History Series / TheLoveBoat

* ThemeTune: Is a subject for a lot of [[AffectionateParody parodies]].

* TheMovie: Besides the {{Pilot Movie}}s, there were a number of special two-hour movies throughout the show's run, including three which aired in 1986/87 in lieu of a tenth season.

* TheMovie: Besides the pilots, there were a number of special two-hour movies throughout the show's run, including three which aired in 1986/87 in lieu of a tenth season.
* PilotMovie: Three of them, in fact.

* ChristmasEpisode: Several, most notably the Season 10 two-parter "The Christmas Cruise".

* TitleDrop: In the third pilot, (the first with Capt Stubing), Doc makes the mistake of calling the ''Pacific Princess'' a Love Boat. He is told in no uncertain terms by Stubing to not use that phrase in his presence again.

* DisguisedInDrag: Happened at least once.

* RoadTripEpisode: The job of the regular cast was to facilitate these for the guest stars.

* PutOnABus: Julie [=McCoy=], after Lauren Tewes' cocaine addiction made her unable to do her job.

*** Film/{{Titanic}} [[SoundtrackDissonance Love]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaXQfSNLG4I Boat]]

Now, even if you never watched the show, you've probably heard [[http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=m_wFEB4Oxlo the theme song]], one of the most well-known TV themes ''ever'', and a favorite for [[LoungeLizard fictional lounge acts]]. This was sung by Jack Jones and written by Music/PaulWilliams. Yes, the man who wrote [[Film/TheMuppetMovie "The Rainbow Connection"]] also wrote this.

* The second variation was in play during an episode of the show. Jimmy Osmond played a novice actor shooting a scene, who just couldn't get it right. The director wasn't satisfied with his believability. He wasn't conveying enough anger and hurt. After repeated tries, the director called a break, during which the captain's daughter Vicki ripped into him about how he might as well give it up. He was a horrible failure of an actor, and he wasn't ever going to succeed. On the next take, he nailed it. [[EnforcedMethodActing Vicki had insulted him deliberately to make him angry and produce that result]].

Jeraldine Saunders, a real-life cruise director, wrote about her experiences in a book called ''The Love Boats''. A trilogy of {{Made for TV Movie}}s followed, and then it finally became an AaronSpelling-produced series airing on Creator/{{ABC}} from 1977 to 1986.

Now, even if you never watched the show, you've probably heard [[http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=m_wFEB4Oxlo the theme song]], one of the most well-known TV themes ''ever'', and a favorite for [[LoungeLizard fictional lounge acts]]. This was sung by Jack Jones and written by PaulWilliams. Yes, the man who wrote [[TheMuppetMovie "The Rainbow Connection"]] also wrote this.

* {{Crossover}}: A couple with ''FantasyIsland'', another Aaron Spelling show which immediately followed ''The Love Boat'' on ABC Saturday nights.

* FramedFaceOpening: Utilized for the guest passengers on each episode, from season 2 onward. The standard credit sequence had the port window motif over the Princess backdrop while the final season (1985-1986) used a wave motif over a panoramic montage of sights from around the world.

* TheMovie: Besides the pilots, there were a number of special two-hour movies throughout the show's run, including three which aired in 1986-87 in lieu of a tenth season.

* {{Revival}}: ''Love Boat: The Next Wave'', which ran on {{UPN}} in 1998-99 and involved an entirely different ship and crew (although several members of the original show's cast did appear in one episode, where they got together for the wedding of the now-grown Vicki Stubing).

*** {{Titanic}} [[SoundtrackDissonance Love]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaXQfSNLG4I Boat]]

** ''SaturdayNightLive'' also made a parody on an episode guest starring Patrick Stewart: ''[[http://trekspace.ning.com/video/1977635:Video:103407 The Love Boat:]] [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration The Next Generation]]'' (complete with surprise cameo by Bernie Kopell).
** ''SesameStreet'' did a sketch with Ernie and some Anything Muppets, called "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr35dJYt54E I Love This Boat]]".
** The 1979 animated special ''[[ScoobyDoo Scooby Goes Hollywood]]'' had Shaggy and Scooby on ''The Love Ship''.

** ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'' of all things had a parody with [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVcngdj8Rmw Boat of Romance]]

* StuntCasting: Virtually every guest star, including Creator/BillyBarty and PattyMaloney as a dwarf couple accompanied by their normal-height son.

* TheOtherDarrin: The first pilot movie had an entirely different cast playing the ship's crew.

* HeyItsThatGuy: You may know "Your Captain" better from ''McHalesNavy'' or ''TheMaryTylerMooreShow''.

* HeyItsThatGuy: You may know "Your Captain" better from ''[=McHale=]'s Navy'' or ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show''.

* HeyItsThatGuy: You may know "Your Captain" better from ''McHale's Navy'' or ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show''.

[[caption-width-right:300:And Liberace as the engineer.]]

* {{Revival}}: ''Love Boat: The Next Wave'', which ran on {{UPN}} in 1998-99 and involved an entirely different ship and crew (although several members of the original show's cast did appear in one episode, where they got together for the wedding of the now-grown Vicki Stubing).

!!''TheLoveBoat'' provides examples of:

** In the middle of a jailbreak in ''{{Airplane}}! II'', Jack Jones appears in the light of a searchlight singing the theme.

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/love_boat_01.jpg
[[caption-width:300:And Liberace as the engineer.]]

* StuntCasting: Virtually every guest star, including BillyBarty and PattyMaloney as a dwarf couple accompanied by their normal-height son.

* DisguisedInADrag: Happened at least once.

* DressedInADrag: Happened at least once.