Once upon a TV season a gay man named Will and a straight woman named Grace became unexpected sitcom darlings, challenging television’s timidity toward homosexuality and buffing NBC’s comedy crown.
Eight years after the debut of “Will & Grace,” as the saga of the platonic pals draws to an end, gay characters and themes have emerged on other shows while struggling NBC — and TV in general — searches for the next hit sitcom.
While “Will & Grace” nudged cultural and comedic boundaries, however, its success came from sticking to the basics, according to those who made the series: Be funny and be good company.
If “Ellen” brought American television’s first lesbian star out of the closet, then “Will & Grace” broke barriers by turning a gay-themed comedy into a prime-time hit with mass appeal.
But as the popular NBC sitcom about a handsome gay lawyer and his attractive, heterosexual best friend ends its eight-year run Thursday, the show’s producers insist it was not their goal to make pop culture history.
“We never set out to do anything that special,” co-creator David Kohan told Reuters this week. “Honestly, we were making a fairly traditional sitcom with a twist.
(Source:MSNBC)
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