Blast from the Past: Mid-Season Replacements!

We're in sort of a wasteland time of year on network television (those of us who even still watch CBS, NBC, ABC and FOX. . .and CW). You never know if you're going to get a new episode of your favorite show, a rerun, a "burnoff" episode of a cancelled show, a pre-emption by sports or political event, a lame network reality show you've never heard of, or the latest infotainment newsmagazine. During the entire month of January, for example The Big Bang Theory ran two new, two old, and a new one is on this Thursday, with some reruns on occasional Mondays. You never know what you're going to get.

The other thing that happens this time of year is a reshuffling of the surviving shows, temporary (or permanent) hiatuses for some shows, and the launch of "midseason replacement" shows. The Following, starring Kevin Bacon is the latest example of this, and it has me very interested. So, it got me to thinking about noteworthy shows that started in mid-season. And now, you can think about it!

1. All in the Family (Jan. 12, 1971)
2. Barney Miller (Jan. 23, 1975)




3. Blossom (Jan. 3, 1991)
4. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Mar. 10, 1997)




5. Dallas (Apr. 2, 1978)
6. Dynasty (Jan. 12, 1981)




7. Happy Days (Jan. 15, 1974)
8. Laverne & Shirley (Jan. 27, 1976)




9. Married. . .with Children (Apr. 5, 1987)
10. Night Court (Jan. 4, 1984)


So, break out the TV Guide. . .app on your phone. Or just go through the DVR or on demand to. . .oh forget it. This is one concept that will be consigned to the scrap heap as more and more programming is on our own schedules, on cable or elsewhere. But that's kind of the point of Blast from the Past. For you youngsters out there, you should know that most of these programs debuted when most people had three or four channels, or maybe a couple dozen if they were lucky. With a wired cable box with physical buttons!


Anyway, that's it for this week's edition. Hope everyone is staying healthy enough to have a happy Monday!