15 TV Shows So Bad They Were Cancelled After One Episode

15 TV shows so bad they were cancelled after one episode — from a 1951 game show with no known recording, to Jackie Gleason's live on-air apology, to the 1969 comedy a Cleveland station cut off after ten minutes. Reality shows, sitcoms and variety specials that got exactly one night on the air. Why did Fox decide to cancel Lawless while the premiere was still airing? Who finally found out who won The Will — in New Zealand? Why did a network owner pull his own show off the air mid-broadcast? And what made Turn-On one of television's most famous lost disasters? Which one would you have switched off first? Tell us in the comments. CHAPTERS 0:00 Intro 1:11 #15 Lawless (Fox, 1997) 2:26 #14 The Will (CBS, 2005) 3:29 #13 Quarterlife (NBC, 2008) 4:32 #12 Secret Talents of the Stars (CBS, 2008) 5:38 #11 Emily's Reasons Why Not (ABC, 2006) 6:36 #10 South of Sunset (CBS, 1993) 7:36 #9 Melba (CBS, 1986) 8:37 #8 Who's Whose (CBS, 1951) 9:41 #7 Public Morals (CBS, 1996) 10:43 #6 Co-Ed Fever (CBS, 1979) 11:51 #5 Osbournes: Reloaded (Fox, 2009) 12:56 #4 Who's Your Daddy? (Fox, 2005) 13:58 #3 You're in the Picture (CBS, 1961) 15:30 #2 Australia's Naughtiest Home Videos (Nine, 1992) 16:44 #1 Turn-On (ABC, 1969) Behind the Rerun — the stories the cameras never showed. Subscribe for more TV history, flops and disasters. Sources: Wikipedia, Variety, The Washington Post, NPR, E! Online, Mental Floss, Rotten Tomatoes, Ideastream and others — full list in the pinned comment. Photos: Wikimedia Commons — public domain, plus CC BY / CC BY-SA images: Brian Bosworth (jondoeforty1, CC BY 2.0), Steven Bochco (Alan Light, CC BY 2.0), Heather Graham (Tyler Curtis / Wildhartlivie, CC BY-SA 2.0), Glenn Frey (Steve Alexander, CC BY-SA 2.0), George Schlatter and Finola Hughes (Angela George, CC BY-SA 3.0), John O'Hurley (Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0), Edward Zwick (Bridget Laudien, CC BY-SA 3.0), New Zealand from space (Przemek Pietrak, CC BY 3.0). Some photos colorized for the thumbnail. Brief muted clips are used for commentary, criticism and education under fair use. Behind the Rerun is not affiliated with any network, studio or show's estate. #ClassicTV #TVHistory #TurnOn