United States

One of the best of a generation! Larry Gelbart wrote the episodes (MASH fame). What killed it was Jimmy Carter!

It was an smart/excellent show that was not doing well in the ratings (just like MASH), however, it was being promoted by NBC, was on the cover of TV Guide its final week - so what happened? Jimmy Carter did a TV National speech on the IRAN hostage situation, and it was at 6:00 p.m. PST/9:00 EST - the SAME TIME that it was scheduled to be broadcasted EST - But - It wasn't broadcast due to the Presidents speech. And - because the Presidents speech interrupted the East Coast time, NBC decided NOT to broadcast the West coast episode. And - 2 days later the shop was cancelled. And the viewing public was left with Threes Company and such ...

When I was in my early twenties I saw this show in the Netherlands (I am Dutch and still live in the Netherlands). It was totally different from other sitcoms. It was even so different that I found out just now through IMDb that it actually was a sitcom. I will never forget the husband (played by Beau) telling about having a "rear view mirror affair". When I see either Helen Shaver or Beau Bridges in a movie or on TV I always remember their role in that show and hope that it comes back. After a couple of items suddenly the show was gone and I missed it. It really influenced my outlook on life and relationships. Still I could understand, because sustaining such a high level of dealing with true issues in life, in a very funny and amusing way is extremely difficult. Now I am in my forties and can understand that probably there was a lack of interest in going on with the show. Thanks for sharing the information on IMDb! I surely hope that this comes out on DVD. When someone knows, please let me know.

For anyone who enjoyed the honest dialogue of the show, "thirtysomething", "United States" would definitely have been a show to see. The conversations between a man and his wife (we find out that she has been married before) are a stream-of-consciousness discussion, weaving in, out, and around the original topic.

In one episode, the husband finds out that a friend has been having an affair. The topic of marital fidelity is discussed, and the wife reveals that she had cheated on her first husband. Her state of mind at the time of the affair and her new husband's altered opinion of her are addressed, very compellingly.

Rather than simply have talking heads, the camera rarely points at the characters' faces. In this episode, for example, the couple is changing clothes to attend a function at which the unfaithful friend will be present.

The camera is directed at the busy hands and fluttering clothing of each speaker in turn, until they finally leave the bedroom.

If this series is now or is ever available for purchase, I am eager to own it.

This was a short lived gem. Man and wife, adult, discussing adult issues with sensitivity and humor, and without the comic "all ends happily after" at the end of each 30 minutes. Entertaining, and made you smile without demeaning. If it ever comes back (unlikely) worth a view.

A witty couple, obviously nuts about each other, who relate to each other the way people relate to each other in real life, albeit, a bit smarter.

One wonders how it might have worked if they'd layered in canned laughter. In 1980, people weren't ready to decide what is funny on their own, perhaps. As if sit-coms have advanced all that much since them.

There was genuine chemistry between Bridges and Shaver, but one wonders if it's the actors' contribution or the sheer honesty of the writing.

I saw all "United States" episodes at the Museum of Radio & Television in Beverly Hills. (There are a couple of episodes that were never run before it was canceled.) It's not consistently brilliant, but there are plenty of moments that (had it been given a chance) might have changed the way half-hour episodic television works.

A quarter of a century later, "United States" still seems ahead of its time. It's almost voyeuristic in its honest portrayal of people who deal with situations that, as in all of our lives, combine humor, pathos, irony, love, naiveté (even the kids aren't all *that* obnoxious), and honesty.

Alas, it appeared on television the same year America preferred to elect Ronald Reagan. I don't think America was in the mood for honesty just then. I'm not sure we're ready for it yet.

Instead, people tune in to "reality" shows, which are fake as hell.