Tall Hopes was a CBS sitcom that aired in 1993. The show centered around a working-class Black American family and their lives with middle child Ernest (Kenny Blank) as the center of the show, as he uses his camcorder to vent his frustration about his siblings. Rounding out the cast was Ernest's jock older brother Chet (Terrence Howard), precocious younger sister DeeDee (Karla Green), and his parents George and Lainie (played by George Wallace and Anna Maria Horsfold).
Only six episodes were produced, and CBS opted not to renew the series. The sitcom is lost media, it was never re-run anywhere else and there is only one episode that made it online
, through YouTube.
This series contains the following tropes:
- Character Narrator: Ernest uses his camcorder to vent, and his rants tie into the episode's plot.
- Cheerful Child: DeeDee, the youngest child.
- Dumb Jock: Chet, who Ernest constantly chides. In the only episode online, he uses his credit card to buy a new stereo instead of an anniversary gift for his mom, despite his father telling him to cut up his credit card.
- Forgotten Anniversary: Played With, the anniversary is remembered by George, but he doesn't have the money to get an anniversary gift. He ends up borrowing money from his son.
- Middle Child Syndrome: The show is based on Ernest lamenting that he doesn't receive as much attention as his siblings.
- Sassy Black Woman: Lainie, oh so very much. George gets the brunt of her sass, though she saves a lot for the kids.
