Results: I often wonder why some TV shows succeed when I can't stand them and some are taken off the air when I love them. I sometimes wonder why TV executives get paid big bucks to make bad decisions. This survey is a trivia lovers look at that.
Published on 03/21/2025
Some popular TV shows were wrecked by decision makers behind the scenes. For example Mork and Mindy was very successful on Thursdays then ABC moved it to Sunday and it died. Murder She Wrote and Cagney and Lacey had similar fates. One of my favorite shows was The Mary Tyler Moore Show and it did well despite the worst efforts of TV executives. Here is some MTM Show trivia.
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QUESTIONS
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Comments
1.
1.
Here are some executive decisions that could have derailed the MTM show. Which were you aware of?
Its portrayal of an unmarried working woman finding satisfaction outside of home and family — and openly enjoying sex and dating — was unheard of in the early 1970s
20%
446 votes
In the original concept, Mary was a recent divorcee working for a gossip columnist in Los Angeles. This was changed so her being a single woman, after a relationship break up, and moving to a big city to be an assistant producer .
15%
326 votes
Other (please specify)
1%
13 votes
Not Applicable
61%
1331 votes
On the 1960s Dick Van Dyke Show, Moore and screen husband, Van Dyke, slept in separate beds. By 1972 after the supreme court made birth control available to unmarried women, Mary is having dinner with parents when her mother shouts, "Don't forget to take your pill!" Mary and her father both yell, "I won't," and Mary's face shows that her pill is "The Pill".
20%
434 votes
| Other Answers | Percentage | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| 0.82% | 10 | |
| none | 0.08% | 1 |
| You clearly don't remember how "free" women were during the '60s and right into the '70s in the second option. | 0.08% | 1 |
| aware of some of these facts. but not complelely for any choice | 0.08% | 1 |
2.
2.
Here are some other decisions that could have changed the format of the MTM show. A major one was choosing to base the show in Minneapolis rather than TV hubs LA or New York. Which of these decisions were you aware of?
The city would be huge for Mary but tiny for New Yorker Rhoda, contributing to plot twists.
18%
398 votes
The bad winter weather could also provide plot points and unique visuals.
16%
342 votes
The winter weather in Minneapolis would require coats, many of them. The costume department took full advantage of this and Mary's coats went on to become fashion choices for the masses..
20%
442 votes
Other (please specify)
0%
8 votes
Not Applicable
62%
1364 votes
| Other Answers | Percentage | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| 0.50% | 6 | |
| none | 0.17% | 2 |
3.
3.
Some executive decisions were made about other cast members. Although it was sometimes touch and go, they eventually made some right ones. Which of the following were you aware of?
One of most loved roles come in season four and was supposed to be one episode. Betty White played Sue Ann Nivens, outwardly sweet with an aggressive, sex-crazed side. White was a friend of Moore and the episode was such a hit that she was brought in as a regular.
25%
556 votes
Ed Asner almost didn't get cast as Lou Grant because his iconic audition line "You've got spunk… I hate spunk," was delivered without "sugar coating". They worked on this one line for 30 minutes to get the right balance and Asner won everyone over except for Moore. But producers told her, "That's your Lou Grant," and the rest is history.
19%
408 votes
Valerie Harper was considered too pretty for the role of Rhoda Morgenstern, Mary's Bronx-born sidekick. It was suggested she not wear any makeup for her 2nd audition and play the role as an attractive woman who feels unattractive and not as pretty, as thin, and as accomplished as Mary.
13%
291 votes
Other (please specify)
0%
9 votes
Not Applicable
60%
1318 votes
| Other Answers | Percentage | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| 0.71% | 9 |
4.
4.
Some decisions about the show were based on external factors. Here are some of them. Which were you aware of?
The home exterior shot used for Mary's apartment became so famous that the owners eventually had enough of the tour buses and other visitors. The owner displayed an "Impeach Nixon" banner prominently across the front. That stopped the tours.
11%
236 votes
The role of Ted Baxter was based on Jerry Dunphy, a news anchor in LA. His style became so well-known it inspired the egotistical, dim-witted Ted Baxter played by Ted Knight.
14%
305 votes
In the episode where Mary had her tonsils removed, originally she was going to have a tattoo removed. Moore refused saying "Mary" was a "good catholic girl" who wouldn't do that, so they changed it to a tonsillectomy.
10%
222 votes
Other (please specify)
0%
9 votes
Not Applicable
72%
1593 votes
| Other Answers | Percentage | Votes |
|---|---|---|
| 1.04% | 8 | |
| none | 0.13% | 1 |
5.
5.
"The Last Show" was the 168th episode and series finale of The Mary Tyler Moore Show. It won an Emmy for outstanding writing and I still remember it fondly. There are other popular shows that succeeded when they could just as easily have failed. If you have a favorite show that I could do a similar survey on, will you please let me know in the comments?
Yes
13%
277 votes
No
17%
367 votes
Undecided
20%
440 votes
Not Applicable
51%
1116 votes
COMMENTS