Was Hello Larry a spinoff from Different Strokes or just a Crossover? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TVFactFan · 08-24-2002, 01:44 PM

i was wondering if Hello Larry spinned off from different strokes because i saw a 3 crossover episodes between both cast and i thought i heard that it was just a crossover but i'm not sure-I think because of he poor ratings for the show Hello Larry-the producers decided to bring in the different strokes cast to boost ratings. So if anyonecan help me out-i would really appreciate it

JethroSimpson · 08-24-2002, 03:37 PM

A lot of books and web sites say that Hello Larry was a spinoff from Diff'rent Strokes but it was just a standard sitcom also made by Tandem Productions.

When it was doing badly in the ratings they decided to do the crossover episodes but it didn't help the show being cancaled after 2 seasons.

TJL · 08-24-2002, 03:52 PM

What a coincidence, I just saw the "Diff'rent Strokes" episodes with the "Larry" cast the other day.

Jethro is right...

"Hello Larry" was on right after "Diff'rent Strokes," and they were created and produced by the same team. They felt that by linking the two shows (Larry and Phil Drummond were old Army buddies, and Phil's company owned the Portland Radio Station where Larry worked) with crossover episodes, they could lure the bigger "Diff'rent Strokes" audience to "Hello Larry."

As we all know, that didn't work.

Why oh why oh why did McLean Stevenson leave M*A*S*H?

TVFactFan · 08-24-2002, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by JethroSimpson
A lot of books and web sites say that Hello Larry was a spinoff from Diff'rent Strokes but it was just a standard sitcom also made by Tandem Productions.

When it was doing badly in the ratings they decided to do the crossover episodes but it didn't help the show being cancaled after 2 seasons.

That's what i thought because i never seen or read about the cast of Hello Larry being on Different strokes before the Show Hello Larry Started-

EccentricGenius · 01-14-2016, 02:18 PM

"Larry" was actually a sitcom in its own right, and NOT a spinoff of "Diff'rent Strokes."

"Strokes" was NBC's hottest new hit at that time (1978-79 season), along with "B.J. and the Bear." NBC had very few (if ANY) hit programs during that period, so it is no surprise that "The Peacock Network" wanted to capitalize on its instant success (ditto for "B.J. and the Bear" [which spawned "The Misadventures Of Sheriff Lobo," starring Claude Akins]).

Since both sitcoms were produced by the same production company (Tandem Productions/T.A.T. Communications), NBC's then-honcho, Fred Silverman, decided to establish the idea that "Strokes's" Philip Drummond (Conrad Bain) and "Larry's" Larry Alder (McLean Stevenson) were old Army buddies from the Korean War. By having both casts appearing in crossover episodes, NBC hoped that the audience from "Strokes" would tune in to "Larry."

08-24-2002, 01:44 PM	#1
TVFactFan Member Forum Junkie Join Date: Aug 17, 2002 Posts: 98,949	Was Hello Larry a spinoff from Different Strokes or just a Crossover? i was wondering if Hello Larry spinned off from different strokes because i saw a 3 crossover episodes between both cast and i thought i heard that it was just a crossover but i'm not sure-I think because of he poor ratings for the show Hello Larry-the producers decided to bring in the different strokes cast to boost ratings. So if anyonecan help me out-i would really appreciate it

08-24-2002, 03:37 PM	#2
JethroSimpson Member Senior Member Join Date: Aug 01, 2001 Location: England,UK Posts: 1,080	A lot of books and web sites say that Hello Larry was a spinoff from Diff'rent Strokes but it was just a standard sitcom also made by Tandem Productions. When it was doing badly in the ratings they decided to do the crossover episodes but it didn't help the show being cancaled after 2 seasons.
	__________________ My Brand New Diff'rent Strokes site is now at- http://chrisdoyle0.tripod.com/ ________________ _______________ Chris D.

08-24-2002, 03:52 PM	#3
TJL Suburbanite Extrordinaire Forum Star Join Date: Dec 29, 2001 Location: New Jersey - the cradle of civilization Posts: 16,591	What a coincidence, I just saw the "Diff'rent Strokes" episodes with the "Larry" cast the other day. Jethro is right... "Hello Larry" was on right after "Diff'rent Strokes," and they were created and produced by the same team. They felt that by linking the two shows (Larry and Phil Drummond were old Army buddies, and Phil's company owned the Portland Radio Station where Larry worked) with crossover episodes, they could lure the bigger "Diff'rent Strokes" audience to "Hello Larry." As we all know, that didn't work. Why oh why oh why did McLean Stevenson leave MAS*H?
	__________________ "I think I'll stroll up to the front to see how the shooting's going..." - Capt. Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce Read my blogs! http://centralparkamisguide.com/ http://dvdcriticscorner.com Visit me on Facebook!http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=641138880 Hey, I do the tweet thing too! http://twitter.com/TomLevier My shop of handmade items! http://www.etsy.com/shop/ColdGarageCreations

01-14-2016, 02:18 PM	#5
EccentricGenius Member Forum Regular Join Date: Dec 30, 2015 Posts: 766	"Larry" was actually a sitcom in its own right, and NOT a spinoff of "Diff'rent Strokes." "Strokes" was NBC's hottest new hit at that time (1978-79 season), along with "B.J. and the Bear." NBC had very few (if ANY) hit programs during that period, so it is no surprise that "The Peacock Network" wanted to capitalize on its instant success (ditto for "B.J. and the Bear" [which spawned "The Misadventures Of Sheriff Lobo," starring Claude Akins]). Since both sitcoms were produced by the same production company (Tandem Productions/T.A.T. Communications), NBC's then-honcho, Fred Silverman, decided to establish the idea that "Strokes's" Philip Drummond (Conrad Bain) and "Larry's" Larry Alder (McLean Stevenson) were old Army buddies from the Korean War. By having both casts appearing in crossover episodes, NBC hoped that the audience from "Strokes" would tune in to "Larry."