In response to NBC's upcoming revival of Knight Rider, New York Magazine's Vulture Blog compiled a list of TV shows from the 80's more deserving of a revival. Gay visibility on television took a number of forward steps in the 80s, but those were mostly characters who'd make a few guest appearances. Here are some shows whose revival could appeal to our nostalgia while also adding to the small number of gay characters on television.

Too Close for Comfort

Too Close for Comfort started out as a sitcom about a San Francisco couple dealing with their daughters' stepping into independence and adulthood, but took a turn when Jim J Bullock appeared as Monroe Ficus. Monroe was meant to appear in just one episode, but the character worked so well (especially against Ted Knight's easily frustrated Henry Rush) that Bullock was a full cast member in the second season. Since then, Bullock has come out, been a fixture on Hollywood Squares, co-hosted a short-lived talk show with Tammy Faye and provided the voice for Queer Duck ... it could be interesting to see Bullock play Monroe once more, only this time as an openly gay man who's become more comfortable with who he is -- even if he's no more physically coordinated than when he left a meatball on Henry Rush's ceiling.

Bosom Buddies

In the original Bosom Buddies two straight guys dress as women to be able to live in a women-only building where the rent is cheap ... but what if one of the guys in the new version were a drag performer? It'd require a careful balancing act to avoid broad stereotypes, but there could be some great comedy in seeing a performer used to playing "fierce" women learn to take a more mundane personality while in drag.

Scarecrow and Mrs King

With former Charlie's Angels and Making Love star, Kate Jackson, in one of the lead roles, I always figured Scarecrow and Mrs. King had a gay following; the concept seems ripe for a revival with a gay twist. Jackson played a divorcée who gets accidentally drawn into a world of international espionage by Lee "Scarecrow" Stetson (Bruce Boxleitner). Gays have been long wishing for a gay version of the dashing international spy (we'll see that wish granted Robert Gant's first Jacob Keane film debuts on Here!) and if a remake of Scarecrow and Mrs. King featured a gay agent "Scarecrow" there could be not only some action and intrigue, but also a twist on the usual gay male/straight female friendship. 

The last time I saw Jim J. Bullock (wait a second, was there always an 'i' in his name?) he was reuniting with his former talk show co-host in The Eyes of Tammy Faye, a documentary from openly gay producers Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato. According to Variety, Bullock is set to appear in another production by Bailey and Barbato's production company, World of Wonder -- this time, in a reality series.

In "Beauty School Dropout" Bullock will attend beauty school and attempt to open a beauty parlor. The series is currently a pilot being pitched to cable networks and I'm hoping I'll get to see it on my cable grid in the near future. I usually enjoy World of Wonder's shows, and Bailey and Barbato are keen at finding interesting people who've been overlooked by lesser storytellers. In that light, "Beauty School Dropout" is a promising combination.

Another show being developed by World of Wonder focuses on Jeffree Star, a cross-dressing singer who will be opening for Cyndi Lauper's summer tour. Poking around Star's MySpace page, it's hard to imagine such a show ever getting boring.

For you Jim J. fans (or Jm J. fans), here's a funny clip of him on the However-Many-Thousand-Dollar Pyramid (second clip in the video) in which he doesn't exactly use his alloted time wisely.