https://web.archive.org/web/20070225141752/http://jumptheshark.com/
Other Thoughts:
The casting of Miles
Post Miles
When Lily Tomlin was added. She is a very funny woman but she doesn't mesh w/Candice Bergen.
I liked Eldin. I really liked him, and when he left the show it went downhill.
The season after Avery was born. The characters simply lost their satiric edge and became either excessively zany or strident in trying to prove something to Dan Quayle (that magnificent arbiter of "family values").
When Miles left.
When she and Scott Bakula broke up.
When Eldin left the show and Murphy's life at home became nonexistent. When Eldin left the show, we lost the very funny scenes where Murphy wasn't able to be tough. Also, when Miles left the show, there was no one for Murphy to boss around. Murphy and Miles were hillarious together.
When Miles was replaced by Lily Tomlin.
When Eldon left the show. He was the glue that held the show together.
I loved Scott Bakula in Quantum Leap, then he goes to Murphy Brown. Every time I saw him. I kept hoping that he would leap into a screenwriter's body and write a more interesting script. All the "will they, or won't they" business between him and Murphy was sickening.
Wen Miles Silverberg (Grant Shaud sp??) left the show and was replaced by Lily Tomlin.
i miss my little jewish friend myles... i HATE lily tomlin! blech!
As soon as Miles left the show and they brought in Lily Tomlin. The ensemble cast fell apart after that.
Around the time that baby Avery was born was when the show went downhill, in my opinion. I'm not sure it's the fault of the baby. They actually got some incredibly good mileage out of the pregnancy and birth. But, except for one episode centered around his first birthday, once the baby was born, the whole dynamic of the show changed. The characters became different people who were no longer funny or interesting. Just pale impressions of what they used to be. Coincidentally (or not), this also coincided with the departure of Eldin, the addition of Scott Bakula in an underwritten character, and the marriage of Miles & Corky, another series-killer. It wasn't long after that Miles disappeared for good. He was smart.
When Murphy Brown dealt with breast cancer. It seems like there are others where a medical affliction occurs. This might go with death, birth, or A very special . . . However, there are a variety of medical afflictions that create these.
spent years sucking up to clinton. biggest pile of crap ever. worst show in tv history and murphys neck looks like a turkey faith ford gets fat. plain trash the worst. so bad words cant say it all.
The show jumped when Murphy started dealing with cancer. Should have just taken it off the air a year earlier. I disagree that it jumped when the baby was born. It wasn't one of those shows where they had the baby and you never saw it again (See, Mad About You). There were some very funny shows with Murphy and the baby. Like the one where Murphy tried to get together with other mommies and didn't know "The Wheels on the Bus" or when she entered Avery's painting in an art show.
The Show ended as soon as Murphy got pregnant. The premise of Murphy as a tender care-giving mom clashed with her character. Murphy was supposed to be this brash outspoken and opinionated business woman. She was funny because she could be so heartless sometimes. Now, all of a sudden she was a single mom, a crusader for all single and working moms. The idea was nice, but that kind of complexity takes away from a sit-com's appeal and turns it into a statement or a drama, which makes it annoying to watch.
When it became apparent that the last season would revolve around Murphy's breast cancer, we stopped watching -- and never even surfed by. We still don't know how it ended.
The Scott Bakula character was really irritating, but after they replaced Miles with Lily Tomlin this show became too painful to watch. It was a really clever show until the last two seasons when it sucked horribly. The romance between Miles and Corky was really contrived. There was just not that kind of chemistry between those two.
I wish I could be a lot more specific but my general feeling is this show ran way to long. Murphy Brown was at one point a really great show but it simply ran to long ,it burned out and became murphy skews this person and that person. Murphy Brown was for a time a really great show that could discuss some really heavy topics and still be funny,thats not easy.This show however should have ended after the 7th season instead of dying a slow lingering death,by the time it ended even the shark had forgotten about it.
The big reasons:lost miles,baby(after they finished w/ Quayle),lost Eldin,Lost Phill...but one smaller,later nail in the coffin:when Garry Marshal stopped being hysterically funny in every appearance!
I felt this show jumped the shark probably when they had Murphy get pregnant. But they also changed her character from a tough, smart reporter to an obnoxious whiny nutcase. I couldn't believe that she kept winning emmys for that character because I got to where I just couldn't stand her anymore.
when they started beating the hell out of Dan Quayle. maybe he's not the sharpest pencil in the box, but he surely deserves better than this. I think the reason he says so many dumb things is because he's having a nervous breakdown from being humiliated all the time!!
Does anyone else out there agree with me that this show contained some of the worst, most forced acting ever seen on a sitcom? The following were terrible: Candice Bergen, the guy playing Miles Silverberg, the guy playing the ramrod-straight news anchor. All three of these people said their lines as if they knew each one would bring the house down. (Although he was overall an incomparably better actor, I feel that Jackie Gleason often had the same problem on "The Honeymooners.") I suppose the director(s) was bad too, if (s)he consistently allowed so many poor performances. What about the other actors? Well, the balding guy was competent, a little dull maybe but in no way forced like those other three. However, the only really enchanting actor was the woman playing Corky. I'd like to dine with her.
Actually, I think this show stopped being funny after George Bush lost his presidency and Clinton was elected. The show sort of lost its partisan edge...
Adding babies to shows where being single is the main topic always kills the show. Avery was a big mistake because Murphy lost her edge.
The whole tenor of the show changed. This also coincided with Diane English not writing or supervising the writing of the shows. The last five minutes of the very last show, when Eldin came back and surprised Murphy - the magic returned, and for a moment, it was just like five years earlier. Not coincidentally, Diane English wrote the final episode. It's too bad that Robert Pastorelli decided to leave the cast - he probably felt typecast, but what has done besides bit parts in movies? He could have done continued to do those in the hiatuses and had a steady 10-year gig, instead of a 4-5 year gig. It's lost $$ now. Even if he'd stayed, the shark would have jumped anyway, but not until Miles left.
This show was actually very funny until Dan Quayle came out and made it a cause celebre by making fun of the fact that Murphy was pregnant (although just the fact that she was pregnant is the proverbial writing on the wall...) Still, the show quickly became way too puffed up in it's own importance and quickly became unwatchable. I've never seen a show totally turn around that quickly.
Was this the worst acted show on television or just the worst written? I watched it a few times here and there since it was on for about 50 years, but Candace Bergin can't act and never could, Robert Pastorelli is and always has been irritating, and the only thing more unwatchable than something with Garry Marshall behind the camera is something with him in front of it. There wasn't a single gag that you couldn't see coming 3 lines in advance. Shows like Cheers, Seinfeld and Roseanne coasted on their reputations in their last seasons, but at least they had early years that were funny at least sometimes. This one coasted despite never earning any momentum. All it did have going for it was its martyrdom as a lightning rod for all things liberal, but even that eroded once Clinton was elected. Hell, I am a leftist weirdo, and I couldn't stand this crap.
When the character "Jim" left FYI to become a news director. The show lost it's focus, which had been on relations between the news characters & biting political humor and became a preachy "public service announcement" from that point forward.
In my opinion this show was always wonderfully well written, and I thought the casting was perfect. However the birth scene was in a class of its own! It was so hysterically funny that I still smile when I think of it.
The show began preparing for the jump all during Murphy Brown's pregnancy, but the actual leap occurred with the birth of the baby. There was no specific episode, but Murphy began showing her maternal side on a weekly basis; sort of a "broad jump".
While I still really enjoy the show, I think it jumped the shark when they introduced "McGovern," the equivalent of MTV's video reporter, Kennedy. The entire concept of McGovern was ridiculous and weakened the integrity of the show.
Maybe Murphy could spell tomato correctly when Quayle couldn't (by the way, is that the way you spell Quayle??), but if I want to watch that much partisanship I'll just flip over to CNN. And, am I missing something here on beauty?? Miss Bergen belongs in there with Mary Tyler Moore and Sela Ward.......what's the attraction there?????
The descent of Murphy Brown into the shark pit was definitely a slow one. A slight jump took place when Murphy had the baby. The actual episode where she gave birth was great, but little Avery ultimately softened the title character and dulled the program's marvelous satirical edge. The next slight leap took place when Eldin departed. Robert Pastorelli was absolutely brilliant as the eccentric house painter, and without him, Murphy's homelife seemed to disappear before our eyes. In the coming years, we watched the wonderful Scott Bakula trapped in a dead end role, saw a painfully contrived relationship develop between Corky and Miles, and even saw Paul Ruebens join the cast. Still, fairly good writing and the great cast kept the show on track. The major jump finally occured when Miles Silverberg departed. He was the funniest and most likable character on the show, and Grant Shaud's winning portrayal always brought a smile to my face. Without Miles, the delicate chemistry and the writing seemed to fall apart at the seams. The last two seasons with Lily Tomlin are not worth your time or mine. A sad end to a truly fine television program.
I always wished they had cast Jane Curtin in the Murphy Brown role. Imagine the possibilities! Instead of wincing every time Candace Bergen shouted (barked) out a line of dialogue, we could have had Jane Curtin with her perfect comic delivery and timing.
In real life Candice Bergen's husband died (I believe). She went from having fantastic long hair, wearing skirts and stilletos... to wearing flat shoes and pants all the time, and chopping all the hair off. Change the *(&(*&(^ channel!
A show made for Democrat yuppies, by Democrat yuppies. Pure crap from Day One.
Murphy Brown actually jumped on Day One with the casting of Candace Bergen, who makes me squirm with embarrassment for her self-aware, smug acting every time I watch her. She takes every opportunity to speechify and make pronounced statements rather than act, and then waits for the laugh after every line with a smirk on her face. While looking through a bunch of blocks, for example, she picks up the letter "W" and then stands bolt upright and says -- almost as if reading out of a joke book -- "Look, Avery, you can spell 'Whitewater'!" Ha ha, who came up with THAT corker? Sheesh.
I caught a Murphy Brown repeat the other weekend and marveled at how good that show was in it's heyday. Granted, they do seem dated by most political references, but the cast was terrific and the writing crisp. Yet where it failed was the birth of Murhpy's son Avery. Seriously...W-T-F were they thinking? Like that would fundamentally change her as a person or her personality? Please...that was WHY people watched in the first place. And once poor little Avery was born what happened? He was shoved back into the deep dark recesses, forgotten until hauled out as a prop maybe ONCE a season. Terrible. What sort of a message was that. Same thing applies to "The Practice." Murphy Brown should have hung it up without the birth of Avery. After that it was the RARE glimmer of genius with Paul Reubens and Gary Marshall popping up once in a while. Sad sad sad.
I loved this show from day one. I admit some seasons were better than others, but overall it was great. The performances were some of the best in comedy, especially by Candice Bergen. The characters and storylines were always unique and the writers never needed to use cheap jokes to get a laugh. Very intelligent writing.
Avery Brown didn't necessarily kill the (then) best-written comedy on TV, but the show definitely went south immediately following his arrival (then disappearance). Candice Bergen's legs couldn't even rescue this show after that.
I hated this show from day one so I would have to say it JTS when the Fonz kick started the bike prior to jumping...but I wholeheartedly agree with some prior posters regarding Candice Bergens acting- man did it annoy the hell out of me. Firstly, someone should have told her it was ok to breath while delivering her lines, she talked so fast and annoyingly forced ike she needed to finsish sentence without breathing. And, like the chick on Dharma and Greg, she seemd to say EVERY line like it was going to be the funniest thing ever spoken- relax and deliver the line becuase they have that light in the studio audience that forces the people to laugh anyway. And my most annoying thing about this show- when they cast it could they at least try to develope something different that Mary Tyle Moore's show- I mean the bumbling news anchor, the important lady working in the studio, the balding serious co worker...man it seemed to me it was a carbon copy of the first (much better) female working on a new show...and the Quayle thing was just plain stupid- bringing real life into a show (a la West Wing) never works as producers think it will- how many of us even back then while watching this episode were like "Yeah Murph, take that Dan Quayle..." it was just stupid and seemed as though the producers were preaching to the converted anyway...
"Murphy Brown" jumped when it started constantly doing celebrity name-dropping as a substitute for clever writing.
JTS from day one. I agree with previous posters re Candace Bergen's stiff, affected "acting" - hmmm, if I'm constantly irritated, that will be funny! (That flame currently being carried by Patricia Heaton on EL Raymond.) Candace Bergen is the Kathleen Turner of TV -- VERY full of herself despite a spotty body of work and medium attractiveness by Hollywood standards.
Totally wrong for Murphy to have a baby---and a boy yet! Just out of character. She lost me then.
Murphy Brown definitely jumped when Murphy got pregnant. Then, Dan Quayle opens his mouth by saying she's a bad role model because she's an unwed mother. So, what does Hollywood do?? Hollywood awards the Best Comedy Emmy for that Year to "Murphy Brown". what a coincidence!! They were just trying to say "up yours Quayle!". "Seinfeld" should have won that particular year. But anyway, "Murphy" wasn't the same when she was pregnant, and then all the changes that happened after the baby didn't help.
The actor who played Miles knew when to end the show. When he left, he knew the show had ran its course. Murphy Brown was a typical example of a show that outlived its value. The show went off the air at about the same time as Seinfeld. Seinfeld left with great publicity and fanfare. Murphy Brown left with barely a whimper.
Lily Tomlin as Murphy's boss was sort of the final nudge that pushed the show over the shark. A great show in its time, it just ran out of steam and outstayed its welcome.
When Miles left, this show just became unwatchable. I had already been close to giving it up with that 3-part cigarette company dramedy where Jim gets fired or something like that, but when Miles left and Lily F**king Tomlin replaced him? That was the last five minutes I saw of Murphy Brown. Lily Tomlin?!?!?!? Why didn't they just get Ted McGinley too? Oh well, it had a good run before the shark attacked. The baby birth episode was a riot. Best two lines ever on TV: "Somebody get this kid out of me before a 10-year old boy pops his head out and asks for help with his homework." AND "Oh, this baby's never coming out; I'm going to spend the rest of my life making sandwiches and passing them up." That is good ****! LILY TOMLIN?!?!?!?!?!?!?
Actually, minute one. When they just playing the opening credits without a theme song. GET A LIFE, PRODUCERS! Now every comedy show does it (just about) and there's not a memorable comedy show in the lot. They'll be remembering Andy Griffith, Gilligan's Island, Brady Bunch just because of their theme songs and opening sequences for a hundred years and more and MB will be lucky if it's remembered after five. (P.S.: never saw the Dan Quayle episodes but believe they sent television to an all-time low point.)
When Murphy became a single mom, and everyone made fun of Dan Quayle for questioning the promotion of being a single parent
Oh what a relief it is to see that other people noticed that candice bergen couldn't act a lick!When she would go into one of her rants,i'd get douche bumps and feel embarrassed for her.Did she win an emmy for this role?cause if she did,i'd give those price-waterhouse people a urine test.I actually thought two characters were well written and acted,and they were "corky" and "miles",but who hell thought it'd be a good idea to put bergen in a sitcom?!!!!!!!!!
When Lily Tomlin joined the show was a definite over-the-hill moment. But I think the show may have JTS before that, as it was getting preachy. Even Miles was getting preachy and he was supposed to be the neurotic conservative. I was hooked on Murphy Brown throughout the pregnancy (still use one of her lines about breastfeeding!), after the birth, and throughout the relationship with Scott Bakula. When she got engaged with Scott Bakula, the tension sort of died and became less interested. I disagree with anyone who says that Candace Bergen was not great... she was sensational, was utterly funny, has fantastic comedic timing, and could make anything sound funny. Eldin was very funny, too, but everyone else was ho-hum. I love Candace Bergen... wish I could see her in some other vehicle.
Three words...WHEN MILES LEFT. One of the best roles on TV. Grant Shaud was wonderful, and why he never won an Emmy for that role is beyond me (same with Frank). When he left, the shark was jumped. To be honest, I don't even know why I kept watching it after that...I wish I hadn't. Especially when they added that horrible McGovern character....BLECH! It's sad too, because "Murphy Brown" was great in its prime.
It had nosedived downhill with Dan Quayle, the baby, Eldon's departure, etc. but what finally caused it to be unredeemable was the episode in which Corky splits up with the unseen Miles. She winds up at Murphy's place with the two of them throwing themselves a pity party- capped with croaking a duet of Doris Day's 'Que Sera Sera'! I was hoping Murphy would dis Corky's 'singing' and 'song' choice but NO, she JOINED her in singing it- without a trace of irony or disgust! The OLD Murphy wouldda made mincemeat outta Corky and that song but for her to get all mushy and gooey over it trashed her character and the show altogether!
The show should have called it a career after then-Vice President Dan Quayle criticized Murphy's giving birth to a baby out of wedlock.
I agree that it was the departure of Robert Pastorelli (Eldin) that marked the jumping of the shark. The producers wanted to cut his pay and phase him out, and he moved on. Eldin was Murphy's only friend, an "ordinary guy" in a her world of big egos, and when he left, the show lost its appeal. On the other hand, I'm glad it jumped the shark that way-- I would have hated an ending like "They did it" or "I do" between Murphy and Eldin.
after murphy dumped the potatoes in front of his house....the show started to come to a sputtering stop...eldin left...miles and corky get together...new characters added (that just didn't fit)...miles left...Gary Marshall leaving...new office...breast cancer.....really they were just grasping at straws
Excellent, well-written show that went on a few seasons too long. I stopped watching shortly before the departure of Miles Silverburg and after seeing the re-runs on Lifetime, am glad I did. Lily Tomlin's pure talent but she never gelled with that cast. The biggest mistake the show made however falls under "I Do!". Whoever decided that it would be a good idea for Miles and Corky to elope obviously didn't pay attention to the previous years of the show. That pairing made NO sense whatsoever. The first few seasons of the show were brilliant, however, especially Avery's birth. I was dying of laughter just watching it.
When Murphy became pregnant. We now know Dan Quayle WAS right.
Murphy Brown Jump a Huge Shark - The leaving of Miles. He was a funny character that fit exactly the rest of the news-staff, a thing which his replacement DID NOT HAVE. Not only that, but the dealing with Murphy's cancer, which was a TV Break-Through, but didn't fit the simple-political topics the show dealed with which made it a Shark Jumper. Last Comment - the birth of Avery didn't change much, reminding the Modern-art episode when young Avery painting is sold for 2000$ (!)
I could handle pretty much anything until Miles (the fabulous Grant Shaud) and Corky got together. BLEAH! Dreadful pairing. After that, I pretty much quit watching. As for Quayle, well, he got what he deserved. When he made that statement in public, what self-respecting sitcom could possibly resist firing back? I don't understand anyone having trouble with that; Quayle can barely write his name in the dirt with a stick. (I guess he learned his lesson. We haven't heard a peep out of him about the constant, single parent baby-popping going on in the world of Friends.)
This show lasted 11 years. Are you f#*$$ kidding me?! I guess I was the only person on the planet who felt Candice Bergen was a terrible comedic actress. How on Earth did she win so many emmy’s? I mean do we need further evidence of the Emmy committee’s cluelessness. Ms Bergen’s line readings were the equivalent of nails scraping a chalk board. I shiver now just thinking of it. I gave this show a fair shot when it first started but couldn’t get over the fact that it was trying too hard to be an updated Mary Tyler Moore ensemble comedy and failing miserably. So I didn’t really tune in much after coming to that realization but I would occasionally, prompted mostly by the wheedling of some friends who just loved this show and couldn’t understand why I didn’t. It just wasn’t my cup of tea and I guess not liking Candice Bergen didn’t help any. LOL Although to be fair, the show was much better than most of what passed for sitcoms at the time and I did like the guy who played Miles and the guy who played the painter. But 11 friggin years. I’m sorry but no sitcom should last this long. Even Cheers and Mash were pale copies of their former selves when they finally, thankfully ended their respective double-digit runs. My advice to any person with the authority when faced with the decision to pull the plug on a successful sitcom: take a look at the ones who left on top and notice they never went past 7 years. And don’t give me Seinfeld as an example b/c much as I love Seinfeld(and it’s one of my favorite comedies of all time, as a matter of fact) it wasn’t the same after its co-creator Larry David left after season 7. And much as I love Newhart’s series finale and the show on the whole it probably went on 1 or 2 years too long.
I was never a fan of Mr. Quayle, to be sure, but how would you like it if the entire world made jokes about how stupid you are, and what a mutt your wife is? The potato/potatoe episode was poorly written and tasteless. One, maybe two small jokes aside would have sufficed. But to hammer him over and over like that was like kicking a sick dog. The point was made -- there was no need to beat it to death. And if Murphy Brown is supposed to be the epitome of today's modern woman, I'd rather go back to Harriet Nelson.
I'm sorry, but breast cancer just isn't funny. I can't believe they'd make it a central plot element in a show that's supposed to make people laugh. This was my all-time favorite comedy until that point. After that, I just stopped watching. Very, very stupid move.
The warm up for the jump began with the romance of Miles and Corky but the shark was truly jumped when Miles left the show, especially after the pathetic way they tried to keep the character going for a while through mentions of him by Corky.
this was truly a painfully slow death of a sitcom. I was totally with it through the pregnancy, right through the stuff with Scott Bakula, but once they got together it started coming apart, then Eldin was gone, then Miles and Corky were engaged, then Miles was gone, then Lily Tomlin came . . . it was a grinding process that probably went from 92-95, after which it was unwatchable for about 3 years, when it died, unmourned. Really a shame.
This was a pretty good show until *SHARK* Murphy gets cancer. But it wasn't until (the most impressive shark jumping feat yet) the oxygen tank is tossed into the shark's belly, the oxygen tank then shot, thus causing the shark to explode into a thousand bloody pieces (then watch many happy pelicans from miles around gather for fellowship and fun) as our hero Murph then needs the cannibis treatment. Groovy, man. I am all for that. HOWEVER - Jim Dial scoring weed for Murph in a dark city park at night? All he had to do was ask one of the camera crew or admin assistants from work. Didn't these distinguished news anchors have ANY weight to throw around? Jim Dial, with his permanent "I smell cabbage" facial expression, sneaking into a dark city park at night to hit up a loitering dealer for grass(?). If you were in Jim's situation, wouldn't you just call up Dan Rather and ask him where he scores his stash?
I watched this thing on and off in the early 90's, but I thought they got way too preachy and self righteous when they responded to Quayle's comments. They should have either made it into a joke or else just ignored it entirely, but back then every idiot in TV land felt they had to inject their political views into their shows, even comedies (witness the equally bad "Designing Women" response to the Thomas/Hill Senate hearings from around the same time frame)
The Emmy voters must have been sniffing glue when they voted for this piece of crap. I've seen better acting on Mexican soap operas.When Candace Bergin is'nt shouting, she delivers every line in a annoying monotone. Its obvious why this steaming turd of a show received the awards that it did. It was the liberal media's way of saying f**k you to the Bush/Quayle administration.
Jumped when Diane English was hell bent on incorporating the single mother pregnancy to the show the exact same way she did with My Sister Sam. Obviously she wanted to send a message that a single mother can do just fine without a father and can juggle an 80 hour a week job, a seven figure career, and an Italian housepainter as a nanny. Not only did English find out this is a pipe dream, she also found out the little bastard was a drag to the workplace sitcom and ditched the show shortly thereafter.
I enjoyed this show immensely at the start, and even after Murphy became an unwed mom, it had a couple of good seasons. It just went on a couple of years too long. When perky Corky ended up a two-time divorcee and Murphy's son turned into the typical wisecracking sitcom kid, they should have known it was time to sign off. Long live Eldon, though!
Haven't read all the posts on this but the ones I did read were well written (even those I disagree with). But I agree with many of you that it was a long, slow, decline. Eldin's departure--OUCH, Miles' departure--DEATH KNELL, Lily Tomlin's arrival--CALL A PRIEST! (I love this lady but they didn't do a THING with her) and baby avery--EULOGY, PLEASE--after him I stopped watching--Murphy DID become mushy. As for Bergen's acting, I agree that it was often heavy handed and obvious, but she did improve (not enuf to deserve FIVE emmys) and it is still the best thing she's ever done (I know that ain't saying much). And she looked good in clothes. GENERAL COMMENTS I HATED Joe R. (Frank)--his voice sounded like he swallowed a frog. Pee Wee Herman and Gary Marshall were like insulin to a diabetic, but alas, the dosage was too small. Was anyone shocked when Faith Ford's series flopped? I lost some respect for Lily, not only for not insisting on better scripts but also better wardrobe!!!!!!!!!!
I think this show probably jumped when Miles left the show, although Lily Tomlin was good in her role as well. I also feel that I liked the Murphy with long hair better than the one with short hair. She was cooler
I have to agree that the departure of Miles was the end of this once great show. My mom loved this show for it's smart humor, and though I was too young to get a lot of what made her chuckle, I loved it for the comedic timing of the characters. I wouldn't say that Candice Bergen is the best actress to grace the small screen, but she was great as Murphy, and the rest of the cast could help carry her if needed (besides, the role was originally written for Heather Locklear who passed it up for Melrose Place. Candice Bergen can act circles around Heather Locklear where comedy is concerned-- and I think having a pretty young thing would have taken away from the character). Even the guest stars tended to add to the comedy--the ever changing secretaries, Wallace Shaun's few appearances--but my favorites by far had to be Garry Marshall and Paul Rubens. They were a fantastic comedy team, and the tension between those two and Frank had me falling out of my chair with laughter. Unfortunately the laughter died with Miles' departure, once you break up a great cast nothing in the world can save the show
Maybe it's just me, I don't get it. Are there network executives sitting around somewhere saying "Okay, we got a show that's highly rated and critically acclaimed. What are we gonna do to f___ it up? Add a baby? Change the set? A disease for the lead character? Marry off one of the characters to a stranger? Throw in a divorce? Marry two of the characters to each other? Get rid of a character or two? Add some new quirky characters? I KNOW!!! Let's do them all!!!" They were all "Murphy Brown's" shark jump.
This was a great show. Intelligent, flawed/human characters, great scripts. One of the best female characters ever written for TV. The same people who complain about this show being too political would say it was the best series on the planet if liberals were the butt of all the jokes. Partisan JTS voting is not attractive. Anyway, Murphy Brown kind of jumped in increments. The baby was the biggest jump. Diane English's departure hurt. Robert Pastorelli leaving really hurt. Lily Tomlin joining the cast REALLY hurt. The cancer storyline finally totally did the show in. It was just too excruciating to watch.
This show jumped from day one. First I will preface this comment by saying that I am a life-long democrat who is not ashamed to call himself a liberal so I do not have a political bias against this show. This show is one of those shows that i don't get why critics and fans praised it so much. Every single joke told was always something like the following - "I haven't had this much fun since I went to (insert name of politician or journalist's birthday party. It tried way to hard to prove that their insecure writers were intelligent by simply dropping names everywhere. Its as if Imus wrote this crap. I can recall one particular episode in which the writers were trying so hard to prove that they knew Washington's ways that they fell flat on their faces. In this episode Murphy invited everyone over to her house to watch the Redskins play on Monday Night Football (see politicians of all parties love the 'Skins). Murphy tells all the guest to come over before kickoff at 6 PM. Duh - Diane there are these things called time zones and see Washington is in a time zone that is three hours later than California, so since the game is on at 6 in Cali it is on at 9 in Washington. Even Dan Quayle knows that. Diane English should know this too since MNF whooped your show in the Mon 9 PM ratings from Sept through Dec every year.
I could go on and on about how a great show really went downhill, but what got me was the hypocrisy of Diane English, the creator of Murphy Brown. There was one great episode in which the gang at FYI went crazy trying to be earth-friendly to the Nth degree. Meanwhile, Diane was hawking L'Eggs or some other kind of pantyhose product. I know pantyhose is biodegradable and all that, but it's still a product guaranteed to break down in a really short amount of time. Plus, there is the plastic container that they come in. To me, that is an extreme waste of materials. I noticed Murphy and the other females wore slacks in the end, so my protests to Diane must have meant something.
Never Jumped. Just want to acknowledge the death of Robert Pastorelli - Eldin the Painter. He made a nice balance from her slightly off balance co-workers. Perhaps his best moment was in the final episode when he returned to find how Murphy had been doing cancer-free and decided to find things in the house to paint. In effect, the show did a reverse jump when both Eldin and Phil the Bartender (who wasn't dead, just in witness protection) returned. R.I.P. Pastorelli.
I'm glad to see the other posts about name dropping. It was the first thing I noticed when I tried to watch this show. That is not clever humor, it's called lazy script writing. Maybe I'm just not the target audience but the appeal of this show escaped me. I thought the Niles character that everyone thought was so funny was an extreme example of over-acting.
When Grant Shaud left as Miles, this show really jumped the shark. Lily Tomlin is a wonderful comediene and sometimes even does greatly in drama (I think her performance on a "Homicide: Life on the Streets" was brilliant), but she wasn't really as great as Grant's Miles was against Candace's Murphy. I also think the baby thing was way overdone and perhaps Murphy shouldn't have gotten pregnant. Although I myself as a Democrat appreciated how the whole baby issue affected Dan Quayle and Bush/Quayle's re-election prospects in 1992, I still believe that this was not one of the best things to happen to "Murphy Brown" (I agree with another poster that the 1992 comedy series Emmy should have gone to the still fresh {at that time}, "Seinfeld"), it definitely should have not gone this route. I liked though the first four seasons (especially season one and two), I especially liked Murphy not particularly being able to have a longer term relationship with just one man, at that time in those seasons. Hmmmm! Someone up above mentioned that Jane Curtin might have been better in the role of Candace (and no matter how much I like Bergen), maybe that poster has a point. Curtin, I could have seen so much better as Murphy. Could you have imagined Jane with the unending amount of boyfriends Murphy had? Or with Grant, or Robert, or Frank or even her as Murphy with Corky? That might have been even more hilarious! (Obviously, though Jane couldn't commit then, because "Kate & Allie" hadn't run it's course, although that show was on it's last legs then.) But boy what an interesting idea (I bet Jane's Murphy wouldn't have gotten pregnant, either.)
Made for liberals by liberals. I can deal with that. Beating a dead horse in the form of Dan Quayle is another story. Having heard the former Vice-President speak I can honestly say he was not the joke; the criticism of him was. He was right about Murph, but she didn't bother to get what he said right. "It's Dan Quayle. Forget about it!" That's the best they could do? Somebody forgot to eat their Wheaties! And the truck-load of potatoes dumped at his house? Yeah, real mature! Incidentally, the Oxford University dictionary spell "potato" with an "e" 38 times, so it is acceptable. If Oxford should rethink any decision, it should be the Rhodes Scholarship they granted that other guy!
When Murphy had the new baby and the show went political. Was basically about a single mothers right to have a baby. Was a comedy and turned into a political drama.
I think its pretty clear this show jumped when Avery was born. It was funny while Murphy was pregnant, but the baby added absolutely nothing to the show and I think the producers and writers realized that and that's why eventually, the kid practically disappeared. The whole Dan Quayle thing was great but I knew once she had the kid it was over. Then, as a further jump, they added Lily Tomlin who can be funny but just simply did not fit. They didnt need two strong, funny women fighting for laughs. Sad, because that show was truly good.
MURPHY BROWN was a show that I expected to hate from jump because Candice Bergen's career as a film actress had never impressed me, except for her Oscar nominated performance in STARTING OVER. But the show turned out to be smart and funny with a strong supporting cast and superior writing anchored by Diane English. Candice Bergen actually surprised me when she turned out to be quite a deft comedienne. The first four seasons or so were hilarious, but for me, the show jumped the shark three times: 1) After the birth of Avery, they really didn't seem to know what to do with Murphy the mother. I also agree with a previous poster who said Murphy should have had a girl. The second jump occurred when the brilliant and underrated Grant Shaud left and was replaced by Lily Tomlin. I have nothing against Lily Tomlin, but the Murphy/Miles dynamic was so funny and one of the great anchors of the show. The veteran journalist having a kid half her age fresh out of journalism school as her boss. The third jump occurred with the breast cancer story. This was a sitcom and I just don't see anything funny about breast cancer. Prior to these jumps, however, I loved this show and never missed it.
As always on this site, lots of perceptive comments! Myself, I wished the show had ended after season six (1993-94) when the last scene of that season's finale had Murphy realizing how important the people in her life were, and giving Eldon a big hug and then smilingly walk up the townhouse stairs. What a good place that would have been for the show to call it quits. As I recall, earlier in that same show the FYI gang had bickered on the occasion of the celebration of FYI's 500th telecast and then realized what a great show they had and how they meant to each other. Even though the show ("Murphy Brown" not FYI) was 9th in the ratings that season and CBS certainly didn't want to shoot a cash cow it would been a graceful exit. Then we wouldn't have seen the show JTS in increasingly painful increments: too much Stan Lansing, no Eldon, WAY too much Miller Redfield, McGovern (certainly the worst idea this show ever had), Miles and Corky marrying (where the hell did this come from?), Murphy's short hair, the breast cancer year, Jim leaving FYI to head a fledgling news network, the new set, and worst of all, Kay Carter-Shepley replacing Miles. I am second to none in my love for the brilliant Lily Tomlin, but this move didn't work at all. She was wasted on the show. Maybe if they had ditched everyone except Murphy and Kay and really gone a different route things would have been more interesting. But for a while, "MB" was one of my favorite series, even though the FYI team was pretty lame (especially the neurotic Frank--and did he have the ugliest damn wardrobe, or what?) . All except Murphy--I know that Candice Bergen wasn't the most animated actress ever, but when someone is that gorgeous, who cares?!? Murphy was supposed to be an impatient crab, which made Bergen's rat-a-tat delivery appropriate. And her occasional woodenness worked for the character as well. Frankly, I think Bergen showed a real comedy flair in the show and she was ALWAYS entertaining. Candice Bergen was the classiest, smartest (in intelligence and style terms), most beautiful, willing-to-be-silly sitcom actress at the time, and she was a joy to watch. I can't wait till February 8, when season 1 comes out on DVD. I plan to get the first six seasons. The first few seasons were generally sharply written and fast-paced. If the show faltered in most of its regulars, it always made good use of guest stars (Colleen Dewhurst and Jay Thomas, especially). As for Avery making the show JTS, I don't think so, anymore than Little Ricky made "I Love Lucy" JTS! Yes, the babies sort of boxed in both shows, but if that's the price you pay for hilarious pregnancy and birth episodes, then it's more than worth it. And about the incessant Quayle bashing--hey, he started it! It would have been insane for them NOT to rebut this in the show, and it's not like he was gigged in every episode, for pete's sake. But anyway...if I have to pick a favorite season it's the sixth, when the show rebounded after an extremely weak fifth year. The sixth season had such gems as Martin Sheen's unforgettable (and Emmy-winning) guest shot as a former sixties radical turned ultra right-winger, Murphy's disastrous appearance on the kiddie show "Mulberry Lane" (you wonder if when she was ripping the head off of that puppet if she was thinking of Charlie McCarthy), Murphy accidentally kidnapping Socks, the cat, the discussion of art, with Murphy passing off a finger painting of Avery's as that of a hot new artist, Murphy and Peter Hunt shacking up and getting caught, etc. Yes, the sixth season would have been a good swan song, but even if we had to put up with four remaining mediocre seasons at least there was Bergen. Not a bad trade-off (and she deserved ALL of her Emmys!)
The addition of Garry Marshall as Stan Lansing was surreal. Since when the hell does the head of CBS run the entire network from a news building in Washington, DC?! All of a sudden Washington, DC is the new Hollywood with every TV show being taped there and celebrities, both fictional and real, "just dropping by" all the time.
Barry Manilow!! I can't believe no one has mentioned this thus far! Does no one remember the episode where Murphy can't make it home for her sons birthday but Barry Manilow shows up to sing the kid some of his sappy songs? After years of Murphy making fun of Barry for his bubble gum music in contrast to her love of Motown, it turns out that her kid LOVES any song by Barry... Made the joke even funnier until he actually showed up in person... He sings some drivel that makes Murphy all sentimental about the kid... Major celebrity shows up at your house just like real life. Maybe next they should have had a surprise visit by Davey Jones or Desi Arnaz Jr. Wait.... I believe that had already been done...
When Miles left, this show jumped the shark. What a shame that the creative team didn't know what to DO with Lily Tomlin-a comedic actress of her talent and stature deserved better than to be left floundering all over a series with no proper direction or remotely interesting dialogue.Up until Miles' departure,this was one of my favorite sitcoms. Favorite episode-when our gal Murphy shows up some pretentious Soho art critics/experts by passing off her son's finger-painting as the work of "Caribbean genius A.Veray".(complete with Eldin bragging,"I taught him everything he knows.")
I can be very specific. I dont think it did. Sure it had its better moments as all shows do I think such events such as the Birth or miles leaving. They were new chapters a chance for us to get a different look on the characters. I loved miles he was funny and it was sad when he left but then lily Tomlin came in and she was amazing. I also loved Eldin but I am sorry I dont think the show fell apart when he left for the show to move on to the next step he had to. And although he was missed I think Murphy just got better. As far as Candice bergen not being a good actress thats crazy. She was wonderful as Murphy and I dont think the show would have been as good with any other actress. She got 5 emmys what you think they give those out to bad actresses/ Even so the cast of Seinfield would have more than any. I can name many bad actors or actresses whose only flare is in there nostrils, but Candice isnt one and no matter what you thought of the show are Candice you must have thought enough to leave some comment.
The show JTS when Garry Marshall joined the cast as Stan Lansing, the President of CBS. First of all, why does he work in Washington D.C.? The headquarters of CBS is in New York, with most shows being taped in Los Angeles. Why is he working out of a building in Washington? Then, in the second-to-last season, Stan Lansing, the President of CBS, gets his own network Talk Show!!! The President of the network is hosting a talk show! And...it's taped in Washington D.C.! Plus, when they do the show, the announcer says, "From Washington D.C., the ENTERTAINMENT CAPITAL OF THE WORLD, it's the Stan Lansing Show...."...The Entertainment Capital of the World??? The only shows ever produced out of Washington are News Shows. Also, why is it that big celebrities like Tom Hanks, Elisabeth Taylor, Jane Seymour, etc., are showing up at the News Building in Washington, as well as parties and other events there? Since when do celebrities hang out in Washington??? I know this is a TV Show, so we must suspend disbelief, but "Murphy Brown" is a satire of real life news programs, and is supposed to be taking place in real life. Therefore, shouldn't it have some believability?
This show jumped from Day One because it violated the first rule of sitcoms: do not have an unappealing character as your main character, unless the actor is extremely talented. Because Murphy was such a repugnant character -- and Candice Bergen only an average actor -- the show NEVER worked. While some of the scripts were well-written, the audience never could accept the basic premise and therefore the show was a complete failure. Carroll O'Connor (All in the Family) or Dabney Coleman (Buffalo Bill) were able to pull it off because they were exceptional actors, and suggested layers of pathos beneath the hateful exteriors. Candice Bergen, on the other hand, could not.