There was a spin off of the Jeffersons (which was a spin off itself) called “Checking In” which was excruciating!
It is commonly known that Three’s Company was based on the UK sitcom Man About The House, but what is perhaps less well known is that said UK sitcom had two very successful spin-offs, called George and Mildred, and Robin’s Nest.
The Ropers is based on George and Mildred. And Three’s A Crowd is based on Robin’s Nest. Neither of the US spin-offs succeeded.
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Anyway, here’s another spin-off that wasn’t bad, but wasn’t a hit, because it went dramatic instead of comedic. Enos.
I don’t how good either “December Bride”or its spinoff “Pete and Gladys” were in the 1950s/early 60s. “December Bride” ran for 5 years, the first few very successful as it followed “I Love Lucy”. “Pete and Gladys” ran for two, never cracking the top 30. Harry Morgan, who played the neighbor Pete Porter on “December Bride” would later say he had a great time, five years flew by as one. As for “Pete and Gladys”, he didn’t care for his co-star Cara Williams (allegedly very temperamental), who was unseen on “December Bride”, and would in 1967 tell TV Guide he wasn’t sorry to see the show end.
I saw them both at the time. They were about of equal quality.
I actually liked Pete and Gladys more than December Bride.
I never knew that existed.
I wish I still didn’t.
I used to attend the test audience screenings at the Preview House in Hollywood. One of the shows we tested was The Tortellis. As much as I rated it down, it still got on the air. Someone there must have liked it.
As a matter of fact, every show I previewed both sucked, and got on the air. And not long after, went off the air. Not sure what good the Preview House actually did.
Speaking of Matt LeBlanc, he starred in a couple of other failed spinoffs, Top of the Heap, which was a spinoff of Married With Children, and Vinnie and Bobby, which, incredibly, was spun off from Top of the Heap. Each series lasted only seven episodes.
I think the fact the production team behind “Cheers” was also behind “The Tortellis” meant it was a lock to go on the schedule no matter what. The test audience you were at was just a formality.
The failure of “The Tortellis” was a perfect example of recurring characters who were amusing in small doses but completely obnoxious when a series was built around them. Also, I could never believe Mrs. Tortelli and her sister were from the same family. They didn’t even seem to be from the same planet.
It wasn’t as popular as All in the Family, but it lasted four seasons and 97 episodes, which is usually considered successful enough to sell to syndication. What wasn’t nearly as successful was Gloria, which focused on the newly divorced Gloria Bunker, who moved back to New York with her and Michael’s son, Joey.
Dr. Addison Montgomery from Grey’s Anatomy got a spin off, Private Practice. I think it ran for quite a few seasons, but I never saw the point of it and gave up on it pretty quickly.
“Sanford and Son” had the spinoff “Grady” starring cast member Whitman Mayo. It lasted 10 episodes. Not sure if “Sanford Arms” should be mentioned as a spinoff; more of a continuation without its two main stars and lasted only four episodes
Wasted the actor and character. But it was hot and sexy, they say.:rolleyes:
Welcome Back, Kotter was hardly great television, but the spinoff Mr. T and Tina with Pat Morita was even worse.
Oh, I remembered another one. Golden Girls had a spin-off called The Golden Palace.
On the other hand, Cheers spun off Frasier, which worked quite well.
And an attempt at having the female equivalent of Fonzie lead her own show.
Golden Palace was more of a continuation than a spin-off. It took place after the Golden Girls ended and had most of the same cast (Bea Arthur had left, Dorothy marrying Blanche’s uncle in the last episode). They just changed the venue and added Don Cheadle and Cheech Marin.
Actually, someone mentioned WALTE*R and AfterMASH up above, so never mind. 
I liked this one initially but it started to feel like “let’s debate a new social issue this week”.
The rural comedies that required a theme song to establish the premise was the ultimate examples for the OP. Beverly Hillbillies, Petticoat Junction, Green Acres
Beverly Hillbillies was the original, and one of the greatest ensemble comedies of all time. Green Acres was the epitome of absurdist comedy. Petticoat junction was lame though.
Not really a spin-off but another imitation of a BBC series was the US version ofCoupling. Simply horrid. The original Coupling on BBC was an excellent show.