I thought I had read about this term on Wordcraft, but searching around, I can't find it. Actually, I saw a reference to the phrase today in a political blog, in which Bush was characterized as having "jumped the shark" in this, his seventh year "on TV."

The blog referenced the Wikipedia article on the expression.

Wordmatic

I, too, was sure that we'd discussed it before. It's an apt phrase.

I searched, too, and looked at each of the 24 or so entries; I don' think we've talked about that phrase. I haven't heard it before; I hope that doesn't mean I am a doofus (see, z, I spelled it your way. ).

I had a look at the Wikipedia article on "jumping the shark". It lists 18 sure signs that a series is about to die. As I read down through them I said to myself, "how true, how true!"
Then it occurred to me that there is an exception so obvious that it negates, rather than proves the rule: SOAP OPERAS!.
I judge that at least 11 of the listed death rattles are, in the daytime soaps, standard operating procedure. This indicates that, though these rules are immutable in the normal entertainment universe, soaps are from another world!

I don't know whether we've talked about it here but I've certainly talked about it somewhere and this is the only word board I use...

The phrase started on 1997 on http://www.jumptheshark.com/