Is it true that Ted Knight was jealous of Jim J. Bullock's popularity - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TMC · 11-03-2018, 02:42 AM

Think about it this way, when Too Close for Comfort was retooled as The Ted Knight Show besides Muriel, Monroe was the only other character brought back. This is despite it really making zero sense, story-wise. Ted Knight also hated that episode where Monroe was sexually assaulted by two women, which was mind you, played for laughs. It likely just went to show how little pull Ted Knight actually had on his own show.

SitcomsHeydayfan · 11-29-2018, 02:27 PM

Monroe was the funniest character on TCFC next to Knight so I'm sure that's why they brought him over.

Ted Knight had a LOT more important things to worry about at the time!

Greenbeans · 11-29-2018, 02:34 PM

I read an interview with the lady who played Muriel. She said they got along fine, but Ted was the only one on the set who didn't know Jim was gay. .

SitcomsHeydayfan · 11-29-2018, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Greenbeans

I read an interview with the lady who played Muriel. She said they got along fine, but Ted was the only one on the set who didn't know Jim was gay. .

Nancy Dussault. She did such a great job as Muriel but was really underappreciated because no one has heard of her!

I find it hard to believe Ted didn't know Jim was gay. Everyone else knew!

SledgeBarone · 10-08-2020, 01:16 PM

Lots of quotes from Jm. J. Bullock here, about when he was a regular on late 1980s Hollywood Squares. He says Ted Knight knew he was gay but wasn't comfortable with it.

https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/...s-oral-history

Cbalducc · 10-09-2020, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SitcomsHeydayfan

Nancy Dussault. She did such a great job as Muriel but was really underappreciated because no one has heard of her!

I find it hard to believe Ted didn't know Jim was gay. Everyone else knew!

Nancy was the first woman to co-host “Good Morning America” with David Hartman.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Dussault

SitcomsHeydayfan · 10-10-2020, 12:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cbalducc

Nancy was the first woman to co-host “Good Morning America” with David Hartman.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Dussault

Wow. But that didn't last long or she'd be famous like Joan Lunden. I'm guessing she lost out because Joan Lunden was hotter?

TV Guy · 11-01-2020, 10:47 PM

She wasn’t replaced by Joan Lunden. She was replaced by Sandy Hill.

icecream · 11-01-2020, 11:50 PM

Jm Bullock is nothing special. The producers made a lousy decision keeping him for season 6 but getting rid of both daughters. Quality of the show went downhill as a result. Besides, Ted Knight was already famous from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Jm Bullock was just a nobody.

Bonniegirl · 11-01-2020, 11:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by catsrule

Jm Bullock is nothing special. The producers made a lousy decision keeping him for season 6 but getting rid of both daughters. Quality of the show went downhill as a result. Besides, Ted Knight was already famous from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Jm Bullock was just a nobody.

I agree ! !

TV Guy · 11-02-2020, 02:09 AM

Yep - me too. You’ll notice that once the show went into first-run syndication (season 4), the role of the girls became smaller. Prior to that, they were becoming more prominent because the writers realized they could carry stories. They did some episodes where the girls were the leads and the parents were supporting. But accordingly to Lydia Cornell, Ted Knight didn’t like that and the new writers in season 4 were told to not feature them so prominently.

SitcomsHeydayfan · 11-02-2020, 05:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TV Guy

Yep - me too. You’ll notice that once the show went into first-run syndication (season 4), the role of the girls became smaller. Prior to that, they were becoming more prominent because the writers realized they could carry stories. They did some episodes where the girls were the leads and the parents were supporting. But accordingly to Lydia Cornell, Ted Knight didn’t like that and the new writers in season 4 were told to not feature them so prominently.

Who told the writers that??

Ted Knight had enough influence where HE could control the direction of the show you would think.

TV Guy · 11-05-2020, 02:44 PM

It was Ted Knight himself who made that decision, according to Lydia Cornell. According to her, he was very concerned that they might be featured more than him. Early on in the series, they did a photo shoot for some magazine, and the resulting magazine had a photo that showed Lydia in front, with Ted and Nancy in the background. He approached her after publication and told her, “Don’t forget - this is MY show!” Also according to Lydia, Deborah Van Valkenburgh got so fed up that she asked to be released from her contract, which is why Jackie disappears in the middle of the fifth season.

SitcomsHeydayfan · 11-06-2020, 03:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TV Guy

It was Ted Knight himself who made that decision, according to Lydia Cornell. According to her, he was very concerned that they might be featured more than him. Early on in the series, they did a photo shoot for some magazine, and the resulting magazine had a photo that showed Lydia in front, with Ted and Nancy in the background. He approached her after publication and told her, “Don’t forget - this is MY show!” Also according to Lydia, Deborah Van Valkenburgh got so fed up that she asked to be released from her contract, which is why Jackie disappears in the middle of the fifth season.

You'd think as long as they got big ratings then they'd get paid more money & they'd all be happy!

11-03-2018, 02:42 AM	#1
TMC Member Forum Idol Join Date: Jan 09, 2001 Posts: 124,453	Is it true that Ted Knight was jealous of Jim J. Bullock's popularity Think about it this way, when Too Close for Comfort was retooled as The Ted Knight Show besides Muriel, Monroe was the only other character brought back. This is despite it really making zero sense, story-wise. Ted Knight also hated that episode where Monroe was sexually assaulted by two women, which was mind you, played for laughs. It likely just went to show how little pull Ted Knight actually had on his own show.
	Last edited by TMC; 10-10-2020 at 03:19 AM.

11-01-2020, 11:50 PM	#9
icecream Cat-tastic and Whiskerlicious Forum Celebrity Join Date: Sep 01, 2006 Location: The Catacombs Posts: 20,608	Jm Bullock is nothing special. The producers made a lousy decision keeping him for season 6 but getting rid of both daughters. Quality of the show went downhill as a result. Besides, Ted Knight was already famous from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Jm Bullock was just a nobody.
	__________________ Top 200 TV Shows https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards...14#post6225214 Top 150 Movies https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards...84#post6175384 Top 1100 Scripted TV Characters https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards...d.php?t=493306 Top Rookie TV Shows by Calendar Year https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards...d.php?t=365017 Top Movies by Calendar Year https://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards...d.php?t=473533

11-29-2018, 02:27 PM	#2
SitcomsHeydayfan Member Senior Member Join Date: Apr 19, 2018 Location: The Show Me state Posts: 2,966	Monroe was the funniest character on TCFC next to Knight so I'm sure that's why they brought him over. Ted Knight had a LOT more important things to worry about at the time!

11-29-2018, 02:34 PM	#3
Greenbeans Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 13, 2018 Posts: 197	I read an interview with the lady who played Muriel. She said they got along fine, but Ted was the only one on the set who didn't know Jim was gay. .

10-08-2020, 01:16 PM	#5
SledgeBarone Member Senior Member Join Date: Apr 01, 2020 Posts: 1,930	Lots of quotes from Jm. J. Bullock here, about when he was a regular on late 1980s Hollywood Squares. He says Ted Knight knew he was gay but wasn't comfortable with it. https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/...s-oral-history

11-01-2020, 10:47 PM	#8
TV Guy Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Jun 25, 2001 Location: Boston, MA, USA Posts: 3,419	She wasn’t replaced by Joan Lunden. She was replaced by Sandy Hill.

11-02-2020, 02:09 AM	#11
TV Guy Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Jun 25, 2001 Location: Boston, MA, USA Posts: 3,419	Yep - me too. You’ll notice that once the show went into first-run syndication (season 4), the role of the girls became smaller. Prior to that, they were becoming more prominent because the writers realized they could carry stories. They did some episodes where the girls were the leads and the parents were supporting. But accordingly to Lydia Cornell, Ted Knight didn’t like that and the new writers in season 4 were told to not feature them so prominently.

11-05-2020, 02:44 PM	#13
TV Guy Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Jun 25, 2001 Location: Boston, MA, USA Posts: 3,419	It was Ted Knight himself who made that decision, according to Lydia Cornell. According to her, he was very concerned that they might be featured more than him. Early on in the series, they did a photo shoot for some magazine, and the resulting magazine had a photo that showed Lydia in front, with Ted and Nancy in the background. He approached her after publication and told her, “Don’t forget - this is MY show!” Also according to Lydia, Deborah Van Valkenburgh got so fed up that she asked to be released from her contract, which is why Jackie disappears in the middle of the fifth season.