Early 2000s TV Show Freaks and Geeks Based in Clinton Township Michigan
Freaks and Geeks, the television show from 1999-2000 is not just an average sitcom about high school teenagers. Instead, this show is about high school teenagers from Michigan.
Freaks and Geeks was based on Chippewa Valley High School, which is located in Clinton Township on the east side of the state. The show's creator, Paul Fieg, is from Clinton Township and attended Chippewa Valley for high school. He wanted the show to depict his time at a suburban Detroit high school in the 80s.
Actual Airtime
Freaks and Geeks had a very short run on cable television as there were only 12 of the original 18 episodes that ran on NBC before the show was shut down due to conflicts between the creators and NBC. The pilot episode was released on September 25th, 1999, and had over 9 million US viewers tune in.
There were 11 more episodes that aired on national television, but the erratic TV schedule didn't help with ratings and ultimately began a driving force for the cancellation of the show. The next 11 episodes would air on no consistent schedule between October 1999 and March 2000.
Future of Freaks and Geeks
The creators felt that since the ownership at NBC didn't understand the importance of showcasing public school life, this is what led to the erratic schedule and cancellation of Freaks and Geeks. The remaining episodes that weren't run on NBC were then run by Fox Family as they decided to pick up the show for its short stint in 2000.
Since then, DVD and Blu-ray discs have been released for those who would like to keep a hard copy on deck, along with two books loaded with nine scripts from the show, and lastly, episodes are streaming on Paramount+ now.
Some of the world's most famous names in the television realm were involved in this project including James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, and Judd Apatow. Now, they all have monster careers that started here, what a story to tell.
Can you relate to the Freaks or the Geeks? Would you have been able to star in the original series? Should Freaks and Geeks make a return?