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Rod Serling
The Twilight Zone
The success of the original series led to the creation of two revival series: a cult hit series that ran for several seasons on CBS and in syndication in the 1980s, and a short-lived UPN series that ran from 2002 to 2003. It would also lead to a feature film, a radio series, a comic book, a magazine and various other spin-offs that would span five decades.
If you've been lucky enough to have seen one episode and can get beyond the "images" in stories without the use of high-tech computer enhancement you can label yourself a fan. Thank-You Rod Serling
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Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley
I Love Lucy
Was the most-watched show in the United States in four of its six seasons, and was the first to end its run at the top of the ratings.
"To this very day in re-runs at all hours over numerous networks we seem to still "Love Lucy." Also you should not forget the contributions behind the cameras through "Desilu" Productions that were innovations to the future of television."
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Isabel Sanford, Sherman Hemsley, Marla Gibbs, Roxie Roker and Franklin Cover
The Jefferson's
It is the longest running comedy (or series of any genre) with a predominantly African American cast in the history of American television.
"And not to forget the first to portray an inter-racial marriage using recuring cast members, Roxie Roker and Franklin Cover."
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Henry Winkler, Ron Howard, Marion Ross, Anson Williams,
Donny Most and Tom Bosley
Happy Days
"The small walk-on part became a regular part and then one with the largest storyline during which time he overcame the principal players and after Ron Howard left carried Happy Days forward! Ehhhheeee!"
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Adam West, Burt Ward, and Alan Napier
Batman
Many sports, music, and media personalities, and a number of Hollywood actors, looked forward to and enjoyed their appearances as villains on the Batman show. They were generally allowed to overact and enjoy themselves on a high-rated TV series, guaranteeing them considerable exposure (and thus boosting their careers).
"An alternative to the cartoons that catered to we kids then, the twice weekly Batman episodes were a change of pace. Many of us looked forward to the latest guest star from all realms of the sports and entertainment industry. Other than that the show was pretty much 'cheese' and by the third year had lost a substantial part of its punch."
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Fred MacMurray, William Demarest, Don Grady, Stanley Livingston and Barry Livingston
My Three Sons
Chronicled the life of an aeronautical engineer and widower Steve Douglas, played by Fred MacMurray, and his three sons. This seemingly simple premise was a huge hit and a cornerstone of the CBS lineup in the 1960s. With 380 episodes produced, it is second only to The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet as television's longest running (live-action) family sitcom.
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George Reeves, Noel Neill, Jack Larson, Robert Shayne and John Hamilton
Adventures of Superman
"Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound! -"Look! Up in the sky!" "It's a bird!" "It's a plane!" "It's Superman!"- . . .Yes, it's Superman, strange visitor from another planet, who came to Earth with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men! Superman, who can change the course of mighty rivers, bend steel in his bare hands, and who, disguised as Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper, fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way! and I still remember every word. I cannot remember many days when I missed Superman in the Afternoon, then already in re-runs."
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Carol O'Connor, Jean Stapleton, Sally Struthers and Rob Reiner
All in the Family
Was notorious for featuring language and epithets previously absent from television, such as "fag" for homosexual, "hebe" for Jews, "spic" for Hispanics, "mick" for Irish, "dago" and "wop" for Italians,"polock" for Polish, "chink" for Chinese, "Jap" for Japanese, "gook" for southeast Asian, "spade" for blacks, and phrases such as "God damn it." It was also famous for being the first major television show to feature the sound of a flushing toilet; it became a running gag on the show. All in the Family is one of only two American programs that have been #1 in the Nielsen Ratings for five consecutive seasons, along with The Cosby Show.
"What can be said about a television show that not only pushed the boundries but broke them and established a New World Order in the nature of the television sitcom. Archie broke all the rules by showing us the true side of human nature and more often then not the ability to change. Edith, his wife and constant foil would be a character that had few flaws short of innocence."
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Dean Martin
The Dean Martin Show
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Jerry Mathers, Tony Dow, Hugh Beaumont and Barbara Billingsley
Leave It to Beaver
The show has attained an iconic status in the United States, with the Cleavers exemplifying the idealized suburban family of the mid-twentieth century and was one of the first primetime sitcom series filmed from a child's point-of-view.
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Jackie Gleason, Audrey Meadows, Art Carney and Joyce Randolph
The Honeymooners
"Along with I Love Lucy, The Honeymooners is an all around favorite. People loved following the lives of these 4 people with most of the scenes and script taking place in one single room. It truly is an iconic comedy of the ages. Still found on various stations around the globe."
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Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson
Sanford & Son
Sanford and Son was a big hit in the ratings during its six year run (1972-1977) on NBC. Despite airing in the so called Friday night death slot, it peaked at #2 in the ratings (behind All in the Family)
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Alan Alda, Loretta Swit, William Christopher, Jamie Farr, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan, Gary Burghoff, David Ogden Stiers and Larry Linville
M*A*S*H*
The series premiered on September 17, 1972, and ended February 28, 1983, with the finale becoming the most-watched television episode in U.S. television history, with over 105 million viewers. The show is still broadcast in syndication on various television stations, mostly during the late night/early morning hours. The series, which covered a three-year military conflict, spanned 251 episodes and lasted eleven seasons.
One of my all time favorite shows of which I know most of them word for word, at a minimum the varying plotlines of the entire broadcast run. I have gotten gifts of the complete seasons. On another note, it was one of the few comedies that matured over its run into more of the Drama, Dark Humor avenue. This maturity came about in a most natural sense. The shows characters although coming and going through the years still enabled the storyline and growth to continue growth. In the end it truly showed as over 100 million viewers felt pretty much the same way I did. We were at that night saying goodnight to friends and putting closure for a time on war!
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Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas and Max Baer Jr.
The Beverly Hillbillies
Is an American sitcom that was one of the most successful comedies in the history of American television. It ranked among the top 12 most watched series on television for seven of its nine seasons, twice ranking as the #1 series of the year with a number of episodes that remain among the most-watched television episodes of all time.
"There is just something about this show that makes easy to keep watching, even after all these years. It's humor and created chaos all managed by a simple backwoods gentleman named, Jed Clampett."
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Bill Bixby, Brandon Cruz and Miyoshi Umeki
The Courtship of Eddie's Father
Considered a cult classic, the show gained popularity during its first two seasons, as had other hit comedies that dealt with widowed single parents . . . This show also set the tone for other 1970s comedies that dealt with widowhood and/or traditional family values . . .
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Joe E. Ross and Fred Gwynne
Car 54, Where Are You?
This was one of the first shows to regularly feature actors of other ethnicities and cultures. They were not there to be the "butt" of everyone else's jokes, or to be ridiculed. They were simply there because it was an accurate representation of the real world, a rather significant step for a television show in the early 1960s.
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William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, James Doohan, DeForest Kelley, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, Walter Koenig, Grace Lee Whitney and Majel Barrett
Star Trek
Guinness World Records lists the original Star Trek as having the largest number of spin-offs among all television shows in history.
"How can you say more about the popularity of what actually was a short-lived show! 79 Episodes produced a legacy of decades."
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Walt Disney
The Wonderful World of Disney
"On Sunday evening in the late sixties I would be sure to have everything I needed to do done and out of the way so that my 7:00 p.m. timeslot was given over to Walt Disney. Each week it was a new show and a new experience. Disney became a household name and topic of conversation adding substatially to Walt's public relations with the countries kids."
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Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Michael Richards and Jason Alexander
Seinfeld
In 2002, TV Guide named Seinfeld as the greatest television program of all time. In 2008, Entertainment Weekly ranked Seinfeld as the third best show of the last 25 years, behind The Sopranos and The Simpsons.
"The show about and along in the years episodes pitched as, "The Show About Nothing." Just the ordinary following of seemingly normal people as they travel and interact with each other along the way. Seinfeld was a huge success and had a wide following throughout its run.
The final show . . .whatever?"
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Bill Cosby, Phylicia Rashad, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Tempestt Bledsoe and Keshia Knight Pulliam
The Cosby Show
According to TV Guide, the show "was TV's biggest hit in the 1980s, and almost single-handedly revived the sitcom genre and NBC's ratings fortunes." Originally, the show had been pitched to ABC, which rejected it. Entertainment Weekly stated that The Cosby Show helped to make possible a larger variety of shows based on African Americans, from In Living Color to The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. It was also one of the first successful sitcoms based on the subject matter of a standup comedian's act, blazing a trail for other programs such as Roseanne, Home Improvement, The Drew Carey Show, Seinfeld, and Everybody Loves Raymond. The Cosby Show is one of only two American programs that have been #1 in the Nielsen Ratings for five consecutive seasons, along with All in the Family.
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Johnny Carson and
The Tonight Show
"In his decades on television late night Carson became the master and created the standard that talk-shows use continuously."
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Martin Milner and Kent McCord
Adam-12
"Jack Webb pioneered the Police Drama Genre with his shows like Adam-12, Dragnet and Emergency. His use of true cases and following proper Police proccedures throughout earned his shows much praise from the television viewers and in Law Enforcement. I understand societies change, ours has but it seems another era when I watch this show now. Back at that time it helped me to respect Police regardless of my agreeing or disagreeing with laws. In this day it promotes my scorn of overzealous proceedures that are shown on the later generations of television Cops. Adam-12 can still be found at various times throughout the United States."
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Jack Albertson and Freddie Prinze
Chico and the Man
It was the first(?) U.S. television series set in a Mexican-American neighborhood.
"The chemistry between Albertson and Prinze was immediate and powerful providing us with a look at how people learn to become friends. It's sad that off-screen Prinze had problems with life chosing to end it at the young age of 22."
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Bill Cosby and Robert Culp
I Spy
I Spy broke new ground by being the first American television drama to feature an African-American actor in a lead role.
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Abbott & Costello
The Abbott and Costello Show
It is regarded among the most influential comedy programs in history. In 1998 Entertainment Weekly praised the series as one of the "100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time." In 2007, Time magazine selected it as one of the "The 100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME."
"I watched this on either channel 5 (WNEW) or 11 (WPIX) when they'd have re-runs. The shows were all funny and the interactions between Besser and Lou Costello, hysterical! If it were on locally I would be watching it still."
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Reginald VelJohnson, Jo Marie Payton, Darius McCrary, Kellie Shanygne Williams and Jaleel White
Family Matters
Having aired 215 episodes, Family Matters is the second longest-running U.S. sitcom with a predominantly African-American cast, surpassed only by The Jeffersons.
""Erkel," was the sole motivation for watching this show with the occassional joy of still seeing Reginald VelJohnson, on camera whom I've enjoyed since his Die Hard adventures.
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Andy Griffith, Ron Howard, Don Knotts, and Frances Bavier
The Andy Griffith Show
The series was a hit, never placing lower than seventh in the Nielsen Ratings and ending its run at number one.
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Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton, Brad Garrett, Peter Boyle and Doris Roberts
Everybody Loves Raymond
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Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Lyle Waggoner, Tim Conway and Dick Van Dyke
The Carol Burnett Show
A true variety show in its simplest of forms, The Carol Burnett Show struck a harmonious chord with viewers through parodies of films ("Went With the Wind"), television ("As the Stomach Turns") and TV commercials. Burnett and team struck gold with the original skit "The Family" which eventually spun off into a television show, "Mama's Family", starring Lawrence.
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