'Survivor' Set the Course for Reality TV Just as 'I Love Lucy' Did for Sitcoms Half a Century Ago

When "Survivor" debuted on CBS in the spring of 2000, the American television landscape was in a state of flux. Two years removed from the end of "Seinfeld," viewers had begun to turn their attention from NBC's stalwart Thursday night lineup to push ABC's game show "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" to the top of the 1999-2000 ratings. Seizing on this glimmer of opportunity, "Survivor" blossomed that summer into a phenomenon that would usher in a full-bore reality TV craze and change viewing habits forever. In many ways, this shift in television emphasis was reminiscent of the birth of the sitcom some 50 years earlier, and "Survivor" shares many characteristics with comedy pioneer "I Love Lucy." Here are some the most striking similarities between these two groundbreaking shows.

On The Shoulders of Giants
Neither "I Love Lucy" nor "Survivor" was the first of its genre, but both capitalized and expanded upon successful emerging platforms to forge something bigger than their predecessors could have imagined. By the time Lucille Ball hit the small screen as Lucy Ricardo, several of the nation's most popular radio programs had made the leap to television, and shows like "The Jack Benny Show" and "The Life of Riley" gave viewers reason to tune in on a weekly basis. For "Survivor," there were decades of "reality" programming to draw upon for experience, but the concept had not congealed into an entity of its own. From the game shows of the 1950s to "The Real World" in the 1990s, America had shown a periodic but unpredictable appetite for watching real people from the comfort of the sofa.

Breaking New Ground
When "I Love Lucy" burst onto the scene in 1951, the viewing public was taken aback by the concept an entire series built around a female character. In addition to gaining an immediate following with American women, Lucy quickly disarmed any manly opposition with her outstanding physical comedy and constant bumbling escapades. Similarly, "Survivor" was an extreme departure from its reality ancestors, pulling average people completely out of their daily lives and plunking them squarely into the middle of a modern-day "Lord of the Flies" situation that plucked at viewers with weekly doses of raw emotion. Adding a constant face to the mix in host Jeff Probst allowed "Survivor" to maintain continuity from season-to-season and helped establish the basic reality format that has been copied scores of times over the last decade.

Television Events
By virtue of the sheer paucity of television programs and the comedic brilliance of its players, "I Love Lucy" became a weekly family event, much as radio shows of previous decades had been. Everyone in the neighborhood gathered around the tube when Lucy paraded across the screen, and, although the ensuing proliferation of programs nearly killed the idea of a television series as a must-see event, "Survivor" brought back the concept in full force. While viewers could easily record a sitcom or their favorite drama and safely view them later, "Survivor" carried with it a sense of urgency, thanks to weekly vote-offs and controversies that strongly motivated fans to be in front of the set as the conch horn blew each week.

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For all of the similarities between "I Love Lucy" and "Survivor," there is one striking difference: longevity. While Lucy delighted viewers for just six full seasons, "Survivor" is still going strong more than 10 years and 20 seasons after the tribe first spoke. Regardless, both shows were truly pioneers of the American television frontier, and their influences likely will continue to be felt far into the future.