# What TV lasted the longest after having jumped the shark? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 1, 2015, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132 "2015-10-01T14:12:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2015, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/81 "2015-10-05T14:35:05Z")
> [@bump](#): > > It has to be the longest running non-news program right? 28 seasons is unheard of. It debuted the same year as _Cops_, 1989. ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2015, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/82 "2015-10-05T14:56:51Z")
Not sure I’d call all the Trek shows one thing. TNG and DS9 were quite good. Voyager, on the other hand, didn’t seem to know what it wanted to be, aside from “Lost In Space,” and I pretty much quit watching it by the second season. And _Enterprise_… well, by definition, a prequel dives into the lore of a preexisting milieu, and explores and defines what came before. The whole Temporal Cold War, the Xindi attack on Earth, and all that… well, it didn’t do anything for me. I liked the cast, but once again, the suits were calling the shots, and they didn’t wise up until the last season. Enterprise barely felt like Trek at all. Voyager improved. Enterprise, for the most part, did not. So I’m not sure either of these shows applies to shark jumping. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2015, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/83 "2015-10-05T15:15:51Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > “Lost” went on way too long as well, or at least it did for me. I completely lost all interest in it when I figured out who was going to get off the island alive. I agree “Lost” lost me, but I did hang on to the end, and if you believe you guessed correctly as to who got off the island alive, I assure you that you guessed wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2015, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/84 "2015-10-05T15:24:42Z")
[The Chris Carter Effect:](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheChrisCarterEffect) If the fans decide that the writing team is never going to resolve its plots, they will stop following the show. I don’t care how good you are, you can only keep so many plates spinning for so long, and Lost was a show where by the end, they were fighting like hell to avoid catching or dropping the plates. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2015, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/85 "2015-10-05T16:00:43Z")
> [@Mudshark](#): > > Not a long run, bit still worth a mention: > _Bewitched_, after 1969, when Dick York left. Some of the later episodes were the same as earlier episodes, with the character’s names being changed. How often can we see Darren being changed into some animal/object? Three seasons, 1969-1972. Dick York’s double-takes were often pricelessly hilarious. All Dick Sergeant could do was stand there and do the slow burn. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2015, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/86 "2015-10-07T01:57:28Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > You folks are all too damned young. > **Lassie** was on the air for 20 years. The original show had nothing to do with the original story, or the movies based on it, but had a wholly different setting. After three years, the original actors wanted to leave (and one died), so Lassie got a new family. Ratings dropped. They changed actors again. The show arguably had jumped the collie, but they kept going, and the ratings went up. Nevertheless, one of the actors wanted out, so they changed the show again. Bye Timmy. Lassie was now owned by a Forest Ranger. And she was in color. Then the ranger was dropped, and you’d think it would be over. But Lassie stuck around on a major network for another year. Still not dead, the show went into syndication for two years. > > The Simpsons may have been around longer, but it’s been more consistently funny, and stable. Lassie shoulda been gone long before her exit. Oh, yeah, I remember all that. I also was in elementary school thinking “This is shit.” Yep, a big shark jump took place. I also remember The Waltons starting to suck big time in about 1976-77. I think that it turned into a clone of Happy Days, only with Virginians who had Connecticut accents. Whenever Richard Thomas left was about 2 years too late. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2015, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/87 "2015-10-07T15:35:10Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > He had a twin brother who was only mentioned in one episode. Don’t know if he was evil. ALL one-episode twins are evil. No exceptions. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2015, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/88 "2015-10-07T15:45:07Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > ALL one-episode twins are evil. No exceptions. Wasn’t Cartman’s twin a really nice guy who everyone liked? ---
**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:** [October 7, 2015, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/89 "2015-10-07T17:22:59Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > Everything was fine until about 1972 or so. They started stealing the plots of other western shows and movies. _ **Gunsmoke** _, like many other shows of the era, was effectively gutted by the growing “no violence in TV” movement. There was an early _ **Simpsons** _ episode that satirized this beautifully. ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2015, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/90 "2015-10-07T19:51:54Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > _ **Gunsmoke** _, like many other shows of the era, was effectively gutted by the growing “no violence in TV” movement. There was an early _ **Simpsons** _ episode that satirized this beautifully. I never thought of that, but I think you may be right; the show’s demise slotted right in the time frame where they were starting to get tough about “The Family Hour.” And I never understood the appeal of _Lassie_. I watched a few episodes when I was a kid, and remember thinking, “This is worse than _Leave It To Beaver_, except for the dog.” A show like this would not have lasted long in a world with more than three or four channels. ---
**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:** [October 7, 2015, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/91 "2015-10-07T20:21:45Z")
> [@Master\_Wang-Ka](#): > > I never thought of that, but I think you may be right; the show’s demise slotted right in the time frame where they were starting to get tough about “The Family Hour.” This was the reason why _ **The Wild, Wild West** _, one of my favorite series, was cancelled despite continuing good ratings. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2015, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/92 "2015-10-07T21:28:41Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > This was the reason why _ **The Wild, Wild West** _, one of my favorite series, was cancelled despite continuing good ratings. The cancellation of “Wild, Wild West” had more to do with violence on TV in general rather than the network’s later implementation of a “family hour” in prime time. It was also the reason why the networks 86’d a slew of popular Saturday morning superhero cartoons that same year. The “family hour” did not really become a factor until the mid 70s when, in addition to violence, the sexual content of prime time programming increased. ---
**Author:** ![PapSett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@PapSett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PapSett)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2015, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/93 "2015-10-07T22:55:02Z")
> [@bump](#): > > It has to be the longest running non-news program right? 28 seasons is unheard of. Nope… Saturday Night Live has been on since 1975… FORTY YEARS. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2015, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/94 "2015-10-07T22:57:26Z")
That would explain why Beldar and Prymaat look a little elderly nowadays in the insurance commercials. I do remember, though, the sudden yanking of popular TV shows due to their violent content. Seems to me that led directly to the sexualization of prime time television; if you can’t have Jim West get in a fistfight, well, what DO you offer the teeming masses? Well, as it turns out, Suzanne Somers in a tight top jumping up and down seemed to work… ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2015, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/95 "2015-10-07T23:01:36Z")
Which brings me to a perennial favorite of not me, The Dukes Of Hazzard. I wasn’t crazy about the show, but Daisy usually managed to hold my attention. Does anyone think THIS one ever jumped the shark? Nearly every episode I can think of seemed to have pretty much the same plot, and they all seemed to operate pretty much the same way… and … well… they were all more or less ALIKE. The only change in format was that one season they got the two lookalike actors because the two leads wanted a bite of the merchandising. And for some reason, THAT was the only time I can ever remember hearing anyone gripe about it. And then the next season, the two leads came back, and … well… everything went back to normal. Did anyone pay enough attention to this show to know if it actually jumped the shark, or the actors got bored, or what? ---
**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:** [October 7, 2015, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/96 "2015-10-07T23:31:20Z")
> [@NDP](#): > > The cancellation of “Wild, Wild West” had more to do with violence on TV in general rather than the network’s later implementation of a “family hour” in prime time. It was also the reason why the networks 86’d a slew of popular Saturday morning superhero cartoons that same year. > > The “family hour” did not really become a factor until the mid 70s when, in addition to violence, the sexual content of prime time programming increased. I was referring to the anti-violence campaign in general, rather than the “family hour” in particular. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2015, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/97 "2015-10-08T11:37:04Z")
> [@Master\_Wang-Ka](#): > > Which brings me to a perennial favorite of not me, The Dukes Of Hazzard. I wasn’t crazy about the show, but Daisy usually managed to hold my attention. Does anyone think THIS one ever jumped the shark? Nearly every episode I can think of seemed to have pretty much the same plot, and they all seemed to operate pretty much the same way… and … well… they were all more or less ALIKE. The only change in format was that one season they got the two lookalike actors because the two leads wanted a bite of the merchandising. And for some reason, THAT was the only time I can ever remember hearing anyone gripe about it. > > And then the next season, the two leads came back, and … well… everything went back to normal. Did anyone pay enough attention to this show to know if it actually jumped the shark, or the actors got bored, or what? IIRC, didn’t they use what was obviously a remote control model for the car stunts towards the end to save money? That’s pretty shark jumpy. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2015, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/98 "2015-10-08T11:59:57Z")
> [@Master\_Wang-Ka](#): > > Which brings me to a perennial favorite of not me, The Dukes Of Hazzard. I wasn’t crazy about the show, but Daisy usually managed to hold my attention. Does anyone think THIS one ever jumped the shark? > [@madmonk28](#): > > IIRC, didn’t they use what was obviously a remote control model for the car stunts towards the end to save money? That’s pretty shark jumpy. Yep, they went from killing tons of stunt cars to using fake plastic cars that looked about as real as the little raft on a stick at the beginning of _Land of the Lost_. :smack: Replacing, then rehiring, the two lead actors from the show is pretty shark-jumpy, but IIRC the show only lasted another season and a half after Bo and Luke’s return. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2015, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/99 "2015-10-08T12:42:26Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > Wasn’t Cartman’s twin a really nice guy who everyone liked? Whoops, sorry, you just pointed out the ONE exception. If the regular character is evil, the one-episode twin will be good. On the Nick teen show _iCarly_, the one-episode twin Melanie Puckett is as sweet-tempered as you could wish for, in contrast to her sister Sam, the regular character. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2015, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132/100 "2015-10-08T13:05:18Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > I still like Supernatural, but almost everyone agrees that it has been in decline since season 6. Season 11 premieres next week. 113 episodes past its prime. It should have ended when they stopped the Apocalypse. That would have been a perfect ending point. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-tv-lasted-the-longest-after-having-jumped-the-shark/733132.md?page=6)