Past TV Shows

Maybe it is just a sign of getting old, but there is not much on TV that interests me anymore. I spend hundreds of dollars on hundreds of cable channels just to watch reruns of past TV shows. I flip through screen after screen of listings only to select Friends on channel one thousand and something. I guess part of it is that I am not a big fan of the fake reality shows. The newest genre of show is either a competition which focuses more on the petty back stage antics of selfish small-minded people or a completely unrealistic reality format that manufactures and even sometimes scripts antics for the equally greedy small-minded people you find there.



Past TV shows had more to do with reality than most any of the so called reality shows that are on now. Shows from back in the day were predominantly situational comedies which exaggerated real life, but at least the audience could relate to it. There were characters in the show the viewer could recognize and situations they could remember themselves being in. I can find little to relate to never having been marooned on an island with 20 strangers or dropped in a foreign country trying to beat 20 strangers to the next foreign country. How are those situations anything that can be called reality?



Part of the charm and joy of television was its connection to the ancient Greek aesthetic element of catharsis. The beauty of drama was in what the audience came away with in their view of their own lives. The audience was supposed to see the flaws in the characters on stage and either see themselves with similar flaws or be relieved from not having them. Past TV shows gave us that in both dramatic and comedic forms. The only thing the audience walks away with today is the knowledge that the world is filled with some pretty creepy people who will do almost anything for money.



Past TV shows also seemed to celebrate the good in people. Most of the shows were about good cops, good lawyers, good teachers who were in some way rewarded for their higher character and the bad guys were somehow punished. Todays shows seem to celebrate the sick and twisted leaving the most cunning and ruthless to walk away with fame and money. The culture seems to breed deviants who lead appalling lives just to get acceptance from the viewing strangers.



As evidence of the vacuous nature of todays aesthetic is the number of remakes in movies and on TV. Past TV shows are being made into films. Old films are being remade. Old TV stars are making cameos or taking roles on the remakes of their old shows. Melrose and 90210 are just 2 examples of this phenomenon. There is nothing new being produced for todays small screen that is compelling because the medium has lost its ability to bring the audience any kind of cathartic value by manufacturing artifice and calling it reality.

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Learn more about thousands of past TV shows by visiting Rick's Past TV Shows site or if you are interested in even older entertainment, visit Rick's Free Old Time Radio Shows site.

Smallville TV Show

The Smallville TV show was one of the first TV shows that married the innocent times of the comic book heros hay day with the sleek high production value and mature story lines of today. The show explores the teen life of Superman and how his personal character developed during his formative years. The show remains true to the innocent nature of the original Clark Kent, but lets us see the awkward growing up process of the main character. This brought the show a great deal of appeal across several demographics. Older viewers could connect with the show because it answered questions they had long wanted answered: what was Superman like growing up? The Smallville TV show also drew in new audiences with its young cast and plot lines that younger viewers could relate to. Both genders were drawn to the show because of the story, but females were especially drawn to the show because of the love story angle with Clark and Lois and others. The handsome hunk playing Clark didnt hurt the female demographic either. With production costs very high for any TV show, there is a risk of trying to reach too many demographics at once, and end up reaching no one. The strong villain character is Lex Luther made for a compellingstory line that could sustain the dramatic tension. The key was the writing of the Luther character as vulnerable and sympathetic as villains go giving him an allure that more purely evil and static villain characters have been stuck with in the past.



The Smallville TV show has not been the only Superman show. The original Superman show of the 50swas a truer version as far as the comic book series that spawned it is concerned. The plots were radio based and the characters were stock and static as was common in those early days of television. The shows tended to follow traditional radio plot lines which were simple and one dimensional so the listening audience could follow them. Only later did TV writer begin to expand story lines that took better advantage of what their new medium could offer. Another predecessor to the Smallville TV show was Lois and Clark starring Dean and Hatcher. This show focused almost exclusively on the love story of the two main characters. At first, this was the charm of the show because it was a new way to look at a well known character and the woman we all knew he loved, even if he or she didnt. Unfortunately, this narrow plot focus was also the demise of the show. The love thwarting action could only support the dramatic tension for so long. Eventually, they had to either get married or break up. You couldnt keep stringing the audience along season after season. The Smallville TV show learned from that mistake and built a plot and cast that could sustain the dramatic tension for several seasons. It allowed for the growth of the characters as well the growth of its audience.

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Discover more facts and trivia by visiting Rick's Smallville TV Show Page or talk about the show with others at Rick's Smallville Forum.

Survivor TV Show

Welcome the granddaddy of all reality shows; the one that started it all; the one that had everyone believing reality shows were really real: the Survivor TV show. Take a bunch of total strangers and drop them on a deserted island with nothing but a few simple tools, some rations, and a film crew and see how they handle it. Dangle a huge wad of cash in front of them and watch them go at each other like sharks in a frenzy. It was great entertainment and it spawned the next wave of television that is still crashing on the shores of home televisions worldwide. The reality series was here to stay. The Survivor TV show became part of our cultural and social fabric. The expression being voted off the island is not only used around the world in the office, but by other TV shows. No one can put out a tiki torch around their pool without making some sort of Survivor TV show reference. We all have that island sound in our heads when we joke that the tribe has spoken and someone must leave the donut table.



What gives this show a special spot in TV history is that it was the first to do this so well. It re-invented the formula for TV. You didnt have to have a new premise or plot every week or come up with new ideas for new shows. All you had to do is come up with new locations. The fact that you had almost no payroll for actors and thousands of replacements lining up to work for free didnt hurt either. The Survivor TV show presented a new business model that had producers and networks smiling. The people in the show were the same as the people on the show. The connection was amazing between audience and actor. The guy at home felt like he had just as much a chance to be there as anyone else. Add in the fact that the show was designed to bring out the darkest and most devious human behavior possible made the allure irresistible.



The Survivor TV show phenomenon has cooled off a bit from where it started in its first couple seasons. It was hurt by scandal and accusations of corruption. It was also hurt when the public found out that the islands they went to werent all that deserted and often served dessert at the end of a buffet line just off camera. But the show was strong enough to survive even that. The Survivor TV show made strong com backs a few season in a row, but now struggles to keep its head above water in a rough sea of reality shows. The joy that the originators can take is seeing their formula being replicated over and over again. The Survivor TV show changed TV forever. The way that shows are judged will never be the same. This show will never leave the island. The viewing tribe has spoken.

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Discover more facts and trivia by visiting Rick's Survivor TV Show Page or talk about the show with others at Rick's Survivor Forum.

NCIS TV Show

With all of the tension of world politics and terrorism that is in the world today, it is not surprising to see a show like the NCIS TV show doing so well in the ratings. People are looking for a manual to teach them how this largely unseen world of world intrigue actually works. Who are the people involved? What kinds of people do this kind of work? Why do they commit crimes against each other and their own country? It is difficult for the average person to understand the machinations of the agencies that try to control our own government. This show gives a glimpse into at least one of those agencies.



The NCIS TV show is one that is very well produced which has contributed to its longevity and new spinoff series. This is a typical programming maneuver along the lines of the CIS Miami ilk. You take a formula show and change the scenery and location instead of trying to come up with a new formula. This is much easier than coming up with a whole new idea. In addition, you gain the market awareness of a recognizable name and can save on advertising and marketing costs. With the high cost of production and advertising, this is a strong indicator that this type of programming will continue.



Luckily, NCIS TV show has high production value and benefits from excellent writing. The ongoing story lines between the main characters is spiced up and well supported by new and inventive plot twists. The advantage that this show has is its naturally intriguing subject matter. The inner workings of the military and the government in general make for interesting plots all on their own. When you add in the strong acting and overall attractiveness and sex appeal of the cast, it is a winning combination.



One down side to the NCIS TV show is that it does tend to contribute to the growing mistrust of government and the military. With week after week of crime after crime within the confines of the government and military structures, it makes for a bleak world. These are establishments we rely on to protect us and help control a crazy world. To be reminded each week that the system and the people who run it are flawed is a sober reminder of how vulnerable we all are. If the evening news doesnt freak you out the NCIS TV show will.



The NCIS TV show also benefits from its rather weak competition in its time slot. There is a lot of strategy and demographic research that goes into scheduling shows. Much this research relies on polls and ratings information that look at various demographic information such as age, gender, income level, and interests. These then go into a formula that determines how many of each kind of person is viewing at a given time. Shows are then developed and or scheduled to maximize their appeal to that audience and ultimately to the advertiser who but time to reach those viewers.

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Discover more facts and trivia by visiting Rick's NCIS TV Show Page or talk about the show with others at Rick's NCIS Forum.

Heroes TV Show

The Heroes TV show came along at a time when the public was turning back to its comic book youth to find the familiar stories and characters that so enthralled them in their youth. With the success of Batman and the X-Men ringing box office cash register bells the small screen was quick to capitalize on the trend. This is a trend that is not likely to go away anytime soon, especially with the success of the Hulk, Iron Man, and the fact that Disney just bought Marvel Comics for about 1.4 billion dollars. With that kind of investment behind it the comic book trend will be all we get for about a decade. You can also bet that it will be in 3D, so theaters can charges 2 dollars for a pair of classes that cost about 10 cents to make.



The Heroes TV show was a little different than the others in that the characters were not borrowed directly from a comic book series. They were a group of young people with extraordinary powers all drawn together by a guiding force. I know it is X-Men. I said it was not directly from a series. It was just setup exactly the same as one.



The Heroes TV show was different in another way. Even the story line and premise were borrowed, the writing was superior and original. The accolades never stopped in the first season with the Heroes TV show one award after award. The dramatic tension and depth of character were truly something to marvel at. It was a depth of writing and characterization that reached out and grabbed the audience by the throat and by the heart. However, it was this level of writing that eventually became the downfall of the show. Because it was so innovative and bordered on perfection, it couldnt live up to its own standard. The dramatic tension collapsed under its own weight and the show became a shell of its former self. Much like an affair that begins with a torrent of passion and heat, it soon fizzles when the passionate pace eventually slows. The Heroes TV show was like a sprinter trying to run a marathon. They look great in the first hundred yards but are soon passed by the other runners who paced themselves better.



The Heroes TV show was a nice spring board for many of the main characters film careers. It is not an easy jump to go from the small screen to the big screen, but it is not unheard of. The chasm between feature film and TV is becoming smaller and many people are going back and forth. TV had a stigma for many years that if a film actor went to television it was a step backward and their career was over. Alec Baldwin in 30 Rock and others have made great strides in eliminating that stigma. Like anything else, in this economy you take work where you can find it.

About the Author

Discover more facts and trivia by visiting Rick's Heroes TV Show Page or talk about the show with others at Rick's Heroes Forum.