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.

A Very Brady Blog

Here's a story, of a lovely lady, who was bringing up three very lovely girls. All of them had hair of gold, like their mother, the youngest one in curls. Oh yes, it is that infectious tune that I, hopefully, have stuck in your head for the rest of the day.

The Brady Bunch was a favorite of mine growing up. However, over the years, one thing became clearer to me: They are too perfect. Hopefully some of you younger kids have seen The Brady Bunch on TV Land so you know what I am talking about.

First of all, after the theme song, there is the classic shot of the Brady house. Next, the camera would zoom into a setting such as the lawn where the kids are playing in the lush green grass. As Mike Brady is just getting back from his work as an architect, he drives up the long driveway in his 1971 Plymouth Barracuda Convertible (or one of the other four muscle cars he must have hid in that one-car garage along with the family station wagon over the five seasons) the kids, Carol, and Alice all go out to see him. Within the first minute, we can see that this is not your present-day sitcom.

These people were squeaky clean. After both Mike and Carol's first spouses passed away (suicide maybe?) they found each other. They got married and from then on the eight of them (nine with Alice, ten with cousin Oliver) were a big happy family until the show was cancelled. Not once was there ever the "You aren't my real mom" argument. However, there was a little sibling rivalry here and there. In 117 episodes "sex" was muttered only twice, only one of the boys got kissed on screen (Bobby), and they did not even have a toilet in the bathroom due to censors.

I love The Brady Bunch but I don't believe it would survive in this day and age. It just goes to show you that TV has resorted to more sex, violence, and obscenities over the years. A sitcom about a happy family with a lady with three lovely girls and a man busy with three boys of his own just wouldn't cut it anymore.

A Little Lesson In Love From Sitcoms

You are flipping through the channels in the afternoon and what do you see? Sitcoms! My last post must have been deceptive. Many people thought that this semester I would be writing only on the US versus UK version of "The Office." However, this was never intended (as this would get redundant and boring). This semester I will be writing my blogs on Sitcoms.

Now, watching sitcoms any odd afternoon, one can gather some tips in their love life. For example, if you watch "The King of Queens" or "Still Standing," you will learn that opposites attract. In both of these shows, very beautiful women are married to overweight, yet, comical slobs.

These men, also tend to screw up on a day-to-day basis. Once the woman communicates to the man he has messed up, the man always does the right thing to make his wife happy again. By the end of the episode, everything is right with the world.

As a man that doesn't get all the ladies, this would give you hope that there is a woman out for you too: A beautiful woman who doesn't seem to care that you haven't worked out since college, a gorgeous woman who will let you sit on the couch and watch football all day with your friends, and a stunning woman who will allow you to mess up every week and never threaten to divorce you. Oh, and did I mention she is very attractive?

As a very attractive woman, this should show you that maybe your idea of an ideal man with rugged good looks and boyish charm may not be the way to go. Maybe there is a guy out there who may not have all the looks but will do whatever it takes to make you happy. So ladies, consider picking up a fat dumb slob. Who knows, maybe they will make a sitcom based on you?

The Office vs. The Office UK

By now, most of you have heard about the hit sitcom "The Office."(full episodes from season five can be watched here) It is a "mockumentary" on a group of workers who live out their everyday lives on camera. Only, their lives are very entertaining. Office romances flare up, pranks are pulled, and hilarity ensues. "The Office" is a personal favorite of my family, we quote it everyday. I have seen every episode numerous times, but, that is a different story.

What some people don't know, is that "The Office" is actually based off of a hit BBC series of the same name. The series ran for three seasons from 2001-2003. Ricky Gervais starred in the UK version of "The Office" and is now a writer and creator of the American version that has outlasted the original (it is now on its fifth season).

While looking through video comments on numerous videos from "The Office" on YouTube I came across many people arguing which is better: the American or UK version of "The Office?" From what I have found, both have their own pros and cons.

The UK version
Pros

• It is the original.
• The people are more realistic looking.

Cons

• Working class British accents are hard for Americans to understand.
• The people aren't as good looking. (Superficial? I know.)

The US version

Pros

• Very talented cast including Steve Carell
• Cast is warm and charismatic (And tan!)

Cons

• Not quite as realistic

Although they both have their pros and cons, I believe that it should not be a battle between which show is better, but rather we should appreciate how the American version has brought this beautiful masterpiece into our lives. I had not even heard of "The Office" before 2005 and now, sadly, I don't think I can live without it. Also, we should appreciate the UK version for the great plot and storyline. Either way, if you haven't seen either of the versions of "The Office" I urge you to go watch them (I recommend renting the seasons so you can watch them all the way through). Oh, and if you do not like "The Office," you just wasted a few minutes of your life reading this. Sorry.