The 50 Best TV Shows of the 1980s

Main Actors: Rachel Dennison, Valerie Curtin, Sally Struthers, Rita Moreno

Plot Summary: 9 to 5 is comedy about a film of the same name and follows the professional and personal lives of three women who work at the Consolidated Companies.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 19.3 in 1982

Length of Show: 1982 to 1988

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Larry Wilcox , Erik Estrada

Plot Summary: CHIPs is about two California Highway Patrol motorcycle officers, Jon Baker and Frank “Ponch” Poncherello, as they patrol the highways of Los Angeles.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 19.4 in 1980

Length of Show: 1977 to 1983

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Sherman Hemsley, Clifton Davis, Anna Maria Horsford 

Plot Summary: Amen is about cantankerous church deacon in Philadelphia who dealt with his family, his fellow church members, and a new pastor.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 19.4 in 1986

Length of Show: 1986 to 1991

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Lee Majors, Douglas Barr, Heather Thomas 

Plot Summary: The Fall Guy is about Colt Seavers, a Hollywood stuntman who moonlights as a bounty hunter. The show was known for its action-packed scenes, car chases, and stunts.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 19.9 in 1983

Length of Show: 1981 to 1986

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Jack Warden, John Rubinstein

Plot Summary: Crazy Like Like a Fox is about Harry Fox, a retired private detective who solves crimes with the help of his son. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 19.9 in 1984

Length of Show: 1984 to 1986

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Bob Newhart, Mary Frann, Tom Poston

Plot Summary: Bob Newhart is about writer and innkeeper who runs a historic bed-and-breakfast in a small town in Vermont. The show was known for its quirky and eccentric characters and dry wit.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20 in 1982

Length of Show: 1982 to 1990

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Harry Morgan, Jamie Farr, William Christopher

Plot Summary: AfterMASH was a spinoff of the popular series MASH and followed three characters from the original show: Colonel Potter, Klinger, and Father Mulcahy.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.1 in 1983

Length of Show: 1983 to 1985

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Michael Landon, Victor French 

Plot Summary: Highway to Heaven is about Jonathan Smith, an angel sent to Earth on a mission to help people in need. Along with his mortal partner, Mark Gordon, Jonathan traveled across the country and intervened in the lives of people facing a variety of challenges.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.1 in 1985

Length of Show: 1984 to 1989

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Fran Tarkenton, John Davidson, and Cathy Lee Crosby

Plot Summary: Highway to Heaven is about Jonathan Smith, an angel sent to Earth on a mission to help people in need. Along with his mortal partner, Mark Gordon, Jonathan traveled across the country and intervened in the lives of people facing a variety of challenges.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.5 in 1980

Length of Show: 1980 to 1984

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Penny Marshall, Cindy Williams

Plot Summary: Laverne and Shirley is about two single women, Laverne DeFazio and Shirley Feeney, who work in a Milwaukee brewery during the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.6 in 1980

Length of Show: 1976 to 1983

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Ricardo Montalban, Hervé Villechaize, Wendy Schaal, Ted Lange

Plot Summary: Fantasy Island was set on a mysterious island where visitors could live out their deepest fantasies and desires. Mr. Roarke, the island’s enigmatic host, would make the fantasies come true for his guests, but often with unexpected twists and consequences.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.7 in 1980

Length of Show: 1977 to 1984

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Gary Coleman, Todd Bridges, Conrad Bain, Dana Plato, Janet Jackson

Plot Summary: Diff’rent Stroke was about a wealthy white widower who adopted two black children. The show explored themes such as race, class, and family relationships.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.7 in 1980

Length of Show: 1978 to 1986

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Ron Howard, Henry Winkler, Tom Bosley, Marion Ross, Anson Williams, Erin Moran, Donny Most

Plot Summary:Happy Days was set in the 1950s and followed the lives of a group of teenagers and their families in the fictional town of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.8 in 1980

Length of Show: 1974 to 1984

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Michele Lee, Donna Mills, William Devane, Kevin Dobson

Plot Summary: Knots Landing was a spin-off of the popular drama series Dallas and focused on the lives of four couples who lived in a cul-de-sac in the fictional community of Knots Landing, California. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.8 in 1983

Length of Show: 1979 to 1993

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Sharon Gless, Tyne Daly, John Karlen, Al Waxman

Plot Summary: Cagney and Lacey is about two New York City police detectives who worked in a male-dominated profession. The show explored social issues such as women’s rights, sexism, and racism.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 20.9 in 1983

Length of Show: 1982 to 1988

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Pernell Roberts, Gregory Harrison, Charles Siebert, James Sikking

Plot Summary: Trapper John MD was a spin-off of the popular show MASH and was about a doctor who had left the army and was now working as a surgeon at a San Francisco hospital.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 21.1 in 1981

Length of Show: 1979 to 1986

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Robert Wagner, Stefanie Powers, Lionel Stander

Plot Summary: Hart to Hart was a mystery television series about a wealthy couple who also happened to be amateur detectives. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 21.1 in 1981

Length of Show: 1979 to 1984

Network: ABC

Main Actors: James Brolin, Connie Sellecca, Nathan Cook, Sharon Acker, Melinda Culea

Plot Summary: The show was set in the fictional St. Gregory Hotel in San Francisco and followed the personal and professional lives of the hotel staff and guests.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 21.1 in 1983

Length of Show: 1983 to 1988

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Don Johnson, Philip Michael Thomas, Saundra Santiago, Michael Talbott, Olivia Brown

Plot Summary: Miami Vice was about two detectives,Sonny Crockett and Ricardo Tubbs as they battled the city’s criminal underworld. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 21.3 in 1985

Length of Show: 1984 to 1989

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Skip Stephenson, Mary Hart, Fred Willard

Plot Summary: Real People is a reality TV featuring a mix of humorous, heartwarming, and unusual stories about real people.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 21.5 in 1980

Length of Show: 1979 to 1984

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Carroll O’Connor, Danielle Brisebois, Martin Balsam, Billy Halop, Allan Melvin

Plot Summary: Archie Bunker’s Place is a spinoff of the popular show All in the Family about a conservative owner of a neighborhood bar in Queens, New York. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 21.6 in 1981

Length of Show: 1979 to 1983

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Susan Saint James, Jane Curtin, Frederick Koehler, Ari Meyers

Plot Summary: Kate & Allie is about two divorced women who decide to live together with their children to help each other navigate life

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 21.9 in 1983

Length of Show: 1984 to 1989

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Bonnie Franklin, Mackenzie Phillips, Valerie Bertinelli, Pat Harrington, Richard Masur, Glenn Scarpelli

Plot Summary: One Day at a Time is about a single mother, her two teenage daughters, and their building superintendent as they navigate life and the challenges that come with it.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22 in 1980

Length of Show: 1975 to 1984

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Jane Wyman, Robert Foxworth, David Selby, Lorenzo Lamas, Margaret Ladd

Plot Summary: Falcon Crest was set in the fictional Tuscany Valley in Northern California and revolved around the lives and power struggles of the wealthy and powerful Channing and Gioberti families, who owned rival vineyards.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22 in 1983

Length of Show: 1981 to 1990

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Tony Danza, Judith Light, Alyssa Milano, Danny Pintauro, Katherine Helmond

Plot Summary: Who’s the Boss is about a former professional baseball player who becomes a live-in housekeeper for divorced advertising executive and her son. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22 in 1986

Length of Show: 1984 to 1992

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, Melissa Gilbert, Melissa Sue Anderson, Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush, Matthew Laborteaux

Plot Summary: The show is based on a series of books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, which chronicles her life growing up on the American frontier in the late 19th century.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22.1 in 1980

Length of Show: 1974 to 1983

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Wayne Rogers, Lynn Redgrave, Stephen Nathan, Ray Buktenica, Dinah Manoff

Plot Summary: House Calls is about a divorced doctor who runs a free medical clinic out of his apartment. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22.4 in 1980

Length of Show: 1979 to 1982

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Bruce Willis, Cybill Shepherd, Allyce Beasley, Curtis Armstrong

Plot Summary: Moonlighting is about a pair of private detectives who run a detective agency. The show was known for its self-awareness and breaking of the fourth wall.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22.4 in 1986

Length of Show: 1985 to 1989

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Ted Knight, Nancy Dussault, Deborah Harmon, Elya Baskin, Jim J. Bullock

Plot Summary: Too Close for Comfort is a comedy about the Rush family who live in a large apartment in San Francisco.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22.6 in 1981

Length of Show: 1980 to 1983

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Tom Selleck, John Hillerman, Roger E. Mosley, Larry Manetti

Plot Summary: The show is about Thomas Magnum, a private investigator who lives and works in Hawaii as a security consultant for the wealthy novelist Robin Masters, who owns the luxurious estate where Magnum lives.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22.6 in 1982

Length of Show: 1980 to 1988

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Alan Thicke, Joanna Kerns, Kirk Cameron, Tracey Gold, Jeremy Miller, Leonardo DiCaprio

Plot Summary: Growing Pains is a comodey about the Seaver family who tackled issues such as teenage drug use, peer pressure, and first love.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22.7 in 1986

Length of Show: 1985 to 1992

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Linda Lavin, Vic Tayback, Polly Holliday, Philip McKeon, Beth Howland

Plot Summary: Alice is a comedy about a widowed mother who moves to Phoenix with her young son to start a new life. Alice takes a job as a waitress at Mel’s Diner, where she works alongside other sassy women.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 22.9 in 1980

Length of Show: 1976 to 1985

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Harry Anderson, John Larroquette, Richard Moll, Markie Post, Charles Robinson, Ellen Foley, Marsha Warfield

Plot Summary: Night Court is set in Manhattan and is about judge who presides over a cast of quirky characters, including bailiffs, attorneys, and defendants.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 23.2 in 1986

Length of Show: 1984 to 1992

Network: CNBCBS

Main Actors: John Ritter, Joyce DeWitt, Suzanne Somers, Priscilla Barnes, Norman Fell, Audra Lindley

Plot Summary: Three’s Company is comedy show about Jack Tripper who pretends to be gay in order to share an apartment with two single women.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 23.3 in 1981

Length of Show: 1977 to 1984

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Sherman Hemsley, Isabel Sanford, Roxie Roker, Franklin Cover, Marla Gibbs, Mike Evans

Plot Summary: The Jeffersons was about George and Louise Jefferson, an affluent African-American couple who had made it in New York City.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 23.5 in 1980

Length of Show: 1975 to 1985

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Gerald McRaney, Jameson Parker, Mary Carver, Wendy Kilbourne, Tim Reid

Plot Summary: Simon and Simon is a show about two brothers who run a private detective agency. One brother is a former Marine who is street-smart  and the other is a college-educated detective. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 23.8 in 1983

Length of Show: 1981 to 1989

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Roseanne Barr, John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf, Sara Gilbert, Michael Fishman, Lecy Goranson

Plot Summary: Roseanne was a comedy known for dealing with a range of societal issues, including poverty, domestic violence, and LGBT rights, and was known for its realistic portrayal of a blue-collar family. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 23.8 in 1988

Length of Show: 1988 to 1997

Network: ABC

Main Actors: George Peppard, Mr. T, Dirk Benedict, Dwight Schultz

Plot Summary: The A-Team is about a group of Vietnam War veterans, who are on the run from the military for a crime they didn’t commit. They use their military skills to help people in need while evading the military police. 

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 24 in 1983

Length of Show: 1983 to 1987

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Gavin MacLeod, Bernie Kopell, Fred Grandy, Ted Lange,  Lauren Tewes

Plot Summary: The Love Boat was a comedy series that followed the adventures of the crew and guests aboard the cruise ship Pacific Princess.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 24.3 in 1980

Length of Show: 1977 to 1986

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Beatrice Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan, Estelle Getty

Plot Summary: The Golden Girls is about the lives of 4 older women who retired to Miami.  The show focused on their relationships with each other, as well as their romantic entanglements, professional pursuits, and various misadventures.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 24.5 in 1986

Length of Show: 1985 to 1992

Network: NBC

Main Actors: John Forsythe, Linda Evans, Joan Collins, John James, Gordon Thomson, Heather Locklear, Michael Nader, Jack Coleman

Plot Summary: Dynasty centered around the wealthy and powerful Carrington family and followed the family’s personal and professional lives as they navigated the cutthroat world of high society and big business.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 25 in 1984

Length of Show: 1981 to 1989

Network: ABC

Main Actors: Lisa Bonet, Kadeem Hardison, Jasmine Guy, Cree Summer, Darryl M. Bell, Sinbad, Dawnn Lewis

Plot Summary: A Different World was a spin-off of “The Cosby Show” which was set at the fictional Hillman College, a historically black college, and followed the lives of a group of students as they navigated the challenges of college life.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 25 in 1987

Length of Show: 1987 to 1993

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Angela Lansbury, William Windom, Tom Bosley, Ron Masak

Plot Summary: Murder She Wrote followed the adventures of an author as she traveled to various locations, both in the United States and abroad, solving crimes and bringing criminals to justice.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 25.4 in 1986

Length of Show: 1984 to 1996

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Alan Alda, Gary Burghoff, Harry Morgan, David Ogden Stiers, Loretta Swit, Mike Farrell, Jamie Farr

Plot Summary: MASH was set during the Korean War and centered around a group of medical personnel stationed at the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) in South Korea. The main characters included the surgeons and nurses that worked at the hospital.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 25.7 in 1980

Length of Show: 1972 to 1983

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Ted Danson, Shelley Long, Rhea Perlman, John Ratzenberger, Kelsey Grammer, Woody Harrelson, George Wendt

Plot Summary: Cheers entered a Boston bar’s employees and regular patrons including the bar’s owner, Sam Malone, and the bar’s sarcastic and quick-witted waitress, Diane Chambers.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 27.2 in 1981

Length of Show: 1982 to 1993

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Tom Wopat, John Schneider, Catherine Bach, James Best, Sorrell Booke 

Plot Summary: The Dukes of Hazzard centered around two cousins, Bo and Luke Duke, who lived in the fictional Hazzard County in Georgia along with their cousin Daisy Duke and their Uncle Jesse.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 27.3 in 1980

Length of Show: 1979 to 1985

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Barbara Walters, Mike Wallace, Morley Safer, Ed Bradley, Diane Sawyer

Plot Summary: 60 Minutes is an American television news magazine that has been on the air since 1968. It is one of the longest-running and most successful news programs in the history of television.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 27.7 in 1981

Length of Show: 1968 to 2023

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Michael J. Fox, Meredith Baxter, Michael Gross, Justine Bateman, Tina Yothers, Brian Bonsall

Plot Summary: Family Ties was centered around the Keaton family who lived in Columbus, Ohio. The show focused on the comedic ups and downs of their daily lives and especially of their precocious older son, Alex P. Keaton.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 32.7 in 1986

Length of Show: 1982 to 1989

Network: NBC

Main Actors: Larry Hagman, Patrick Duffy, Linda Gray, Victoria Principal, Charlene Tilton, Steve Kanaly, Ken Kercheval

Plot Summary: Dallas was centered around the wealthy Ewing family of Texas oil magnates and their ongoing personal and business struggles. The family was headed by the aging patriarch Jock Ewing, and the series followed the lives of his sons.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 34.5 in 1980

Length of Show: 1978 to 1991

Network: CBS

Main Actors: Bill Cosby, Phylicia Rashad, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Tempestt Bledsoe, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Lisa Bonet

Plot Summary: The Cosby Show revolves around the Huxtable family, an affluent African-American family living in Brooklyn, New York, and focused on the comedic misadventures of the father and obstetrician Heathcliff “Cliff” Huxtable.

Highest Yearly Nielsen Rating: 34.9 in 1986

Length of Show: 1984 to 1992

Network: NBC