It's hard to believe that 1984 was twenty five fucking years ago. That means some of the classic TV shows of the 1980s are now a quarter of a century old. That blows my mind. The 1984-85 season was what they call a "game changer" for the National Broadcasting Company. In the years prior the network had a severe lack of hits and was perennially in third place (this was before FOX arrived). After this season the network would become a rating powerhouse and stay at the top of the charts for many years to come.
Going into the season, the Peacock network already had some hits: THE A-TEAM was in the top ten; TV'S BLOOPERS & PRACTICAL JOKES had ripped-off the classic CANDID CAMERA formula and added silly outtakes to become a huge success; and iconic shows like THE FACTS OF LIFE and KNIGHT RIDER were gaining big audiences and loyal fans. As NBC today languishes in 4th place and tries to reinvent itself, over the next week ("Premiere Week") I will take a totally biased look at the 1984-85 line-up and give my thoughts on what I watched and why. I hope you'll join me. Let's All Be There!
It's hard to believe that 1984 was twenty five fucking years ago. That means some of the classic TV shows of the 1980s are now a quarter of a century old. That blows my mind. The 1984-85 season was what they call a "game changer" for the National Broadcasting Company. In the years prior the network had a severe lack of hits and was perennially in third place (this was before FOX arrived). After this season the network would become a rating powerhouse and stay at the top of the charts for many years to come.
Going into the season, the Peacock network already had some hits: THE A-TEAM was in the top ten; TV'S BLOOPERS & PRACTICAL JOKES had ripped-off the classic CANDID CAMERA formula and added silly outtakes to become a huge success; and iconic shows like THE FACTS OF LIFE and KNIGHT RIDER were gaining big audiences and loyal fans. As NBC today languishes in 4th place and tries to reinvent itself, over the next week ("Premiere Week") I will take a totally biased look at the 1984-85 line-up and give my thoughts on what I watched and why. I hope you'll join me. Let's All Be There!
2 comments:
Back in 1984, the only NBC shows I watched were "St. Elsewhere" (such a GREAT show), "Cheers" and occasionally "Hill Street Blues"--but it was up against "Knots", which I preferred.
"Three's A Crowd," the one-season spinoff of "Three's Company," premiered in the '84-'85 season. I must be getting your brain waves, because I am working on a tribute to Mary Cadorette for ATOTW. She played Jack's lady love, and when I was young (9th grade), I seriously idolized her.
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