AlterNet has a list of the Top 10 TV Shows That Changed the World (from a progressive perspective, of course). I wonder what you think of their list.
1. Star Trek
2. Ellen
3. Ugly Betty
4. East Side West Side
5. Roseanne
6. Murphy Brown
7. The Simpsons
8. The Mary Tyler Moore Show
9. The Cosby Show
10. The Wire
I wouldn't necessarily argue against any of those choices. But I do have to shout WHERE THE HELL IS All in the Family??!!!! If that list of 10 is prioritized in terms of the shows that had the most impact - I'd suggest that Archie and Edith would perhaps challenge the top spot or at worst, come in second.
And no Twilight Zone??? Seriously???
Then there's also a pet peeve of mine. Before Mary Tyler Moore and Murphy Brown - there was Ann Marie (Marlo Thomas) in That Girl. I can't think of a TV show I was more addicted to in my early teens than that one. It had a profound affect on what I thought it meant to be a woman.
In terms of the best thing that's ever been on television - I'd have to go with The Wire. I don't know whether it had the impact of some of the other shows listed because the audience was never large. But man, that is the most powerful television I've ever seen.
I know I've forgotten some good ones. Any thoughts?
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What about Golden Girls? Not only did it have an impact during the 80's but it is also having an impact today, in the reruns.
ReplyDeleteUgly Betty? Why cause they hired a pretty actress gave her braces and glasses and called her Ugly? Oh yea, thats real forward thinking.
ReplyDeleteor I Love Lucy? Mixed couple who, gasp, pushed their beds together! That was more important the Ugly freakin Betty
I get the distinct impression that the author of the list is younger than me. Hence the inclusion of Ugly Betty and leaving off things like All in the Family & Twilight Zone.
ReplyDeleteThe Ed Sullivan Show
ReplyDeleteThe Honeymooners
I Love Lucy
Rowan and Martin's Laugh In
All in the Family
All the above changed the world more than most of the shows on that list. You're right. Whoever made up that list is just too damn young.
I'd have to put Gunsmoke on that list especially the black and whites. The portrayal of Native Americans and white racism was a seismic shift away from anything on TV back then.
ReplyDeleteIn fact all the subject matter is handled exceptionally well. At times it can be too unflinching. This is an adult TV show for the ages.