The Most Popular TV Shows Set in Philly
The sixth season of the ABC comedy series, The Goldberg's, premieres tonight at 8pm. The synopsis of the show on IMDB says it "takes place in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania in the 1980s and follows the lives of a family named The Goldbergs." The show, which stars Jeff Garlin of Curb Your Enthusiasm fame, is one of many that over the years has taken place in or around Philadelphia. Here's a rundown of a few of the most popular ones:
- It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - It's hard to believe, but this show has been on FX since 2005. IMDB says "Five friends with big egos and slightly arrogant attitudes are the proprietors of an Irish bar in Philadelphia."
- Pretty Little Liars - This popular FreeForm (and formerly ABC Family) show aired from 2010-2017. It was set in a fictional suburb of Philly called Rosewood. The show starred Lucy Hale, Shay Mitchell, Ashley Benson, and Trojan Bellisario. Co-stars Janell Parrish and Sasha Pieterse will be featured in a spinoff called Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists, set to debut in 2019 on Freeform. (We don't think this show will be set in Philly).
- The Big House - The only reason this show is popular is because it starred an up-and-coming comedian named Kevin Hart. It aired for only 6 episodes on ABC in 2004 and Wikipedia describes it as "a mirror-opposite of the NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Kevin Hart is a wealthy, pampered student from Malibu. After his father is arrested and imprisoned for embezzlement, Kevin moves to Philadelphia to live with his working-class aunt, uncle and cousins (the Cleveland family), and enrolls in Drexel University."
- Cold Case - Accroding to Wikipedia, this show "ran on CBS from September 28, 2003 to May 2, 2010. The series revolved around a fictionalized Philadelphia Police Department division that specializes in investigating cold cases."
- Boy Meets World - We've saved the best for last. The show, which aired from 2003-2010 on ABC, followed the lives of Cory Matthews, Shawn Hunter, Topanga Lawrence, and their friends and family. Anyone who watched the show knows that Philadelphia was mentioned a number of times during the series' run.