Sally Jessy Raphael

I will admit I am not a huge fan of talk shows. There are one or two exceptions, but overall I find the guests rude and the audience unsympathetic especially on Maury, Jerry Springer and Steve Wilkos. Sally Jessy Raphael mayn't be high art or anything, but it was one of the better talk shows for me.

The main reason why this is so is Sally herself, she offered very good advice and was very genuine about what she says, it was these two things that make her likable. Also the audience was much more toned down here, on talk shows like Maury they boo, jeer and swear at someone who's cheated or denied their child but here they didn't prejudge the guests as much. And while there have been some horrible guests, there were also some inspirational ones which was refreshing to see.

Of course Sally Jessy Raphael didn't really cover new ground in terms of what is talked about on the show, but there was more variety than there is on Maury or Jerry Springer, which feels like the same thing over and over. Overall, thanks to a great host this is for me one of the better talk shows and I miss it. 7/10 Bethany Cox

TV sure has changed now that Sally's not on anymore. The only episodes I really liked were the wild teen episodes where they got sent to boot camp or jail or wherever. (You can currently see that on "Maury", by the way.) But nowadays, when I look back on those shows, I sometimes wonder if any of them were for real. Remember how Sgt. Julu used to scream his head off about a millimeter away from those kids' faces? Or how he had them lean against the wall, scoot down halfway, stand on their toes and hold their hands out? And Pat Ferrari stood there enjoying the kids' misery? In real life, if anyone tried to put a kid through that, the kid would fight back. What do you think?

My mother has been watching this show since I was only five years old. They have people come on the show and fight. Just like Jerry Springer. They have people like instructors and recruits from Boot Camp. Nick is right. This show is annoying. Plus they have pregnant women come on the show. My father watches this show too.

In 1999, Sally, invited Manuel Diaz, The Mexican Wolfman to appear on the show, in an episode titled "Odd Odd News." I went along as an interpreter. Sally was a perfect host, especially to Manuel. Where others were afraid to approach him because of his exotic appearance, Sally walked right up to him, and they shared a nice conversation. Manuel, who is now in Mexico, always remembers with fondness, his trip to New York, and meeting Sally Jesse Raphael.

The main appeal of this dreck is that Sally herself, in her sixties, takes on troubled teens (exclusively females) by pretending to stand up and take their fits of adolescent anger. While a nice trick, it doesn't stand up to reality: Sally could act as 'powerful' as she wanted while her two bouncers sit in the audience, ready to bound at the teen if the teen actually knocked her false teeth out.

And that is the show. A lot of yelling and fake threats and men in fatigues screaming at teens and claiming it 'cures' them. And lording over it all is a former welfare mother who claims to be at the top of her own crap factory.

Watch only if you want to see how badly a "Springer" ripoff is when it pretends to have a moral center. Sadly that a MST3K clone hasn't found the comedic potential in these wastes of time and effort.