TV Guide's 60 Greatest Shows of all Time

[JamesG]

TV Guide Magazine's 60 Best Series of All Time
Dec 23, 2013
by Bruce Fretts and Matt Roush


So many golden ages, so much brilliance from which to choose. In culling from the "60 Greatest" lists we've compiled during our 60th-anniversary year, we shook things up, blending drama, comedy and other genres to salute the shows with the biggest cultural impact and most enduring influence.

What will the next 60 years bring? We can't wait to find out.









1. "The Sopranos"

A family saga like no other and a Mafia drama that whacked us repeatedly with its psychological riches and gallows humor, David Chase's groundbreaking masterpiece asked us to empathize with the most human of mobsters (and monsters).

Tony, played by the great James Gandolfini, and his gang haunt us still.





2. "Seinfeld"

The hilarious spirits of the masters of their domains echo in shows like "Veep" and co-creator Larry David's "Curb Your Enthusiasm", but "Seinfeld" set the bar for lovable outrageousness with memorable shtick that shocked and awed.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.





3. "I Love Lucy"

No 'splaining necessary. We've loved zany Lucy, hotheaded Ricky and the loyal Mertzes for as long as we can remember.

Whether in the candy factory, stomping grapes or cavorting with Harpo Marx, Lucille Ball showed generations of funny ladies and gents how it's done.





4. "All in the Family"

Norman Lear brought domestic television *comedy into the real world with the Bunkers, whose '70s culture clashing hit home with an unflinching pungency but also a surplus of heart.

And then came "Maude", "The Jeffersons", "Good Times" and more: an empire of meaningful humor.





5. "The Twilight Zone"

Even 3D pales next to the endlessly inventive "dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind" created by Rod Serling, TV's multifaceted Dickens.

His anthology of fantastic stories bridged the worlds of sci-fi and horror with whimsy and an abiding faith in humanity.





6. "The Wire"

Hot-button issues — the war on drugs, political corruption, the failures of the education system — deeply resonated in David Simon's unvarnished journey into the heart of Baltimore's urban darkness.

The result was so vérité, it often felt more like a documentary than a drama.





7. "The Mary Tyler Moore Show"

America's sweetheart turned the world on with her smile, a toss of the hat and a plucky spunk that radiated throughout her TV-newsroom office.

A gallery of lovable characters would earn their own spots in the pantheon — Rhoda, Phyllis and Lou Grant among them.





8. "M*A*S*H"

Laughing in the face of death, Hawkeye, Trapper John, B.J., Hot Lips and the other cutups of the 4077th made war a little less hellish.

"M*A*S*H" wore its Purple Heart on its bloody sleeve, and we cared deeply for these reluctant heroes on the front lines of daring satire.





9. "Breaking Bad"

From the first tragicomic escapade to the blistering finale, Vince Gilligan's immorality tale was as addictive as the blue meth that made Walter White into a criminal legend.

Bryan Cranston's transformative performance is one for the ages.





10. "The Simpsons"

After more than two decades and 500 episodes of whip-smart parody that made sacred cows an endangered species, we're still drawn to Springfield and its colorfully warped denizens.









11. "Cheers"

Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name, and we were always glad when we came to Boston's cheeriest bar.

Weathering Coach's death and Diane's exit, the brew crew grew stronger with Woody and Rebecca. And the show spun off a classic farce, "Frasier".





12. "Star Trek"

Five-year mission? Are you out of your Vulcan mind?

Nearly 50 years later, Gene Roddenberry's creation continues to boldly go where no science-fiction franchise has gone before, launching five more TV series and a dozen movies. Can it keep going? Yes, it Khaaan!





13. "The Honeymooners"

Ralph's get-rich-quick schemes may never have worked, but Jackie Gleason found a comedy gold mine in the realistic struggles of the Brooklyn bus driver, his long-suffering wife, Alice, and his dim-bulb BFF, Ed Norton.





14. "Law & Order"

In the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separate but equally important groups.

And Dick Wolf's franchise has been represented by five series, including the flagship (which ran for 20 seasons!) and the still-going-strong-after-15-years "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit".





15. "The Andy Griffith Show"

From the opening shot of Sheriff Andy Taylor and son Opie gone fishin', the sitcom welcomed us to Mayberry, where Aunt Bee, Barney Fife and others became part of our extended TV family.





16. "Masterpiece Theatre"

Since 1971, PBS has brought us the best of British TV, from "I, Claudius" to "Downton Abbey".

We'll watch it "Upstairs, Downstairs" — anywhere.





17. "The Carol Burnett Show"

Harvey Korman wasn't the only one who couldn't stop cracking up at the wacky antics of Burnett, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence and Co.





18. "Saturday Night Live"

SNL has been berry, berry good for comedy for four decades, creating superstars and *defining the pop-culture conversation.





19. "The Oprah Winfrey Show"

For 25 years, Oprah created a safe space for both weighty issues and celebrity chat from the City of Broad Shoulders.





20. "The Dick Van Dyke Show"

Primetime's first workplace-as-family sitcom gracefully sidestepped clichés.

If only Rob Petrie had the same kind of luck with ottomans.









21. "Mad Men"

The unglamorous side of selling the American dream is vividly realized in Matthew Weiner's gorgeous but bleak paean to the swinging '60s.





22. "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson"

Heeere's...the guy who made it look oh-so-easy.

Late-night TV would never be such a delicious communal experience again.





23. "Hill Street Blues"

The police procedural found a genre-busting new voice in Steven Bochco's rowdy chronicle of a busy urban precinct.





24. "60 Minutes"

The stopwatch continues to tick for the pioneering news program, which set the standard for compelling nonfiction storytelling.





25. "The X-Files"

The truth is still out there for Chris Carter's cosmically suspenseful thrill ride. Mulder and Scully were ground zero for shippers.





26. "The Cosby Show"

The warmth and wisdom of Bill Cosby's parenting philosophy made the Huxtables America's first family.





27. "Gunsmoke"

James Arness's Matt Dillon kept the peace in Dodge City in TV's longest-running Western.





28. "Friends"

We were there for them — in droves — turning an irresistible ensemble into instant media phenoms.

Could we have been more in love with their rom-comic lives?





29. "ER"

With a pulse-quickening pace and a roster of hot docs — get us George Clooney, stat! — this electrifying smash revived the hospital drama.





30. "Sesame Street"

This boulevard of sweet dreams has weaned wee ones on the joys of learning — through Muppets magic, animation and music — for more than 40 wondrous years.









31. "The Ed Sullivan Show"

From the sublime (Elvis, the Beatles) to the ridiculous (Topo Gigio, Señor Wences), the king of variety put on a really big show.





32. "Roseanne"

We worshiped the domestic goddess and her perfectly imperfect brood.

Unlike the Conners, viewers won the lottery long before the show's ill-conceived final season.





33. "Columbo"

Peter Falk's deceptively ingenuous detective always got his man — and helped Steven Spielberg and Jonathan Demme cut their creative teeth.





34. "The Waltons"

Every night was good on Walton's Mountain, as John-Boy and his kinfolk endured the Depression while keeping their — and our — spirits high.





35. "Taxi"

Here comes the Sunshine Cab Company — Alex, Louie, Tony, Elaine, Bobby, Latka and Reverend Jim — to take us for a divinely loopy ride.





36. "Lost"

Flashbacks, flash-forwards, flash-sideways: The innovative castaway serial kept us deliriously off-balance as we teetered on the edge of our seats.





37. "Your Show of Shows"

The skit-com's on-camera talent (Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner) was equaled only by its behind-the-scenes geniuses (Mel Brooks, Neil Simon, etc.).





38. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"

Joss Whedon's teen saga slayed us with stake-sharp dialogue, emotionally resonant shocks and even a stunningly hummable musical episode.





39. "Survivor"

The tribe has spoken: If we were stranded on a desert island with only one reality show, we'd carry the torch for this exotic competition.





40. "Sex and the City"

The cosmopolitan sexploits of Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda exemplified the single life for an urbane generation.









41. "Late Show With David Letterman"

After a quirky 30-plus-year run, Dave still keeps us up late wondering what he'll do or say next.





42. "The West Wing"

There was never a better platform for Aaron Sorkin's passionate rhetoric to take flight than President Josiah Bartlet's bully pulpit.





43. "Modern Family"

This nontraditional TV clan is a contemporary favorite for a good reason:

They're a riot.





44. "NYPD Blue"

Anticipating the spate of antiheroes, this down-and-dirty police drama shattered network taboos.





45. "Jeopardy!"

Answer: It's the habit-forming quiz show that moves at lightning speed and always makes us feel smarter.

Question: What is "Jeopardy!"?





46. "Barney Miller"

A wry slice of life in a police station full of world-weary detectives, this felt more real than most cop dramas.





47. "Dallas"

Shooting J.R. was just the tip of the gusher in this Texas-size melodrama, which sparked a frenzy of nighttime soaps.





48. "American Idol"

The cunningly crafted singing competition hit all the right notes—and revolutionized primetime.





49. "The Bob Newhart Show"

One of the greats took his mastery of minimalism to classy new heights, with a sophisticated wife and a caseload of wonderfully weird patients.





50. "The Shield"

No badges for good behavior, but there was plenty of glory for this steely story of Los Angeles cops gone bad.









51. "St. Elsewhere"

Anyone checking in was treated with a healthy dose of future megastars (Denzel Washington, Mark Harmon) and seriocomic drama.





52. "The Big Bang Theory"

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to explain the formula for this sitcom's explosive success:

It's all about the ensemble's chemistry.





53. "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"

The mock anchor sets the national agenda like a wiseass Walter Cronkite — and the show helped turn Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell into headline makers.





54. "The Golden Girls"

Dorothy, Rose, Blanche and Sophia proved that senior citizens can still swing.





55. "Homicide: Life on the Street"

A proto-Wire, this Baltimore cop drama explored Charm City's less enchanting side with an invigorating creativity.





56. "The Larry Sanders Show"

The '90s references may be dated, but the office politics involving Larry, Artie, Hank and the staff are hysterically timeless.





57. "Battlestar Galactica"

The 21st-century reboot alchemized the '70s cheese-a-palooza into a startlingly up-to-date allegory for modern warfare.

So say we all.





58. "Monty Python's Flying Circus"

The parrot may have been dead, but the anarchic vibe of the U.K.'s sketchiest comics has lived on via "Fawlty Towers", "The Kids in the Hall" and "Portlandia".





59. "The Good Wife"

We'll be forever faithful to Julianna Margulies's Alicia Florrick, until cancellation do us part. May we kiss the bride?





60. "Everybody Loves Raymond"

Agreed.

http://www.tvguide.com/News/TV-Guide...s-1074962.aspx

[tlc38tlc38]

"Wheel of Fortune", "The Beverly Hillbillies", and "Murder, She Wrote" should be there. I never agree with these lists all the way but that's the wonderful thing about opinions.

[Fleet]

#3 should be #1.

#2, IMO, is extremely overrated and kind of boring.

Again, IMO, I think "Bewitched" and "Bonanza" should both be in the top 60. Probably "Happy Days," too.

[Dave_L]

Well, these kinds of lists are usually ridiculous and far from definitive, and this one is no different. I'd commend them for actually including more than one or two shows older than 10 years but I think it's only because they had 60 slots to fill instead of the usual 10 or 25. (Though I'm sure at least 1 TV Guide staffer tried to sneak "Whitney" or something equally recent and execrable onto the list.)

A few of my thoughts (not in any particular order) regarding the list:

• Mixing so many types of shows in one list means every genre is going to get shortchanged and list placement becomes even sillier. (For example, Oprah is somehow slightly better than Dick Van Dyke but not quite as good as SNL? Whether one agrees or disagrees, how was any of that determined?)
  
• The Good Wife is just this decade's Judging Amy or Trials of Rosie O'Neill. If they were serious about the list featuring those shows "with the biggest cultural impact and most enduring influence" then the female-led drama that belongs on this list is Cagney & Lacey. It's the one that broke new ground at that time and even had a successful fan campaign to bring the show back after a network cancellation early on.
  
• I don't even like the show but I think that Married with Children belongs on this list. It was Fox's first sitcom and earliest success, lasting for a decade.
  
• They describe Modern Family as a comedy about a "nontraditional TV clan". So where is Soap? The combined Tate-Campbell family is about as nontraditional as it gets, then and now, and the show knocked down a lot of taboos at the time (and even provided a successful spin-off).
  
• While I do think Sopranos should be on the list, no way should it be #1.
  
• I'm surprised that The Cosby Show is so far down. Similar lists in the past have usually placed it as a Top 10 show. It, along with Cheers and Family Ties (which is noticeably absent from this list) really helped rescue the sitcom (and NBC) after several years where the biggest sitcom standouts were bombs, not successes.
  
• Glad that All in the Family is near the top and representing the Norman Lear era.
  
• The Honeymooners should have been in the Top 10, but I'm just happy to see that it, as well as Barney Miller, made it onto the list.
  
• While it was a predictable choice, I agree that I Love Lucy belongs near the top. Besides the humor, Desi's behind-the-scenes achievements did much for television as a whole.
  
• I do wish that The Goldbergs wasn't forgotten yet again. (No, not the awful new ABC show, but Gertrude Berg's show.) Starting in the late-40s, it was one of the few (along with Burns & Allen and Jack Benny) to successfully transition from radio to TV. It was really the original dramedy as it mixed serious moments with the humor. And Molly and Jake Goldberg even slept in the same bed...no twin bed ridiculousness on this show. Plus, it was a show created, written, produced, and starring a woman...even before Lucy. So I'd say that alone makes it deserving to be on any list of important shows.
  
• Apparently even TV Guide didn't fully believe that Everybody Loves Raymond belonged on the list considering the only thing said about the show was "Agreed".

Basically, it's just another silly list that's not going to change anyone's opinions or TV preferences. But still fun to read and see what the magazine is trying to convince us of this time around.

[icecream]

For comparison here's the list TV Guide made a decade ago for the 50 best shows of all time.

1-Seinfeld
2-I Love Lucy
3-The Honeymooners
4-All in the Family
5-The Sopranos
6-60 Minutes
7-The Late Show with David Letterman
8-The Simpsons
9-The Andy Griffith Show
10-Saturday Night Live
11-Mary Tyler Moore Show
12-The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
13-The Dick van Dyke Show
14-Hill Street Blues
15-The Ed Sullivan Show
16-The Carol Burnett Show
17-Today
18-Cheers
19-thirtysomething
20-St. Elsewhere
21-Friends
22-ER
23-ABC News Nightline
24-Law and Order
25-M*A*S*H
26-Twilight Zone
27-Sesame Street
28-The Cosby Show
29-Donahue
30-Your Show of Shows
31-The Defenders
32-An American Family
33-Playhouse 90
34-Frasier
35-Roseanne
36-The Fugitive
37-The X Files
38-The Larry Sanders Show
39-The Rockford Files
40-Gunsmoke
41-Buffy the Vampire Slayer
42-Rowan and Martin's Laugh-in
43-Bonanza
44-The Bob Newhart Show
45-Twin Peaks
46-Star Trek: The Next Generation
47-Rocky and his Friends
48-Taxi
49-The Oprah Winfrey Show
50-Bewitched

[Mr. Drucker]

Delighted to see MASH and Twilight Zone in the top ten,where I think they should have been the first time.Nice to see Big Bang get a nod.And VERY nice to see someone recognize the absolutely wonderful old Sid Caeaser show.I know Big Bang wasn't around for the first survey in 2002,but as far as the shows that were,this seems like a considerably much more accurate list than the original over a decade ago.MUCH more!

[Dale Key]

Love
The Sopranos
Seinfeld
I Love Lucy
All in The Family
The Twilight Zone
The Wire
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
Breaking Bad
The Simpsons
Cheers
The Honeymooners
Saturday Night Live
The Dick Van Dyke Show
Mad Men
Friends
ER
Roseanne
Columbo
Taxi
Lost
Survivor
The Shield
The Golden Girls
The Good Wife
Everybody Loves Raymond

Hate
M*A*S*H
Star Trek
The Andy Griffith Show
The Carol Burnett Show
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
60 Minutes
The X-Files
The Cosby Show
Sesame Street
The Waltons
Sex and the City
Late Show with David Letterman
Jeopardy
American Idol

Prefer the Spinoffs
Law & Order

Haven't Seen
Hill Street Blues
Gunsmoke
The Ed Sullivan Show
Your Show of Shows
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The West Wing
NYPD Blue
Barney Miller
The Bob Newhart Show
St Elsewhere
Homicide: Life on the Street
The Larry Sanders Show
Battlestar Galactica
Monty Python's Flying Circus

Like, but best of all time no way
Modern Family
The Big Bang Theory
The Daily Show with John Stewart

Like what I've seen of the original, hate the reboot
Dallas

[Mr. Drucker]

Whole heartedly agree with your call about "Modern Family" and "Big Bang" and for at least this one reason.I think "WKRP In Cincinatti" was better than both and it is NOT on the list.Personally I think "Modern Family" is more than a bit over rated.I don't know,I don't see anything particularly fascinating going on here that it should have won the comedy series Emmy award four frigen years in a row.I was also equally astonished to find it on the list of the West Coast chapter of the Writer's Guild Of America's list of the 101 best written shows at I think No. 34.I don't find any parts of the writing to be truly great.Now I know "Seinfeld" succeeded greatly in its pursuit of being "a show about nothing" but in its case,they did such masterful work at this,they got away with it big time.As far as "Modern Family",not only do I feel the show is about nothing,I also believe the writing and general presentation of the program conveys the FEELING that there's nothing happening."Seinfeld" eluded that fate with in whirlwinds of highly clever plot twists and,of course,the wonderfully and obviously highly Woody Allen inspired writing.The same could be said for "Curb Your Enthusiasm",a project initiated by "Seinfeld" writer Larry David is also better than "Family" and DIDN'T make the list."Big Bang" is nice pop culture pastime,but I think it falls just a bit short of really belonging here just looking aroud cursively at some of the other titles.I highly recommend Dale,that you seek out a season or two of "Barney Miller" as soon as you can.I was delighted to see this one on the list and insided the top fifty after be excluded in 2002."St. Elsewhere" was gripping, sometimes surreal and thoroughly engaging."Monty Python",while some may be accurate in their assessment of this maybe being an "acquired taste" or "fringe' thing,was scripted by the likes of people like Eric Idle and John Cleese who both have glorious bodies of work full of evidence that they were all great appreciators of not only tv comedy,but the very English language in which it is delivered.Absolute TOP NOTCH writing.

[bmasters9]

I can't believe that Perry Mason didn't make it!

[bencasey]

Hmm. about a list of the 60 best shows of all-time that aren't on this bull**** list:

In no particular order:

The Fugitive
Outer Limits
Playhouse 90
The Defenders
The Nurses
Naked City
Freaks and Geeks
Brooklyn Bridge
The Wonder Years
WKRP In Cincinnati
Route 66
He and She
Our Miss Brooks
Leave It To Beaver
Make Room For Daddy
Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
Studio One
Alcoa/Goodyear Playhouse
Kraft Television Theatre
The Dick Powell Show
Mr. Novak
Ben Casey
Moonlighting
The Equalizer
Cupid
NYPD
Have Gun Will Travel
East Side West Side
Married With Children
Murphy Brown
Steve Allen Tonight Show
The Goldbergs
The Odd Couple
One Step Beyond
Family
Lucas Tanner
The Man From UNCLE
The Avengers
The Newsroom
Dream On
The Untouchables
Mission: Impossible
Green Acres
Sanford and Son
Mr. Ed
Slattery's People
The Great Adventure
Disneyland/Wonderful World of Disney
You Bet Your Life
Tomorrow (Tom Snyder)
Ally McBeal
Bus Stop
Rich Man Poor Man
The Jack Benny Show
Burns and Allen
Coronet Blue
Occasional Wife
Split Second (Game Show)
Spartacus
Deadwood

[factsoflife]

They didn't have even 1 soap opera on the list. Soap operas were perhaps the most groundbreaking format ever. They've influenced every other TV show produced since the 50's. The format, the style they tell stories in can be seen in virtually every show on TV now.

I think they are stupid not to mention even 1 soap, All My Children? As The world Turns? any of them...

[bmasters9]

Something I don't understand about this so-called "60 Greatest Shows of All-Time": what did the voters have against Perry Mason that caused that to not make the cut?

[Mace Dolex]

How is that a show like M.A.S.H. lasted so long making a joke out of the Korean War and the short lived sitcom South Central in the 90's got cancelled after 10 episodes?

[Ant-Lox]

WWE Raw, the longest running show in Television history is not on the list. It's cultural impact is pretty significant for sports, entertainment and television.

Monday night football didn't make the list either, oh well.

[Duster76]

Originally Posted by JamesG

TV Guide Magazine's 60 Best Series of All Time
Dec 23, 2013
by Bruce Fretts and Matt Roush


So many golden ages, so much brilliance from which to choose. In culling from the "60 Greatest" lists we've compiled during our 60th-anniversary year, we shook things up, blending drama, comedy and other genres to salute the shows with the biggest cultural impact and most enduring influence.

What will the next 60 years bring? We can't wait to find out.

I'm not going to take on the whole top 60 which really isn't bad, I'll focus on the top 10 and hit a few other numbers.

The top 3 should be Seinfeld, I Love Lucy, and how could you leave The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson out of the top 3. The Carson show was the first water cooler show, and defined adult cool for at least the first decade and a half it was on the air.

Oprah has to be 4, again it's not a favorite of mine but the importance of this show can't be overstated. Putting The Sopranos at 5 is fine, 60 Minutes is 6. I think most of us forget how big 60 Minutes was in its' prime years. MTM at 7is fine, The Twilight Zone falls to 8 but certainly belongs.

Law and Order is the most important police show in network TV history, I would move it from 14 to 9 rounding out the top 10 with All In The Family. The quality of All in The Family faded badly the final few years it was on, that is the reason I dropped it a bit.

MASH I would keep in the top 15, but it seemed surreal the final few seasons with cast much too old for the parts they were playing. Dick Van Dyke was the best comedy of the 1960's and should be ranked ahead of the Griffith show. The final 3 seasons of the Griffith show are run of the mill at best, the show should be dropped about 10 positions.

The Honeymooners was a glorified skit, it should be listed as one entry with Gleason's variety show of the 50's, ranking somewhere behind Carol Burnett but definitely in the top 30.

The last show I will comment on is the Big Bang Theory, I think right now this show belongs in the top 20 and maybe even the top 15. This show continues to grow becoming an international smash. The ratings in its' 7th season are amazing. I think this is a potential top 10 show the next time the list is done.








1. "The Sopranos"

A family saga like no other and a Mafia drama that whacked us repeatedly with its psychological riches and gallows humor, David Chase's groundbreaking masterpiece asked us to empathize with the most human of mobsters (and monsters).

Tony, played by the great James Gandolfini, and his gang haunt us still.





2. "Seinfeld"

The hilarious spirits of the masters of their domains echo in shows like "Veep" and co-creator Larry David's "Curb Your Enthusiasm", but "Seinfeld" set the bar for lovable outrageousness with memorable shtick that shocked and awed.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.





3. "I Love Lucy"

No 'splaining necessary. We've loved zany Lucy, hotheaded Ricky and the loyal Mertzes for as long as we can remember.

Whether in the candy factory, stomping grapes or cavorting with Harpo Marx, Lucille Ball showed generations of funny ladies and gents how it's done.





4. "All in the Family"

Norman Lear brought domestic television *comedy into the real world with the Bunkers, whose '70s culture clashing hit home with an unflinching pungency but also a surplus of heart.

And then came "Maude", "The Jeffersons", "Good Times" and more: an empire of meaningful humor.





5. "The Twilight Zone"

Even 3D pales next to the endlessly inventive "dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind" created by Rod Serling, TV's multifaceted Dickens.

His anthology of fantastic stories bridged the worlds of sci-fi and horror with whimsy and an abiding faith in humanity.





6. "The Wire"

Hot-button issues — the war on drugs, political corruption, the failures of the education system — deeply resonated in David Simon's unvarnished journey into the heart of Baltimore's urban darkness.

The result was so vérité, it often felt more like a documentary than a drama.





7. "The Mary Tyler Moore Show"

America's sweetheart turned the world on with her smile, a toss of the hat and a plucky spunk that radiated throughout her TV-newsroom office.

A gallery of lovable characters would earn their own spots in the pantheon — Rhoda, Phyllis and Lou Grant among them.





8. "M*A*S*H"

Laughing in the face of death, Hawkeye, Trapper John, B.J., Hot Lips and the other cutups of the 4077th made war a little less hellish.

"M*A*S*H" wore its Purple Heart on its bloody sleeve, and we cared deeply for these reluctant heroes on the front lines of daring satire.





9. "Breaking Bad"

From the first tragicomic escapade to the blistering finale, Vince Gilligan's immorality tale was as addictive as the blue meth that made Walter White into a criminal legend.

Bryan Cranston's transformative performance is one for the ages.





10. "The Simpsons"

After more than two decades and 500 episodes of whip-smart parody that made sacred cows an endangered species, we're still drawn to Springfield and its colorfully warped denizens.









11. "Cheers"

Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name, and we were always glad when we came to Boston's cheeriest bar.

Weathering Coach's death and Diane's exit, the brew crew grew stronger with Woody and Rebecca. And the show spun off a classic farce, "Frasier".





12. "Star Trek"

Five-year mission? Are you out of your Vulcan mind?

Nearly 50 years later, Gene Roddenberry's creation continues to boldly go where no science-fiction franchise has gone before, launching five more TV series and a dozen movies. Can it keep going? Yes, it Khaaan!





13. "The Honeymooners"

Ralph's get-rich-quick schemes may never have worked, but Jackie Gleason found a comedy gold mine in the realistic struggles of the Brooklyn bus driver, his long-suffering wife, Alice, and his dim-bulb BFF, Ed Norton.





14. "Law & Order"

In the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separate but equally important groups.

And Dick Wolf's franchise has been represented by five series, including the flagship (which ran for 20 seasons!) and the still-going-strong-after-15-years "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit".





15. "The Andy Griffith Show"

From the opening shot of Sheriff Andy Taylor and son Opie gone fishin', the sitcom welcomed us to Mayberry, where Aunt Bee, Barney Fife and others became part of our extended TV family.





16. "Masterpiece Theatre"

Since 1971, PBS has brought us the best of British TV, from "I, Claudius" to "Downton Abbey".

We'll watch it "Upstairs, Downstairs" — anywhere.





17. "The Carol Burnett Show"

Harvey Korman wasn't the only one who couldn't stop cracking up at the wacky antics of Burnett, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence and Co.





18. "Saturday Night Live"

SNL has been berry, berry good for comedy for four decades, creating superstars and *defining the pop-culture conversation.





19. "The Oprah Winfrey Show"

For 25 years, Oprah created a safe space for both weighty issues and celebrity chat from the City of Broad Shoulders.





20. "The Dick Van Dyke Show"

Primetime's first workplace-as-family sitcom gracefully sidestepped clichés.

If only Rob Petrie had the same kind of luck with ottomans.









21. "Mad Men"

The unglamorous side of selling the American dream is vividly realized in Matthew Weiner's gorgeous but bleak paean to the swinging '60s.





22. "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson"

Heeere's...the guy who made it look oh-so-easy.

Late-night TV would never be such a delicious communal experience again.





23. "Hill Street Blues"

The police procedural found a genre-busting new voice in Steven Bochco's rowdy chronicle of a busy urban precinct.





24. "60 Minutes"

The stopwatch continues to tick for the pioneering news program, which set the standard for compelling nonfiction storytelling.





25. "The X-Files"

The truth is still out there for Chris Carter's cosmically suspenseful thrill ride. Mulder and Scully were ground zero for shippers.





26. "The Cosby Show"

The warmth and wisdom of Bill Cosby's parenting philosophy made the Huxtables America's first family.





27. "Gunsmoke"

James Arness's Matt Dillon kept the peace in Dodge City in TV's longest-running Western.





28. "Friends"

We were there for them — in droves — turning an irresistible ensemble into instant media phenoms.

Could we have been more in love with their rom-comic lives?





29. "ER"

With a pulse-quickening pace and a roster of hot docs — get us George Clooney, stat! — this electrifying smash revived the hospital drama.





30. "Sesame Street"

This boulevard of sweet dreams has weaned wee ones on the joys of learning — through Muppets magic, animation and music — for more than 40 wondrous years.









31. "The Ed Sullivan Show"

From the sublime (Elvis, the Beatles) to the ridiculous (Topo Gigio, Señor Wences), the king of variety put on a really big show.





32. "Roseanne"

We worshiped the domestic goddess and her perfectly imperfect brood.

Unlike the Conners, viewers won the lottery long before the show's ill-conceived final season.





33. "Columbo"

Peter Falk's deceptively ingenuous detective always got his man — and helped Steven Spielberg and Jonathan Demme cut their creative teeth.





34. "The Waltons"

Every night was good on Walton's Mountain, as John-Boy and his kinfolk endured the Depression while keeping their — and our — spirits high.





35. "Taxi"

Here comes the Sunshine Cab Company — Alex, Louie, Tony, Elaine, Bobby, Latka and Reverend Jim — to take us for a divinely loopy ride.





36. "Lost"

Flashbacks, flash-forwards, flash-sideways: The innovative castaway serial kept us deliriously off-balance as we teetered on the edge of our seats.





37. "Your Show of Shows"

The skit-com's on-camera talent (Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner) was equaled only by its behind-the-scenes geniuses (Mel Brooks, Neil Simon, etc.).





38. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"

Joss Whedon's teen saga slayed us with stake-sharp dialogue, emotionally resonant shocks and even a stunningly hummable musical episode.





39. "Survivor"

The tribe has spoken: If we were stranded on a desert island with only one reality show, we'd carry the torch for this exotic competition.





40. "Sex and the City"

The cosmopolitan sexploits of Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda exemplified the single life for an urbane generation.









41. "Late Show With David Letterman"

After a quirky 30-plus-year run, Dave still keeps us up late wondering what he'll do or say next.





42. "The West Wing"

There was never a better platform for Aaron Sorkin's passionate rhetoric to take flight than President Josiah Bartlet's bully pulpit.





43. "Modern Family"

This nontraditional TV clan is a contemporary favorite for a good reason:

They're a riot.





44. "NYPD Blue"

Anticipating the spate of antiheroes, this down-and-dirty police drama shattered network taboos.





45. "Jeopardy!"

Answer: It's the habit-forming quiz show that moves at lightning speed and always makes us feel smarter.

Question: What is "Jeopardy!"?





46. "Barney Miller"

A wry slice of life in a police station full of world-weary detectives, this felt more real than most cop dramas.





47. "Dallas"

Shooting J.R. was just the tip of the gusher in this Texas-size melodrama, which sparked a frenzy of nighttime soaps.





48. "American Idol"

The cunningly crafted singing competition hit all the right notes—and revolutionized primetime.





49. "The Bob Newhart Show"

One of the greats took his mastery of minimalism to classy new heights, with a sophisticated wife and a caseload of wonderfully weird patients.





50. "The Shield"

No badges for good behavior, but there was plenty of glory for this steely story of Los Angeles cops gone bad.









51. "St. Elsewhere"

Anyone checking in was treated with a healthy dose of future megastars (Denzel Washington, Mark Harmon) and seriocomic drama.





52. "The Big Bang Theory"

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to explain the formula for this sitcom's explosive success:

It's all about the ensemble's chemistry.





53. "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"

The mock anchor sets the national agenda like a wiseass Walter Cronkite — and the show helped turn Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell into headline makers.





54. "The Golden Girls"

Dorothy, Rose, Blanche and Sophia proved that senior citizens can still swing.





55. "Homicide: Life on the Street"

A proto-Wire, this Baltimore cop drama explored Charm City's less enchanting side with an invigorating creativity.





56. "The Larry Sanders Show"

The '90s references may be dated, but the office politics involving Larry, Artie, Hank and the staff are hysterically timeless.





57. "Battlestar Galactica"

The 21st-century reboot alchemized the '70s cheese-a-palooza into a startlingly up-to-date allegory for modern warfare.

So say we all.





58. "Monty Python's Flying Circus"

The parrot may have been dead, but the anarchic vibe of the U.K.'s sketchiest comics has lived on via "Fawlty Towers", "The Kids in the Hall" and "Portlandia".





59. "The Good Wife"

We'll be forever faithful to Julianna Margulies's Alicia Florrick, until cancellation do us part. May we kiss the bride?





60. "Everybody Loves Raymond"

Agreed.

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