# Would a 1970's style Variety show work again? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 5, 2018, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633 "2018-12-05T20:28:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/61 "2018-12-07T13:54:57Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > Reviving the old Muppet Show or the new one that got canned? I liked the new one (seriously, Pepe the Prawn is hilarious) but apparently no one else did. > … No details yet. I’ve looked. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/62 "2018-12-07T14:57:57Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Right. Only two lasted beyond the Bicentennial, and then by 2–3 years. Sonny and Cher had the 1971-1974 “Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour”, and then from 1975-1977, the “Sonny and Cher Show”. So three really… ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/63 "2018-12-07T15:16:41Z")
I watched Gwen Stefani’s Christmas special last year. She tried to make it similar to the ones produced in the 1960’s and 70’s. It was ok. It’s fun seeing a Christmas special again. Something was missing, but I’m not sure what was off. I just didn’t enjoy it like a Crosby or Perry Como Christmas special. ---
**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 7, 2018, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/64 "2018-12-07T15:23:50Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > [Really?](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jacksons_(TV_series)) 1976-77. I remember it. It wasn’t great. I stand corrected! ---
**Author:** ![Jumpbass](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jumpbass/32/147_2.png) [@Jumpbass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jumpbass)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/65 "2018-12-07T16:54:51Z")
I don’t know if a traditional variety show would work today, but there is absolutely no lack of variety acts out there. I could cast an entire season with all the jugglers, magicians, clowns, mimes, stilt walkers, acrobats, puppeteers and others I know personally. Fer cryin’ out loud, I know a guy who has a flea circus. These folks are mostly working in the fair industry. You know, state fairs, county fairs. There’s a market, and it’s getting filled. ---
**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:** [December 7, 2018, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/66 "2018-12-07T17:55:56Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Right. Only two lasted beyond the Bicentennial, and then by just 1 and 3 years. The classical genre in the US was basically dead by then. It was dead, but the networks still couldn’t let it go. 1980 brought \*Marie \*(Osmond, post Donnie); _Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters_; _The Steve Allen Comedy Hour_; and of course, _Pink Lady and Jeff_, the variety show known for being headlined by people who didn’t speak English 1981 had NBC try something called _Nashville Palace_. Then things cooled down for awhile. But in 1987 ABC came back with a full hour of Dolly Parton, while Fox countered with 30 minutes of Tracey Ullman. While looking up those I noticed that 1979 featured the premiere of _Real People_ on NBC, followed a year later by _That’s Incredible_ on ABC. Maybe shows featuring regular folks doing weird stuff was the successor to shows with professional entertainers doing weird stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/67 "2018-12-07T18:06:54Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > While looking up those I noticed that 1979 featured the premiere of _Real People_ on NBC, followed a year later by _That’s Incredible_ on ABC. Maybe shows featuring regular folks doing weird stuff was the successor to shows with professional entertainers doing weird stuff. Certainly cheaper. And thence to the eventual _America’s Funniest Home Videos_ format. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/68 "2018-12-07T21:59:11Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > Oh…and the week where Jane Curtain (with her chubby legs - Roseanne Roseannadana) ripped open her blouse and showed her bra! Yep, variety shows today could never top that! Wasn’t it Gilda Radner who played Roseanne Roseannadana? Every Christmas we look on youtube for the SNL Martha Stewart Topless Christmas, with ‘Martha’ making crafts and looking for the perfect tree with some guys. It’s a good thing! ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/69 "2018-12-07T22:11:02Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > Wasn’t it Gilda Radner who played Roseanne Roseannadana? … Yes, and Gilda if anything was verging on anorexic at times. She had issues with bulemia during the shows run. Its possible Jane Curtain’s legs looked chubby compared to Gilda & Loraine Newman. Both were very thin. I don’t recall seeing Jane’s legs though. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/70 "2018-12-07T22:31:45Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > The reason variety shows failed in the first place was because viewers were increasingly unwilling to sit through [a couple of comedians, some acrobats, a magician, and a scene from a Broadway show in exchange for a couple of songs by The Beatles.](http://onabbeyroad.com/sullivan.htm) > > Or vice versa, for that matter. You may remember that NBC tried moving The Tonight Show with Jay Leno to prime time and it was an utter disaster, both critically and in the ratings. > > I agree with **What Exit** that there are many performers out there with the talent to host such a show, but the format just doesn’t grab viewers anymore. This is pretty close to what Steve Allen said in one of his books. He said that he frequently heard people ask why we couldn’t have another show like Ed Sullivan, and his answer was that people are no longer willing to sit through something they don’t like to see what comes next. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/71 "2018-12-07T22:31:53Z")
The morning shows (Today, Good Morning America) function somewhat as variety shows, offering little chunks of various forms of entertainment mixed with news segments. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2018, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/72 "2018-12-08T01:19:45Z")
> [@Jumpbass](#): > > I don’t know if a traditional variety show would work today, but there is absolutely no lack of variety acts out there. I could cast an entire season with all the jugglers, magicians, clowns, mimes, stilt walkers, acrobats, puppeteers and others I know personally. Fer cryin’ out loud, I know a guy who has a flea circus. > > These folks are mostly working in the fair industry. You know, state fairs, county fairs. There’s a market, and it’s getting filled. There’s markets and then there’s markets. I have no doubt that there are jugglers, magicians, acrobats etc out there. The thing is where I see them - places like fairs, cruise ships or places that call themselves resorts because they book “an act” to perform in the bar on Friday and Saturday nights.There’s nothing else going on at the “resort” Friday night, so I’ll be in the bar regardless of whether I have any interest in the magician , and even though I’m not dying to see the acrobats, I might be more interested in that than the towel origami class on a cruise ship. But those locations are way different from sitting in my living room watching TV , where there are literally hundred of channels/movies I can choose to watch. And if I really want to watch some juggling , I can probably find it somewhere ( whether it’s a TV network, Netflix or Youtube ) without having to sit through a comedy sketch and a dance number first It’s true that we are no longer willing to sit through things we aren’t interested in to get to the thing we are interested in- but it’s also true that we no longer have to. ---
**Author:** ![Doug\_K](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@Doug\_K](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_K)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2018, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/73 "2018-12-08T02:15:39Z")
> [@doreen](#): > > It’s true that we are no longer willing to sit through things we aren’t interested in to get to the thing we are interested in- but it’s also true that we no longer have to. But that wasn’t true at the time Steve Allen’s book was written (at least 30 or 40 years ago). There was still not a lot of opportunity to be introduced to performers that were outside the mainstream, which was why so many people were wishing there could be a new “Ed”. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2018, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/74 "2018-12-08T05:38:59Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Yes, and Gilda if anything was verging on anorexic at times. She had issues with bulemia during the shows run. Its possible Jane Curtain’s legs looked chubby compared to Gilda & Loraine Newman. Both were very thin. I don’t recall seeing Jane’s legs though. Jane was always a little on the heaver side, here’s a companion to her SNL bra exposure [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRVUsY\_rcCo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRVUsY_rcCo) and as I recall she always wore high cut boots. I think she once said the reason was because she was self-conscious about her legs. ---
**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 8, 2018, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/75 "2018-12-08T05:46:39Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > 1980 brought \*Marie \*(Osmond, post Donnie); _Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters_; _The Steve Allen Comedy Hour_; and of course, _Pink Lady and Jeff_, the variety show known for being headlined by people who didn’t speak English I remember Steve Allen’s show mainly from its “Eyewitless News” segment. It was given the graveyard slot on Fridays, I think, and didn’t last very long, much to my chagrin. It was always a sketch show, as I recall. I watched none of the others, ever. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2018, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/76 "2018-12-08T06:00:17Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > But that wasn’t true at the time Steve Allen’s book was written (at least 30 or 40 years ago). There was still not a lot of opportunity to be introduced to performers that were outside the mainstream, which was why so many people were wishing there could be a new “Ed”. Thirty years ago was 1988. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2018, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633/77 "2018-12-08T06:10:22Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > But that wasn’t true at the time Steve Allen’s book was written (at least 30 or 40 years ago). There was still not a lot of opportunity to be introduced to performers that were outside the mainstream, which was why so many people were wishing there could be a new “Ed”. Thirty years ago was 1988. Even in 1988 I had cable, which meant more choices than the three networks and three independent stations I had to choose from in 1976. And while I don’t doubt there were people wishing for a new Ed, I was talking about competition - I’m not at all sure that there were that many people watching variety shows because they specifically wanted to be introduced to performers outside the mainstream rather than because they preferred it to what was on the other [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-a-1970s-style-variety-show-work-again/825633.md?page=3)