In last week's season premiere of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" a tiny seed was planted, forming the beginning of the upcoming "Seinfeld" reunion with Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards. It's been reported that the reunion will take place in the next episode of Larry David's HBO series and that the cast will be on five shows throughout the remainder of the season.
To us, "Seinfeld" on "Curb" is the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup of television: two great tastes that taste great together. We're not sure which is peanut butter and which is chocolate, but it doesn't much matter. The "Seinfeld" cast will be together again, onscreen, with co-creator Larry David by their side. It couldn't go wrong, right?
Well, if history is any indication, it could go horribly wrong. We're hoping that since the cast won't be re-creating the old series, it won't come close to some of the failed attempts of past shows and might even live up to some of the better ones. Here's a look back at both the best and worst of reunion shows.
Photo gallery: See TV's best and worst reunion shows.
The Reunion Episode of "The Love Boat: The Next Wave"
We admit it: we weren't fans of "The Love Boat: The Next Wave." Even with Robert Urich at the helm, it was difficult to recapture the gooey, cheesy perfection of the original series. So when the Sun Princess set sail in 1998, we stayed on the dock, so to speak.
But we did climb aboard for one adventure in the second season, when the original "Love Boat" cast reunited for a very special episode. Vicki Stubing got married on the ship, and the whole gang was there to wish her well: Captain Merrill Stubing, Dr. Adam Bricker, Isaac Washington, and Julie McCoy. What? No Gopher? Sadly, Fred Grandy was a politician by this point and had done his best to leave the lovable purser behind. A sad loss for reunion TV, but with Julie and Doc finally professing their affection, no "Love Boat" fan was left disappointed.
"The Laverne & Shirley Reunion"
"Laverne & Shirley" made all our dreams come true in 1995 when they reunited for a memory-lane clip show. Perhaps Henry Winkler went a little too far when he compared the duo to Lucy and Ethel. After all, neither Cindy Williams nor Penny Marshall had Lucille Ball's onscreen staying power, but still, their slapstick approach to the sitcom format perfected by their female predecessors is a lost art these days. We could have done without the new scene with the girls trying out for a reality show, but we always welcome a reason to watch footage of Lenny (the pre-"This Is Spinal Tap" Michael McKean) and Squiggy (David L. Lander).
"The Brady Brides Get Married"
The Bradys probably hold the record for most cast reunions EVER. After the original series, most of the cast (sans Jan) signed up for the variety show "The Brady Bunch Hour." Although it lasted only nine episodes, it whetted fans' appetites for more. Of course, further down the line was "A Very Brady Christmas," the dramatic series "The Bradys," "The Bradys Back in Hawaii," and "The Brady Bunch's" 35th Anniversary Reunion Special: Still Brady After All These Years."
But the best Brady gathering by far has to be the first and only reunion featuring ALL nine original cast members: "The Brady Girls Get Married," the pilot movie for the series "The Brady Brides." It featured Jan announcing her engagement to Phillip Covington, only to have to share her special day with Marcia, Marcia, Marcia, who plans to marry Wally Logan so as not to be outdone by Jan. The wedding's set to take place in the backyard, but will it be traditional or modern? Oh the drama!
"Rescue from Gilligan's Island"
Long before the passengers of "Lost" were stranded, then rescued, then returned to their tropical paradise, that exact same story line was played out by the cast of "Gilligan's Island": Gilligan; the Skipper, too; the millionaire and his wife; the movie star (OK, not really THE movie star; in true diva fashion, original Ginger, Tina Louise, wanted too much money, so Judith Baldwin stepped in); and, yes, the professor and Mary Ann.
In this 1978 television movie, the long-shipwrecked castaways are finally rescued when their huts wash out to sea on a tidal wave and Gilligan sets the group's makeshift raft on fire, unknowingly sending smoke signals to a helicopter. Hooray! At last! So, how do the grateful survivors celebrate their return to civilization after 15-plus years? Why, they embark on a reunion cruise aboard the ominously named Minnow II to reminisce about the good old days! Naturally, they hit rough waters and end up marooned on that same uncharted desert isle.
"Mary and Rhoda"
One of the most anticipated (at least by us) and most disappointing TV reunions was the "Mary and Rhoda" debacle. Almost 25 years after the two groundbreaking sitcoms ("The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "Rhoda") went off the air, TV's most lovable single girls, Mary Richards (Mary Tyler Moore) and Rhoda Morgenstern (Valerie Harper), reunited in a movie that would serve as a pilot for a new series. The best thing about it was its opening: the original "Mary Tyler Moore Show" theme, morphing into a version by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. It all went downhill from there... fast. In fact, it was so bad that the show was canceled before it began.
Conan and Andy Richter on "Late Night With Conan O'Brien"
Back in February, Conan O'Brien signed off from "Late Night" for the last time as he prepared to take over "The Tonight Show" from Jay Leno. He was reunited on that final episode with his original sidekick, Andy Richter. Together they reminisced about some of their favorite moments, including the one where Conan tricked Andy into thinking he was entering a clothing-free spa, when in fact he was strolling naked onto the set of the "Today" show. Priceless Richter!
This reunion left us wanting more, and we got it. Andy's back with Conan on "The Tonight Show," and we're happy to have them together. It's got us watching late night TV again. For now, Andy is at the announcer's podium, though we're holding out hope he might move over to the couch as they settle in more to their new digs.
"Designing Women Reunion"
In 2003 four designing women and one dude reunited to look back at their TV show, "Designing Women." Together onstage for the first time since the show went off the air, all dressed in white on a set that looked like a Southern-style porch complete with white wicker furniture, Dixie Carter, Annie Potts, Jean Smart, and Delta Burke showed clips and talked about their years on the show. Meshach Taylor, who played Anthony Bouvier, on the show acted as host. Co-star Alice Ghostley and creator Linda Bloodworth-Thomason also made appearances and shared behind-the-scenes memories, reminding us how much we missed the pontificating Julia Sugarbaker and her self-centered former beauty queen sister, Suzanne, as well as level-headed designer Mary Jo and ditzy office manager Charlene.
"Thanksgiving Reunion" episode on "Archie Bunker's Place"
In what was the highlight of an otherwise second-rate "All in the Family" spin-off, the "Thanksgiving Reunion" on "Archie Bunker's Place" did have a LITTLE of the original series' spark. Several years earlier Mike, Gloria, and son Joey had left Archie and Edith for sunny California and more liberal surroundings. Archie and Edith stayed behind and took in niece Stephanie.
All six reunited for a Thanksgiving where Mike revealed he'd lost his job for attending a protest in the nude, and we saw hints of the Stivics' impending divorce. In a moment of uncharacteristic compassion, Archie loaned Meathead some money to get by. But the best Archie Bunker-ism of the episode was his retelling of the first Thanksgiving where "Captain Miles Sandwich" wound up with a turkey because he couldn't get a buffalo, a horse, or any other kind of bird. Since the turkey couldn't fly, he was easy to capture. So Miles said, "We'll eat this dumbbell."
"Return To Green Acres"
Perhaps one of the least successful reunions ever was the 1990 made-for-TV movie "Return to Green Acres." The plot was simple, really. Sometime in the 19 years since the show went off the air, Oliver (Eddie Albert) and Lisa (Eva Gabor) grew tired of farm livin' and fresh air and returned to New York.
When evil developers trick the citizens of Hooterville into selling their homes to make way for an industrial park, the resident hicks make the trek to the Big Apple (including Arnold Ziffel, the pig) to persuade Lisa and Oliver to come home and help save the town. Rumor has it Eddie Arnold's contract stated he wouldn't do the movie without script approval, but the script was so bad, they delayed sending it to him until it was too late to back out.
"Happy Days 30th Anniversary Reunion"
The first "Happy Days" reunion was in 1992, but the better tribute to the classic sitcom was the 30th anniversary special in 2005. The two-hour event included highlights from the ten-year series, a reunion softball game, and the full cast (including Ron Howard, Henry Winkler, Anson Williams, Don Most, Erin Moran, Scott Baio, Marion Ross, and Tom Bosley) at Arnold's Drive-in (a set reconstructed specifically for the special, as the original had burned down in an episode late in the series).
One highlight was listening to the cast discuss the now-famous "Jump the Shark" episode. But perhaps the most entertaining bits were the previously unseen bloopers. They included Fonzie's make-out session with Mrs. C and an additional quip added to Mr. C's emotional final-episode toast, in which he asks what had been on viewers' minds for years: "Wait, where's Chuck?!," referring to the third Cunningham kid who mysteriously vanished in Season 2, never to be spoken of again.
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