MovieChat Forums > Lou Grant (1977) Discussion > Surprised by the lack of fanfare for thi...

Surprised by the lack of fanfare for this show

posted 9 years ago by steve-575
8 replies | jump to latest

Is there a reason why this show is not as revered as many of the other shows of its generation? I've watched it from start to finish and it is very intriguing, thought-provoking, well-acted and ahead of its time. Unlike many shows that run for 100+ episodes, it does not lose quality in the later seasons.

The reasons that I say it is underappreciated:
It did not make the TV Guide Top 50 shows (or any list of top shows). Even on the comments which debate shows that missed the list, no one even mentioned this show.

It has not been released on DVD. There has not even been much of a strong push to get it released.

It is rarely shown in reruns. I remember it being show on the Family Net which is when I had the pleasure of viewing it.

The only real flaws that I can think of with this show:

It is a complete 180 from the show it is spun off from, "The Mary Tyler Moore Show". Unlike that show, "Lou Grant" is more of a drama. There is almost no reference to "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" or any of the characters. This may have alienated fans of the original show.

Many of the show endings were very vague leaving it up to the viewer to draw conclusions. Just like with the series finale of "The Sopranos", many of the shows ended with the viewer wondering what would happen next.

The show had a habit of recycling guest stars. This practice really insults the intelligence of the viewer. They are basically saying that the viewer will not notice that the same actor who previously played a clean shaven investment professional is now playing a mustached politician.

These are kind of minor flaws. So I am really puzzled as to why this show is not more revered.

[–] dkck-25974 9 years ago

I was thinking the same thing, Steve.
I tried finding it on Netflix but it doesn't exist.

People were cool enough to put it on YouTube. Some of the episodes are missing, but it's still great watching it from the laptop hooked up to the big screen television.

[–] tenderlovingtony 9 years ago

Steve, thanks for your commentary. I think some of your concerns are addressed in the episode guide I wrote for "Lou Grant": http://epguides.lougrant.tv

The vague endings reflect that the show is about a newspaper. Newspaper stories only reflect the world as it is known to the writers on the day the paper is issued. The series mirrors a newspaper and does not pretend to resolve issues like inner-city crime, third world corruption, or teen pregnancy in a single episode. To explore this further, you might seek out an article titled "The Politics of Lou Grant" by Michael Schudson, published while the series was still in production.

The recycling of guest actors is common in TV and viewers tend to expect it, if they notice at all. I think the most comical is that Allyn Ann McLerie guested as an abrasive mother of a H&R victim; she clashed with Billie Newman (Linda Kelsey) in one scene; then they cast McLerie as Billie's mother.

Lou Grant has been available in syndication since 1983 and was regularly shown on local stations including WGN for several years. It aired exclusively on A&E from 1990 to 1995 and then disappeared until 2007 when it turned up on RFD TV.

Due the proliferation of classic TV networks of late (Me TV, Cosi TV, Antenna TV, etc.), I suspect it will show up on one of them soon.

[–] jarrodmcdonald-1 9 years ago

Occasionally a character (guest character) from The MTM Show was brought on Lou Grant. Eileen Heckart comes to mind. She played Flo Meredith in three episodes of The MTM Show in 1975 and 1976, then she appeared in an episode of Lou Grant in 1980.

I don't think Lou Grant suffered by being in a different genre than its parent series. In fact, it allowed them to go deeper with the main character and the kinds of stories they could explore. Ed was brilliant in both comedy and drama. Plus some of the Lou Grant episodes have light-hearted subplots.

[–] jayzahn-07474 8 years ago

I liked the show a lot at the time, but I'm not sure I would want to revisit it very much. It was too specific to its time, I guess. Very intelligent, but having seen it in first run, I don't need to go back to specifically relive the late 1970 and early 1980s for whatever reason.

[–] Owlwise 8 years ago

For me, that's one of the big reasons to watch it again. It's a fascinating time capsule dealing with issues & ideas of substance ... and even if the specifics have changed (different politicians, different sources of corruption, etc.), those issues & ideas remain all too timely.

[–] noveltylibrary 8 years ago

>>There is almost no reference to "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" or any of the characters. This may have alienated fans of the original show.

Bingo. I remember being irritated at this show. This wasn't the boozing, barking but cute Lou we all knew and loved! This character was completely different. It should have never been called Lou Grant imo.

[–] tenderlovingtony 8 years ago

Ed Asner has said that in "Lou Grant" he was basically playing himself; he said that on the MTM Show, he was playing his fun-loving older brothers.

[–] nufsaid16 (629) 2 years ago

I literally have never seen this show re-run anywhere on any channel since it went off the air---it's like it's been completely forgotten, period. Nice to see that some people actually remember it----I watched it as a kid, and liked it, even though I was too young for it, lol.