TV by the Decade :: March 5•11

Judgemental Films

It’s March and this week, while it had quite a few new series making their premieres, you’d be hard-pressed to remember many of them. 1983 seems to have been the most successful of the decades with three series that enjoyed three to ten season runs, and those were on a now-defunct cable network. 1993 gave us the debut of MTV’s animated idiots Beavis and Butt-Head, as well as two shows that began on ABC and ended on different networks. 2003 had a popular sitcom that faded quickly, and 2013 was all reality shows. Check out this week’s list and tell us if you remember any of these shows.

1953

• No new series debuted this week in 1953.

1963

• No new series debuted this week in 1963.

1973

• No new series debuted this week in 1973.

1983

• March 7 – Small & Frye (CBS, One season, 6 episodes)
• March 8 – Fandango (TNN, Five seasons, last original broadcast on August 26, 1988)
• March 8 – I-40 Paradise (TNN, Three seasons)
• March 8 – Nashville Now (TNN, Ten seasons, last broadcast on October 15, 1993)

Fandango was the first game show to air on TNN (The Nashville Network), and was one of the longest running game shows on a cable network. The series was hosted by country singer Bill Anderson. Sitcom I-40 Paradise made TV history by producing an entire episode in a single day when it generally took a full week. Country stars who dropped by the truck stop/restaurant/tavern setting on the show on their way to Nashville include Reba McEntire, Little Jimmy Dickens, Porter Wagoner, Jerry Clower, Hoyt Axton, Bela Fleck, Tom T. Hall and Roy Rogers.

1993

• March 5 – Getting By (ABC, One seasons, 12 episodes / NBC, One season, 19 episodes)
• March 5 – Where I Live (ABC, Two seasons, 21 episodes, 7 unaired)
• March 8 – Beavis and Butt-Head (MTV, Nine seasons, 243 episodes to date)
• March 10 – How’d They Do That? (CBS, Two seasons, 24 episodes, 1 special)
• March 10 – Sirens (ABC, One season, 13 episodes / Syndication, One season, 22 episodes)

Getting By was the final Miller-Boyett series to begin its run under parent studio Lorimar Television. It was folded into Warner Bros. Television for its second season, following Warner Bros.’ absorption of Lorimar. The first season was part of ABC’s TGIF block, and the second season aired on NBC. Where I Live was also part of the TGIF block. Two Season 1 episodes were unaired, and five Season 2 episode never saw the light of day. ABC pulled the plug after the third Season 2 episode was broadcast.

The characters Beavis and Butthead originated in the Liquid Television short Frog Baseball. The original series aired for seven seasons. It was revived for one season in 2011, and then revived agains with a two season order for Paramount Plus (although the new episodes have also aired on MTV). How’d They Do That? was an initial success for CBS, with the network ordering an additional 13 episodes in April 1993. Very little information on the show is available online and the reason for the cancellation is unknown. Sirens was filmed in Montreal, which was a stand-in for Pittsburgh. The first season earned Emmy nominations for Casting and Directing. The second season move to Syndication saw Jayne Heitmeyer replacing Jayne Brook. The show’s formula was retooled in 2010 for the series Rookie Blue, which had a more successful six season run on ABC.

2003

Steven Levitan Productions

• March 9 – Oliver Beene (FOX, Two seasons, 24 episodes, 2 unaired)
• March 11 – The Save-Ums! (TLC / Discovery Kids, Two seasons, 39 episodes)

While Oliver Beene had been a success for FOX in its first season, a replacement for Futurama, ratings crashed in Season 2 and the show was cancelled with two episodes left to air. Both seasons were broadcast in their entirety in the UK, Ireland, Germany and the Czech Republic. The Save-Ums! was part of the TLC/Discovery Kids networks’ ‘Ready Set Learn!’ block of programming.

2013

• March 5 – Prospectors (Weather Channel, Four seasons, 37 episodes, 3 specials)
• March 5 – Treasure Detectives (CNBC, 8-part series)
• March 5 – The Car Chasers (CNBC, Three seasons, 40 episdoes)
• March 6 – Feed the Beast (Travel Channel, One season, 6 episodes)
• March 7 – L.A. Frock Stars (Smithsonian Channel, Two seasons, 12 episodes)