In the early 90s, Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray were looking for new ideas and watched a 70s show on PBS called “An American Family.” It was a chronicle of the daily life of the Louds, an upper middle-class family in Santa Barbara, California, but ended up documenting the break-up of the family when the parents separated and divorced during filming.
That documentary prompted Bunim and Murray to create a similar show, reflective of the popularity of other 90s shows like Beverly Hills 90210 and Dawson’s Creek. That idea spawned the massive hit reality show “The Real World” on MTV. It was originally billed as “This is the true story of seven strangers, picked to live in a house, and have their lives taped, to find out what happens when people stop being polite and start getting real.” Originally designed as a ‘one-off’ experiment, the show grew into a monster almost overnight, and to date, has spanned 33 seasons, including several spin-offs. Bunim had stated, “We knew...