Supernanny in the past, (for instance NBA player Dwayne Wayde made a guest apperance in The Walker Family), this episode is the first time where Jo is called to help one. It would be followed by The James Family, which featured NBA player Mike James. The latest episode to feature a celebrity is The McGrath Family, which featured a guest apperance from professional snowboarder, Sean Bubsy.
Whilst The Peterfreund Family is generally considered the first family Jo helps with a newborn, there is some debate on what age range can be considered a newborn: while the term most often refers to a child under 28 days of age, many people extend that upper limit to two or three months. Under this definition, this episode would be the first family to feature newborns, due to Will and Jessie being six weeks old. Carnie and Jo even refer to them as newborns in the episode.
This is the first time Jo visited a family in Studio City, California. The second time was The Clause Family.
Wendy mentions being Brian Wilson's daughter three times in this episode.
Chyna Phillips was the only member of Wilson Phillips who didn’t appear in the episode.
This is the very first episode in Supernanny history, in which a flawless test run was performed by the parent(s).
While Leo is one of the few kids in Supernanny who had never left timeout, there is a possibility that he did; there is a transition from when Leo was put on the Naughty Chair, to when his timeout finished meaning there’s a possibility he did escape. However if he did escape, it would've been likely to be shown.
Prior to Season 8, this was the only episode to feature someone’s interview segments be done without the use of coloured backgrounds: rather than use them for her's, Carnie's interview segments were instead done outside, presumably in front of Wendy's house.
This is the first episode where both parents names are said in the opening of the episode. All other episode intros refer to the parents as "Mom" and "Dad" when needed.
This was the last episode where Jo wears her Blue nanny suit.

Fan Reception[]

The Wilson-Knutson family is often considered one of the best families of Supernanny. The family overall has been significantly praised by many, and this positive acclaim has landed them as being one of the most loved families to have appeared, as well as their episode being considered the best as mentioned earlier.

Wendy and Dan were by far what made this episode so beloved, and many overall consider them some of, if not, the best parents that've appeared on Supernanny. Many noted how quickly they learned Jo's techniques and grew to implement them in their lives, and that neither tried to deflect the blame or argue with Jo; both readily admitted their shortcomings, and vowed to improve themselves. It was also pointed out how thanks to the quick learning exhibited by both parents, it was the first episode ever where both parents performed a flawless test run. Wendy in particular was sympathized with because of the previously stated factors, and as noted earlier, many were pleasantly surprised to see her admit her failures.

Beau was also another reason as to what made this episode quite popular. Many generally loved seeing his growth throughout the episode, and understood that he did in fact regress back into diapers just to get the attention his newborn siblings were receiving. By the end, many were not only surprised, but genuinely amazed to see Beau go to the bathroom on his own, sighting it as one of Supernanny's most unexpected moments. Similar to The Evans Family, Leo and Beau were well-behaved children, and they simply acted out from a lack of structure and Beau wanting attention. With Jo's help, Wendy and Dan were able to establish the structure they needed, and Beau was finally able to be potty trained.

Another major aspect as to why this episode was so liked, was there being no glorification for Wendy: her celebrity status is only mentioned a few times in the episode, and the show still treated her family like any other ordinary one that has appeared on Supernanny.

In conclusion, The Wilson-Knutson Family is considered one of the best episodes in Supernanny, and some have even considered it the best episode in the whole series.

Pop Culture[]

The opening scene shows an extended shot of Carnie and Wendy practicing for their tour. It features the Hungry Hungry Hippos game, which can be seen on a table. The kids were also shown playing the game, during the teaching.
A Thomas the Tank Engine toy can be seen in the garage during the observation.
Beau is seen playing with a Baby Einstein toy during the observation.
The Tin Drum by Schylling can be seen in the living room during the observation.
When Leo was placed in the Naughty Chair in the DVD Meeting, he is seen wearing a Go Diego Go bracelet.
Dan sings “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad”, an American folk song, in The Family Update.
This episode can be considered as pop culture due to its heavy focus on Wendy's music career.
Beau can be seen playing with toys from the movie "Cars" in the submission reel.