Reunion, Love Monkey and Commander in Chief
Reunion. Threshold. E-Ring. Invasion. Emily's Reasons Why Not. Love Monkey. Commander in Chief. Heist.
What do these shows have in common? They all debuted at some point during this soon-to-wrap TV season, yet each saw their run either cut surprisingly short or handicapped by irregular scheduling. Was 2005-06 the worst year ever to sample a new show? Were the networks especially hasty in deciding the fate of freshman series? TVGuide.com consulted a panel of experts with unique points of view to examine this strange little season gone by.
Are New Shows Getting Short Shrift?Jeff Bader, executive vice president of ABC entertainment programming and scheduling, dismisses the suggestion that prime time is a crueler-than-ever proving ground for new series. "
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Meredith Baxter, David Birney, Bridget Loves Bernie
Question: A long time ago there was a sitcom set in New York (I think). It involved a Jewish boy and a Catholic girl who got married. (I might have their religions reversed.) Of course, the usual problems developed. I want to say it was called Beth and Bernie. Am I right? Thanks.
Answer: Close, A.C. Actually, you're thinking of Bridget Loves Bernie, a sitcom that debuted on CBS in September 1972 in a cushy slot between All in the Family and Mary Tyler Moore. David Birney (St. Elsewhere, the TV version of Serpico) play
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Question: It seems a given, in the many questions about network scheduling that you receive, that Saturday night is where TV shows go to die, so no one schedules a potential keeper on Saturday. Yet within living memory (mine, at least), CBS had a killer Saturday lineup that would put any recent "must-see" night to shame (All in the Family, M*A*S*H, Mary Tyler Moore, Bob Newhart, Carol Burnett). I know we went out on Saturday night in the '70s (and with no TiVo, or even VCRs). It can't just be due to the fracturing of cable — if the audience is really too small on Saturday, then it's too small whether your share is 15 percent or 35 percent. I've been looking back trying to find the tipping point, but I can't see when the landscape changed. What in the business has caused this change in perception? On a completely unrelated note: I have fallen in love with Slings & Arrows. Has there been, or is there going to be, a third season? I need more of New Burbage!
Answer: First off, I'm thrilled
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Kene Holliday and Victor French, Carter Country
Question: Do you remember a show with, I think, the guy from Highway to Heaven and a black actor that was sort of a comedy version of In the Heat of the Night? It's driving me nuts.
Answer: Yes.
Aaaah, you didn't really think I was gonna stop at being a wiseacre and answer your question with one word, did you? You'll never so easily curb my urge to babble, Joon.
Funny you use the word "nuts," since the show in question, ABC's Carter Country, bore the name of former peanut farmer Jimmy Carter, who was president at the time it debuted in September 1977. As you say, it bore a strong resemblance to In the Heat of the Night, which 10 years later would be a hit TV series itself.
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Question: This may get me fitted for a straitjacket, but I seem to recall a show from the early 1970s that went something like this: A father, daughter and possibly someone else lived together in a house after the mother died, I think. The father was an architect, or cartoonist, which required that he have a large sketch pad in his attic where he would retreat when searching for solace. When he contemplated his life's issues, a sketch of his house would take the features of a human face, turn and look at him and have a conversation with him. No one else would see this drawing but the dad. Feel free to send the wagon over to my house to collect me, as people think I'm absolutely crazy, especially when I mention the talking-house part.
Answer: Instead of a straitjacket, might I suggest something a little more freeing, perhaps a windbreaker, blazer or even a nice sweater vest, Martin? There's no need for restraint — I believe the show you're
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Beatrice Arthur, Maude
Question: What was Maude's husband's name? My husband and I have a bet going. Can you please help? Thank you.
Answer: OK, Kandi, allow me to bore regular readers with my usual admonishment that those who have bets should let me know what's at stake in their questions — I'm just snoopy like that — before moving on to the usual enlightenment.
So, here's the enlightenment. On Maude, which ran on CBS from September 1972 to April 1978, the fourth husband of Maude Findlay (Beatrice Arthur) was Walter Findlay (Bill Macy). Rounding out the family was Maude's divorced daughter, Carol (Adrienne Barbeau) and her young son, Phillip (Brian Morrison for five years, then Kraig Metzinger).
And don't feel too bad about forgetting Walter's name — it's not the first time Macy has suffered character-related ind
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Martin Sheen, The West Wing
Question: When The West Wing closes down for good on May 14, Bartlet & Co. will leave and a new president will be sworn in. What a simply perfect way for a show to end — when it's supposed to! It's no secret that the series lost a lot of fans and critical appreciation after Aaron Sorkin left three years ago. So here's my question: Years from now, when you think back to The West Wing, how will you remember it? Will you remember a top-notch Emmy-winning drama that influenced the face of dramatic TV, or will you remember a disappointing show that went downhill and never recovered?
Answer: What an interesting legacy question to welcome me back from some time off (so much to catch up with). This got me thinking about other shows that went off the air long after they peaked, and I think it's fair to say that most of us will remember The West Wing kindly, without even putting an asterisk after it. The show's impact, and its overall quality up to the reelection season (after which the show
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Grey's AnatomyABC was very smart to give us a new episode tonight, since the SAGs ended at 10 pm. And what a great one it was. Hopefully people who never watched the show but were watching the awards and saw Sandra Oh win (yea, Sandra!) thought, "Hmm, this gal just won a Golden Globe and now a SAG award. Maybe I should check out her show tonight." Yes, Sandra was fabulous as she always is, but Katherine Heigl and Ellen Pompeo gave their best performances, by far. Maybe the creative staff wanted to spread the wealth and help the other actors join Sandra and Patrick Dempsey in the world of award nominations. So Izzie has an 11-year old daughter that she gave up. What a perfect way for us to find out, by having her give advice to that youn
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Question: It seems like every other movie I see advertised is based on a TV show, like The Dukes of Hazzard. But what about the other way around? I know there was a series based on My Big Fat Greek Wedding, but what other TV series have been based on a movie, and were any of them good?
Answer: There have been a handful of top-notch TV shows based on movies. The flop Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992) was revived as Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003); Robert Altman's acerbic M*A*S*H* (1970) became the long-running M*A*S*H (1972-1983); Neil Simon
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Clockwise (from left): Isabel Sanford, Franklin Cover, Roxie Roker, Sherman Hemsley, The Jeffersons
Question: Help me out here. I'm a big fan of The Jeffersons and I always thought the first actor who played Lionel left because of a swelled head, then came back when his solo career didn't take off. But my brother insists it was so that his brother could take over. Who's right?
Answer: Why, you are, Brenda, assuming you mean Mike Evans, who played young Lionel Jefferson on All in the Family and then on its Jeffersons spin-off. He left because of an inflated sense of self rather than a bump on the noggin. However, it's probably nicer to say he suffered from the inexperience of youth rather than to tar him with the ego brush. Of course, the actor himself took it a step further in 1980 and told TV Guide he was dar
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