"Once upon a time, when things were rotten,
Not just food, but also kings were rotten,
Everybody kicked the peasants.
Things were bad, and that ain't good...
...Then came Robin Hood!"
18 years before
Robin Hood: Men in Tights hit the big screen, Mel Brooks created a 1975 ABC series about the archer of Sherwood Forest titled
When Things Were Rotten, a comedy co-created by Norman Stiles (who is a multiple Emmy-winning writer for
Sesame Street). The series starred Richard Gautier (
Get Smart), Dick Van Patten (
Eight is Enough), Bernie Kopell (
Love Boat, Get Smart), Misty Rowe (
Hee Haw), Henry Polic II (
Webster, Batman: The Animated Series) and Ron Rifkin (
Alias, Brothers & Sisters).
The short-lived series lasted 13 episodes before ABC pulled the plug on it due to low ratings. In the years since then it has achieved a cult status among many of its fans, and is regularly requested for DVD release by those passionate fans of the program. The show was produced by Paramount Television, so it should be part of the CBS/Paramount library of properties. The studio has NOT yet announced a home video release, however.
On the other hand, we've received some gossip from a couple of sources, each folks that we trust, telling us that the studio has been looking into the possible DVD release of the complete series for sometime in 2010. According to one source, "things are looking good" at the moment, although no final decision has been made yet. It's certainly still in the "gossip and rumors" stage at this time, but we're asked about the show by readers on a regular basis, so we thought it would be a good idea to let everyone know that this item is finally on the radar. Cross your fingers, and make sure you let the studio know that you're interested. You can do that, for starters, by voting for the show here at TVShowsOnDVD, if you haven't done so already (free registration required). We'll keep an eye on the situation, and let you know if we hear anything further. Stay tuned!
