Worst TV Variety Shows Ever

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Vidiot, Feb 17, 2021.

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  1. Poor Michael Keaton and David Letrerman.
     
  2. Mistermono

    Mistermono Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson had a go at reviving the format a few years back. In the tradition of their 70s forebears, it sucked.
     
  3. Kyle B

    Kyle B Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago
    It helped that Reed’s nemesis, Brady creator Sherwood Schwartz, had nothing to do with the variety hour. Instead, Sid and Marty Krofft produced.
     
  4. Big Jimbo

    Big Jimbo Forum Resident

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    NY
    No love (or disdain) for Saturday Night with Howard Cosell?
     
  5. altaeria

    altaeria Forum Resident

    Nowadays we dedicate entire shows to a bunch of people trying to sing like Whitney Houston. It kinda makes me miss watching Art Carney outsmart imperial stormtroopers.
     
  6. rjp

    rjp Senior Member

    Location:
    Ohio
    american idol, without a doubt.
     
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  7. Spaghettiows

    Spaghettiows Forum Resident

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    Silver Creek, NY
    I would bet that Sherwood Schwartz collected some kind of royalties from that show, even if he was not directly involved with the production.
     
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  8. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR! Thread Starter

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    That was also a horrible, horrible, haaaaaaaaarible show.

    I'm guessing that Paul got profoundly ill on the way to the bank to cash the royalty check.
     
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  9. Paul Gase

    Paul Gase Everything is cheaper than it looks.

    Location:
    California
    By the time I was 16, if I ended up watching any variety show, I knew my current social life was in the crapper. Same goes for Fantasy Island and The Love Boat.
     
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  10. O Don Piano

    O Don Piano Senior Member

    I agree with the awful-ness of that show and it's emphasis on mediocrity and anti-individualism; however it's not really a variety show in terms of the shows discussed here because there's no comedy sketches or stuff like that. American Idol is all about 'music'.
     
  11. scoutbb

    scoutbb Senior Member

    Location:
    LA
    Chevy Chase’s late night show was horrible.
     
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  12. Paul Gase

    Paul Gase Everything is cheaper than it looks.

    Location:
    California
    The worst!:uhhuh:

     
  13. Jrr

    Jrr Forum Resident

    Pretty much all of them. At least in the 70’s!
     
  14. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever

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    Seems to be some confusion about what a "variety show" is.

    Talk shows and talent shows aren't variety shows...
     
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  15. pdenny

    pdenny 22-Year SHTV Participation Trophy Recipient

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    As a comedian in all seriousness, thanks for posting that!
     
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  16. Spaghettiows

    Spaghettiows Forum Resident

    Location:
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    That's true, but I think that you could consider those old daytime Merv Griffin and Mike Douglas shows kind of a hybrid. They usually included several entertainment segments featuring performances by different types of acts, pretty much like a traditional variety show. Sometimes Merv or Mike would sing something. The main difference is that these guys would sit down with the acts and interview them after they performed, and they relied more on the performances to kill time than, say, Johnny Carson. I believe that these examples could be considered to be both variety shows and talk shows at the same time, but it's a fine line.

    Now Dick Cavett, David Susskind or Tom Snyder - those were straight up talk shows.
     
    Last edited: Feb 18, 2021
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  17. Tanx

    Tanx Forum Resident

    Location:
    Washington, DC


    The Hudson Brothers are definitely in the running here.
     
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  18. Steve Litos

    Steve Litos Senior Member

    Location:
    Chicago IL
    I was pretty young when Sonny & Cher, The Brady Bunch, and the Osmonds were at their variety show peaks.

    Alas...I was a little bit of an older kid when Pink Lady and Jeff was on TV.

    It was pretty bad even for a kid.
     
  19. signothetimes53

    signothetimes53 Senior Member

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  20. Leviethan

    Leviethan Forum Resident

    Location:
    Portland, OR
    Did anyone, anywhere, ever find this format even slightly entertaining? Did these get high ratings?
     
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  21. Veronica Mars

    Veronica Mars Forum Resident

    Location:
    California
    Just about to ask that and you beat me to it.
     
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  22. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    I dunno - I think if a show's main emphasis in on chat, then it's not a variety show.

    I mean, Ed Sullivan would yak a little with some guests, I think, but the emphasis was on all the performances.

    Most talk shows have other elements - musical performances, other kinds of performers, skits - but they still revolve around a host at a desk who interviews guests.

    Variety shows are a different beast!
     
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  23. Oatsdad

    Oatsdad Oat, Biscuits, Abbie & Mitzi: Best Dogs Ever

    Location:
    Alexandria VA
    Ed Sullivan had a variety show that was enormously successful.

    A lot of those episodes look silly today, but clearly people loved them back then.

    I wasn't born until 1967 so I didn't know Ed's show - he went off the air when I was 4 - but I remember the variety shows of the 70s, and we largely enjoyed them.

    Hey, even Bowie played some of them!
     
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  24. Big Jimbo

    Big Jimbo Forum Resident

    Location:
    NY
    My mother made a comment to my grandmother about how “they all can’t be top 10 shows” when Mary Tyler Moore’s show was cancelled. But I think that was more she really liked MTM and hoped it would develop into something good rather than it was a good show . I never saw it . I did see the one hour special”Mary’s Incredible Dream” in 1976 which is brown-acid-at-Woodstock bad. Should be on YouTube unless they have developed good taste and removed it.
     
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  25. Paul Gase

    Paul Gase Everything is cheaper than it looks.

    Location:
    California
    Yes. As kids we loved Flip Wilson’s show at its peak. Definitely “water cooler” talk the next day. Carol Burnett was like comfort food and a family equalizer. And part of a great CBS Sat night lineup!
     
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