  Swiburn Member Username: Swiburn Post Number: 91 Registered: 07-2006 |
This topic may have been covered before, but does anybody know of a past tv show set in Detroit? All I can think of was a short lived show set in Flint around the late l970s, early l980s? And what was the name of it? Chicago and Minneapolis have had their due, but what about Detroit? | ||
Blueidone Member Username: Blueidone Post Number: 17 Registered: 03-2007 |
Wasn't "Home Improvement" set somewhere around Detroit? | ||
Blueidone Member Username: Blueidone Post Number: 18 Registered: 03-2007 |
"Home Improvement is a sitcom about Tim Taylor, the accident prone host of a Detroit, Michigan television program about tools, who raises his dysfunctional family. . Main Characters: Dr. Timothy "Tim" 'The Toolman' Taylor is the accident prone host of Tool Time who teases his co-host Al." Quoted from a www.tv.com website... | ||
Kathleen Member Username: Kathleen Post Number: 2163 Registered: 10-2003 |
"Freaks & Geeks" was set in the metro Detroit area. Does that count? | ||
Kimistree Member Username: Kimistree Post Number: 17 Registered: 01-2004 |
"Martin" the Martin Lawrence sitcom was about a Detroit disc jockey. The show was not filmed here but did show pics of the city during the opening. | ||
Blueidone Member Username: Blueidone Post Number: 19 Registered: 03-2007 |
Wikipedia lists "8 Simple Rules", "Sister, Sister", "Freaks & Geeks", "Martin" and "God, the Devil & Bob" | ||
6nois Member Username: 6nois Post Number: 137 Registered: 11-2006 |
There were a strong of shows in the early 90's 'sister, sister' being the prime example set in Detroit. | ||
Iheartthed Member Username: Iheartthed Post Number: 572 Registered: 04-2006 |
They used one of those apartments near Harbortown (I can't remember the name right now) for Martin's building on his show. The house shown on Sister Sister looks similar to one I have seen in North Rosedale Park. | ||
Swiburn Member Username: Swiburn Post Number: 92 Registered: 07-2006 |
Ok, thanks for all the information! | ||
Chitaku Member Username: Chitaku Post Number: 1278 Registered: 03-2006 |
sister sister was grosse pointe | ||
Brizee Member Username: Brizee Post Number: 11 Registered: 07-2006 |
Blade on SpikeTV was set in the D. Too bad it's cancelled. It was really starting to tense and unpredictable. | ||
Iheartthed Member Username: Iheartthed Post Number: 576 Registered: 04-2006 |
"sister sister was grosse pointe" One episode said Farmington. Home Improvement was Royal Oak. | ||
Mcp001 Member Username: Mcp001 Post Number: 2515 Registered: 11-2003 |
Robocop the Series was set in Detroit (or Delta City, if you prefer). | ||
Urbanize Member Username: Urbanize Post Number: 517 Registered: 02-2007 |
There's more Pop Culture reference of Detroit rather than shows. | ||
Urbanize Member Username: Urbanize Post Number: 518 Registered: 02-2007 |
BLueidone, I'm a member of that site tv.com. | ||
Gistok Member Username: Gistok Post Number: 4026 Registered: 08-2004 |
I didn't know that about 8 Simple Rules... to bad John Ritter passed away... it might have had a chance. It was a good show even without him... I like Katey Segal... | ||
Mpow Member Username: Mpow Post Number: 247 Registered: 11-2003 |
Yes, it usually is a rule in tv, when someone comes for a visit or come from somewhere they usually are from detroit. | ||
Fareastsider Member Username: Fareastsider Post Number: 301 Registered: 08-2006 |
Freaks and Geeks was a great show. the writer grew up in Mount Clemens whos dad owned the now gone Ark Surplus. In the show the father owned a sports shop on 16 Mile Rd. In the show they reference Warren, Clinton Twp, Mt CLemens, The Rusty Nail, Cobo, other mile roads, Gratiot, and more it was a cool show | ||
Soulsauce Member Username: Soulsauce Post Number: 196 Registered: 05-2004 |
Garden Court Apartments on Jefferson (near Staples) were used for exterior shots of what was supposed to be the apartments on "Martin." For the record, they look NOTHING like that on the inside. They look a lot better and have tons of historic character. | ||
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72 Post Number: 512 Registered: 05-2006 |
Anyone remember a show from around 1997 or 1998 called Easy Streets? It was an hour long drama set and partly film in Detroit. It had Ken Olin as the star and was about an Irish mob and a corrupt political system. There was even a tie- in to casino gambling. It lasted about half a season, but was really well written. I guess that's why it failed! And who can forget that great episode of Northern Exposures that was set in Grosse Pointe when Maggie O'Conner (Jani Turner)came home for her grandmother's birthday. At least the had Detroit in the opening shots! | ||
Danny Member Username: Danny Post Number: 5734 Registered: 02-2004 |
Iheartthed Home Improvement was at Keego Harbor. | ||
Danny Member Username: Danny Post Number: 5735 Registered: 02-2004 |
We also have Soupy Sales, The Long Ranger (Radio), Swinging time, For My people (the longest running Black community programing since 1975 to present) Kidbits, The new Dance Show, Ask a silly question and my more. Ahh!!! those go ole days of community media T.V. | ||
Detroit_girl Member Username: Detroit_girl Post Number: 87 Registered: 10-2003 |
LOVED Freaks & Geeks. It perfectly mirrored adolescence in suburban Detroit in the late 70's /early 80's. Right down to the ugly clothes. | ||
Bvos Member Username: Bvos Post Number: 2142 Registered: 10-2003 |
Kidbits and The New Dance Show: Detroit early morning and late night classics. You'll never seem them again today on the TV in today's corporate conglomoration world. | ||
Iheartthed Member Username: Iheartthed Post Number: 583 Registered: 04-2006 |
No, it was Royal Oak: "Set in Royal Oak, Michigan (a suburb of Detroit), the series centered on the antics of the Taylor family, which, along with Tim, included his pedantic wife Jill (Patricia Richardson) and their three mischievous sons: the popular and athletic Brad (Zachery Ty Bryan), comedian and intellectual Randy (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), and the youngest son, Mark (Taran Noah Smith)," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H ome_Improvement#Plot | ||
Ed_golick Member Username: Ed_golick Post Number: 589 Registered: 10-2003 |
If it's in Wikipedia, it MUST be true! | ||
Iheartthed Member Username: Iheartthed Post Number: 584 Registered: 04-2006 |
"If it's in Wikipedia, it MUST be true!" I only reference the best. But I specifically remember them living in Royal Oak from watching the series. | ||
J_to_the_jeremy Member Username: J_to_the_jeremy Post Number: 5 Registered: 03-2007 |
I'm almost certain Home Improvement was Royal Oak. For what it's worth, "Lafawndah" in the movie Napoleon Dynamite was from Detroit. | ||
Luckycar Member Username: Luckycar Post Number: 9 Registered: 02-2007 |
In the 80's,I don't remember when,I went to a pilot tv show veiwing.They showed upcoming shows,mostly pilots.We had to vote or rate the shows,if they were watchable or terrible.One of the the pilots was titled Bumpers.You guessed it,a tv show about Detroit and the people in it worked for an auto company.The main guy was the hard working level headed one.His brother was of course,stealing a car off the line one part at a time!There was a love interest,and it was lame.We gave it very low scores.Don't know how it played in other cities.I think I got paid $25 to sit through this crap. | ||
That_merollis Member Username: That_merollis Post Number: 1 Registered: 04-2007 |
I can't believe no one's mentioned Tom Ryan's short lived Hamtramck! Was that on Ch 20? Ran for one episode right? | ||
Urbanize Member Username: Urbanize Post Number: 532 Registered: 02-2007 |
How would someone remember a show that only ran for one episode, especially if it's nothing recent. PLease be real Merollis. | ||
That_merollis Member Username: That_merollis Post Number: 2 Registered: 04-2007 |
Dude I remember the promo push run up to it, plus I think Ryan may have still been on mornings on CKLW so my family def. would have heard about it. Be real? Just tryin' to contribute to the conversation. Sheesh. | ||
Urbanize Member Username: Urbanize Post Number: 533 Registered: 02-2007 |
I apologize Merollis, I've been having a crappy day. Certain things haven't been going my way today. Still though, I'm sure too many people won't remember it. | ||
Detroitplanner Member Username: Detroitplanner Post Number: 1163 Registered: 04-2006 |
Detroitej72 I remember that show, lots of outdoor shots along shot along rough parts of Michigan Ave and in the Cass Corridor! I seem to remember it being called Mean Streets though. I really liked the show, it was close to some of Detroit's underbelly. It must have had local writers. Sister Sister looked a lot like N Rosedale to me, I'm pretty sure they used shots of a home along Breton Dr as the house they lived in. I could be wrong though... Those shows were long ago. In addition Dan Akroyd played an Episicipol Priest bringing up his family in Detroit in a very short series. (Message edited by Detroitplanner on April 03, 2007) | ||
Ed_golick Member Username: Ed_golick Post Number: 590 Registered: 10-2003 |
Danny, The "longest running Black community programing since 1975 to present" isn't For My People, it's American Black Journal. The program's original title was CPT, and it's been on WTVS since 1968. Urbanize, It's true that only one episode of Hamtramck aired on WDIV, but it was planned as a series of specials. Too bad a couple of narrow minded humorless politicians put the kibosh on the series. | ||
Urbanize Member Username: Urbanize Post Number: 534 Registered: 02-2007 |
There was one episode (two if you want) where there was no visual reference of Downtown on Sister Sister. Home Improvement didn't have ANY visual reference. Also, Martin had some, only different ariel shots of the building and the City County Building (Randolph st.). On the show though, it was referenced as the Court House. Also, another thing about sisiter sister is the school Tia and Tamera went to. Although there was a public school called Roosevelt, it was a elementary school and was closed in the early 90s (I assume it was that building in Chinatown on Cass) | ||
That_merollis Member Username: That_merollis Post Number: 3 Registered: 04-2007 |
No prob. Urbanize.. anyway, here's something I dug up from everyone's fave super accurate online encyclopedia. This is from the WDIV entry: One local program idea that almost cost the station was for a Detroit-based comedy/drama called Hamtramck, which aired only once. It created a storm of controversey as ethnic groups said the show was racist. The backlash caused then-WDIV general manager Amy McCombs to resign. | ||
Thnk2mch Member Username: Thnk2mch Post Number: 841 Registered: 02-2006 |
quote: "Soul Man", I believe it was called. | ||
Ed_golick Member Username: Ed_golick Post Number: 591 Registered: 10-2003 |
Hamtramck aired in 1987, Amy McCombs left WDIV in 1988. The mayors of Warren and Hamtramck demanded an apology from the station, which was delivered by McCombs. Hamtown mayor Kozaren gathered people to picket the station before Hamtramck even aired. Too bad. The show was hilarious and got great ratings despite dupa Kozaren's antics, but the controversy caused WDIV to cancel any future episodes. | ||
Detroitplanner Member Username: Detroitplanner Post Number: 1164 Registered: 04-2006 |
"Also, another thing about sisiter sister is the school Tia and Tamera went to. Although there was a public school called Roosevelt, it was a elementary school and was closed in the early 90s (I assume it was that building in Chinatown on Cass)" That would be Burton. My granny taught there many moons ago. | ||
Chitaku Member Username: Chitaku Post Number: 1284 Registered: 03-2006 |
I used to wkae up at 5 am for Kidbits | ||
That_merollis Member Username: That_merollis Post Number: 4 Registered: 04-2007 |
ahh I didn't realize Hamtramck was '87, for some reason I thought it was more like '84 or.. I guess Tom Ryan woulda been long gone from CK by that time. Ed: nice hearing from you, I enjoy your posts on the Detroit TV BBS, do you actually have a copy of the program or do you just remember watching it when it aired? | ||
Ed_golick Member Username: Ed_golick Post Number: 592 Registered: 10-2003 |
That_merollis, What a great, great guy! (couldn't resist) Got a copy from somebody who worked on the show. | ||
That_merollis Member Username: That_merollis Post Number: 5 Registered: 04-2007 |
yeah, I was gonna name myself 'Birmingham's in Troy' but I figured it was a bit long. Man I would love to see that, also would love to see some of the movies with the Count Scary intros. I seem to remember this one routine when he had this 'pants-o-meter' and would tell you how many pairs of pants you needed to wear to watch the movie. Cos you know, the movie was so scary it would scare yer pants off. I thought that was damn funny when I was 7. | ||
Psip Member Username: Psip Post Number: 1739 Registered: 04-2005 |
A few FABULOUS scenes from "The Scene" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v =0fdzDKp4EO4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v =xhE-0IDpkiM | ||
Plymouthres Member Username: Plymouthres Post Number: 31 Registered: 02-2007 |
Danny- How about Bowling for Dollars! Although it was shot in Allen Park, at the Thunderbowl. Bob Allison still rules! | ||
Detblue Member Username: Detblue Post Number: 32 Registered: 04-2007 |
I'm not sure of the actual name of the show, but there's a series of Animal Resuce "Detroit." | ||
Urbanize Member Username: Urbanize Post Number: 570 Registered: 02-2007 |
You're thinking Animal Cops Detroit Detblue. They have a series for Houston and San Francisco too. | ||
Detblue Member Username: Detblue Post Number: 33 Registered: 04-2007 |
Urbanize -thanx | ||
Detroit_girl Member Username: Detroit_girl Post Number: 89 Registered: 10-2003 |
Bowling for Dollars--LOL. Now that's a childhood memory. Dinner for two at the Roostertail! | ||
Plymouthres Member Username: Plymouthres Post Number: 32 Registered: 02-2007 |
D-girl- The Roostertail!! What a stich!! We had some kind of dance there when I was in high school (Grad. Melvindale high '78) and it rocked!! Sinbad's after for drinks-drinking age was still 18 then!! | ||
Detroit_girl Member Username: Detroit_girl Post Number: 90 Registered: 10-2003 |
That's funny. More Bob Allison trivia--he currently puts out some type of newsletter for geriatrics and my sister is the designer who puts it together. She says he's really ornery and hard to work with  | ||
Ed_golick Member Username: Ed_golick Post Number: 595 Registered: 10-2003 |
In 2002 Allison gave 1.5 million dollars to WSU's media department. |
