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Jan. 16, 2024

The first episode of “Happy Days” aired exactly 50 years ago yesterday. When I first watched it as a child, I did not understand that it took place in the past; I assumed that, as an old-looking show, it was filmed in the same time period. 

It was the same thing for “The Wonder Years,” until my mother explained the conceit of the show. With the debut of “That ’70s Show” in 1998, I realized that as the years go by, so do the eras of sitcoms taking place in the past. Airing in the 70s, “Happy Days” looked back at the 50s. “The Wonder Years,” which premiered in 1988, began its story in 1968. “That ’70s Show” was actually a late 90s show. And the 2013-2023 “The Goldbergs” followed the next decade, the 1980s. 

That last show notwithstanding, each show is set about 20 years in the past. The reason is obvious: The shows’ creators are looking back on their own formative years. You’re unlikely to see any sitcoms set 100 years ago. There are a few shows set in the 90s airing (or more likely streaming) now, but personally I’m dreading the arrival of a hit sitcom set in the early 2000s. Oh crap, there already is one! 

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Michael Brooks 

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