WHAT IF?

[valentina warner]

What if the 'Lost girls' had never left and JO hadn't been cast as the new girl in season 2?

Do you think BLAIR would have continue being the lead girl, who is always up for adventure and wants to experiment with boys, or would she eventually have become the untouchable daddy's girl, who'd rather wait for marriage before going far with guys?

Could NANCY, SUE ANN, CINDY and MOLLY have taken turns and maybe become the leaders on some of the episodes (just like NATALIE and TOOTIE did), or would BLAIR have continue on being the star out of all of them?

And what about MRS G: would she have been promoted as the new school nutritionist or just continue on being the bubbly and warm housemother of 7 girls?

And lastly, what if MR BRADLEY hadn't been let go either: would he eventually have become a father figure to maybe SUE ANN? After all, he always seemed to be pushing her to be the best (like on both episodes 'IQ' and 'Running').

I just liked the idea of sharing my thoughts with you guys.....

Comments, anyone?

[80s Dude]

Nancy O. did take the lead in the first half of Gossip. Mr. Bradley probably would have to be a part time character to give 8 girls more air time. They could have had Sue Ann and Jo clashes. They could have had tell more of Cindy's life. Maybe have her as being raised by her father with her mother absent as they hinted at in Season 1.

[Impressions]

I never saw Blair as the "lead" in season 1. Maybe she had more lines than most of the girls, but it was supposed to be an ensemble cast.

I think the show would've had the girls taking turns on what episodes featured them primarily, with a lot of them sharing screen time.

I don't think the show would've failed completely had it not changed anything from season 1, but it would've probably had a shorter life than the original show. A lot of the appeal and success was due in part because of the addition of Jo, the smaller cast, and the new writers.

I think Mrs. G. would've still been a nutritionist (I think a lot of that would've been contingent on whether she lost all that weight though. Not trying to body shame her and say that you can't have overweight nutritionists, it just wouldn't have fit as well). The "housemother" was a kind of a dated term I think, and it would've been phased out eventually and the girls would've gotten older.

The Mr. Bradley character I think had to go, if he stayed, it would've been weird. He would definitely be meddling in the girl's lives, and not in a good way. It was creepy that he was a father figure to Sue Ann. I just didn't like him at all.

It would be difficult for the show to run long because it'd be a struggle to keep them all together under one roof, so it'd be interesting to see how that would've played out.

[valentina warner]

Originally Posted by Impressions

I never saw Blair as the "lead" in season 1. Maybe she had more lines than most of the girls, but it was supposed to be an ensemble cast.

I think the show would've had the girls taking turns on what episodes featured them primarily, with a lot of them sharing screen time.

I don't think the show would've failed completely had it not changed anything from season 1, but it would've probably had a shorter life than the original show. A lot of the appeal and success was due in part because of the addition of Jo, the smaller cast, and the new writers.

I think Mrs. G. would've still been a nutritionist (I think a lot of that would've been contingent on whether she lost all that weight though. Not trying to body shame her and say that you can't have overweight nutritionists, it just wouldn't have fit as well). The "housemother" was a kind of a dated term I think, and it would've been phased out eventually and the girls would've gotten older.

The Mr. Bradley character I think had to go, if he stayed, it would've been weird. He would definitely be meddling in the girl's lives, and not in a good way. It was creepy that he was a father figure to Sue Ann. I just didn't like him at all.

It would be difficult for the show to run long because it'd be a struggle to keep them all together under one roof, so it'd be interesting to see how that would've played out.

I am going to have to slightly disagree with you on BLAIR: if she wasn't the 'lead' as you just pointed out, then why did the writers choose her as the main one against JO, and let go of all the 'Lost girls'?

It's a shame you have such a strong dislike towards MR BRADLEY, because to me he was the most caring out of all the headmasters: okay maybe a little pushy too, but at least he wasn't cold and distance like MR HARRISON and even MR PARKER (although in the episode where MRS G almost leaves, he does at least everything to keep her at 'EAstland').
One of the things that made season 1 entertaining was the foil between MRS G and MR BRADLEY lol!

[Christopher]

Originally Posted by Impressions

I never saw Blair as the "lead" in season 1. Maybe she had more lines than most of the girls, but it was supposed to be an ensemble cast.

Blair was always featured in the season 1 episodes. Even if the episode was meant to be another character's episode, they wrote her in as a main costar. They liked Lisa. Her character is the reason Jo was even introduced. They wanted a character to bounce off Blair. IMO that means Blair is the star of the girls since she had importance for how the show should be with the changes in season 2.

I've said this before. I don't think the cast of season 1 would have stuck around. I definitely think Molly would have left first since she thought she was hot ****. I also don't think Charlotte would have stayed long. Definitely not 7 years since there's more cast members she would have to share airtime with. The show probably would have lasted 4 or 5 years not being big like the show became with the season 2 changes. I also don't think we would have seen other female cast shows given a chance during that time. The Golden Girls and Designing Women both copied The Facts of Life. I doubt we'd see those shows take place if there wasn't a female cast show on already pathing the way for them.

[RetroGuy2000]

Originally Posted by valentina warner

What if the 'Lost girls' had never left and JO hadn't been cast as the new girl in season 2?

Do you think BLAIR would have continue being the lead girl, who is always up for adventure and wants to experiment with boys, or would she eventually have become the untouchable daddy's girl, who'd rather wait for marriage before going far with guys?

Could NANCY, SUE ANN, CINDY and MOLLY have taken turns and maybe become the leaders on some of the episodes (just like NATALIE and TOOTIE did), or would BLAIR have continue on being the star out of all of them?

And what about MRS G: would she have been promoted as the new school nutritionist or just continue on being the bubbly and warm housemother of 7 girls?

And lastly, what if MR BRADLEY hadn't been let go either: would he eventually have become a father figure to maybe SUE ANN? After all, he always seemed to be pushing her to be the best (like on both episodes 'IQ' and 'Running').

I just liked the idea of sharing my thoughts with you guys.....

Comments, anyone?

The change of night was a major factor in the show's success. Having the series follow its parent series made a huge difference in the ratings, as experiments with airing the show on Wednesdays following Diff'rent Strokes showed much improved (top 20) ratings.

For whatever reason, NBC execs decided the cast was too large. Yet similar shows had large casts during that era, and were just fine. The idea that seven girls was too many, when there were six students on Saved By the Bell and ten to fifteen on Head of the Class, feels sexist. No-one ever said "There are too many boys on Head of the Class"! It never happened. Why? Do we really value girls as much as boys? It sure doesn't seem like it.

There was nothing wrong with bringing Jo on the show... except that in doing so, they ripped off Little Darlings, with the school van hot-wiring incident being directly lifted from the school bus incident in the film. And Jo didn't "save the show", unlike what we've been told by network execs. Ratings had improved over the summer, before Jo was even introduced. Ratings were strong on the very first second-season episode, before viewers had even heard of Jo. The myth of Nancy McKeon being discovered in a Hallmark commercial and single-handedly saving NBC needs to die; much as she was a talented actress, this myth does a disservice to the rest of the cast and crew, and even NBC executives who realized that the scheduling had been bad.

Yes, I think Lisa and Kim would have continued to have had a prominent role on the show, no matter what. The network loved those characters, heavily advertised them, cut out other roles, expanded their lines, and pushed them forward. Characters like Nancy were left with lines like, "Let's see a fast finish!" and "Welp, I'm headed out of this episode early, Mrs. Garrett. Catch you next week!"

Margie makes it clear that she and Linda wanted a major shake-up to the show, so I can't see them keeping to the original format of the series. The network ordered the producers to watch Little Darlings, and new NBC president Brandon Tartikoff stated he wanted a new girl, so that was going to happen, no matter what. I don't think they would have continued with Nancy/Felice, as the writing had already been on the wall for some time. For whatever reason, the writers couldn't come up with anything for Nancy other than "phone girl", so she would have been out, for sure. It is no shame to the actress involved when the producers can't come up with a role.

It is telling, though, that the series experienced its highest ratings during the season when the Lost Girls were still there on a fairly regular basis. There are 1,800 comments on my Lost Girls video, most saying a variety of "I really wish they had kept these girls, the show was better when we saw them." Gradually, ratings cooled down, and as the show went on, they couldn't replicate the stronger Eastland years. Still, they had a long run... but this was at the expense of losing more than two thirds of the original cast, by the end of the series. Even the original star of the series, Charlotte, had left by then, and Mindy and Nancy wanted out.

This makes he series, as a whole, feel a little awkward, at times: when you are talking about the cast, are you talking about the original characters, their replacements, or the replacements of the replacements? Had the show continued into Season Ten, it would have just been Beverly Ann traveling from place to place, picking up urchins in her Winnebago, with special musical guests each week.

[valentina warner]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

The change of night was a major factor in the show's success. Having the series follow its parent series made a huge difference in the ratings, as experiments with airing the show on Wednesdays following Diff'rent Strokes showed much improved (top 20) ratings.

For whatever reason, NBC execs decided the cast was too large. Yet similar shows had large casts during that era, and were just fine. The idea that seven girls was too many, when there were six students on Saved By the Bell and ten to fifteen on Head of the Class, feels sexist. No-one ever said "There are too many boys on Head of the Class"! It never happened. Why? Do we really value girls as much as boys? It sure doesn't seem like it.

There was nothing wrong with bringing Jo on the show... except that in doing so, they ripped off Little Darlings, with the school van hot-wiring incident being directly lifted from the school bus incident in the film. And Jo didn't "save the show", unlike what we've been told by network execs. Ratings had improved over the summer, before Jo was even introduced. Ratings were strong on the very first second-season episode, before viewers had even heard of Jo. The myth of Nancy McKeon being discovered in a Hallmark commercial and single-handedly saving NBC needs to die; much as she was a talented actress, this myth does a disservice to the rest of the cast and crew, and even NBC executives who realized that the scheduling had been bad.

Yes, I think Lisa and Kim would have continued to have had a prominent role on the show, no matter what. The network loved those characters, heavily advertised them, cut out other roles, expanded their lines, and pushed them forward. Characters like Nancy were left with lines like, "Let's see a fast finish!" and "Welp, I'm headed out of this episode early, Mrs. Garrett. Catch you next week!"

Margie makes it clear that she and Linda wanted a major shake-up to the show, so I can't see them keeping to the original format of the series. The network ordered the producers to watch Little Darlings, and new NBC president Brandon Tartikoff stated he wanted a new girl, so that was going to happen, no matter what. I don't think they would have continued with Nancy/Felice, as the writing had already been on the wall for some time. For whatever reason, the writers couldn't come up with anything for Nancy other than "phone girl", so she would have been out, for sure. It is no shame to the actress involved when the producers can't come up with a role.

It is telling, though, that the series experienced its highest ratings during the season when the Lost Girls were still there on a fairly regular basis. There are 1,800 comments on my Lost Girls video, most saying a variety of "I really wish they had kept these girls, the show was better when we saw them." Gradually, ratings cooled down, and as the show went on, they couldn't replicate the stronger Eastland years. Still, they had a long run... but this was at the expense of losing more than two thirds of the original cast, by the end of the series. Even the original star of the series, Charlotte, had left by then, and Mindy and Nancy wanted out.

This makes he series, as a whole, feel a little awkward, at times: when you are talking about the cast, are you talking about the original characters, their replacements, or the replacements of the replacements? Had the show continued into Season Ten, it would have just been Beverly Ann traveling from place to place, picking up urchins in her Winnebago, with special musical guests each week.

[valentina warner]

Originally Posted by Christopher

Blair was always featured in the season 1 episodes. Even if the episode was meant to be another character's episode, they wrote her in as a main costar. They liked Lisa. Her character is the reason Jo was even introduced. They wanted a character to bounce off Blair. IMO that means Blair is the star of the girls since she had importance for how the show should be with the changes in season 2.

I've said this before. I don't think the cast of season 1 would have stuck around. I definitely think Molly would have left first since she thought she was hot ****. I also don't think Charlotte would have stayed long. Definitely not 7 years since there's more cast members she would have to share airtime with. The show probably would have lasted 4 or 5 years not being big like the show became with the season 2 changes. I also don't think we would have seen other female cast shows given a chance during that time. The Golden Girls and Designing Women both copied The Facts of Life. I doubt we'd see those shows take place if there wasn't a female cast show on already pathing the way for them.

[80s Dude]

Margie and Linda came from One Day at a Time, a show with a small cast. They didn't know how to handle a large cast show.

[Smartboy]

Originally Posted by 80s Dude

Margie and Linda came from One Day at a Time, a show with a small cast. They didn't know how to handle a large cast show.

Who are Margie and Linda?

[80s Dude]

Originally Posted by Smartboy

Who are Margie and Linda?

Margie Peters and Linda Marsh. They were the consultants and producers who were hired after Season 1 ended for ideas on retooling the Facts of Life. They reduced the number of girls, took ideas from "Little Darlings" and "Happy Days" and incorporated them into Facts of Life.

[Lorimar Television]

Lisa only had a few lines in IQ

[80s Dude]

Originally Posted by Lorimar Television

Lisa only had a few lines in IQ

Also didn't have many in Running. Molly got more airtime and I think lines in Running.

[RetroGuy2000]

Still, Blair had plenty to do in "Running", between primping and getting hit by Sue Ann.

Anyone up for a S1 line count post?

[80s Dude]

Originally Posted by RetroGuy2000

Still, Blair had plenty to do in "Running", between primping and getting hit by Sue Ann.

Anyone up for a S1 line count post?

I would be.