Was just watching on YouTube an episode of CBS Sitcom "Angel" from 1961 (The French Lesson-Guest star James Garner)..I found it to be pretty good..Annie Farge' was a real charmer in the starring role..The show only lasted the 1960-61 season..Made me think to ask..What one season shows should have been given a better chance to build an audience?..Seems especially in the 1960's, shows were given a season, but mostly if the audience didnt build, they were canceled without a second season in a new time slot..
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Shows that should have been a chance at success but only lasted one season
- Thread starter Tim L
- Start date
I know what you mean about "Angel"; I had a huge crush on
Annie Farge'. But my vote goes to "Trials Of O'Brien," the 1965-
66 series that starred Peter Falk as a lawyer with a penchant for
playing the horses and constantly behind on his alimony payments
(Joanna Barnes, who I also had a crush on, played his ex-wife).
Some people like to think of this show as a warmup for "Columbo,"
and in some ways it is; O'Brien is sloppy (except when in court),
but--of course--he always wins his cases. Unfortunately, the show
came along when Perry Mason was still the public's idea of a criminal
lawyer; to make things worse it was scheduled against Lawrence Welk
and "Get Smart" on Saturdays, then moved at midseason to Fridays
against the then-red-hot "Man From U.N.C.L.E." Ahead of its time?
Maybe. Maybe it would have done better in the '70s, but I wish CBS
had given it a second chance.
BTW, Peter Falk has said he enjoyed doing "O'Brien" better than
"Columbo".
Annie Farge'. But my vote goes to "Trials Of O'Brien," the 1965-
66 series that starred Peter Falk as a lawyer with a penchant for
playing the horses and constantly behind on his alimony payments
(Joanna Barnes, who I also had a crush on, played his ex-wife).
Some people like to think of this show as a warmup for "Columbo,"
and in some ways it is; O'Brien is sloppy (except when in court),
but--of course--he always wins his cases. Unfortunately, the show
came along when Perry Mason was still the public's idea of a criminal
lawyer; to make things worse it was scheduled against Lawrence Welk
and "Get Smart" on Saturdays, then moved at midseason to Fridays
against the then-red-hot "Man From U.N.C.L.E." Ahead of its time?
Maybe. Maybe it would have done better in the '70s, but I wish CBS
had given it a second chance.
BTW, Peter Falk has said he enjoyed doing "O'Brien" better than
"Columbo".
My favorite early cancellation was Tim Reid's Franks Place. I thought it was extremely well written and funny and the characters were charming. It's not on DVD yet.
I'm sure others will agree with me on this one, but I would go with ABC's "Our World" (1986-87), hosted by Linda Ellerbee and Ray Gandolf. IMO its doom was sealed when ABC scheduled it head to head on Thursday nights against NBC's then-one-two punch of "Cosby Show" and "Family Ties." But I wonder how many people who wanted to watch "Our World" but also watch Cosby chose to watch the latter and Family Ties live, while taping "Our World" for later viewing? I wish PBS could have picked up "Our World" or developed their own incarnation of the series after being cancelled by ABC.
This could be a very long list from me, but right now, only 2 examples come to mind....
1) My World & Welcome To It, Perhaps the most creative show that I personally have ever seen. William Windom starred as a James Thurber - type character on this delightful show that lasted only one season on NBC in 1969-70. To list what NBC kept instead would make me sick.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063934/
2) Line of Fire, ABC 2003-2004. Lasted only 9 showings. Another typical victim of network hop-scotch scheduling, thus failing to find anything beyond a small cult audience. Long story short: Magnificent writing, excellent ensemble cast, great directing, and a short life. This FBI vs. Crime Boss show was too good to last. The fact that ABC axed this show and kept The World According To Jim on it's schedule made me sick. This should have been a great show.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361200/
1) My World & Welcome To It, Perhaps the most creative show that I personally have ever seen. William Windom starred as a James Thurber - type character on this delightful show that lasted only one season on NBC in 1969-70. To list what NBC kept instead would make me sick.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063934/
2) Line of Fire, ABC 2003-2004. Lasted only 9 showings. Another typical victim of network hop-scotch scheduling, thus failing to find anything beyond a small cult audience. Long story short: Magnificent writing, excellent ensemble cast, great directing, and a short life. This FBI vs. Crime Boss show was too good to last. The fact that ABC axed this show and kept The World According To Jim on it's schedule made me sick. This should have been a great show.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361200/
B
Bob1370
Guest
"My World & Welcome To It, Perhaps the most creative show that I personally have ever seen. William Windom starred as a James Thurber - type character on this delightful show that lasted only one season on NBC in 1969-70."
One of my favorites as well. I met William Windom years later (1980) and he told me that of all the projects he'd done up to that time, that was the one he missed the most--and the cancellation that hurt the most.
One of my favorites as well. I met William Windom years later (1980) and he told me that of all the projects he'd done up to that time, that was the one he missed the most--and the cancellation that hurt the most.
C
cd637299
Guest
2 words: "Lotsa Luck"!
cd
cd
...my nomination here (aside from seconding the comments about Our World) is Paper Moon, the TV adaptation of the Ryan & Tatum O'Neal movie. Christopher Connelly, Ryan O'Neal's brother on Peyton Place, and Jodie Foster were the stars of the TV version, and from what I recall it did draw respectable ratings. But it was produced in color, while much of the movie's charm was its black&white cinematography, and it was gone in 13 weeks (IIRC it was replaced on the ABC schedule with Barney Miller). However, for some reason it was rerun constantly on Italian television for almost a decade afterwards, much like the single season of Calvin & The Colonel and the half-season (unaired in the States) of Snip! were in Australia...
Police Squad deserved a longer run, but if it had lasted longer on TV, would the Naked Gun movies ever have happened?
I'd have to put a plug in for "Freaks and Geeks" (NBC, 1999-2000). The ratings were horrible, and it could be argued the show was just too "real" to survive mainstream, broadcast TV. The show hit the airwaves in the midst of the teen show craze that included the likes of "Dawson's Creek." Unlike those shows, the "Freaks and Geeks" characters weren't necessarily polished, overtly beautiful people.
The part of me that understands the economics of TV gets why "Freaks and Geeks" got the ax, but the sentimental side of me sure wishes the show could've been given time to build an audience. Everything about the show, in my opinion, was outstanding: the writing, the acting, etc. It all gelled so well, and drew me in so much, that I felt as though I knew these people personally.
The part of me that understands the economics of TV gets why "Freaks and Geeks" got the ax, but the sentimental side of me sure wishes the show could've been given time to build an audience. Everything about the show, in my opinion, was outstanding: the writing, the acting, etc. It all gelled so well, and drew me in so much, that I felt as though I knew these people personally.
"Margie" on ABC-TV in the 1961-62 season starring Cynthia Pepper. This series showed how teenagers in the 1920's faced similar problems to those of the 1960's. It was based on the 1946 motion picture of the same name.
I'm told the 9:30 P.M. on Thursday night time slot given to the show prevented it from reaching the audience it was supposedly intended for - teenage girls. In early April, 1962, the network moved it to 7:30 P.M. on Friday evening, but only two episodes of the 26 remained by that point and the rest of the series consisted of re-runs before the show was cancelled. From my own observation, the 9:30 P.M. Thursday time was not all tht late for a teenager to be up watching TV (no - not even in 1961-62). ABC-TV had a strong line-up of popular shows on Thursday nights during that season like: Ozzie & Harriet, Donna Reed, The Real McCoys, My Three Sons and The Untouchables. I tend to think that would have helped audience viewership. At the same time, in moving the show to early Friday evenings, a good percentage of teenage girls (again, the said-to-be intended audience) would be doing other things away from home. In addition, some ABC-TV affiliates had local programs at 7:30 P.M. on Friday which resulted in the show being bumped for showing on another day & time just in that market. This only served to splinter what ratings it did have.
I'm told the 9:30 P.M. on Thursday night time slot given to the show prevented it from reaching the audience it was supposedly intended for - teenage girls. In early April, 1962, the network moved it to 7:30 P.M. on Friday evening, but only two episodes of the 26 remained by that point and the rest of the series consisted of re-runs before the show was cancelled. From my own observation, the 9:30 P.M. Thursday time was not all tht late for a teenager to be up watching TV (no - not even in 1961-62). ABC-TV had a strong line-up of popular shows on Thursday nights during that season like: Ozzie & Harriet, Donna Reed, The Real McCoys, My Three Sons and The Untouchables. I tend to think that would have helped audience viewership. At the same time, in moving the show to early Friday evenings, a good percentage of teenage girls (again, the said-to-be intended audience) would be doing other things away from home. In addition, some ABC-TV affiliates had local programs at 7:30 P.M. on Friday which resulted in the show being bumped for showing on another day & time just in that market. This only served to splinter what ratings it did have.
""The Time Tunnel"! A great ABC show for one season (1966-1967). As the series progressed, you could tell that they were going to do some cool things as seasons marched on. They premise is two guys go back and forth through time. Usually it was in the past (cheaper to do), other times in the future. They did some interesting things with history to say the least. Then it was cool when the crew back at Time Tunnel control accidently brought somebody from way in the past, up to the present day. Occasionally getting wild sparked up the show. There's one show set in the cowboy west of the 1880s. Then when our two heroes turn the corner after climbing a hill to get away from, maybe it was an Indian-cowboy war, they run smackdab into some space aliens whose goal is to control time so they can take over. The best episode is "The Ghost of Nero (imho). Time travel never had it so good or cool!
"Time Tunnel" just missed being renewed, but if it had
been, ABC would have moved it to Wednesdays at 7:30,
directly opposite CBS's "Lost In Space." Both shows were
produced by Irwin Allen, who didn't want to compete against
himself. Then there was the matter of ABC's being committed
to a series about Custer; it got the timeslot instead and was
gone by January 1968.
been, ABC would have moved it to Wednesdays at 7:30,
directly opposite CBS's "Lost In Space." Both shows were
produced by Irwin Allen, who didn't want to compete against
himself. Then there was the matter of ABC's being committed
to a series about Custer; it got the timeslot instead and was
gone by January 1968.
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