30 Television Shows Someone Took a Mighty Risk Producing

In the history of television there have always been sure fire programs. If Westerns are popular why not create a new Western? If detective shows are popular why not create a new detective show? If you can con people into accepting ultra cheap television or someone has already done it for you then why not another television show based on so-called reality? A lot of money is poured into the creation of a television show and the people who make television shows are under a lot of pressure to get it right and to make sure there already is an audience for the proposed show even before the first episode hits the airwaves. So why take chances? Why not go with just another example of what is already out there? Why risk the unknown?

Personally I can't say why some producers decide to take a chance or why in some instances a big risk is taken except to say that I am usually very grateful when they do.

1. THE UNTOUCHABLES

Desilu had been doing fine making comedies. This was their first venture into drama and it had to be a detective drama show set some thirty years into America's past. Could a show set in prohibition America or soon thereafter have any affect on the viewers of American television of the 1960s? Apart from Westerns shows set in earlier periods didn't always do so well. Could Robert Stack as Eliot Ness the lead untouchable grab viewers? The answer was yes. There was plenty of action and the sets looked great. There was well earned success here.

2. STAR TREK

People tend to forget how controversial the original Star Trek was or what a struggle it was to at least complete three of the five year mission of exploration in front of the cameras. At a time when Westerns and detective fiction ruled the small screen someone had the nerve to bring out a show set in outer space. The pilot was shot and rejected. It was supposed to be a wagon train style Western only set amongst the stars. It was something else. It was said to be too cerebral, Too much thinking and not enough fisticuffs. It was shelved and that seemed to be the end of that. Then Lost in Space hit the airwaves and it was a big success. A rival studio had to have SOMETHING to go up against this hit. And so a new pilot for Star Trek was commissioned and the five year voyage began in ernest.

Star Trek didn't have much of a budget and the sound stages it was on were old and rundown. They were never meant to be involved in a project so far reaching. Even so Star Trek went out there and the fans grew. Controversy, however, seemed to follow the show everywhere and it wasn't always a bad thing. On the bridge of the starship Enterprise you had Uhura, an African woman played by an African American. Her job had some importance and it was obvious she was well educated and intelligent. This was something new for American television. An intelligent black woman with an important job to do. As a child of course I didn't know this. American grownup viewers at the time, however, would have. Martin Luther King even told Nichelle Nichols, the beautiful actress who played Uhura, what an important job she was doing for the freedom movement in America at the time. There were episodes about the foolishness of racism and one episode dealing with the threat of overpopulation. It was cutting edge science fiction and for me it was pure fun. It was a pity the five year voyage at least for television had to be cut back to only three filmed seasons.

3. LOST IN SPACE

Fantastic special effects were used here for a television show. It cost a packet to get up and running but there is little doubt that it was worth it The space family Robinson did well being Lost the way they were and the sinister and then silly Doctor Smith became the strangest of strange favorites amongst viewers. Will Robinson and the Robot also proved to be very popular.

4. THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES

Many a television station head sweated over this one. It was corny and silly. It might actually offend people who came from the part of the USA Jed and his kin apparently came from. Was it even worth putting on the air? The critics at the time gave it the big thumbs down. Its awful, they said. Well it did go to air and it was a huge success. The chances taken with it paid off handsomely.

5. GILLIGAN'S ISLAND

Just about everyone of my generation know the words to the introduction song of this very popular show off by heart. Even so there was a time when the show might not have been made at all. It was just too different and no one really knew what kind of viewer might be interested in it. Well, the castaways remain popular to this day and in the hearts of old viewers they are going to be there a very, very long time and those who don't like it will have to just make the best of things.

6. ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN

Since the radio serials of Superman and also the movie serials had been well received by the public it was inevitable that there would be a Superman television show. There's nothing controversial in that. In Lois Lane girls got to see a young eager beaver female reporter in action who could keep up with the guys when it came to doing her job well. This was nice but hardly controversial. The last 4 seasons of Adventures of Superman, however, were shot in color at a time when very few people had color television sets. This shooting was done for the future. The idea was that the show would be seen longer in syndication that way and so eventually bring in more revenue. This sort of forward thinking was controversial.

7. BATMAN

Doing a live action show based on a costumed comic book character where there would be an assortment of costumed villains romping around every week was definitely new. With Adventures of Superman you had very few costumed villains. Certainly you did not have a costumed villain every episode. The same could be said for The Green Hornet. Great show that it was the bad guys tended to be stock criminals with guns. In Batman you had The Joker, the Riddler and Catwoman just to name some. The show made the greatest use out of the color available in both sets and clothes. Both Bruce Wayne and Batman could be painfully naive especially when it came to women, especially Catwomen, but that was part of the charm of the show. The cops were definitely bunglers and Robin, Batman's sidekick had to be the boy scout of boy scouts. Even so, it was a send up of the costumed hero and this made it controversial. Kids that had been having serious fun with their heroes in the comics and on other television shows might not want to see this campy version of Batman. Well, as it turned out there was a following and the show was a big hit.

8. CAPTAIN NICE

This was also a campy send up of the costumed hero. Captain Nice, however, didn't last long. I thought he was watchable and that some episodes were wonderful television but, in my opinion, it was canceled too soon. A police scientist discovers a pill capable of giving him superpowers to fight crime. What should he call himself? Well, he likes being nice so he decided to call himself Captain Nice.

9. MR. SQUIGGLE

This much loved and highly acclaimed kids show produced in Australia had a very long run. For generations Mr. Squiggle coming down from the moon to draw for the children with his nose thrilled young viewers. It is unusual in that there had never been anything like it on television before or since.

10. DOCTOR WHO

This show started off as just a children's science fiction adventure show but quickly morphed into something else. Oh, it still got the children in but it got the adults in as well. This was a risky thing to do but the risk paid off. In recent times Doctor Who has been revised for a more modern audience. Personally I prefer the original grouch and also Tom Baker's version of the Doctor. The idea of the doctor being able to regenerate and so an actor can retire from the role and someone else can take his place is beautiful science fiction but it was very controversial at the time. Needless to say they got away with it and continue to do so.

11. Phoenix Five

This is the show that may well have made Australian producers think twice about making a science fiction show. It was just plain awful. It is one of the shows one hopes never made it overseas. It was about a crew flying around in outer space and fighting the same villain just about every episode. It was supposed to be an Australian version of Star Trek but it didn't have any heart or any real reason for being. The sets were cheap looking and there wasn't anything in the drama to make up for this. Whoever took the risk on this one I would say got burnt.

12. OCEAN GIRL

This was an Australian science fiction show that was a big hit in Germany. Of all the shows made in Australia with a science fiction slant this has got to be my all time favorite. Producing a science fiction show is always risky but one with an environmentalist view can be even more so. Beautiful scenes shot in Queensland coupled with a real care for the way we are treating our planet make this a real winner in my book. You may think this is just made for children and nothing more but do check out an episode or two and you might come to the conclusion that it is for everyone.

13. THE GIRL FROM TOMORROW

This is a low budget kick ass science fiction drama kids show made in Australia and set in Australia. It works and there are some wonderful moments in the show.

14. THE SAMURAI

This Japanese show introduced ninjas and the samurai to Australian viewers. Star knives and Samurai swords were so new to Australians and I take it Americans at the time that no one could have predicted how a non-Japanese audience would take to these concepts. Putting Shintaro, the Samurai on Western television was a risk but it paid off handsomely. Ose koichi, who played The Samurai, was shocked, surprised and delighted by his visit to Sydney, Australia which occurred when the show was running red hot there and kids like yours truly were collecting bubble gum cards to do with the show (I still have my cards!). Ose was shocked and surprised by his notoriety. He was delighted by how the children of Australia were enjoying the show. He was in Sydney to put on a live stage performance of The Samurai. Unfortunately I never got to see it. My parents just didn't have the money at the time.

15. PHANTOM AGENTS

This was a Japanese show about ninjas only set in modern times with modern as well as ancient ninja gimmicks. It was a hit though not as big as The Samurai.

16. ASTROBOY

The Astroboy of the 1960s was a class act of Japanese animation. Except for one episode I have in my collection from this period it was shot in black and white. The sound track made in America was brilliant and the action was marvelous. It was a big hit. Who thought a little atomic powered Japanese robot could do so well in the West?

17. THE MUNSTERS

Whoever thought that grabbing a bunch of universal screen monsters, putting them into a family situation and making this sitcom a weekly experience for viewers would actually work? Well it worked alright and spawned similar shows.

18. THE ADAMS FAMILY

Take a comic strip idea straight out of The New Yorker and turn it into a spooky, kooky show and then see what happens. What you have is The Adams Family. It was panned by critics when it first appeared but did well in the ratings.

19. DUE SOUTH

A Canadian Mountie comes to the USA to solve a crime and he ends up staying. This is not your usual crime detective style show and it could have fallen flat on its face. Since I thought the show was marvelous I am glad it found an audience and did well.

20.RED DWARF

A send up of science fiction television but with enough special effects magic and really good, polished script writing to keep the viewer coming back for more. Though the show is a comedy, many of the ideas used are pure science fiction which can only add to viewer enjoyment. Science fiction is rarely sent up successfully on television and so a big chance was taken with the production of this show.

21. FIREBALL XL5

Early British puppetry science fiction. A space ship keeping the peace with a crew which include a grizzly old scientist with glasses and beeping and buzzing robot.

22. STINGRAY

British puppetry science fiction about a high tech submarine and her crew.

23. THUNDERBIRDS

Who has not heard and remember the words Thunderbirds are Go! and not felt a tinge of excitement? British puppetry science fiction. Thunderbird 4, the submarine, was my favorite.

24. UGLY BETTY

How can you make a television show with a title like that let alone a television show with heart and unusual sensitivity for various groups and groupings in our collective society? Well, they did it and they did it in style and are still doing it that way. Unusual production techniques go hand in hand with great acting and script writing.

25. THE LONE RANGER

A Western where you have a masked man and an Indian companion? Well it worked on radio and it worked for the movie serials that were made so why not for television as well? Unusual for television but no big risks here.

26. DEAD LIKE ME

You kill off your lead actor in the pilot episode and then turn her into an apprentice Grim Reaper. Hmmm! Great show and totally weird concept.

27. PUSHING DAISIES

You have a guy who can bring the dead back to life but in doing so must condemn someone or something else to death. Hmmm! Great show and definitely weird.

28. FOYLE'S WAR

This show is about a British detective plying his trade in war torn Britain during WW2. Very good acting and scripting. Worth checking out.

29. PRIMEVAL

Take creatures from the past and fling them into modern day England just to see what happens. Great SF and fantastic special effects.

30. WONDER WOMAN

The first female superhero to be given her own television show. She predates Buffy and all the other super powered females on television. Batgirl may predate Wonder Woman but she wasn't super strong and she didn't have her own television show.

I will end here. There are more examples. Buffy no doubt deserves a place since the original movie was a box office disaster and so to create the series after that and get it to fly right must have taken some doing. And yes I am a long standing Buffy fan.

The 30 examples given are in no particular order. They do, however, quite easily make the magic number 30.