When was the last time TV wasn't terrible?

[gadfly]

Broadcast TV, maybe 1998 or so, with Bob Eubanks still hosting the Newlywed Game and Hawaii 5-0 in active syndication on most stations. As far as new shows though, much longer ago than that. Cable is pretty much garbage as well. 500 channels of open heart surgery, "celebrity" poker, etc. TV land is a joke, and Nick at Nite is worse. Why can't there be a single cable channel that shows pre-1975 shows exclusively, or better yet pre-1970. Even when I was a kid I knew reruns of Get Smart and Outer Limits were better than the late-era Happy Days, Dynasty, or TJ Hooker that were currently being offered up.

[Ant-Lox]

There are good shows on TV you just need to explore.....

[TJL]

Anyone remember when summer TV was all about watching reruns of sitcoms you missed earlier in the year?

;)

[bencasey]

Probably the last year TV was good was maybe 1972 or thereabouts, give or take a year or two. I think it went downhill when they gave 7:30 back to the affiliates, although that's not really a cause. It just happened to start going down around that time.

[Coffeecup]

You have point there Ben Casey. I last watched tv on a regular basic probably when cable tv came in. In our area 1981. Well I'll take that back i did watch the evening soap type shows but really no comedies come to mind.
When the stand up comics had shows Roseanne, Seinfeld, Home improvement to name a few I tuned out.

[Stuck In The '70's]

Their are still a lot of great dramas on today. As for sitcoms I'm afraid their time might have passed.

[tvfan0101]

December 14th, 1968, around 8:45PM EST. Yup.

[gadfly]

i might be tempted to agree with that, but i was barely alive on that date...seinfeld showed that it was still possible to make a great sitcom. there may be some decent new dramas, but when i've tuned it in the quick cut/blair witch/mtv camera work made them too irritating to watch.

[wkomorow]

It is hard to beat 1991

Monday - Evening Shade, Major Dad, Murphy Brown, Designing Women, Northern Exposure

Tues - Full House, Home Improvement, Roseanne, Coach

Wed - Dinosaurs, Wonder Years, Doogie Howser with Seinfeld and Night Court and Royal Family to watch in the summer

Thurs -Simpsons, Cheers, Wings

Friday - TGIF - Family Matters, Step By Step, Perfect Strangers, Dear John on the side

Sat - Golden Girls, The Torkelsons, Empty Nest, Nurses

Sun - In Living Colour, ROC , Married with Children, Herman's Head

This last season, I think that I spent probably 3 hours a week (if that) watching network TV at night.

[greenlaser5555]

Network Television? 1997, when shows like Coach, Roseanne, Martin, and Wings were still in primetime. Network television changed since then.

Cable Television? September 2003, When Nick@Nite dropped Family Ties, Perfect Strangers, and Head of The Class.

[tvlover85]

...didn't Nick@Nite also have Charles in Charge starting in 2002 and drop it around this same time as the others?

[Ireneparalegal]

When "New Seasons" started in September, not year round.

[troopoleon8897]

Althought reruns and such are terrible lately... normal 8-11 primetime programming September-May is on the up and up lately...although the sitcoms are poor at the moment (4-5 good ones but nothing like back in 92-93) The dramas couldn't be better, each network has atleast 4 big hits each that are just great....

[treky]

there's some good shows. What about the "C.S.I." trilogy, "Crimmanal Minds", "Cold Case", "The Amazing Race", some of the shows on THE HISTORY CHANNEL & some episodes of "Dirty Jobs" & "Mythbusters"

[Stuck In The '70's]

24, The Shield and Lost are 3 great dramas Their's plenty more too. I know sometimes you have to search through all the junk to find the good shows but their are some out there.

[puertaazul]

Althought reruns and such are terrible lately... normal 8-11 primetime programming September-May is on the up and up lately...although the sitcoms are poor at the moment (4-5 good ones but nothing like back in 92-93) The dramas couldn't be better, each network has atleast 4 big hits each that are just great....

I agree! The last time I was excited to see this many shows in the Fall was when Friends was going to premiere...back when Must See TV still existed!! I think the Fall season shouldn't disappoint.

[Brieannas21]

It is hard to beat 1991

Monday - Evening Shade, Major Dad, Murphy Brown, Designing Women, Northern Exposure

Tues - Full House, Home Improvement, Roseanne, Coach

Wed - Dinosaurs, Wonder Years, Doogie Howser with Seinfeld and Night Court and Royal Family to watch in the summer

Thurs -Simpsons, Cheers, Wings

Friday - TGIF - Family Matters, Step By Step, Perfect Strangers, Dear John on the side

Sat - Golden Girls, The Torkelsons, Empty Nest, Nurses

Sun - In Living Colour, ROC , Married with Children, Herman's Head

This last season, I think that I spent probably 3 hours a week (if that) watching network TV at night.

:yeahthat

I totally agree.

[greenlaser5555]

...didn't Nick@Nite also have Charles in Charge starting in 2002 and drop it around this same time as the others?
CIC was dropped when Wings came.

[todd00]

well nick at nick was good in 91', at least. now its:rolleyes:

[Mrs. Periwinkle]

Other than a few select shows, I basically hate all 80s and 90s shows...and, forget about today's series! I'd say TV started getting really, really bad in recent years--reality TV, trashy shows, etc is all there's on.

The best decades for television, in my book, were definitely the 60s and 70s and, sadly, TV continues to get worse and worse every year...

Thank goodness for re-runs!

[treky]

well nick at nick was good in 91', at least. now its:rolleyes:
N@N was good in the late 80s (it started in 86, but we didn't get it until 88) when they had nothing but good shows: THE PATTY DUKE SHOW, THE DONNA REED SHOW, ROWAN & MARTINS LAUGH-IN, MY 3 SONS, F-TROOP, DRAGNET, MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY/THE DANNY THOMAS SHOW, GREEN ACRES, PETTICOAT JUNCTION, ROUTE 66. (those last two, though, were before we had them) I heard that when they started, they even showed a couple episodes of MY MOTHER THE CAR which some people say is one of the WORST sitcoms ever!!!