# TV Shows that made a big pop culture splash but are now disproportionately forgotten **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 17, 2014, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849 "2014-11-17T13:36:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/81 "2014-11-18T17:00:02Z")
“Ginger or Mary Ann?” There was a time every guy understood the question and had an answer. Now that Gilligan’s Island isn’t on TV every afternoon I bet there’s an entire generation that doesn’t. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/82 "2014-11-18T17:09:07Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > The question is a toiugh one, because it’s not clear what people have forgotten – an issue that itself varies with age. There are several influential shows from the 1950s that were Big Things at the time, but have fallen off the cultural radar because they were never syndicated, or in many cases even preserved: > > **The Ernie Kovacs Show** – widely credited with inventing a lot of now-standard devices and convcentions for TV shows, wildly inventive and at the time hilarious. Most people today have probably never even heard of Kovaks. > > . . . True story: when we first bought a HDTV and signed up with Hulu (Netflix?) the first show I watched was Ernie Kovacs. The Wife thought it seemed odd to watch a low-definition, sixty-year-old show on a newtech device. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/83 "2014-11-18T17:10:21Z")
> [@sciurophobic](#): > > “Ginger or Mary Ann?” There was a time every guy understood the question and had an answer. Now that Gilligan’s Island isn’t on TV every afternoon I bet there’s an entire generation that doesn’t. TVLand is running a marathon 11/28, so there must be some interest. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/84 "2014-11-18T17:23:19Z")
Does anyone under 50 even remember the concept of prime time variety shows? ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/85 "2014-11-18T17:34:20Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > TVLand is running a marathon 11/28, so there must be some interest. Sure, but TVLand’s target audience isn’t young. This is the network whose hit show is “Hot in Cleveland”, where everybody is over 50. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/86 "2014-11-18T17:50:10Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Does anyone under 50 even remember the concept of prime time variety shows? What do you think shows like “America Idol” or “America’s Got Talent” and suchlike are? It’s a little different format than the classic variety shows which were a direct descendant of vaudeville style stage shows–a little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2014, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/87 "2014-11-18T17:59:10Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants. _ **Mary Tyler Moore** _, the “Chuckles the Clown” episode! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/88 "2014-11-18T18:04:58Z")
I hate to say it, but _Xena: Warrior Princess_. It paved the way for Buffy (and had a far better musical episode), but I haven’t seen it anywhere in ages. ---
**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:** [November 18, 2014, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/89 "2014-11-18T18:08:06Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > I can’t remember the last time I saw it in re-runs, can you? They showed it in Russia (for the first time, I think) 10–12 years ago. It didn’t last long. I remember watching an episode and thinking “My God, this was the No. 1 show back in the '80s?!?” Okay, so the music and car races and fashions and deaths in slow motion were really cool. But the writing and acting—WHOOOO-WHEEEEEE!!! SUCK-O!!! \*\*RICO: \*\*The deal’s goin’ down _tonight_, Lieutenant! **SONNY:** We gotta _be_ there! **[LONG PAUSE]** **CASTILLO:** Go. Take Gina and Trudy with you for backup. And \*that \*was about as good as it got! ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/90 "2014-11-18T18:18:37Z")
I’m not sure how much of a splash it mnade when it was new, but I eagerly watched it. **Men Into Space** was a surprisingly accurate dramatic series about the dawning space age, depicted realistically with no absurd leaps in logic or technology. > **[Men into Space](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Men_into_Space)** > > Men Into Space (a.k.a. Space Challenge in later US syndication) is an American black-and-white science fiction television series, produced by Ziv Television Programs, Inc., that was first broadcast by CBS from September 30, 1959, to September 7, 1960. The series depicts future efforts by the United States Air Force to explore and develop outer space. The series' star, William Lundigan, played Col. Edward McCauley. > Men Into Space was not set in a specified time period, but clues dropped in the... For a LONG time the series has been practically absent from any reference material – books on science fiction television rarely, if ever mentionec it. If they didm they didn’t list episodes (even in books devoted to listing episodes of SF on television). Until relatively recently, there were hardly any internet sites about it. Add to this that I’ve never seen the series in syndication, or on VHS or DVD. You can find some excerpts on YouTube. Do any of the TV streaming services (like Hulu) carry it? The show has been incredibly inaccessible, even though the episodes apparently still exist. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/91 "2014-11-18T18:41:21Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > I hate to say it, but _Xena: Warrior Princess_. It paved the way for Buffy (and had a far better musical episode), but I haven’t seen it anywhere in ages. I suspect those cheesy digital effects shows from that era aren’t aging well. But it isn’t like Xena isn’t influencial: [http://www.caltech.edu/content/dwarf-planet-formerly-known-xena-has-officially-been-named-eris-iau-announces](http://www.caltech.edu/content/dwarf-planet-formerly-known-xena-has-officially-been-named-eris-iau-announces) ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/92 "2014-11-18T18:52:46Z")
> [@sciurophobic](#): > > “Ginger or Mary Ann?” There was a time every guy understood the question and had an answer. Now that Gilligan’s Island isn’t on TV every afternoon I bet there’s an entire generation that doesn’t. Wow. It must be Opposite Day. If there was a thread on "TV shows that have stuck around in public consciousness far more than they should have, _Gilligan’s Island_ would be right up at the top of the list. Sherwood Schwartz, who produced both _Gilligan_ and _The Brady Bunch_, was a master of making shows that were the TV equivalent of earworms. And, to add to the conversation, what about S.W.A.T.? There was a flop movie about 10 years ago, but otherwise this show has left no trace except for the theme song. ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/93 "2014-11-18T21:13:43Z")
> [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](#): > > And, to add to the conversation, what about S.W.A.T.? There was a flop movie about 10 years ago, but otherwise this show has left no trace except for the theme song. The show was on less than two seasons. It’s surprising that it’s remembered at all. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/94 "2014-11-18T21:29:37Z")
Do people remember **Dragnet**? It was originally a radio show (1949-1957), but was a TV show from 1951-1959, then returned for 1967-1970. There was also a color movie in 1954 (plus a TV movie the pilot from 1966 that was aired later), all of them starring the emotionless and straitlaced Jack Webb as Joe Friday. It’s easy to poke fun at the assumptions and earnestness, but Webb’s show got away from the absurd shootouts and action-oriented shows and portrayed police life as it frequently was, drawing its cases from actual files. The 1987 film _Dragnet_ spoofed all this, but they brought Dragnet back as a serious show again in 1989 and in 2003, although those didn’t last long. The shows were pretty highly rated in their prime, and everyone knew the opening theme and narration (and the closing ones, too). And that hammer-on-metal “Mark VII Productions” was so distinctive that the people who make Robot Chicken stole it. There’s no doubt that Dragnet made a deep impression But it’s been a decade since the most recent incarnation, and the young’uns might not know about the long history and impact of the series. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/95 "2014-11-18T21:45:14Z")
> [@Flywheel](#): > > **Picket Fences** and **The Practice** both won the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series two years in a row. Who talks about them today? Both suffered from the David E. Kelley effect. Make a popular show that has a loyal fan base and then when you get tired of it sabotage it with controversial plots and story lines with your favorite characters acting in out of character and hateful ways. > [@kunilou](#): > > [Hill Street Blues](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081873/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1). This was a series that literally rewrote the rules on how to tell a dramatic story on television. It won a truckload of Emmy awards, spawned a host of imitators and launched Dennis Franz’s career, as well as the catchphrase “Let’s be careful out there.” Even more importantly, NBC chose to renew it despite (like _Cheers_) terrible ratings because it was so damn good. > > It never did well in syndication and today is even less remembered than its medical story sidekick _St. Elsewhere_. “Let’s be careful out there” is still a often used cliche/meme in my profession. Not many shows still have a saying being used decades later. ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/96 "2014-11-18T21:54:04Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > I can’t remember the last time I saw it in re-runs, can you? > > Think anyone, say, 30 years old or younger remembers it? Does anyone 30 years or younger remember a show that started 30 years ago? ---
**Author:** ![mattwan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df788c/32.png) [@mattwan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mattwan)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/97 "2014-11-18T23:39:16Z")
How about **Alice**? It finished four of its nine seasons in the top ten, spawned a popular catchphrase in “Kiss my grits”, and seemed to be practically forgotten even before it went off the air. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2014, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/98 "2014-11-19T00:06:08Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > In Speedos. The filmy, nylon ones that, when wet, clung to everything you wanted them to cling to. Lynda Carter! Cheryl Ladd! Sarah Purcell from Real People! Heart be still, Jan Smithers! It’s weird that you keep mentioning names after Lynda Carter. ---
**Author:** ![Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soul_brother_number_two/32/3515_2.png) [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soul_Brother_Number_Two)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2014, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/99 "2014-11-19T00:24:37Z")
I’m surprised Moonlighting hasn’t been mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2014, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849/100 "2014-11-19T00:30:09Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Do people remember **Dragnet**? It was originally a radio show (1949-1957), but was a TV show from 1951-1959, then returned for 1967-1970. There was also a color movie in 1954 (plus a TV movie the pilot from 1966 that was aired later), all of them starring the emotionless and straitlaced Jack Webb as Joe Friday. > It’s easy to poke fun at the assumptions and earnestness, but Webb’s show got away from the absurd shootouts and action-oriented shows and portrayed police life as it frequently was, drawing its cases from actual files. > The 1987 film _Dragnet_ spoofed all this, but they brought Dragnet back as a serious show again in 1989 and in 2003, although those didn’t last long. > The shows were pretty highly rated in their prime, and everyone knew the opening theme and narration (and the closing ones, too). And that hammer-on-metal “Mark VII Productions” was so distinctive that the people who make Robot Chicken stole it. There’s no doubt that Dragnet made a deep impression > But it’s been a decade since the most recent incarnation, and the young’uns might not know about the long history and impact of the series. I don’t know much about the original Dragnet series in general but I do wonder what happened to the LSD trippin’ Blue Boy from time to time. That is one of the most unintentionally funny episodes of TV ever made. You can watch it on Youtube. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/2eBPWwxOKwQ/hqdefault.jpg "Dragnet The LSD Story Blueboy (Episode 1)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eBPWwxOKwQ) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-that-made-a-big-pop-culture-splash-but-are-now-disproportionately-forgotten/704849.md?page=6)