A Rose Is A Rose By Any Other Name: What TV Show Defines Your State??

[Bastet]

While there may be some states where an exploration of one city could reasonably represent the state as a whole, I'm hard-pressed to come up with one, and thus think this idea is largely bullshit.  As but one example, I live - and was born and raised in - Los Angeles.  There have been many shows set here, so to quibble about which one best represented the city would be one (never-ending) thing.  To select one of them as representing the state?  Preposterous.  There are many who think one should have a passport to travel from southern to northern California or vice versa.  There are a shit ton of cities/towns along the way who don't connect with either and share little beyond a "CA" designation. 

Even in most of the smallest of states, this must be the case -- city vs. suburban vs. rural exists everywhere that I'm aware of, and individual nuances beyond that; while the fact I've been to all 50 states doesn't make me an expert on any of them (even my own), I'd be quite surprised if there was one for which a single city's experience could reasonably represent the state as a whole.  So even where a show gets it right for a city/area, extrapolating to say it defines a state seems ridiculous.  Especially if we're translating number of viewers to endorsement of the show's presentation of a location; people enjoy all manner of shows that don't accurately reflect their settings.

[selkie]

Tim Allen tried to put a Michigan feel onto a faraway sound stage for 'Home Improvement'. I remember the rotating sweatshirts from every college & university in the state, a plotline about getting lost trying to find one of those wee towns in Mid-Michigan somewhere off US 127, and any number of other of metro Detroit shout outs. 

'Golden Girls' doesn't feel particularly Florida to me- it's a small subset of one of many metro areas in the state, and could have as easily been set in Sun City, Arizona without really any changes. I guess my Florida is the one Carl Hiaasen writes about (both non-fiction and fictionalized) and both 'Dexter' and the early seasons of 'Miami Vice' hit the right mix of dreamers, schemers, the dumb, the weird, and those just kind of rubbernecking at the spectacle of it all. 

[atomationage]

19 minutes ago, selkie said:

remember the rotating sweatshirts from every college & university in the state

Did they do Interlochen?

Dexter definitely looked like Florida.

[Kromm]

44 minutes ago, selkie said:

Tim Allen tried to put a Michigan feel onto a faraway sound stage for 'Home Improvement'. I remember the rotating sweatshirts from every college & university in the state, a plotline about getting lost trying to find one of those wee towns in Mid-Michigan somewhere off US 127, and any number of other of metro Detroit shout outs. 

'Golden Girls' doesn't feel particularly Florida to me- it's a small subset of one of many metro areas in the state, and could have as easily been set in Sun City, Arizona without really any changes. I guess my Florida is the one Carl Hiaasen writes about (both non-fiction and fictionalized) and both 'Dexter' and the early seasons of 'Miami Vice' hit the right mix of dreamers, schemers, the dumb, the weird, and those just kind of rubbernecking at the spectacle of it all. 

To me the reason Golden Girls actually feels VERY Florida is that while it's true it doesn't represent many parts of the state (true for every darn State as we go down the list), what it DOES do is represent the part it does VERY well. It's not like some sitcoms, where you can literally drop them virtually anywhere in the country. And what it really feels like is life in/around one those retirement "villages" that pretty much define at least a third of Florida.  I believe it's supposed to be set around Miami, and they're not actually IN a retirement village (they wouldn't be sharing a house anyway if they were),  but it always felt like that was just a technicality to have them all under one roof.

As for the Florida vs. Arizona thing? I suppose it's true it could be "moved" to Arizona with not TOO much difference, so I hang my impression that it's somewhat more tied to Florida mostly because I do think they occasionally talked about the humidity. 

[GreekGeek]

On 9/28/2016 at 11:45 AM, Chaos Theory said:

New York City without a doubt L&O.  Although a friend of mine says Blue Bloods might give the franchise a run for its money.

Long Island and New York State is a lot  harder.  

 

3 minutes ago, GreekGeek said:

I'm guessing Orange is the New Black was chosen for NY because it isn't NYC and there's more to the state than the city. But I do think it's a bit weird to ignore all the iconic NYC shows. One that hasn't been mentioned yet is All in the Family, which was set in Queens and did a good job capturing the attitudes of many working class men and women of the early 1970's. And Mad Men, which beautifully evoked the city throughout the 60's

.As for LI, there's The Affair.

Golden Girls and Designing Women have already been mentioned for Florida and Georgia, respectively. They were the first shows I thought of, too.

For Massachusetts, I would have chosen Cheers. Carla and Cliff had pretty good regional accents, at least to my New York ears, although actual Bostonians may disagree.

And how about the best ever spinoff, Frasier, for Washington? 

Edited October 3, 2016 by GreekGeek

[Kromm]

26 minutes ago, GreekGeek said:

I'm guessing Orange is the New Black was chosen for NY because it isn't NYC and there's more to the state than the city. But I do think it's a bit weird to ignore all the iconic NYC shows. One that hasn't been mentioned yet is All in the Family, which was set in Queens and did a good job capturing the attitudes of many working class men and women of the early 1970's. And Mad Men, which beautifully evoked the city throughout the 60's

No, it was chosen (like everything from that piece) because it has the highest IMDB rating. It literally had nothing to do with how well or poorly it represented the state.

[UYI]

On 9/30/2016 at 8:19 PM, selkie said:

Tim Allen tried to put a Michigan feel onto a faraway sound stage for 'Home Improvement'. I remember the rotating sweatshirts from every college & university in the state, a plotline about getting lost trying to find one of those wee towns in Mid-Michigan somewhere off US 127, and any number of other of metro Detroit shout outs. 

 

To be fair, Tim Allen actually IS from Michigan, so that's genuine coming from him. 

On 9/30/2016 at 9:33 PM, Kromm said:

To me the reason Golden Girls actually feels VERY Florida is that while it's true it doesn't represent many parts of the state (true for every darn State as we go down the list), what it DOES do is represent the part it does VERY well. It's not like some sitcoms, where you can literally drop them virtually anywhere in the country. And what it really feels like is life in/around one those retirement "villages" that pretty much define at least a third of Florida.  I believe it's supposed to be set around Miami, and they're not actually IN a retirement village (they wouldn't be sharing a house anyway if they were),  but it always felt like that was just a technicality to have them all under one roof.

 

Miami is nice, so I'll say it twice! ;)

 

[Deanie87]

Marylander here - so, uh, I guess The Wire and Homicide LOL!  Its really a very nice state and Baltimore is a wonderful city, I swear!  Also, Veep's Selena Meyer is a Maryland politician, but I'm not sure that is a rousing endorsement either!

I remember reading something awhile ago about Martin O'Malley going to mayor's convention and talking with another mayor about current tv shows based on their city.  The one Mayor said that his show was called Providence and O'Malley rather embarrassed said that his was called Homicide.  But Homicide had episodes that took place in suburban type areas of the counties that surround Baltimore, and there was one episode that took place on the Eastern shore and showcased that way of life, which is similar to that of many of Maryland's more rural areas. Just with  crabbing/seafood rather than farming.  I think that both shows also got a lot of the racial dynamic right as well.  

Edited October 3, 2016 by Deanie87

[UYI]

49 minutes ago, Deanie87 said:

Marylander here - so, uh, I guess The Wire and Homicide LOL!  Its really a very nice state and Baltimore is a wonderful city, I swear!  Also, Veep's Selena Meyer is a Maryland politician, but I'm not sure that is a rousing endorsement either!

I remember reading something awhile ago about Martin O'Malley going to mayor's convention and talking with another mayor about current tv shows based on their city.  The one Mayor said that his show was called Providence and O'Malley rather embarrassed said that his was called Homicide.  But Homicide had episodes that took place in suburban type areas of the counties that surround Baltimore, and there was one episode that took place on the Eastern shore and showcased that way of life, which is similar to that of many of Maryland's more rural areas. Just with  crabbing/seafood rather than farming.  I think that both shows also got a lot of the racial dynamic right as well.  

Maryland really is a microcosm of America in so many ways--mountains in the western area, the Chesapeake Bay in the Southern/Eastern areas--and while I love DC and Baltimore, there's a lot of our state that people don't get to see on TV because their shadows loom so large. 

[roamyn]

2 hours ago, UYI said:

Maryland really is a microcosm of America in so many ways--mountains in the western area, the Chesapeake Bay in the Southern/Eastern areas--and while I love DC and Baltimore, there's a lot of our state that people don't get to see on TV because their shadows loom so large. 

i would say, so is North Carolina. 

Mountainous in the west, touristy Outer Banks and eastern coast, modern cities in Charlotte and Winston-Salem, research & development in the Triangle, low lying prairie areas in the southern, and farming spread all over.

[Moose135]

15 minutes ago, roamyn said:

i would say, so is North Carolina. 

Mountainous in the west, touristy Outer Banks and eastern coast, modern cities in Charlotte and Winston-Salem, research & development in the Triangle, low lying prairie areas in the southern, and farming spread all over.

I always say so many people in Charlotte are from somewhere else, it's not really like being in the South*, but drive two hours to the mountains, and if you banjo music, you better turn around!

 

* I've lived in Mississippi, I know about living in the South!

[roamyn]

1 hour ago, Moose135 said:

I always say so many people in Charlotte are from somewhere else, it's not really like being in the South*, but drive two hours to the mountains, and if you banjo music, you better turn around!

 

* I've lived in Mississippi, I know about living in the South!

Same w/the Triangle.  I've seen license plates from more than 1/2 the States, some Provinces and even some British - i think (tho I'm surprised they're allowed to drive on the streets, even tho they appeared to be modified to left side driving).

[proserpina65]

23 hours ago, Deanie87 said:

Marylander here - so, uh, I guess The Wire and Homicide LOL!  Its really a very nice state and Baltimore is a wonderful city, I swear!  Also, Veep's Selena Meyer is a Maryland politician, but I'm not sure that is a rousing endorsement either!

I remember reading something awhile ago about Martin O'Malley going to mayor's convention and talking with another mayor about current tv shows based on their city.  The one Mayor said that his show was called Providence and O'Malley rather embarrassed said that his was called Homicide.  But Homicide had episodes that took place in suburban type areas of the counties that surround Baltimore, and there was one episode that took place on the Eastern shore and showcased that way of life, which is similar to that of many of Maryland's more rural areas. Just with  crabbing/seafood rather than farming.  I think that both shows also got a lot of the racial dynamic right as well.  

But even the Eastern Shore is diverse.  That one episode didn't really capture anything of Maryland's rural areas except that one small aspect of it.  It didn't represent the Upper Shore, for example, where I live and which is much more farming and less crabbing/seafood, and really didn't get the more western and northern parts of the state either.  The Baltimore suburbs do not resemble the rural parts of Maryland at all.

I'm not saying The Wire wasn't a great show, because it was.  (I didn't particularly like Homicide even though I generally adore Clark Johnson.)  But no one show can possibly represent an entire state, not even a small one like Delaware, and The Wire and Homicide are no exceptions.

[Constantinople]

On 9/28/2016 at 10:01 PM, Kromm said:

Wait... WKRP In Cincinnati. The credits showed real locations, but admittedly no other footage did. But I do seem to recall that they talked about real locations in the city more than a few times, even if the most we ever saw outside of the radio sets were stand-up pieces showing single rooms or bland storefronts somewhere else.  Also, I do think in terms of how people acted and spoke, while it was no homerun on seeming especially Ohio-ish, it at least did legitimately seem medium-sized city-ish (not too cosmopolitan, but also not rural).  

Okay, still not great. But it's something.

I vaguely recall that WKRP had an episode about the people who were trampled to death at the Who concert in Cincinnati.

[Enigma X]

Here is another one of these types of surveys that I don't agree with.

Your State's Favorite TV Show

[Irlandesa]

18 minutes ago, Enigma X said:

Here is another one of these types of surveys that I don't agree with.

Your State's Favorite TV Show

Ha!  I think my favorite response is "Cold Feet" for Washington.  Cold Feet?  The British Show? And I think the picture they use is from the 1997 version of the show and not the 2016 reboot--the latter isn't available in the US as far as I know and the former is only available in full on acorn tv.

[Kromm]

12 hours ago, Enigma X said:

Here is another one of these types of surveys that I don't agree with.

Your State's Favorite TV Show

 

12 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Ha!  I think my favorite response is "Cold Feet" for Washington.  Cold Feet?  The British Show? And I think the picture they use is from the 1997 version of the show and not the 2016 reboot--the latter isn't available in the US as far as I know and the former is only available in full on acorn tv.

Well, again it's another survey where the criteria is NOT representation, but rather some kind of popularity rating. In the first survey it was "best IMDB rating per show set in a state" and with this one it's "most popular per capita per state", without even a state representation angle necessary (although some states did lean that way). And again, if you hunt down the original site's information on the poll, based on IMDB information. 

Quote

We looked at the top 200 most popular TV shows from IMDB (Internet Movie Database. Duh.), cross referenced Google Trends data from the past twelve months, and came up with the most statistically significant, unique TV program in each state. For example, Silicon Valley is not the most-watched show in California, but it is more popular per capita in California than in any other state.

IMDB seems inherently flawed as a source for evaluating popularity in the first place (because it's quality ratings, not viewership numbers) but then on top of that, neither quality ratings OR viewership has much to do with accurate representation of a place.

[proserpina65]

On ‎10‎/‎16‎/‎2016 at 0:11 AM, Enigma X said:

Here is another one of these types of surveys that I don't agree with.

Your State's Favorite TV Show

Well, for my state, at least it makes some sense, seeing as The Wire was set and filmed in Baltimore.

[St. Claire]

On 10/18/2016 at 0:30 PM, proserpina65 said:

Well, for my state, at least it makes some sense, seeing as The Wire was set and filmed in Baltimore.

But, once again, there is a whole lot of Maryland other than Baltimore. Should folks in Oakland and Lusby feel like they are represented by Baltimore City? It seems like every listicle I read uses "...things about MD" when they really mean "...things about Central MD." A show that resonates with me as being from "where I'm from" as a lifelong MD resident is just as likely to be West Wing as it is The Wire. (Although I was a faithful local viewer of Homicide: Life on the Street," and often looked for familiar spots.)

[AgentRXS]

I agree with Dexter being the modern-day TV show that defines (South) FL.

I would also nominate Miami Vice since it was actually shot here; however, many of the gritter locations they shot in have been or are in the process of being gentrified. It's still a time capsule for 80's era Miami and I enjoy seeing long gone landmarks in the background shots whenever I catch a rerun.

Golden Girls hit the nail on the head for 80s era South Beach. It brings back fond memories of my childhood when Miami Beach was nothing but old people. I remember being really little and visiting my grandmother who lived on Miami Beach and constantly looking/hoping to see one of the Golden Girls (too little to understand that it wasn't shot on location.)  It doesn't reflect current day Miami at all, but like Miami Vice, is a time capsule for its era.  I think many of the retirees are now settling in Boca Raton, Naples, and Sarasota these days.

Even though Gator Boys is shot in South FL as well, it is probably a good representation of the more rural parts of the state.

[proserpina65]

On ‎11‎/‎11‎/‎2016 at 4:01 PM, St. Claire said:

But, once again, there is a whole lot of Maryland other than Baltimore. Should folks in Oakland and Lusby feel like they are represented by Baltimore City? It seems like every listicle I read uses "...things about MD" when they really mean "...things about Central MD." A show that resonates with me as being from "where I'm from" as a lifelong MD resident is just as likely to be West Wing as it is The Wire. (Although I was a faithful local viewer of Homicide: Life on the Street," and often looked for familiar spots.)

True, but at least this particular survey was about which shows were most highly rated by IMDB users rather than which show represents the state.  I could see more internet users being familiar with/appreciating The Wire.

[callie lee 29]

On 9/26/2016 at 2:08 PM, proserpina65 said:

As much as I loved The Wire, I am offended by the notion that Baltimore defines my state.  Okay, yeah, there aren't many shows set in Maryland, and they pretty much are all set in Baltimore or the DC area, but Ihere who don't resemble the characters on The Wire (or Homicide, for that matter) in any way.  Heck, there are plenty of people in Baltimore who would probably be offended as well.

  I love Homicide: Life on the street -the first four seasons are truly my favorite episodes if television ever (beating out the first five (And five got lucky) off West Wing and any seasons if Married with Children and Sunny in  Philly.

However Dexter for Florida?? I'm not saying that miami beaches an d disney aren't great things I  My state but it does have almost 65,800 square miles. +22 million people, , my county has 333'000+ residents and is 1,700 square miles .Florida isn't comprised of only Miami and disney. I just wish we had more filmed in the other areas!

 

On 9/30/2016 at 0:15 AM, UYI said:

 

[HunterHunted]

On Monday, September 26, 2016 at 2:34 PM, roamyn said:

Glee, f*g Glee?!

is that because of the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame?  Or because that idiot died of a drug overdose and Ohio is struggling mightily with heroin?

We're a blue collar state.  WKRP or the Drew Carey Show would've worked better.

And WTH is One Tree Hill?  Did these people never hear of The Andy Griffith Show?

The funniest thing about Glee being set in Ohio is that it was set in Lima, Ohio. I went to college with a couple of kids from Lima and the real Lima couldn't be more dissimilar from fictional Lima. My first college roommate grew up on a farm outside Lima. She told me "You're the first Black person I've ever seen. Wait...nope. I saw one once in a mall." There are more Black people than she made it out to be, but my understanding is that the town is small (about 30,000 people) and still geographically segregated.

[cakes1975]

I like this topic, but for me I prefer that the poll represented a show where the actual locale is more of a character in the show than a reference point. In that vein I think Law and Order is New York. The location, stories and characters are part of a whole.  Same for The Wire and Homicide. It may offend people from Maryland, but for those of us watching from home, Baltimore is a character in those stories, and I'm not sure they would work as well if they were filmed on a LA soundstage. Being from Southwestern IL, the show that currently makes it setting a character for me is The Exorcist. The Chicago location adds to the overall story and gives it a sinister vibe; and I don't think it would work as well without the local political and religious conflagration that come from a big, historically corrupt city. I personally the only other city that could do the story of demon possession writ large any justice is New Orleans. There are other shows that get the vibe of a city, but I think that nothing can or will capture a whole state.

[roseha]

On 12/2/2016 at 11:11 PM, cakes1975 said:

I like this topic, but for me I prefer that the poll represented a show where the actual locale is more of a character in the show than a reference point. In that vein I think Law and Order is New York. The location, stories and characters are part of a whole.

I totally agree that Law and Order, and its spinoffs, really feel like New York and I've lived here quite awhile.  Obviously being filmed on location, and often on the streets, and employing local actors, makes a big difference.  I would definitely have picked the L and O franchise.

Maybe it's not the point of the original article, but I do think it's important that if a location is a big part of a show, there should be attention to detail.  I have just started binge-watching Parks and Rec for the first time - I'm up to Season 5 - and I think it's a great show.  I love the cast.  I laugh out loud a lot.  However, my father's side is from rural Indiana and I wish someone, just one person in the show would have attempted an authentic accent.  Even the bit players and guest stars sound Californian to me.  They also have a recurring gag line about being 4th in the country in obesity, yet nearly all the extras are thin, including all the kids despite the jokes about overweight toddlers.  That said, I love the show.  Just saying.

[memememe76]

When it comes to states where there is a lot of choice, like New York and California, I favour shows that make we want to visit the place and experience what the characters are experiencing. That's why shows like Seinfeld, Friends and the like have me associate NYC more than Law and Order. 

Talk shows also make a big impression on me even when they're filmed in a Soundstage. Regis talking about that Italian restaurant in NYC. Oprah is very much Chicago to me. Same for Siskel and Ebert.

[ratgirlagogo]

On 12/22/2016 at 0:45 AM, memememe76 said:

That's why shows like Seinfeld, Friends and the like have me associate NYC more than Law and Order. 

  But Seinfeld and Friends were filmed in Los Angeles which is why those of us who live in New York City are more likely to favor the shows like Law and Order that did all their filming here and used local performers as supporting cast and guest stars - especially since as basically everyone has pointed out half of everything on TV is set in either Los Angeles or NYC. 

[Raja]

By just reading the wiki on American Horror Story I wonder how they choose that to represent Los Angeles or California. That said in my experience except for "white washing" Salami and Goldstein on a South Central LA high school basketball team when "white flight" was total by its late 1970s time period The White Shadow would be my vote. It would have been more real if the school was set outside of South Central and not "black" Los Angeles like Room 222 set almost a decade before it. Honorable mention Lou Grant and his dying newspaper trying to compete with the LA Times near monopoly.

[slf]

It's funny, while I'm sure there are places in Texas that are well-represented by Dallas or Friday Night Lights - our state is big af and pretty diverse, after all - I'd have to pick a show set outside Texas to represent the area I grew up in: Roseanne. 

[Constant Viewer]

1 hour ago, slf said:

It's funny, while I'm sure there are places in Texas that are well-represented by Dallas or Friday Night Lights - our state is big af and pretty diverse, after all

oh definitely life in the Hill Country is different from Southeast Texas, or Southern Texas by the border. On another note why were there no Latinos in Friday Night Lights?

[punkypower]

Tje original survey no longer works, so I'm going in blind (Brown Sugar is Louisiana's favorite show. Never heard of it--going look it up after I comment)

True Blood

AHS: Coven

True Detective: Season 1

Swamp People

Duck Dynasty

I'd say out of the four, TB is the "one of these things is not like the others." I guess because it was ALL supernatural, but also because it didn't represent us very well. Meanwhile TD really defined actually places and traits. SP and DD, definitely, bc SO much hunting (yuck) that has been ingrained into our lifestyles. I was born and raised in NOLA and AHS struck just the right blend of our fascination and history with witchcraft and voodoo.