The Disastrous Final Year of TGIF

[@Ccg9024]

Regarding 8 simple rules. I honestly think if John didn’t die, the show would have been a success. It would have been at least a 7-9 season show.

[@MetlKen87]

It was the best show on ABC at the time easily.

[@findenison9114]

Absolutely. His death was devastating to not only the cast but the fans as well. It was too sad to save knowing the grief was so very real.

[@pippin3168]

I loved that show. So nostalgic of the early 2000s

[@benadams3569]

Not when part of what Ritter's character was playing off of were the children..who would have grown up.

[@kd17Burger]

Umm , no way

[@captainmidnight]

How did I not know this channel existed until today?? This is right in my wheelhouse. Great job!

[@reesesander1219]

Hi captainmidnight!!!

[@Xayjohns]

Yo, I just found it too. And I already watch you, captainmidnight!

[@joeybaseball7352]

@@captainmidnight you should hire him, he's retiring from this channel.

[@Jonnytjat]

I just found this channel as of 3 mins ago according to this video lol. And then I see *CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT!!* Awesome! 👌

[@andreahardee2331]

@@reesesander1219f. ; ; F Ccc

[@O.D25]

Not gonna lie it‘s kinda crazy hearing these Ratings from from 20 years ago being „underwhelming“ akin to nowadays where they‘d probably some of the more successful shows on TV.

[@cabinessence_timely_hello]

German?

[@KawikaProductions]

That just shows you how big television was before KZbin and streaming.

[@DuckAvenger]

Man he's talking about 5.8 million and I don't know much about tv ratings but that sounds like a lot, double of what some WWE stuff is doing now days

[@carybeweary7209]

​@@DuckAvengerI think 5 million is also close to Yellowstone numbers too nowadays

[@DuckAvenger]

@@carybeweary7209 makes sense, I don't hear much about ratings besides in wrestling but yellow stone must be very popular. I should check it out

[@Techguyericd]

The real reason why TGIF failed in the 2000's is they didn't stick to the original formula. TGIF was full of family sitcoms, Boy Meets World, Family Matters, Step By Step, Full House, Sabrina The Teenage Witch. These were shows aimed at the preteen/teen market, those who don't go out and party on Friday night. It was a plus that these shows appealed to parents as well. The new shows were just standard sitcoms aimed at 20-somethings who would not be home to watch on a Friday night. It also wasn't something that would have been seen through nostalgia as the original TGIF block ended in 2000, so it was only 3 years since they abandoned the TGIF branding.

[@ladymacbethofmtensk896]

Actually, it is because TGIF shows depended on a captive audience, kids looking forward to the weekend, who could not yet go out on Friday evenings. By the 2000's, they were not the captive audience they had once been, as they were beginning to drive at about that time.

[@Lobsterwithinternet]

@@ladymacbethofmtensk896Plus, there were video games and the internet competing for their attention.

[@Jessica-ml6td]

Perfect Strangers

[@elvinvillamor472]

Must see Thursday, tgif, Saturday mourning....my weekend as a kid. Now everything is online and streaming.

[@curtyeomans8446]

@@Jessica-ml6tdPerfect Strangers was pretty popular with kids because Bronson Pinchot’s character was wacky enough to be funny. Plus it was an established show from the 80s, before TGIF. Once Dinosaurs ended in 1995 and then Step by Step and Family Matters went to CBS in 1997, it was the beginning of the end for TGIF. Yeah, they still had Boy Meets World and Sabrina The Teenage Witch but other shows in that teen-oriented vein didn’t really catch on (Remember Teen Angel or You Wish, which were the replacements for Family Matters and Step By Step?)

[@stanleyanyiam3035]

DID YOU KNOW: John Ritter was also the voice of Clifford from Clifford the Big Red Dog (2000; PBS Kids)

[@raulzavala9061]

John Ritter also vioced that Fish Police cartoon from 1992 which aired I think just 6 episodes.

[@kevin10001]

I knew that and his death is why the show was retooled into Clifford’s puppy days cause thry weren’t just willing to recast the voice of Clifford

[@Noifsnobutsnococonuts-rj4kk]

He was?

[@stanleyanyiam3035]

@@Noifsnobutsnococonuts-rj4kk Yes 😓

[@Lilcutiepie95]

My name is Emily Elizabeth and this is Clifford my big red dog

[@animula6908]

John Ritter was a class act. So was his father. My dad had rheumatic fever as a child, and he never forgot being visited in the hospital by Tex Ritter. RIP, John and Tex.

[@ladymacbethofmtensk896]

The truth about the death of TGIF is that, by the early 2000's a large part of its audience was graduating high school, going to college, and beginning to drink. The fact is that these kids were not the captive audience they had once been.

[@istvanpraha]

Agreed. It was a late genx/early millenial thing. Me and my siblings/cousins are born between 1977-83, none of us were home on Friday nights in the 2000s or if we were we were studying for college classes or working/just getting home from work

[@anthonyrowland9072]

@@istvanpraha They never replaced the younger kid viewers. Like I started driving in 1996, I only got a season or two into Boys Meets World before I bailed...

[@davidporter9553]

They killed TGIF by leaving shows on for too long. Family Matters and Step by Step had been on for about 10 years. Yes the original viewers grew up but you had a younger group behind them. I was born 1983 but I had to babysit a lot. But everything was so boring towards the end.

[@ladymacbethofmtensk896]

@@davidporter9553 It is rather too easy to take a captive audience for granted.

[@davidj.9432]

Agreed - I was born in 86, and watched TGIF up until I was probably 13 or 14. After that, I forgot it even existed.

[@ericveneto1593]

If you don’t like John Ritter, that’s a you problem

[@albertrobinson4576]

Who wouldn’t like him? He’s so charming.

[@ericveneto1593]

@@albertrobinson4576 Right?!

[@thepolarphantasm2319]

I recommend anyone who doubts Ritter... look up semi obscure 80s/90s comedy flicks Real Men and Stay Tuned. Warning: one includes Jim Belushi and the other includes Jeffrey Jones... though Jeffrey Jones basically plays Satan so imo it's ok 😂

[@BugsyFoga]

He will always be Clifford to me.

[@Chuck_EL]

​​@@albertrobinson4576 Right dude comes off as a edge lord Plus John was one of the few celebrities who never let his fame get to his head and never tuned down any roles and constantly made time for his fans despite the health issues he had His son also has his comedic tone and range

[@maximusprime3459]

TGIF was on life support once Boy Meets World ended.

[@larrymarshall8900]

Boy Meets World could've ran for 9 seasons instead of 7. I wish they bring TGIF but put in on Free-form. Melissa and Joey could have been part of the TGIF comedy block. Since Disney owns Hulu and Free-form. It would make more sense. Sense the network caters to a younger audience a four sitcom night on Free-form on Friday nights.

[@THERobertL2000]

That was the end of TGIF to me.

[@KawikaProductions]

Once again, thank you so much for letting me edit this video. It was a blast re-watching all of these shows.

[@shaneg9081]

Kelly Ripa couldn't leave New York if she was also going to do her show with Regis. It's not her fault she already had a better job.

[@petewillson205]

She could of it would of been very impractical but yes leave fri after show film show sat fly back sun

[@cameronjournal]

@@petewillson205 To be fair, I she had young kids at the time and she would have been commuting back and forth leaving her no time to be a Mom.

[@robinnicole4466]

​@petewillson205 no filming a TV show doesn't work like that thy don't film in one day and she was on a daily talk show she couldn't hav3 done that it would have been ridiculous she said if u want me in this show u have to come here she didn't go out for it they came to her for it

[@petewillson205]

@robinnicole4466 I mean, yeah, not often, but it could have happened...my 3 sons worked thar way the Dad was a movie stat so he'd shoot all of his seens in bulk then the rest of cast would act to a broom stick and he would be inserted. If they wanted her they'd make it happen...filming in new york was obviously the better solution

[@TMC1982Part2]

24:59: I would like to clarify something about John Ritter's death. He did not exactly die of a heart attack, he suffered from an aortic dissection. He was initially treated for what was believed to be a heart attack though.

[@frankreads8618]

Yeah, one reason his death was so shocking was because nobody, not Ritter's doctors and not Ritter himself, knew there was anything wrong with his heart.

[@SamAronow]

Undiagnosed heart defects have taken a lot of lives very unexpectedly. It happened to one of my teachers in high school who was just 32, I seem to remember a recent news story of someone notable who died this way, and it's tragic.

[@davidlafleche1142]

@@SamAronow If I understand it correctly, an aortic dissection occurs when a hole suddenly rips the aorta open. From the moment it happens, the person has a matter of minutes to fix it, which is virtually impossible. I don't know of a single person who ever survived it.

[@darcsiderOps]

@@davidlafleche1142 I AM HE

[@wpflesh6510]

My dad almost died (the first time) from an aortic dissection and the symptoms mirror that of a heart attack which is what my dad thought he was having….Johns dad died of what was thought to be a heart attack but also was probably a dissection

[@albertrobinson4576]

I love these obscure dives into old network lineups! I really hope this isn’t the last before the retirement, especially since you said you love these.

[@CinnamonGrrlErin1]

The 90s really was the second golden age of television, wasn't it? TGIF, SNICK, USA Up All Night, Liquid Television. Hell, even PBS aired Monty Python every Saturday night at 11 pm. What a time to be alive...

[@thesummaryguy3911]

early to mid 90s probably was, lots of kids being born in the 80s, adults still enjoying shows like seinfeld and frasier. By the late 90s though tv started to see dips and the only shows that got large ratings were reality tv shows and sports. Same as today.

[@CinnamonGrrlErin1]

​@@thesummaryguy3911I remember every Saturday night was SNICK, then Weird Science and Duckman on USA, then Monty Python. I taped MST3K Sunday mornings, because my high school job was at the local video store. It's funny though, except for TGIF, I don't remember watching much of network TV. And that was mostly because they had Dinosaurs and Muppets Tonight. I do have to thank Michael Eisner for using the TGIF shows to advertise the heck out Disney World, because my dad did take us there on a vacation lol

[@SuperMarioBrosIII]

@@CinnamonGrrlErin1 That was really the last of great tv! Think about Televisions Greatest Hit CD compilations which go from the 50's 60's 70's 80s and lastly the 90s. 7 Volumes in total from 1985 to 1996. TVT have yet to release any further volumes and do you know why? Well sadly because tv theme songs started to fade out by the mid to late 90's. This was done to make room for even more commercials hence killing the tv themes era along with great tv shows as well! 📺📼🎤📻

[@EarthPoweredHippie]

BET uncut

[@chickenalaking1319]

Don't forget TNT's Monstervision.

[@JP-st9hn]

You just had to be there in the ‘90s. Back then we only had a few dozen channels to choose from. Everyone watched the same stuff and it was glorious!

[@Nicole-zh7pl]

Right and we could all discuss it. I hate the risk of sounding like an old curmudgeon but oh well. There is literally too much tv now. There's super popular shows I haven't even heard of. All I do is stream reruns when that used to be only a Nick at night type dealy. Lol. Don't get me wrong. I like the fact that we have these options but it's just really one more thing that makes it harder for people to relate to each other. I can imagine 20 years from now it will be overwhelming and I'll just end up turning the damn tv off completely.

[@JP-st9hn]

@ I feel the exact same way. There is way too much to watch. We are learning the hard way, that the more choices we are given the less satisfied we are with our decisions. ✌️

[@fergalstackstreams]

I think part of the problem, if others' experience is similar to mine, is that a big part of TGIF's audience was kids and teenagers like I was who were home from school on Friday nights. As we aged, we started going out on Fridays and weren't there to watch TV. And the younger kids coming up after us had different tastes that weren't TGIF. So I think a big part of their issue was that they appealed to a specific audience, and that audience aged out.

[@markmyers6756]

These are the videos I'm going to miss the most, who else is going to go this deep into a network tv line up from20 years ago?

[@tkf15]

I'll never forget the night my dad told me John Ritter died. The extra salt in the wound was I was watching three's company. He was the only reason I gave 8 simple rules a chance. While I enjoyed it and was sad when it ended, it just wasn't the same without John.

[@brandonpage7087]

@tkf15, me neither! My, at the time, rich aunt, I was living with, in Houston, at the time, told me, the very night it happened. I was completely & utterly shocked!

[@ahsatan8997]

❤❤❤

[@pettykittyfam]

Amen RIP 🙏 John Ritter A brilliant man

[@blackpinups]

Same! I was watching Three's Company the night before he died and had a sad feeling the morning of and got on the internet and saw his picture and immediately started crying. I cried seeing this part of 8 Simple Rules. He was a sweet man.

[@magnetoonproductions9541]

When networks get bigger, they become more hostile and shortsighted. They used to treat shows fairly, but they soon start screwing them because of their incompetence. This seems to be one of those primary examples of poor network management.

[@TroySpencer-k6u]

I remember TGIF. When I was a kid shows like: Step by Step, Full House, Family Matters, The Dinosaurs, Perfect Strangers, etc. was what I liked watching.

[@OurKindofEntertainment]

TGIF, One Saturday Morning, Wonderful World of Disney, etc. man oh man those ABC late night T.V. blocks hold a special place in my heart because kids nowadays have access to big screen televisions, streaming, etc. However, I had a small rabbit ear T.V. in my bedroom as a kid. Black & white before I finally got a color one. Geez, I'm 33 but remember all of these shows like it was just yesterday... Edit: my little T.V. was in color, but if the reception via the rabbit ears was too poor then it would be black & white lol

[@SamAronow]

I'm just shy of 35 and experienced all of that as well.

[@SuperMarioBrosIII]

@@SamAronow Albeit I own a copy of ABC One Saturday morning audio cassette I only played it once!

[@fergalstackstreams]

I remember having a little "portable" TV (the overall console was about the size of a VCR) in my room that was black and white. It got about two channels. I remember seeing the premiere of DuckTales on it while I was laying in bed at age five.

[@OurKindofEntertainment]

@@fergalstackstreams oh man how far we’ve come 🤣

[@camondrae8]

😂same

[@CERTAIND00M]

For the record, Friday nights were always a graveyard for ratings. That's what made TGiF such an anomaly (while it lasted.)

[@connorbeith3232]

Pretty sure Cartoon Cartoon Fridays was a hit in it's heyday too, right?

[@littlekingtrashmouth9219]

The X-Files was also a great exception

[@CERTAIND00M]

@@littlekingtrashmouth9219 Walker Texas Ranger and Xena: Warrior Princess were also big Friday night draws iirc but, as with any successful Friday night program, they were soon moved to better nights as a result.

[@osaji922]

Twilight Zone was a Friday show. Brady Bunch too.

[@littlekingtrashmouth9219]

@@osaji922 yep and Miami Vice

[@jordil6152]

So you want to revitalize TGIF, but instead of using the high-concept premises and clownish over the top characters like Urkel, you decide to use the blandest cookie cutter adult contemporary shows you got lying around. Should have given Jaleel White a show!

[@garycrowley1745]

These shows did not fit TGIF at all, bland shows aimed at middle aged adults was never what TGIF was about.

[@osaji922]

That's really why it failed. Think about how many of TGIF's shows centered around the teens rather than the adults. That's what made it different from most other shows. The second revival had the kids as secondary characters and the adults were the stars. You can get that pretty much anywhere else on broadcast tv. TGIF shows were supposed to be family shows with the kids being prominently featured because that's the demo that was more likely to be at home on a Friday night with nothing to do. Sadly, ABC lost the plot and never recaptured that. There have been some shows that I felt could have been perfect TGIF shows if it was around and ABC was serious about it being a thing. Suburgatory, The Middle, and The Goldbergs.

[@dkupke]

He didn’t want to be back on tv at the time

[@curtyeomans8446]

This was back when getting 5 million viewers was considered weak viewership. Nowadays, that’s considered decent ratings for a network show

[@redpillfreedom6692]

Because back then, virtually all original programming was on the four main networks so a TV show had no excuse for such low ratings with fewer options to occupy TV viewers.

[@shibumi8]

Wow! Talk about a disaster. I only remember the Ritter and Lopez shows, first time even hearing about the rest of these.

[@Crazycoyote-we7ey]

What happened the core audience was Graduating High-school Joining the Military College Basically life took over

[@michaelhannell4083]

This was a successful in the 80s and 90s bc they made shows for young kids/pre teens. It failed in 00s bc they were making show for adults

[@suarezguy]

I can imagine George Lopez and Life with Bonnie appealing to preteens.

[@Lobsterwithinternet]

@@suarezguyBut they were now competing with video games and the internet for their attention and they just couldnt pull in enough people to match.

[@AlbertScoot]

You could feel John's absence in every scene. Everyone on the show was palpably grieving the whole time.

[@nathanramstorf1033]

Disney is Disney is Disney...for 30 minutes. Lived off TGIF through mid 90's no dish, cable was nil in the rural setting, and paper food stamp poor. Movies were Saturday night, Sundays was X-Files and Star Trek.

[@SquatchStomper]

Growing up, TGIF was an event that I always looked forward to.

[@SuperCosmicMutantSquid]

Same

[@wturner777]

Same here

[@osaji922]

Same. After it ended, I remember not knowing what to do with my Friday nights. I was 8 when it stopped.

[@DrewtheStew1999]

The final season is upon us!

[@mcalexander94]

Perfect Strangers, Family Matters so many great shows from TGIF. Sad it died.

[@christopherballero866]

Unfortunately the time of TV show blocks has died. Due to many things like: change in people's habits, being busy, having things to do, more people having cable, & the rise of Netflix hurt TV viewership. Now it's even worse for TV ratings & streaming companies

[@BraydenBunch58]

Man, Why did they think of renewing 8 Simple Rules for a 3rd season after one of the star’s died was a good idea?

[@orkutfinance]

Money, as it had great ratings. And I think contractual obligations

[@PotterPossum1989]

They kept The Connors going after they got rid of Roseanne.

[@SamAronow]

@@PotterPossum1989 _8 Simple Rules_ was no _Roseanne._

[@greendiamondglow]

​@@PotterPossum1989that's a little different. Rosanne got fired. She didn't die

[@djsjetsteve1]

Cuoco was like the hottest upcoming girl at that time period so they had to keep it going

[@CalTheHogNosedBat]

Hope and Faith had the chemistry together which made the show quite enjoyable.

[@beckigreen]

I liked that show a lot.

[@RariettyC]

The 8 Simple Rules cast felt like they had more chemistry as a family than I did with my own. Learning about John Ritter's death when I was a kid felt like being told that one of my family members had died. I didn't want to continue watching a sitcom that would remind me of that grief.

[@raulzavala9061]

I was a devoted TGIF viewer from 1990 up until around 1997 as I got my first job working fast food so the hours weren't consistent that I'd work evenings but I wasn't missing much, Boy Meets World was getting too heavy handed and girl junk like Sabrina the Teenage Witch had taken over. I can say pretty much my TV habits were changing dramatically that many of the later sitcoms I never watched.

[@amandaredd3057]

John Ritter's passing was so incredibly sad. The pain and devastation was palpable from the 8 Sjmple Rules cast

[@ryanjones358]

I loved Hope & Faith from the beginning and I found 8 Simple Rules to still be enjoyable after John's passing. I liked David Spade and James Garner as additions and their back and forth banter was comedic gold.

[@angrybeaver4995]

Nah, the show died with John Ritter. 😔😔 It got too serious and emotional for me. Every time I skimmed past it channel surfing, it just wasn't the same. 😔😔

[@janebyrne6463]

I know I'm giving away my age bracket here, but I can still remember Saturday being must see TV. Particularly on CBS in the 1970's, there was All in the Family at 8:00, M*A*S*H on 8:30, Mary Tyler Moore at 9:00, The Bob Newhart Show at 9:30 and The Carol Burnett Show at 10:00. I was a kid back then, but I can still recall it.

[@alanvallazza9781]

NBC had Golden Girls, Empty Nest, 227, Amen. Later Nurses and the first season of Blossom before they ended the sitcom block In '92 with the end of Golden Girls. And there was likely a show that failed like Baby Talk The final season of that block. Baby Talk had Julia Duffy and Scott Baio. Julia moved on to Designing Women. I can't recall if that show was on ABC or NBC.

[@WatcherPrime]

The mistake was killing it and trying to bring it back. They were better off reworking it while keeping it alive the first go. Maybe making it rotate on the types of shows.

[@averymerrick]

ABC's TGIF block (1989-2000) began to die in the fall of 1997: stemming from a combination of aging sitcoms like Family Matters and Step by Step moving to CBS (who started - and ended - their own family-friendly Friday night sitcom line-up in 1997-98 called "CBS Friday Night Block Party"), the oversaturation of supernatural/magic type shows (Sabrina the Teenage Witch and new series You Wish and Teen Angel, the latter two both lasted only one season), the failure of Two of a Kind (which was the last sitcom produced by the previously reliable Miller-Boyett group) starring the Olsen twins the following year (1998-99). Ultimately, the ending of Boy Meets World after seven seasons and Sabrina, The Teenage Witch moving to The WB after the 1999-2000 season. ABC would bring back the TGIF brand for the 2003-05 & 2018-19 seasons, but it never met the same success it had before.

[@SigmaRho2922]

This caused 20/20 to be expanded to 2 hours in late 2019.

[@averymerrick]

@@SigmaRho2922 Really? I don’t think that was the reason.

[@higgy04]

Jerry Van Dyke killed BOTH 'You Wish' AND ' Teen Angel' IMO. He should have retired after 'Coach' ended the previous season.

[@fakereality96]

Sounds about right when TGIF started falling off. The only reason I watched Sabrina was because of Clarissa nostalgia/crush and the cat. Not much else for me on Friday night ABC TV at the time.

[@averymerrick]

@@fakereality96 By that time (September 26, 1997 to September 8, 2000), the only shows that people were watching on ABC's TGIF was Boy Meets World & Sabrina, the Teenage Witch.

[@ericveneto1593]

BTW, the blonde on “8 Simple Rules” IS Penny from “Big Bang Theory”. :)

[@larrymarshall8900]

Also she's on Charmed and The Flight Attendant on Max.

[@pip7967]

I know right, it's like we watched her grow up.

[@reelheel5919]

Good one. Next you're gonna try to say Blossom was Sheldon Coopers wife.

[@The__Creeper]

5.8 million views being terrible in 2006 really shows how the TV landscape has changed because that would be amazing today.

[@Rattrap007]

I liked Complete Savages. Yeah a little cliched, but still fairly funny. I still remember a joke from the Thanksgiving episode. Something happened where they got a live turkey and it attacks the teens. The boys, the dog, and the oldest boys girlfriend hide in the bathroom. She says they should do something. "You're five grown men?" (Dog barks in protest) "Okay six!" Yeah each teen was a bit of a stereotype. Oldest to youngest they were: Cool one, dumb jock, nerdy brain, delinquent, and the youngest was the cute one. Yeah Mel Gibson had a cameo every episode. He played a safety instructor cop who was on videos the dad owned.

[@nicoleackerman205]

I like that show.

[@roberttreacy8271]

Apart from George Lopez, I have never heard of any of the other shows mentioned in this video.

[@ThomasDrish]

You must be young. They were all good shows on a regular weekly basis, but I don’t think any of them were family orientated enough to try to relaunch a TGIF lineup. I think it was an overall bad idea.

[@holzman00]

Same

[@scorpinok3006]

@@ThomasDrish What's also insulting was the fact they canceled his show, and replaced it with that piece of shit sitcom Caveman , (based on the Geigo mascots) and it was canceled in less than a month 1/2.

[@suarezguy]

Hope & Faith could have jokingly compared itself to Will & Grace to at least get more attention.

[@GaryTurbo]

Now he's doing another successful sitcom with his daughter on NBC and about to do another Blue Beetle movie while ABC now has nothing to watch

[@DarkReapersGrim1]

I remember this time over 20 years ago. I told my younger brother "Hey, TGIF is coming back!" Over 3 years after they canceled TGIF, the feeling was gone. ABC could've continued that feeling but not with these shows. These shows were way too vanilla/bland and not relatable. Nearly every show in the original TGIF (late 80s-early 00) was kids/teen-centered or kids/teens played an equally important role in the show: Full House, Family Matters, Boy Meets World, Step By Step, Sabrina The Teenage Witch, Clueless, Hangin' With Mr. Cooper, Dinosaurs, etc. The 2003 TGIF was centered around adults, parenthood and marriage. That would be fine if we were at that age, but most of us were finishing high school or in college.

[@baileymaloney3595]

Such a grand way to kick off the final season. I learned about ABC’s tgif from the vhs opening of The Parent Trap (1998), starring Lindsay Lohan and Natasha Richardson, and saw a promo for one of the shows: Two of a Kind, starring Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. A few years ago, I watched 8 Simple Rules first season with John Ritter as the dad, and I was shocked to learn that he passed away before the second season began. He’s a wonderful actor and he’s dearly missed. If ABC were to end 8 Simple Rules with only 2 seasons out of respect for John Ritter, that would’ve been nice.

[@MrRyan-wu4jx]

I didn’t know John Ritter, but he seemed like the kind of guy that wouldn’t want hundreds of people to be out of a job because he died.

[@Catnado5000]

Good old TGIF 😊 Perfect Strangers, Full House, Step by Step, Family Matters ❤

[@Gabbylicious55]

Also “Home Improvement”

[@Catnado5000]

@Gabbylicious55 I forgot the best one 😆

[@AbsoluteTravisT]

I remember, as a British teen no less, watching these shows growing up and weirdly I always assumed Hope & Faith, Less Than Perfect, and 8 Simple Rules were much bigger than I thought. I also remember John Ritter passing and the show trying to continue on, but again I had no idea it was actually that short a show.

[@SamAronow]

Did the network heads not understand that the original TGIF was a workable timeslot because its main audience was _kids?_

[@shaneg9081]

No, they did not. That is the problem with Hollywood. The money guys are in charge, and they don't understand how and why the creatives have success.

[@RoseRose-hp4rq]

You are so right !!!! I watched TGIF as a kid from the very beginning..and this is so true. I’d always be either with my siblings or friends or cousins watching TGIF on a Friday night. Wed watch one stupid show after another no matter if it sucked. 😂

[@suarezguy]

I can imagine George Lopez and Life with Bonnie could be appealing to families including kids.

[@shaneg9081]

@suarezguy yeah, and 8 simple rule too. But back in its real heyday there was always at least one show that stated a teen or preteen as the main character. They were not skewing young enough to really hook the audience that would be home on a Friday, which would be kids no disposable income and their parents.

[@ladymacbethofmtensk896]

​@@RoseRose-hp4rqA stupid show was at least better than nothing, n'est pas?

[@MrSiren52]

Friday nights have always been a hell-hole for TV, people just do other things, well, normal people anyway.

[@erics362]

I'll miss this restaurant chain. 😢

[@moseskuria1234]

Friday's are do dull these day's only news, true crime, and shark tank.

[@keithlatimer4433]

I was the BIGGEST fan of Life with Bonnie! It’s shame ABC didn’t give it more time. I recall liking Married to the Kellys as well

[@Nicole-zh7pl]

Oh I bawled my eyes out watching the episodes when John Ritter died. Him and Tony Danza were like my tv dads lol. You could just feel how heartbroken the cast was. The man just seemed like he was an all around great guy.

[@Caterpillarjon]

I remember seeing an interview of Katy Segal and she said the episodes right after John died, nobody was acting, that was all them. I feel so bad they had to go and film that while grieving.

[@RadioLaPrincess]

8 Simple Rules at the time was their most popular comedy which is why it went to a third season even after Ritter died. I watched many of these shows, several such as Life With Bonnie and Less Than Perfect were really good. Less Than Perfect reminds me of Ugly Betty which premiered several years later. Also interesting to note is that several years later Wednesday became ABC'S hit comedy block and many shows became huge hits once they got there (like the Goldbergs).

[@Candiegirl13]

TGIF didn't work the second time around cause it was a different generation. In the 90's. We had pizza Friday night played board games and watched wholesome family tv shows but in the 2000's that wasn't the typical family's Friday night anymore.

[@ashleysmith8290]

I stopped watching TGIF in the early 2000s. The new shows didn't appeal to me and I was out doing other things on Friday nights.

[@vanillac0keh3ad]

I remember liking less than perfect and life with bonnie a lot

[@jorgerosado2087]

I love videos like this. Knowing what went down in a certain network's history is FASCINATING. I'm actually planning to do a long video covering every single show mentioned in Family Guy's season 4 premiere. It's 29 shows but it sounds promising. Assuming I can find footage of Luis and Costello.

[@SignoftheMagi]

The original TGIF was created after a selection of ALREADY SUCCESSFUL family-oriented sitcoms with basically the same themes were all doing well on Friday. The label was just branding. One of the many reason the reboot failed was that they tried to force it to happen again.

[@sketchytwin113]

20:08 OMG Dippin Strips!!!!! I used to have those every other weekend when I stay at my Nana's house!!! I wish that they could make a comeback!!

[@MrBeardsley]

10:49 Technically Hope & Faith’s production moved to NYC because of Live with Regis and Kelly. Ripa had only been the official cohost for a couple years and ratings were through the roof (if you can remember the early ‘00s she was basically America’s sweetheart for a time), so ABC wasn’t willing to let her take an extended leave of absence because they knew viewership would drop.

[@AgeoftheFall88]

I watched all of this as it happened, I thought about some of these shows over the years, thank you for bringing back some memories. 🤘

[@bes03c]

In today's streaming age, it is so weird to think that the time a show got broadcast was such a major factor. My kids don't even understand the concept of live tv. Everything is streamed to them "on demand."

[@LilBrownieD]

It's funny that I'm part of the audience that aged out of interest in the new TGIF. I was barely aware of this reboot, but I adored TGIF in the 90s. I've never heard of living with Bonnie or any show except George Lopez 's.

[@TMC1982Part2]

Bonnie Hunt always struck me as being one of those "trying to make fetch happen" actors/actresses. Yeah, people may recognize her for supporting roles in movies like Beethoven, Jumanji, Jerry Maguire, The Green Mile, and Cheaper by the Dozen. But whenever she ventured into her own starring vehicles on television (The Building, Bonnie/The Bonnie Hunt Show, and Life with Bonnie) they don't last more than two seasons. And this was despite the fact that David Letterman was a big advocate of her.

[@megaspit]

This is a lot of why I stopped watching TV. You can just assume 90% of shows will be cancelled after one season, a further 9% will go a few seasons anf get cancelled with no ending, and 1% might go on to have a full run. It isn't worth the investment to only hear a part of a story so often. And now Netflix is continuing that legacy

[@brandonivy8523]

I never watched Life with Bonnie but I remember it from reading TV Guide. It seemed to have been a big deal. When season 2 started, there was an article saying they'd erased one of her kids from existence because she was just one of those things that didn't work in the first season. I found that weird.

[@cip6292]

Stop watching TGIF after family matters, full house and step by step were dropped.

[@JuliaDelbel]

8 Simple Rules was awesome, would have had a long run if things were different. Something similar happened in the 90s when Red Foxx died early on during production of his sitcom The Royal Family. Was doing well in ratings too, just like 8 Simple Rules.

[@IzzyTheGent]

Great video study! I agree with a lot of the findings mentioned here. This might just be me, but one of the things I believe ABC neglected during the TGIF revival is the presence of a black sitcom. I can’t speak for the Latino community, but the black demographic can run numbers up on a show or time block. During the initial run of TGIF, there was at least one black show present. We also stayed around to watch the other shows on the block as well. Maybe George Lopez had some communal support behind it, but I can arguably say that many black folks probably didn’t watch TGIF in the 2000s like we did in the 90s. (I know I didn’t.) By this time, major networks had either canceled black sitcoms or exported them to up-and-coming networks like UPN and the WB. Other than a few shows like My Wife & Kids which mostly aired mid-week during its run (and I’m glad it did), ABC didn’t give many of us much reason to tune in unless we just happened to like one or some of the shows on TGIF (because although we often share a common culture among ourselves, black people are not a monolith).

[@mechajay3358]

I remember watching 8 Simple Rules when it was syndicated and it was pretty good, but you can tell that retooled version just wasn't the same with John Ritter gone. RIP John.

[@willowfalls7528]

I loved TGIF so much when I was a kid. Boy Meets World was like the perfect show for me, because I was... well... pretty much the same age as Cory was. Perfect timing. Also, I loved Dinosaurs, Step By Step, and Family Matters, etc. I have only vague memories of this later version. I know I watched 8 Simple Rules, because I always loved John Ritter, and I have vague memories of Complete Savages as well. I.... think... I might have watched that one? Not sure. I always liked George Lopez, (the show I mean). I'll put it alongside Full House on the list of shows I somehow never associated with TGIF though.

[@RBSmada]

Yeah Complete Savages was hilarious

[@yotsubafanfan]

I saw a couple of the the shows on TGIF 3.0. They're absolutely worth watching. Not whatever the make-up white show was, but Speechless and Fresh off the boat are absolutely worth watching. Can't wait for that George Lopez video!

[@osaji922]

I agree but ABC wasn't really serious about TGIF after 2.0 failed. TGIF is supposed to be 2 hours and not just 1 hour.

[@machoman1016]

I always thought it was ironic that Faith Ford didn't play the character Faith.

[@smorris281]

Complete Savages was an underrated gem, I really liked it.

[@alanvallazza9781]

Autumn Reeser was involved. Was part of The O.C. later on as Taylor Townsend. She returned to ABC for the sitcom No Ordinary Family.

[@christianlorre]

I remember Breckin Meyer after the series Married To The Kellys ended in a interview said "did you see it?" sarcastically (it doesn't work in writing but he said in the tone of did you see how bad it was, obviously it failed)

[@josephhartman1152]

Networks now would kill for 5 million viewers

[@ivanbluecool]

This should be an interesting video.

[@Johnnie_Cochran_In_A_Knit_Cap]

My dude got a music studio named in the memory of John Ritter

[@Justin-Hill-1987]

I currently live in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where the ABC affiliate, WBAY-TV 2, featured on your VHS tape recording, originates.

[@KawikaProductions]

That is amazing! The tape in question also had some local news reports just before the failed block.

[@bobboman]

oh god it was trippy seeing the logo for american TV and appliance

[@Seirzaku]

TGIF honestly lost its audience. Boy Meets World came to a logical end, Sabrina got punted over to the WB to greater success, Family Matters and Step by Step got picked up and moved to CBS where honestly they got worse. They tried for give the block a shot in the arm with some shows but didnt commit to them fully or give them honestly a chance. Plus their original audience didnt stick around when they had competition on other nights. Sabrina was I think on Tuesdays or Thursdays by this point, most of their programming on Friday for me was alright but I was likely watching WWE SmackDown on UPN at this point.

[@tokensoftokens]

Don't fear the Ripa.

[@scottyb8392]

John Ritter's death was insane because it wasn't just a heart attack, it was a congenital heart defect that caused an aortic dissection which is super rare and also typically very survivable with treatment..so tragic.

[@MARKY2428]

New upload, hooray! Love your channel!

[@jenn82armstrong]

I remember watching the wonderful world of Disney. The movie or show was letting you know that it was the last hour or half an hour before you go to bed.

[@DoobieKeebler]

A great parallel to what happened with 8 Simple Rules & John Ritter is what happened with NewsRadio & Phil Hartman on NBC. They even brought in an SNL alum in John Lovitz, like ABC did with Spade. Now, it was because Lovitz was Hartman's friend, but it's still weirdly similar.

[@elguero281]

Also BTW Lovitz 1st didn't want to do the show because Andy Dick was in the cast & his bad habits got Hartmann's wife messed up to where she took Phil's life. Jon kind of set the difference aside & did NewsRadio like you said, Jon was Phil's friend

[@DoobieKeebler]

@elguero281 It's one of my favorite shows. What happened is tragic. I think Dick gets a bit of a bad wrap in THAT instance, as he could never have known she would kill Phil. Doesn't mean he isn't a complete degenerate, tho. And you are 100% correct.

[@elguero281]

@@DoobieKeebler Though on another random note, Patrick Walburton who would be a VA as Joe for Family Guy did also join the cast of News Radio for the 5th & final season

[@Wickedpissah138]

TGIF in the 90s was awesome! Great shows and sitcoms and great memories watching with my nana and family.

[@soapsatellite]

You know a guy left behind a huge presence when he requires two people to replace him

[@kalgrove6426]

I remember giving this incarnation of TGIF a chance. But the only thing I went out of my way to watch on Friday nights was Reba on The WB. I had a lame teenage social life 😂

[@TheCheat420]

To be fair I'd watch the hell out of the Jack Tripper and Peg Bundy show.

[@lindseyh389]

I knew a lot of this information already. So my takeaway is that I now want to watch Hope and Faith

[@JamieWoods-go1cv]

I remember what I call the "Original ABC TGIF" 1970-1974. The Brady Bunch, The Courtship of Eddy's Father, The Partridge Family, Room 222 and Love, America Style. For the first time, ABC was the No 1 network on an entire night. This was in an era when many homes did not yet have a color TV set. Many families still had just one TV set. Thus entire families watched these shows together. And they watched TV at the times/days set by the TV network or local TV station. I was age 7 to 10 at the time. Sony's first version of the 1/2-inch videotape Betamax VCR would be introduced in the American marketplace in 1976 followed by JVC's Video Home System in in 1977. The VCR allowed viewers the ability to watch TV shows on their schedule, not the network or local TV station. How did this impact ratings for TGIFs in the 1990s and 2000s?

[@itsJUSTMECE]

After all the mainstays Boy Meets World Family Matters Full House Step by Step Sabrina etc of the 90s all ended or left the network that should had been the end of TGIF. what ABC tried in the early 2000s was they didnt take an account that tv time slots were changing and depended on the TGIF name to carry the block.

[@JohnnyBoombatz1119]

8 Simple Rules was such a good show! I watched it with my parents as a teen. If Ritter didn’t pass I think it would have went down as one of the better sitcoms IMO

[@pip7967]

Real ones remember how awesome Complete Savages were. I never knew anyone that didnt like it.

[@TotalSchism]

3:27 Vince Gilligan jump scare

[@RBSmada]

Thank you. I knew I recognized him but I couldn’t place it.

[@z3poXP]

AHH!!