ABSTRACT
Ascene from the 1992 halloween episode of The Simpsons included a stroll through a darkened cemetery. Among the names on the tombstones were Fish Police (1992), Capitol Critters (1992), and Family Dog (1993), all of which were prime time animated series that premiered following the success of The Simpsons and which were subsequently canceled after extremely brief runs. Had we been able to read more of the tombstones, we may have noticed such names as Calvin and the Colonel, Top Cat, The Bullwinkle Show, Jonny Quest, and Where's Huddles, also all network prime time animated series. Of course, some of these shows were more successful than others, yet none generated much success in prime time. Others, such as The Flintstones and The Simpsons, provided a hit series for the networks on which they appeared. Significantly, both The Flintstones and The Simpsons appeared on fledgling networks that were trying to distinguish themselves through counter-programming strategies.
