We kick off 1985 with a future Oscar winner, a long running butler, a short running sitcom vet, and the daughter of a TV legend.
family
The Kinescope Initiative 0125 /
1984 wraps up with a teenage show (and a creepy backstory), along with two shows that crashed and burned.
The Kinescope Initiative 0124 /
A major hit for ABC, followed by a spinout flop and a show ahead of it's time.
The Kinescope Initiative 0123 /
NBC's milestone series of 1984--now tarred by scandal.
The Kinescope Initiative 0122 /
Two future movie stars are wasted in flops, while we take a shot of insulin for a treacly quasi-hit of 1984.
The Kinescope Initiative 0121 /
Three stinkers and one hit from 1984--the latter starring two showbiz vets but sitcom newbies.
The Kinescope Initiative 0120 /
A satire, a movie knockoff, a returning star, and an ethnic comedy all premiere in 1984--and end the same year.
The Kinescope Initiative 0119 /
We move from 1983 to 1984, but the flops keep coming.
The Kinescope Initiative 0118 /
A throwback gimmick, a sequel failure, and a Lucy quasi-remake, all from 1983.
The Kinescope Initiative 0117 /
Three more sitcoms of 1983--a flop, a second flop that somehow made it to syndication, and a knockoff of Diff'rent Strokes that somehow became a hit.
The Kinescope Initiative 0116 /
1983 brings us three more flops, a show that seemed better at the time, and a missed opportunity for NBC.
The Kinescope Initiative 0114 /
We kick off 1983 with a show I despise, followed by two failures for sitcom vets.
The Kinescope Initiative 0113 /
We wrap up 1982 with a remake, a return, and two bombs.
The Kinescope Initiative 0107 /
We wrap up 1981 with a throwback hit and two flops.
The Kinescope Initiative 0106 /
A six-pack of 1981’s sitcoms including a spinoff bomb, a western parody, and a pioneering sitcom muzzled by the network.
The Kinescope Initiative 0105 /
We kick off 1981 with a knockoff, a reboot, and two movie tie-ins.
The Kinescope Initiative 0104 /
We wrap up 1980’s sitcoms with a legends’s final hurrah and another about to become a legend.
The Kinescope Initiative 0103 /
Three entries from 1980, including a pioneer in first run syndication and a flop from a TV legend.
The Kinescope Initiative 0101 /
A sequel, a spinoff, and an extension of Garry Marshall’s brand—just some of 1980’s flops.
The Kinescope Initiative 0100 /
We're 100 episodes in, and finishing up the 70’s.