Jumping the shark

Jumping the shark is an uncommon neologism (a new word or phrase) made popular by the website JumpTheShark.com . The phrase indicates the moment (preferably the precise moment) when any long-running television show has been judged to have passed its 'peak' and is in relative decline. A show in decline is said to have "jumped the shark".

The etymology of the phrase is a three part episode of the series Happy Days during which the character of "Fonzie" jumped over a shark on water skis[?]. This was said to mark the moment when a previously enjoyable television show became a bad television show.

According to the originators of the phrase there are a number of possible signs that a show is in decline. The signs include "same character, different actor", "death", "birth", "live", "puberty", and "singing".

External Link

• jumptheshark.com (http://www.jumptheshark.com)