Who is the memorable star of forgotten TV shows? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TMC · 05-27-2018, 08:29 PM

For example, Robert Urich. He was the lead on quite a few shows (e.g. Vega$ and Spenser for Hire), but none of those shows really made it far into syndication; none of them came close to making 100 episodes. He was obviously very likable -- even after a show got cancelled, it would not be long before Urich had another job lined up.

Another example could be Ken Berry. He had a lot of appeal in the 1960s, but was on otherwise forgettable shows like F Troop and Mayberry RFD. The Wow Show was probably the best thing he ever did, but nobody was watching. He did a bunch of guest spots in the 1970s, and today he's mostly remembered as Vinton Harper on Mama's Family.

king of comedy · 05-27-2018, 09:17 PM

I never heard of The Wow Show. But it did look good in that trailer.

James28 · 05-31-2018, 01:01 PM

My vote goes to Robert Urich, too. Mr. Urich starred in a record twelve scripted TV serieses, none of which had a long run.

Bob & Carol and Ted & Aiice (1973)
S.W.A.T. (1975-1976)
Tabitha (1977-1978)
Vega$ (1978-1981)
Gavilan (1982)
Spenser: For Hire (1985-1988)
American Dreamer (1990-1991)
Crossroads (1992)
It Had to Be You (1993)
The Lazarus Man (1996)
The Love Boat: The Next Wave (1998-1999)
Emeril (2001)

If I starred in 10-plus short-lived series throughout my career, I would be considered the unluckiest actor in the world.

opus · 05-31-2018, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by James28

My vote goes to Robert Urich, too. Mr. Urich starred in a record twelve scripted TV serieses, none of which had a long run.

Bob & Carol and Ted & Aiice (1973)
S.W.A.T. (1975-1976)
Tabitha (1977-1978)
Vega$ (1978-1981)
Gavilan (1982)
Spenser: For Hire (1985-1988)
American Dreamer (1990-1991)
Crossroads (1992)
It Had to Be You (1993)
The Lazarus Man (1996)
The Love Boat: The Next Wave (1998-1999)
Emeril (2001)

If I starred in 10-plus short-lived series throughout my career, I would be considered the unluckiest actor in the world.

The unluckiest actor in the world is one who never gets a job.

Svenfan1234 · 05-31-2018, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by opus

The unluckiest actor in the world is one who never gets a job.

Well, Vega$ and Spenser for Hire are both pretty popular/well-known shows.

And true dat.

king of comedy · 05-31-2018, 06:14 PM

Vegas had the longest run.

bgva · 06-04-2018, 05:35 PM

Vega$ and Spenser only ran three seasons, but they aired in reruns for a few years. Even though they haven't been on in a while, I wouldn't necessarily call them obscure shows.

How about George Clooney in the sitcom E/R, 10 years before the medical drama?

Edward216 · 06-04-2018, 08:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by James28

My vote goes to Robert Urich, too. Mr. Urich starred in a record twelve scripted TV serieses, none of which had a long run.

Bob & Carol and Ted & Aiice (1973)
S.W.A.T. (1975-1976)
Tabitha (1977-1978)
Vega$ (1978-1981)
Gavilan (1982)
Spenser: For Hire (1985-1988)
American Dreamer (1990-1991)
Crossroads (1992)
It Had to Be You (1993)
The Lazarus Man (1996)
The Love Boat: The Next Wave (1998-1999)
Emeril (2001)

If I starred in 10-plus short-lived series throughout my career, I would be considered the unluckiest actor in the world.

Emeril was a terrible show. Why anybody thought Emeril Lagasse could be an actor is beyond me.

Ed.

factsoflife · 06-04-2018, 09:35 PM

What a fascinating question!

I have to say that the first person I thought of was Christian Slater, because prior to Mr. Robot he was the star of a string of forgotten TV series:

My Own Worst Enemy (2008)
The Forgotten (2009)
Breaking In (2011-2012)
Mind Games (2014)

Another name I thought of is Vivica A. Fox who has starred in numerous series you could easily call "forgotten":

Out All Night (1992-1993)
Getting Personal (1998)
City of Angels (2000)
1-800-Missing (aka Missing) (2004-2006)
Mr Box Office (2012-2015)
Mann & Wife (2015-2016)

JamesG · 06-05-2018, 02:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by factsoflife

I have to say that the first person I thought of was Christian Slater, because prior to Mr. Robot he was the star of a string of forgotten TV series:

My Own Worst Enemy (2008)
The Forgotten (2009)
Breaking In (2011-2012)

He also had ABC's "Mind Games" that was canceled after 5 eps. in 2014.

factsoflife · 06-05-2018, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesG

He also had ABC's "Mind Games" that was canceled after 5 eps. in 2014.

thanks! I knew I was forgetting one.

icecream · 06-05-2018, 06:00 PM

The queen of flops might be Paula Marshall, best known as the reporter on the Seinfeld outing episode.

Wild Oats: September 4-September 25, 1994 on FOX. co-stars Tim Conlon, Paul S. Rudd, Jana Marie Hupp, Karri Turner, Tamara Olson, Christine Cavanaugh, and Timothy Fall

Chicago Sons: January 8-July 2, 1997 on NBC. co-stars Jason Bateman, DW Moffett, and David Krumholtz

Cupid: September 26, 1998 to February 11, 1999 on ABC. co-stars Jeremy Piven and Jeffrey D. Sams

Snoops: September 26-December 26, 1999 on ABC. co-stars Gina Gershon, Danny Nucci, Paula Jai Parker, and Edward Kerr

Cursed: October 26, 2000 to April 26, 2001 on NBC. co-stars Steven Weber, Amy Pietz, Chris Elliot, and Wendell Pierce. an apt title for her career

Hidden Hills: September 24, 2002 to January 21, 2003 on NBC. co-stars Justin Louis, Alexa Nikolas, Sean Marquette, Dondra T. Whitfield, Tamara Taylor, Kristin Bauer, and Stacy Galina

Out of Practice: September 19, 2005 to March 29, 2006 on CBS. co-stars Henry Winkler, Stockard Channing, Ty Burrell, Christopher Gorham, and Jennifer Tilly

Gary Unmarried: September 24, 2008 to March 17, 2010 on CBS. co-stars Jay Mohr, Jaime King, and Ryan Malgarini

Congratulations Paula, you've had at least one flop on all 4 major broadcast networks!

JamesG · 06-07-2018, 01:58 AM

Jenna Elfman has had many television flops:

She starred on ABC's "Townies" (1996) before her successful role on "Dharma & Greg" (1997-02).

Courting Alex (CBS, 2006)
Accidentally on Purpose (CBS, 2009-10)
1600 Penn (NBC, 2012-13)
Growing Up Fisher (NBC, 2014)
Imaginary Mary (ABC, 2017)

She is now part of AMC's "Fear the Walking Dead".

05-27-2018, 08:29 PM	#1
TMC Member Forum Idol Join Date: Jan 09, 2001 Posts: 124,452	Who is the memorable star of forgotten TV shows? For example, Robert Urich. He was the lead on quite a few shows (e.g. Vega$ and Spenser for Hire), but none of those shows really made it far into syndication; none of them came close to making 100 episodes. He was obviously very likable -- even after a show got cancelled, it would not be long before Urich had another job lined up. Another example could be Ken Berry. He had a lot of appeal in the 1960s, but was on otherwise forgettable shows like F Troop and Mayberry RFD. The Wow Show was probably the best thing he ever did, but nobody was watching. He did a bunch of guest spots in the 1970s, and today he's mostly remembered as Vinton Harper on Mama's Family.

05-31-2018, 01:01 PM	#3
James28 Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 14, 2007 Posts: 3,967	My vote goes to Robert Urich, too. Mr. Urich starred in a record twelve scripted TV serieses, none of which had a long run. Bob & Carol and Ted & Aiice (1973) S.W.A.T. (1975-1976) Tabitha (1977-1978) Vega$ (1978-1981) Gavilan (1982) Spenser: For Hire (1985-1988) American Dreamer (1990-1991) Crossroads (1992) It Had to Be You (1993) The Lazarus Man (1996) The Love Boat: The Next Wave (1998-1999) Emeril (2001) If I starred in 10-plus short-lived series throughout my career, I would be considered the unluckiest actor in the world.
	__________________ "When the run of a network TV show has ended, some go out with a bang, some with a whimper, but all are...Future Endeavored." "Stay Safe"? More like "Stay Sad". #2020Hurts

06-04-2018, 09:35 PM	#9
factsoflife Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Sep 11, 2000 Posts: 8,741	What a fascinating question! I have to say that the first person I thought of was Christian Slater, because prior to Mr. Robot he was the star of a string of forgotten TV series: My Own Worst Enemy (2008) The Forgotten (2009) Breaking In (2011-2012) Mind Games (2014) Another name I thought of is Vivica A. Fox who has starred in numerous series you could easily call "forgotten": Out All Night (1992-1993) Getting Personal (1998) City of Angels (2000) 1-800-Missing (aka Missing) (2004-2006) Mr Box Office (2012-2015) Mann & Wife (2015-2016)
	__________________ "and to the fans. I was only supposed to be on every other Tuesday. But, thanks to you, I'm here, and I promise! I will try my best never to let you down. I am going back into that studio on Monday, and I'm going to play Erica Kane for all she's worth!"-- Susan Lucci, May 1999 Daytime Emmy Speech.

06-05-2018, 06:00 PM	#12
icecream Cat-tastic and Whiskerlicious Forum Celebrity Join Date: Sep 01, 2006 Location: The Catacombs Posts: 20,608	The queen of flops might be Paula Marshall, best known as the reporter on the Seinfeld outing episode. Wild Oats: September 4-September 25, 1994 on FOX. co-stars Tim Conlon, Paul S. Rudd, Jana Marie Hupp, Karri Turner, Tamara Olson, Christine Cavanaugh, and Timothy Fall Chicago Sons: January 8-July 2, 1997 on NBC. co-stars Jason Bateman, DW Moffett, and David Krumholtz Cupid: September 26, 1998 to February 11, 1999 on ABC. co-stars Jeremy Piven and Jeffrey D. Sams Snoops: September 26-December 26, 1999 on ABC. co-stars Gina Gershon, Danny Nucci, Paula Jai Parker, and Edward Kerr Cursed: October 26, 2000 to April 26, 2001 on NBC. co-stars Steven Weber, Amy Pietz, Chris Elliot, and Wendell Pierce. an apt title for her career Hidden Hills: September 24, 2002 to January 21, 2003 on NBC. co-stars Justin Louis, Alexa Nikolas, Sean Marquette, Dondra T. Whitfield, Tamara Taylor, Kristin Bauer, and Stacy Galina Out of Practice: September 19, 2005 to March 29, 2006 on CBS. co-stars Henry Winkler, Stockard Channing, Ty Burrell, Christopher Gorham, and Jennifer Tilly Gary Unmarried: September 24, 2008 to March 17, 2010 on CBS. co-stars Jay Mohr, Jaime King, and Ryan Malgarini Congratulations Paula, you've had at least one flop on all 4 major broadcast networks!
	__________________ 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

05-27-2018, 09:17 PM	#2
king of comedy Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Aug 31, 2012 Location: New Jersey Posts: 5,140	I never heard of The Wow Show. But it did look good in that trailer.

05-31-2018, 06:14 PM	#6
king of comedy Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Aug 31, 2012 Location: New Jersey Posts: 5,140	Vegas had the longest run.

06-04-2018, 05:35 PM	#7
bgva Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Aug 10, 2015 Location: VA Posts: 413	Vega$ and Spenser only ran three seasons, but they aired in reruns for a few years. Even though they haven't been on in a while, I wouldn't necessarily call them obscure shows. How about George Clooney in the sitcom E/R, 10 years before the medical drama?

06-07-2018, 01:58 AM	#13
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 56,956	Jenna Elfman has had many television flops: She starred on ABC's "Townies" (1996) before her successful role on "Dharma & Greg" (1997-02). Courting Alex (CBS, 2006) Accidentally on Purpose (CBS, 2009-10) 1600 Penn (NBC, 2012-13) Growing Up Fisher (NBC, 2014) Imaginary Mary (ABC, 2017) She is now part of AMC's "Fear the Walking Dead".