I think it may have actually been produced by Sherwood Schwartz, or it seems like the same caliber of show.
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Most obscure program you remember
- Thread starter installLSC
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I’ll cast my vote for A Year at the Top, a sitcom that ran on CBS for five episodes in 1977. Starring Greg Evigan and a young Paul Shaffer, the plot involves two musicians who sell their souls to the son of the devil in return for a year of fame and success.
At the time, Shaffer had achieved some notice for his work with the house band on Saturday Night Live, but this was several years before he hit it big as David Letterman’s musical sidekick.
Apparently AYATT hasn’t been seen anywhere since it’s original run, and it is unknown whether copies of the show still exist (although they are probably buried in a vault somewhere in LA.) There was also one unaired episode.
It was a cute show; I recall my wife really loved it and was disappointed by its cancellation. There was an album of music from the show that was released at the time, also an extreme rarity. You can find one of those songs plus the show’s theme music on YouTube.
Decades later the CW show Reaper had a somewhat similar premise.
Shaffer and Evigan were also part of an unsold NBC pilot with a similar premise several years earlier, which is sometimes confused with the later CBS effort.
At the time, Shaffer had achieved some notice for his work with the house band on Saturday Night Live, but this was several years before he hit it big as David Letterman’s musical sidekick.
Apparently AYATT hasn’t been seen anywhere since it’s original run, and it is unknown whether copies of the show still exist (although they are probably buried in a vault somewhere in LA.) There was also one unaired episode.
It was a cute show; I recall my wife really loved it and was disappointed by its cancellation. There was an album of music from the show that was released at the time, also an extreme rarity. You can find one of those songs plus the show’s theme music on YouTube.
Decades later the CW show Reaper had a somewhat similar premise.
Shaffer and Evigan were also part of an unsold NBC pilot with a similar premise several years earlier, which is sometimes confused with the later CBS effort.
Anybody ever notice that several Sherwood Schwartz shows begin with a song that explains what they are about, so that if you'd never seen the show before, and just watched a random episode, you'd know the backstory?
To be fair, this is not limited to Sherwood Schwartz productions, the same can be said of The Beverly Hillbillies, Petticoat Junction, Green Acres, and The Odd Couple (though the latter begins with a narrative and not a song).
Indeed, sitcoms in the 60’s and even into the 70’s liked to describe the situation of the comedy at the beginnings. I must think this was essential at maintaining the audience.
The Big Bang Theory does something similar, though it's just this frenetic narrative about the beginnings of the world, not about the show itself. And then there's All In The Family with its ode to days gone by, and the theme to The Courtship of Eddie's Father where we hear about Dad's "best friend":
I thought it was one episode
May have been. I never saw it, but from what I heard, the character and the entire premise were inherently unlikable. The premise of the show was that Emily looked for five reasons not to date any given man, and if she found five reasons, she broke off the relationship. Not the best concept for a successful TV comedy.
I'd put it in the same category with You're In The Picture.
Can't forget some of Fox's early programming like Mr. President, Woman in Prison, Werewolf, Shakey Ground, Duet to name a few.
Local - 1950s - Western New England (Arlington VT, Lanesborough MA)
one station available - WRGB - Schenectady NY -Channel 6
it did not broadcast all day and ran a little Musical segment called "Tune Up Time" in mid afternoons
Also Satellite Six for kids (local), Science Fiction Theatre, Superman
one station available - WRGB - Schenectady NY -Channel 6
it did not broadcast all day and ran a little Musical segment called "Tune Up Time" in mid afternoons
Also Satellite Six for kids (local), Science Fiction Theatre, Superman
Speaking of "idiotic" sitcoms, how about NBC's infamous "Prime Time Starts at 7:30" sitcom block during the 1987-88 season?
If you remember, the shows in rotation included She's The Sheriff, Out of This World, Marblehead Manor, You Can't Take it With You, and We Got It Made. Depending on where you lived at the time, and particularly if you lived in a market with a NBC-owned station (which, at the time, would have been just NYC, LA, Chicago, DC, Cleveland, and Denver) or WCAU in Philly (which was a CBS O&O at the time), these shows aired on a different weeknight and/or on weekends. By the following TV season, only She's the Sheriff and Out of the World lasted beyond a season (OOTW went five seasons, in all), and was ultimately was replaced (by most of the NBC O&Os and WCAU) by a revival of the nighttime Family Feud, with Ray Combs as host.
The mid-to-late 80s, and heading into the early '90s, it was a prime era for first-run syndication, especially when it came to sitcoms. Not just with original shows, also many others that were originally cancelled by a network but revived and had more-lengthier runs in first-run syndication--Still/It's a Living, Mama's Family, Charles in Charge, Webster, Silver Spoons, and Too Close for Comfort.
If you remember, the shows in rotation included She's The Sheriff, Out of This World, Marblehead Manor, You Can't Take it With You, and We Got It Made. Depending on where you lived at the time, and particularly if you lived in a market with a NBC-owned station (which, at the time, would have been just NYC, LA, Chicago, DC, Cleveland, and Denver) or WCAU in Philly (which was a CBS O&O at the time), these shows aired on a different weeknight and/or on weekends. By the following TV season, only She's the Sheriff and Out of the World lasted beyond a season (OOTW went five seasons, in all), and was ultimately was replaced (by most of the NBC O&Os and WCAU) by a revival of the nighttime Family Feud, with Ray Combs as host.
The mid-to-late 80s, and heading into the early '90s, it was a prime era for first-run syndication, especially when it came to sitcoms. Not just with original shows, also many others that were originally cancelled by a network but revived and had more-lengthier runs in first-run syndication--Still/It's a Living, Mama's Family, Charles in Charge, Webster, Silver Spoons, and Too Close for Comfort.
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I remember She's the Sherriff and Out of This World as She's the Sherriff aired on fox 17 and I didn't see Out Of This World till it started airing on Fox 17 (it aired on ABC 5 for the first 2 seasons)
My NBC station has shown Wheel of Fortune in that time slot from 1985 up until the present day, so I missed most of this. I do remember She's the Sherriff, so someone in the market must have shown it. We Got It Made I remember from the NBC days, I don't think I ever saw any of the syndicated version.
Apples Way on CBS. This thread reminded me of it. I see it started as a mid-season replacement in 1974 and then was canceled mid-season 1975 I see from Wikipedia.
I was about 5 years old at the time I think the main allure of it for me was that the family lived in a house with a waterwheel built into it! Pretty cool to my 5yo self. I had an Apples Way lunch box I used throughout elementary school.
The waterwheel house I recall showing up in an episode of another series later on. May have been either the bionic woman or man but not sure.
I was about 5 years old at the time I think the main allure of it for me was that the family lived in a house with a waterwheel built into it! Pretty cool to my 5yo self. I had an Apples Way lunch box I used throughout elementary school.
The waterwheel house I recall showing up in an episode of another series later on. May have been either the bionic woman or man but not sure.
I had a big crush on Cathy Apple.
Muddling Through - CBS in the summer of 1994 and only aired for like 9 episodes out of 10 produced episodes. It starred future Friends star Jennifer Aniston.
Just curious. Did all you posters actually watch the shows you're filling this thread with? I suppose that remembering seeing a promo is kind of like remembering the show, but you guys who've mentioned "You're in the Picture" and "Turn On" .... Did you really watch them or have you just read about them at some point over the decades?
I remember watching She's The Sheriff and Marblehead Manor on WYFF/4 in Asheville NC only twice- after the Chiefs-Broncos NFL game and the Blue Jays-Tigers MLB game. (And the only reason why i even saw those shows- the sporting event ran late.)
"The Corner Bar" I definitely watched.
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