Which 1960′s Television Shows Should Never Be Remade
It is amazing how shows can be recycled, even ones with more innocent and silly aspects to them from the 1960s, but which series from that decade should never be remade? It's all subjective, but here are a few that might be better left alone.
The World War II drama Combat! starring Rick Jason and Vic Morrow was cutting edge for the day, but in this era of warfare seems out of place. The grit of war's reality would be even more visible and much of the show's heart might not seem so sincere. Besides, the 1980s programs Tour of Duty and China Beach covered the more harsher elements of war.
Similarly, the lovable and easy going antics of Gomer Pyle USMC would not seem realistic today. While Jim Nabors brought heart to the seriousness of the Marine Corps, with all we know about the duties those brave men and women do, a network would be hard pressed to sell this concept of a gullible recruit now.
Also stuck to the day is Julia, the Diahann Carroll vehicle about a black nurse working for a white doctor. It was groundbreaking back in 1968, but today would not have near the impact it did then.More info here: Surprise, surprise, surprise: Actor Jim Nabors (Gomer Pyle) marries his longtime boyfriend
The World War II drama Combat! starring Rick Jason and Vic Morrow was cutting edge for the day, but in this era of warfare seems out of place. The grit of war's reality would be even more visible and much of the show's heart might not seem so sincere. Besides, the 1980s programs Tour of Duty and China Beach covered the more harsher elements of war.
Similarly, the lovable and easy going antics of Gomer Pyle USMC would not seem realistic today. While Jim Nabors brought heart to the seriousness of the Marine Corps, with all we know about the duties those brave men and women do, a network would be hard pressed to sell this concept of a gullible recruit now.
Also stuck to the day is Julia, the Diahann Carroll vehicle about a black nurse working for a white doctor. It was groundbreaking back in 1968, but today would not have near the impact it did then.More info here: Surprise, surprise, surprise: Actor Jim Nabors (Gomer Pyle) marries his longtime boyfriend
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TV Talk Shows
Talk shows have been a big part of the television landscape ever since the 1950's, when television was established as a major entertainment medium. While the styles of talk shows have changed over the years, the popularity of them has not. In fact, their popularity has exploded in recent years. There are now more talk shows on than ever before. Part of the reason for this is the proliferation of channels looking for content; see a channel line-up at http://www.direct.tv/direct-tv/.
The early years
Arthur Godfrey is generally credited with hosting the first television talk show. As with many hosts in the early days of television, he got his start as a radio talk show host. Legendary 60 Minutes reporter Mike Wallace became famous as the host of Night-Beat, a one-on-one interview program. He followed this up with The Mike Wallace Interview, which had the same format.
Comedy talk shows
Comedians had a major impact on the rise in popularity of TV shows in the 1950's. Comedians such as Jack Benny, Red Skelton and Jerry Lewis all hosted their own popular comedy/variety programs. These shows started the trend of having celebrities as guests to be interviewed, promote their latest projects and participate in comedy sketches.
Late night
While there were many shows like this on the air, it was The Tonight Show that became a late night talk show institution. First hosted by Steve Allen, the show introduced the concept of having regular people participate in unscripted segments, such as man-on-the-street interviews. Jay Leno has taken this to a new level in recent years. After Steve Allen left The Tonight Show, Jack Paar became the host. However, it was with Johnny Carson that the show would become iconic. Carson would host the show for 29 years.
Shock journalism
Phil Donahue is credited with starting the trend in "shock journalism" on his daytime talk show. He introduced controversial topics such as abortion and incest that had rarely been discussed on TV before. Oprah Winfrey, Maury Povich and Jerry Springer later built upon this type of subject matter. The talk show will always be an enduring and addictive part of our culture.
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There Are Too Many Crime Dramas On Television
Television today is saturated with too many crime dramas. For example, there are some staple crime dramas. Spin-off shows are frequently created. The central theme is crime. However, the shows sometimes include a more distinguishing theme such as police, mystery, FBI, Law, supernatural etc. Crime dramas seem to dominate many television channels. Additionally, this specific genre appears to be on television at all times of the day and night. While there are shortages of other television genres, crime dramas are always prevalent. Every year there seems to be another new crime drama in addition to the long-running crime dramas. These shows are on various basic cable channels as well as subscription premium channels.
For some reason many viewers love crime dramas. While other types of shows get cancelled, this type of show gets renewed and recreated. Newspapers and other television program listings show this fact. Crime dramas have been constantly on different networks for over ten years. There are hundreds of crime dramas in television history. These shows are popular in many countries worldwide. As the fall season approaches, the crime drama trend continues by maintaining many shows while adding new shows. In the near future there will still be too many crime shows.
For some reason many viewers love crime dramas. While other types of shows get cancelled, this type of show gets renewed and recreated. Newspapers and other television program listings show this fact. Crime dramas have been constantly on different networks for over ten years. There are hundreds of crime dramas in television history. These shows are popular in many countries worldwide. As the fall season approaches, the crime drama trend continues by maintaining many shows while adding new shows. In the near future there will still be too many crime shows.
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Reality Television That Jumped The Shark
Many believe that reality television has already jumped the shark as a whole. However ratings prove otherwise. In 2012 reality television is still as popular as ever. Of course there are some shows that have definitely jumped the shark in an attempt to be original or grasp the viewers attention with one last gimmick.
Bachelor Pad
Seriously? The Bachelor and Bachelorette have a huge following. They are romantic and filled with drama. But when The Bachelor Pad was created it was definitely a failed attempt at keeping viewers interested. Who wants to watch all of the rejects compete for money. Nothing is more pathetic than a group of jilted individuals backstabbing one another for cash. It's just all together depressing.
Singing Shows
American Idol was exciting, but when all the judges started bailing so did the viewers. With the impending doom of the show a multitude of other singing shows started coming out of the woodwork trying to become the favorite. The Voice, Duets, and America's Got Talent are all basically the same and not one of them has the allure that American Idol once had.
American viewers know what's going on, and this could be the beginning of the end for "reality" television.
The information doesn’t stop now. Keep looking: 'Bachelor Pad's Ed Swiderski: 'Expect A Big Blowout' with ReidPosted in Uncategorized | Comments Off
Television Science Fiction Has Grown Stale
Television science fiction has grown stale, lacking the wonder and originality that the genre has long been known for, leaving an audience interested in unique and distinctive stories scrambling to find new shows to enjoy. While the past decade of television has given us a variety of groundbreaking and culturally significant shows, they have been few and far between. The early cancellation of Joss Whedon's "Firefly" and the lack of a successful followup for the reboot of "Battlestar Galactica" have left fans searching for a show to fill the void left by the more culturally successful yet short lived shows we have seen in recent years.
New productions and shows seem to committed to following established patterns, rarely breaking the mold enough to distinguish themselves from more contemporary and mainstream shows. Fans of science fiction are no stranger to a drought in quality programming, even the original "Star Trek" was short lived, lasting only a few short seasons before being canceled. The wonder and innovation the genre has to offer would seem to be a never ending source of inspirational and creativity for writes and producers to draw from, giving fans hope for a future that is able to offer more excitement and originality than what the current season has to offer. Can’t get enough? There’s more: 10+ Brilliant Sci-Fi TV Shows That Aren't Star Trek [Stuff to Watch]
New productions and shows seem to committed to following established patterns, rarely breaking the mold enough to distinguish themselves from more contemporary and mainstream shows. Fans of science fiction are no stranger to a drought in quality programming, even the original "Star Trek" was short lived, lasting only a few short seasons before being canceled. The wonder and innovation the genre has to offer would seem to be a never ending source of inspirational and creativity for writes and producers to draw from, giving fans hope for a future that is able to offer more excitement and originality than what the current season has to offer. Can’t get enough? There’s more: 10+ Brilliant Sci-Fi TV Shows That Aren't Star Trek [Stuff to Watch]
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Why Are There No Average People Portrayed On Television?
Have you ever wondered why there are no average, run of the mill people on television? Even the characters portrayed in so called reality television seem to have exaggerated personalities.
The main reason that this occurs is because of ratings. Face it, ordinary lives are not that interesting on a day to day basis. Sure, everyone has memories of extraordinary adventures or devastating tragedies, but these events tend to occur sporadically throughout life, not every week.
Instead of focusing on an average person, television series tend to follow the lives of people who are easy to relate to. While these characters take on familiar traits that may remind you of yourself, or someone that you know, they live in an extraordinary world where they always seem to be involved in some big event. Depending on the series, the character may happen to always do the right thing or do the wrong thing but learn from it.
While television characters live lives that are completely unrealistic, they are still fun to watch. If you are watching a show that completely draws you into a different world and lets you escape from daily stress, then who cares if its protagonist is a bit on the eccentric side.
The main reason that this occurs is because of ratings. Face it, ordinary lives are not that interesting on a day to day basis. Sure, everyone has memories of extraordinary adventures or devastating tragedies, but these events tend to occur sporadically throughout life, not every week.
Instead of focusing on an average person, television series tend to follow the lives of people who are easy to relate to. While these characters take on familiar traits that may remind you of yourself, or someone that you know, they live in an extraordinary world where they always seem to be involved in some big event. Depending on the series, the character may happen to always do the right thing or do the wrong thing but learn from it.
While television characters live lives that are completely unrealistic, they are still fun to watch. If you are watching a show that completely draws you into a different world and lets you escape from daily stress, then who cares if its protagonist is a bit on the eccentric side.
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What Happened To True Family Entertainment On Television?
This is the question many parents must be asking as they surf channels for an appropriate show the whole family can settle to watch.
There was a trend in the 50s and 60s for television to emulate how American families strived to live. Shows always presented a two-person home with vibrant children where families ate together.
Where are the days where parents trusted the values of shows? Now has television given up its rights of fun, family entertainment in order to portray real life?
Long gone are the stable family units sharing funny life lessons at the dinner table and in came television shows that brought in the lifestyles of those writing the episodes. Many parents and children are wise to reality, but still dream of the time when they could watch television without mature issues.
For instance, one show that did have both parents and happy children, decided to base the whole episode on the son staying in the bathroom because he wanted to do some extra male bonding with his dirty magazines. One must be wondering, how to explain what he was doing to the children. Other shows present material that parents are not ready to introduce to their children such as young kids dating and kissing, divorce and infidelity. On top of that, the shows are less entertaining with these new complexities.
Those of us that are past the age of 30 have deep-seated memories of watching the magic of television bring to life a fictional family who tackle mistakes and problems with hilarious results. It may not be anytime soon, but television shows are bound to return to the time of true family entertainment or suffer the lack of an audience.
There was a trend in the 50s and 60s for television to emulate how American families strived to live. Shows always presented a two-person home with vibrant children where families ate together.
Where are the days where parents trusted the values of shows? Now has television given up its rights of fun, family entertainment in order to portray real life?
Long gone are the stable family units sharing funny life lessons at the dinner table and in came television shows that brought in the lifestyles of those writing the episodes. Many parents and children are wise to reality, but still dream of the time when they could watch television without mature issues.
For instance, one show that did have both parents and happy children, decided to base the whole episode on the son staying in the bathroom because he wanted to do some extra male bonding with his dirty magazines. One must be wondering, how to explain what he was doing to the children. Other shows present material that parents are not ready to introduce to their children such as young kids dating and kissing, divorce and infidelity. On top of that, the shows are less entertaining with these new complexities.
Those of us that are past the age of 30 have deep-seated memories of watching the magic of television bring to life a fictional family who tackle mistakes and problems with hilarious results. It may not be anytime soon, but television shows are bound to return to the time of true family entertainment or suffer the lack of an audience.
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