Characters who overshadowed other characters....making them secondary characters. - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

88survivor · 11-22-2007, 01:50 PM

Here's a couple:

Urkel in Family Matters overshadowing the Winslow clan in the 2nd season-onwards.

There were times when Alex P. Keaton is the true star of Family Ties, where the other family members were sometimes regulated to window dressing.

Was it just me or did The Hogan boys in the Hogan family got more screentime than Sandy's character? It seemed the most that got actual screentime was actually the eldest of the Hogan family, David Hogan. The other Hogan brothers like Mark and Willie got equal ammount of screentime.

Name characters that seemed to overshadowed the other characters in return.

tv star collector · 11-22-2007, 03:39 PM

Well, obviously Fonzie on HAPPY DAYS often overshadowed Richie Cunningham
--who was the key character when the series first started. Barney Fife got
more laughs than Andy Taylor on THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW (which was fine
with Andy because he knew how good Don Knotts was). Flo was more
colorful on ALICE (but not on her own spinoff series). Fish was better as a
supporting role for Abe Vigoda on BARNEY MILLER than as the lead in his own
spinoff. So, more often than not, elevating a popular supporting character to
his/her own series backfires.

Mikado · 11-22-2007, 03:57 PM

To me, they ruined Happy Days the day that Fonzie took over the show!

Carrie · 11-22-2007, 03:58 PM

On The Dick Van Dyke Show, Mary Tyler Moore's character was originally not supposed to be used in as many scenes. Sally (Rose Marie) was supposed to be more of a main character. MTM did such a good job as Laura Petrie, she was given a bigger role in the series and Sally didn't even end up appearing in some episodes.

OH Nuts! · 11-22-2007, 06:10 PM

In The Carol Burnett show, when they did the Mama skit Mama (Vicki Lawrence) overshadowed Eunice (Carol Burnett-the star of the show). The Mama Harper character was so popular in the skit a show spun off from it with Vicki Lawrence as the star.

catlover79 · 11-22-2007, 07:44 PM

Here's another example - Michelle on Full House.

Dean Winchester · 11-22-2007, 11:38 PM

towards the end, Spike practically took over Buffy The Vampire Slayer to the extent it felt like the show revolved more around him than Buffy herself

Buffyboy323 · 11-23-2007, 07:49 PM

Sitcoms
Arnold Jackson - Diff'rent Strokes
C.J. - 8 Simple Rules (Season 3)
J.J. Evans - Good Times
Mike Seaver - Growing Pains
Cody - Step By Step (Seasons 2-5)

Dramas
Brenda Walsh - Beverly Hills 90210 (Seasons 1-4)
Brandon Walsh- Beverly Hills 90210 (Seasons 1-7)
Kelly Taylor - Beverly Hills 90210 (Seasons 5-10)
Piper Halliwell - Charmed (Seasons 4-8)
Joey Potter - Dawson's Creek
Mark Greene - ER (Seasons 1-8)
John Carter - ER (Seasons 9-11)
Abby Lockhart - ER (Seasons 9-Present)
Jack Shephard - LOST
Amanda Woodward - Melrose Place
Marissa Cooper - The OC (Seasons 2-3)

Ireneparalegal · 11-23-2007, 07:52 PM

The Full House Twins

GARFIELDKOOL · 11-23-2007, 09:45 PM

Joey Lawrence overshadowed Blossom. It was her show, but Joey became more marketable than ever on her show.

Also, Jim Carrey on "In Living Colour"

Ireneparalegal · 11-23-2007, 09:46 PM

Polly Holiday as "Flo" on ALICE.

Jackee Harry on 227 as "Sondra".

freshprinceofLA · 11-24-2007, 12:59 AM

Well I think Samantha on who's the boss? overshadowed Jonathan. The show focused more on her than him. When people think Who's the Boss? well they think Tony Danza and a young cute Alyssa Milano.

mstewart · 11-24-2007, 04:00 AM

Suzanne Somers overshadowed Joyce DeWitt on Three's Company which I believe was the basis of their feud and still raw with Joyce today.

Mary Tyler Moore overshadowed the Rose Marie and Morey Amsterdam on The Dick Van Dyke Show. MTM was originally a minor character but she immediately became the unofficial leading actress but still was billed as "and Mary Tyler Moore."

Jimmie Walker overshadowed Esther Rolle and John Amos on Good Times. We know the story on that one.

Michael J. Fox overshadowed Meredith Baxter Birney and Michael Gross where they became secondary players on Family Ties where the original premise was about them.

Valerie Harper got overshadowed by Jason Bateman and she was unhappy and saw that she saw it coming.

Ricky Schroder got upset when Jason Bateman was more funnier than him on Silver Spoons and got him off the show because of that.

Bonnie Franklin supposedly got Mary Louise Wilson fired because she was stealing the show out from under her on One Day At A Time.

Polly Holliday (Flo) and Diane Ladd (Belle) was overshadowing Linda Lavin that they could not get along with her due to that.

comedyfreak · 11-24-2007, 09:19 AM

Jonathan Harris, Bill Mumy, and the Robot overshadowed the other Lost In Space characters.

The Sondra character on 227 overshadowed the other characters.

88survivor · 11-24-2007, 10:20 AM

Jason Bateman overshadowed the main actors on three different shows he was in: Silver Spoons, It's Your Move, and The Hogan Family. He even got more lines than the other main players in those shows.

Jason Bateman is such a scene stealer....I could see where Rick was upset of Bateman. He was getting the most laughs....

11-22-2007, 01:50 PM	#1
88survivor Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 03, 2006 Location: NY Posts: 1,849	Characters who overshadowed other characters....making them secondary characters. Here's a couple: Urkel in Family Matters overshadowing the Winslow clan in the 2nd season-onwards. There were times when Alex P. Keaton is the true star of Family Ties, where the other family members were sometimes regulated to window dressing. Was it just me or did The Hogan boys in the Hogan family got more screentime than Sandy's character? It seemed the most that got actual screentime was actually the eldest of the Hogan family, David Hogan. The other Hogan brothers like Mark and Willie got equal ammount of screentime. Name characters that seemed to overshadowed the other characters in return.
	Last edited by 88survivor; 11-22-2007 at 09:18 PM.

11-22-2007, 03:58 PM	#4
Carrie Dreamin' of Jeannie Senior Member Join Date: Mar 09, 2004 Location: Cocoa Beach Posts: 1,768	On The Dick Van Dyke Show, Mary Tyler Moore's character was originally not supposed to be used in as many scenes. Sally (Rose Marie) was supposed to be more of a main character. MTM did such a good job as Laura Petrie, she was given a bigger role in the series and Sally didn't even end up appearing in some episodes.
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11-22-2007, 07:44 PM	#6
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,376	Here's another example - Michelle on Full House.
	__________________ "Jesus loves you and He approves this message." "I'm alive. I'm feeling good. I'm trying to live every moment as much as I can." - Valerie Harper, March 2013

11-23-2007, 07:52 PM	#9
Ireneparalegal LEGAL SPICE ;) Forum Legend Join Date: Jul 25, 2005 Location: OXNARD, CA - WHERE THE DALLAS COWBOYS TRAIN & PRACTICE Posts: 38,691	The Full House Twins
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11-24-2007, 12:59 AM	#12
freshprinceofLA The Bosses Senior Member Join Date: Aug 09, 2005 Location: A small town in: Los Angeles, California Posts: 2,810	Well I think Samantha on who's the boss? overshadowed Jonathan. The show focused more on her than him. When people think Who's the Boss? well they think Tony Danza and a young cute Alyssa Milano.
	__________________ My favorite show is... Who's the boss? #2 Three's Company #3 Moonlighting RELEASE ALL SEASONS OF WHO'S THE BOSS? ON DVD Watch ION at 9:00 to 10:00 I <3 SAMANTHA! RAIDERS SUCK R.I.P. PAC & BIG we miss yall

11-22-2007, 03:39 PM	#2
tv star collector I Love Susie Forum 4000 Club Member Join Date: Oct 18, 2005 Location: South Carolina Posts: 4,486	Well, obviously Fonzie on HAPPY DAYS often overshadowed Richie Cunningham --who was the key character when the series first started. Barney Fife got more laughs than Andy Taylor on THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW (which was fine with Andy because he knew how good Don Knotts was). Flo was more colorful on ALICE (but not on her own spinoff series). Fish was better as a supporting role for Abe Vigoda on BARNEY MILLER than as the lead in his own spinoff. So, more often than not, elevating a popular supporting character to his/her own series backfires.

11-22-2007, 03:57 PM	#3
Mikado Main st bridge Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 06, 2005 Posts: 25,880	To me, they ruined Happy Days the day that Fonzie took over the show!

11-22-2007, 06:10 PM	#5
OH Nuts! Member Forum King Join Date: Feb 15, 2005 Posts: 133,383	In The Carol Burnett show, when they did the Mama skit Mama (Vicki Lawrence) overshadowed Eunice (Carol Burnett-the star of the show). The Mama Harper character was so popular in the skit a show spun off from it with Vicki Lawrence as the star.

11-22-2007, 11:38 PM	#7
Dean Winchester Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Sep 28, 2003 Location: Louisville KY Posts: 14,803	towards the end, Spike practically took over Buffy The Vampire Slayer to the extent it felt like the show revolved more around him than Buffy herself

11-23-2007, 07:49 PM	#8
Buffyboy323 Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Jun 24, 2005 Posts: 6,104	Sitcoms Arnold Jackson - Diff'rent Strokes C.J. - 8 Simple Rules (Season 3) J.J. Evans - Good Times Mike Seaver - Growing Pains Cody - Step By Step (Seasons 2-5) Dramas Brenda Walsh - Beverly Hills 90210 (Seasons 1-4) Brandon Walsh- Beverly Hills 90210 (Seasons 1-7) Kelly Taylor - Beverly Hills 90210 (Seasons 5-10) Piper Halliwell - Charmed (Seasons 4-8) Joey Potter - Dawson's Creek Mark Greene - ER (Seasons 1-8) John Carter - ER (Seasons 9-11) Abby Lockhart - ER (Seasons 9-Present) Jack Shephard - LOST Amanda Woodward - Melrose Place Marissa Cooper - The OC (Seasons 2-3)

11-23-2007, 09:45 PM	#10
GARFIELDKOOL Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Sep 02, 2004 Location: Rochester, NY Posts: 7,204	Joey Lawrence overshadowed Blossom. It was her show, but Joey became more marketable than ever on her show. Also, Jim Carrey on "In Living Colour"

11-23-2007, 09:46 PM	#11
Ireneparalegal LEGAL SPICE ;) Forum Legend Join Date: Jul 25, 2005 Location: OXNARD, CA - WHERE THE DALLAS COWBOYS TRAIN & PRACTICE Posts: 38,691	Polly Holiday as "Flo" on ALICE. Jackee Harry on 227 as "Sondra".

11-24-2007, 04:00 AM	#13
mstewart mstewart Senior Member Join Date: Jan 25, 2002 Location: California Posts: 1,780	Suzanne Somers overshadowed Joyce DeWitt on Three's Company which I believe was the basis of their feud and still raw with Joyce today. Mary Tyler Moore overshadowed the Rose Marie and Morey Amsterdam on The Dick Van Dyke Show. MTM was originally a minor character but she immediately became the unofficial leading actress but still was billed as "and Mary Tyler Moore." Jimmie Walker overshadowed Esther Rolle and John Amos on Good Times. We know the story on that one. Michael J. Fox overshadowed Meredith Baxter Birney and Michael Gross where they became secondary players on Family Ties where the original premise was about them. Valerie Harper got overshadowed by Jason Bateman and she was unhappy and saw that she saw it coming. Ricky Schroder got upset when Jason Bateman was more funnier than him on Silver Spoons and got him off the show because of that. Bonnie Franklin supposedly got Mary Louise Wilson fired because she was stealing the show out from under her on One Day At A Time. Polly Holliday (Flo) and Diane Ladd (Belle) was overshadowing Linda Lavin that they could not get along with her due to that.

11-24-2007, 09:19 AM	#14
comedyfreak Cheers! Forum Fanatic Join Date: Dec 14, 2005 Location: Sunny California Posts: 11,059	Jonathan Harris, Bill Mumy, and the Robot overshadowed the other Lost In Space characters. The Sondra character on 227 overshadowed the other characters.
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11-24-2007, 10:20 AM	#15
88survivor Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 03, 2006 Location: NY Posts: 1,849	Jason Bateman overshadowed the main actors on three different shows he was in: Silver Spoons, It's Your Move, and The Hogan Family. He even got more lines than the other main players in those shows. Jason Bateman is such a scene stealer....I could see where Rick was upset of Bateman. He was getting the most laughs....