Your Quick Guide To Popular TV Shows

In the early 20th century, television (TV) became one of the most popular ways for Americans to gather together. Many people were quick to point out that television was changing the way they watched the world, and even changed the way they would write home. For years TV has been a fixture in American society; however, the invention of the VHS marked the beginning of an incredible craze in which people would record entire seasons of their favorite shows for later enjoyment. Over the next several decades, this VHS explosion would produce an unprecedented number of classic TV shows that have become instant classics; here is a look at some of the television shows of the last two decades.

‘Happy Days’ – Everyone’s favorite sitcom about a group of high school friends who go from town to town in pursuit of the perfect life: Pat O’Brien, Missy Hytester, David Hyde Pierce, and everyone’s favorite character, Mikey Day. The series ran for four seasons on ABC, and was revived for a fifth season on FX. This happy ending was not surprising since the show was one of the first to capitalize on the “long tail” term, which describes a TV show with an extremely large amount of viewers that tend to stay on for more than one season. ‘Happy Days’ was one of the first shows to use a format where each episode had a teaser, followed by a closing episode that dealt with what happened between the series’ individual episodes.

‘Friends’ – Everyone’s favorite short-lived television comedy about a group of friends who still remain close after high school has ended. The show ran for six seasons on NBC, before coming back for a seventh and final season on Friends (along with a spin-off starring Jennifer Aniston and Rachel Cook). The core cast (the same five people who played the core characters in the show) remains the same, and the show did quite well for the network, selling over 1.75 million episodes in the US alone. The show was a huge hit because of its charm, but also because it was a very realistic comedy, featuring a central group of friends who were constantly fighting and dealing with problems that most people would view as completely and utterly ridiculous. It was one of the most popular comedies of the nineties, which is something very important to remember today, when the trend for comedies has been towards slightly more adult and dramatic formats.

‘Seinfeld’ – Another one of the classic TV sitcoms, ‘Seinfeld’ chronicles the daily life of George “apygad” Einstein ( Comedian/Actor Jerry Seinfeld), and his friends and colleagues (including Johnathanependent, Phoebe judge, Elaine Benning, and Ross whimper). The show became popular after its first season, when the Seinfeld gang managed to convince audiences that George is a superstar, when in reality he is just a down-to-earth guy who is dealing with some personal issues in his life. The show went on to become one of the most long running TV shows of all time, spawning multiple spinoffs and a feature film adaptation. It is very funny, and considered to be among the best sitcoms of all time. A quick web search will reveal all of the fun facts about ‘Seinfeld’, including all the behind the scenes action from every single season of the show.

‘The Office’ – Another extremely popular TV show about an office, ‘The Office’ follows the day to day life within an office. With hilarious comic sequences, the show is currently in pre-season, so you won’t get too much in the way of new information right now. However, many fans of the show are expecting a full season for sometime in the near future. The premise behind the show is that a large corporation is employing a large number of people (creators of the show say over 60). Each employee is provided with very little room to grow, and must perform under strict instructions from their supervisor.

‘Fringe’ – If you want to get into a new TV series, but aren’t sure where to start, ‘Fringe’ is a great place to start. Since the beginning of the TV series, the characters from the main show have formed a group of their own, living in a strange world, with only a few basic tools to get by. The TV show’s popularity has led to spinoffs and movies, many of which have been very successful. In fact, many fans consider ‘Fringe’ to be the best science fiction show of all time, and are always eager for new adventures.