10 Characters From Famous TV Shows Who Were Swept Under The Carpet

5. Luke Ventura - Married... With Children

In the early episodes of Married...With Children, Al Bundy had a co-worker at Gary's Shoes and Accessories named Luke Ventura, played by Ritch Shydner. Luke was a womanizer who was intended to fill the role of Al's friend and confidant, and Shydner was listed as a regular in the script for the pilot episode. Once the series began airing, producers realized that Al's daughter, Kelly, was a much more popular role than they had originally anticipated. In addition, the role Luke was originally meant to fill ended up being taken by Al's neighbor, Steve Rhodes, who was able to play much more of a straight man to Al's dysfunctional life. As a result, the decision was made after seven episodes to drop Luke entirely without explanation. Unlike most of the characters on this list, Luke was brought back off-screen during the ninth season of the show when Al finds out that Luke was given an award in the shoe industry after he left his job at Gary's and became Al's rival. The reference was very subtle and Luke was never seen, thus meaning it was one of those blink and you'll miss it moments. Of course, only the most die-hard fans of the show realized that the Luke being referenced in this episode was a regular character during the first season. As such, it was quite a clever nod to television geeks who know way too much useless trivia about the shows that they love.