# Once popular shows that sank into obscurity **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 19, 2005, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-popular-shows-that-sank-into-obscurity/331768 "2005-11-19T04:07:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![TV\_time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f17d59/32.png) [@TV\_time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TV_time)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2005, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-popular-shows-that-sank-into-obscurity/331768/41 "2005-11-20T16:54:21Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > Moonlighting was hugely popular, then off-screen problems led to its disappearance. It should be noted _Moonlighting_ knocked another show that had done well its first season off the air. _Riptide_ was a qwerky buddy detective show that developed a solid following and was quite popular. Then _Moonlighting_ was thrown in against _Riptide_ in its second season and it died an unnoticed death. ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2005, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-popular-shows-that-sank-into-obscurity/331768/42 "2005-11-20T17:32:02Z")
**Hawaii Five-0** was a terrific show and scored ratings in the top 20 of all shows for seven seasons in a row, 1969-70 through 1976-77. It’s very disappointing that I can’t see it in my area (NYC) and there are no DVDs of it. What about **Mission Impossible** , which seemed to be on TV every day throughout the 1970s. Then it vanished. Yes, I know there was a movie, but you really can’t duplicate the style of a show like that. **Petticoat Junction** is what comes to mind for comedies, and then for westerns there’s a whole host of them, most noticeably **The Virginian**. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2005, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-popular-shows-that-sank-into-obscurity/331768/43 "2005-11-20T18:02:35Z")
> [@Mehitabel](#): > > Good Lord, what happened to Dan Ackroyd? :eek: > > _Homicide_ and _Married with Children_ were groundbreakers that also sort of petered out, although the former got a nice send-off with its own TV movie (miss ya, Gee). MWC not only was cancelled two weeks AFTER its last episode of the season had been shot, but they’d been making fun of themselves being on so long when Jefferson heard the theme music once and said “Is that _thing_ still on the air?” As for the RL cast, they learned about it not from Fox but from talk radio, calls from friends, and in Ed O’Neill’s case, from a young couple in a parking lot who came up to him to sympathize. He thanked them and took them out to breakfast. 🆒 > > _The X Files_ and _NewsRadio_ also sputtered to a halt, although the latter had a good if tragic reason. RL stands for what? “Real Life?” If that’s what it means here, I don’t understand. “Real life” cast as opposed to what? -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2005, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-popular-shows-that-sank-into-obscurity/331768/44 "2005-11-20T18:03:14Z")
> [@Harmonious Discord](#): > > Dinosaurs. > Not the Moma! Whack dady with a pan. Just the other day, we were listening to the radio while driving and something came on that forced me to say “We’re gonna need another Timmy!” Oh how I mis the Sinclairs! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/once-popular-shows-that-sank-into-obscurity/331768.md?page=2)