# Popular TV shows that aren't anymore **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [December 22, 2024, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017 "2024-12-22T14:37:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/102 "2024-12-23T16:19:05Z")
_Suddenly Susan_ was one of those terrible shows NBC slotted in at 9:30 on Thursdays. Cf. _Veronica’s Closet_. _SS_ was only in the slot briefly for half of season one but that got enough audience to last outside the slot for a bit. _VC_ started in the slot but died once it was moved out. If neither had been in that time slot, they would have gone away quickly and ended up as footnotes in the most diehard sitcom fan’s notes. Letterman once joked that NBC could air melting cheese in the 8:30 Th time slot and it would still be a hit. The 9:30 slot was not as popular. _Will & Grace_ sort of changed that. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/103 "2024-12-23T16:33:54Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Has anyone mentioned _ **Twin Peaks** _ yet? I missed it on American TV, but I remember hearing people talk about it whenever I ate in a restaurant. My 23yo daughter’s current obsession, _Twin Peaks_ lives on… ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/104 "2024-12-23T16:36:03Z")
> [@salinqmind1](#): > > I never heard anyone mention ‘Lexx’ until now! My husband and I were mesmerized by this WEIRD WEIRD sci-fi show. It was on Russian TV in the '90s, along with _ **Babylon 5** _, _ **Highlander** _, _ **Space Above and Beyond** _, _ **Twin Peaks** _, _ **Due South** _, and a lot of other oddball American/Canadian series. It was also on Russian TV that I first saw _ **The Sopranos** _, _ **CSI** _, _ **Criminal Minds** _, and _ **Monk** _. Imported series were all the rage in the '90s. I haven’t gone back to Russia since December 2021, so I have no idea how popular they are today. ---
**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/105 "2024-12-23T16:47:59Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > How about that Beauty and the Beast show with Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton? We bought the series on DVD. I don’t think we even fiinished the first episode. Hubby had really liked the series when it was first broadcast, but it’s not watchable. How about _Scarecrow & Mrs. King_? I used to love that show and am curious if it is at all watchable. It was totally implausible, but it was amusing. ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/106 "2024-12-23T17:22:55Z")
I don’t hear much about Alice and One Day at a Time. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/107 "2024-12-23T17:31:38Z")
**Northern Exposure** had a few years of popularity and critical acclaim. I briefly worked in the same office park in Redmond where it was filmed. Haven’t heard it mentioned in a long time; wonder how it would hold up these days. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/108 "2024-12-23T18:17:23Z")
Not sure in today’s streaming segmented market world we have the same sort of big across the culture shows anymore, but do any of you think that anything big popular culture shows _now_ will stand up in future decades? ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/110 "2024-12-23T18:51:32Z")
Many of these kinds of shows are still shown on broadcast TV. For instance, [Rewind TV](https://rewindtv.com/interactive-schedule/eastern-schedule/) is a broadcast channel that has Family Ties, Mork and Mindy, Mad About You, Caroline in the City, Suddenly Susan, and many others. The minor broadcast channels are packed with these kinds of older shows. They must be pretty cheap to license based on the low-tier advertising which supports them. ---
**Author:** ![Tzigone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Tzigone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tzigone)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/111 "2024-12-23T21:08:54Z")
I’m enjoying the walk down memory lane, but I do think some of the shows mentioned in this thread were never “popular” - I liked Brisco County (had a cat named Brisco the time) and Space:AAB, but they weren’t that popular and there was a reason they were short-lived. I do agree with those who say that the switch to streaming meant that shows that are newer have more difficulty staying in public consciousness (I mean, we can find them, but they aren’t the sort of “there” where everyone knows who the characters are and what the premise is, even if they’ve never watched) - though, to be fair, we forgot a lot of the older ones, too. But maybe not the really popular ones. I mean look at the [1960-61](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960%E2%80%9361_United_States_network_television_schedule) and I recognize most of them, even if it was a couple decades before I was born. But the westerns are more down to after we got a satellite dish than than reruns on the local broadcast stations, unlike some other types of shows. My mom liked westerns and mysteries (still does). I actually do better with those than the [1970-71](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1970%E2%80%9371_United_States_network_television_schedule) top 10, so there’s bound to be variability from person to person. Looks like the article mentioned the forgotten ones from [1994-95](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1994%E2%80%9395_United_States_network_television_schedule), though. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/112 "2024-12-23T22:29:44Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > It was on Russian TV in the '90s, along with _ **Babylon 5** _, _ **Highlander** _, _ **Space Above and Beyond** _, _ **Twin Peaks** _, _ **Due South** _, and a lot of other oddball American/Canadian series. Was there a time lag? A friend of mine grew up in Nepal, and we watched the same TV shows… but he saw them a decade later than I did. He had no idea that Gidgit/Candid Camera/Adam-12/I-Spy were all 8-12 years out of date, and assumed he was seeing contemporary American culture. ---
**Author:** ![aurora\_maire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aurora_maire/32/328_2.png) [@aurora\_maire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurora_maire)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/113 "2024-12-23T23:03:05Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > **Northern Exposure** had a few years of popularity and critical acclaim. I did a rewatch several months ago and really enjoyed it. I didn’t see the last season after Rob Morrow left, though, because my free Prime trial ran out and I don’t really remember if it was as good as the rest. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2024, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/114 "2024-12-23T23:08:49Z")
Veronica Mars had a good 4-season run and enough fan support to get a movie and a sequel produced, but I don’t know how popular it is these days. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2024, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/115 "2024-12-24T01:09:59Z")
Bob Newhart has been mentioned, but not his 80s sitcom _Newhart_. It was so weird and surreal (“I’m Larry, this is my brother Darryl, and this is my other brother Darryl”). And in the very last episode, we finally find out why! > **[Newhart](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newhart)** > > Newhart is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS from October 25, 1982, to May 21, 1990, with a total of 184 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. The series stars Bob Newhart and Mary Frann as an author and his wife, respectively; who own and operate the Stratford Inn in rural Vermont. The small town is home to many eccentric characters. TV Guide, TV Land, and A&E named the Newhart series finale as one of the most memorable in television history. The theme music for Newhart was ... Another long lost show was _Empty Nest_. It was in the same universe as _Golden Girls,_ because Sophia occasionally visited. I remember it for the Joe Isuzu guy, and in the opening credits the lead orders his dog off the bed, but it jumps back up after he goes to sleep. > **[Empty Nest](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empty_Nest)** > > Empty Nest is an American television sitcom that aired for seven seasons on NBC from October 8, 1988, to June 17, 1995. The series, which was created as a spin-off of The Golden Girls by creator and producer Susan Harris, starred Richard Mulligan as recently widowed pediatrician Dr. Harry Weston, whose two adult daughters return home to live with him. The series was produced by Witt/Thomas/Harris Productions in association with Touchstone Television. > An early version of the series initially appe... And I’m surprised I’m the first to mention that early Paul Reiser vehicle, _My Two Dads_ > **[My Two Dads](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Two_Dads)** > > My Two Dads is an American sitcom television series that was produced by Michael Jacobs Productions in association with Tri-Star Television (later Columbia Pictures Television) and distributed by TeleVentures. It stars Paul Reiser, Greg Evigan, and Staci Keanan. The series premiered on NBC on September 20, 1987, airing three seasons through to April 30, 1990. > "This is me, Nicole Bradford. Cute, huh? This is my dad and this is my dad. How did I get two dads? They inherited me. This is the judge w... ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2024, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/116 "2024-12-24T02:37:13Z")
> [@digs](#): > > > [@terentii](#): > > > > It was on Russian TV in the '90s, along with _ **Babylon 5** _, _ **Highlander** _, _ **Space Above and Beyond** _, _ **Twin Peaks** _, _ **Due South** _, and a lot of other oddball American/Canadian series. > > Was there a time lag? A friend of mine grew up in Nepal, and we watched the same TV shows… but he saw them a decade later than I did. > > He had no idea that Gidgit/Candid Camera/Adam-12/I-Spy were all 8-12 years out of date, and assumed he was seeing contemporary American culture. There was some lag for some series, but I didn’t feel most were out of date. As I indicated above, _ **Twin Peaks** _ was on the winter of '92–'93. _ **Monk** _, _ **NCIS** _, _ **CSI** _, _ **Criminal Minds** _, _ **The Sopranos** _, and (IIRC) the reboot of _ **Battlestar Galactica** _ were all on closer to 2000–2003, or thereabouts. I remember watching _ **Mr Bean** _, _ **'Allo, 'Allo** _, _ **Smack the Pony** _, _ **Dempsey and Makepeace** _, and _ **The Thin Blue Line** _ with my daughter when she was a preschooler, around 1998–2000. They all looked more or less contemporary to me. _ **King of the Hill** _, _ **Futurama** _, and _ **The Simpsons** _ were all popular with both kids and adults at that time. There was a smattering of older shows mixed in with the above, e.g., _ **The Avengers** _ (with Emma Peel and Tara King), _ **The Flintstones** _, _ **Cimarron Strip** _, and the original _ **Addams Family** _. _ **Star Trek TNG** _ debuted with much ballyhoo on New Year’s Day 2000, but it didn’t catch on. Only the first 100 episodes were aired, so I never found out how the Romulan–Vulcan reunification ended. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2024, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/117 "2024-12-24T04:23:09Z")
I should also have mentioned _ **Columbo** _, which was cornerstone of the Sunday night schedule on Channel 1. Analyses of the show and what made it so popular popped up frequently in different publications. The episodes that were shown dated all the way back to the '70s and (IIRC) the 1968 pilot. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2024, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/118 "2024-12-24T04:32:23Z")
It rotated with McMillan & Wife and McCloud. I remember Rock Hudson and Susan St James on the former but don’t even recall McCloud. Watching Columbo with my dad is one of my favorite childhood memories. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2024, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/119 "2024-12-24T04:38:11Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > don’t even recall McCloud Sort of a fish-out-of-water premise, with Dennis Weaver as a deputy from New Mexico who’s sent on loan to the NYPD. My main recollection is that McCloud always dressed Western-style, with a cowboy hat, bolo tie, sheepskin coat, and cowboy boots. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2024, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/120 "2024-12-24T05:03:53Z")
McCloud was inspired by Coogan’s Bluff. But stupider! And mind you, I watched every Mystery Movie show, even the ones that ran 6 episodes. I loved McCloud when I was a kid, but I tried watching it recently and it is irredeemably stupid. McMillan (with or without & Wife) and Banacek hold up fine, allowing for their age. McClod makes me want to pay for his plane ticket back to Taos out of my own pocket. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2024, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/121 "2024-12-24T05:20:26Z")
Has anyone mentioned **Due South** yet? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2024, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017/122 "2024-12-24T05:25:03Z")
I have. I watched seasons 1 and 2 on Russian TV in the '90s, and then 3 and 4 after I moved to Canada in 2008. The first two seasons (which I watched religiously in Russia) hold up well, but the last two are very disappointing, especially in how they wrote Ray out of the series when he wanted more money. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/popular-tv-shows-that-arent-anymore/1012017.md?page=7)