SCHEDULES OF THE PAST: 1997-1998 Wednesdays

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Wednesdays in the 1997-98 season!

ABC	8:00	8:30	9:00	9:30	10:00
Sep	Spin City	Dharma & Greg	The Drew Carey Show	Ellen	Primetime Live
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar				Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place
Apr
May

ABC overhauled some of its Wednesday night comedy block for the 1997-98 season but it ultimately remained a solid but not dynamite lineup. At 8pm was Spin City, which was tasked with leading off the night after being in the protected Tuesday 9:30pm slot for its first season. This was a big task for a fairly new show that also was more geared to adults and it did alright but nothing special in the lead-off slot. It was followed by the new sitcom Dharma & Greg, which became an instant critical hit and ratings success. It starred Jenna Elfman and Thomas Gibson as a couple who were polar opposites but got married on their first date. It wasn't really a natural fit with Spin City but it built on its ratings and was the only new fall show to get renewed on ABC. The Drew Carey Show continued to be the crown jewel of the block and it grew in the ratings for a second straight season to become one of ABC's top shows. Meanwhile at 9:30pm, Ellen was coming off its highly publicized season where the main character came out of the closet. However, that high creatively and in the ratings was followed by a quick fall as Ellen was not a sensation anymore. Some of it could be blamed on people not taking to the gay storylines well (which tracks with 1990s mentality) but it also was running out of steam and wasn't a huge hit before its big episode garnered national attention. It was cancelled at the end of the season after five seasons and 109 episodes and everyone had (and still has) an opinion on why that happened. Could there have been some ulterior motives on ABC's part? Perhaps, but it also was just an average show with one short-lived turn in the spotlight. It was pulled off the lineup in March and returned in May for a one hour series finale with a few burn-off episodes airing in the summer. Replacing it at 9:30pm was Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place. The long titled show starred Ryan Reynolds, Richard Ruccolo and Traylor Howard with a premise that was basically explained in the title. It basically had the same ratings as Ellen but it was newer and had more upside so it was renewed for a second season. Newsmagazine Primetime Live continued to hold down the fort at 10pm though longtime anchors Sam Donaldson and Diane Sawyer departed at the end of the season as the show was rebranded under the 20/20 moniker. 

CBS	8:00	8:30	9:00	10:00
Sep	Various Programs
Oct	The Nanny	Murphy Brown	Public Eye with Bryant Gumbel	Chicago Hope
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb	Various Programs
Mar	The Nanny	Cybill	Michael Hayes
Apr		Various Programs
May			Various Programs

Wednesdays were a mess for CBS in the 1996-97 season. They weren't super strong in 1997-98 but they were a little more stable with the same shows opening and closing the night all season. The Nanny aired at 8pm and continued to be a reliable lead-off performer. Closing the night was Chicago Hope, which moved over from Monday nights. It saw a drop in the ratings but not a severe one as it helped to stabilize a troubled slot for CBS. Following The Nanny at 8:30pm to start the season was Murphy Brown, airing somewhere other than Monday nights for the first time in its decade long run. The show was clearly on its last legs and it was sort of surprising that it came back for a tenth season at all. The season dealt with a cancer storyline for the title character for much of the season. It was no surprise that the season was announced as a final season and it did return to its old Monday home for its last stretch of episodes. Replacing it on Wednesdays was Cybill, which had been a big hit with a very quick drop in popularity thanks in part to behind the scenes drama though star Cybill Shepherd would place some of the blame on Les Moonves years later. By the end of the season, CBS was just airing repeats and specials in the slot. The 9pm hour was originally given to Bryant Gumbel in a high profile move to CBS after leaving Today on NBC after a 15 year run in January 1997. Gumbel was considered quite a get for CBS but his newsmagazine fumbled out of the gate in a world where there were just too many darn newsmagazines. It eventually moved to Tuesdays and flipped places with Michael Hayes but then was cancelled at the end of the season as Gumbel eventually made his way back to morning TV with CBS's The Early Show in 1999.

NBC	8:00	8:30	9:00	9:30	10:00
Sep	The Tony Danza Show	Built to Last	3rd Rock From the Sun	Various Programs	Law & Order
Oct				Working
Nov	Various Programs
Dec	3rd Rock From the Sun	The Tony Danza Show
Jan		Various Programs
Feb
Mar	Newsradio	Seinfeld
Apr
May

After a Wednesday comedy block that didn't work in the 1996-97 season, NBC tried all different shows in 1997-98 but experienced similar results. This was a time where NBC had 18 comedies on its fall schedule including two hour blocks Monday through Thursday so something had to give. Wednesday night was devoted to three new comedies with 3rd Rock From the Sun as the 9pm anchor. 3rd Rock was a success for them but they never quite knew what to do with it because it didn't really fit with their upscale urban comedies. So it was sort of left on its own island here with three newbies that struggled big time, especially in the 8pm hour. The 8pm hour was NBC's latest attempt to have a family comedy block with The Tony Danza Show and Built to Last. Danza returned to TV as a single father and sportswriter two years after his failed Hudson Street and not that long removed from his hit Who's the Boss? Check back tomorrow for a One Season Wonder post on The Tony Danza Show! Built to Last starred Royale Watkins as a man who puts his career on hold to help the family business. Viewers had no interest in the two new comedies. Built to Last was pulled after just three episodes while Danza was yanked at the same time and returned for just two more episodes after November Sweeps. NBC sort of made do with the hour the rest of the year airing reruns of 3rd Rock From the Sun and Seinfeld ahead of its series finale. Late in the year, Newsradio took over the 8pm slot - a slot where the always middling rated show was never going to succeed. It made it to the end of the season and was renewed but tragedy stuck shortly after the end of the season when co-star Phil Hartman was murdered by his wife leaving the show to soldier on without him for Season Five. NBC had a little bit more success, though not much, at 9:30pm with Working, a series that marked the return of Fred Savage to TV four years after the end of The Wonder Years. It was set in the corporate world and starred Savage as a fresh face climbing the corporate ladder. It wasn't a hit but did far better than the 8pm hour comedies so it was renewed for a second season. Law & Order continued at 10pm and continued to be the top rated show of the night for NBC. It was also fresh off a surprising win for Outstanding Drama Series at the Emmys.

FOX	8:00	9:00
Sep	Beverly Hills, 90210	Party of Five
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar		Significant Others
Apr		Party of Five
May

FOX paired Beverly Hills, 90210 and Party of Five to start the season for a third consecutive season. 90210 was in its eighth season but continued to be a reliable performer and one of FOX's top series in the ratings while Party of Five continued to be a critical darling and had carved out a devoted young audience. As usual, FOX tried a new drama in the spring to replace Party of Five but it was an instant bomb and didn't even last for the full six weeks that Party planned to be off. Significant Others was a drama about friends living in Los Angeles that came from the Party of Five creators. The cast included Jennifer Garner, Michael Weatherly and Elizabeth Mitchell among others. It lasted a mere three episodes before being pulled from the lineup. 

UPN	8:00	9:00
Sep	The Sentinel	Star Trek: Voyager
Oct
Nov	Star Trek: Voyager	The Sentinel
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr	The Sentinel	Star Trek: Voyager
May

UPN continued with its Wednesday pairing of The Sentinel and its top rated show, Star Trek: Voyager, for another season. The shows flipped slots a bit over the course of the season but they were the only two shows to air on the night.  

WB	8:00	8:30	9:00	9:30
Sep	Sister, Sister	Smart Guy	The Wayans Bros.	The Steve Harvey Show
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr	Smart Guy	Sister, Sister
May

The WB continued with its comedy block on Wednesday nights. All four were returning shows that appealed to minority audiences and all were decent performers. The Mowry siblings owned the 8pm hour with Sister, Sister and Smart Guy (though Smart Guy eventually took over the 8pm slot). The 9pm hour was devoted to The Wayans Bros. and The Steve Harvey Show. The WB's plans and demographics were changing with the emergence of shows like 7th Heaven, Dawson's Creek and Buffy the Vampire Slayer but this was still a solid lineup for them.

Top Rated Wednesday Show of 1997-98: The Drew Carey Show (#13)

Lowest Rated Wednesday Show of 1997-98: The Sentinel (#154)

What would I have watched on Wednesdays in 1997-98?

There were a lot of comedies to choose from and I might have flipped around some. But I would probably have been most likely to watch Spin City and Dharma & Greg in the 8pm hour, Party of Five at 9pm and Law & Order at 10pm. But I also would have been interested in 3rd Rock From the Sun and Working and would have been tempted by Newsradio and Murphy Brown when they were on the nights.

Tomorrow: A One Season Wonder look at The Tony Danza Show!

Next Tuesday: A look at Thursdays in the 1997-98 season!