Happy Twentieth Season

What was going on 20 years ago? Bush was just entering the White House.....no, George H.W. Bush. The Berlin wall fell, Pete Rose was banned from baseball, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles became an overnight sensation, I was in diapers, and some of you were still forming into humans.

Well believe it or not 20 years ago, the same year Ted Bundy was executed in an Electric Chair, was the first season of "The Simpsons." Yes, the longest American primetime entertainment series of all time debuted on December 17, 1989. Now in their 20th season, as of September 28th, "The Simpsons" has racked up numerous awards including 24 Emmy awards and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

I assume you have all seen and heard of "The Simpsons' but, if you haven't, go to this website.

So all of this brings up the question, "why has The Simpsons lasted so long?" Well, that's because it is animated. Let's think about some of the reasons sitcoms starring people don't last half as long as "The Simpsons." 1) The kids get too old and un-cute. This does not apply with “The Simpsons” whose kids have actually gotten better looking since the earliest episodes. 2) The stars aren’t quitting their sitcom to move on to the silver screen. However, America’s favorite yellow, four-fingered family did test out the move scene with The Simpsons Movie in 2007.

So there you have it folks, in theory, “The Simpsons should be able to live until the voices of the characters go mute and the writers completely run out of ideas. Until then, we should be able to look forward to a half-hour of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, Maggie, and all the rest of the Springfield Community every Sunday night. Who knows how much longer this sitcom dynasty will last?

"Here Comes the Big One"

The sitcom I am writing about this week is in honor of Black History Month. "Sanford and Son" was the first successful African-American sitcom in television history.

Redd Foxx(photo left) and Demond Wilson (photo right) starred as the historic father-son duo, Fred and Lamont Sanford for six seasons from 1972-1977. They played partners in a salvage business. Fred was the boss of the salvage business who did least of the work. He was a very stubborn, colorful character who often expressed bigoted views against puerto ricans, whites, and other minorities. Lamont did most of the work and often had to call on his father to get tasks done. All he ever wanted was peace and his privacy. He often considered leaving his dad to take on more meaningful work, but, whenever he threatened to, Fred would fake a heart attack and spew out a catchphrase, such as, "Oh, this time it's real! I'ma comin' Elizabeth."(This refers to seeing his dead wife, Elizabeth, in Heaven)

Many of you have probably seen this show. It is not quite as old as "I Love Lucy" so I won't go into more detail about the plot of "Sanford and Son." What I didn't know about "Sanford and Son," is that it is based off of a BBC sitcom that ran for a good chunk of the 1960's called "Steptoe and Sons." It is considered by some as Britain's best sitcom.

"Sanford and Son" was a great sitcom. In 2007 it was recognized by Time as one of the "100 Best TV Shows of All Time." More importantly than that, however, it opened the doors to many other African-American Sitcoms. It was a new idea at that time having a "black man" running his mouth about other races. Some content of the show is even considered too controversial (Warning: Derogatory Racial Language) to be shown on network TV now. Without "Sanford and Son," who knows if we would have the great sitcoms we have had ever since, such as, "The Jeffersons," "The Cosby Show," "Family Matters," and "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air." Therefore, we salute you Fred and Lamont Sanford for being pioneers of African-Americans on television.

Happy Black History Month, ya big dummies!

The Beginning of Sitcoms

Luuuuuuucy, I'm hooooome!

It is one of the most recognizable quotes of any sitcom ever. This comes from the 1950s sitcom "I Love Lucy." In 1951 Cuban-born producer Desi Arnaz produced and starred as Enrique "Ricky" Ricardo in one of the first successful television sitcoms of television history. Playing the role of his wife, Lucy, was his real-life wife Lucille Ball.

The plot was simple Ricky was the struggling band leader while Lucy was the ditzy housewife that got herself into some crazy situations. It seems like a simple show, but, it blazed the way for many other sitcoms. It set the standard for how other sitcoms would be made. It was also the first sitcom to be taped on film in front of a live audience, using a three-camera technique.

Along with setting the standard of sitcoms for years to come, "I Love Lucy" was helpful in bringing women into the spotlight. In a time where women were stay at home mothers and wives in the shadow of men, it was a new concept watching a television show with a woman as the lead.

Another thing that was put in the spotlight was an interracial couple. Every episode featured the Latino Ricky and the Caucasian Lucy. It was a time where interracial couples were much less common. It was revolutionary to see that couple showing that they love eachother every week.

One more ground breaking thing shown on "I Love Lucy" was Lucy's pregnancy. Whoops! I mean "expectant" (CBS decided to call Lucy "expectant" rather than "pregnant" because "expectant" was a nicer word). Lucille Ball was pregnant in real-life and producers wrote it into the show. This was never before seen on TV.

"I Love Lucy" lasted six seasons. Television enthusiasts love "Lucy." It has lasted through time as one of the favorite sitcoms as all time. Little did Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball know, they were pioneering the way sitcoms were to be made from then on.