Is Three's Company more of a 1970s show or an '80s show?

[TMC]

Three's Company ran from 1977-84 and if you count the Three's a Crowd spin-off, through 1985. While I don't have the exact stats in front of me, I'm pretty safe to assume that more episodes originally aired in the '80s than the '70s.

Still, you suppose that you can argue that even so, the show had more of decisive "'70s feel" to it, especially when you get down to the décor and the fashions.

[BestTVever]

Its evenly split. Its so vintage 70s with dress, style, topics. But when the early 80s hit, its pure 80s.

[Mr. Television]

70's

[BestTVever]

I always wondered if The Ropers stuck around for all 8 seasons how Mrs Roper would have dressed. She was so vintage 70s with her hair and shawls. By 1980 on the Ropers the shawls were gone. I wonder how she would have dressed in late 1983 early 1984.

[Fallon97]

I think of it as more 80s.

[thejasoomian]

70's all the way for me, fashion, ideals, set designs, etc...

[James28]

Another good reason to think of Three's Company as a '70s show rather than an '80s show (despite more of its episodes airing in the '80s) is because TC had better ratings in the '70s than in the '80s. (TC's annual Nielsen ranks during its run: #11, #3, #2, #2, #8, #4, #6, #33.)

[Dude111]

Def 70s!!!!!

[TMC]

Originally Posted by Fallon97

I think of it as more 80s.

I guess that the early seasons with Chrissy and the Ropers is when it "feels" like a '70s show while the later years with Terri feels like an '80s show. And of course, it's within reason to feel that way since Chrissy was barely still on the show when the '80s rolled around.

It's commonly believed that there's something of a hangover from the prior decade in the first few years of the new one. I've read that the '80s didn't really start to feel like "the '80s" until around 1982-83.

And if you look at Priscilla Barnes and her hairstyles towards the very end of the series in 1983-84, she does unmistakably look like a woman whom I would imagine looked like in the 1980s:




Priscilla with the bangs kind of gives me Michelle Pfeiffer in Scarface vibes.

[Superswiper]

Both. You could make the case for either one, and I wouldn't disagree. It helps that the show was actually on the air slightly longer during the 80's.

[BestTVever]

Originally Posted by Superswiper

Both. You could make the case for either one, and I wouldn't disagree. It helps that the show was actually on the air slightly longer during the 80's.

I agree. It is both. Its so vintage 70s with the clothes, themes, and styles when it debuted. The show went into the mid 80s and the clothes, styles and trends of the 80s were in full effect on the show. It almost had equal years in the 70s and 80s which is why you could not select a decade.

[Latka Gravas]

Three's Company is both a late '70's & an early '80's show. It ran from 1977-1984 so it's '70's run was almost as long as the '80's run.

[TMC]

Originally Posted by BestTVever

I agree. It is both. Its so vintage 70s with the clothes, themes, and styles when it debuted. The show went into the mid 80s and the clothes, styles and trends of the 80s were in full effect on the show. It almost had equal years in the 70s and 80s which is why you could not select a decade.

There was an episode from one of the later seasons with Priscilla Barnes that featured Julie Piekarski (who was Sue Ann Weaver on The Facts of Life) as basically, a Valley girl. I don't think that a stock character like that would've been utilized earlier in the show's run since Valley girls on TV and film just seems inherently more like an "'80s thing" than a "'70s thing".

[king of comedy]

It came out in the Spring of 1976. It was 70s all the way.

[DJM77]

Originally Posted by king of comedy

It came out in the Spring of 1976. It was 70s all the way.

Spring of 1977