SCHEDULES OF THE PAST: 1995-1996 Fridays

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Fridays in the 1995-96 season!

ABC	8:00	8:30	9:00	9:30	10:00
Sep	Family Matters	Boy Meets World	Step by Step	Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper	20/20
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar		Muppets Tonight!	Aliens in the Family	Step by Step
Apr			Step by Step	Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper
May		Boy Meets World

ABC's TGIF lineup started the season with the same quartet of shows as the previous season. All four shows were youth driven and delivered well in that demographic but they were only modest ratings performers when looking across the entire TV landscape. Because TGIF was such an iconic brand and the shows have been well loved in the years since, it can be hard to remember that detail. In March, ABC attempted to shake up the night with two new entries while Boys Meets World and Hangin' with Mr. Cooper were slated to take a short break. Taking over at 8:30pm was Muppets Tonight, a variety show that was one of the first big Muppets project since the death of Jim Henson in 1990. Although the entire lineup was kid-friendly, this show was perhaps not the same type of kid-friendly and didn't really fit in with the sitcoms. It lasted 10 episodes on ABC and then Disney Channel picked up and ran the rest of the episodes after its cancellation. An even bigger flop aired at 9pm. Aliens in the Family was a family sitcom about a mixed marriage - a human dad and an alien mom. After ABC passed on 3rd Rock From the Sun, they picked up this one which also involved Jim Henson's production company. It lasted just two weeks before it was pulled from the lineup and eventually resurfacing on Saturday mornings. Check back tomorrow for a One Season Wonder post on Aliens in the Family! Family Matters star Jaleel White was critical of Muppets and Aliens joining the TGIF lineup because it turned a family night into a child night. The regular lineup was back in place in time for May Sweeps but ABC did change things up again for the Fall of 1996. 20/20 continued at 10pm all season.

CBS	8:00	8:30	9:00	10:00
Sep	Dweebs	The Bonnie Hunt Show	Picket Fences	American Gothic
Oct
Nov	Various Programs
Dec	Due South		Diagnosis Murder	Picket Fences
Jan
Feb
Mar				Various Programs
Apr				Nash Bridges
May

CBS made a valiant effort on Friday nights, like many other nights, before resorting to some more familiar programming though they did find a rare freshman success late in the season. They started things off with a comedy hour at 8pm, pairing the comedy Dweebs with The Bonnie Hunt Show. Dweebs was about a group of computer nerds and Bonnie was comedian Bonnie Hunt's second sitcom attempt under David Letterman's production company after 1993's failed The Building. At 9pm was Picket Fences, a perennially acclaimed but low rated drama that was entering its fourth season mostly on critical auspices and Emmy Awards. At 10pm was a new drama - American Gothic, a horror drama about odd happenings in a small South Carolina town. It was a dark and twisted drama that was unusual for CBS. All three freshman were off the air by November though only Dweebs was cancelled outright as Bonnie and Gothic popped up on other nights later in the season. Picket Fences was also off the air for November Sweeps but returned in December an hour later. Due South and Diagnosis Murder, which had been held off the fall schedule both appeared on the night as safer bets but older skewing shows. Due South was still a co-production with Canada and wouldn't have even necessarily aired if CBS's fall class hadn't been such a disaster. Picket Fences was pulled off the night in February and did re-appear to air a few final episodes but it was cancelled after four seasons and 88 episodes. CBS had a horrible year for new shows - only comedy Almost Perfect was renewed from its fall slate of 11 new series and none of the midseason shows fared any better. But they finally found one more show that got renewed, possibly because it was one of the last shows to premiere and in a very low pressure timeslot. Nash Bridges marked the return of Don Johnson to TV after Miami Vice. Co-starring Chech Marin, the San Francisco-set police drama had some pre-production issues but was a saving face renewal for CBS and a better performer in the ratings than Picket Fences.

NBC	8:00	9:00	10:00
Sep	Various Programs
Oct	Unsolved Mysteries	Dateline NBC	Homicide: Life on the Street
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May

NBC kept things status quo for the 1995-96 season with no changes. The unscripted duo of Unsolved Mysteries and Dateline NBC aired from 8-10pm while drama Homicide: Life on the Street continued to be one of those "best shows you're not watching" shows at 10pm.

FOX	8:00	9:00
Sep	Strange Luck	The X-Files
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar	Sliders
Apr
May

Friday nights were all about The X-Files for FOX. The series was coming off being nominated for Outstanding Drama Series at the Emmy Awards and the 1995-96 season saw its best ratings to date. FOX continued to try to find a compatible companion for it on Friday nights. The lead-in was Strange Luck, a sci-fi tinged drama starring D.B. Sweeney as a man who ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time in all kinds of situations. The series lasted all the way until March but it did not catch on in any way like The X-Files so the veteran drama was left on its own again. In March, Sliders returned for its second season and did about the same as Strange Luck though it managed to get renewed for a third season. FOX ended up making a big move with The X-Files for the 1996-97 season but more on that in future posts.

Top Rated Friday Show of 1995-96: 20/20 (#11)

Lowest Rated Friday Show of 1995-96: The Bonnie Hunt Show (#129)

What would I have watched on Fridays in 1995-96?

I was watching Nick at Nite at that time so I know I would have picked that over TGIF. If I was an adult then, maybe Picket Fences and Homicide: Life on the Street or maybe I would have stuck with Nick at Nite.

Tomorrow: A One Season Wonder look at Aliens in the Family!

Next Tuesday: A look at Saturdays in the 1995-96 season!