The Top 5 Sitcoms Each Season (1950-2007)

[Adamantium]

I got this list from "The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Show" by Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh. I tried to pick out the top five sitcoms each season, however, the information isn't there for every season. It all depends on how popular sitcoms were.

I have the show and it's ranking. In the case of a tie, they skip a number. For example The Cosby Show and Roseanne tied for first place in the 1989-90 season. Cheers, which was the next show was counted as 3rd place.

Anyways, enjoy. This list surprised me a lot.

1950-1951
1. The Aldrich Family (15th)

1951-1952
1. I Love Lucy (3rd)
2. Amos ‘N’ Andy (13th)

1952-1953
1. I Love Lucy (1st)
2. Life with Luigi (13th)
3. The Life of Riley (16th)
4. Our Miss Brooks (22nd)
5. Amos ‘N’ Andy (25th)

1953-1954
1. I Love Lucy (1st)
2. The Life of Riley (13th)
3. Our Miss Brooks (14th)
4. The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (20th)
5. Private Secretary (24th)

1954-1955
1. I Love Lucy (1st)
2. December Bride (10th)
3. Private Secretary (19th)
4. The Life of Riley (21st)
5. Topper (24th)

1955-1956
1. I Love Lucy (2nd)
2. December Bride (6th)
3. Private Secretary (12th)
4. The Honeymooners (19th)
5. The Life of Riley (21st)

1956-1957
1. I Love Lucy (1st)
2. December Bride (5th)
3. The Phil Silvers Show (22nd)
4. Private Secretary (25th)
5. The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (28th)

1957-1958
1. The Danny Thomas Show (2nd)
2. December Bride (9th)
3. The Gale Storm Show (16th)
4. Father Knows Best (23rd)
5. The Real McCoys (30th)

1958-1959
1. The Danny Thomas Show (5th)
2. The Real McCoys (8th)
3. Father Knows Best (13th)
4. The Ann Southern Show (21st)

1959-1960
1. The Danny Thomas Show (4th)
2. Father Knows Best (6th)
3. The Real McCoys (11th)
4. Dennis the Menace (16th)
5. The Ann Southern Show (24th)

1960-1961
1. The Andy Griffith Show (4th)
2. The Real McCoys (5th)
3. Dennis the Menace (11th)
4. The Danny Thomas Show (12th)
5. My Three Sons (13th)

1961-1962
1. Hazel (4th)
2. The Andy Griffith Show (7th)
3. The Danny Thomas Show (8th)
4. My Three Sons (11th)
5. The Real McCoys (14th)

1962-1963
1. The Beverly Hillbillies (1st)
2. The Lucy Show (4th)
3. The Andy Griffith Show (6th)
4. The Danny Thomas Show (7th)
5. The Dick Van Dyke Show (9th)

1963-1964
1. The Beverly Hillbillies (1st)
2. The Dick Van Dyke Show (3rd)
3. Petticoat Junction (4th)
4. The Andy Griffith Show (5th)
5. The Lucy Show (6th)

1964-1965
1. Bewitched (2nd)
2. Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (3rd)
3. The Andy Griffith Show (4th)
4. The Dick Van Dyke Show (7th)
5. The Lucy Show (8th)

1965-1966
1. Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (2nd)
2. The Lucy Show (3rd)
3. The Andy Griffith Show (6th)
4. Bewitched (7th) & The Beverly Hillbillies (7th)
5. Hogan’s Heroes (9th)

1966-1967
1. The Andy Griffith Show (3rd)
2. The Lucy Show (4th)
3. Green Acres (6th)
4. Bewitched (7th) & The Beverly Hillbillies (7th)
5. Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (10th)

1967-1968
1. The Andy Griffith Show (1st)
2. The Lucy Show (2nd)
3. Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (3rd)
4. Family Affair (4th)
5. Bewitched (11th)

1968-1969
1. Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. (2nd)
2. Mayberry R.F.D. (4th)
3. Family Affair (5th)
4. Julia (7th)
5. Here’s Lucy (9th)

1969-1970
1. Mayberry R.F.D. (4th)
2. Family Affair (5th)
3. Here’s Lucy (6th)
4. The Doris Day Show (10th)
5. The Bill Cosby Show (11th)

1970-1971
1. Here’s Lucy (3rd)
2. Mayberry R.F.D. (15th)
3. My Three Sons (19th)
4. The Doris Day Show (20th)
5. The Mary Tyler Moore Show (22nd)

1971-1972
1. All in the Family (1st)
2. Sanford and Son (6th)
3. The Mary Tyler Moore Show (10th) & Here’s Lucy (10th)
4. The Partridge Family (16th)
5. The New Dick Van Dyke Show (18th)

1972-1973
1. All in the Family (1st)
2. Sanford and Son (2nd)
3. Maude (4th)
4. Bridget Loves Bernie (5th)
5. The Mary Tyler Moore Show (7th)

1973-1974
1. All in the Family (1st)
2. Sanford and Son (3rd)
3. M*A*S*H (4th)
4. Maude (6th)
5. The Mary Tyler Moore Show (9th)

1974-1975
1. All in the Family (1st)
2. Sanford and Son (2nd)
3. Chico and the Man (3rd)
4. The Jeffersons (4th)
5. M*A*S*H (5th)

1975-1976
1. All in the Family (1st)
2. Laverne & Shirley (3rd)
3. Maude (4th)
4. Phyllis (6th)
5. Sanford and Son (7th) & Rhoda (7th)

1976-1977
1. Happy Days (1st)
2. Laverne & Shirley (2nd)
3. M*A*S*H (4th)
4. One Day at a Time (8th)
5. Three’s Company (11th)

1977-1978
1. Laverne & Shirley (1st)
2. Happy Days (2nd)
3. Three’s Company (3rd)
4. All in the Family (4th)
5. Alice (8th) & M*A*S*H (8th)

1978-1979
1. Laverne & Shirley (1st)
2. Three’s Company (2nd)
3. Mork & Mindy (3rd) & Happy Days (3rd)
4. Angie (5th)
5. M*A*S*H (7th)

1979-1980
1. Three’s Company (2nd)
2. Alice (4th) & M*A*S*H (4th)
3. Flo (7th)
4. The Jeffersons (8th)
5. One Day at a Time (10th)

1980-1981
1. M*A*S*H (4th)
2. The Love Boat (5th)
3. The Jeffersons (6th)
4. Alice (7th)
5. House Calls (8th) & Three’s Company (8th)

1981-1982
1. The Jeffersons (3rd)
2. Three’s Company (4th)
3. Alice (5th)
4. Too Close for Comfort (6th)
5. M*A*S*H (9th)

1982-1983
1. M*A*S*H (3rd)
2. Three’s Company (6th)
3. The Love Boat (9th)
4. The Jeffersons (12th) & Newhart (12th)
5. 9 to 5 (15th)

1983-1984
1. Kate & Allie (8th)
2. AfterMash (15th)
3. The Love Boat (17th)
4. The Jeffersons (19th)
5. Newhart (23rd)

1984-1985
1. The Cosby Show (3rd)
2. Family Ties (5th)
3. Cheers (12th)
4. Newhart (16th)
5. Kate & Allie (17th)

1985-1986
1. The Cosby Show (1st)
2. Family Ties (2nd)
3. Cheers (5th)
4. The Golden Girls (7th)
5. Who’s the Boss? (10th)

1986-1987
1. The Cosby Show (1st)
2. Family Ties (2nd)
3. Cheers (3rd)
4. The Golden Girls (5th)
5. Night Court (7th)

1987-1988
1. The Cosby Show (1st)
2. A Different World (2nd)
3. Cheers (3rd)
4. The Golden Girls (4th)
5. Growing Pains (5th)

1988-1989
1. The Cosby Show (1st)
2. Roseanne (2nd)
3. A Different World (3rd)
4. Cheers (4th)
5. The Golden Girls (6th)

1989-1990
1. The Cosby Show (1st) & Roseanne (1st)
2. Cheers (3rd)
3. A Different World (4th)
4. The Golden Girls (6th)
5. The Wonder Years (8th)

1990-1991
1. Cheers (1st)
2. Roseanne (3rd)
3. A Different World (4th)
4. The Cosby Show (5th)
5. Murphy Brown (6th)

1991-1992
1. Roseanne (2nd)
2. Murphy Brown (3rd)
3. Cheers (4th) & Home Improvement (4th)
4. Designing Women (6th)
5. Full House (7th)

1992-1993
1. Roseanne (2nd)
2. Home Improvement (3rd)
3. Murphy Brown (4th)
4. Coach (6th)
5. Cheers (8th)

1993-1994
1. Home Improvement (2nd)
2. Seinfeld (3rd)
3. Roseanne (4th)
4. Grace Under Fire (5th)
5. Coach (6th)

1994-1995
1. Seinfeld (1st)
2. Home Improvement (3rd)
3. Grace Under Fire (4th)
4. Friends (8th)
5. Roseanne (10th)

1995-1996
1. Seinfeld (2nd)
2. Friends (3rd)
3. Caroline in the City (4th)
4. The Single Guy (6th)
5. Home Improvement (7th)

1996-1997
1. Seinfeld (2nd)
2. Suddenly Susan (3rd)
3. Friends (4th) & The Naked Truth (4th)
4. Fired Up (6th)
5. The Single Guy (8th)

1997-1998
1. Seinfeld (1st)
2. Veronica’s Closet (3rd)
3. Friends (3rd)
4. Union Square (8th)
5. Frasier (10th) & Home Improvement (10th)

1998-1999
1. Friends (2nd)
2. Frasier (3rd)
3. Veronica’s Closet (5th) & Jesse (5th)
4. Home Improvement (10th)
5. Everybody Loves Raymond (11th)

1999-2000
1. Friends (5th)
2. Frasier (6th)
3. Everybody Loves Raymond (12th)
4. Jesse (13th)
5. Stark Raving Mad (15th)

2000-2001
1. Friends (5th) & Everybody Loves Raymond (5th)
2. Will & Grace (15th)
3. Becker (16th)
4. Frasier (17th)
5. Just Shoot Me! (20th)

2001-2002
1. Friends (1st)
2. Everybody Loves Raymond (4th)
3. Will & Grace (9th) & Leap of Faith (9th)
4. Becker (11th)
5. Frasier (14th)

2002-2003
1. Friends (2nd)
2. Everybody Loves Raymond (7th)
3. Will & Grace (11th)
4. Scrubs (13th)
5. Still Standing (19th)

2003-2004
1. Friends (4th)
2. Everybody Loves Raymond (9th)
3. Will & Grace (13th)
4. Two and a Half Men (14th)
5. Still Standing (26th)

2004-2005
1. Everybody Loves Raymond (9th)
2. Two and a Half Men (11th)

2005-2006
1. Two and a Half Men (13th)
2. The New Adventures of Old Christine (25th)
3. Out of Practice (30th)

2006-2007
1. Two and a Half Men (14th)
2. Rules of Engagement (25th)
3. The King of Queens (30th)

[Adamantium]

I should also mention that if a sitcom was ranked past 30th, then I don't have any info on it. That's why some in the early 50s and then late 00s don't have all five shows per season.

It was really sad to see both crappy shows getting such high ratings in the 1990s as well as most sitcoms being pushed aside for all sorts of reality shows.

[tv star collector]

I can remember seeing a lot of those shows when they first aired .. going all
the way back to 1953. Man, does that make me feel old!

[Skywalker]

Interesting!

I don't know if anyone else has noticed this, but the 05-06 season was the first season since the 50-51 season in which the top rated sitcom did not finish in the top ten. Same thing happened in the 06-07 season. I know Two and a Half Men does well in the ratings, but I'm not sure if a sitcom will ever finish in the top ten again thanks to all those stupid reality shows.

[Mr. Television]

Originally Posted by Skywalker

Interesting!

I don't know if anyone else has noticed this, but the 05-06 season was the first season since the 50-51 season in which the top rated sitcom did not finish in the top ten. Same thing happened in the 06-07 season. I know Two and a Half Men does well in the ratings, but I'm not sure if a sitcom will ever finish in the top ten again thanks to all those stupid reality shows.

What I'm worried is what will happen when Two and a Half Men finally goes off the air? No current sitcom is even close to it in popularity. If a new hit isn't found soon the sitcom might go the way of the Western and the Variety Shows.

[Skywalker]

Originally Posted by Clint Eastwood Fan

What I'm worried is what will happen when Two and a Half Men finally goes off the air? No current sitcom is even close to it in popularity. If a new hit isn't found soon the sitcom might go the way of the Western and the Variety Shows.

Yeah and Two and a Half Men will be entering it's 6th season this fall. That show can't last much longer, maybe 3 more seasons tops. Otherwise, they'll have to change it to 3 Men.

I could see The Big Bang Theory replacing Two and a Half Men once it ends, but none of those other sitcoms they have could get the kind of ratings Two and a Half gets in that timeslot. We really do need another hit though if sitcoms are going to have any real staying power in the future. I wonder what kind of new sitcoms they've got lined up for next season?

[Adamantium]

I'm surprised that as long as "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" was on, it isn't on this list. And I'm surprised that "The Honeymooners" was! I've been told it wasn't a huge hit show when it first aired. And it wasn't in the top ten, but it was still in the top 30.

FOX does not have any shows listed here.

What gets me is how a show can be #1 one season and #15 the next. Then maybe #3 the next season and after that #27.

[Adamantium]

The only shows that were both first in each season's top 5, I have listed and were also the number one show of that TV season are:

1952-1953
1. I Love Lucy (1st)

1953-1954
1. I Love Lucy (1st)

1954-1955
1. I Love Lucy (1st)

1956-1957
1. I Love Lucy (1st)

1962-1963
1. The Beverly Hillbillies (1st)

1963-1964
1. The Beverly Hillbillies (1st)

1967-1968
1. The Andy Griffith Show (1st)

1971-1972
1. All in the Family (1st)

1972-1973
1. All in the Family (1st)

1973-1974
1. All in the Family (1st)

1974-1975
1. All in the Family (1st)

1975-1976
1. All in the Family (1st)

1976-1977
1. Happy Days (1st)

1977-1978
1. Laverne & Shirley (1st)

1978-1979
1. Laverne & Shirley (1st)

1985-1986
1. The Cosby Show (1st)

1986-1987
1. The Cosby Show (1st)

1987-1988
1. The Cosby Show (1st)

1988-1989
1. The Cosby Show (1st)

1989-1990
1. The Cosby Show (1st) & Roseanne (1st)

1990-1991
1. Cheers (1st)

1994-1995
1. Seinfeld (1st)

1997-1998
1. Seinfeld (1st)

2001-2002
1. Friends (1st)

[Scoobiedoo30]

1980's
#1 Alice
#2 M*A*S*H
#3 Diff'rent Strokes
#4 Night Court
#5 Cheers