The Monday Mommy: A loving tribute to Coach Hayden Fox, Sam Malone and George Papadopoulos.
“Network television, which was once the shining star that brought us Magnum PI and Moonlighting is now a cesspool filled with Dancing with the Stars and America’s Got Talent.”
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The television landscape has changed dramatically over the past 20 years.
Scripted dramas and comedies were slowly replaced by reality shows, documentary-style series and contestant based shows, where the prizes range from employment to cold hard cash, to even a spouse. Network television, which was once the shining star that brought us Magnum PI and Moonlighting is now a cesspool filled with Dancing with the Stars and America’s Got Talent.
As a sports fan, I long for the days when people’s passion for all things sports was interwoven into the television scripts and we could all get lost in a good chuckle right along with that canned laugh track. At the end of a long day of work, wouldn’t you rather see what Sam Malone, former MLB pitcher turned bartender is up to on Cheers rather than see what Kim Kardashian had for lunch?
I miss shows like Coach, where there was something for everyone. For those of you too young to have experienced this 90’s sitcom juggernaut which lasted nine seasons (1989-1997) on ABC, Craig T. Nelson played the head coach of the Minnesota State Screaming Eagles football team along with his wacky coaching staff. It covered his life off the field with dating and family, along with his struggles as a head coach of a university football program. Sure, it had its poor story lines and cheesiness but it was pure entertainment and was relatable as a sports fan.
The present generation of television watchers doesn’t really have that type of entertainment, the kind not exactly based on reality. Life is now in real time and any type of sports clip is at their fingertips. Gone are shows like Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper, about an ex-NBA star who becomes a substitute teacher/gym coach or Webster, centered on a retired NFL player’s adopted son and the shenanigans that ensued. These shows were legitimate family entertainment and have all gone the way of the dinosaur in the era of modern technology.
There are only two good non-reality sports shows still on the air: The League and Eastbound and Down. While neither of these can even remotely be classified as family entertainment, they are hilarious and worth viewing if you haven’t done so before. Their raunchiness and propensity for the absurd make us forget about the stresses of daily life at least for a while and take us on a much desired comical journey. Following the lives of present and former wives, girlfriends and side pieces of NBA stars just doesn’t have that same entertainment value.
I’m all for bringing back the scripted sports show. Perhaps they could give Sports Night another go; it was a solid concept that just didn’t find the right audience. Maybe America is ready to come back to well written television shows and ditch these washed up C and D list celebrities’ doing whatever it is that they do and calling it television.
Maybe I will create a change.org petition or a kickstarter campaign in the hopes that the networks will see the need for the shift back to scripted comedies.
That’s how we do things in the modern era, right?
