When The Real World Intrudes On Our Favorite TV Shows

[Kromm]

Sometimes it sinks a show.  Sometimes it boosts a show.  Sometimes it might just lead to a single great episode or scene.

 

Here's what made me think of this.  We were talking about TV themes and I got around the the Chico and The Man theme.  One of the recommended links off the video for that was this:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5n-O8BT9fI

 

This was a good example of how even on a sitcom, a truly great actor can rise to the occasion (Freddie Prinze's death in the middle of a hit show).

Edited May 10, 2014 by Kromm

[smittykins]

I watched that episode first run, as an 11-year-old Chico and the Man fan who was devastated by Freddie Prinze's death(I remember praying for him to survive, although I knew In my heart it was extremely unlikely).  I honestly believe they should have quietly cancelled the show, rather than continue with the new "Chico"(no offense to Gabriel Melgar).

[Kromm]

I watched that episode first run, as an 11-year-old Chico and the Man fan who was devastated by Freddie Prinze's death(I remember praying for him to survive, although I knew In my heart it was extremely unlikely).  I honestly believe they should have quietly cancelled the show, rather than continue with the new "Chico"(no offense to Gabriel Melgar).

Oh, that's likely true, but just in isolation, that scene is an incredible piece of acting by Jack Albertson.

Edited May 10, 2014 by Kromm

[walnutqueen]

Luck.  Three dead racehorses, one dead show.

[ElleryAnne]

WKRP in Cincinnati - the Who concert tragedy at Riverfront Coliseum.  All in all, I think WKRP did a really good job with the episode in which they dealt with it. 

[walnutqueen]

The Sopranos - Nancy Marchand's death.

[Kromm]

I suppose one of the more obvious events is 9/11, although I think it's fair to say it affected TV long-term more than the immediate (fictional) shows in production at the time (other than with delays, I mean).  

 

Apparently though an episode of Friends in production at the time had some scenes reshot because Chandler made some bombing joke at an airport.  What's below is the original (which I guess must have been released on some DVD or something like that):

 

Edited May 11, 2014 by Kromm

[Badger]

Just last week, ITV had to postpone the season finale of "Law and Order:UK" because the case was too similar to one that had just happened in Leeds.  

[giovannif7]

I remember Night Court had an especially difficult couple of years due to deaths of cast members, beginning with original cast member Selma Diamond, who passed away after Season 2 ended. They killed off her character, and showed her co-bailiff Bull having difficulty dealing with his grief over her loss at the start of Season 3.

 

Sadly, the woman they hired to replace Selma, actress Florence Halop, passed away after one season on the show, so the start of Season 4 put the writers in the same position they'd been in a year earlier. I don't blame them for basically glossing over Florence's death rather than having Bull or another character react strongly again - Night Court was at heart basically a light-hearted slap-sticky sitcom with occasional moments of realism, not one of the more recent dramedy-style sitcoms.

 

I did note at the time that they made the wise move of hiring a much younger replacement for their next bailiff - the wonderfully deadpan Marsha Warfield, who, happily, has survived long past the final episode of the series.

[Shannon L.]

9/11 also inspired the Isaac and Ismael episode of The West Wing.  I guess a lot of people didn't like the episode, but I was ok with it. 

 

Cory Monteith's death was handled really well on Glee.  To make matters worse, not only were the actors grieving a friend, but Lea Michele was grieving a boyfriend (the term fiance was thrown around, but I don't know if that was confirmed).  That was a tough episode to get through because you know they weren't acting--you were getting raw, real emotion. 

[ElleryAnne]

That Glee episode was a heartbreaker even to me, and I'm not much of a fan of the show to begin with.   But the blurred lines between character and actor emotions was so strong it was impossible to avoid.

 

 

Another one where there was some overlap in knowing that the actors were addressing more than just another character death was Sesame Street dealing with Mr. Hooper's death.  You walk a fine line when you try to explain real death to small children via a big yellow 6-yr-old bird.

[Kromm]

9/11 also inspired the Isaac and Ismael episode of The West Wing.  I guess a lot of people didn't like the episode, but I was ok with it. 

 

Cory Monteith's death was handled really well on Glee.  To make matters worse, not only were the actors grieving a friend, but Lea Michele was grieving a boyfriend (the term fiance was thrown around, but I don't know if that was confirmed).  That was a tough episode to get through because you know they weren't acting--you were getting raw, real emotion. 

Yeah, but to me "inspired" is a bit different than intrudes on/"forced a change".  Not that it's any less valid to talk about, I just think we should recognize that's a bit of a semi-related thing, a close cousin, vs. a direct example.

 

Cory Monteith's death, of course, is a great example. They had NO choice but to address it--it wasn't an option.  I guess cast deaths are going to be the vast majority of these, although come to think on it, 9/11 isn't the only act of real world violence to force changes in a filmed but not aired episode.  I vague recall media stuff about the DC sniper attacks inspiring some changes on some show (although I don't recall what), I think also the Boston bombings maybe did, and I know for sure the Sandy Hook/Newtown shooting incident at the very least caused some airing delays and/or special title cards inserted.

[merylinkid]

One that shoudl have affected things was CSI went ahead with its shooting in a police station episdoe the same day of the latest Ft. Hood shooting.   I was among those kinds episde they didn't pull that ep.  

 

The WKRP episode about the WHO concert was well done.   I am old enough to remember what happened at that concert -- and a huge fan of WKRP.   

[Kromm]

Another one where there was some overlap in knowing that the actors were addressing more than just another character death was Sesame Street dealing with Mr. Hooper's death.  You walk a fine line when you try to explain real death to small children via a big yellow 6-yr-old bird.

 

And... here it is.  a fine line, sure. I have to admit, I've always wondered if the "just because" reasoning actually worked with kids understanding.

 

 

And speaking of Muppets, although it was done slightly differently, there was also the way that Jim Henson's death was dealt with in the Muppetverse.  Obviously The Muppet Show was no longer a regularly airing show at the time of his death (having ended 9 years earlier), and Jim wasn't really identified with the same way anymore with Sesame Street, but what they did was shoot a one-off Muppet Show special episode--which aired about 6 months later:

 

Edited May 11, 2014 by Kromm

[Kromm]

One more bit about The Muppets and death intersecting.  As I said there was the special 6 months after Henson died in 1990.  Will Lee. Mr. Hooper. died in 1982, and the Hooper death episode was in the next season.  Now Big Bird doesn't really age, but when Henson died, because Henson was identified by the world AS Kermit the Frog at the time--that they were in fact the same "person"--it was Big Bird who was the main character used at Henson's actual public funeral to be the voice of the Muppets to Jim.  So in a continuity where none of the Muppets really age, this was Big Bird being a bit more "grown up" because this time he's cognizant of death-although I guess it's not totally apples to apples since the Henson funeral was the reverse of the real world crossing over into a show, it was a show crossing over into a real world event (the funeral). Watch the video and note at the end that Big Bird says thank you (meaning in this case "goodbye") to Kermit.  That's no accident.

 

 

And I'd say there's a very real layer of the actor, Caroll Spinney, using this to say goodbye as well.  

 

The special 6 months later basically put a cap on things and was the way to do what their hearts told them they couldn't do at the funeral--give the world a Kermit who wasn't an embodiment of Jim.

Edited May 11, 2014 by Kromm

[BellaLugosi]

I've been wondering how they are going to handle Lee Thompson Young's death. He was on Rizzoli and Isles and unfortunately, took his own life in August. The show was filming season 4 which has aired. I assume they are going to write him out before season 5 starts next month. It was so sad to see him in the last few episodes.

 

Last season, Castle delayed an episode because of the Boston bombings. It was close to the end of the season so they only delayed it for a week. 

[Kromm]

I've been wondering how they are going to handle Lee Thompson Young's death. He was on Rizzoli and Isles and unfortunately, took his own life in August. The show was filming season 4 which has aired. I assume they are going to write him out before season 5 starts next month. It was so sad to see him in the last few episodes.

I can't say I keep up with the show that much in recent years, but did make a point of watching a few of the last episodes of this past season and was surprised he was still in them, since they were airing like 7-8 months after his death.  

 

Not that the show is in any way brave or original, but I actually hope they have the guts to deal with his death better than "he's been reassigned".  

[BellaLugosi]

I was looking at the episode titles and it seems like they might? Of course those titles could mean anything.

[kiddo82]

If I remember correctly, the season 3 Buffy episode Earshot (Buffy telepathically hears someone talk about taking out the school and Jonathan brings a rifle to school to commit suicide) was due to air right after the Columbine tragedy. The episode was preempted until the summer.

The air date of the season 3 finale (Sunnydale HS blows up during the climactic battle with the big bad) was also delayed due to the events of Columbine.

While, objectively, both episodes are dissimilar in their tone, I can't disagree with the decision of the network. While I think delaying Earshot was a no question (Showing images of a student assembling a loading a rifle at the school would have been extremely insensitive and eerie a week after a real life school shooting), the events of Graduation Day are much more innocent and outside of the "real world". (The gang detonates TNT in the library while a giant snake head chases Buffy through the halls). I heard in a commentary that the network just did not want the image of a school blowing up, regardless of the tone/context, so close after the real world tragedy occurred. Again, I don't disagree the decision, but the episodes are different.

On a different note, the following has always stayed with me from the moment I realized it. I was watching a rerun of Charmed some years back (season 3, Exit Strategy) and one of the sisters had recently discovered she had the ability to blow stuff up with her hands. She makes an offhand comment about not wanting to fly in a plane for fear of accidentally blowing it up. Now, I was watching this rerun well post 9/11 and thought "Holy cow! You can't say that." Then it hit me, this episode originally aired in April/May 2001, 5 months before the attacks. I watched this episode when it originally aired and have absolutely no recollection of thinking twice about that comment at the time. Crazy how a forgettable, throw away line would elicit a completely different reaction because of events that would take place a mere 5 months later.

Edited May 12, 2014 by kiddo82

[SnideAsides]

Yeah, I remember the pilot for the X-Files spinoff The Lone Gunmen - aired in March 2001 - had a plot where they were trying to stop someone from flying a plane into the Twin Towers. (One of the writers for that episode? Vince Gilligan.)

[SVNBob]

When talking about TV affected by 9/11, my mind immediately goes to the cases of two reality shows that started in that September, and the different courses they eventually took: The Amazing Race, and The Mole.

 

TAR 1 premiered on September 5th, 2001, and the starting line was New York City.  Episode 2 was originally scheduled to air the following week on the 12th, but understandably it did not.  However, they did start airing again the following week, on the 19th, and continued on to the end.  Final result for the season; a one-time preemption and only a one week delay in ending.  And with the ratings just good enough (and possibly with the help of the first TARCon), they got a second season.  Then a third.  Then more. Then the first Reality show Emmy,  Then 4 more of those Emmys in a row.  All the while building its audience.  Thus it still airs to this day.

 

In contrast, the second season of The Mole started airing at the end of that same September.  However, after airing only 3 episodes, it was pulled from the schedule entirely.  Eventually, it was burned off in the summer of 2002.  That dealt a devastating blow to the show.  The audience had dwindled.  The 2 celebrity seasons that aired year later didn't help either.  The Mole quietly died.  It came back the once in 2008, but it never really recovered.  Which is a shame, because it was very good, even the bad seasons.

 

The two shows each had elements that were related to the situation.  TAR had lots of international travel, and thus lots of commercial aircraft, which could be something of a trigger.  However, The Mole's central concept of "there is a traitor among us" was even more of one.  Understandably, it was not conducive to the zeitgeist.

 

But I have to end this with what I have to assume is a 9/11 reaction, and one of the cheesiest (and therefore best) ones: the lead-in to the results of Survivor 6 (peaking at around 2 minutes and 23 seconds)

 

Edited May 30, 2014 by SVNBob

[Kromm]

But I have to end this with what I have to assume is a 9/11 reaction, and one of the cheesiest (and therefore best) ones: the lead-in to the results of Survivor 6 (peaking at around 2 minutes and 23 seconds)

 

This was filmed almost a year after 9/11 and didn't air until 2003.  In a general way that shot of The Statue of Liberty was meant to be patriotic, yes, but I don't know if it was specifically about 9/11 (this aired around May or June 2003, I think).

Edited May 30, 2014 by Kromm

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

Two shows whose entire premises were affected by outside events before they even debuted:

 

Father of the Pride was an animated sitcom about Siegfried and Roy's white tigers. Roy Horn's maiming by one of those tigers pretty much killed the show before it had a chance.

 

Eight is Enough was originally a show about Tom Bradford, his wife Joan, and their eight children. Diana Hyland died after only two or three episodes had been filmed, first forcing the producers to write her off as "away" for the rest the show's first season, then as having been dead for a year when it returned in the fall. Tom's romance with and marriage to Abby soon followed.

[spaceytraci1208]

The episodes of Eight Simple Rules... that followed John Ritter's passing are heartbreaking. He was clearly so loved and grieved by the cast.

[selkie]

Cover Up- Jon-Erik Hexum accidentally killed himself on set in a freak accident with a blank-filled gun. They decided to continue the show with Anthony Hamilton in a similar role, and at the end of the first episode, the female lead is saying 'Mac (Hexum's character) isn't ever going to come back, is he?' and you can see the real emotion coming though in that scene.

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

The Sopranos - Nancy Marchand's death.

The character's death was handled well (including a hilariously awful wake), but the producers' attempt to bring her back one last time via CGI was terrible. James Gandolfini bravely tries to carry the scene opposite a computer-generated Livia whose clothes and hairstyle change with every shot and every generic insult.

 

OTOH, Dallas managed Larry Hagman's death much better. They'd filmed enough scenes with him on a phone giving generic "Yes" and "Uh-huh" responses that the other character's carrying the conversation themselves wasn't too obvious. And after JR's death, they constructed the rest of the season around his master plan of framing Cliff Barnes for his "murder" (which turned out to be an assisted suicide-by-gunshot to an avoid an agonizing cancer death).

Edited June 22, 2014 by Sir RaiderDuck OMS

[ybrik]

Just caught a rerun of the premiere episode of season 5 of Newsradio which is the first episode after Phil Hartman's death. Man I still tear up watching that. Season 5 was a good season but I really couldn't enjoy it and I rarely rewatch any of the episodes.

 

To me at least, I think Spartacus was able to continue and still be a good show despite Andy Whitfield's death.

[Kel Varnsen]

While, objectively, both episodes are dissimilar in their tone, I can't disagree with the decision of the network. While I think delaying Earshot was a no question (Showing images of a student assembling a loading a rifle at the school would have been extremely insensitive and eerie a week after a real life school shooting), the events of Graduation Day are much more innocent and outside of the "real world". (The gang detonates TNT in the library while a giant snake head chases Buffy through the halls). I heard in a commentary that the network just did not want the image of a school blowing up, regardless of the tone/context, so close after the real world tragedy occurred. Again, I don't disagree the decision, but the episodes are different.

 

The two episodes were different, but the finale of season 3 also featured a bunch of kids bringing weapons to school and wearing them under their graduation gowns. Sure they were mostly medieval weapons but I can see that contributing to it.

[Guest]

Big Brother was in the final three when 9/11 happened.  One of the houseguests had a family member killed in the attacks.  She was told that her cousin was missing in the diary room.  I remember when they noticed planes weren't flying banners anymore that it struck me that even though they had been told, they couldn't grasp what was happening in the world outside the house.

Edited June 23, 2014 by ParadoxLost

[ironclown]

I'm still not sure what they'll do with the second season of Silicon Valley to deal with Christopher Evan Welch's untimely demise, with the added burden of his character Peter Gregory being somewhat important to the plot. Hopefully it is dealt with, with both respect and good humor.

[Dejana]

In 1995, the season finale of Melrose Place had the complex being bombed, but due to the Oklahoma City bombing in April that year, they didn't actually show the explosion until the beginning of the next season in the fall.

 

On General Hospital, Stavros was supposed to threaten to unleash a biotoxin in the fall of 2001, but it got scrapped post-9/11 and anthrax. I think the whole Cassadine/Spencer war might have been shelved for a time, with storylines just abandoned.

 

On American Idol, there was eye-roll incident in April 2007. A contestant known for his nasal vocals defended his latest efforts by saying that nasally was a vocal style. The contestant was in his early 20s and from Virginia; this particular episode aired one day after the VA Tech shooting, and during his post-critique interview with Ryan Seacrest, he mentioned his thoughts and prayers being with his home state, or something like that. The camera cut to the judges, where Simon was caught rolling his eyes, and it exploded into this huge controversy of "Mr. Nasty" being super cynical and hitting a new low. Seriously, even the BBC wrote about it and American Idol isn't even a big deal there.  The next day, the producers were quick to defend Simon and deny the eye-rolling was in any way related to what happened at Virginia Tech. On the result show, the video feed from the judges' table from the night before was played, and it showed Simon not even listening to what the contestant was saying on stage, but incredulously discussing the whole "nasally is a vocal style" argument with Paula. Simon also directly spoke about the incident and made it clear that he wasn't completely heartless and would never disrespect school shooting victims.

Edited June 23, 2014 by Dejana

[Kromm]

Big Brother was in the final three when 9/11 happened.  One of the houseguests had a family member killed in the attacks.  She was told that her cousin was missing in the diary room.  I remember when they noticed planes weren't flying banners anymore that it struck me that even though they had been told, they couldn't grasp what was happening in the world outside the house.

Yeah, just stumbled on a clip of that:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJmX5dubBao

[DittyDotDot]

Wow, that's interesting. What a surreal experience that must have been, especially exiting the house to find the country at war without having experienced that day or the days following it with the rest of the country, like I did. 

 

I remember passively watching a movie the night before the attacks. I don't remember the name or anyone that was involved, all I remember is that it centered around air traffic control and how easy it would be for someone to bring down the entire system. The next morning when I turned on the news to the same station I had been watching the movie the night before and they were reporting that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center Towers and I thought that was some really crappy publicity that was in bad taste...but then I watched the second plane hit and I knew that the world was different at that moment.

[Actionmage]

I guess the marketing team of Sleepy Hollow are re-thinking their upcoming strategies, after the faux pas of this week: http://www.mtv.com/news/1919200/sleepy-hollow-national-beheading-day/

 

“Heads will roll as sleepyheads celebrate Headless Day today, September 2,” the email read. “On this National Beheading Day, viewers everywhere can share in the fun as fans prepare for the release of Sleepy Hollow: Season One on Digital HD now and arriving on Blu-ray and DVD September 16. We hope you like them and are able to share them with your readers! If you share via your social media platforms, please tag them with #HeadlessDay!”

 

Unfortunately, "the email came mere hours after news broke of journalist Steven Sotloff’s beheading by ISIS."

 

I hope no one lost their job. Entertainment always has the PR wheels grinding, so I am hoping that the majority of people are just sad that the PR machine couldn't put on the breaks. As opposed to thinking that it was a callous act with intention to be cruel.

[Princess Sparkle]

Big Brother was in the final three when 9/11 happened. One of the houseguests had a family member killed in the attacks. She was told that her cousin was missing in the diary room. I remember when they noticed planes weren't flying banners anymore that it struck me that even though they had been told, they couldn't grasp what was happening in the world outside the house.

Same thing (minus a family member killed in the attacks) happened on The Real World Chicago. I think they ended up bringing a tv into the house (or they went to a neighbors; I can't remember), so they could watch what was happening.

I also remember quite a few shows replacing their opening credits after 9/11 - Law and Order SVU and Sex and the City come to mind.

I also thought the West Wing did a pretty good job addressing John Spencer's death.

Edited September 4, 2014 by Princess Sparkle

[GreekGeek]

There was the death of Jack Soo on Barney Miller. At the time, there was a tribute show with clips from his past scenes and Hal Linden narrating them as himself rather than as Barney, but it was not made explicit that his character Nick Yemana had died. Later on, Nick was referred to in the past tense and it was inferred that Nick was in fact dead.

 

Something similar happened on Law and Order. Jerry Orbach's Lennie Briscoe retired, and later returned on Law and Order: Trial by Jury, although Orbach was able to complete only a couple of episodes. A scene was played entirely in whispers because that was all he had the strength to do. I didn't watch long enough to see if the show had Lennie passing away, but at the end of the original series it was said he had died.

[Kel Varnsen]

I didn't watch long enough to see if the show had Lennie passing away, but at the end of the original series it was said he had died.

The only time I remember it being mentioned (not that I was a religious watcher) was when Detective Green left he mentioned that he had been having issues ever since Lenny died.

[Sandman87]

Another one that was affected by 9/11: I can remember that the original opening for Letterman's show started with the announcer saying "From New York, (snide comment about NY), it's the Late Show with David Letterman!" After 9/11 they immediately changed the snide comment to "the greatest city in the world."

[Kromm]

We've been talking about this elsewhere, but I think it's a given that Joan Rivers' death will end not one, but two different TV series, one of which was a staple of it's mother channel (E!) and had been cranking out episodes like crazy.

 

They could try and save Fashion Police by bringing in someone like Kathy Griffin or Margaret Cho to take over... but I don't think they will.

[Dejana]

I guess the marketing team of Sleepy Hollow are re-thinking their upcoming strategies, after the faux pas of this week: http://www.mtv.com/news/1919200/sleepy-hollow-national-beheading-day/

 

“Heads will roll as sleepyheads celebrate Headless Day today, September 2,” the email read. “On this National Beheading Day, viewers everywhere can share in the fun as fans prepare for the release of Sleepy Hollow: Season One on Digital HD now and arriving on Blu-ray and DVD September 16. We hope you like them and are able to share them with your readers! If you share via your social media platforms, please tag them with #HeadlessDay!”

 

Unfortunately, "the email came mere hours after news broke of journalist Steven Sotloff’s beheading by ISIS."

 

I hope no one lost their job. Entertainment always has the PR wheels grinding, so I am hoping that the majority of people are just sad that the PR machine couldn't put on the breaks. As opposed to thinking that it was a callous act with intention to be cruel.

 

That's really unfortunate, but that group and their methods have been in the news for several weeks, so you would think the "National Beheading Day" idea would've been flagged as...regrettable and something to be avoided, before yesterday.

 

Fashion Police could theoretically go on but it's hard to picture. Maybe after a hiatus until the new year, when the award shows start up? Probably not, though.

[truthaboutluv]

I think this past season of The Bachelorette may count. Eric Hill, one of the guys competing for The Bachelorette, died in a paragliding accident when he got back home after being eliminated. His accident happened the week they were filming the hometown dates and his family took him off life support a few days later. The show showed the guys and Andi being told by Chris Harrison. There was a lot of debate in the discussion threads about the show capitalizing on the tragedy for drama, some thought it was fine that they showed it rather than just pretend it didn't happen, etc. 

[kiddo82]

Been watching a ton of Simpsons lately and remembering Phil Hartman. I think Newsradio did an outstanding job in writing off the character and handling Hartman's tragic death. It's one of the best episodes that had to juggle the fiction with the real life that I think I've seen.

[bmasters9]

There was the death of Jack Soo on Barney Miller. At the time, there was a tribute show with clips from his past scenes and Hal Linden narrating them as himself rather than as Barney, but it was not made explicit that his character Nick Yemana had died. Later on, Nick was referred to in the past tense and it was inferred that Nick was in fact dead.

 

I just saw that tribute show from Shout!'s release of Barney. I thought that Nick was one of the funniest characters there (and quite expertly played by Jack Soo). I think also that the clips that were selected for that tribute on 5/17/79 were some of the funniest moments that Nick Yemana had during his run.

[zillabreeze]

I've noticed that since 9/11 some syndicated shows airbrush out the Twin Towers and some don't. It's really not consistent either. The two most glaring are "Mad About You" and "Friends". One epi, there they are. Next time, no.

I wonder what the criteria is? I am not even sure how seeing them affects me. One time I get misty and the next I am in awe of the architectural marvels that they were.

[Kel Varnsen]

I've noticed that since 9/11 some syndicated shows airbrush out the Twin Towers and some don't. It's really not consistent either. The two most glaring are "Mad About You" and "Friends". One epi, there they are. Next time, no.

I wonder what the criteria is? I am not even sure how seeing them affects me. One time I get misty and the next I am in awe of the architectural marvels that they were.

I often wonder what the point of that is. I get that it was a terrible attack. But at the same time, digitally erasing the towers from tv shows is like pretending that they (and all the people in them) never existed. 

Edited September 10, 2014 by Kel Varnsen

[Kromm]

I've noticed that since 9/11 some syndicated shows airbrush out the Twin Towers and some don't. It's really not consistent either. The two most glaring are "Mad About You" and "Friends". One epi, there they are. Next time, no.

I wonder what the criteria is? I am not even sure how seeing them affects me. One time I get misty and the next I am in awe of the architectural marvels that they were.

It just seems insane.  It's denying history.  I know there might be some argument that the sight of the Towers might cause some viewer to be upset, but I think that would be equally true of another group who'd be disturbed at pretending they didn't exist (and both groups would include relatives of people who died--it wouldn't be as cut and dried as it only being those people on one side or the other).

[zillabreeze]

 

digitally erasing the towers from tv shows is like pretending that they (and all the people in them) never existed.

 

It just seems insane.  It's denying history.

My thoughts exactly.  They should always be there.  It just seems weird and arbitrary as far as who does it and when.

[merylinkid]

I get sad when I see an older show set before the Towers were built because I know they will be built then destroyed.    But I do not support airbrushing them out.   They did exist and they were destroyed.   We should never ignore that that happened.  Airbrushing them out is ignoring their existence.

[Guest]

I've noticed that since 9/11 some syndicated shows airbrush out the Twin Towers and some don't. It's really not consistent either. The two most glaring are "Mad About You" and "Friends". One epi, there they are. Next time, no.

I wonder what the criteria is? I am not even sure how seeing them affects me. One time I get misty and the next I am in awe of the architectural marvels that they were.

 

"Friends" changed the opening every year and in some seasons the Twin Towers weren't there before 9-11 and some seasons still showed them after 9-11 although not as obviously.

[kiddo82]

The Simpsons pulled an episode from syndication for a while after the attacks. The towers featured prominently in gag where Homer, really having to pee, goes up to top of one only to find the bathroom out of order so he has to run to the other one. I'm not sure when they started airing it again but I know they do.

It amazes me how much I still associate certain TV aspects with the immediate days following September 11th. Even though Friends never addressed it, whenever I catch the first chunk of episodes from season 8 I can't help but remember "this was us, sitting in our dorm room, watching TV and feeling like college students again." As for seeing the towers in older media, I appreciate the reminder. So much time has passed it's easy to forget except around this time of year. Whenever I get a glimpse of them in a pre 9/11 movie or TV show my reaction is subtle but instant. It's obviously a somber one, but like I said, the reminder is not only important, I think it's necessary.

Edited September 11, 2014 by kiddo82