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"Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

N

nomadcowatbk

"Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

Urban themed shows probably bombed in small rural markets, while rural themed shows probably bombed in large urban markets
 
Re: "Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

A bomb that was a hit in Cleveland was "The Other Half" on NBC. It brought in a big audience on WKYC, while the show was a dud elsewhere.
 
Re: "Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

...as I recall, Dave Allen at Large appeared in commercial syndication in the States for only a couple of years, and a few PBS outfits (WHA-TV/21 Madison comes immediately to mind) repeated it for a year circa '83. But WTTW/11 Chicago ran that program for (IIRC) 15 years on Sunday nights between Monty Python's Flying Circus and Doctor Who; I believe it only ended its WTTW run when Dave Allen himself had the reruns withdrawn from the market...
 
Re: "Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

I recorded 'Dave Allen at Large' religiously after we got our first VCR for Christmas '85. This was on KTEH, a PBS station in San Jose, where it preceded 'Doctor Who' on Saturdays. KTEH aired both shows well into the '90s, as they had large followings, even more than they'd had elsewhere.
 
Re: "Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

I'm not sure if this is completely relevant to the topic,
and it is certainly out of date, but in July 1968 TV Guide
did an article breaking down the most popular shows by
such measures as geographical area, income, age, and
education. I'd like to see an update with current shows,
but this is what they came up with, based on a six-week
period from October 23 to December 3, 1967 (data from
A.C. Nielsen Co.):

U.S. TOP TEN:

1. The Lucy Show
2. The Andy Griffith Show
3. Bonanza
4. The Red Skelton Hour
5. Gunsmoke
6. Family Affair
7. The Jackie Gleason Show
8. Gomer Pyle, USMC
9. NBC Saturday Night At The Movies
10. Beverly Hillbillies
CBS Friday Night Movies

TOP 10 IN THE SOUTH:

1. Gunsmoke
2. Bonanza
3. Andy Griffith
4. The Lucy Show
5. Gomer Pyle, USMC
6. Red Skelton
7. Family Affair
8. The Virginian
9. Daniel Boone
10. Beverly Hillbillies

TOP 10 IN THE NORTHEAST:

1. Jackie Gleason
2. The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
3. The Dean Martin Show
4. The Ed Sullivan Show
5. CBS Friday Night Movies
6. NBC Saturday Night At The Movies
7. The Lucy Show
8. CBS Thursday Night Movies
9. NBC Tuesday Night At The Movies
10. My Three Sons

The analysis went like this:

1. The South had eight shows in common with the nation
as a whole (Jackie Gleason and NBC's Saturday movie
did not make the Southern top 10).

2. In their place were two Westerns: "Bonanza" and "Gunsmoke".

3. Movies were assumed to be less attractive to Southern viewers
because they were originally made for a more sophisticated theater
audience.

4. The Top 10 in the Northeast had only four shows in common with
the national list: CBS Friday movies, NBC Saturday movies, Jackie
Gleason, and "The Lucy Show". Out were the countrified sitcoms
(Griffith, "Gomer Pyle", "Hillbillies", as well as Red Skelton's variety show)
and Westerns; in were citified variety shows (Gleason, Smothers Brothers,
Dean Martin, Ed Sullivan). Two more movie nights (CBS Thursday and
NBC Tuesday) rounded out the pack.

The article was published around the time the networks were becoming
more demographics-conscious. With practically everything today aimed
at the young (18-49), urban (A&B counties) audiences, it would be interesting
to compare regions against the national top 10. I would bet the discrepancy
so apparent in 1967 would be missing.
 
Re: "Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

bpatrick said:
I'm not sure if this is completely relevant to the topic,
and it is certainly out of date, but in July 1968 TV Guide
did an article breaking down the most popular shows by
such measures as geographical area, income, age, and
education. I'd like to see an update with current shows,
but this is what they came up with, based on a six-week
period from October 23 to December 3, 1967 (data from
A.C. Nielsen Co.):

U.S. TOP TEN:

1. The Lucy Show
2. The Andy Griffith Show
3. Bonanza
4. The Red Skelton Hour
5. Gunsmoke
6. Family Affair
7. The Jackie Gleason Show
8. Gomer Pyle, USMC
9. NBC Saturday Night At The Movies
10. Beverly Hillbillies
CBS Friday Night Movies

TOP 10 IN THE SOUTH:

1. Gunsmoke
2. Bonanza
3. Andy Griffith
4. The Lucy Show
5. Gomer Pyle, USMC
6. Red Skelton
7. Family Affair
8. The Virginian
9. Daniel Boone
10. Beverly Hillbillies

TOP 10 IN THE NORTHEAST:

1. Jackie Gleason
2. The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
3. The Dean Martin Show
4. The Ed Sullivan Show
5. CBS Friday Night Movies
6. NBC Saturday Night At The Movies
7. The Lucy Show
8. CBS Thursday Night Movies
9. NBC Tuesday Night At The Movies
10. My Three Sons
Click to expand...

Did that '68 survey even include a Top 10 list for the Midwest and Western states? That would also have been interesting to see the results of, particularly here in the Midwest.
 
Re: "Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

Unfortunately, no. And I agree with you; it would
have been interesting see what the most popular
shows were in the Midwest and on the West Coast.

I remember once, a few years ago, seeing an article
in "Soap Opera Weekly" showing how each network's
soaps did by region. ABC's were tops from Baltimore
north; CBS's did best in the South, Southwest, and
the Midwest outside Chicago and Detroit (ABC country);
NBC was strongest from Denver west (especially "Days Of
Our Lives"). The only Northeastern city where CBS's were
strongest was Pittsburgh; interestingly, KDKA was one of
the stations that moved "Guiding Light" from 3 PM to 10 AM
and put "Dr. Phil" at 3; he never came close to matching "GL"'s
ratings at 3 in the Steel City.
 
Re: "Hits" that weren't hits in your area, and "Bombs" that were hits in your area

One recent example I can think of is (now 'was' I guess) The Good Guys. Despite above-average patience from Fox, the show wasn't given much of a chance nationally. Locally, according to 2 local stories read in the DFW market, the show did fairly well; The Good Guys was produced entirely in the Dallas area.
 
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