For our fifth giveaway, the bonus item is Archie #624 ("Geek Face-off!" Dilton vs. Mark Zuckerberg!). Can I assume you know our book's Zuckerberg/Facebook connection? Well, there's an Archie connection, too!
We'll randomly select one person who comments on this Future Friday post to receive both prizes. There’s no need to leave your email address, but do check back on Saturday to see if you’ve won.
This week, we want to know your favorite TV show that originally aired in 1996. If you were old enough to watch TV back then, what show did you never miss? If you were too young in the mid-90s, what show would you watch if you stumbled upon a rerun today? Here's a sample prime-time TV schedule for the 1995-96 season. The sample doesn't include cable, so if your favorite show aired on cable in 1996, we still want to know!
Here are our answers:
JAY:
I'm not embarrassed to admit my answer. I'm not! (So why am I defending it before I even tell you what it is?) I never missed an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210. I made fun of my friends in high school for watching it, but when they're all watching, I had to watch just to join their conversations. Within a couple episodes, I was hooked! Brandon, Brenda, and the crew were in the Class of 93 just like me. But while Steve drove a Corvette, I drove a Camaro. And I stayed a faithful viewer through their (and my) college years. Not ashamed!
CAROLYN:
1996 was a nomadic year for me. It was the year after college and I lived in a few different cities, couch-surfing much of the time. I didn't have a TV that year. If I was fortunate to crash a home with a TV I'd watch Seinfeld and Friends. It felt like such a treat!
I was only 3 in 1996, but I always watched Boy Meets World during the summer in Junior High. They were so funny to me at the time. Even now, I'll see that it is on at 2am on random channels sometimes, and I'm like, "UH YES. Who cares if I have school in 5 hours?" I'd watch it, and get up in 4.5 hours for school. Like a champ.
ReplyDeleteI can not wait to read The Future of Us! I love both of you guys books and I can't wait to see what an awesome calibration you guys did! BTW Archie rules!
ReplyDeleteI was a huge fan of 90210 lol i had the comforter and pillow case LOL.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the chance to win
mel91284 at yahoo dot com
I had two favorite shows then. I don't think I missed an episode of Boy Meets World or Home Improvement. I loved watching them. I still try to catch reruns when I can.
ReplyDeleteBoy Meets World! Corey and Topanga remain two of my all-time favourite TV characters and who didn't love Fee-hee-hee-heeney?
ReplyDeleteOh my, that schedule takes me back! I definitely have to go with Boy Meets World. I was a total TGIF nerd!
ReplyDeleteWow, looking at the line up brings back memories! I can't believe I was able to watch so much TV then, but my couldn't-be-missed list was: Melrose Place, Mad About You, Bev Hills 90210 (agreed, no shame in this!), Friends, Seinfeld, and ER. Whew!
ReplyDeleteI was and still am a HUGE fan of Boy Meets World. I also loved to watch Friends.
ReplyDeleteWant so much this book..
ReplyDeleteBtw, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was the best thing out x)
Still to this day my favorite TV series of 1996 is Roseanne. I always thought that show was much more relatable to my life than the others on at that time. Unfortunately, the last couple seasons weren't that great, but I did love how the writers wrapped up the series, although many people were disappointed.
ReplyDeleteMy family was big on the Simpsons and Unsolved Mysteries. :) It rarely failed... you could always find us watching the newest episode on either TV or video. :)
ReplyDeleteI couldn't get enough of Boy Meets World either! I thought Mr. Feeny was the most perfect teacher on the planet.
ReplyDeleteHome Improvement was my favorite! I was one of those many girls who had a crush on all three boys and had to watch every episode!
ReplyDeleteDegrassi High is definately my favorite from the 90's!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the giveaway!
candycane16@roadrunner.com
Yolande
I just loved Hey Arnold- "Move it football head!"
ReplyDeleteI was 3 back in 1996, but i love watching reruns of Boy Meets World and Frasier. I have to say that my all time fave was ER!! I absolutely LOVE that show and I had a major crush on Dr. Carter :)
ReplyDeleteDefinitely watched a ton of 90210 in my day. Now, I'd say my favorite from that list is Boy Meets World. Holy crap, what a perfect time capsule of 90's amazingness.
ReplyDeletejessicaborash at the gmail
I watched a lot of Rugrats throughout elementary school. Really miss that and other cartoons.
ReplyDeleteI was either watching Dawson's Creek or My So Called Life...I loved (still love!) both of those shows!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE The Nanny. Still. I laugh out loud when I watch that show. It's so hilarious. Last summer I would watch marathons of it, hour after hour at a time. Who cares if it's 2am? The Nanny is on!
ReplyDeleteI was a senior in high school that year and apparently didn't watch TV that often (I don't even remember half the shows listed on the lineup), but I loved Friends, Party of Five, and Saturday Night Live.
ReplyDeleteIt has to be News Radio. Always had a thing for Maura Tierney.
ReplyDeleteUnsolved Mysteries -- even though it scared me at least once per episode, whether via a segment about ghosts or spontaneous combustion or mysterious disappearing killers. A close second was probably Frasier, which was probably a weird choice for a 9-year-old.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe no one has said Lois and Clark yet. I never missed it.
ReplyDeleteI LOVED TGIF!! The back to back to back magic that was Family Matters, Boy Meets World, and Step by Step was a big favorite in late elementary school. As a family, though, we were strangely addicted to Home Improvement, something that continues to mystify all of us to this day.
ReplyDeleteIn 1996 I didn't want to miss any of the TIGF line-up. All the shows were part of my middle schools years. My favorite show then and now is Boy Meets World. I’m still guilty of catching it in the mornings on ABC Family.
ReplyDeleteMy college roommates and I never missed Friends. When I was at home, my family watched Married with Children and Baywatch religiously.
ReplyDeleteBoy Meets World forever!! I watched it from the age of six all through my childhood, and it is still one of the best shows. I wish they played more reruns. That show will never get old. :)
ReplyDeleteI loved watching the Simpsons and boy meets world and I remember watching Seinfeld with my dad!
ReplyDeleteAw, Topanga <3 I was 9 in 1996.... The Fresh Prince (still airing where I live now, we also had Home Improvement, Roseanne, Married With Children, Cosby Show and Dr. Quinn recently). My favorite was and still is Friends.
ReplyDeleteI just read 13 Reasons Why, needless to say, it was a special reading experience.
Thanks for reminding me of all the great TV I watched back in '96! I was a senior in high school then and was BIG into "Dr. Quinn." That was a truly special show because it was the one show my entire family would watch together.
ReplyDeleteI NEVER missed an episode of Party of Five! Oh how I LOVED the drama in that show! lol
ReplyDeleteI was to young to remember but i love Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Friends so much! Reruns baby!
ReplyDeleteI was 10 in 1996, and I never missed an episode of "Wishbone". Because of that dog, I didn't have to study for an English test!
ReplyDeleteIt gets people reading and it teaches children about the classics in a way they can understand them.
I Loved 7th Heaven :D
ReplyDeleteIn 1996 I was 17 years old and my favorite show, in fact my all time favorite show, was and is the X-Files. I own all the seasons on dvd and have t admit I am still obsessed with it.
ReplyDeleteUnsolved Mysteries. I wonder if I can get it on DVD?
ReplyDeleteFriends, GOD i love Friends. <3 That show, THAT SHOW!!! Yup, Friends is pretty much the best. You should have made a Friend's reference in the book!r
ReplyDeleteMad About You, Roseanne and, gulp, also a rabid fan of 90210. Love the Archie tie-in. My son gets that if I win, but he'll have to pry your ARC out of my death-grip fingers. :)
ReplyDeleteI have to say Friends. "Friends" is the best show! It was and still is the best show, who don't love "Friends"???? hah Oh, and The Simpsons is very good too!
ReplyDeleteLooking at that TV lineup, all I could think was how there wasn't any show that I absolutely loved. I don't think Will & Grace premiered until 1998 and I adored that show. I watched Friends and I enjoyed it, but it wasn't with a huge amount of fierce loyalty. I also thought Seinfeld was funny, but again, it's not like I never missed it.
ReplyDeleteI loved 90210 in the very beginning, but stopped watching it after a while. I guess I was a TV-watching nomad in the late 90s. No TiVo back then to program a season pass. :)
Oh my gosh, I need a time-travel vessel to go back and see all those shows-- have no idea what most of them are!
ReplyDeleteBut if I had to go with one, it would be "Friends."
Dah dah-dah dah dah dah...
I would watch Rugrats, Hey Arnold, Boy meets World, and Married with Children. But Rugrats was always my favorite as I grew up with the show all my life.
ReplyDeleteHusband and I were XFiles fans!
ReplyDeleteFriends and Seinfeld were obviously great, but I'm going to put my vote in for ER. Those first couple of seasons were pretty excellent, especially the episode where Ewan McGregor guest-starred. Swoon!
ReplyDeleteI loved Dexter's Laboratory!! It is my all time favorite show!
ReplyDeleteI was four-years old in 1996, so I'm pretty sure my favourite shows at the time were Barney and Winnie the Pooh. My current favourite shows from 1996, though, would probably have to be Boy Meets World and 7th Heaven.
ReplyDeleteWell in 1996, I watched a lot of anime like Dragon Ball or Sailor Moon. I watched The Nanny and Zorro too. I liked these TV-shows !
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to read the Future of Us !
I was a Boys Meets World and 90210. I cant wait to read the Future of Us!!
ReplyDeleteamandapedulla21@hotmail.com
I never missed 90210. I love that show. I still watch it in reruns on Soapnet. I just love everything about it. If I remember right 1996 had season 6 and 7 in it. That was the gangs Junior and Senior year of college. I didn't like season 6 as much as 7. I liked the character of Ray and it bummed me out that they decided to make him start being mean to Donna. Now I want to go watch the show again LOL
ReplyDeleteI loved watching Lois and Clark (it's probably why I love super heroes so much :)
ReplyDeleteAlso like everybody else in 6th grade that year I loved watching Fresh Prince of Bel Air.
I was 1 in 1996 so I probably din't watch tv at all haha. But I love when Fresh Prince of Bel Air comes on, it's probably my favorite '90s show that I still watch today (when it actually comes on)
ReplyDeleteCan't wait for The Future of Us to come out :)
I would have watched Murder She Wrote because I love mysteries.
ReplyDeleteI was only 3 years old in '96, but that didn't mean I didn't watch TV. My mom had me watching ER practically from the day I was born. We watched all 15 seasons, and have since moved on to Grey's Anatomy.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the contest, Jay!
I was only two in 1996 but I love watching reruns of Fresh Prince of Bel Air.
ReplyDeleteTHE PRETENDER. I was seriously, seriously in love with that show. In fact, just thinking about it now makes me want to buy it on DVD.
ReplyDeleteLoves Family Matters, and was the Fresh Prince on then? If a show could be my jam, it'd be that.
I've gotta win one of these! November 21 is my teenager son's bithday!
ReplyDeleteHey Arnold! and Boy Meets World for sure. I still love to watch reruns when they come on :)
ReplyDeleteWell... in 1996 I definitely watched Frasier. I moved to Seattle a year after that and realized that Frasier is NOTHING like Seattle. (even though they claim it is set there.) I also watched The Simpsons, Seinfeld, the occasional X-Files and Friends.
ReplyDeleteBut I did grow up with Archie comics for sure. (and remember: Betty is not a vitamin?)
I loved Third Rock from the Sun. Great writing and perfect casting.
ReplyDeleteOh, Oh... American Gothic. Amazingly good show made by the one and only former teen hearthrob (or preteen in my case), Shaun Cassidy. Gary Cole was awesome in it. Very creepy, more in a Stephen King way than a David Lynch Twin Peaks thing. Still don't know why it was cancelled. And I can't wait to read your book, btw, Jay. I can see I'm going to have to fight my preteen daughter for first dibs.
ReplyDeleteMy "guilty pleasures" of that time included "Beverly Hills: 90210" AND "Melrose Place." (I feel like I should hang my head in shame, being an intelligent, educated woman, but I can't seem to make my neck bend in that direction. ROFL)
ReplyDeleteI loved 'Frasier.' Hilarious writing and characters.
ReplyDeleteMy kids were 7 and 9 so we were watching a lot of Nickelodeon shows. Hey Arnold! had to be a favorite.
ReplyDeleteIn 1996 I think my favorite television show has to be Fresh prince of Bel-air i loved my first taste of will smith and the awkward cousin carlton. It was a family i wanted to live in.
ReplyDeleteIf only you'd asked about 1997-- it would have been Buffy the Vampire Slayer all the way.
ReplyDeleteIn 1996 though, I was all about Party of Five and Boy Meets World. And yes, I watched 90210 as well, from the very first episode to the very last.
Probably Boy Meets World. Love that show! They don't make many good family sitcoms now like they did in the 90s anymore.
ReplyDeleteI never missed an episode of home improvement with my family. I remember being able to stay up until it was over. Me my sisters and my brother used to fight over who got to do the "argh" that Tim does in the theme song.
ReplyDeleteI was to young in 1996 to be watching these shows, but when reruns were on i would always watch Step by Ste.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I don't necessarily remember watching these shows at the time they aired, I love Home Improvement, Friends, Seinfeld, Step By Step, and Fresh Prince of Bel-Air!! Those shows are wonderful!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteLoved Friends and ER. Used to sneak and watch ER when I was supposed to be in bed.
ReplyDeleteI'm still inside of my mom's womb in 1996, but The Simpsons is my favorite cartoon since like FOREVER... “You kill 'em, we grill 'em!!!” -Bart Simpson :))
ReplyDelete"The Critic" Jon Lovitz as Jay Sherman. Hands down one of the best cartoons ever. Even did a crossover with The Simpsons. It was cancelled by ABC in 95, but was shown on Comedy Central in 96 and 97
ReplyDeleteI loved Ellen!
ReplyDeleteI was watching Frasier a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteAh, I love this Archie comics. My fiction professor has won the first place of Archie best letter competition on 1960s. Thanks
I was HOOKED on Boy Meets World, Sabrina, 7th Heaven...and a few others. It was awesome.
ReplyDeleteI turned 18 in 1996. I have to say admit I was totally into The X-files! I ended up chatting with people from all over the world on message boards about the show. I met my best friend through that show, and even though she lives in another country she is now the godmother of my almost 4-year-old. Despite the fact that this show totally jumped the shark in its last few season, I cannot but think fondly about it today.
ReplyDelete