The Shape of Things

This short-lived show lasted for only three weeks on NBC, airing early in the administration of Ronald Reagan. Many letters were received showing audiences found the show unfunny and vulgar, and with negative reaction to the overtly feminist, left-wing politics espoused on the show. Just after the show was canceled, executive producer George Schlatter, most famous for Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967), commented on the failure of the show in a May 1982 article in the New York Times. ''We wanted to do a series in which scantily clad men were the sex objects and women were in control. It was meant to be teasing and fun, but I guess that didn't come across.'' Schlatter had also produced a sketch comedy show for ABC in the summer of 1969, Turn-On (1969), which was canceled after only one episode.

Referenced in The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson: Jack Lemmon/Maureen Murphy (1982)