Slime. That green, goopy substance that has become a mascot of sorts for the cable network Nickelodeon. Gallons and gallons of the stuff have been dropped on both regular people and celebrities for nearly two decades now. The question that many newer fans of this substance may ask is: where did the slime originate?
Well, it wasn’t from some network executive who, after mixing green gelatin and glue together exclaimed, “Eureka! I have slime!” Actually, it came from a sketch show that, not only is near and dear to children of the ’80s, but was the launching pad for what Nickelodeon was to become — namely, the number one children’s network on the air today. I speak of the highly gross, disgusting and lovable You Can’t Do That on Television. Come, let us journey back to the early days of the 1980s and recall some fonder times.
YCDTOTV‘s history extends farther back than its premiere on Nickelodeon in 1981. Fact is, the show’s birth took place in February, 1979 on CJOH-TV in Ottawa, Canada. The version of YCDTOTV that premiered would not be recognizable by fans of the Nickelodeon version of the program. Save for actor Les Lye, who performed most of the adult characters, Christine “Moose” McGlade, Lisa Ruddy, and the green slime, the first version of the program was more of a Saturday morning variety program then a sketch show. Music videos, phone-in contests and even a disco segment (shades of Wonderrama of the 70s) were included in the program.
After the success of the first season, YCDTOTV was spun-off, named Whatever Turns You On, and aired nationally by Canada’s CTV. The version of YCDTOTV that we know began to mold itself from the concept of Whatever. It was cut from an hour to 30 minutes, music videos were replaced by live performances from the hot Canadian bands of the time, and a new adult was added to the cast — Ruth Buzzi. It was also in primetime, not on Saturday mornings.
WTYO faired poorly in the ratings and was canceled after one season. Meanwhile, the original YCDTOTV was doing just fine on local Ottawa television and was beginning to pick up interest from other markets. Particularly, from the United States and the fledgling cable channel Nickelodeon. Combining it with a number of other Canadian imports, Nick brought YCDTOTV to our shores in 1981 as a once-a-week program.
What premiered was pretty much the show we remember today. The live audience that had previously been part of the first few years of the show, as well as on WTYO, was replaced by the infamous laugh track. The musical bits and call-in segments were gone as well. What was left was a true sketch comedy show that revolved around a particular theme each episode.
The show became a hit on Nickelodeon and was soon running five days-a-week. This, despite sagging popularity for the show back in Canada. Using the show’s signature green slime as a promotional tool, Nickelodeon began releasing a line of products based on the program. They even had a contest where a lucky viewer was sent to the show’s set to be slimed.
By 1986 the show was number one on the network’s schedule. However, things began to change. Long-time show hosts Christine McGlade and Alasdair Gillis left the program, creating a casting shift (one that brought on future rock star Alanis Morissette). The other thing to change was the introduction of Double Dare to the Nickelodeon lineup. Hosted by Marc Summers, this game show introduced green slime and green slime accessories into various disgusting challenges.
Double Dare became an instant hit and started to take some of the spotlight away from YCDTOTV. By 1987 the show only premiered five new episodes. One of them, “Adoption,” was banned from the network after only one airing due to some of its content (which would probably be okay by today’s standards). The next year saw the original cast of YCDTOTV reduced to only four main characters as more and more original players got too old for the show.
In a last gasp, a new cast was selected for the 1989 season. Despite the fact that there were numerous funny episodes, the fan base that grew up with Moose and Lisa were no longer there. The show reached its end in 1990 but continued in repeats, mostly of the “original cast” episodes until 1994.
Ten years after the last show aired, CJOH-TV produced a YCDTOTV reunion special titled Project 131, featuring five of the show’s original cast members. In 2007 it was released internationally via the giant memory machine known as YouTube. One year after the reunion special a group of the original show’s fans created an animated version of the series called You Still Can’t Do That on Television. Done in the anime-style of animation with an updated theme, the show is currently available on DVD.
And what happened to the cast members of YCDTOTV after they left the series? While some went on to other television and movie productions, most moved away from the spotlight. Christine McGlade, probably the most well-known of the original cast, starred in the short-run Turkey Television (which, after you see the video, you will totally remember). Later, she moved behind the scenes as director of children’s programming for the CBC.
Lisa “Motormouth” Ruddy, who normally teamed-up with McGlade, ended up leaving TV entirely to run a funeral home. Abby Hagyard, who played most of the adult female roles on the series beginning in 1982, lent her voice to a number of cartoons and, eventually, became a writer-for-hire. Les Lye, who was part of the show from the beginning, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists back in 2003. Now 84 years old, Lye is retired and considering writing his memoirs about his career before and during YCDTOTV.
Like many shows of the 1980s, You Can’t Do That on Television was unique. Being such, it is a concept that will probably never be duplicated, especially in an era where the humor of the show can be found all around the Internet. At least we still have the slime, which will always remain close to our hearts.
Clacked by Richard Keller 
on Jan 03, 2009 @ 10:00 EST5EDT
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God, my favorite part of this show was always Barth’s Burgery.
“I hhhhheard that!”
I was really hoping someone would mention that! :)
Just one clarification on Project 131. Although it was taped at CJOH-tv in Studio A, It was produced by DND Films and Slimecon Enterprises. Some members of the cast were asked to participate, but could not due to prior arrangements. Les Lye could nt do the event due to health reasons. Les’s Grandson was a part of the production and appeared as the announcer.