This was the television schedule on all three United States television networks for the fall season beginning in September 1971. All times are Eastern and Pacific, with a few exceptions, such as Monday Night Football. This season would be the first time the prime time schedule would be shortened to three hours (with the exception of Sunday and Tuesday), giving the 7:30 p.m. slot back to local stations, as implemented in the Prime Time Access Rule.
New fall series are highlighted in bold.
The highest-rated show for the year is colored in lime. The top ten highest-rated shows are colored in yellow. The top 20 highest-rated shows are colored in cyan. The top 30 highest-rated shows are colored in magenta.
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) was in operation, but the schedule was set by each local station.
Contents |
| PM | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 | 10:00 | 10:30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | The F.B.I. #17 22.4 rating | The ABC Sunday Night Movie #26 20.8 rating | ||||
| CBS | The CBS Sunday Night Movies (began at 7:30) | Cade's County | Local | |||
| NBC | The Wonderful World of Disney* #19 22.0 rating (began at 7:30) | The Jimmy Stewart Show | Bonanza #20 21.9 rating | The Bold Ones: The New Doctors / The Lawyers | ||
| PM | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 | 10:00 | 10:30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Nanny and the Professor | Local | ABC NFL Monday Night Football #25 20.9 rating | |||
| CBS | Gunsmoke #4 26.0 rating | Here's Lucy #11 23.7 rating | The Doris Day Show #24 21.2 rating | My Three Sons | Arnie | |
| NBC | Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In #22 21.4 rating | NBC Monday Night at the Movies | ||||
| PM | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 | 10:00 | 10:30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | The Mod Squad #21 21.5 rating (began at 7:30) | Movie of the Week #5 25.6 rating | Marcus Welby, M.D. #3 27.8 rating | |||
| CBS | The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour (began at 7:30) | Hawaii Five-O #12 23.6 rating | Cannon #29 19.8 rating | Local | ||
| NBC | Ironside #15 23.0 rating (began at 7:30) | Sarge | The Funny Side | Local | ||
| PM | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 | 10:00 | 10:30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Bewitched | The Courtship of Eddie's Father | The Smith Family | Shirley's World | The Man and the City | |
| CBS | The Carol Burnett Show #23 21.2 rating | Medical Center #13 23.5 rating | Mannix #7 24.8 rating | |||
| NBC | Adam-12 #9 23.9 rating | The NBC Mystery Movie: Columbo / McCloud / McMillan & Wife #14 23.2 rating | Night Gallery | |||
| PM | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 | 10:00 | 10:30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Alias Smith and Jones | Longstreet | Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law | |||
| CBS | Bearcats! | The CBS Thursday Night Movies | ||||
| NBC | The Flip Wilson Show #2 28.2 rating | Nichols | The Dean Martin Show | |||
| PM | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 | 10:00 | 10:30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | The Brady Bunch | The Partridge Family #16 22.6 rating | Room 222 #28 19.8 rating | The Odd Couple | Love, American Style | |
| CBS | The Chicago Teddy Bears | O'Hara, U.S. Treasury | The New CBS Friday Night Movies #30 19.5 rating | |||
| NBC | The D.A. | World Premiere Movie | Local | |||
Note: On NBC, the sitcom Sanford and Son #6 (25.2 rating) premiered on January 14, 1972 at 8:00.
| PM | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 | 10:00 | 10:30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Getting Together | Movie of the Weekend | The Persuaders! | |||
| CBS | All in the Family #1 34.0 rating | Funny Face #8 23.9 rating | The New Dick Van Dyke Show #18 22.2 rating | The Mary Tyler Moore Show #10 23.7 rating | Mission: Impossible | |
| NBC | The Partners | The Good Life | NBC Saturday Night at the Movies | |||
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