The Wisdom of Gilligan

[Smartboy]

Something happened to me yesterday that has not happened in quite a while. Another poster on this site actually thought of a thread by me to be worthy of a reply! It was over on the "Mad About You" page and it was called "All in the Family". The purpose of that thread was to make the point that, it was groundbreaking shows like "All in the Family" that paved the way for the eventuality of shows like "Mad About You". In "All in the Family", such topics as religion, war and even homosexuality were dealt with in ways never before done on prime-time television. On "Mad About You" the character of Fran was constantly referring to her butt as her ass. This was part of the boldness of her character. Well, I would say that it was because of the barriers broken down with shows like "All in the Family" that made it possible for characters like Fran to get away with using the terminology that she did. I think that we should now talk about how "Gimme a Break!" fits into this spectrum. This show was created ten years after the start of "All in the Family". This show dealt with such controversial topics as death, birth control and busing. Well, I would say that, there again, it was because of censorship that had been relaxed in the seventies that made this all possible. In any event, the poster who responded to my "Mad About You" thread is called "Gilligan Fanatic". Just in case there are a few of you who have not figured this out, the Gilligan that we are referring to is the one from "Gilligan's Island". Right before I came here, I responded to that post. I would be very interested in what any of you think of our interaction!

[gilligan fanatic]

Originally Posted by Smartboy

Something happened to me yesterday that has not happened in quite a while. Another poster on this site actually thought of a thread by me to be worthy of a reply! It was over on the "Mad About You" page and it was called "All in the Family". The purpose of that thread was to make the point that, it was groundbreaking shows like "All in the Family" that paved the way for the eventuality of shows like "Mad About You". In "All in the Family", such topics as religion, war and even homosexuality were dealt with in ways never before done on prime-time television. On "Mad About You" the character of Fran was constantly referring to her butt as her ass. This was part of the boldness of her character. Well, I would say that it was because of the barriers broken down with shows like "All in the Family" that made it possible for characters like Fran to get away with using the terminology that she did. I think that we should now talk about how "Gimme a Break!" fits into this spectrum. This show was created ten years after the start of "All in the Family". This show dealt with such controversial topics as death, birth control and busing. Well, I would say that, there again, it was because of censorship that had been relaxed in the seventies that made this all possible. In any event, the poster who responded to my "Mad About You" thread is called "Gilligan Fanatic". Just in case there are a few of you who have not figured this out, the Gilligan that we are referring to is the one from "Gilligan's Island". Right before I came here, I responded to that post. I would be very interested in what any of you think of our interaction!

Like I said before, come to a a more active board, you just seem to like forums that aren't as popular here. Lots of good discusions all over the boards here at SO. That Good Times board is always rocking same with Three's Company and Happy Days.

[Smartboy]

Originally Posted by gilligan fanatic

Like I said before, come to a a more active board, you just seem to like forums that aren't as popular here. Lots of good discusions all over the boards here at SO. That Good Times board is always rocking same with Three's Company and Happy Days.

Thank you very much for the heads-up in terms of where the action is! I was recently over on the "Happy Days" page and read some very interesting posts. I am wondering whether, now that "Gimme a Break!" is back to regular syndication, things might pick up here as well. I also wonder how many people got started on watching it this very weekend! In any event, the only page that I have posted on recently and not gotten any replies is "Caroline in the City". I think that I will head over there next and tell those people about our interactions here!

[gilligan fanatic]

Originally Posted by Smartboy

Thank you very much for the heads-up in terms of where the action is! I was recently over on the "Happy Days" page and read some very interesting posts. I am wondering whether, now that "Gimme a Break!" is back to regular syndication, things might pick up here as well. I also wonder how many people got started on watching it this very weekend! In any event, the only page that I have posted on recently and not gotten any replies is "Caroline in the City". I think that I will head over there next and tell those people about our interactions here!

Come over to any of the Chit Chat boards too