Cousin Oliver is a jargon used by TV critics when the creators of a TV show decide that the addition of a cute child actor to the cast will improve the ratings of the show, or as a replacement for child cast members that have grown up since the show started. Technical terminology is the specialised vocabulary of a profession or of some other activity to which a group of people dedicate significant parts of their lives (for instance, hobbies or a particular segment of industry). ... Idiot box redirects here. ... A critic (from Greek κριτικός, kritikós - one who discerns, from Ancient Greek κριτής, krités, a judge) is a person who offers reasoned judgement or analysis, value judgement, interpretation, or observation. ... This article or section is missing needed references or citation of sources. ... The term child actor is generally applied to a child acting in motion pictures or television, but also to an adult who began his or her acting career as a child; to avoid confusion the latter is also called a former child actor. ...

Origin

Robbie Rist as Cousin Oliver on The Brady Bunch.

Cousin Oliver (played by Robbie Rist) was a character who was introduced in 1974 on The Brady Bunch during what turned out to be the show's final season. Cousin Oliver, who took up residence in the Brady household and appears in the last six episodes of the series, remains unpopular with fans of the show, and is considered by many to be the moment when The Brady Bunch jumped the shark, although that term was yet to be coined at the time the character was introduced. Image File history File links The infamous Cousin Oliver This is a screenshot of a copyrighted website, video game graphic, computer program graphic, television broadcast, or film. ... Robbie Rist as Cousin Oliver on The Brady Bunch Robbie Rist (born April 4, 1964) is an American actor. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1974 calendar). ... The Brady Bunch is an American television situation comedy, based around a large blended family. ... This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. ...

Examples of the Cousin Oliver Syndrome

TV shows stricken with "Cousin Oliver Syndrome"; most cases were terminal:

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Trivia

• Batman: The Animated Series parodied this phenomenon in the season 3 episode "Baby Doll", in which the villain had once starred in a TV show which was cancelled after the addition of a "cousin" character, leading her to kidnap her old co-stars and take her revenge. Interestingly enough, although Robbie Rist appears in this episode, he is not the "Cousin Oliver" character (here named "Cousin Spunky"), but rather the older brother character from the original cast. Spunky was voiced by Jason Marsden.

The animated Batman shoots his grappling gun from a rooftop in a scene from the episode, On Leather Wings. ... In contemporary usage, parody is a form of satire that imitates another work of art in order to ridicule it. ... Jason Christopher Marsden (born January 3, 1975 in Providence, Rhode Island, USA) is an American screen and voice actor largely known for numerous voice roles in animated films, as well as his role in the TV series Eerie, Indiana. ...

See also

• Jumping the shark
• Chuck Cunningham syndrome
• Fonzie syndrome
• X-Files — In the episode "Sunshine Days", a character who recreates the Brady Bunch house from his thoughts renames himself Cousin Oliver.