TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time

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The 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time is a list compiled by TV Guide as a cover story for the week of May 4, 2002. It coincided with an ABC primetime special that aired on May 13, 2002. The list garnered much national attention at the time, as the magazine was simulatenously celebrating five decades on newsstands. At the time, Guide billed the list as a perspective of the most "influential" television programs in American history. Here is the entire list:

1. Seinfeld (NBC, 1989–1998)
2. I Love Lucy (CBS, 1951–1957)
3. The Honeymooners (CBS, 1955–1956)
4. All in the Family (CBS, 1971–1979)
5. The Sopranos (HBO, 1999–present)
6. 60 Minutes (CBS, 1968–present)
7. The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS, 1993–present)
8. The Simpsons (Fox, 1989–present)
9. The Andy Griffith Show (CBS, 1960–1968)
10. Saturday Night Live (NBC, 1975–present)
11. The Mary Tyler Moore Show (CBS, 1970–1977)
12. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (NBC, 1962–1992)
13. The Dick Van Dyke Show (CBS, 1961–1966)
14. Hill Street Blues (NBC, 1981–1987)
15. The Ed Sullivan Show (CBS, 1948–1971)
16. The Carol Burnett Show (CBS, 1967–1978)
17. The Today Show (NBC, 1952–present)
18. Cheers (NBC, 1982–1993)
19. Thirtysomething (ABC, 1987–1991)
20. St. Elsewhere (NBC, 1982–1988)
21. Friends (NBC, 1994–2004)
22. ER (NBC, 1994–present)
23. Nightline (ABC, 1979–present {originally premiered as The Iran Crisis—America Held Hostage})
24. Law & Order (NBC, 1990–present)
25. M*A*S*H (CBS, 1972–1983)
26. The Twilight Zone (CBS, 1959–1964 and 1985–1989; UPN, 2002–2003)
27. Sesame Street (PBS, 1969–present)
28. The Cosby Show (NBC, 1984–1992)
29. The Phil Donahue Show (Syndication, 1970–1996)
30. Your Show of Shows (NBC, 1950–1954)
31. The Defenders (CBS, 1961–1964)
32. An American Family (PBS, 1973)
33. Playhouse 90 (CBS, 1956–1961)
34. Frasier (NBC, 1993–2004)
35. Roseanne (ABC, 1988–1997)
36. The Fugitive (ABC, 1963–1967)
37. The X-Files (Fox, 1993–2002)
38. The Larry Sanders Show (HBO, 1992–1998)
39. The Rockford Files (NBC, 1974–1980)
40. Gunsmoke (CBS, 1955–1975)
41. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (WB/UPN, 1997–2003)
42. Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (NBC, 1968–1973)
43. Bonanza (NBC, 1959–1973)
44. The Bob Newhart Show (CBS, 1972–1978)
45. Twin Peaks (ABC, 1990–1991)
46. Star Trek: The Next Generation (Syndication, 1987–1994)
47. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show (ABC, 1959–1964)
48. Taxi (ABC/NBC, 1978–1983)
49. The Oprah Winfrey Show (Syndication, 1986–present)
50. Bewitched (ABC, 1964–1972)

[edit] Breakdown of Shows

• Earliest aired show on the list: The Ed Sullivan Show (first aired in 1948)
• Most recently premiered show: The Sopranos (first aired in 1999)
• Primetime shows: 41 (highest-ranking was Seinfeld, #1)
• Late-night shows: 3 (The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, ABC News Nightline)
• Daytime shows: 5 (Oprah, Rocky and Bullwinkle, Donahue, Sesame Street, Today Show)
• Syndicated shows: 3 (Oprah, Donahue, Star Trek: Next Generation)
• Sitcoms: 18 (highest-ranking was Seinfeld, #1)
• Variety shows: 5 (Laugh-In, Your Show of Shows, Carol Burnett Show, Ed Sullivan Show, SNL)
• Talk shows: 4(Oprah, Donahue, Today, Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, Late Show with David Letterman)
• Drama: 18 (highest-ranking was Sopranos at #5)
• News: 3 (Nightline, Today, 60 Minutes)
• Cartoons: 2 (The Simpsons, Rocky and Bullwinkle)
• Game shows: 0 (although TV Guide had earlier made a separate list of the 50 greatest game shows)
• Soap operas: 1 (in primetime: St. Elsewhere; there were no daytime soap opearas)
• Reality shows: 1 (technically, An American Family at #32 is considered primitive reality)
• NBC shows: 17 (highest-ranking was at #1, Seinfeld)
• CBS shows: 16 (highest-ranking was at #2, I Love Lucy)
• ABC shows: 8 (highest-ranking was at #19, Thirtysomething)
• Fox shows: 2 (highest-ranking was at #8, The Simpsons; other was X-Files, #37)
• Cable shows: 2 (both from HBO; highest-ranking was Sopranos at #5; other was Larry Sanders at #38)
• Public TV shows: 2 (highest-ranking was Sesame Street at #27; other was American Family at #32)
• WB/UPN shows: 1 (Buffy the Vampire Slayer at #41)

[edit] Criticism of the List

Many were skeptic of decisions such as ranking Seinfeld (which made the #1 spot) higher than classics such as All in the Family and there was fury over the fact that several hits of the 1990s were unnecessiarly high in ranking such as Frasier and ER. Also, television experts were stunned that David Letterman's late-night program was named more influential than that of the legendary "king of late-night", Johnny Carson and that there were no daytime soap operas or any game shows at all on the list (even All My Children and The Price is Right were ignored.)

Not one reality television show was put on the list, but several were included on the Worst Shows of All Time list. This may reflect bias on the part of TV Guide against reality television in part because this type of entertainment has severely put a lot people, including actors, directors, producers, etc.), out of work. The CBS "reality" program Survivor has been on since 2000 and has attracted over 50 million viewers on some of their finale shows.

[edit] External links

• TV Guide Names 'Seinfeld' Greatest Show of All (Reuters, 2002-04-26) / Criticism of the List from the TiVo Community