Did Being A Spinoff of 'Soap' Actually Hurt The Legacy of 'Benson?' - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Brian Damage · 01-22-2011, 12:38 AM

No offense to fans of 'Soap,' but it was an entirely different sitcom than 'Benson' was. Benson had silly moments, but Soap was a virtual live action cartoon. Do you think that kind of hurt the relevancy of the sitcom Benson or does it not matter?

robyrob · 01-22-2011, 10:09 PM

i don't think it mattered - Benson lasted twice as long as SOAP did, besides, Benson was the voice of reason on SOAP.

blink · 01-26-2011, 10:38 PM

I'd have to say no. Benson was highly successful in it's original network run and if A.C. Nielsen was actually in the business of television market research as they claim they are, Benson would probably be more successful in syndication as well.
I'm sure the Nielsen ratings worked well back before cable television when they monitored thirty thousand households out of the one million or so in the United States. The problem is, they haven't increased that percentage in the last forty years. Nowadays with hundreds of channels and thousands of programs there's no way they can accurately assess viewing behavior. And have you ever known anyone who had one of their so called TV Meters in their home?
The truth is, A.C. Nielsen probably makes up the stuff so cable networks can sale advertisement time to businesses interested in their target demographic group. A large amount of cable network revenues come from cable fees anyway.
I'll get off may soapbox now. They promptly deleted my post over on the TV Land massage board the last time I posted the same negative comments about A.C. Nielsen, I took that as meaning that I'm probably on to something.

catlover79 · 01-27-2011, 01:34 AM

Another "no" vote here! The spinoff lasted nearly twice as long as the mothership, and really gave Robert Guillaume a chance to show off his acting range. Plus, the spinoff had the classic love/hate relationship between Benson and Kraus - classic!!!

Marvo301 · 01-27-2011, 01:43 AM

If Benson had been a short lived show then it's connection to Soap would have likely been connected to it's legacy. But since it lasted much longer than Soap it can be and should be judged on it's own merits.

Mr. Television · 01-27-2011, 10:59 AM

Except for the time that Jessica guest starred, anybody that watched the show would have no idea it was even a spinoff.

catlover79 · 01-27-2011, 11:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stuck In The '70's

Except for the time that Jessica guest starred, anybody that watched the show would have no idea it was even a spinoff.

Yup, she guested twice. I believe Katherine Helmond was the only Soap cast member to appear on Benson.

Jude The Obscure · 01-29-2011, 04:38 PM

It also gave in a way, Soap, some closure.......the second appearance of Jessica Tate was as a ghost.

Mr. Television · 01-29-2011, 09:38 PM

I don't know why Benson doesn't do well in syndication. I know in the 1980's it ran quite alot. Two or three of my locals ran it and did so for years. Just like Night Court, one day it just vanished.

catlover79 · 01-30-2011, 12:21 AM

Yep, I remember one of the local stations here in Cleveland airing Benson reruns every weekday afternoon in the mid-late 80s. I'd love to see those episodes again.

BensonFan · 02-03-2011, 01:15 AM

I don't think so. I just think ABC did not promote it enough or something along those lines. I mean, when people think of 80s shows, they think of Cheers, Family Ties, etc. Benson was always sort of a "best-kept secret", but that doesn't endear itself to networks, who have no patience for being slow out of the gate. As a result, it ends up in a vicious cycle: people can't get into it if it's not on the air very much, and it's not on the air for very long if people don't get into it immediately.

Anyway I am still hoping for Shout! to take over and start releasing the rest of the series. I just think the show was too interesting and funny with a great storyline to just collect dust on some executive's shelf.

BensonFan · 02-03-2011, 01:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stuck In The '70's

I don't know why Benson doesn't do well in syndication. I know in the 1980's it ran quite alot. Two or three of my locals ran it and did so for years. Just like Night Court, one day it just vanished.

What hurt the show, in my opinion, is when BET owned the rights to it. It suddenly went from being in somewhat regular syndication to being virtually non-existent. All during this time other shows from its era were being shown, gathering new, younger fans all the while. BET sat on that show, kept it pretty much hidden and unexposed for too long and practically killed it, since it was unable to gather a new viewer following due to its obscurity. It's been on life support ever since.

Thanks for nothing, BET.

RWCTV · 02-07-2011, 03:36 AM

Being a spinoff of Soap, it most certainly did not "ruin" Benson's legacy. As a matter of fact, when I was little, I remember watching Benson and liking the show. That was many many years before I even knew that Soap existed. It was not until I pursued collecting TV shows that I did research on them and found out that Benson was a spinoff of Soap. In my teen years, when I was at my friend's house, he had the first two Soap volumes from Columbia House. I watched both of those volumes and got into Soap. It was not until it aired on Comedy Central that I was able to see past the episodes that were on the Columbia House VHS editions.

And yet, Benson and Soap were in a separate class by themselves. Benson was more classy and conservative, while Soap was more dysfunctional and controversial. While both shows were funny in their own right, I guess it depends on the viewer's preference, or by what mood the viewer/fan is in. And so, because they are in a class by themselves, there is no way to say that one affected the other in a negative way, in my opinion.

gidgetgrape · 02-07-2011, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RWCTV

As a matter of fact, when I was little, I remember watching Benson and liking the show. That was many many years before I even knew that Soap existed. It was not until I pursued collecting TV shows that I did research on them and found out that Benson was a spinoff of Soap.

This was my situation too. I never heard of SOAP until the show reran on TVLAND, but I watched Benson all the time as a kid.

JR1 · 02-17-2011, 11:44 AM

the better-regarded of the two series, but Benson was enjoyable in its own right. I just wish they'd release season 2 and 3 (at the least) on DVD.

01-22-2011, 12:38 AM	#1
Brian Damage I'm Rich Bitch Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 03, 2002 Location: What Ain't No Country I Ever Heard Of...They Speak English in What? Posts: 63,107	Did Being A Spinoff of 'Soap' Actually Hurt The Legacy of 'Benson?' No offense to fans of 'Soap,' but it was an entirely different sitcom than 'Benson' was. Benson had silly moments, but Soap was a virtual live action cartoon. Do you think that kind of hurt the relevancy of the sitcom Benson or does it not matter?
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01-22-2011, 10:09 PM	#2
robyrob certified wackball#3 Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Aug 03, 2003 Location: hiding under the third booth at Arnold's Posts: 58,189	i don't think it mattered - Benson lasted twice as long as SOAP did, besides, Benson was the voice of reason on SOAP.
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01-27-2011, 01:34 AM	#4
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,376	Another "no" vote here! The spinoff lasted nearly twice as long as the mothership, and really gave Robert Guillaume a chance to show off his acting range. Plus, the spinoff had the classic love/hate relationship between Benson and Kraus - classic!!!
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01-27-2011, 01:43 AM	#5
Marvo301 I'm NOT a Blockhead! Forum Celebrity Join Date: May 17, 2002 Location: The Great White North Posts: 21,453	If Benson had been a short lived show then it's connection to Soap would have likely been connected to it's legacy. But since it lasted much longer than Soap it can be and should be judged on it's own merits.
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01-27-2011, 10:59 AM	#6
Mr. Television 23 Years at Sitcoms Online Forum Icon Join Date: Jun 06, 2003 Location: Somewhere you're Not Posts: 62,133	Except for the time that Jessica guest starred, anybody that watched the show would have no idea it was even a spinoff.
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01-26-2011, 10:38 PM	#3
blink Member Forum Regular Join Date: Apr 17, 2004 Location: Texarkana AR. Posts: 950	I'd have to say no. Benson was highly successful in it's original network run and if A.C. Nielsen was actually in the business of television market research as they claim they are, Benson would probably be more successful in syndication as well. I'm sure the Nielsen ratings worked well back before cable television when they monitored thirty thousand households out of the one million or so in the United States. The problem is, they haven't increased that percentage in the last forty years. Nowadays with hundreds of channels and thousands of programs there's no way they can accurately assess viewing behavior. And have you ever known anyone who had one of their so called TV Meters in their home? The truth is, A.C. Nielsen probably makes up the stuff so cable networks can sale advertisement time to businesses interested in their target demographic group. A large amount of cable network revenues come from cable fees anyway. I'll get off may soapbox now. They promptly deleted my post over on the TV Land massage board the last time I posted the same negative comments about A.C. Nielsen, I took that as meaning that I'm probably on to something.

01-29-2011, 04:38 PM	#8
Jude The Obscure Retired Eternal Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Dec 10, 2006 Posts: 7,520	It also gave in a way, Soap, some closure.......the second appearance of Jessica Tate was as a ghost.

01-29-2011, 09:38 PM	#9
Mr. Television 23 Years at Sitcoms Online Forum Icon Join Date: Jun 06, 2003 Location: Somewhere you're Not Posts: 62,133	I don't know why Benson doesn't do well in syndication. I know in the 1980's it ran quite alot. Two or three of my locals ran it and did so for years. Just like Night Court, one day it just vanished.

01-30-2011, 12:21 AM	#10
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,376	Yep, I remember one of the local stations here in Cleveland airing Benson reruns every weekday afternoon in the mid-late 80s. I'd love to see those episodes again.

02-03-2011, 01:15 AM	#11
BensonFan Board Psychologist Senior Member Join Date: Mar 16, 2004 Location: Chicago, IL USA Posts: 2,733	I don't think so. I just think ABC did not promote it enough or something along those lines. I mean, when people think of 80s shows, they think of Cheers, Family Ties, etc. Benson was always sort of a "best-kept secret", but that doesn't endear itself to networks, who have no patience for being slow out of the gate. As a result, it ends up in a vicious cycle: people can't get into it if it's not on the air very much, and it's not on the air for very long if people don't get into it immediately. Anyway I am still hoping for Shout! to take over and start releasing the rest of the series. I just think the show was too interesting and funny with a great storyline to just collect dust on some executive's shelf.
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02-07-2011, 03:36 AM	#13
RWCTV Making Sense Senior Member Join Date: Sep 21, 2001 Location: Lockport, IL USA Posts: 1,138	Soap and Benson Being a spinoff of Soap, it most certainly did not "ruin" Benson's legacy. As a matter of fact, when I was little, I remember watching Benson and liking the show. That was many many years before I even knew that Soap existed. It was not until I pursued collecting TV shows that I did research on them and found out that Benson was a spinoff of Soap. In my teen years, when I was at my friend's house, he had the first two Soap volumes from Columbia House. I watched both of those volumes and got into Soap. It was not until it aired on Comedy Central that I was able to see past the episodes that were on the Columbia House VHS editions. And yet, Benson and Soap were in a separate class by themselves. Benson was more classy and conservative, while Soap was more dysfunctional and controversial. While both shows were funny in their own right, I guess it depends on the viewer's preference, or by what mood the viewer/fan is in. And so, because they are in a class by themselves, there is no way to say that one affected the other in a negative way, in my opinion.
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02-17-2011, 11:44 AM	#15
JR1 Member Forum Regular Join Date: Mar 07, 2009 Location: USA Posts: 742	Soap is... the better-regarded of the two series, but Benson was enjoyable in its own right. I just wish they'd release season 2 and 3 (at the least) on DVD.