25th Anniversary of My Life and Times

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the premiere of ABC’s short-lived drama series My Life and Times. It’s one of my favorite obscurities from the 1990s. Back in 2013, I wrote an article about the series, which you can find here.

My Life and Times was a unique TV show, both in concept and in length. Tom Irwin starred as 85-year-old Ben Miller who, in the year 2035, looks back on his life and shared his experiences with friends and family. It was a half-hour drama, once fairly common on network television in the 1950s and 1960s but definitely unusual in the 1990s.

Image from the opening credits of My Life and Times featuring Tom Irwin in old man makeup as Ben Miller.
My Life and Times – Tom Irwin in old man makeup

Episodes were framed with sequences set in 2035 with the bulk of the action flashing back to the 1970s, 1980s, or 1990s. Helen Hunt and Megan Mullally co-starred. ABC pulled My Life and Times off the air after just two low-rated episodes had aired; four additional episodes were burned off over the course of two weeks, leaving one episode unaired.

Here’s the opening narration from the first episode:

I wouldn’t say I’ve seen it all, but I’ve seen a lot. I’ve seen the world change. I’ve seen myself change. I’ve watched footsteps on the Moon and seen myself stumble. I’ve made a fortune, I’ve lost a fortune. I survived the 90s and braved the Millennium. I’ve known fear and did my damnedest not to be afraid. I’ve loved and lost and lived to love again. The one thing I know is life is an adventure. You’ve got to hold on and let it carry you away. It’s carried me all the way to the year 2035 and I’m here to tell the tale. I’m Ben Miller and this is my life and times.

I remain hopeful that one day I’ll have the chance to see the unaired seventh episode. Hit the comments if you remember watching My Life and Times 25 years ago. Were you upset when it was yanked off the air?


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2 Replies to “25th Anniversary of My Life and Times”

  1. Fascinating. I never even heard of this show. Thanks for this.
    Helen Hunt and Megan Mullally didn’t do too bad after this.
    And Tom Irwin will always have my heart for “My So-Called Life”.

  2. I remember this show all these years later and still search the web for mentions of it. It made quite the impression on me. An early version of “This is Us.”

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