SCHEDULES OF THE PAST: 1988-1989 Fridays

After this week, I will be taking a two week "Spring Break" so the next Schedules from the Past post will be on April 12! On Mondays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Fridays in the 1988-89 season!

ABC	8:00	8:30	9:00	9:30	10:00
Sep	Perfect Strangers	Full House	Mr. Belvedere	Just the Ten of Us	20/20
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May

ABC was one year away from launching their TGIF block and while it wasn't known as TGIF in 1988-89, their Friday lineup included many soon-to-be TGIF shows. The lineup did not have any new shows and stayed the same for the entire season. The night started off with Perfect Strangers, which had made a successful move to Friday the previous season. The highest rated show in the block was the second season of Full House at 8:30pm though it was still only #32. At 9pm was Mr. Belvedere. It was the only show airing on the night that didn't make it to the official TGIF lineup as it was sent to Saturday after the season. The 9:30pm entry was Just the Ten of Us, a show that had aired just four episodes the previous season (in a prime slot) and got renewed. It did OK and got renewed again but was the lowest rated show of the block. As usual, 20/20 occupied the 10pm slot.

CBS	8:00	9:00	10:00
Sep	Beauty and the Beast	Friday Night Movie
Oct	Various Programs
Nov	Beauty and the Beast	Dallas	Falcon Crest
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May

Although it got a late start due to the Writer's Strike, the CBS Friday lineup for 1988-89 was the same as the previous season although each series dropped some more in the ratings. It included season two of cult favorite Beauty and the Beast and another season of their veteran soaps: Season 12 of Dallas and Season 8 of Falcon Crest. Both the soaps were down quite a bit from their heights and dealing with cast departures. The end was in sight but 1988-89 was not the end.

NBC	8:00	9:00	10:00
Sep	Summer Olympics
Oct	Sonny Spoon	Friday Night Movie
Nov		Something It Out There	Miami Vice
Dec	Something Is Out There	Sonny Spoon
Jan	Father Dowling Mysteries	Various Programs
Feb		Miami Vice	Unsub
Mar
Apr	The Jim Henson Hour	Quantum Leap	Dream Street
May		Miami Vice

While ABC and CBS had very stable Friday night lineups in 1988-89, NBC most certainly did not as they were all over the place all season. The original lineup, which arrived at varying times had Sonny Spoon at 8pm, Something is Out There at 9pm and Miami Vice at 10pm. Sonny Spoon had been a narrow renewal from the previous season while the once hot Miami Vice was certainly on its last legs. The new Something is Out There was a sci-fi/crime drama about a police officer investigating crimes committed by an alien. It switched slots with Sonny Spoon for a short time but both were gone by New Year's. The new 8pm entry in January was Father Dowling Mysteries, a gentle crime drama starring Tom Bosley as a Catholic priest who doubled as a detective that started as a two hour movie in the Fall of 1987. NBC cancelled the series after just eight episodes, but it was renewed for ABC and ran for two more years. The final 8pm entry was The Jim Henson Hour, a variety show featured the famed puppeteer's creations including, but not exclusively, the Muppets. It lasted a few weeks on Fridays and then aired a few more times on Sundays in the summer. It was the final show Henson was involved with before his death in 1990. Of course, the Muppets have continued to wade into television from time to time since. Meanwhile at 9pm, Miami Vice moved to 9pm while the new Unsub took over at 10pm. Unsub was about a forensic team investigating serial killers in a plot that sounds awfully similar to Criminal Minds (a show that popularized the term "unsub" more than the show that was called that). It lasted just eight episodes and was replaced at the end of the season by Dream Street, a relationship drama about a bunch of twentysomethings in New Jersey. It should have probably been called "Twentysomething" especially because it came from the same creators as Thirtysomething on ABC. Miami Vice was put on hiatus for a short time at 9pm to make room for Quantum Leap, a time traveling sci-fi drama starring Scott Bakula as a physicist who takes the place of others through time to correct historical mistakes. The show had signs of life in its sleepy Friday timeslot and was quickly upgraded to a Wednesday slot to finish the season. Miami Vice returned to the night to end its run after five seasons and 112 episodes. Considering how iconic that show has become when thinking of 80s shows, it wasn't one of the longer running ones.

Tomorrow: Top 10 TV Houses!

Monday in Three Weeks: A look at Saturdays in 1988-89!