Lightly Syndicated Or Did I Miss The Boat (1 Viewer)

[Mark Y]

In Chicago we kind of got a kick-start for old shows coming back in the mid-1980s, because we got two "new" local independent stations, Channel 60 (now Channel 50) using the frequency of the former Sportsvision (now Fox Sports Chicago) and Channel 66 (formerly the pay channel Spectrum). (Channel 44 also went "pay" and became ON-TV, and when that folded they went Spanish.) I found that when a new station started up, they began by running a lot of old "classic" shows, probably because that's what they could afford. A lot of the shows mentioned above showed up on Channel 60 in Chicago in the mid-1980s, several of which had not been seen in Chicago for a good number of years. Then I guess as these stations become solvent, they move on to stuff that's more commercial. It's the same with cable channels now, like the Game Show Network, Cartoon Network, etc., they generally start out running classic stuff and then eventually transition to original programming.

 

[Richard V]

. It's the same with cable channels now, like the Game Show Network, Cartoon Network, etc., they generally start out running classic stuff and then eventually transition to original programming.

Yep, USA Network, F/X, TNT, CBN, Sci-Fi, etc were the same.

 

[Neil Brock]

I remember Neil Brock saying a few times that Room 222 was last seen on USA Network in the 80's. Actually, it was TVLand in the 90's. I take it he didn't have TVLand back then.

Also, when Room 222 was first syndicated shortly after cancellation in the mid-70's, one unaired episode from the 5th and final season was added to the rotation.

I don't think they had it as a fully scheduled show, maybe ran a handful but I don't think more than that.

 

[actionsub]

I was thinking about the bunch of once popular shows I had no exposure to before until I was an adult. My question is this. Were these shows poorly syndicated in the very late 70's early 80's or did I just ignore them?
Here's a list: before 87, I had not seen a single episode of:

The Fugitive, Invaders, Route 66, Defenders, Burke's Law, The Warner Detective shows, Ben Casey, Peter Gunn, Rawhide, Have Gun, Will Travel, Run For Your Life, NYPD, Richard Diamond, Time Tunnel. Land Of The Giants, Laredo, I Spy, Nanny and The Professor, Love That Bob, Mr. Novak, Judd, Twelve 0' Clock High, The Avengers, Name Of The Game, Cheyenne

and only a handful of: The Untouchables, Mannix, Room 222, Cannon, Kolchak.

So was I dense or were they just not there? LOL

Some of these shows have shown up on new digital side channels like MeTV which runs The Fugitive, Route 66, Peter Gunn, and 12 O'Clock High. Granted, they're shown at odd hours of the night, but they are there.Some of the westerns like Cheyenne and Rawhide have recently aired on Encore's Western channel.Many of the shows did go to syndication, others not so much. For instance, I can't recall NYPD or Nanny and the Professor ever being shown since their network run. And in the early days of cable (late 70s/early 80s), strangely there weren't a lot of these classic shows that would be seen on cable. You're actually more likely to run across one of these shows now than back then.

 

[Tony Bensley]

A definite exception to the 100 episode syndication gold standard back in the day was GILLIGAN'S ISLAND, whose original Series run ended at 98 episodes. While I do enjoy this show very much, back in the 70's, our Canadian Global Television Network reran it to the point that even I grew sick of it for awhile!

The unfortunate tendency toward endless rerunning multiple episodes of the same shows has, in my opinion, severely eroded today's viewing options in terms of TV broadcasts. I'm well aware of the time shifting phenomenon that became in the 1980's, but in this age of the PVR, this would now appear to be rather outmoded!

Getting back to topic, my prime genre of interest in the 1970's (Aside from Children's Programming.) were comedies. In that area, shows such as MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY; THE MANY LOVES OF DOBIE GILLIS; MY LITTLE MARGIE or FATHER KNOWS BEST simply never aired on Canadian Television, nor do I believe they ever have since beyond a few years after their initial network runs at least.

CHEERS!

 

[Scott511]

For instance, I can't recall NYPD or Nanny and the Professor ever being shown since their network run.

Nanny and The Professor ran endlessly on FX when the channel premiered. Looking back now I should have recorded those and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, and Swiss Family Robinson.

 

[wizard55]

This is a fascinating thread. just the other day I was going through some old TV guides trying to find all the short-lived series that got syndicated locally or in cable. TvLand back in the day showed damn near everything. I taped special airings of Perfect Strangers, Mr. Terrific, Outlaws, Tabitha. I missed taping stuff like their Gloria reruns. You remember TvLands 5th Anniversary weekend marathon? I taped, ALOT that weekend. Alias Smith & Jones, Family Affair, Sonny and Cher....so much.

 

[Richard V]

Poor TV Land, R.I.P. A great original network ruined by "The Suits".

 

[Gary16]

Poor TV Land, R.I.P. A great original network ruined by "The Suits".

After they first killed off "Nick at Nite".

 

[LeoA]

I don't think they had it as a fully scheduled show, maybe ran a handful but I don't think more than that.

Nope, it was a regular part of their lineup for a while.

 

[Tory]

I was born in 78, I am certain I saw Avengers in the early 80s when I was 4-6 and I know Defenders, Nanny and the Professor, and The Fugitive aired in some capacity, I saw them in tv grids but on stations I did not have. I think it is possible that I saw an episode or two of Peter Gunn and most likely I saw some I Spy too back then as when I got the DVDs they both seemed very familiar, I Spy moreso, but I can only say with any certainty that I knew Emma Peel and Steed from a young age.I remember that opening music very well too.