'90s TV Heyday

Apparently, old cheesy 90s shows are quite popular amongst today's young 'uns.

It’s not the kind the entertainment fare that you’d expect to appeal to people who swoon over Justin Bieber and Snapchat. But The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, the story of a western Philadelphia teen’s move to western, wealthy, suburban LA, and Full House, about a widowed father raising his three girls with the help of his brother and friend, are among the hit TV shows from 20 and 30 years ago that have deep followings among today’s teenagers. A few other shows that have leaped the generational divide: Saved by the Bell and Boy Meets World.

A younger generation’s appreciation for old TV shows isn’t new. I grew up watching The Dick Van Dyke Show and Happy Days on TV Land; my sister became absolutely obsessed with The Monkees when their show reran on MTV in the 1980s. Today there are plenty of reruns on MTV2, and almost anything old is available online, whether on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Instant Video, or less legit but equally popular streaming sites.

I guess I grew up on Little House on the Prairie, Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, Three's Company, the Brady Bunch (which ended before I was even born), even I Love Lucy. And we had only a fraction of the networks and choices that kids today have. So I am not sure that this is so new. I think the proliferation of new technology to watch current and past television facilitates this.  But I do think it is interesting that Saved by the Bell and Full House and Boy Meets World are SO popular today. I guess nostalgia (and a certain number of 20 somethings watching these shows) is a huge factor.