That '80s Show is an American sitcom that aired from January to May
2002. Despite having a similar name, show structure, and many of the
same writers and production staff, it is not a direct spin-off of the
more successful That '70s Show. The characters and story lines from
both shows never crossed paths. It was a separate decade-based show
created because of That '70s Show's popularity at the time.Freaks and
Geeks, a show that aired on NBC during the 1999â€"2000 television
season, was called That '80s Show by fans and critics for its
similarities to That '70s Show. When asked about That '70s Show
entering the 1980s, after Fox renewed the show for seasons three and
four in December 1999, show creator Mark Brazill said "we'll have to
change the name to That '80s Show."That '80s Show began development by
August 2001, using the same creative team from That '70s Show. Fox
initially wanted to do a spin-off of That '70s Show, but moved ahead
with a show about a different decade. In November 2001, Fox announced
That '80s Show would premiere on January 23, 2002, as a midseason
replacement. In developing the show, executive producer Linda Wallem
said "This show really came out of conversations we had while working
on 'That '70s Show.' We were talking about what we had been doing in
the '80s and found that we had all been in pretty much the same
situation, supporting ourselves with jobs we hated but really burning
to be in show business. But, of course, for most people, the '80s were
all about going out and getting your share of the money pie, so our
characters are people who constantly are being pulled between their
artistic dreams and commercial reality." Wallem, along with Mark
Brazill and Terry Turner, created the show, and other executive
producers included Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner. The costume designer,
Melina Root, who also worked on That '70s Show, researched fashion
magazines, merchandising catalogs, and yearbooks from the 1980s to
find ideas for clothing the characters on the show could wear.Stand-up
comic Margaret Smith was cast for That '80s Show in October 2001. Fox
announced the rest of the cast (Chyler Leigh, Brittany Daniel, Glenn
Howerton, Tinsley Grimes, and Eddie Shin) in December 2001. The show
cast relatively unknown actors similarly to the cast of That '70s
Show. Daniel, who portrayed Sophia in That '80s Show, had a guest
starring role on That 70s Show in an episode that aired the day before
That 80s Show premiered. She played Eric Forman's cousin Penny in the
episode "Eric's Hot Cousin". Howerton and Grimes grew up in
Montgomery, Alabama, at the same time, but had not met before being
cast as siblings on the show. That '80s Show Biography, NetWorth, Height, Age, Weight, Family, Married, Son, Daughter