Coach
Murphy Brown

Night Court

Coach bombed in syndication because it was always on after Roseanne originally, and Night Court bombed because it was on Must-see TV, both with good lead-ins. I always wondered why Murphy Brown bombed in syndication. It was on CBS Monday's at 9pm, and it really didn't have a good lead in.

*Mad About You - same reason as Night Court
*A Different World - same as other 2
*Growing Pains - on after Full House

Newhart did not seem to last too long in syndication - though I would love to watch it again.

How about The Wonder Years.

Coach bombed in syndication because it was always on after Roseanne originally, and Night Court bombed because it was on Must-see TV, both with good lead-ins. I always wondered why Murphy Brown bombed in syndication. It was on CBS Monday's at 9pm, and it really didn't have a good lead in.

*Mad About You - same reason as Night Court
*A Different World - same as other 2
*Growing Pains - on after Full House
Growing Pains was a smash hit long befote FH was a hit. Kirk Cameron even had to guest star on FH in order to jump start it because it was in danger of being canceled. It never followed FH. It originally followed WTB for 3 years ( WTB was not a hit the season before) and GP was higher rated than WTB for the last 2...so much so that ABC moved it to jump start Wednesday night where the show helped The Wonder Years and Doogie Howser become hits. I really don't know why it doesn't do well in syndication but some shows just don't

Growing Pains was a smash hit long befote FH was a hit. Kirk Cameron even had to guest star on FH in order to jump start it because it was in danger of being canceled. It never followed FH. It originally followed WTB for 3 years ( WTB was not a hit the season before) and GP was higher rated than WTB for the last 2...so much so that ABC moved it to jump start Wednesday night where the show helped The Wonder Years and Doogie Howser become hits. I really don't know why it doesn't do well in syndication but some shows just don't

You're exactly right. I didn't think that much about it - I just knew it was on after Full House . . . but still, whatever the reason is, it doesn't do well in syndication, so at least the point is clear.

How about The Wonder Years.

It bombed on NAN, but it seems to be doing pretty well on ION. It's kind of like Who's the Boss?. It bombed on NAN but is doing great on ION.

I'll add The Hogan Family, Perfect Strangers and Head of the Class to the list. All great shows that do nothing in syndication.

It bombed on NAN, but it seems to be doing pretty well on ION. It's kind of like Who's the Boss?. It bombed on NAN but is doing great on ION.

That seems to be the case with a few of the shows that have been mentioned already, especially ones that aired on N@N for awhile. Coach, Mad About You, and Night Court all did well on other channels. Coach was on TBS for a number of years and then when it aired on N@N it bombed. Then USA started airing it about 3 years ago and they're still airing it. Of course, it's on early in the morning but it must be doing good in that timeslot cause they air it almost every single day, including weekends. Mad About You did well on Lifetime for a while and N@N got a hold of it and it bombed. Night Court did well on A&E, I remember when it aired about 4 times a day. TV Land aired it for a little while and it bombed on there.

One show that I think could be considered a real bomb is Benson. Besides, TV Land airing it for a few months, I'd never even seen that show in syndication before.

I'll add The Hogan Family, Perfect Strangers and Head of the Class to the list. All great shows that do nothing in syndication.

I hated it whenever N@N aired PS and HOTC. They'd never air all the episodes, just episodes from the first couple of seasons and then they'd start over again. :rolleyes:

I hated it whenever N@N aired PS and HOTC. They'd never air all the episodes, just episodes from the first couple of seasons and then they'd start over again. :rolleyes:

Then, when they did air it, it was at like 2 or 2am. They did the same thing with Charles in Charge, NewsRadio and The Wonder Years.

I hated it whenever N@N aired PS and HOTC. They'd never air all the episodes, just episodes from the first couple of seasons and then they'd start over again. :rolleyes:
and they'd air them at 3am. :rolleyes: I remember TBS picked up HOTC in the early 90's and I don't think it made it through one complete run before they canceled it.

Back in the 80's Benson, Night Court, Growing Pains, and Family Ties were rerunned all the time on my local channels but they seemed to disappear once the 90's came in so I assume they did do well in syndication at one time.

That seems to be the case with a few of the shows that have been mentioned already, especially ones that aired on N@N for awhile. Coach, Mad About You, and Night Court all did well on other channels. Coach was on TBS for a number of years and then when it aired on N@N it bombed. Then USA started airing it about 3 years ago and they're still airing it. Of course, it's on early in the morning but it must be doing good in that timeslot cause they air it almost every single day, including weekends. Mad About You did well on Lifetime for a while and N@N got a hold of it and it bombed. Night Court did well on A&E, I remember when it aired about 4 times a day. TV Land aired it for a little while and it bombed on there.

One show that I think could be considered a real bomb is Benson. Besides, TV Land airing it for a few months, I'd never even seen that show in syndication before.

NAN must have a curse on all their shows that aren't Fresh Prince :lol:

Then, when they did air it, it was at like 2 or 2am. They did the same thing with Charles in Charge, NewsRadio and The Wonder Years.

I think they aired the Wonder Years at 5:00 pm for a while but it really didn't last too long.

Another thing that bothered me was they never aired the first season of Charles in Charge. They always showed the syndicated episodes. :mad:

Newsradio never even got a fair chance. :( At least on TBS they aired all the episodes a couple of times before dropping it.

and they'd air them at 3am. :rolleyes: I remember TBS picked up HOTC in the early 90's and I don't think it made it through one complete run before they canceled it.

Back in the 80's Benson, Night Court, Growing Pains, and Family Ties were rerunned all the time on my local channels but they seemed to disappear once the 90's came in so I assume they did do well in syndication at one time.

I don't know why Family Ties doesn't do well in syndication anymore. I know it aired on TBS for a while. I used to watch it sometimes.

I wonder if Benson has ever aired on local channels in the places where I've lived. Makes me wish I had some old tv guides so I could find out. :lol:

I don't know why Family Ties doesn't do well in syndication anymore. I know it aired on TBS for a while. I used to watch it sometimes.

I wonder if Benson has ever aired on local channels in the places where I've lived. Makes me wish I had some old tv guides so I could find out. :lol:
I always liked FT better than TCS. When it was moved to Sundays in 1987 I was so mad that I boycotted TCS and ADW for a whole year. I watched The Charmings and Sledge Hammer instead. I was probably the only one in the country. :lol:

Benson was rerunned to death where I lived. I often wondered why I could watch so much Benson and I was having a hard time finding Soap anywhere. I guess sometimes certain shows just die after awhile. :eek:

I always liked FT better than TCS. When it was moved to Sundays in 1987 I was so mad that I boycotted TCS and ADW for a whole year. I watched The Charmings and Sledge Hammer instead. I was probably the only one in the country. :lol:

Benson was rerunned to death where I lived. I often wondered why I could watch so much Benson and I was having a hard time finding Soap anywhere. I guess sometimes certain shows just die after awhile. :eek:

Me too. Family Ties was really the only show I watched on Thursdays. I think I may have watched Cheers a couple of times, but never TCS or a Different World. :lol:

:lol: I might have watched Sledge Hammer! once or twice when it aired on Fridays, I don't remember. I do remember watching Sidekicks and Max Headroom on Friday nights though, neither of those lasted long at all. But, I'm positive that I've never seen an episode of The Charmings. :lol:

Yeah, the only way I ever got to see Soap was on DVD. I think it aired on Comedy Central or one of those channels a while ago but I didn't have that channel then. :lol:

That seems to be the case with a few of the shows that have been mentioned already, especially ones that aired on N@N for awhile. Coach, Mad About You, and Night Court all did well on other channels. Coach was on TBS for a number of years and then when it aired on N@N it bombed. Then USA started airing it about 3 years ago and they're still airing it. Of course, it's on early in the morning but it must be doing good in that timeslot cause they air it almost every single day, including weekends. Mad About You did well on Lifetime for a while and N@N got a hold of it and it bombed. Night Court did well on A&E, I remember when it aired about 4 times a day. TV Land aired it for a little while and it bombed on there.

One show that I think could be considered a real bomb is Benson. Besides, TV Land airing it for a few months, I'd never even seen that show in syndication before.

You can add "Wings" to that. It aired on USA, four times a day at one point. They stopped airing it around 2001. Then it came to N@N in 2003, and it bombed. It must have been popular for USA, though. Unless they aired it into the ground that by the time it came to N@N, people had lost interest. I wonder what that's like. ;)

I always liked FT better than TCS. When it was moved to Sundays in 1987 I was so mad that I boycotted TCS and ADW for a whole year. I watched Sledge Hammer instead. I was probably the only one in the country.
Well, I felt the exact same way...except I boycotted TCS and ADW PERMANENTLY ( Which was SO easy to do after TCS played that awful Hillman episode....I never regretted never watching it again! ) I loved Sledge Hammer, btw "Don't worry, i know what Im doing!" :lol:

You can add "Wings" to that. It aired on USA, four times a day at one point. They stopped airing it around 2001. Then it came to N@N in 2003, and it bombed. It must have been popular for USA, though. Unless they aired it into the ground that by the time it came to N@N, people had lost interest. I wonder what that's like. ;)

I think it was the highest rated show on USA cause I don't remember any other show on USA airing as much as Wings. :lol: I was only a casual fan of the show when it aired on USA, but I probably saw a lot of the episodes at least 4 times. :lol:

Well, I felt the exact same way...except I boycotted TCS and ADW PERMANENTLY ( Which was SO easy to do after TCS played that awful Hillman episode....I never regretted never watching it again! ) I loved Sledge Hammer, btw "Don't worry, i know what Im doing!" :lol:
Sledge was a great show that didn't get any respect because it was thrown to the sharks on Friday and Thursday nights. I did eventually return to TCS but it was never as good as it was in it's earlier seasons and ADW actually became a pretty good show after that awful first season. It was better than TCS at that point. :lol:

I think it was the highest rated show on USA cause I don't remember any other show on USA airing as much as Wings. :lol: I was only a casual fan of the show when it aired on USA, but I probably saw a lot of the episodes at least 4 times. :lol:
Major Dad was also on USA during that time but I guess it didn't do as good as Wings because I haven't seen the show since. :lol:

I think it was the highest rated show on USA cause I don't remember any other show on USA airing as much as Wings. :lol: I was only a casual fan of the show when it aired on USA, but I probably saw a lot of the episodes at least 4 times. :lol:

I became a die hard fan of "Wings" during the summer of 2000. At that point, they were airing two episodes every weekday morning. I think before it left the channel in '01, it was only being aired once a day. So I never got to watch it four times a day.

What I really hated was once in a while, USA would show a week of tennis, instead of "Wings." And now that's happening for "Monk." I have to wait a week or two before the next new "Monk" episode.

Sledge was a great show that didn't get any respect because it was thrown to the sharks on Friday and Thursday nights.

I forget the episode, but Sledge Hammer even made a joke about being between Dallas and Miami (referring to Miami Vice and Dallas airing on Fridays). :lol:

Major Dad was also on USA during that time but I guess it didn't do as good as Wings because I haven't seen the show since. :lol:

That's right, I used to watch that show a lot too. Makes me wish USA would air sitcoms again (besides Coach). :( There was a time when all they seemed to air was sitcoms, mainly short lived ones. Get a Life and Doctor Doctor aired on USA back in 2000 but they were on for about a month each. :lol:

I became a die hard fan of "Wings" during the summer of 2000. At that point, they were airing two episodes every weekday morning. I think before it left the channel in '01, it was only being aired once a day. So I never got to watch it four times a day.

What I really hated was once in a while, USA would show a week of tennis, instead of "Wings." And now that's happening for "Monk." I have to wait a week or two before the next new "Monk" episode.

I didn't become a true Wings fan until 2004. That's when I started to tape all of the episodes (or most of them since they never aired "Black Eyed Affair").

Yeah, I hate that. Monk is pretty much the only show I watch during the summer. I think Monk will be back a week from this Friday. I feel bad for Burn Notice fans. I haven't gotten into that show yet, but they have to wait until Sept. 13 for a new episode. :eek:

I wonder if Benson has ever aired on local channels in the places where I've lived. Makes me wish I had some old tv guides so I could find out. :lol:

Benson was shown pretty often on WGN in the '80s and that's what ended up making me a fan, otherwise I probably wouldn't be familiar with it at all. Its disappearance (well, just about anyway) in the '90s has made it difficult for it to bounce back.

I forget the episode, but Sledge Hammer even made a joke about being between Dallas and Miami (referring to Miami Vice and Dallas airing on Fridays). :lol:
I never understood why ABC aired it there. I couldn't even watch it much. I got my first VCR in 1986 but I was using it to tape Dallas at the time. :lol:

That's right, I used to watch that show a lot too. Makes me wish USA would air sitcoms again (besides Coach). :( There was a time when all they seemed to air was sitcoms, mainly short lived ones. Get a Life and Doctor Doctor aired on USA back in 2000 but they were on for about a month each. :lol:
and I was upset when USA stpped doing that because I figured Norm and Titus would be going over to USA next. :( :lol:

Benson was shown pretty often on WGN in the '80s and that's what ended up making me a fan, otherwise I probably wouldn't be familiar with it at all. Its disappearance (well, just about anyway) in the '90s has made it difficult for it to bounce back.

I don't think I ever had that station. :eek:

Even though I was pissed that TV Land got rid of Benson, I give them credit for airing it for a little while. I'd never seen the show before it came to TV Land and thanks to them I got to see almost every episode.

and I was upset when USA stpped doing that because I figured Norm and Titus would be going over to USA next. :( :lol:

I actually taped every single episode of Norm and I didn't really tape shows at that time. I just had this feeling that it was going to be cancelled before too long and I'd never see it again. :lol: I wish it would come to dvd though. I transferred all my Norm tapes to DVD but I taped that show in SLP mode so the quality isn't very good. :(

I never understood why ABC aired it there. I couldn't even watch it much. I got my first VCR in 1986 but I was using it to tape Dallas at the time. :lol:

:lol: I think my family got a VCR in 84 or 85. I wish I knew how to record shows back then, I would have taped EVERYTHING! :lol:

[QUOTE=roseanne88-97]Coach bombed in syndication because it was always on after Roseanne originally, and Night Court bombed because it was on Must-see TV, both with good lead-ins. I always wondered why Murphy Brown bombed in syndication. It was on CBS Monday's at 9pm, and it really didn't have a good lead in.

Coach and Night Court piggybacked off of the more successful shows that were on big nights for ABC and NBC. Murphy Brown has too much topical humor. A lot of shows came and went quickly on ABC Tuesday nights and Must See TV

*Mad About You - same reason as Night Court
*A Different World - same as other 2
*Growing Pains - on after Full House

Nick@Nite never really gave those shows on chance. They were on for a while on local syndication and still are in some places.

It bombed on NAN, but it seems to be doing pretty well on ION. It's kind of like Who's the Boss?. It bombed on NAN but is doing great on ION.

Nick@Nite removes things quickly that aren't smash hits that can be shown over and over again.

That's right, I used to watch that show a lot too. Makes me wish USA would air sitcoms again (besides Coach). :( There was a time when all they seemed to air was sitcoms, mainly short lived ones. Get a Life and Doctor Doctor aired on USA back in 2000 but they were on for about a month each. :lol:

They also aired game shows in the afternoons once.

NEWHART
SOAP
GOMER PYLE: U.S.M.C.

Charles In Charge was aired on My9 with both the CBS episodes and the syndicated ones...and then after 9 months, it's off the air again...:confused: what the fudge? That makes no sense.

GOMER PYLE: U.S.M.C.


I can't say anything about Tv Land's ratings but I fail to see how you believe this show bombed in syndication. It aired on TBS for a long time and was widely syndicated for years before that. I know it ran for several years on WFMY here in the Greensboro market.

Nick@Nite never really gave those shows on chance. They were on for a while on local syndication and still are in some places.

That is not true at all. They gave Mad About You a week long marathon, then aired it at 11pm for a month and a week, before they moved it to 4am. It obviously must have really bombed. Not only that, but DVD sales for the show have been struggling in the past. It has been on my local CW station last summer, but now it airs every night at 3:30am.

A Different World came to NAN last uly, and was automatically given a great primetime summer marathon slot Wednesdays from 10pm-2am, then after that, it was given that Hillman College Reunion Week, then aired every night at 10pm for 2 weeks, 9pm for 3 weeks, then back to 10pm for a couple weeks. It was given great treatment until they yanked it off the air.

Growing Pains really wasn't given that fair of a chance. It had a shortened week long launch marathon, then it aired at 9 and 9:30pm, then just 9pm, then at 1am, then gone. But, DVD sales have also been low for the show, so it obviously just bombed.

Murphy Brown came in January 2005, and is still currently on the network today. It was probably the show that did the best out of all these shows. It had a week long marathon, which was not shortened at all, then aired for about 2 months at 11:30pm. Then, it was put at 3:30 am, until that summer when TVLand put it on their schedule, every weeknight at 10 and 10:30pm, plus a latenight marathon every Saturday night. Then, it got yanked off that January, then put back on NAN at 5am.

I can't say anything about Tv Land's ratings but I fail to see how you believe this show bombed in syndication. It aired on TBS for a long time and was widely syndicated for years before that. I know it ran for several years on WFMY here in the Greensboro market.
Yea Gomer Pyle was a big hit in Syndication for years. It was always on TV during the 1970's. Many of the 1960's series just are not syndicated much anymore.

I can't say anything about Tv Land's ratings but I fail to see how you believe this show bombed in syndication. It aired on TBS for a long time and was widely syndicated for years before that. I know it ran for several years on WFMY here in the Greensboro market.

I'm trying to figure out what is this information being based on when someone says a certain show didn't do well in syndication. I mean is there a list somewhere that states all the shows that bombed in syndication?-lol

Family Ties was actually popular in my local area in Chicago for about the last 6 years on two different local channels. It lasted for about 3 1/2 years on WWPR-TV 50 (Now MY-50) until they yanked it off in 2003. Eventually a 1 1/2 later, Me-TV picked it up and aired for a good while off and on until the summer of 2007.

A Different World is also pretty ood in Chiago, too, since they've had that show around 2 local channels for about 5 or 6 years now. It was reran on WWPR-TV 50 (My 50) until around '04 or '05 and then WCIU picked it up and it's still going strong to this day as of August 2007.

Yea Gomer Pyle was a big hit in Syndication for years. It was always on TV during the 1970's. Many of the 1960's series just are not syndicated much anymore.

That's because most of these syndicators nowadays seem to think that most '60s shows are in the undergrounds, much like how old-school Hip-Hop is now, in the underground.

Murphy Brown- my gut says that it just hasn't held up well over the years and that perhaps the political jokes don't work now... or maybe people just never liked it and watched it out of habit?

A Different World- has it ever done well in syndication?

Ellen- it aired on Lifetime for a little while before getting pulled all together

Night Court, Newsradio, Coach (although it was on N@N for sometime), Evening Shade, Nurses, Empty Nest.

You know it always surprises me that Lifetime has yet to even air Empty Nest, since they're airing Golden Girls countless times now seemingly.

As for if A Different World is doing good, seems like it's surprisingly still on in the 6AM/7AM slot in my area for the last 3 1/2 years or so.

You know it always surprises me that Lifetime has yet to even air Empty Nest, since they're airing Golden Girls countless times now seemingly.

As for if A Different World is doing good, seems like it's surprisingly still on in the 6AM/7AM slot in my area for the last 3 1/2 years or so.

maybe in local syndication ADW is okay, but network syndication wise it seems to be struggling... Oxygen has an odd schedule, it's on sometimes and not on other times and N@N all but abandoned it...

and i agree it's strange that Lifetime hasn't aired Empty nest considering they currently air The Golden Girls and previously has aired Nurses...

you know another thing that is unusual is how a certan show can basically bomb in most areas and and get great ratings in certan markets for example the old bob newhart show from the 70s didnt really do too well in reruns but here in az it ran every weekday afternoon at 12;30 pm on kpho for about 15 years and blew away the soaps the matanee movies and just about everything the other channels threw at it another show that seems to do well around here is mad about you and also maude did quite well here for years while flopping elsewhere

you know another thing that is unusual is how a certan show can basically bomb in most areas and and get great ratings in certan markets for example the old bob newhart show from the 70s didnt really do too well in reruns but here in az it ran every weekday afternoon at 12;30 pm on kpho for about 15 years and blew away the soaps the matanee movies and just about everything the other channels threw at it another show that seems to do well around here is mad about you and also maude did quite well here for years while flopping elsewhere


i agree, that is an odd thing that happens- Mad About You also seemed to do well around here as well ; it aired M-F on Locals here for a very, very long time; while other shows like Cheers, and Friends didn't do so hot in locals- in fact here the only time Friends airs on Locals is at like midnight or one am... yet those shows seem to do well nationally...

you know another thing that is unusual is how a certan show can basically bomb in most areas and and get great ratings in certan markets for example the old bob newhart show from the 70s didnt really do too well in reruns but here in az it ran every weekday afternoon at 12;30 pm on kpho for about 15 years and blew away the soaps the matanee movies and just about everything the other channels threw at it another show that seems to do well around here is mad about you and also maude did quite well here for years while flopping elsewhere
You're lucky Maude aired where you lived. I have never seen Maude in local syndication anywhere that I've lived.

You're lucky Maude aired where you lived. I have never seen Maude in local syndication anywhere that I've lived.


me too, i've never seen Maude in Local Syndication... and of course i missed it when it was on TV Land.

me too, i've never seen Maude in Local Syndication... and of course i missed it when it was on TV Land.
same here. And all of the other Norman Lear shows...AITF, S&S, Good Times, The Jeffersons and One Day at a Time were all syndicated on my locals pretty well at one time.

You can add "Wings" to that. It aired on USA, four times a day at one point. They stopped airing it around 2001. Then it came to N@N in 2003, and it bombed. It must have been popular for USA, though. Unless they aired it into the ground that by the time it came to N@N, people had lost interest. I wonder what that's like. ;)

Wouldn't it be nice if CBS gave Wings another chance to run in syndication, possibly pared with reruns of Still Standing or other CBS-owned sitcoms? Wings should've been given a chance to be rerun on local TV stations.

Wouldn't it be nice if CBS gave Wings another chance to run in syndication, possibly pared with reruns of Still Standing or other CBS-owned sitcoms? Wings should've been given a chance to be rerun on local TV stations.

Wings was an NBC sitcom.

me too, i've never seen Maude in Local Syndication... and of course i missed it when it was on TV Land.

I've seen Maude locally on 2 different occasions.

The 1st time was on a neighboring station in Indiana WJYS-TV 62 back in the late '90s.

The 2nd time was on WWME-TV 23 around the early 2000s, back when there was only very few shows on there and waaay before it became Me-TV in January of 2005.

same here. And all of the other Norman Lear shows...AITF, S&S, Good Times, The Jeffersons and One Day at a Time were all syndicated on my locals pretty well at one time.

I'm surprised that Me-TV is regaining "One Day at a Time" this fall, but yet they didn't pick up "Maude," which is celebrating its 35th Anniversary.

"All in the Family" will be gone this fall in my local area, though.

Wings was an NBC sitcom.

Correct, but CBS owns the show, just like Happy Days, King of Queens, Still Standing, Gunsmoke, Cheers, Star Trek, Walker, Texas Ranger-I hope you didn't forget that CBS now owns Paramount's entire TV library as well as its own programs, so I stand by what I said earlier.

Here's the link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CBS_Television_Distribution

same here. And all of the other Norman Lear shows...AITF, S&S, Good Times, The Jeffersons and One Day at a Time were all syndicated on my locals pretty well at one time.


Maude was on in Philly on 1989/1990

Correct, but CBS owns the show, just like Happy Days, King of Queens, Still Standing, Gunsmoke, Cheers, Star Trek, Walker, Texas Ranger-I hope you didn't forget that CBS now owns Paramount's entire TV library as well as its own programs, so I stand by what I said earlier.

Thanks, Never realized all that.

The Hogan Family seems to bomb bigtime unfortunately. I think ABC Family has tried airing it twice now, and hasn't made it past the halfway point of the series.

The Wonder Years used to be on 4 times a day on ABC family during the summer, about 6-8 years ago. It was also on Nickelodeon for a while around 5pm.

The Hogan Family seems to bomb bigtime unfortunately. I think ABC Family has tried airing it twice now, and hasn't made it past the halfway point of the series.

The Wonder Years used to be on 4 times a day on ABC family during the summer, about 6-8 years ago. It was also on Nickelodeon for a while around 5pm.

I have never seen The Hogan Family in my local syndication, so it must be something with that show that viewers just don't want to watch nowadays.

As for Wonder Years, it seems to be doing well on ION, cause they've been airing it for months now.

The Hogan Family seems to bomb bigtime unfortunately. I think ABC Family has tried airing it twice now, and hasn't made it past the halfway point of the series.

The Wonder Years used to be on 4 times a day on ABC family during the summer, about 6-8 years ago. It was also on Nickelodeon for a while around 5pm.
NICK AT NITE also used to show "THE WONDER YEARS"-before they "sold out"

NICK AT NITE also used to show "THE WONDER YEARS"-before they "sold out"
Yeah, I remember that vaguely.

How about The Wonder Years.

I remember when ABC Family had "The Wonder Years" on, but it didn't last pretty long. Maybe 2 or 3 years to be exact.

It ["The Wonder Years"] bombed on NAN, but it seems to be doing pretty well on ION. It's kind of like Who's the Boss?. It bombed on NAN but is doing great on ION.

That's a surprise. IIRC TWY was on Nick at Nite from mid-October 1997 until late September 2001, just shy of four years. How long did Murphy Brown last, four minutes? :lol: I think it was also on TVLand, or was it on after it left NAN? I may sound like I'm playing devil's advocate, but the show has been on ION for only five months now, so it's kind of early to conclude it's doing great there.

I did not know that Night Court Bomned in Syndicated.

That's a surprise. IIRC TWY was on Nick at Nite from mid-October 1997 until late September 2001, just shy of four years. How long did Murphy Brown last, four minutes? :lol: I think it was also on TVLand, or was it on after it left NAN? I may sound like I'm playing devil's advocate, but the show has been on ION for only five months now, so it's kind of early to conclude it's doing great there.

TWY must have done well on NAN, because most shows they acquire don't air continuously for 4 years.

Murphy Brown had that week long marathon (which was not cut short, surprisingly) aired at 11pm for about 2 months, then was put at 4:30, where it stayed for about a year until TVland picked up the rights and started airing MB at 10pm for a long time. And now, it's airing twice a week at 5am. But, the good thing is, Murphy Brown really never left the network since it was on.

http://zvbxrpl.blogspot.com/2008/04/s.html

One thing that's obvious, once again, is that there is no relationship between how popular a show is in first-run and how popular it is in syndication. Part of the reason is that syndication audiences tend to be younger (a bigger percentage of children is watching in daytime reruns than in prime time), but that can't be the whole explanation for every success or failure. Also it seems like shows that focused on women didn't do well in syndication at the time, though I think that's probably changed since then.

Barney Miller - "The series still does extremely well in syndication."

The Beverly Hillbillies - "The now-syndicated episodes are popular in many Southern cities but not elsewhere, perhaps because it is felt to be so out of date."

The Bob Newhart Show - "The series was very popular during its original run, but it has been a failure in syndication. It now usually runs during the middle of the night or early afternoon."

The Brady Bunch - "Remains one of the most popular reruns of all time."

Chico and the Man - "The series has all but died in syndication even though it is still run all over the country. This is due to the death of Freddie Prinze during the series. What makes matters worse is that now that Jack Albertson has also died, the series is in worse trouble. Within a few years, the show will probably disappear from the air completely."

The Dick Van Dyke Show - "The show was a big hit during the first years of its syndication. However, it has died out in popularity because of its dated look -- caused by the black and white film and fashions of that time."

Family Affair - "The series is still run occasionally but has become too dated for many people and has begun to disappear from many stations."

The Flintstones - "It is still a big hit over twenty years since it was first created, as it can never become dated."

Gilligan's Island - "Despite contemptuous reviews by critics... Gilligan's Island has remained one of the most successful syndicated comedy series of all time."

Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - "Still a popular series today, Gomer Pyle's main audience is in rural areas of the U.S."

Happy Days - "The reruns have not done very well at all. Syndicated under the title Happy Days Again, it has been a big disappointment to the local stations which run the show."

The Jeffersons - "The series is not doing as well as it was expected to do."

Laverne and Shirley - "The series is still doing well on the network, but it is a complete failure in reruns despite the fact that it is running all over the country."

Mary Tyler Moore - "This was a very popular series during its rrun, but has suffered in syndication. This is also a more sophisticated series which fails to attract the attention of children."

Maude - "It has done very poorly in syndication."

Mork and Mindy - "It entered syndication in September 1983 and immediately died."

Nanny and the Professor - "Seen frequently on small rural stations (mainly UHF) but rarely in large cities."

The Odd Couple - "The series did fairly well on the network but is a big hit in syndication."

What's Happening! - "It didn't do very well on the network, but it is doing rather well in syndication."

Other shows that did well in syndication include:

The Addams Family
Bewitched
Get Smart
Green Acres
Hogan's Heroes
I Dream of Jeannie
I Love Lucy
Leave it to Beaver
M*A*S*H
The Munsters
Three's Company
Welcome Back Kotter
WKRP in Cincinnati.

Shows that didn't do well in syndication (as of this book (http://www.amazon.com/Television-Comedy-Episode-Sitcoms-Syndication/dp/0899500889)):
Diff'rent Strokes
Here's Lucy
McHale's Navy
Our Miss Brooks
The Patty Duke Show
Rhoda

http://zvbxrpl.blogspot.com/2008/04/s.html



Barney Miller - "The series still does extremely well in syndication."

The Beverly Hillbillies - "The now-syndicated episodes are popular in many Southern cities but not elsewhere, perhaps because it is felt to be so out of date."

The Bob Newhart Show - "The series was very popular during its original run, but it has been a failure in syndication. It now usually runs during the middle of the night or early afternoon."

The Brady Bunch - "Remains one of the most popular reruns of all time."

Chico and the Man - "The series has all but died in syndication even though it is still run all over the country. This is due to the death of Freddie Prinze during the series. What makes matters worse is that now that Jack Albertson has also died, the series is in worse trouble. Within a few years, the show will probably disappear from the air completely."

The Dick Van Dyke Show - "The show was a big hit during the first years of its syndication. However, it has died out in popularity because of its dated look -- caused by the black and white film and fashions of that time."

Family Affair - "The series is still run occasionally but has become too dated for many people and has begun to disappear from many stations."

The Flintstones - "It is still a big hit over twenty years since it was first created, as it can never become dated."

Gilligan's Island - "Despite contemptuous reviews by critics... Gilligan's Island has remained one of the most successful syndicated comedy series of all time."

Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - "Still a popular series today, Gomer Pyle's main audience is in rural areas of the U.S."

Happy Days - "The reruns have not done very well at all. Syndicated under the title Happy Days Again, it has been a big disappointment to the local stations which run the show."

The Jeffersons - "The series is not doing as well as it was expected to do."

Laverne and Shirley - "The series is still doing well on the network, but it is a complete failure in reruns despite the fact that it is running all over the country."

Mary Tyler Moore - "This was a very popular series during its rrun, but has suffered in syndication. This is also a more sophisticated series which fails to attract the attention of children."

Maude - "It has done very poorly in syndication."

Mork and Mindy - "It entered syndication in September 1983 and immediately died."

Nanny and the Professor - "Seen frequently on small rural stations (mainly UHF) but rarely in large cities."

The Odd Couple - "The series did fairly well on the network but is a big hit in syndication."

What's Happening! - "It didn't do very well on the network, but it is doing rather well in syndication."

Other shows that did well in syndication include:

The Addams Family
Bewitched
Get Smart
Green Acres
Hogan's Heroes
I Dream of Jeannie
I Love Lucy
Leave it to Beaver
M*A*S*H
The Munsters
Three's Company
Welcome Back Kotter
WKRP in Cincinnati.

Shows that didn't do well in syndication (as of this book (http://www.amazon.com/Television-Comedy-Episode-Sitcoms-Syndication/dp/0899500889)):
Diff'rent Strokes
Here's Lucy
McHale's Navy
Our Miss Brooks
The Patty Duke Show
Rhoda



Bob Newhart and Maude are doing very well in syndication in 2012 because they have good timeslots. So they can be removed from the list

I did not know that Night Court Bomned in Syndicated.

I am not certain that it did originally, at least not everywhere. In the late 80's and early-to-mid 90's it was a regular fixture in the late afternoon on local stations here in my neck of the woods. It was not as ubiquitous as Seinfeld was a few years later, and then Friends a little later still. And it had a short syndication heyday of just 4 or 5 years, but Night Court was a staple syndicated rerun in my grad-school days (1988-91).

Make Room For Daddy has done terribly, at least in the last couple of decades anyway. When Nick at Nite aired it, it ran shorter than any series they had run up to that point. A station in Philly had it and it did so badly that they wouldn't even put it on in the middle of the night to run out the contract.

Mannix bombed after 8 years on the network. Man From UNCLE did terribly. In NY, they tried stripping it at 5PM in the late 60s but took it off after a few weeks it did so poorly. When I got into the hobby in the early 80s, it was only airing in a couple of markets in the country.

Ozzie and Harriet ran 14 years, longest running sitcom in history, and did nothing in syndication. They took a long time to offer it, at least 10 years, and when they finally did, very few stations bought it. I don't believe it has run on any local stations in over 25 years (and I'm not talking about stations that run PD episodes).

I am not certain that it did originally, at least not everywhere. In the late 80's and early-to-mid 90's it was a regular fixture in the late afternoon on local stations here in my neck of the woods. It was not as ubiquitous as Seinfeld was a few years later, and then Friends a little later still. And it had a short syndication heyday of just 4 or 5 years, but Night Court was a staple syndicated rerun in my grad-school days (1988-91).

I agree Night Court had a very healthy run in local syndication in the late 80's and early 90's. I recall my dad watching it every weeknight and it was on for years on the weekends as well.

I think years later when it hit cable it definitely didn't do as well.

I've also thought about this. I think its people's personal preference to be honest. I think some people like shows like Happy Days, The Wonder Years, etc. and some people dont. The thing I dont understand is how can some shows like Friends and Seinfeld, which I love are still thriving in syndication? What about shows like Frasier and Everybody Loves Raymond, which I dont watch? I mean those shows have been on all the time and run into the ground for years, how are people still watching it? You would think people would be sick of it by now.

I've also thought about this. I think its people's personal preference to be honest. I think some people like shows like Happy Days, The Wonder Years, etc. and some people dont. The thing I dont understand is how can some shows like Friends and Seinfeld, which I love are still thriving in syndication? What about shows like Frasier and Everybody Loves Raymond, which I dont watch? I mean those shows have been on all the time and run into the ground for years, how are people still watching it? You would think people would be sick of it by now.


Simple, people who were 9 in 2004 is 17 in 2012 and is a new fan of shows like everybody loves raymond and fraiser

http://zvbxrpl.blogspot.com/2008/04/s.html



Barney Miller - "The series still does extremely well in syndication."

The Beverly Hillbillies - "The now-syndicated episodes are popular in many Southern cities but not elsewhere, perhaps because it is felt to be so out of date."

The Bob Newhart Show - "The series was very popular during its original run, but it has been a failure in syndication. It now usually runs during the middle of the night or early afternoon."

The Brady Bunch - "Remains one of the most popular reruns of all time."

Chico and the Man - "The series has all but died in syndication even though it is still run all over the country. This is due to the death of Freddie Prinze during the series. What makes matters worse is that now that Jack Albertson has also died, the series is in worse trouble. Within a few years, the show will probably disappear from the air completely."

The Dick Van Dyke Show - "The show was a big hit during the first years of its syndication. However, it has died out in popularity because of its dated look -- caused by the black and white film and fashions of that time."

Family Affair - "The series is still run occasionally but has become too dated for many people and has begun to disappear from many stations."

The Flintstones - "It is still a big hit over twenty years since it was first created, as it can never become dated."

Gilligan's Island - "Despite contemptuous reviews by critics... Gilligan's Island has remained one of the most successful syndicated comedy series of all time."

Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - "Still a popular series today, Gomer Pyle's main audience is in rural areas of the U.S."

Happy Days - "The reruns have not done very well at all. Syndicated under the title Happy Days Again, it has been a big disappointment to the local stations which run the show."

The Jeffersons - "The series is not doing as well as it was expected to do."

Laverne and Shirley - "The series is still doing well on the network, but it is a complete failure in reruns despite the fact that it is running all over the country."

Mary Tyler Moore - "This was a very popular series during its rrun, but has suffered in syndication. This is also a more sophisticated series which fails to attract the attention of children."

Maude - "It has done very poorly in syndication."

Mork and Mindy - "It entered syndication in September 1983 and immediately died."

Nanny and the Professor - "Seen frequently on small rural stations (mainly UHF) but rarely in large cities."

The Odd Couple - "The series did fairly well on the network but is a big hit in syndication."

What's Happening! - "It didn't do very well on the network, but it is doing rather well in syndication."

Other shows that did well in syndication include:

The Addams Family
Bewitched
Get Smart
Green Acres
Hogan's Heroes
I Dream of Jeannie
I Love Lucy
Leave it to Beaver
M*A*S*H
The Munsters
Three's Company
Welcome Back Kotter
WKRP in Cincinnati.

Shows that didn't do well in syndication (as of this book (http://www.amazon.com/Television-Comedy-Episode-Sitcoms-Syndication/dp/0899500889)):
Diff'rent Strokes
Here's Lucy
McHale's Navy
Our Miss Brooks
The Patty Duke Show
Rhoda

some of those have done well on cable

I remember when ABC Family had "The Wonder Years" on, but it didn't last pretty long. Maybe 2 or 3 years to be exact.

Maybe part of the problem w/ The Wonder Years is that since it was a period show (which narration, and shot on a single camera, well before such a thing for half hour shows became a norm), it maybe harder for younger viewers (whom seem have been the main target audience) to connect to. The Wonder Years was made during an era in which it seemed like Baby Boomers were becoming nostalgic about the '60s (similar to say, something like Family Ties for example).

As for A Different World, I think it obvously benefited (during its original run on NBC) from being associated w/ The Cosby Show (even after the Debbie Allen led revamp in Season 2). Another problem, is that ADW was an often current event issue oriented show, and thus it does feel a bit dated now.

I woundn't be surprised that part of the reasons why Growing Pains doesn't do well in syndication now, is because of all of the controversies involving Kirk Cameron (not to mention Tracey Gold's anorexia in the later seasons, make it it a bit uncomforatble to watch), and how it seriously hampered the quality of the show.

The biggest problem w/ The Hogan Family is that it had a very confusing and erractic run. First it was a vehicle for Valerie Harper called Valerie. And then, Harper leaves the show under great controversy (and her character is subsequently killed off) and Sandy Duncan takes over. For a while, the show is called Valerie's Family, the Hogans, before settling on The Hogan Family.

Sitcoms that did good in their original run, but bad in syndication? (http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/archive/index.php/t-125141.html)

And, shows which were REALLY POPULAR during their network run... (http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/archive/index.php/t-275538.html)

http://zvbxrpl.blogspot.com/2008/04/s.html



Barney Miller - "The series still does extremely well in syndication."

The Beverly Hillbillies - "The now-syndicated episodes are popular in many Southern cities but not elsewhere, perhaps because it is felt to be so out of date."

The Bob Newhart Show - "The series was very popular during its original run, but it has been a failure in syndication. It now usually runs during the middle of the night or early afternoon."

The Brady Bunch - "Remains one of the most popular reruns of all time."

Chico and the Man - "The series has all but died in syndication even though it is still run all over the country. This is due to the death of Freddie Prinze during the series. What makes matters worse is that now that Jack Albertson has also died, the series is in worse trouble. Within a few years, the show will probably disappear from the air completely."

The Dick Van Dyke Show - "The show was a big hit during the first years of its syndication. However, it has died out in popularity because of its dated look -- caused by the black and white film and fashions of that time."

Family Affair - "The series is still run occasionally but has become too dated for many people and has begun to disappear from many stations."

The Flintstones - "It is still a big hit over twenty years since it was first created, as it can never become dated."

Gilligan's Island - "Despite contemptuous reviews by critics... Gilligan's Island has remained one of the most successful syndicated comedy series of all time."

Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. - "Still a popular series today, Gomer Pyle's main audience is in rural areas of the U.S."

Happy Days - "The reruns have not done very well at all. Syndicated under the title Happy Days Again, it has been a big disappointment to the local stations which run the show."

The Jeffersons - "The series is not doing as well as it was expected to do."

Laverne and Shirley - "The series is still doing well on the network, but it is a complete failure in reruns despite the fact that it is running all over the country."

Mary Tyler Moore - "This was a very popular series during its rrun, but has suffered in syndication. This is also a more sophisticated series which fails to attract the attention of children."

Maude - "It has done very poorly in syndication."

Mork and Mindy - "It entered syndication in September 1983 and immediately died."

Nanny and the Professor - "Seen frequently on small rural stations (mainly UHF) but rarely in large cities."

The Odd Couple - "The series did fairly well on the network but is a big hit in syndication."

What's Happening! - "It didn't do very well on the network, but it is doing rather well in syndication."

Other shows that did well in syndication include:

The Addams Family
Bewitched
Get Smart
Green Acres
Hogan's Heroes
I Dream of Jeannie
I Love Lucy
Leave it to Beaver
M*A*S*H
The Munsters
Three's Company
Welcome Back Kotter
WKRP in Cincinnati.

Shows that didn't do well in syndication (as of this book (http://www.amazon.com/Television-Comedy-Episode-Sitcoms-Syndication/dp/0899500889)):
Diff'rent Strokes
Here's Lucy
McHale's Navy
Our Miss Brooks
The Patty Duke Show
Rhoda

I have a copy of the same book about sitcoms at home and recall those exact words in it regarding "Chico and the Man" and "The Dick Van Dyke Show". Another fun feature of the book is a 2-page list of standard sitcom plots. I remember going through it once with a friend and we said "'The Brady Bunch' did that one, 'The Partridge Family' that one, Lucy did that, etc. etc.".

It is likely that "Murphy Brown" may be suffering in syndication because of its topicality and perhaps its politics too. What does it matter 20+ years after the fact what Dan Quayle said about Murphy's baby? The topicality probably hurts "All in the Family" in syndication too.

Also thanks to this book, I noticed a recycled plot. (There have probably been many over the years.) I was reading the list of "Hey Landlord" plots when I read about an episode called "Testing One Two Three", and its plot was basically "To earn $, Woody & Chuck sign up to be guinea pigs. Woody has to eat dirt, while Chuck has to go without sleep for long periods of time". I thought to myself "I think I saw that on 'Laverne & Shirley'", so I turned to that show's "Guinea Pig" episode: "To earn $ for a lavish party...Shirley has to eat dirt while Laverne has to go without sleep...". Since Garry Marshall was a cocreator of both sitcoms, he most certainly recycled his own 10+-year-old plot.

I agree Night Court had a very healthy run in local syndication in the late 80's and early 90's. I recall my dad watching it every weeknight and it was on for years on the weekends as well.

I think years later when it hit cable it definitely didn't do as well.
Yeah I thought it was popular in syndication, in my city it was aired on two different stations and I couldn't wait for my daily Night Court fix.

Mr. Belvedere seems like another show that was only mildly successful but never caught on in syndication, I have not seen it since 1992.

And on MeTV I always watch the hour block of Gilligan's Island but immediately change channels when tripe like Hogan's Heroes and F-Troop come on, I mean television in the 60's was bad but who whatched those shows?

Single-cams don't do great in syndication generally speaking.... The Office, Scrubs, 30 Rock

How I Met Your Mother also has been disappointing in syndication.

How did The X-Files perform in syndication, and Star Trek shows, I know that TOS gained popularity later in syndication?

Single-cams don't do great in syndication generally speaking.... The Office, Scrubs, 30 Rock

How I Met Your Mother also has been disappointing in syndication.

I'm not to surprised that single-camera/laugh-track free sitcoms (especially "mockumentary" type shows like The Office, Modern Family, etc.) would have a hard time in syndication, because as they are, their perhaps, a bit too much for a "niche" demographic to begin with.

Maybe the problem w/ a show like How I Met Your Mother is that it's one of those shows that (because of the obvious intended "end-game" based on the title alone) despite being a sitcom, requires a great deal of continuity to follow.

I have a copy of the same book about sitcoms at home and recall those exact words in it regarding "Chico and the Man" and "The Dick Van Dyke Show". Another fun feature of the book is a 2-page list of standard sitcom plots. I remember going through it once with a friend and we said "'The Brady Bunch' did that one, 'The Partridge Family' that one, Lucy did that, etc. etc.".

It is likely that "Murphy Brown" may be suffering in syndication because of its topicality and perhaps its politics too. What does it matter 20+ years after the fact what Dan Quayle said about Murphy's baby? The topicality probably hurts "All in the Family" in syndication too.

Also thanks to this book, I noticed a recycled plot. (There have probably been many over the years.) I was reading the list of "Hey Landlord" plots when I read about an episode called "Testing One Two Three", and its plot was basically "To earn $, Woody & Chuck sign up to be guinea pigs. Woody has to eat dirt, while Chuck has to go without sleep for long periods of time". I thought to myself "I think I saw that on 'Laverne & Shirley'", so I turned to that show's "Guinea Pig" episode: "To earn $ for a lavish party...Shirley has to eat dirt while Laverne has to go without sleep...". Since Garry Marshall was a cocreator of both sitcoms, he most certainly recycled his own 10+-year-old plot.

What doesn't help Murphy Brown regarding the Dan Quayle (who has since more or less, become little more than a political footnote) controversy is that, the whole idea of a single woman (none the less, the lead/title character) having a baby out of wedlock on a TV show arguably, seems rather quaint by today's standards. What certainly didn't help is that the stuff w/ Dan Quayle pretty much became the defining moment of Murphy Brown's run (it lasted, I think, about six more years after that).

How did The X-Files perform in syndication, and Star Trek shows, I know that TOS gained popularity later in syndication?
well, this is just a guess but I don't think ANY of the Star Trek series are doing well in syndication because you never see them anywhere anymore-except for TOS on ME-TV (but they only show it once a week) and NEXT GEN. on BBC AMERICA.

Single-cams don't do great in syndication generally speaking.... The Office, Scrubs, 30 Rock

How I Met Your Mother also has been disappointing in syndication.
Uh what? How I Met Your Mother is on all of the time. So is The Office and so was Scrubs for a long time. 30 Rock has always been more of a cult show but it does well in certain markets (it does very well in NYC).

I think it airs at like 3am around here, so it's not doing that great. Not that it matters. It's a dumb show, I hate the premise, I hate the show with a passion. Why would he be telling his kids all that mundane stuff. It makes no damn sense!

Uh what? How I Met Your Mother is on all of the time. So is The Office and so was Scrubs for a long time. 30 Rock has always been more of a cult show but it does well in certain markets (it does very well in NYC).


I agree, How I Met Your Mother and Scrubs have done fantastic in syndication. Both have aired regularly in syndication for many years now and have been more than profitable for their studios.

Modern Family has also done excellent in syndication, I believe it currently ranks as one of the highest rated second run series airing in syndication. It's doing very well on USA as well.

Lastly, I think the jury is still out on 30 Rock and The Office. Only time will well.

I agree, How I Met Your Mother and Scrubs have done fantastic in syndication. Both have aired regularly in syndication for many years now and have been more than profitable for their studios.

Modern Family has also done excellent in syndication, I believe it currently ranks as one of the highest rated second run series airing in syndication. It's doing very well on USA as well.

Lastly, I think the jury is still out on 30 Rock and The Office. Only time will well.
I think The Office just airs in the middle of the night around here.

Murphy Brown has probably been mentioned, has it done well in syndication?

Murphy Brown has probably been mentioned, has it done well in syndication?


No , it didn't last on Nick@Nite

Most of today's scripted TV shows have to incorporate a few major multi-episode story arcs during their original runs, especially in hopes of getting a proper send-off when their time to end comes. If those TV series can't be successful in syndication, then no scripted TV series will ever be successful in syndication again.

Uh what? How I Met Your Mother is on all of the time. So is The Office and so was Scrubs for a long time. 30 Rock has always been more of a cult show but it does well in certain markets (it does very well in NYC).


How I Met Your Mother airs reruns on 3 or 4 different networks where I live, so it's safe to say it's doing very well in syndication

Anyone remember "How to Marry a Millionaire"? It was a 1950s sitcom similar to "I Love Lucy": three women scheming in every episode about how to land a man... and failing, with hilarious results.

This was still airing in second-run syndication in the early 1980s, but I haven't seen it on TV in decades.

The Big Bang Theory – 6.9 (season high)
Modern Family – 5.1
Two and a Half Men – 4.1
Family Guy – 3.0
How I Met Your Mother – 2.3
Friends – 2.0
The Cleveland Show – 1.9
Seinfeld – 1.8
Rules of Engagement – 1.7
The Middle – 1.7
King of the Hill – 1.6
Community – 0.5 (season high)

Per: Broadcasting and Cable

Still surprised that shows like Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley and The Wonder Years dont do well in syndication. I think all 3 shows, while they have aged, are still funny and sure to attract new audiences.

How did The X-Files perform in syndication, and Star Trek shows, I know that TOS gained popularity later in syndication?
Maybe it's just me but people nowadays have very short attention spans that if something doesn't grab their attention they just change channels.

Which is why I think hour long shows in syndication just don't get ratings as sitcoms do, sure nighttime hour long shows get viewers but because half of the population is out working in the daytime that is when syndicated hour shows get poor ratings.

How I Met Your Mother airs reruns on 3 or 4 different networks where I live, so it's safe to say it's doing very well in syndication
Well isn't that the norm for every sitcom once it hits a certain amount of episode for daily syndication and taper in popularity after awhile?

Well isn't that the norm for every sitcom once it hits a certain amount of episode for daily syndication and taper in popularity after awhile?
Yep. Sitcoms that are now considered flops in syndication started the same way. I remember family Ties, the Hogan family, Night Court and Benson all appearing on multiple channels when they first entered syndication. Hard to find them now.

The 1st 2 seasons of Happy Days would not catch on in syndication today

And Laverne and Shirley is just not funny which is why it failed on Lifetime and the HUB

Still surprised that shows like Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley and The Wonder Years dont do well in syndication. I think all 3 shows, while they have aged, are still funny and sure to attract new audiences.

Happy Days has done very well in syndication. Not sure where you got the idea it hadn't. This is the first time in decades where it can't be found anywhere, having left INSP, Hallmark, and Cloo in 2013 and The Hub at the beginning of 2014.

"Happy Days has been syndicated by many different networks. It aired in the United States on TBS from 1989–1995, Nick at Nite from 1996-2000 (and again from 2002-2003), Odyssey Network/Hallmark Channel from 1999 to 2002 (and again from January to April 2013), TV Land from 2002 to 2007, WGN America from 2002 until 2008, Hub Network from October 2010 to January 2014, and FamilyNet from 2009 to 2010. It also aired on Me-TV from December 21, 2010, until early 2012, when it was removed from the network's lineup, where it aired on Sunday afternoons at 1pm Eastern and Pacific time. The series also joined INSP's line-up, airing in an hour block from 6 to 7 pm Eastern time, on January 2, 2012. It also airs it on Cloo."

Source: Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Days#Syndication

And Laverne and Shirley is just not funny which is why it failed on Lifetime and the HUB

I agree on that. I remember watching it with my sister when we were kids in the 70's. I see it now and it's just terrible to me. Bad writing, unfunny, unlikeable characters, etc.

That's only my opinion though and some would think badly of Happy Days, of which I like the first five seasons.

I agree on that. I remember watching it with my sister when we were kids in the 70's. I see it now and it's just terrible to me. Bad writing, unfunny, unlikeable characters, etc.

That's only my opinion though and some would think badly of Happy Days, of which I like the first five seasons.



Can't believe that show was actually number 1 in the country at one time

Can't believe that show was actually number 1 in the country at one time

Wow. I didn't even remember that. I don't mean to insult its fans here but I see it now and I can't believe how bad it is. I can't sit through an episode. I think if forced to choose, I'd watch a non-Ron Howard Happy Days episode instead of L&S, and I'm one that didn't even like his last 2 years much at all.

Wow. I didn't even remember that. I don't mean to insult its fans here but I see it now and I can't believe how bad it is. I can't sit through an episode. I think if forced to choose, I'd watch a non-Ron Howard Happy Days episode instead of L&S, and I'm one that didn't even like his last 2 years much at all.


And L&S actually came off more like a couple than best friends

And L&S actually came off more like a couple than best friends

Now that you mention it...

Happy Days has done very well in syndication. Not sure where you got the idea it hadn't. This is the first time in decades where it can't be found anywhere, having left INSP, Hallmark, and Cloo in 2013 and The Hub at the beginning of 2014.

"Happy Days has been syndicated by many different networks. It aired in the United States on TBS from 1989–1995, Nick at Nite from 1996-2000 (and again from 2002-2003), Odyssey Network/Hallmark Channel from 1999 to 2002 (and again from January to April 2013), TV Land from 2002 to 2007, WGN America from 2002 until 2008, Hub Network from October 2010 to January 2014, and FamilyNet from 2009 to 2010. It also aired on Me-TV from December 21, 2010, until early 2012, when it was removed from the network's lineup, where it aired on Sunday afternoons at 1pm Eastern and Pacific time. The series also joined INSP's line-up, airing in an hour block from 6 to 7 pm Eastern time, on January 2, 2012. It also airs it on Cloo."

Source: Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Days#Syndication

I believe it was at the beginning of this thread in which its mentioned that Happy Days wasnt good in syndication.

I believe it was at the beginning of this thread in which its mentioned that Happy Days wasnt good in syndication.


Well it obviously doesn't go over too well now in syndication which is why it can't be found

Happy Days has done very well in syndication. Not sure where you got the idea it hadn't. This is the first time in decades where it can't be found anywhere, having left INSP, Hallmark, and Cloo in 2013 and The Hub at the beginning of 2014.

"Happy Days has been syndicated by many different networks. It aired in the United States on TBS from 1989–1995, Nick at Nite from 1996-2000 (and again from 2002-2003), Odyssey Network/Hallmark Channel from 1999 to 2002 (and again from January to April 2013), TV Land from 2002 to 2007, WGN America from 2002 until 2008, Hub Network from October 2010 to January 2014, and FamilyNet from 2009 to 2010. It also aired on Me-TV from December 21, 2010, until early 2012, when it was removed from the network's lineup, where it aired on Sunday afternoons at 1pm Eastern and Pacific time. The series also joined INSP's line-up, airing in an hour block from 6 to 7 pm Eastern time, on January 2, 2012. It also airs it on Cloo."

Source: Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Days#Syndication


If this is the first time in decades it can't be found on TV that means it no longer is a hit with newer generations

I believe it was at the beginning of this thread in which its mentioned that Happy Days wasnt good in syndication.

I believe that link was from a piece of information from 1984. Not relevant to anything occurring post-1984.

The beginning of the linked info even states:

"I was looking through the 1984 book "Television Comedy Series: An Episode Guide to 153 TV Sitcoms in Syndication," by Joel Eisner and David Krinsky."

They even state that Happy Days, syndicated under the title "Happy Days Again" had performed poorly. It was only called "Happy Days Again" before it ended its run in 1984. The list of shows in that link was taken from a 1984 book, so it's not relevant to syndication performance of anything post-1984. I believe the poster mistook it for a relevant source because the blog post discussing that 1984 book was written in March of 2008.

If this is the first time in decades it can't be found on TV that means it no longer is a hit with newer generations

Or, like many shows long in syndication, it's been played to death and needs a break. It's been successful in syndication since the show ended its run in 1984. That's 29+ years of success.

Even one of our mutual favorites, Three's Company, disappeared from the airwaves for a little while. First, from Antenna TV at the end of 2012 and from TV Land weekend overnights after 8/31/13. Three's Company had been popular in syndication for nearly 22 years before disappearing. It's coming back to Antenna TV in April, so it was gone everywhere for 7 months. Happy Days just left The Hub less than 2 months ago, and INSP, Hallmark, and Cloo in 2013. It's likely that its license agreements just expired. We'll have to see how long it takes to get licensed by another popular network before arriving at a conclusion. That would be the telling factor. If it disappears for 1 Year+, you might be onto something.

Or, like many shows long in syndication, it's been played to death and needs a break. It's been successful in syndication since the show ended its run in 1984. That's 29+ years of success.

Even one of our mutual favorites, Three's Company, disappeared from the airwaves for a little while. First, from Antenna TV at the end of 2012 and from TV Land after 8/31/13. Three's Company had been popular in syndication for nearly 22 years before disappearing. It's coming back to Antenna TV in April, so it was gone everywhere for 7 months. Happy Days just left The Hub less than 2 months ago, and INSP, Hallmark, and Cloo in 2013. It's likely that its license agreements just expired. We'll have to see how long it takes to get licensed by another popular network before arriving at a conclusion. That would be the telling factor. If it disappears for 1 Year+, you might be onto something.


I can see how the 1st two seasons of happy days would be a instant turnoff for someone born in the year 1997 or after

I can see how the 1st two seasons of happy days would be a instant turnoff for someone born in the year 1997 or after

Yeah, I'd completely agree with you on that. I like those first two seasons myself, but I was born long before '97. Season 5 was when the show started to get shaky with me, and it went fully over-the-top in Season 6, in my opinion, with only the Fonzie-Richie relationship saving it until Ron Howard left after Season 7. There are many Season 6 and 7 episodes that get me to change the channel. The one where Potsie sings in his science class is downright embarrassing to sit through.

Those two early seasons were actually a show about a kid growing up in the '50's. After that, it became the Fonzie show and was basically a 70's show with some mild 50's connections.

For a kid born after '97, most wouldn't like those two seasons, with the rare exception. My 11-year-old nephew saw some of the first two seasons with me and was bored out of his mind. Once it became the Fonzie show, he suddenly became interested.

Yeah, I'd completely agree with you on that. I like those first two seasons myself, but I was born long before '97. Season 5 was when the show started to get shaky with me, and it went fully over-the-top in Season 6, in my opinion, with only the Fonzie-Richie relationship saving it until Ron Howard left after Season 7. There are many Season 6 and 7 episodes that get me to change the channel. The one where Potsie sings in his science class is downright embarrassing to sit through.

Those two early seasons were actually a show about a kid growing up in the '50's. After that, it became the Fonzie show and was basically a 70's show with some mild 50's connections.

For a kid born after '97, most wouldn't like those two seasons, with the rare exception. My 11-year-old nephew saw some of the first two seasons with me and was bored out of his mind. Once it became the Fonzie show, he suddenly became interested.



The first two seasons of HD feels like an actual show from the 50's but the Honeymooners which actually was made in the 50's feels like a show from the 1970's without Color:lol:

The first two seasons of HD feels like an actual show from the 50's but the Honeymooners which actually was made in the 50's feels like a show from the 1970's without Color:lol:

Would you believe me if I told you that I have never watched a Honeymooners episode? :eek:

That's unusual for someone my age. I know about, have watched, and own many shows from the 1950's-on, but I've never watched an episode of The Honeymooners. I know of the characters of course. Ralph, Alice, Ed, etc. I keep meaning to sit down and watch it. I know it's a classic but somehow I've never got around to it.

You know there is something quaint about HD in the first 2 seasons. It did change, I think, when they went live to a studio audience.

Just because a show has had pickups on national cable networks does not have anything to do with syndication success. The big money in syndication sales comes in the first few seasons that a show is being offered. Happy Days did terribly and got terrible ratings.

Just because a show has had pickups on national cable networks does not have anything to do with syndication success. The big money in syndication sales comes in the first few seasons that a show is being offered. Happy Days did terribly and got terrible ratings.

However, a show, in this case Happy Days, could not stick around for 29 years in syndication if its ratings were poor. Not possible.

However, a show, in this case Happy Days, could not stick around for 29 years in syndication if its ratings were poor. Not possible.


How long has it been gone from the HUB?

How long has it been gone from the HUB?

January, 2014.

January, 2014.


well I don't see it on cable anymore, maybe digital TV. Looks like it didn't do well on INSP or Hub

well I don't see it on cable anymore, maybe digital TV. Looks like it didn't do well on INSP or Hub

The Hub ran it for nearly 4 years. Most of that in their good timeslots that they use for nightly sitcom reruns. It's likely that their license agreement expired. INSP aired it for quite a while in either the 5pm or 6pm slot. Cloo and Hallmark just lost it in 2013.

Like I said, we'll have to wait and see if a national cable network picks it up again. It's only been gone for two months. I have a feeling it will be airing on a national cable network again within 6-8 months. I wouldn't mind if it got an extended break though...

Longest running yet most forgotten (or forgettable) TV Show? (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/archive/index.php/t-684231.html)

Coach bombed in syndication because it was always on after Roseanne originally, and Night Court bombed because it was on Must-see TV, both with good lead-ins. I always wondered why Murphy Brown bombed in syndication. It was on CBS Monday's at 9pm, and it really didn't have a good lead in.

*Mad About You - same reason as Night Court
*A Different World - same as other 2
*Growing Pains - on after Full House
Murphy Brown looks so dated now. being so political may have seemed like a good idea at the time but now it just dates the show terribly.

Single-cams don't do great in syndication generally speaking.... The Office, Scrubs, 30 Rock

How I Met Your Mother also has been disappointing in syndication.

Another reason why single-camera sitcoms don't seem to do well in syndication is that they're more than often, arguably too fast and smart for the average/causal viewer to get into or understand.

Murphy Brown looks so dated now. being so political may have seemed like a good idea at the time but now it just dates the show terribly.

This is why I seriously think that Tim Allen's current show Last Man Standing will have a hard time in syndicated reruns down the line (it's getting pretty close, since it's in its fourth season now) because of the decidedly heavily political tone it has taken since the second season. The drastic narrative break in-between the first and second seasons involving the recasting if Tim Allen's eldest daughter also doesn't help.

A lot of 90's shows seem to have bombed in syndication:

"Dawson's Creek" and "Felicity" both pretty much bombed in syndication; only airing one or two cycles before being taken off the air. Meanwhile, other shows from the WB such as "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer", "Gilmore Girls", "Charmed", "7th Heaven", "One Tree Hill" all had very long and successful runs in syndication; and the first three continue to air to this day.


Meanwhile, another 90's show that hasn't done well in syndication is "Moesha". It's initial cycle in local syndication was a massive failure and it's subsequent airings on cable have never been very highly viewed.

"Blossom" also was a massive flop in syndication; being quickly removed from syndication after maybe one cycle in locals and one cycle airing on TBS. It took a very long time before it finally resurfaced in 2014.


"Suddenly Susan", "Caroline In The City", "Veronica's Closet" are three other 90's shows that had decent sized runs and massively flopped in syndication.


and while "ER", "Law & Order" and "Law & Order: SVU" have done excellent in syndication; fellow 90's dramas "NYPD Blue", "Homicide: Life on The Street" and "The Practice" did not fare as well; all of them were failures in syndication. Actually, it's possible that Homicide never even aired in syndication.


NYPD Blue was one of the bigger syndication flops; it's airings on FX network were considered a true disaster.


Lastly, I could be wrong, but I believe that "Dharma & Greg" could also be considered a big syndication flop.

Growing Pains was a smash hit long befote FH was a hit. Kirk Cameron even had to guest star on FH in order to jump start it because it was in danger of being canceled. It never followed FH. It originally followed WTB for 3 years ( WTB was not a hit the season before) and GP was higher rated than WTB for the last 2...so much so that ABC moved it to jump start Wednesday night where the show helped The Wonder Years and Doogie Howser become hits. I really don't know why it doesn't do well in syndication but some shows just don't


Actually, Growing Pains was a very nice-sized syndication hit in the late 80's and early 90's, and had lengthy, long cable runs on The Disney Channel and ABC Family. It's only in recent years that its become hard to find.

A lot of 90's shows seem to have bombed in syndication:

"Dawson's Creek" and "Felicity" both pretty much bombed in syndication; only airing one or two cycles before being taken off the air. Meanwhile, other shows from the WB such as "Buffy, The Vampire Slayer", "Gilmore Girls", "Charmed", "7th Heaven", "One Tree Hill" all had very long and successful runs in syndication; and the first three continue to air to this day.


Meanwhile, another 90's show that hasn't done well in syndication is "Moesha". It's initial cycle in local syndication was a massive failure and it's subsequent airings on cable have never been very highly viewed.


"Suddenly Susan", "Caroline In The City", "Veronica's Closet" are three other 90's shows that had decent sized runs and massively flopped in syndication.


and while "ER", "Law & Order" and "Law & Order: SVU" have done excellent in syndication; fellow 90's dramas "NYPD Blue", "Homicide: Life on The Street" and "The Practice" did not fare as well; all of them were failures in syndication. Actually, it's possible that Homicide never even aired in syndication.


NYPD Blue was one of the bigger syndication flops; it's airings on FX network were considered a true disaster.


Lastly, I could be wrong, but I believe that "Dharma & Greg" could also be considered a big syndication flop.

Since Dawson's Creek (https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110408061751AA6EOw0) has been mentioned:
http://www.avclub.com/article/dawsons-creek-defined-networkand-fleeting-moment-g-201697

To give you a good idea of how far NYPD Blue (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/YMMV/NYPDBlue) has fallen from the public consciousness:
Deader Than Disco (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DeaderThanDisco): When the series premiered it broke new ground (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/SeinfeldIsUnfunny/LiveActionTV) in the cop drama genre, was critically acclaimed for its acting and was hugely controversial for its swearing and nudity. Now it's barely even remembered as just another cop procedural and interest has waned so much that after the fourth season's DVD release in 2006 no further seasons have been released with the prospect of the other 8 seasons ever seeing DVD becoming increasingly unlikely as time goes on. (although all twelve seasons have been released in the UK).

The lack of DVDs has less to do with the show's popularity and more to do with the fact that the distribution rights belong to 20th Century Fox, who have given similar treatment to popular shows such as Hill Street Blues, The Practice, St. Elsewhere, amongst others. It seems that Fox believe that a DVD box-set for a non-current show that doesn't sell over a million copies isn't worth doing a complete release for, even though it costs them almost nothing to release all the seasons. Fox also demand exorbitant fees to license out the distribution rights to other studios and smaller production companies, which is why NYPD Blue has only seen complete release in the UK.

Shout Factory has licensed the series for DVD release in the States and will resume production of the DVD box-sets starting with Season Five. The whole series is now (2014) also available on region 2 DVDs in Europe.

The show's disappearance from American cable and broadcast syndication didn't help matters. Still, David Milch's continued attempts at high concept HBO dramas could help renew interest, especially now that the whole series (including the last 4 seasons in HD) is on Amazon Prime Instant Streaming. It's one of their few notable titles not available on competitor Netflix Watch Instantly.

The Seasonal Rot (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SeasonalRot) described below is probably also a contributing factor in the show fading from the public conscious: general opinion seem to be that the last four or five seasons simply weren't as good or interesting (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106079/board/flat/216368994?p=1) as the first seven or eight.

As far as Moesha (http://www.thecoli.com/threads/its-something-about-watching-moesha-re-runs.54306/), maybe its lack of success in syndication as to do w/ it in part perhaps feeling too dated and melodramatic (Moesha at times, especially towards the end of its run, felt like a dramedy/soap opera) and also fans angry over the decidedly jump the shark moment involving Moesha's father (who before this, was seen as on of the better black fathers on TV) being revealed as the biological father of Dorian (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115275/board/flat/213074985?p=1) (Ray J's character, who was initially thought to be Moesha's cousin). Thus, this made Frank out to be a cheater and deadbeat dad. Not to mention the show ending on an unresolved cliffhanger regarding the kidnapping of Miles, Moesha's little brother.

I think that Suddenly Susan, Caroline in the City, and Veronica's Closet didn't do well in syndication is possibly because on their own, they really weren't that popular to begin with (whether w/ critics or audiences). It seemed like a lot of these '90s era, women centric sitcoms that aired NBC benefited from being sandwiched in-between legitimate hits like Seinfeld, Friends, and Frasier. Veronica's Closet as it was, only lasted three seasons and it wasn't like it was a cult-sized hit anyway. For Suddenly Susan, I think that David Strickland's suicide casting a pall over over the tail-end of the series, didn't help much.

How did MWC fare in syndication?

I wish there where a list of most successful shows in syndication.

How did MWC fare in syndication?

I wish there where a list of most successful shows in syndication.
It still airs on some networks doesn't it? So I assume it did fine. FX reran it for years and years.

It still airs on some networks doesn't it? So I assume it did fine. FX reran it for years and years.
It airs on Antenna TV and TBS.

It airs on Antenna TV and TBS.I think it still airs on one of the locals here in az in the wee hours

How did MWC fare in syndication?

I wish there where a list of most successful shows in syndication.

I believe it did fairly well in syndication. I recall it being a very popular syndicated hit in the 1990's and into the 2000's.

Ally McBeal was a major dud in syndication. FX ha paid millions for the syndication rights to the show and it was a complete disaster to say the least.

Six Feet Under made headlines when Bravo paid unheard of amounts for the syndication rights to the show; but ratings sucked and it was gone within a few years. To my knowledge it has never been syndicated again since.

I don't know this for sure and you can correct me if I'm wrong, but I feel like The West Wing was also a bit of a let-down in syndication as well.

Any info on L.A. Law and 80s prime-time soaps, I assume that they all flopped in syndication.

Any info on L.A. Law and 80s prime-time soaps, I assume that they all flopped in syndication.


I can't imagine any of them did very well. I think Dynasty, Dallas, Falcon Crest, Knots Landing and L.A. Law were probably all big let downs in syndication.

I can't imagine any of them did very well. I think Dynasty, Dallas, Falcon Crest, Knots Landing and L.A. Law were probably all big let downs in syndication.

Shows about lawyers don't seem to do well in syndication, what about NCIS:LA, USA paid 2 million per episode and H5O (TNT with 2.4 million), I assume that both shows underperformed, I don't see them in top 100 cable shows published by TVBYTN.

I can't imagine any of them did very well. I think Dynasty, Dallas, Falcon Crest, Knots Landing and L.A. Law were probably all big let downs in syndication.

I said this before, I think that the problem w/ prime time soaps in regards to syndication is that #1, they're heavily serialized and #2, the element of surprise is pretty much gone once they already aired.

Ally McBeal was a major dud in syndication. FX ha paid millions for the syndication rights to the show and it was a complete disaster to say the least.

Six Feet Under made headlines when Bravo paid unheard of amounts for the syndication rights to the show; but ratings sucked and it was gone within a few years. To my knowledge it has never been syndicated again since.

I don't know this for sure and you can correct me if I'm wrong, but I feel like The West Wing was also a bit of a let-down in syndication as well.

Ally McBeal was perhaps sort of the late '90s early 2000s equivalent to Glee. What I mean is that both were Fox shows that for a while were a considerable pop cultural touchstone/"water-cooler" type show, before quickly falling off into irrelevancy. If you ever get a chance to watch the Rowdy Reviewer's TV Trash (http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/archive/index.php/t-306215.html) retrospective on Ally McBeal, he'll tell you that part of the problem is that Ally McBeal is one of the rare shows in which the lead character is actually "The Scrappy (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheScrappy)".

Also Curb Your Enthusiasm didnt do well in syndication. I never seen it in syndication but a show like "The O.C." is kind of like what your talking about with Ally McBeal. I mean everybody was talking about The O.C. in the first season and got great ratings but it didnt last going into season 2 and beyond.

Ally McBeal was perhaps sort of the late '90s early 2000s equivalent to Glee. What I mean is that both were Fox shows that for a while were a considerable pop cultural touchstone/"water-cooler" type show, before quickly falling off into irrelevancy. If you ever get a chance to watch the Rowdy Reviewer's TV Trash (http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/archive/index.php/t-306215.html) retrospective on Ally McBeal, he'll tell you that part of the problem is that Ally McBeal is one of the rare shows in which the lead character is actually "The Scrappy (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheScrappy)".


I think you are 100% correct.

Also Curb Your Enthusiasm didnt do well in syndication. I never seen it in syndication but a show like "The O.C." is kind of like what your talking about with Ally McBeal. I mean everybody was talking about The O.C. in the first season and got great ratings but it didnt last going into season 2 and beyond.

Besides Sex and the City has any other premium cable (i.e. HBO or Showtime) show done reasonably well on basic cable/syndication (where obviously, the content would have to be significantly altered and censored)?

Besides Sex and the City has any other premium cable (i.e. HBO or Showtime) show done reasonably well on basic cable/syndication (where obviously, the content would have to be significantly altered and censored)?


The Sopranos did fairly well in syndication I believe. I think it was aired on A&E or something like that. and I think (I could be wrong), Weeds did okay too.

I think you are 100% correct.Me too.

I can't imagine any of them did very well. I think Dynasty, Dallas, Falcon Crest, Knots Landing and L.A. Law were probably all big let downs in syndication.
I don't think ratings were that great but Dallas did enjoy a good syndication life. I know it aired for 2 complete seasons on one of my local channels when it first entered syndication. That's when I would videotape all of the episodes. It also aired on TNT, TNN and Soapnet as well.

I find sex in the city mostly cringeworthy now. I don't think it holds up (though it may have done well in syndication).

I'm thinking that hour long crime/dramas do slightly better in reruns on cable stations rather than local independant stations.

I would like to see Last Man Standing go into syndication in September 2015 when the series enters it's fifth season like Home Improvement did in September 1995.

I believe it did fairly well in syndication. I recall it being a very popular syndicated hit in the 1990's and into the 2000's.

I was wondering recently if MWC has somewhat faded from the public's consciousness. The last time that I checked, it's still been broadcast somewhere (like on TBS and ION), but it's usually really early in the morning/late at night. I'm guessing that part of it has to do w/ the fact that MWC doesn't seem to work anymore w/o the context of it being a cruddier, more cynical take (or more specifically, a deconstruction (http://www.overthinkingit.com/2012/06/26/married-with-children-seinfeld/)) on the '80s family sitcom (e.g. The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Growing Pains, etc.). I guess what I'm trying to say that MWC could seem rather cornball and cartoonish to be to a modern perspective (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/SeinfeldIsUnfunny/LiveActionTV) (rather than truly cutting edge).

Yeah I thought it was popular in syndication, in my city it was aired on two different stations and I couldn't wait for my daily Night Court fix.

Mr. Belvedere seems like another show that was only mildly successful but never caught on in syndication, I have not seen it since 1992.

And on MeTV I always watch the hour block of Gilligan's Island but immediately change channels when tripe like Hogan's Heroes and F-Troop come on, I mean television in the 60's was bad but who whatched those shows?

I'm guessing that Mr. Belvedere never caught on in syndication because it was never really a big hit during its original network run (http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/showthread.php?t=332264). When you really think about it, it's a miracle that the show even lasted six seasons. The show never cracked the top 30 in the Nielsen's (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Belvedere#Ratings_and_cancellation).

I'll add The Hogan Family, Perfect Strangers and Head of the Class to the list. All great shows that do nothing in syndication.

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Perfect Strangers Syndication History (http://www.perfectstrangers.tv/episodesyndication.htm)

I don't entirely understand why Perfect Strangers seemed to do poorly in syndication. I've already said what I said regarding why I believe that The Hogan Family (another Miller-Boyett sitcom from the '80s) has done poorly in syndication. As for Head of the Class, I think part of it's problem is that 1) It's too dated (right off the top of my head, the episode in which they visit the still present at the time, USSR (http://www.nytimes.com/1988/11/02/arts/review-television-head-of-the-class-goes-to-moscow.html)), that episodes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Head_of_the_Class_episodes) a lot of the time revolved around whatever issues were circling at the time 2) It was looked at as a too highbrow/intelligent show for average viewers to take in 3) The rather infamous final season (https://web.archive.org/web/20070108222209/http://www.jumptheshark.com/h/headoftheclass.htm) w/ Billy Connolly (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090444/board/flat/28507891?p=1) replacing Howard Hesseman as the star.

In my opinion, it's usually the broadcast network TV shows that are ore successful in syndication. Give me ay example of a basic cable show or a premium cable show that has done really well in syndication. Oh, wait, I probably doubt it, because basic and premium cable channels tend to have much smaller audiences than the broadcast networks.

I was wondering recently if MWC has somewhat faded from the public's consciousness. The last time that I checked, it's still been broadcast somewhere (like on TBS and ION), but it's usually really early in the morning/late at night. I'm guessing that part of it has to do w/ the fact that MWC doesn't seem to work anymore w/o the context of it being a cruddier, more cynical take (or more specifically, a deconstruction (http://www.overthinkingit.com/2012/06/26/married-with-children-seinfeld/)) on the '80s family sitcom (e.g. The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Growing Pains, etc.). I guess what I'm trying to say that MWC could seem rather cornball and cartoonish to be to a modern perspective (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/SeinfeldIsUnfunny/LiveActionTV) (rather than truly cutting edge).

MWC reruns are in early mornings on TBS , it gets 0.3-0.5 demo while MF which airs in primetime only 0.5-0.7, USA definitely overpaid.

In my opinion, it's usually the broadcast network TV shows that are ore successful in syndication. Give me ay example of a basic cable show or a premium cable show that has done really well in syndication. Oh, wait, I probably doubt it, because basic and premium cable channels tend to have much smaller audiences than the broadcast networks.

they also have to edit those shows for content to fit broadcast TV standards, in addition to time cuts made to fit in more commercials that they for shows in syndication, they don't have to edit network shows for content to fit cable standards, cable channels target narrower audiences than the networks

Does anyone have an exhaustive list of sitcoms from the Big Four that reached syndication?

I find sex in the city mostly cringeworthy now. I don't think it holds up (though it may have done well in syndication).

Sex and the City probably hasn't aged too well for the most part because it was a product of the late (more carefree) '90s, pre-9/11, and more importantly, pre-recession era New York City. As a result, hard to imagine a show like that, with such unapologetic consumerism, getting the green light these days.

they also have to edit those shows for content to fit broadcast TV standards, in addition to time cuts made to fit in more commercials that they for shows in syndication, they don't have to edit network shows for content to fit cable standards, cable channels target narrower audiences than the networks

The fact that they have to be edited for syndication is another reason why the premium cable scripted shows aren't successful in syndication? Fans of such shows probably tend to reject the edited versions of those series' episodes.

Also, I keep hearing that the 2010 version of Hawaii Five-0 is not doing very well in syndication, either.

Broadcast syndication: Is it becoming meaningless for scripted TV shows?

I happen to think that broadcast syndication is becoming meaningless for reruns of scripted TV shows right now. The reruns of such shows mostly/usually go to cable channels nowadays (and there are literally hundreds of cable channels in the U.S.). The rise of digital platforms such as Netflix and Hulu may be another factor.

This list is from a book entitled, "The Book of TV Lists" (1981) by Gabe Essoe. It has a section called, "7 of the Most Surprising Disappointments in Syndication." (Please keep in mind that this list was compiled in 1981 before cable, so it might have been true back then, but not necessarily true today)


Marcus Welby, M.D.
The Beverly Hillbillies
Green Acres
Peyton Place
The Rookies
The Doris Day Show
The Fugitive

Peyton Place and The Fugitive are serialized shows so it doesn't come as shock, sometimes even popular sitcoms aren't performing well in syndication like Murphy Brown.

This list is from a book entitled, "The Book of TV Lists" (1981) by Gabe Essoe. It has a section called, "7 of the Most Surprising Disappointments in Syndication." (Please keep in mind that this list was compiled in 1981 before cable, so it might have been true back then, but not necessarily true today)


Marcus Welby, M.D.
The Beverly Hillbillies
Green Acres
Peyton Place
The Rookies
The Doris Day Show
The Fugitive

A few years ago, I read a book all about The Doris Day Show and it was stated that the show's constant format changes were the reason for it's failure in syndication as well as the fact it wasn't made available until 1976 (it should have been sold into syndication in 1973 right after it ended on CBS). A local station ran it 5:30 weekdays but I don't remember it lasting long.

This list is from a book entitled, "The Book of TV Lists" (1981) by Gabe Essoe. It has a section called, "7 of the Most Surprising Disappointments in Syndication." (Please keep in mind that this list was compiled in 1981 before cable, so it might have been true back then, but not necessarily true today)


Marcus Welby, M.D.
The Beverly Hillbillies
Green Acres
Peyton Place
The Rookies
The Doris Day Show
The Fugitive

I don't really know how the Beverly Hillbillies was a flop in syndication. It aired on local television all through the 1970's. I was too young to remember much of it in primetime but it came to be one of my favorites thanks to syndication. It aired everywhere when I was a kid. And this was before cable.

I don't really know how the Beverly Hillbillies was a flop in syndication. It aired on local television all through the 1970's. I was too young to remember much of it in primetime but it came to be one of my favorites thanks to syndication. It aired everywhere when I was a kid. And this was before cable.
I also remember it airing on one of my local channels in the late 80s/early 90s.

I seem to also recall "Designing Women" and "Roseanne" airing back-to-back on another of my local channels.

This was back when I didn't have satellite and all I could get was 4 or sometimes 5 channels depending on the signal that day. I kind of miss those days.

I don't really know how the Beverly Hillbillies was a flop in syndication. It aired on local television all through the 1970's. I was too young to remember much of it in primetime but it came to be one of my favorites thanks to syndication. It aired everywhere when I was a kid. And this was before cable.
Yes, that one had me puzzled as well. I remember watching it as well.

I don't know if this has been mentioned but Family Affair. I remember watching Family Affair quite a bit in syndication until Anissa Jones death. I wonder if her death caused the show to vanish in syndication. In the early to mid 70's it was on a lot.

Yes, that one had me puzzled as well. I remember watching it as well.
If anything I think it was one of the most syndicated shows from the 60's. I used to watch it regularly with Andy Griffith, Gomer Pyle, Gilligan's Island. I loved watching the 60's shows in syndication back then. They were all good.

The rest of the shows on that list I can see. I'm not sure if Green Acres aired a lot before cable. I know I watched it more than Petticoat Junction although PJ did air in NC for some time. The Doris Day Show and Marcus Welby also aired on some of my local affiliates for awhile...at least a few years. Peyton Place, The Rookies and the Fugitive I never saw in syndication. I never saw The Fugitive until A&E reran the series.