1950s

I was reading a story over at Entertainment Weekly about whether or not 1984 was the greatest year for movies ever (answer: no). It got me thinking: what's the best year for TV show debuts in history?

There are a lot of choices. In 1994 we saw the premiere of Friends, ER, The Game Show Network, Due South, Touched By An Angel, My So-Called Life, and Inside The Actors Studio. Or how about 2000, which saw the debuts of Survivor, Ed, CSI, and Curb Your Enthusiasm? And 2004 wasn't too shabby either, with the launches of Lost, Rescue Me, Entourage, Veronica Mars, House, and Desperate Housewives.

Premavision Inc, the company that owns Gumby, recently entered into a joint deal with Classic Media which will see Classic Media manage all rights to the Gumby characters, including any television, film and video releases. This includes a library of 223 episodes of the original Gumby Show series. The companies also plan to have a direct-to-video movie released sometime in 2008. I'm too young to have grown up with Gumby, but thanks to video I did see several episodes of his 50s television program when I was a kid. Even then I found it too sugary and slow-paced for my enjoyment, and I wonder if kids today would have any interest in Gumby at all. While I'd hate to see the little green guy disappear completely, I still have to ask if it's possible for him to have the appeal he once did, or if he's merely a relic from a more innocent era of children's television.