Which raises a simple question: How, in our age of perpetual reboots, has someone not thought to bring this show back? Fox (Family Ties) and Kim Fields (The Facts of Life)? Who would dare turn away from the chance to witness the great TV stars of the day settling all scores once and for all with a tug-of-war? For 12 years, Battle of the Network Stars was not only the greatest thing on television, but the very encapsulation of the American dream: celebrities in short shorts and skimpy bathing suits proving their physical superiority via obstacle courses in front of millions of adoring fans. And who wouldn't want to watch Gabe Kaplan from Welcome Back Kotter coaching Penny Marshall from Laverne and Shirley in a tennis match against Gary Burghoff from M*A*S*H or Demond Williams from Sanford & Son? What true-blooded American would turn down the opportunity to see a sprint relay team featuring both Lou Ferrigno (The Incredible Hulk) and Billy Crystal (Soap), or Michael J. Those names may not mean much today but back then-back when there were only three networks and no Internet or real cable television to compete for American attentions-they were enormous shining lights. T, Heather Locklear, Vicki Lawrence, Tony Danza, and on and on. Anyone who was anyone in television was involved: Tom Selleck, Linda Evans, Scott Baio, Mr. Back in the late 1970s some programming executive at the American Broadcasting Company had an idea of such overwhelming and undeniable genius that even the network's two competitors wanted to be a part of it: Gather together 10 stars from each of the Big Three networks and have them compete against one another in a series of sporting events.
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