This was a very interesting and good anthology series. The stories were very scary and thought provoking and it really catered to people who really wanted just that... a good horror show. Night Gallery was horror but never forgotten the people who liked bizarre and fantasy whereas this concentrated on pure horror stories. What is wrong with that?
shareIt was on Friday nights on ABC at 9E/8C opposite Dallas, the number 1 show on television at the time.
shareNot only that, look WHEN they aired it:
Original air dates:
November 27, 1981
December 4, 1981
December 11, 1981
December 18, 1981
December 25, 1981
January 8, 1982
January 15, 1982
Insane. It aired when most programs are running repeats, because NO ONE IS WATCHING during the holidays. I mean what network airs a first-run episode of a NEW show on CHRISTMAS DAY?
Seeing that, it's obvious they were just burning off these episodes and had no intention of giving the series a chance to survive.
Shame...
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Wait a minute... who am I here?
I recall seeing the intro many years ago although I didnt remember any of the episodes. But after seeing them recently I asked myself the same question as you.
I was pleasantly surprised to find two full episodes I remembered on Youtube.
The first episode I recall starred Billy Crystal using an enchanted makeup case that takes him from misfortunate loser to fortunate winner. This episode was alright after watching it for the first time in almost 30 years.
The second one I remembered was a Michael Constantine episode as an executioner during the French reign of Terror. It was just as good as I remembered it all these years later since seeing it on the original televison broadcast. I was wrong about the location though as originally I had thought the episode took place at the Tower of London, not France.
The other problem with anthology shows,
is that they tend to be very expensive to produce.
Unlike other shows, Darkroom has different stories every week,
which requires new sets/locations, and new casting for every episode.
The ratings need to be high to justify the cost.