# TV Shows which have almost completely dropped off the cultural radar screen **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 24, 2008, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303 "2008-10-24T03:46:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/21 "2008-10-24T10:24:25Z")
Lou Grant. Really big in the seventies, horribly dated and almost forgotten today. ---
**Author:** ![Smid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/838e76/32.png) [@Smid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smid)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/22 "2008-10-24T11:53:37Z")
> [@Captain\_C](#): > > I would hazard to say LOST, to some extent. > > I remember during most of the first and second seasons there would be a dope thread going during each episode’s original broadcast. The thread would easily hit 5-6 pages each week. I myself often took part, trying to put together clues. Watching those crazy videos that were released only on the web. Sifting through screencaps of old episodes, trying to put it all together. > > Then after about season 3, these threads stopped being a weekly occurance. It went from everyone and their brother watching the show to practically no-one. It was one of the largest turn-arounds in interest I have seen on a mass scale. I read all the 5-6 page posts on each episode of the last season of Lost. Perhaps you were just skipping them… ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/23 "2008-10-24T13:29:51Z")
**Picket Fences** Multiple Emmy winner, great combination of comedy and drama and social issues (and not dated, either), but even Kelly’s **Ally McBeal** is better remembered. **Hill Street Blues.** Groundbreaking show when it came out, but it didn’t catch on in reruns due to the fact it used story arcs. ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/24 "2008-10-24T14:06:28Z")
Nobody raves about **Thirtysomething** anymore. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/25 "2008-10-24T14:31:55Z")
Both of these are rerun multiple times per day: > [@MOIDALIZE](#): > > Who Wants To Be A Millionaire on GSN > [@Neidhart](#): > > Lou Grant. Really big in the seventies, horribly dated and almost forgotten today. on American Life (which I only know about because it also reruns _Remington Steele_. ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/26 "2008-10-24T14:45:56Z")
ER Used to be “must see”, high profile. Now it’s not even easy to find reruns on thirdrate cable channels, and despite repeated attempts to regain viewers in its last season… nothing much. > [@Raguleader](#): > > Due South maybe? I dunno, seems like I’m the only guy I run into anymore who is a fan of it (well, my brother loves it too) Just got the collected series DVD. Love it. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/27 "2008-10-24T14:48:15Z")
The problem with Ally McBeal is not only is it not out on DVD in the US due to music licensing issues (which were somehow avoided in the UK) it’s not in syndication any more, either. You can’t even buy episodes from Amazon, like you can a lot of other expired series. I loved the show, but as of right now there’s no (legal) way to watch it, so how could it remain popular? ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/28 "2008-10-24T14:50:24Z")
My first thought was M_A_S_H_, but then my second thought was, “I don’t have cable”, so… ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/29 "2008-10-24T14:52:39Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > The problem with Ally McBeal is not only is it not out on DVD in the US due to music licensing issues… I saw the first season DVD at Wal-Mart yesterday. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/30 "2008-10-24T14:58:47Z")
Sorry; it wasn’t quite the first season after all, but [another compilation](You definitely get a different spin on the book after you have kids.). My bad. ---
**Author:** ![Reloy3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c68b51/32.png) [@Reloy3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reloy3)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/31 "2008-10-24T15:03:04Z")
SHows still on the air - **ER** and **Desperate Housewives**. Both of them were the watercooler show when they first appeared - now, I forget **ER** is still on. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/32 "2008-10-24T15:09:27Z")
It might be more edifying to ask “what TV shows are still on the cultural radar screen?” Other than some long-running comedies and game shows (plus the shows you were addicted to as a kid), I don’t think there are many. Anyway, my own additions to the thread: _LA Law Married With Children Roseanne Moonlighting_ ---
**Author:** ![shy\_guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@shy\_guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shy_guy)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/33 "2008-10-24T15:13:56Z")
> [@audit1](#): > > My thought is the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers franchise. The latest version is still on the air but off the radar. Maybe among adults, but Power Rangers is still a _huge_ franchise that sells boat-loads of toys and video games. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/34 "2008-10-24T15:23:45Z")
[Grace Under Fire](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_under_fire). ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/35 "2008-10-24T15:25:22Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > (man, I hope it doesn’t suck. It has to be leaps and bounds better than Nemesis at least) [Zed]You wish, bring a sponge.[/Zed] There many, many depth of suckiness the can still drag that franchise through. what they don’t seem to be able to do is make it _better_. As for the OP, I would say Chico and the man. It was groundbreaking in opening up lead roles for minorities, but all anyone remembers about it is Freddie Prinze’s suicide. ---
**Author:** ![TommyTutone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c4cdca/32.png) [@TommyTutone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TommyTutone)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/36 "2008-10-24T15:38:56Z")
> [@Neidhart](#): > > Lou Grant. Really big in the seventies, horribly dated and almost forgotten today. It played into a final Jeopardy answer last night, so that counts for something. Do lesbians still dig **Xena** or have they moved onto something else? I just remember a Xena convention next to a convention I was attending a few years ago, and it was wall to wall lesbians. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/37 "2008-10-24T15:39:31Z")
Pretty much every show shot in black and white has dropped off the cultural landscape, simply because even channels like TVLand normally stay away from b&w programming. For examples of huge, HUGE sitcoms (sitcoms normally play better in reruns than dramas) that’s pretty much dropped off the cultural radar entirely, look at _Three’s Company_, _Mork and Mindy_, \*One Day at a Time \*and _Laverne and Shirley_. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/38 "2008-10-24T15:42:24Z")
> [@Neidhart](#): > > Lou Grant. Really big in the seventies, horribly dated and almost forgotten today. Heh…this is funny. Final Jeopardy the other day was “Actors”, and the clue was “This actor won Emmys for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy, and Best Actor in a Drama, playing the same character.” I sent a cat flying in startlement when I shouted “Ed Asner!” ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/39 "2008-10-24T15:43:44Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > _Laverne and Shirley_. Happy Days, for that matter. Actually, most of the 70s sitcoms have been reduced to camp fodder for TVLand and their schlocky street art. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2008, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303/40 "2008-10-24T15:45:17Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > I’d guess that _Falcon Crest_ and indeed the entire genre of middle-aged-but-still-kinda-hot wealthy-family nighttime soap operas has been consigned to TV history. Perhaps the one-note bitch/bastard character that typically drove such shows is no longer palatable. I’ve only seen the pilot, but Dirty Sexy Money fills this bill. Brothers & Sisters is another. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-shows-which-have-almost-completely-dropped-off-the-cultural-radar-screen/469303.md?page=3)