# good riddens friends or AWFUL series closers

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [May 7, 2004, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950 "2004-05-07T02:38:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 5

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**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\
**Post date:** [May 9, 2004, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/81 "2004-05-09T04:31:41Z")

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> [@Libertarian](#):
>
> I thought the Seinfeld finale was among the worst ever. The best, in my opinion, were M.A.S.H, Mary Tyler Moore, Cheers, and the best of all, Bob Newhart.

Bob Newhart or Just Newheart?

Newheart had a great ending. I never saw the ending to Bob Newheart(He had three different shows, all variations of his name…okay, there was that later one too…).

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**Author:** ![Kaitlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/73ab20/32.png) [@Kaitlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaitlyn)\
**Post date:** [May 9, 2004, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/82 "2004-05-09T05:02:40Z")

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The finale of _The Bob Newhart Show_ had Bob Hartley accepting a job teaching at a small college and leaving Chicago. It was a fairly typical “changing jobs” finale (like _Night Court_, _Home Improvement_, _One Day at a Time_, _All in the Family_, _The Mary Tyler Moore Show_, _Good Times_, _Coach_, etc.

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**Author:** ![Kaitlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/73ab20/32.png) [@Kaitlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaitlyn)\
**Post date:** [May 9, 2004, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-riddens-friends-or-awful-series-closers/243950/83 "2004-05-09T05:10:59Z")

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Clicked the wrong button to preview.

Of course, the finale of _The Bob Newhart Show_ is contradicted by both the finale of _Newhart_,

Which has Bob Hartley still in the same Chicago apartment

and by the reunion show for _The Bob Newhart Show_, which has Bob Hartley still working in the same office building and contains several references to _Newhart_.

Also, the third show, _Bob_ was actually pretty good. It’s the only show in which Bob had a child, though this time she was grown. Bob Newhart didn’t want his characters to have children, because he didn’t want to have to play off them and feared that the show would end up being more about the kids than the adults, a fear that was entirely justified.

He played a comic book writer/artist who was attempting to revive a character he created years before. The supporting cast was wonderful, but it wasn’t given a chance.

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