Sam Malone’s Lucky Bottle Cap

A guy walks into a bar. It’s an introduction to the classic setup and punch line joke format.  It’s also the way that many episodes of Cheers began. An NBC situation comedy set in an eponymous Boston bar modeled after the Bull & Finch Pub, Cheers took...

Indianapolis, Bush Stadium, and the Clowns

More than the site of a world-famous automobile race, Indianapolis is a Midwestern bedrock of popular culture.  Its benchmarks include being the hometown for David Letterman, the site of Elvis Presley’s last concert, and the setting for the CBS situation comedy...

Bicycles and Comedy

Double Rush was a short-lived situation comedy that aired on CBS in 1995.  Stephen Nathan and Diane English created Double Rush, using the setting of a bike messenger service in New York City for comedic effect.  The service, appropriately, was called Double Rush....

Lessons of “The Brady Bunch”

Like most television shows, The Brady Bunch is a fantasy.  How many families have superstar athletes and iconic entertainers visiting their homes?  Unlike most television shows, The Brady Bunch is a tremendous instructor of life lessons. Premiering on ABC in 1969 and...