Taxi was on ABC for 4 seasons and NBC for the 5th, final season.
I wonder if that wasn’t related to Cheers. They shared executives, premiere dates (on NBC), and De Vitos.
Annyong… Not only was it critically acclaimed, but I am proud to be part of a pretty sizable campaign by viewers that are fanatical in their love of this show. We flooded Fox with a barrage of emails and snail mail, demanding another season, and I read that this was partly responsible for its renewal. It was organized by the people at Television Without Pity, and it was strong enough to make a difference.
Just imagine if it had premiered on FOX anytime in the last 5 years. We would have missed out on one of the best TV shows of all time.
I know the critics loved it, but Undeclared was a FOX show that should have lasted longer than it did, dammit!
Won’t this be Family Guy’s third chance? I thought a public outcry when it was pulled off the schedule was the reason they brought it back for a second season. I’m looking forward to the new episodes!
The critically acclaimed “West Wing” is reportedly in danger of being cancelled due to lack of ratings.
Out of curiosity - what did the critics think of Futurama?
It should also be said that critics don’t like this show much anymore and really bashed last season’s shows.
However, I think the show will run an entire season next year, 22 episodes. However, NBC won’t show reruns of any episode.
I’m resurrecting this thread to announce that Yes, Dear has been renewed by CBS and will air beginning Wednesday, February 16th.
Speaking of which…
I heard very recently that Family Guy was the #4 series in DVD sales.
Anyone know where The List is? I’d like to see where some other stuff rates.
-Joe
Hey hermano. Something else keeping Arrested Development afloat has been the awards it has received: several Emmys including best comedy series, best writing, and I believe best ensemble cast, and a Golden Globe award for best actor in a comedy series for Jason Bateman.
It kills me that this show is still struggling, when it is so damn fresh and funny and different from what’s out there. I still say that if all Scrubs fans tuned in and gave it a chance, or even if all the 8 PM Simpsons viewers stayed tuned in at 8:30, Arrested Development could gain a huge spike in ratings and immediately double or triple its loyal viewers.
Close—Family Guy’s third season came about because of the fan campaign, not the second. By the time they were renewed some of the writers had already moved on to other jobs, certain that the series was toast.
I worked briefly as a studio page when I first moved to Hollywood a few months ago. “Yes Dear” wasn’t really renewed technically. The show never stopped production. CBS has just decided to start airing the episodes it had in the can since September.
Speaking of Fox, critically-acclaimed series, early cancellation, and low rating before found its audience, Wonderfalls just recently came out on DVD, so at least we can view the nine unaired episodes.
Funny thing, just last night I was flipping through channels and saw “Yes Dear” in syndication. It took me a while to find my jaw after that.
I’m not a huge fan of talk shows or anything*, but The Wayne Brady Show was cancelled due to ratings even after it was nominated for a Daytime Emmy, and was (IIRC) well-liked by critics.
*I am, however, a Wayne Brady fan. 
In the Detroit area, they show two a night.
I also think they show two episdoes every day on TBS maybe???
Actually, I always liked that show. Not original or amazing, but usually good for a chuckle or two.
and Arrested Development must be a good show. It’s one of only three shows that my wife and I both actually like! (Scrubs and Less than Perfect are the others)
That’s the only drawback to our near complete reliance on our DVR: I’m so good with the 30-second skip that we have no idea about things like this.
Along with Gilligan’s Island I think The Beverly Hillbillies suffered a similar fate. It was loved by its fans but despised by CBS execs. Although, again like Gilligan, I think it was also slipping in the ratings when cancelled.
I think the 70s ABC comedy Soap got cancelled due to its risqué content even when it was still a ratings hit.
The progenitor of The Simpsons, The Tracy Ullman Show, never got good ratings yet Fox kept it on for four seasons mostly due to it being a critical success (this mattered a lot then because the Fox Network was brand new).
I remember Tony Randall saying that The Odd Couple never got great ratings but was kept on the air because the president of ABC liked it.
I should try and find my old VHS copies of The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer. I could probably sell them on ebay as episodes of that show will never see the light of day again. That show, while not great by any means, was very original. Portraying Lincoln as a skirt chasing horndog having very early cybersex (via telegraph!), Mary Lincoln as a frustrated nutball, Gen. Grant as an incompetant drunk. It was racist alright. It made total fun of white people!