28 Random Bits of Trivia About ‘80s TV That Pity the Fools Who Don’t Read Them!

A decade’s worth of classics!
28 Random Bits of Trivia About ‘80s TV That Pity the Fools Who Don’t Read Them!
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Gen X and Geriatric Millennials unite! For some of these Saturday morning cartoons, of course. Remember those good ol’ days? Climbing up on the counter for the cereal while Mom and Dad slept, and just ripping through bangers like Transformers, Thundercats, He-Man and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?

We shed a tear just thinking about it. And don’t worry, if you weren’t a cartoon junkie, we have plenty of other ‘80s shows to get nostalgic for too.

Charlie's Angels

CRACKED.COM Worst TV Finales Charlie's Angels The show chose to end with a clip show, of all things. Jaclyn Smith's character gets shot, and the rest of the cast just waits and remembers better scenes from better episodes. No thrills, just waiting. And then Charlie finally shows up-wearing a surgeon's mask.

He-Man

He-Man was a toy before it was a TV show. When trying to sell the toy a Mattel sales rep told distributors a TV show was in the works- which was a lie. However, the lie sold the toy- forcing Mattel to create a TV show around the action figure. CRACKED.COM

Growing Pains

WANDAVISION EASTER EGGS RALPH BOHNER ISN'T JUST A JUVENILE JOKE. CRACKED.COM Bohner is a reference to Richard Boner Stabone from Growing Pains-a show director Matt Shakman appeared in as a child.

Family Matters

Family Matters CRACKED.COM Long before Urkel stole the show, the spotlight was supposed to be on Harriette Winslow. She was a breakout success on Perfect Strangers, where she played a sassy elevator operator whose cop husband used to drop by from time to time. In this scene, she delivers the line: excuse me baby, this is a family matter, and you're in the line of fire.

Seinfeld

Seinfeld was never pitched as a show about nothing. It was pitched as a show about how a comedian gets his material. CRACKED.COM

Thundercats

Inside the Actors Studio host James Lipton wrote the theme to Thundercats. Не also guest- starred on Family Guy, The Simpsons, and Arrested Development. GRACKED.COM

Family Ties

FAMILY TIES Tom Hanks CRACKED.COM Не has a 3-episode drunk uncle arc in which he ultimately horks down enough vanilla extract to slap Michael J. Fox in his Michael J. Face.

The Smurfs

CRACKED.COM The first Smurfs story was about a zombie apocalypse. The comic The Black Smurfs (which became The Purple Smurfs in the U.S.) had many tropes of modern zombie stories: Mindless ghoul Smurfs, an infection which spreads by biting, the near extinction of Smurfkind... And it came out more than 10 years before Night of the Living Dead.

The Golden Girls

CRACKED.COM THE GOLDEN GIRLS was inspired by MIAMI VICE. In 1984, NBC shot a humorous skit titled Miami Nice, starring two older actresses, for a special advertising their new shows (like Miami Vice). Execs liked it, and the idea was developed into a full series about old ladies living in Miami.

St. Elsewhere and Cheers

CRACKED.COM CROSSOVER EASTER EGGS ST. ELSEWHERE AND CHEERS Not only did St. Elsewhere keep dropping references to other shows, but an episode takes place in the bar from Cheers.

Married... With Children

KELLY BUNDY was a smart-ass rebel MARRIED WITH CHILDREN CRACKED.COM Watch Season 1 of Married With Children and you might not recognize the normally dressed, rebellious young woman they called Kelly Bundy. By the following year, producers had reduced her IQ by 100 points and her wardrobe by at least three articles of clothing.

The Tracey Ullman Show

The Simpsons CRACKED COM America's favorite jaundiced family first appeared as a short on The Tracey Ullman Show.

Mary Gross

MARY GROSS WAS ON AGAIN, OFF AGAIN 1981 CRACKED.COM GROSS WAS DOYLE-MURRAY'S ORIGINAL CO-ANCHOR. SHE MOVED TO STRICTLY SKETCHES FOR THREE MONTHS BEFORE TAKING ONE FINAL TURN BEHIND THE NEWS DESK. GROSS WAS A CAST MAINSTAY UNTIL SHE WAS JETTISONED UPON LORNE MICHAEL'S 1985 RETURN.

Manimal

MANIMAL 8 EPISODES was neither here nor there CRACKED '80s TV budgets and writer's rooms couldn't deliver on the premise of a man turns into animals to fight crime.

Thomas the Tank Engine

The first narrator of Thomas the Tank Engine was Ringo Starr. Не narrated the show from 1984 to 1986 -- after that, he was replaced by George Carlin. CRACKED.COM

Betty White

A Rose by any no other name - She's very consistent. Betty appeared in four different TV shows, over the course of seven years, as the character Rose Nylund: The Golden Girls (1985), Empty Nest (1988), Nurses (1991), and The Golden Palace (1992). CRACKED.COM

Doctor Who

CRACKED.COM Doctor Who ? POLICE 24 800 Colin Baker (1984 - 1986) The Sixth Doctor YOURS TO POLICE 200 BOX The only Doctor ever fired from the role, Baker is one of the least loved Doctors ever, and ending up not even shooting his regeneration sequence.

Roseanne

DAN CONNER ROSEANNE CRACKED COM So let's get this straight. On the finale of the original Roseanne, we learn the entire final season was a lie and Dan had actually died at Darlene's wedding the season before. In the reboot, he's back with no explanation other than Dan complaining that everyone always thinks he's dead. Wait, what?

Transformers

Live-Action Adaptations of Cartoons Then vs. Now Transformers The massive and confusing multi-media franchise began with a 1984-1987 animated series and, well, plastic to sell, but it truly finished skyrocketing in popularity with the Michael Bay movies. Hot take: Those are awful. Still, the one not directed by Bay, 2018's Bumblebee, was definitely a step up. CRACKED.COM

The Avengers

It's a wonder we didn't have an Avengers TV show in the '80S. The Incredible Hulk was the most successful, but Captain America, Thor, and Doctor Strange all had their own abortive TV attempts. CRACKED.COM

Mister T

cartoon celebrities Mister T Mr. T The tough '80s icon made several animated appearances as himself over the past 40 years, including his own animated show that aired from 1983 to 1985. CRACKED.COM

Cagney & Lacey

The first in-show mention of condoms 1987 ace CRACKED.COM Cagney & Lacey was the first prime-time drama to break the latex barrier and mention contraceptives.

Chuck Norris Karate Kommandos

cartoon celebrities Chuck Norris Karate Kommandos chuck Norris In the 1980s, if you were an action star, you got a cartoon - and Norris was no exception. The show, which had him as a government agent, lasted five episodes. CRACKED.COM

Moonlighting

CRACKED CYBILL SHEPHERD & BRUCE WILLIS They had tension on the '80s dramedy Moonlighting since day one. Willis' movie stardom and Shepherd's pregnancy caused them to fight over the schedule, and co-stars later wrote about their hate for each other.

Kids Incorporated

CRACKED.COM Kids Incorporated was a musical TV show aired during the '80s and '90s. It featured children and teenagers, many of whom would become famous after they left the program. Fergie, Mario Lopez, Martika, Eric Balfour, and Jennifer Love Hewitt are among them.

The Tortellis

Cheers THE TORTELLIS With a stacked, dynamic cast of classic characters, who deserves a spinoff more than: Carla...'s ex-husband... and his new family

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