CBS Block Party
Encyclopedia
CBS Block Party was a programming block that aired on the CBS
television network during the 1997-1998 television season. The block was similar to, and was intended as direct competition to, ABC
's TGIF
lineup and aired on Friday nights from 8pm-10pm ET. The block was a Cadmean victory
in that although the block was canceled after one year, it caused what turned out to be irreparable harm to the previously dominant TGIF, eventually clearing the way for CBS to dominate the Friday night lineup beginning in the next decade.
When ABC canceled the long-running shows Family Matters
and Step by Step, CBS picked them up and made them the cornerstones of the new "Block Party." Two new family comedies were added. The first was a new production from Miller-Boyett Productions
(the production company behind Family Matters and Step By Step among other TGIF series), Meego. Meego, in addition to being produced by TGIF alumni, also starred a TGIF alumnus: Bronson Pinchot
, who previously starred as Balki Bartokomous
in Perfect Strangers
(Pinchot even used a similar accent to the one he used for the Balki character); Meego also featured well-known contemporary child stars Michelle Trachtenberg
and Jonathan Lipnicki
. The second new series was The Gregory Hines Show
, an eponymous sitcom featuring entertainer Gregory Hines
.
None of the shows in the lineup lasted beyond that season. Meego lasted a mere six weeks, and The Gregory Hines Show was gone after fourteen. Though the two ABC series were picked up for full seasons, they suffered badly from the network jump, with both series hitting all-time lows in the Nielsen ratings. When the two series were canceled, neither was afforded a series finale. Thus, in terms of forming a permanent block of programming on Friday night, the block was a complete failure.
(the continuation of the long-running NBC sitcom The Golden Girls
), Designing Women
, Major Dad
, and Bob
. Like the Block Party, this block also failed after one season, and by the end of 1993, all four series had been canceled. However, the Block Party succeeded where the 1992 block had failed in that the Block Party, and the resulting audience fracture between it and TGIF that it caused, placed a severe dent in TGIF's ratings. TGIF went off the air in 2000.
Incidentally, these factors may at least partially explain why CBS has been less prone to the Friday night death slot
phenomenon seen on other broadcast networks.
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
television network during the 1997-1998 television season. The block was similar to, and was intended as direct competition to, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's TGIF
TGIF (ABC)
TGIF was the name of an American family-friendly prime time television programming block on the ABC network. The name comes from the initials of the popular phrase "Thank God It's Friday"...
lineup and aired on Friday nights from 8pm-10pm ET. The block was a Cadmean victory
Cadmean victory
A Cadmean victory is a reference to a victory involving one's own ruin, from Cadmus , the legendary founder of Thebes in Boeotia and the mythic bringer of the alphabet to Greece. On seeking to establish the city, Cadmus required water from a spring guarded by a monster snake. He sent his...
in that although the block was canceled after one year, it caused what turned out to be irreparable harm to the previously dominant TGIF, eventually clearing the way for CBS to dominate the Friday night lineup beginning in the next decade.
When ABC canceled the long-running shows Family Matters
Family Matters (TV series)
Family Matters is an American sitcom about a middle-class African-American family living in Chicago, Illinois, which ran on national television for nine full seasons. The series was a spin-off of Perfect Strangers, but revolves around the Winslow family...
and Step by Step, CBS picked them up and made them the cornerstones of the new "Block Party." Two new family comedies were added. The first was a new production from Miller-Boyett Productions
Miller-Boyett Productions
Miller-Boyett Productions was an American television production company that mainly developed television sitcoms from the 1970s through the 1990s...
(the production company behind Family Matters and Step By Step among other TGIF series), Meego. Meego, in addition to being produced by TGIF alumni, also starred a TGIF alumnus: Bronson Pinchot
Bronson Pinchot
Bronson Alcott Pinchot is an American actor. He has appeared in several feature films, including Risky Business, Beverly Hills Cop , The First Wives Club, True Romance, Courage Under Fire and It's My Party...
, who previously starred as Balki Bartokomous
Balki Bartokomous
Balki Bartokomous is a fictional character on the television sitcom Perfect Strangers, played by Bronson Pinchot. Balki is from the island of Mypos, a fictional country in the Mediterranean Sea.- Character history :...
in Perfect Strangers
Perfect Strangers (TV series)
Perfect Strangers is an American sitcom that ran for eight seasons from March 25, 1986, to August 6, 1993, on the ABC television network. Created by Dale McRaven, the series chronicles the rocky coexistence of midwestern American Larry Appleton and his distant cousin from eastern Mediterranean...
(Pinchot even used a similar accent to the one he used for the Balki character); Meego also featured well-known contemporary child stars Michelle Trachtenberg
Michelle Trachtenberg
Michelle Christine Trachtenberg is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Dawn Summers in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and as Georgina Sparks in Gossip Girl...
and Jonathan Lipnicki
Jonathan Lipnicki
Jonathan William Lipnicki is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the Hollywood films Jerry Maguire, Stuart Little, The Little Vampire, and Like Mike.- Personal life :...
. The second new series was The Gregory Hines Show
The Gregory Hines Show
The Gregory Hines Show is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS. The series premiered on Monday, September 15, 1997 before airing on September 19, 1997 as a part of the network's Block Party Friday night lineup...
, an eponymous sitcom featuring entertainer Gregory Hines
Gregory Hines
Gregory Oliver Hines was an American actor, singer, dancer and choreographer.-Early years:Born in New York City, Hines and his older brother Maurice started dancing at an early age, studying with choreographer Henry LeTang...
.
Lineup
- 8:00 Family Matters
- 8:30 Meego
- 9:00 The Gregory Hines ShowThe Gregory Hines ShowThe Gregory Hines Show is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS. The series premiered on Monday, September 15, 1997 before airing on September 19, 1997 as a part of the network's Block Party Friday night lineup...
- 9:30 Step by Step
None of the shows in the lineup lasted beyond that season. Meego lasted a mere six weeks, and The Gregory Hines Show was gone after fourteen. Though the two ABC series were picked up for full seasons, they suffered badly from the network jump, with both series hitting all-time lows in the Nielsen ratings. When the two series were canceled, neither was afforded a series finale. Thus, in terms of forming a permanent block of programming on Friday night, the block was a complete failure.
Legacy
The Block Party was CBS's second (and last to date) attempt to compete with TGIF; in 1992, the network attempted a similar block, albeit targeting an older demographic than either TGIF or the Block Party, that featured The Golden PalaceThe Golden Palace
The Golden Palace is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 18, 1992, to May 14, 1993. The show was a spin-off and continuation of the sitcom The Golden Girls....
(the continuation of the long-running NBC sitcom The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
), Designing Women
Designing Women
Designing Women is an American television sitcom that centered on the working and personal lives of four Southern women and one man in an interior design firm in Atlanta, Georgia. It aired on the CBS television network from September 29, 1986 until May 24, 1993. The show was created by head writer...
, Major Dad
Major Dad
Major Dad is an American sitcom created by Richard C. Okie and John G. Stephens that originally ran from 1989 to 1993 on CBS, starring Gerald McRaney as Major John D. MacGillis and Shanna Reed as his wife Polly...
, and Bob
Bob (TV series)
Bob is an American television situation comedy starring Bob Newhart. It was the actor's third series for CBS and proved to be far less successful than The Bob Newhart Show and Newhart, his previous outings with the network. It lasted a season and a half, running from September 18, 1992 until...
. Like the Block Party, this block also failed after one season, and by the end of 1993, all four series had been canceled. However, the Block Party succeeded where the 1992 block had failed in that the Block Party, and the resulting audience fracture between it and TGIF that it caused, placed a severe dent in TGIF's ratings. TGIF went off the air in 2000.
Incidentally, these factors may at least partially explain why CBS has been less prone to the Friday night death slot
Friday night death slot
The Friday night death slot is a perceived graveyard slot in American television, referring to the concept that a television program in the United States scheduled on Friday evenings is destined for imminent cancellation....
phenomenon seen on other broadcast networks.