Last updated: January 1, 2005. This version: 8.00
And,
Answer: The longest running TV shows presently on the air, in U.S. Primetime, are the following (I've tried to include a couple from each major network):
TV Show Net. Run. Time (Date) ------- ---- ----------------------- |
|
60 Minutes CBS 37 years (1968-pres) |
|
Monday Night Football ABC 35 years (1970-pres) |
|
20/20 ABC 27 years (1978-pres) |
|
48 Hours CBS 17 years (1988-pres) |
|
America's Most Wanted FOX 17 years (1988-pres) |
|
Primetime Live ABC 16 years (1989-pres) |
|
The Simpsons FOX 16 years (1989-pres) |
|
Cops FOX 16 years (1989-pres) |
|
America's Funniest
Home Videos ABC 15 years (1990-pres) |
|
Law & Order NBC 15 years (1990-pres) |
|
Dateline NBC NBC 13 years (1992-pres) |
|
NYPD Blue ABC 12 years (1993-[2005]) |
|
ER NBC 11 years (1994-pres) |
|
JAG CBS/NBC 10 years (1995-pres) |
|
Everybody Loves Raymond CBS 9 years (1996-[2005]) |
|
7th Heaven WBN 9 years (1996-pres) |
|
King of the Hill FOX 8 years (1997-pres) |
|
Wonderful World of
Disney (pres. vers.) ABC 8 years (1997-pres) |
|
Will & Grace NBC 7 years (1998-pres) |
|
The King of Queens CBS 7 years (1998-pres) |
|
That 70's Show FOX 7 years (1998-[2006?]) |
|
Charmed WBN 7 years (1998-pres) |
Answer: The longest running U.S. TV shows of all time are shown in the following list. Only the shows that were on TV for more than 10 years are listed.
Note: This section, edited by me, was constructed from a post by Breck Richardson (bigk@access2.digex.net) in response to a thread topic in rec.arts.tv (started by Brian Garfield on Aug. 23, 1996). Further corrections were provided by Mark Jeffreys (MJSaints@aol.com) and Christopher Cook (ccook45@bellsouth.net). Variations on this topic have cropped up repeatedly in rec.arts.tv, going as far back as at least May 4, 1990.
Also Note: This list does not contain British series, even though some of them have run quite a long time (e.g. Coronation Street (44+ years: 1960-pres), Doctor Who (26 years: 1963-1989), etc.).
(Note: * = still on the air (i.e. "first-run"); "pres" = to the present day):
TV Show Net. Run. Time (Date) ------- ---- ----------------------- |
|
50+ Years: |
|
*Meet the Press NBC 58 years (1947-pres) |
|
*The Today Show NBC 53 years (1952-pres) |
|
*[The] Guiding Light CBS 53 years (1952-pres) |
|
*The Tonight Show NBC 51 years (1954-pres) |
|
40-49 Years: |
|
*As the World Turns CBS 49 years (1956-pres) |
|
*Face the Nation CBS 49 years (1954-1961;
1963-pres) |
|
*ABC's Wide World
of Sports ABC 44 years (1961-pres) |
|
*General Hospital ABC 42 years (1963-pres) |
|
*CBS This Morning /
CBS Morning News/etc.CBS 42 years (1963-pres) |
|
*Wonderful World of ABC/CBS/NBC 41+ years (total)
(Walt) Disney[,etc.] from:
6 years (1997-pres, ABC)
and then another:
4.5 years (Feb. 1986 to
Sep. 1990, ABC/NBC)
29 years (1954-1981, NBC;
1981-1983, CBS) |
|
*Days of Our Lives NBC 40 years (1965-pres) |
|
*The Price is Right NBC/ABC/CBS 40 years (1956-1963, NBC;
1963-1965, ABC;
1972-pres; CBS) |
|
30-39 Years: |
|
*One Life to Live ABC 37 years (1968-pres) |
|
*60 Minutes CBS 37 years (1968-pres) |
|
*All My Children ABC 35 years (1970-pres) |
|
*Monday Night Football ABC 35 years (1970-pres) |
|
Another World NBC 35 years (1964-1999) |
|
Search for Tomorrow CBS/NBC 35 years (1951-1982, CBS;
1982-1986; NBC) |
|
*Soul Train Syn. 34 years (1971-pres) |
|
*Jeopardy! NBC/Syn. 33 years (1964-1975, NBC;
/ABC 1978-1979, NBC;
1990, ABC;
1984-pres, syn) |
|
*The Young and
the Restless CBS 32 years (1973-pres) |
|
American Bandstand ABC/Syn. 32 years (1957-87, ABC;
/USA Net. 1987-88, syn;
1988-89, USA) |
|
*Good Morning America ABC 30 years (1975-pres) |
|
*Saturday Night Live NBC 30 years (1975-pres) |
|
*Wheel of Fortune NBC/CBS 30 years (1975-1989, NBC;
/Syn. 1989-1991, CBS;
1991-pres, syn) |
|
20-29 Years: |
|
[The] Edge of Night CBS/ABC 28 years (1956-75, CBS;
1975-84, ABC) |
|
*20/20 ABC 27 years (1978-pres) |
|
The Lawrence Welk Show ABC/Syn. 27 years (1955-71, ABC;
1971-82, syn) |
|
Phil Donahue Syn. 26 years (1970-1996) [note: not counting MSNBC version] |
|
*ABC News Nightline ABC 25 years (1980-pres) |
|
*Entertainment Tonight Syn. 24 years (1981-pres) |
|
*This Week (with David
Brinkley, etc.) ABC 24 years (1981-pres) |
|
What's My Line? CBS/Syn. 24 years (1950-67, CBS;
1968-75, syn) |
|
*Late Night with
David Letterman /
Late Show with
David Letterman NBC/CBS 23.5 years (1982-1993, NBC)
1993-pres, CBS) |
|
The Ed Sullivan Show /
Toast of the Town CBS 23 years (1948-1971) |
|
Hee Haw CBS/Syn. 23 years (1969-71, CBS;
1971-92, syn) |
|
To Tell the Truth CBS/Syn./NBC 22 years (1956-68, CBS;
1969-77, syn;
1990-91, NBC) |
|
Candid Camera ABC/NBC 21 years (1948,1951-1952, ABC;
/CBS/Syn. 1949,1953, NBC;
/PAX 1949-1950, CBS;
1960-1967, CBS;
1974-1978, syn;
1990, CBS;
1997-2000, CBS;
2001-2003, PAX) |
|
†Gunsmoke CBS 20 years (1955-1975)
(† = The longest-running
1-hour Primetime
drama.) |
|
Lassie CBS/Syn. 20 years (1954-71, CBS;
1971-74, syn) |
|
The Red Skelton Show CBS/NBC 20 years (1951-70, CBS;
1970-71, NBC) |
|
Secret Storm CBS 20 years (1954-1974) |
|
10-19 Years: |
|
The Original
Amateur Hour DuMont/NBC 19 years (1948-1949, DuMont;
/ABC/CBS 1949-1954, NBC;
1955-1957, ABC;
1957-1958, NBC;
2 months, 1959, CBS;
2 months, 1960, ABC;
1960-1970, CBS) |
|
*The Oprah Winfree Show Syn. 19 years (1986-pres) |
|
Friday Night Videos ABC 18 years (1983-2001) |
|
[The $10,000,etc.] CBS/ABC/Syn. 18 years (1973-1974, CBS;
Pyramid 1974-1980, ABC;
1982-1987,1988, CBS;
1974-1979,1981, syn;
1985-1988, syn;
1991-1992, syn;
2002-2004, syn) |
|
*48 Hours CBS 17 years (1988-pres) |
|
*America's Most Wanted FOX 17 years (1988-pres) |
|
Match Game NBC/CBS 17 years (1962-1969, NBC;
/Syn./ABC 1973-1979, CBS;
1979-1981, syn;
1985, syn (reruns);
1990-1991, ABC;
1998-1999(?), syn) |
|
Password [, etc.] CBS/ABC/NBC 17 years (1961-1967, CBS;
1971-1975, ABC;
1979-1982, NBC;
1984-1989, NBC) |
|
Sally Jessy Raphael Syn. 17 years (1985-2002) |
|
*The Simpsons FOX 16 years (1989-pres) |
|
*Cops FOX 16 years (1989-pres) |
|
The Newlywed Game ABC/Syn. 16 years (1966-1974, ABC;
1977-1980, syn;
1985-1990, syn) |
|
I've Got a Secret CBS/Syn. 15.5 years (1952-1966, CBS;
1972-1973, Syn.;
1976, CBS) |
|
*America's Funniest
Home Videos ABC 15 years (1990-pres) |
|
*Law & Order NBC 15 years (1990-pres) |
|
The Jack Benny Show CBS/NBC 15 years (1950-1964, CBS;
1964-1965, NBC) |
|
The Perry Como Show NBC 15 years (1948-1963) |
|
The Jackie Gleason Show CBS 14.5 years (1952-1955;
1956-1957;
Oct '58 to
Jan '59, 1961;
1966-1970) |
|
*The Maury Povich Show Syn. 14 years (1991-pres) |
|
†[The Adventures of]
Ozzie and Harriet ABC 14 years (1952-1966)
(† = The longest-running
30-minute Primetime
sitcom.) |
|
Knots Landing CBS 14 years (1979-1993) |
|
Ryan's Hope ABC 14 years (1975-1989) |
|
The Voice of Firestone NBC/ABC 14 years (1949-1954, NBC;
1954-1963, ABC) |
|
Bonanza NBC 13.5 years (1959-1973) |
|
*Dateline NBC 13 years (1992-pres) |
|
Armstrong Circle
Theatre NBC/CBS 13 years (1950-1957, NBC;
1957-1963, CBS) |
|
Dallas CBS 13 years (1978-1991) |
|
The Dating Game ABC/Syn. 13 years (1965-1973, ABC;
1973, syn;
1977-1980, syn;
1986, syn;
1988, syn) |
|
Talent Scouts CBS 12 years (1948-1958;
2 months 1960;
2 months 1962;
2.5 months 1963;
2.5 months 1965;
1965-1966) |
|
All in the Family /
Archie Bunker's
Place CBS 12.5 years (1971-1983) |
|
The 20th Century CBS 12.5 years (1957-1970) |
|
Cavalcade of Sports NBC 12 years (1948-1960) |
|
The Dinah Shore Show /
The Dinah Shore
Chevy Show CBS 12 years (1951-1963) |
|
Hawaii Five-O CBS 12 years (1968-1980) |
|
The Lucy Show /
Here's Lucy CBS 12 years (1962-1974) |
|
Make Room for Daddy /
The Danny Thomas
Show / Make Room
for Granddaddy ABC/CBS 12 years (1953-1957, ABC;
1957-1965, CBS;
1970-1971, ABC) |
|
Murder, She Wrote CBS 12 years (1984-1996) |
|
My Three Sons ABC/CBS 12 years (1960-1965, ABC;
1965-1972, CBS) |
|
*NYPD Blue ABC 12 years (1993-[2005]) |
|
*WWE(WWF) Raw! SpikeTV(TNN) 12 years (1993-2000, USA;
/USA 2000-2003, TNN/
2003-pres, SpikeTV) |
|
Pantomime Quiz / CBS/NBC 12 years (1949-1951, CBS;
Stump the Stars /DuMont/ABC 1952, NBC;
1953-1954, DuMont;
1954,1955-1957, CBS;
1955, ABC;
1962-1963, NBC(?);
1968-1970, ABC(?)) |
|
The Ricki Lake Show Syn. 12 years (1992-2004) |
|
*ER NBC 11 years (1994-pres) |
|
Alfred Hitchcock
Presents /
The Alfred
Hitchcock Hour CBS/NBC 11 years (1955-1960, CBS;
1960-1962, NBC;
1962-1965, NBC(?);
1985-1986, NBC) |
|
The Carol Burnett Show CBS 11 years (1967-1978) |
|
Cheers NBC 11 years (1982-1993) |
|
Dragnet / L.A. Dragnet NBC/ABC 11 years (1951-1959, NBC;
1967-1970, NBC;
2003, ABC) |
|
Frasier NBC 11 years (1993-2004) |
|
Kraft (Mystery) NBC/ABC 11 years (1947-1958, NBC;
Theatre / Kraft 1953-1955, ABC)
Television Theatre |
|
M*A*S*H CBS 11 years (1972-1983) |
|
You Bet Your Life /
Tell It to Groucho NBC 11 years (1950-1961) |
|
Happy Days ABC 10.5 years (1974-1984) |
|
The Jeffersons CBS 10.5 years (1975-1985) |
|
Married With Children FOX 10.5 years (1987-1997) |
|
*JAG CBS/NBC 10 years (1995-pres) |
|
Beverly Hills, 90210 FOX 10 years (1990-2000) |
|
Friends NBC 10 years (1994-2004) |
|
Murphy Brown CBS 10 years (1988-1998) |
|
Studio One \ Studio CBS 10 years (1948-1958)
One in Hollywood |
|
The United States ABC/CBS 10 years (1953-1955, ABC;
Steel Hour 1955-1963, CBS) |
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