A Few Observations

[1960'sTVfan]

Originally Posted by LittleRickyII

Often its the case that the critics and awards organizations are ahead of where the public is. IMO, that's what happened with He & She. From what I've seen, compared to other shows on at that time, it deserved its Emmy win and all the other recognition it got. It was unique in its day, following a path that was not as formulaic as most of the other contemporaneous sitcoms, and more about exploring relationships in a realistic, truthful way. It was the forerunner for many of those classic comedies of the '70s and '80s, starting with The Mary Tyler Moore Show. It was the template for many shows that followed. I think the Writers Guild and Emmy Award participants who recognized this show saw in it the creativity in developing a new direction for situation comedy, and were able to appreciate that before the general public had caught up.

I remember back around 2004, the Golden Globes awarded The Office (British version) best situation comedy of that year. A friend of mine commented that it was undeserving because he had never even seen the show and knew of no one who watched it. A few years later a U.S. version was launched and soon became a huge hit.

Similarly, The Dick Van Dyke Show took away an Emmy award in its first season even though its ratings were low and it was on the verge of being canceled. But it got renewed at the last minute, and went on to become a huge hit in the following years and is now considered a classic. The same thing happened with Cheers: a bunch of Emmy awards and nominations, but low ratings and near cancellation. But NBC kept the faith, kept the show going and eventually the public got on board and it became a tremendous hit.

I think He & She is one of those shows that came along a little before it's time. Had it aired a few years later, let's say 1972 or 73, it likely would have drawn a larger audience and had a longer run than just the one season.