Union Square

US

Comedy
English     10     1997     US

Overview

Union Square is a 1997 television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for one season. It follows the story of a lawyer-turned-playwright in New York City, who attempts to gain inspiration from a host of characters populating the fictitious Union Square cafe in Manhattan, obviously inspired by the New York area of the same name. The show was originally supposed to be a vehicle for Cuban-American actress Mel Gorham. But after poor test screenings for the pilot, the producers decided to retool the show and replace Gorham with Constance Marie. The program replaced Fired Up on NBC's "Must See TV" night of programming; it was given an 8:30pm timeslot on Thursday evenings, a highly coveted spot due to its location between popular sitcoms Friends and Seinfeld. Like The Single Guy, Union Square attempted to capitalize on attractive singles in their 20s and 30s enjoying New York City life, which both Seinfeld and Friends had turned into successes. The show also featured guest appearances from actor David Krumholtz, who appeared on two episodes, as did actress Rhea Perlman.

Similar

The Andy Griffith Show is an American sitcom first televised on CBS between October 3, 1960 and April 1, 1968. Andy Griffith portrays the widowed sheriff of the fictional small community of Mayberry, North Carolina. His life is complicated by an inept, but well-meaning deputy, Barney Fife, a spinster aunt and housekeeper, Aunt Bee, and a precocious young son, Opie. Local ne'er-do-wells, bumbling pals, and temperamental girlfriends further complicate his life. Andy Griffith stated in a Today Show interview, with respect to the time period of the show: "Well, though we never said it, and though it was shot in the '60s, it had a feeling of the '30s. It was when we were doing it, of a time gone by." The series never placed lower than seventh in the Nielsen ratings and ended its final season at number one. It has been ranked by TV Guide as the 9th-best show in American television history. Though neither Griffith nor the show won awards during its eight-season run, series co-stars Knotts and Bavier accumulated a combined total of six Emmy Awards. The show, a semi-spin-off from an episode of The Danny Thomas Show titled "Danny Meets Andy Griffith", spawned its own spin-off series, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., a sequel series, Mayberry R.F.D., and a reunion telemovie, Return to Mayberry. The show's enduring popularity has generated a good deal of show-related merchandise. Reruns currently air on TV Land, and the complete series is available on DVD. All eight seasons are also now available by streaming video services such as Netflix.

More info
The Andy Griffith Show
1960