Jane Curtin Starred In A Hit '80s Sitcom That Nobody Talks About Today

If you ask people what Jane Curtin is most known for, you're likely to get myriad answers. Some people might say "Saturday Night Live" and mention her recurring characters like Prymaat Conehead. Others might look to her more recent work on "3rd Rock from the Sun," one of the best shows about aliens of all time. But what you won't hear many people mention is a sitcom Curtin starred in for six years in the '80s that was one of her most successful projects ever: "Kate and Allie," one of the many hit shows from the '80s that no one talks about anymore.

In the '80s, family sitcoms started coming in all shapes and sizes. The nuclear family concept that was so popular in the '50s and '60s was no longer reflecting society, and so television adapted. Among shows featuring single parents like "One Day at a Time" and adopted children like "Webster," there was "Kate and Allie," the story of two divorced childhood friends living and raising their children together. Curtin partnered with Susan Saint James on the show that debuted in 1984 and ran until 1989. Curtin played the more down-to-earth conservative parent while Saint James was more free-spirited. The result was a successful show that carved out a place for itself during the golden age of sitcoms.

"Kate and Allie" debuted in the middle of the 1983-1984 television season with six episodes. Those six episodes caught on immediately with critics and audiences alike and, by the end of that season, the show was top 10 in the ratings. The fact that it was a midseason replacement also didn't seem to affect the show come award season either. That first season earned "Kate and Allie" five Emmy nominations and two wins total. One of those wins was for Jane Curtin herself as outstanding lead actress in a comedy series. 

Season 2 was equally successful for the show, finishing in the top 20 and earning four more Emmy nominations. That year the only Emmy victory was for Curtin again, who won for outstanding lead actress in a comedy series again. Those would be the only two Emmys of Curtin's entire career. As the show went on, it slowly slid in the ratings, finally getting canceled after Season 6. That's when the show began to fade into obscurity. It never had the success in syndication that it had during its initial run, and it wasn't available on streaming until just recently. Two years ago, "Kate and Allie" was added to the Roku Channel, and it's now also available on Amazon Prime. It also looked the show might get rebooted in the early 2020s, but that plan never materialized.