Television shows have been a part of the lives of Americans for many years. There’s just something about these TV shows that have gotten us hooked from the first episode until the very last. While most people think that these shows only exist to entertain their viewers, most of them have an even bigger impact on the lives of the people watching them. Different TV shows have different plots, ranging from comic to cultural. Then again, in order to make a lasting impact on every viewer, the story needs to be entertaining, and the actors must give a stellar performance. If you’re an avid fan of several TV shows, then it would be easy for you to identify their titles by just looking at a single scene from an episode. Put your knowledge to the test by naming the most iconic TV shows with just one picture.
Television shows have been a part of the lives of Americans for many years. There’s just something about these TV shows that have gotten us hooked from the first episode until the very last. While most people think that these shows only exist to entertain their viewers, most of them have an even bigger impact on the lives of the people watching them. Different TV shows have different plots, ranging from comic to cultural. Then again, in order to make a lasting impact on every viewer, the story needs to be entertaining, and the actors must give a stellar performance. If you’re an avid fan of several TV shows, then it would be easy for you to identify their titles by just looking at a single scene from an episode. Put your knowledge to the test by naming the most iconic TV shows with just one picture.
Charlie's Angels aired from 1976 to 1981. It stars Jaclyn Smith, Farrah Fawcett, and Kate Jackson for the first season. Fawcett eventually departed from the series, and the show's producers began searching for her replacement. Executives eventually noticed singer-turned-actress Cheryl Ladd and offered her a screen test despite being inexperienced in acting.
This show aired on ABC from March 15, 1988, until May 12, 1993. It was widely praised for its plot, earning a spot in the Nielsen Top 30 during its first four seasons.
This '90s comedy show focuses on the friendship of best friends Will Truman (Eric McCormack), a gay lawyer, and Grace Adler (Debra Messing), a straight interior designer. At first, it was criticized for its portrayal of gay characters, but in time, it became one of NBC's Must-See TV shows.
Starring Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo "Rico" Tubbs, this series ran for five seasons on NBC from September 16, 1984, to January 25, 1990. It has been called one of the "Top 50 TV Shows" thanks to its integration of contemporary pop and rock music and stylized visuals.
Fantasy Island aired on the ABC television network from 1977 to 1984. Before it became a television series, the show was introduced as two made-for-television films in 1977 and 1978.
This sitcom aired on CBS from November 3, 1993, to June 23, 1999. It was produced by Fran Drescher, who also starred as Fran Fine, and her then-husband Peter Marc Jacobson. The Nanny was also inspired from Drescher's personal life growing up in Queens.
This series was considered one of the most successful shows of the 1970s. Initially, it focused on the experiences and dilemmas of "innocent teenager" Richie Cunningham. When the show's performance dropped during its second season, the main focus shifted to Fonzie, a "cool" biker and high school dropout.
Katie Holmes almost didn't star in this show because of a conflict with her schedule. Instead of a face-to-face audition, she was permitted to submit a videotaped audition since screenwriter Kevin Williamson really wanted her to be part of the cast.
"That '70s Show" launched the career of Hollywood celebrities, and real-life couple, Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher. Kunis, who was underaged at that time, lied about how old she was in order to be cast as Jackie Burkhart.
Considered one of the top TV shows in the '70s, "The Dukes of Hazzard" aired for 147 episodes spanning seven seasons on CBS. The show was inspired by the 1975 film Moonrunners, about a bootlegger family. It then became the basis for a film of the same title in 2005.
To this day, "The Twilight Zone" remains to be a huge success, having numerous spin-offs and revivals. Considered by many as a popular and critical success, it introduced viewers to science fiction and fantasy tropes. This show became the show's creator and host, Rod Serling's claim to fame.
"The Cosby Show" lasted for eight seasons on NBC from 1984 to 1992. It spent five consecutive seasons as the number-one-rated show on television, making it one of the two sitcoms in the history of the Nielsen ratings to be the number-one show for five seasons, the other being "All in the Family."
"Renegade" is a TV show that did not air on one specific American television network. Instead, it was a syndicated series. It ran for 110 episodes and spanned five seasons.
"Star Trek" is perhaps one of the most successful shows in television history. It originally aired from September 1987 to May 1994 in syndication and spanned 178 episodes over seven seasons. It was the second sequel to "Star Trek: The Original Series."
"Bewitched" stars Elizabeth Montgomery as the witch Samantha Stephens. The show was ranked No. 50 on "TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time" back in 2002. It even had a movie spin-off of the same title in 2005, starring Nicole Kidman.
"Growing Pains" is one of the longest-running television shows in America, running for seven seasons and consisting of 166 episodes. It aired on ABC from September 24, 1985, to April 25, 1992, and focused on the lives of the Seaver family.
"Baywatch" is another long-running and iconic American TV show. Despite having 11 seasons and more than 200 episodes, it never won an award. Still, it is considered one of the most unforgettable television series, launching the career of celebrities such as Pamela Anderson and David Hasselhoff.
This TV show stars Neil Patrick Harris as the lead character, Dr. Douglas "Doogie" Howser. As a teenage physician, he faces his day-to-day life handling his patients and balancing the problems of teenage life. This show marked the start of Harris' career as an actor.
The series stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself. The show ran for six seasons and had 148 episodes. Will Smith's portrayal of his character earned praises from television critics & audiences which resulted in his success in Hollywood.
Starring Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince, "Wonder Woman" aired on ABC for its first season and was transferred to CBS for its second and third seasons with the title changed to The New Adventures of Wonder Woman.
Throughout its run, "The Golden Girls" has won numerous awards including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series twice. The show originally aired on NBC from 1985 to 1992. It had a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons.
While the show lasted for eight seasons and had a total of 192 episodes, it hardly received any critical acclaim from critics. Despite this, it had a spin-off, titled "Fuller House" which was released on Netflix in 2016.
"Home Improvement" is hailed as one of the most-watched television series in the '90s. The show is considered the start of Tim Allen's acting career.
"Saved by the Bell" follows a group of high school friends and their principal at the fictional Bayside High School in Los Angeles. It spawned two spin-off series: Saved by the Bell: The College Years and Saved by the Bell: The New Class.
First aired on CBS in 1962, "The Beverly Hillbillies" was considered one of the most-watched programs on television for eight of its nine seasons. The show received seven Emmy nominations during its run.
One of the earliest legal comedy-drama television series, "Ally McBeal" first aired on Fox in 1997. The series received critical acclaim in its early seasons, winning a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series.
"Seinfeld" stars actor Jerry Seinfeld who plays a fictionalized version of himself. It aired on NBC from 1989 to 1998 and had a total of 180 episodes over the course of nine seasons. Seinfeld is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential sitcoms of all time and has been ranked among the best television shows in history.
"Married... with Children" is the longest-lasting live-action sitcom on Fox and the first to be broadcast in the network's primetime slot. It is comprised of 259 episodes and 11 seasons and follows the lives of the Bundy family members.
The 1980s television series "Dynasty" is the inspiration for the 2017 reboot series of the same name. The show stars John Forsythe, Linda Evans, and Joan Collins, whose presence on the show was said to have brought the ratings up.
"Boy Meets World" follows the lives of Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) and the people around him, mainly his love interest Topanga (Danielle Fishel). The show aired on the ABC network and lasted seven seasons.
This TV show was a spin-off of Diff'rent Strokes and originally aired on NBC. It aired from August 24, 1979, to May 7, 1988, making it one of the longest-running sitcoms of the 1980s. The pilot for the show was originally aired as the last episode of the first season of Diff'rent Strokes and was called "The Girls' School."
"Starsky and Hutch" first aired on ABC in 1975 and had a 70-minute pilot movie. It lasted for 4 seasons and had a total of 92 episodes. In 2004, a movie of the same name was released by Warner Bros. Pictures and Dimension Films starring Ben Stiller as Starsky and Owen Wilson as Hutch.
"Roseanne" was considered one of the most successful TV series in America thanks to its accurate and often realistic portrayal of a working-class American family. The show stars Roseanne Barr as Roseanne Conner, along with John Goodman as Dan Conner.
"Everybody Loves Raymond" first aired on CBS in 1996. Having a total of 210 episodes, the show spanned nine seasons and ended on May 16th, 2005. It has received numerous acclaims, including 49th all-time funniest television comedy by Complex and 60th best all-time series by TV Guide.
Starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, "Magnum, P.I." is an American crime drama television series that ran from 1980 to 1988 during its first-run broadcast on CBS. It spawned a reboot of the same name in 2018 which also premiered on CBS.
"The King of Queens" is an American comedy sitcom starring Kevin James and Leah Remini as Doug and Carrie Heffernan. The show aired on CBS from 1998 to 2007 and had a total of 207 episodes lasting for nine seasons.
"I Dream of Jeannie" is one of the most beloved and memorable shows on American television. Starring Barbara Eden as a 2,000-year-old genie, the show aired on NBC in 1965. It ran for five seasons and had a total of 139 episodes.
"Frasier" was created as a spin-off of "Cheers." It follows the story of psychiatrist Frasier Crane as he returned to his hometown of Seattle. It was broadcast on NBC in 1993 and had a total of 11 seasons.
"MacGyver" is an American action-adventure television series that first aired on ABC and various other networks abroad in 1985. It follows the story of secret agent Angus MacGyver and his various adventures. The show has a total of 139 episodes, including 2 TV films.
While most people know "The Brady Bunch" as a film, it actually was inspired by a television series of the same name. Following the lives of the Brady kids, the show first aired on ABC in 1969. The show became so popular that it spawned several spin-offs, such as The Brady Bunch Hour, The Brady Girls Get Married, The Brady Brides, and A Very Brady Christmas.
"M*A*S*H", which stands for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, features the lives of a team of doctors and support staff during the Korean War. The war comedy-drama aired on CBS from 1972 to 1983 and ran for 11 seasons.
"Family Matters" is the second-longest-running non-animated U.S. sitcom with a total of nine seasons and 215 episodes. It is also one of the few shows featuring a majority of African-American actors during the '90s.
Created as a spin-off of the TV show "Happy Days," "Mork & Mindy" follows the lives of Mork, an extraterrestrial who comes to Earth from the planet Ork, and Mindy McConnell, his friend who later became his wife. It stars Robin Williams as Mork and Pam Dawber as Mindy. The show lasted for 4 seasons and had a total of 91 episodes.
"Gilligan’s Island" is hailed as one of the most iconic TV shows until today. Although it only ran for 3 seasons and had 98 episodes, the lead character, Gilligan, is widely recognized as an American cultural icon.
"The Drew Carey Show" made television history when it became the first television show to have an episode simulcast on the Internet. First aired on ABC in 1995, the sitcom was created by Drew Carey as a result of his experience in stand-up comedy.
"The Carol Burnett Show" is one of the few American variety/sketch comedy television shows that has won several awards under its title. The show originally ran on CBS in 1967 and stars Carol Burnett, who many people might be familiar with as Miss Hannigan in the musical film "Annie. "
Loosely based on the Little Prairie books written by Laura Ingalls Wilder, the show premiered on the NBC network on September 11th, 1974, and last aired on May 10th, 1982. The series ran for 9 seasons and had more than 200 episodes.
As the title says, "The Love Boat" is a romantic comedy/drama television series set on a luxury passenger cruise ship. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986 and had a total of 9 seasons consisting of 250 episodes. It also had 5 specials, with four of them lasting three hours long.
First aired on NBC in 1982, "Family Ties" is a show that reflected the move in the United States from the cultural liberalism of the 1960s and 1970s to the conservatism of the 1980s. Because of this, the series won numerous awards, including three Emmy Awards for Michael J. Fox as Outstanding Lead Actor.