LM Grad Marshall Herskovitz Is Working On A Thirtysomething Sequel
On February 12. 1991, the audience of ABC’s “Thirtysomething” watched as Michael Steadman (Ken Olin) learned that his friend Gary Shepherd (Peter Horton) had been killed in a car crash on the Schuylkill Expressway.
If you were born on the day “Thirtysomething” had its debut, then you are now thirtysomething. That’s right. You are so old, you could even run for President in 2024.
The Lower Merion Connection
On January 8, 2020, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that ABC had ordered a Pilot for a sequel to “Thirtysomething.” The original version of the show, which aired for the first time on the same network, on September 29, 1987, was created by Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz.
Herskovitz is from Bala Cynwyd, and graduated from Lower Merion High School in 1969. He and Zwick are also the co-creators of the show’s revival.
During its four-year run, “Thirtysomething” won 13 Emmy Awards (42 nominations). When a DVD of the show was first released in 2009, TV critic David Bianculi had this to say about it on an NPR commentary.
“I vividly remember hating thirtysomething when it premiered. I was 30-something then and married with two young kids of my own, so I should have loved it. Many of my friends did. But to me, these yuppie characters were either too noble or too whiny, and all of them spent far too much time talking about their feelings. But I also remember not giving up on the show, and eventually being won over.”
The original show supposedly took place in Philadelphia (it was not shot on location). In 1988, Inquirer TV Critic Ken Tucker noted that the characters “Munched on cheesesteaks, shopped at John Wanamaker and had redone the kitchen of their sagging Mt. Airy House.”
In an episode called Burning Bush that aired November 28, 1989, there is a flashback with characters Hope (Kate Hodge) and Ellyn (Kelly Wolf). In that scene the characters were made up to appear as if they were 17, and it supposedly took place at Lower Merion High School!
The day before audiences watched “Burning Bush,” The Philadelphia Daily News reported that Herskovitz had just attended his 20th class reunion (it was at the Valley Forge Hilton). They reported that “A steady stream of well-wishers, many of whom had no use for him 20 years ago, beat a path to his table… Beyond receiving kudos, Herskovitz spent much of the night denying that any of the show’s seven main characters were based on anyone he knew in high school.”
According to TVLine.com “[Melanie] Mayron and [Poly] Draper will appear in recurring arcs on the potential series, reprising their roles of Melissa Steadman and Ellyn Warren, respectively. The actresses will join four previously announced original cast members including Ken Olin, Mel Harris, Timothy Busfield and Patricia Wettig, all of whom will reprise their roles as supporting series regulars.”
Across the span of its four-year run, the show racked up more than a dozen Emmy Awards (out of more than 40 total nominations), and took home two Golden Globes. Yahoo Entertainment wrote, “It’s worth noting that the new Thirtysomething won’t be a period piece where all of the actors are de-aged Marvel Cinematic Universe-style to play their younger selves. Instead, the series will take place in the present day when Elliot and Nancy, as well as Michael and Hope (Olin and Harris) are part of the 60-and-up demographic. But the original title still applies as the two couples’ kids are now in their 30s and living through the same drama their parents experienced at that age.”
In 2001, Gail Shister interviewed Heskovitz for the Inquirer. He said that he thought that the show “has held up well. When I look at episodes now, I’m struck by how uncompromising they are. They look like life. They don’t look like TV. They are often dark and upsetting. At other times they’re filled with gallows humor. We weren’t trying to dance for public favor. I’m very proud.”
When asked about a reunion of Thirtysomething, Herskovitz said (ahem), “We don’t want to go back. That’s a recipe for failure.”