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Some of the biggest shows in television history started as accidents, failed pilots, dream sequences, and backdoor deals inside other series. From The Simpsons beginning as filler animation on The Tracey Ullman Show to Frasier nearly becoming a show about a wheelchair-using publisher with no connection to Cheers — these origin stories will change how you see your favorite shows. In this video, we count down 13 TV shows from 1970 to 2005 that were almost spin-offs of something else, or spin-offs that went so far off course they became something nobody expected. Shows covered in this video: 00:00 Introduction 00:44 #13 — The Andy Griffith Show 02:02 #12 — The Jeffersons, Maude & Good Times 03:46 #11 — Laverne & Shirley 04:55 #10 — Mork & Mindy 06:41 #9 — Melrose Place 07:56 #8 — The Simpsons 09:28 #7 — Xena: Warrior Princess 10:27 #6 — NCIS 11:59 #5 — CSI: Miami & CSI: NY 13:00 #4 — Daria 14:06 #3 — Family Matters & Empty Nest 16:37 #2 — Boston Legal 18:04 #1 — Frasier 20:22 - Conclusion NOTE: Timestamps above are estimates based on a ~23-minute runtime. Adjust to actual video after editing. TV spin-offs have shaped the history of American television in ways most people never realize. Norman Lear turned All in the Family into a spin-off factory that produced Maude, Good Times, and The Jeffersons. Garry Marshall launched Laverne & Shirley and Mork & Mindy from Happy Days — one because his mother nagged him, and the other because his son wanted space aliens. The backdoor pilot technique gave us NCIS (from JAG), CSI: Miami (from CSI), and even The Andy Griffith Show (from The Danny Thomas Show in 1960). This channel covers TV and entertainment nostalgia — the shows, movies, and pop culture moments from the 1970s through the 2000s that defined a generation. Subscribe for more countdown videos, behind-the-scenes stories, and deep dives into the shows you grew up watching.

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Thoughts: An ensemble workplace/hangout multi-cam co-created by Mary Tyler Moore’s Allan Burns, Cutters is a classically designed post-Cheers sitcom. It’s got a textbook setup for comedic conflict, all established in its purposeful premise-pilot, where a struggling male-run Buffalo barbershop proposes tearing down a wall and merging with the female-led beauty salon next door. The primary hurdle? The barber’s son (played by FM’s Robert Hays) had a one-night-stand with the salon keeper’s step-daughter and never called her back. Cue a battle of the sexes, personified not only by the two business owners and their “this is how we do it over here” spats, but also via the lovers, whose Sam/Diane “will-they?-won’t-they?” dynamic aims to yield long-term emotional investment. The primary hurdle? It’s just so predictable – the “will-they?-won’t-they?” is really a matter of “When?” And the premise is a little too textbook – the conflicts within the ensemble are too overbearingly implanted by the expositional merger that it all feels clichιd and not actually earned by the characters in relation.

CUTTERS - 7/9/1993, CBS One of the 1st series to feature a black gay regular role was this short-lived sitcom set in a combination barbershop/beauty salon. Julius Carrey plays the supporting role of Troy King, an Olympic track gold medalist turned hair stylist. Judging from this episode, Troy was mainly there as a sounding board for (and occasional resolver of) the leads' heterosexual problems. Episode guides list no episodes that gave him his own plots. CUTTERS was produced in 1992, but CBS executives were unimpressed and decided to shelve it and burn it off in the summer.

Double play: Two short-lived sitcoms from that wonderful year 1993. • 'Cutters' starred Robert Hays who manages a barbershop that's losing money, while the beauty parlor next door is in the red. So why not tear down the wall between them and see what happens? Five episodes were all CBS could take. • 'The Second Half' was a vehicle for stand-up comic John Mendoza; he played a sports columnist in the mold of Oscar Madison (i.e. divorced, broke, and sloppy). He has to deal with children, neighbors, co-workers, etc. NBC gave it 15 episodes and that was probably being generous. 00:00 Opening titles, Cutters. Theme by Patrick Williams ('Lou Grant'). 00:57 Opening titles, The Second Half. Theme by Robben Ford and the Blue Line.

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Nickelodeon is by far the network with the dumbest character spinoffs, and more often than not, they end up failing. But why does the channel keep doing this? Your friend Dr. Panda is here to tell you the story.

Singer and Sons TV show. Oh boy. Join me as I dive into the world of 1990 television to uncover what is often considered the worst TV show of that year - Singer and Sons. In this video, I'll be sharing my thoughts and reactions to this infamous series, exploring what made it so poorly received by audiences and critics alike. From its concept to its execution, I'll be examining every aspect of Singer and Sons to understand why it's often regarded as one of the worst TV shows of 1990. If you're curious about the show or just want to see me react to some cringe-worthy TV, then be sure to watch until the end. Let's take a trip down memory lane and revisit the TV show that many people would rather forget. 0:00 Intro and first clip 1:35 Opening Theme and Credits 3:14 The Premise 7:12 Emmy Nomination 8:07 How you can watch 10:01 Wrap Up Paul Van Scott examines the short-lived 1990 sitcom Singer and Sons, which featured an ensemble cast including Harold Gould and Esther Rolle. This analysis explores how the workplace comedy struggled to find a consistent tone, leading to its rapid cancellation after only four episodes despite an Emmy nomination for its title theme music.