30 best CBS shows ever, ranked [PHOTOS]
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Along with rival NBC, CBS (originally, Columbia Broadcasting System) found success in radio before adding on the new medium of television in the 1940s. With the creation of ABC a few years later, the “Big Three” networks dominated the small screen for half a century before receiving competition from Fox network, cable stations and, later, streaming services. In the earliest days of TV, CBS and NBC vied for top spots in the ratings; by the mid-1950s, CBS commanded the lead with pioneering and groundbreaking programs across multiple genres — a trend that would continue for decades.
Like NBC, CBS transitioned radio programs over to television. One successful radio series they wanted to convert was “My Favorite Husband,” but the star refused to commit unless her real-life husband was allowed to be her lead. However, her husband was from Cuba, and CBS executives didn’t think Americans would believe an American woman would marry a hispanic. Nonetheless, they agreed, and thinking the show wouldn’t do well, allowed Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz to have financial control over “I Love Lucy,” leading to the couple’s successful production company Desilu, which was behind several series on all three networks. Their control over “I Love Lucy” led to innovative techniques such as multiple-camera filming, the use of studio audiences and the airing of “rerun” episodes.
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“I Love Lucy” quickly rose on the ratings charts, and CBS began producing a string of hits; during the 1956-1957 season, CBS claimed nine out of the top ten spots, with several different genres. “The Jack Benny Show” and “The Ed Sullivan Show” helped set the standards by which variety shows are made; Sullivan was also the biggest star-maker in the industry for over 20 years. “Gunsmoke” would become one of the longest-running series on television, and helped to popularize the western genre; from 1957-1967, a western held the top spot for eight years, four of them by “Gunsmoke.” Anthology series were hugely popular in the early days of television, with a famous film director finding additional success on the small screen with “Alfred Hitchcock Presents.” Also in the top ten was one of the first successful quiz shows, “The $64,000 Question,” which would eventually go down in infamy for cheating scandals, nearly destroying the genre.
In the 1960s, the network commanded the top ten, often claiming six to eight spots, most notably with family-friendly comedies. “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” “The Andy Griffith Show,” “The Beverly Hillbillies,” “Family Affair,” “The Lucy Show,” “Green Acres,” “Hogan’s Heroes” and “Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.” are just a few of the sitcoms throughout the decade that attracted viewers. However, going into the next decade, the network would make some drastic changes that led to the “rural purge.”
In 1971, CBS cancelled many of their several successful TV series they felt attracted older audiences, and replaced them with new programs they hoped would appeal to a younger demographic. Edgier comedies like “All in the Family,” “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” and “M*A*S*H” dealt with controversial and timely topics with humor, revolutionizing the genre. They also developed the concept of spinoff series, finding more winners with shows like “Maude” and “The Jeffersons” from “All in the Family” and “Rhoda” and “Phyllis” from “The Mary Tyler Moore Show.”
SEE30 best ABC shows ever, ranked
In 1975, CBS claimed 13 out of the top 20 spots; in addition to their sitcoms, audiences tuned into dramas like “The Waltons,” “Kojak,” “Hawaii Five-O” and “Mannix.” In 1978, “Dallas” premiered, popularizing nighttime soap operas and perfecting the “cliffhanger” which has become a staple for dramas and comedies alike. The news magazine “60 Minutes,” which debuted in 1968, also rose in popularity, and has been a top 20 program for most of the past 45 years. At 54 years, it’s the longest continuously-running American primetime series, and has inspired many news-magazine programs that have followed.
By the 1990s, CBS began to lose their grip on the ratings charts; however, they did find hits with “Murder, She Wrote,” “Murphy Brown” and “Northern Exposure,” as well as the addition of its first late-night talk show, “The Late Show.” Then, at the turn of the millennium, CBS once again produced shows that gained a public following that had other networks scrambling to replicate.
The number one show in the 2000 season was the reality series “Survivor,” which stayed in the top 20 its first 23 seasons, leading to a surge of reality series; it has a dedicated following to this day. “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” also debuted during this time, and police procedural dramas rose in popularity. In addition to spinoffs from “CSI,” the “NCIS” franchise, “Without a Trace,” “Cold Case” and “Criminal Minds” have been ratings winners for CBS, with several of these series in the top 20 throughout the past 20 years. The network that was a pioneer in sitcoms for decades also had hits with “Everybody Loves Raymond” and “The Big Bang Theory.”
CBS has a rich history of ratings success, and is home to two of only three series (“I Love Lucy” and “The Andy Griffith Show”) to achieve the number one ratings spot for their final seasons. “All in the Family” was the first of just two series (with NBC’s “The Cosby Show”) to hold the top ranking for five years straight. Of the top 20 scripted primetime American series that have remained on air for the longest, ten were aired on CBS either for their entire runs, or part of their runs, with three still in production. Over the past decade, viewers increasingly have “cut the cord,” with many going to streaming platforms for entertainment. The Big Three have seen a decline in viewership; however, series like “NCIS,” “Blue Bloods” and “Young Sheldon” still have loyal followings.
With such a strong history, it was hard to narrow down the 30 best series from CBS, but we’ve attempted to rank the best of the best in the photo gallery above. This list doesn’t include daytime, reality, news or sports programs, and is based on longevity, popularity, innovation and/or awards.
We also considered the following series, but they did not make the final rankings:
Alice
Danny Thomas Show
The Defenders
Designing Women
George Burns & Gracie Allen
The Good Wife
Green Acres
Hawaii Five-0
Hogan’s Heroes
How I Met Your Mother
Kate & Allie
Knot’s Landing
Kojak
Lassie
Lou Grant
Mannix
Northern Exposure
One Day at a Time
Picket Fences
Rawhide
Red Skelton Show
Smothers Brothers
Touched By an Angel
Two and a Half Men
Walker: Texas Ranger
Wiseguy
WKRP in Cincinnati
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