Why Wasn't This Show Canceled Sooner?
How did the awful show exist for as many seasons as it did. Four (4) seasons? Ack! I am a child of the 1980's, too, and I've read a number of profiles here gushing how much they really loved the show. I was a kid then and remember NOT liking it because it was just plain lousy. The bad acting, the over-the-top laugh track and gags... The only explanation I can think of is that, as kids, you really did like the show (sort of like the dim-witted and badly acted kids'/teens' shows on Disney) and held your parents hostage by insisting weekly to tune-in, and that syndication was a Godsend to the producers, cast, and crew.
A lot of pretty good shows were canceled in the '80's - probably because your parents couldn't watch them - yet this one stayed on. Nostalgia can clearly cloud the mind. Then again, if you liked this drivel, I'll bet you also liked Out of This World. Of course, I probably just jiggled that in your nostalgic memories, too. How did THAT one stay on for so long? Ack!
*June, 2015: It's been almost five years since I first typed the above remarks and after re-reading them I realize that I had indeed made several mistakes, namely the placement of a comma after tune-in and and (though I'm tempted to add a semi-colon, but can't quite justify it), not to mention adding the word good between the words pretty and shows. I was drinking then and clearly didn't proofread. I have since corrected these errors. I stand behind my original thoughts, tone and expletives.