A primetime show set in school? According to television history, the concept has been hit or miss.
The sitcom, Our Miss Brooks, with Eve Arden, transitioned from radio, and was a modest success on TV, too. James Franciscus got two seasons with Mr. Novak, a drama. Andy Griffith, however, bombed with The Headmaster, such that CBS rushed a replacement sitcom for him to air that same season.
So, in 1974, NBC tried out an hour long drama, as the others were all half hour shows. Their vision was actually the hope that Lucas Tanner would be another Mr. Novak. David Hartman, a year removed from the end of The Bold Ones (The New Doctors), was cast in the title role. If he'd been a contract player at Universal, this must've been the end of said contract, since he would soon jump to ABC to host Good Morning, America.
Unfortunately, Lucas Tanner, while it lasted the full season, was cancelled after that one season. Why? CBS had Cannon. Enough said. My folks preferred Cannon or ABC's Wednesday edition of the Movie of The Week.
Hence, there's no rating. We'll leave you with this sample:
No comments:
Post a Comment