'Laverne and Shirley' launched in 1976 with the highest-rated premiere in a decade. By Season 8, one star walked off set and filed a $20 million lawsuit.

In 1935, Lucille Ball made $50 a week at RKO. In 1957, she helped buy the studio for $6 million. In 1962, she ran it alone and greenlit 'Star Trek.'

Stevie Nicks was 27 with $40 and about to quit music in 1973. She wrote 'Landslide' in 5 minutes. Months later Fleetwood Mac called.

Johnny Cash played his first prison concert at San Quentin on New Year's Day 1958. Merle Haggard was in the audience. He never forgot what he saw.

'The Exorcist' made people faint in 1973. Warner Bros used a deal no major studio had ever tried. Ambulances waited outside. It made $193 million.

In 1975, every cop show had car chases and shootouts. Barney Miller had 1 room. Real cops called it the most realistic show ever made.

The mask was a $1.98 William Shatner face. Carpenter wrote the score in 3 days after the test screening said it wasn't scary. It made $47 million.

Kubrick filmed The Shining for 13 months. King hated it. Duvall's Razzie was rescinded in 2022. Both of them have a point.

CBS said variety was a man's game. Carol Burnett had 1 clause in her contract they'd forgotten about. She pushed the button. They had no choice.

Suzanne Somers made $30,000 per episode on Three's Company. John Ritter made $150,000. She asked why. ABC fired her and made her film 7 more episodes anyway.

The 'Gilligan's Island' pilot was being filmed in Hawaii when JFK was shot in 1963, and the original theme song was written by legendary composer John Williams.

Loretta Lynn struggled to rhyme 'holler' with 'daughter' in 1969. Her label said no. Owen Bradley said yes. It went to No. 1 and led to an Oscar.

Chris Farley was 5 days from finishing 'Shrek' when he died in 1997. DreamWorks replaced him with Mike Myers without explaining why. Myers figured it out.

The house in the 'Brady Bunch' intro was never filmed inside. HGTV paid $3.5M for it and spent $1.9M building rooms that had only existed on a soundstage.

Nia Vardalos paid $750 for a single ad to promote her one-woman show. Rita Wilson saw it. Tom Hanks called. Vardalos hung up. It made $241 million.

The M*A*S*H cast filmed Henry Blake's happy goodbye and went home. Their phones rang. Nobody said why until they were standing back in the OR.

Shania Twain was told she wasn't country enough for years. 'Man! I Feel Like a Woman!' was her 8th single from Come On Over. It won the Grammy.

Kenny Rogers almost passed on 'Lucille' because it was 'too dark' for radio. He recorded it in one afternoon. His mother called him furious.

EMI told Queen 'Bohemian Rhapsody' was too long for radio in 1975. A DJ played it 14 times after promising he wouldn't. It went to No. 1.

Carole King wrote 'Will You Love Me Tomorrow' at 18 for a group that almost said no. She sang it herself 11 years later on Tapestry.