"Kate Plus 8" has been canceled by TLC, putting an end to one of the most popular, if ephemeral, cable reality shows of all time.
The network issued this statement Monday:
TLC has decided not to renew another season of Kate Plus 8. By the end of this season Kate Plus 8 will have hit the 150 episode mark (including Jon & Kate Plus 8); an exceptional milestone. TLC hopes to check in with Kate and the family periodically with specials in the future.
The network had just launched the program's final season, which tracks Kate Gosselin and her extremely large brood. The series finale is set to air on September 12.
The show debuted in 2007 under the name "Jon & Kate Plus 8" on sister network Discovery Health and moved to TLC in 2008. At its height, "Jon & Kate Plus 8" attracted a whopping 10 million viewers per week.
After Jon and Kate Gosselin's messy breakup in 2009, the title was shortened to "Kate Plus 8" and the ratings took a nosedive, pulling in fewer than a million viewers for a recent broadcast.
Among the show's many indelible contributions to the pop-culture landscape: Gosselin's spiky, asymmetrical hairdo (pictured), and her shrill cry of "Come and get your popcorn!" as mercilessly ridiculed by Joel McHale on E!'s "The Soup."
