In a way, I think pitting “Knight Rider” against “Dallas” on Friday nights was smart counter-programming.  On the one hand, I’m sure a lot of male viewers enjoyed watching Larry Hagman/J.R.  But, on the other hand, there might’ve been just as many men out there who weren’t comfortable with watching a soap opera.  For those viewers, therefore, KR was a perfect antidote.

Knight Rider scheduling

1982/83: Friday 9 pm, head-to-head w/ Dallas. No episode finished ahead of Dallas. Final rating below the Top 30, but renewed for season 2.

1983/84: Sunday 8 pm. Final rating 25th, tied w/ CBS Tuesday Movie, Webster (first season), Alice, Hardcastle and McCormick (first season).

1984/85: Sunday 8 pm, head-to-head w/ Murder, She Wrote (first season). September 30, 1984 Knight Rider season 3 premiere tied w/ Murder, She Wrote series premiere. Final rating below the Top 30.

1985/86: September-December 1985 Friday 8 pm. January-April 1986 Friday 9 pm, head-to-head w/ Dallas. No episode at Friday 9 pm finished ahead of Dallas. Final rating below the Top 30. Cancelled.

Edited March 16Mar 16 by kalbir

22 hours ago, Paul Raven said:

Never saw Off the Rack so can't speak to the quality but if it was any good ABC would have been better off leaving it there and hope it grew in the ratings. Throwing one show after another at Dallas only helped CBS really.

The pilot is available, not sure about the rest.

 

@DRW50 Thank you. I only watched a few minutes but it seemed pretty basic.

Pamela Brull was on DOOL a few years later.

Looks like two other episodes are also on Youtube but I don't want to clog the thread. 

I didn't know that about Brull. 

10 hours ago, Paul Raven said:

I only watched a few minutes but it seemed pretty basic.

"Off the Rack" is a perfect description for that show, lol.

Fri March 15 1985

9pm

Dallas #5 22.7/36

Benson #44 14.2/22  Off the Rack # 51 12.9/20

V #62 10.0/17

Here's what happened on the soaps and two rookie hits the week of March 11-17, 1985.

The Cosby Show - The Younger Woman (episode 21, March 14, rating 28.3, #1): Cliff's widowed friend has found a new girlfriend who is young enough to be his daughter.

Dynasty - Photo Finish (March 13, rating 24.2, 2nd): Sammy Jo is revealed as the person behind the incriminating photos being sent to Krystle and Blake. Prince Michael asks Amanda to marry him. Sammy Jo meets a woman who looks very much like Krystle.

Dallas - The Verdict (March 15, rating 22.7, 5th): Ewing 17 is shut down for contaminating drinking water. Jamie rebuffs Cliff's advances. A verdict is handed down in Jenna's trial.

Murder, She Wrote - Murder Takes the Bus (episode 19, March 17, rating 22.4, 6th): Jessica and Sheriff Amos Tupper are on their way to Portland when the sheriff's car breaks down. Anxious to reach their destination, they take a bus - not knowing that a killer is on board. This episode was the first time Murder, She Wrote finished right behind Dallas and at the time it was the smallest ratings point separation between the two (0.3).

Falcon Crest - The Trial (March 15, rating 17.6, 20th): Richard bribes the judge presiding over Lance's trial. Melissa considers hiring a surrogate mother. Melissa's cousin Robin arrives.

No Knots Landing on March 14.

You could tell Dallas ratings were already slipping due to too much focus on Jenna and Bobby, and JR sending Pam on another wild goose chase to find Mark.

 

"Murder Takes a Bus" is one of my all-time favorite Murder, She Wrote episodes. I'm not surprised it did so well.

@Soapsuds I broke down Dallas 1984/85 ratings in its thread. There was a ratings drop starting March 1985.

Five weeks after "Murder Takes the Bus" was broadcast, Murder, She Wrote would shock the world.

Edited March 18Mar 18 by kalbir

17 hours ago, Soapsuds said:

"Murder Takes a Bus" is one of my all-time favorite Murder, She Wrote episodes. I'm not surprised it did so well.

I'm not surprised either.  "Bus" has all the hallmarks of first-season MSW: a veritable feast of guest stars (Michael Constantine, Rue McClanahan, Larry Linville, David Wayne, Linda Blair, Terence Knox, Albert Salmi, Don Stroud), an ominous-feeling locale (a roadside diner during a violent thunderstorm at night) and one of the most ingenious solutions you'll come across in the show's entire history.  

17 hours ago, kalbir said:

Five weeks after "Murder Takes the Bus" was broadcast, Murder, She Wrote would shock the world.

Kristin Shepard might have shot J.R., but Jessica Fletcher was the lady who killed DALLAS (with an able assist from none other than Steve Urkel, lol).

22 minutes ago, Khan said:

Jessica Fletcher was the lady who killed DALLAS 

1985/86 Murder, She Wrote beat Dallas to become CBS's highest-rated scripted show. Also 1985/86 Murder, She Wrote beat Dynasty to become the highest-rated drama across the broadcast networks.

We think of Angela Lansbury as sweet and unassuming but she knocked big bad Larry Hagman off the throne at CBS and beat the diva of all divas of 1980s primetime soaps Joan Collins. That's just straight up savage. 

Even though Angela beat Joan in the ratings, Joan showed love to Angela on social media when Angela passed away. That was very classy of Joan to do so.

16 hours ago, kalbir said:

We think of Angela Lansbury as sweet and unassuming but she knocked big bad Larry Hagman off the throne at CBS and beat the diva of all divas of 1980s primetime soaps Joan Collins. That's just straight up savage. 

And she (and everyone else at MSW) did it without resorting to violence or melodrama, too.  Just good, old-fashioned, thinking-person's mysteries.  

Edited March 19Mar 19 by Khan

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/denis-arndt-dead-heisenberg-david-e-kelley-shows-1236175515/

The recent passing of Arndt reminded me of Annie McGuire, a few episodes of which are on Youtube. This isn't a bad show, but beyond this premise (liberal wife/conservative husband) rarely working for viewers in such explicit terms, I wonder how much Mary Tyler Moore at this point in her career was hurt by people just seeing her as Mary Tyler Moore. That the very first episode is so heavily about a guest character (who is more compelling than any of the regulars) kind of says it all.

 

On 3/17/2025 at 2:44 AM, Khan said:

n a way, I think pitting “Knight Rider” against “Dallas” on Friday nights was smart counter-programming.  

Definitely. Knight Rider was by no means a hit in it's first season but did better against Dallas than anything previously. But NBC were short of hits and Chips was flailing on Sun night so NBC moved it there and it finished #29.

NBC tried to counter Dallas with Manimal but it bombed. They must have hoped the kids would have taken to it like KR.