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Are broadcast networks becoming obsolete 10-20 yrs from now?

michael hagerty said:
Yeah, they could have set either of those shows in New York or L.A. (or for that matter, San Francisco or Philadelphia), but they chose Chicago and Minneapolis
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And both of those shows were produced by the same company (MTM), and both aired on CBS. While Seinfeld and Friends were from Castle Rock, the other from Warner Brothers and both aired on NBC,
 
michael hagerty said:
Dated references are the enemy of any TV show 30 years later.

And, c'mon, gr8oldies, the lost car in a garage episode fails now because we all have cell phones, so we either can't remember or younger people can't relate? That would make literally any TV show or movie from before 1985 unwatchable now. "Lawrence of Arabia is lost in a sandstorm. Why doesn't he check GPS and call 9-1-1?"

That said, SEINFELD built from abysmal ratings in season one and two to being either first or second in the Nielsens in its final four seasons. That's not a sign of being tough to get for everyone, and it's certainly not a rating possible to achieve by being popular in the Northeast and nowhere else.

Same goes for FRIENDS, which was strong out of the box, and was one of the top 5 shows every season.

In fact, both SEINFELD and FRIENDS are among the most popular shows in streaming today.
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I didn't say I didn't like the show, but, yes the references are dated and the script probably couldn't be re-used for a current show. I do watch the reruns from time to time.
 
I mean, fundamentally, everybody's gotta be somewhere. Sometimes, creators choose fictional towns and cities to tell their stories (Mayberry for THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW, an unnamed big city for HILL STREET BLUES). Other times, they put them in real cities. I LOVE LUCY was New York. So was THE HONEYMOONERS.
 
CTListener said:
Oops, can you tell I only saw it a few times? I guess I associated Coffee with Starbucks with Seattle, etc. Should have figured it out from Central Perk.
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Apart from the coffeehouse name, though...it's not like FRIENDS leaned heavily on New York references. They established that that was where the characters lived and then moved on.

Most shows aren't inextricably linked to the cities where they're set---especially sitcoms. Location shooting is expensive, so telling stories that really tie into a specific city isn't easy (SEINFELD had the advantage of Columbia Pictures' lot in Los Angeles having a New York street set). That actually works in favor of most shows, forcing the stories to be more universal.
 
michael hagerty said:
Using that logic, I, a Los Angeles kid, should have been totally confused by THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW.
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I never mentioned anyone's being "totally confused." My point was that certain Seinfeld story lines were better understood by denizens of New York than by some viewers in other regions.
 
Kemosabe said:
I never mentioned anyone's being "totally confused." My point was that certain Seinfeld story lines were better understood by denizens of New York than by some viewers in other regions.
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I didn't know the Soup Nazi was based in reality. I laughed anyway. Same with the Kenny Rogers Roasters story. I wondered why they were so specific about it being a Kenny Rogers outlet, but the story stood on its own.

It's not so much your suggesting that folks in New York might get more out of the episode (true) as it was the previous posters who suggested that "Seinfeld was tough to get for everyone", and "Seinfeld was tough to get for everyone outside the northeast and NBC didn't care because Noo Yawk was their main focus in the 1990s" (which manages to overlook L.A. LAW, CHEERS, E.R., FRESH PRINCE OF BEL-AIR. FRASIER and THE GOLDEN GIRLS).

Nonsense. The stories worked on their own.
 
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For many people, broadcast networks are already obsolete. A lot of households don't have any live TV at all. Why? Because it's not a necessity like it once was. In fact, never mind broadcast networks, but I wonder if all broadcast TV will be gone by then. Same with radio, which I think is listened to even less, but that's for another section on this forum.
 
Kemosabe said:
Ali Yeganeh, the soup man upon whom Seinfeld based the Soup Nazi character, had rules posted next to his service window that included a prohibition of any mention of Seinfeld.
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...making him not only the Soup Nazi, but the Pop Culture Nazi, too. I'm going to have to read up on him!
 
Kemosabe said:
Ali Yeganeh, the soup man upon whom Seinfeld based the Soup Nazi character, had rules posted next to his service window that included a prohibition of any mention of Seinfeld.
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Oh, my gosh----what a story. For those (like me) who don't know:

One day, as the story goes, Jerry Seinfeld and some other show staffers dropped by the restaurant to say hello and help support the small business. According to some reports, Yeganeh became annoyed and yelled at them when he recognized who they were, and explicitly told them that the show ruined his reputation. Seinfeld attempted to apologize, but instead, Yeganeh exclaimed, "No soup for you!" and demanded they promptly leave. To this day, any references to the show, the one-liner quote, or the arguably politically incorrect and insensitive nickname are forbidden in all of his restaurants

Read More: How Seinfeld's Soup Nazi Episode Ruined The Real Take-Out Owner's Life - Mashed
 
michael hagerty said:
FRIENDS was set in New York. FRASIER was set in Seattle.
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Hmm. I learn something new every day. I've never seen an episode of Frasier, so I guess I will have to try one out "for size".
 
DavidEduardo said:
Hmm. I learn something new every day. I've never seen an episode of Frasier, so I guess I will have to try one out "for size".
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FRASIER is actually a show I think most people with an interest in radio would enjoy. On CHEERS, Frasier was a pompous psychology professor. He's since moved to Seattle and has a midday psychology show on a major AM talk radio station. Radio people (including Ken Levine) were involved in the writing, the studios are closely modeled after KABC's then-state-of-the-art studios and Peri Gilpin, who plays Frasier's producer Roz was the daughter of Jim O'Brien (WOR-FM, KHJ, CKLW, WFIL).

Not all the story revolves around the radio show, but most, if not all episodes have at least one scene there, and the writing and cast are top-notch.
 
michael hagerty said:
FRASIER is actually a show I think most people with an interest in radio would enjoy. On CHEERS, Frasier was a pompous psychology professor. He's since moved to Seattle and has a midday psychology show on a major AM talk radio station. Radio people (including Ken Levine) were involved in the writing, the studios are closely modeled after KABC's then-state-of-the-art studios and Peri Gilpin, who plays Frasier's producer Roz was the daughter of Jim O'Brien (WOR-FM, KHJ, CKLW, WFIL).

Not all the story revolves around the radio show, but most, if not all episodes have at least one scene there, and the writing and cast are top-notch.
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One of my favorite sitcoms of all time! The radio station scenes and references are quite realistic. First class show all-around.
 
michael hagerty said:
FRASIER is actually a show I think most people with an interest in radio would enjoy. On CHEERS, Frasier was a pompous psychology professor. He's since moved to Seattle and has a midday psychology show on a major AM talk radio station. Radio people (including Ken Levine) were involved in the writing, the studios are closely modeled after KABC's then-state-of-the-art studios and Peri Gilpin, who plays Frasier's producer Roz was the daughter of Jim O'Brien (WOR-FM, KHJ, CKLW, WFIL).

Not all the story revolves around the radio show, but most, if not all episodes have at least one scene there, and the writing and cast are top-notch.
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Umm I wonder if Frasier and his radio scenes are parodies of Michael Jackson the Late Los Angeles Talk host. I know I seen some airchecks where Michael Jackson was considered a legendary talk host for the era. This is where the directors and scriptwriters decided that the characters should sound like Michael Jackson the talk host.
 
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Y2kTheNewOldies said:
Umm I wonder if Frasier and his radio scenes are parodies of Michael Jackson the Late Los Angeles Talk host.
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Fraiser isn't a talk show host. He does something that isn't done much on the radio anymore: He was an advice host.

I always thought he was a male version of Dr. Toni Grant, who gave psychological advice on talk radio in LA:

www.imdb.com

Toni Grant | Actress

Known for: Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Days of Our Lives, The Ladies
www.imdb.com www.imdb.com
 
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