The Best Show From Every Year of the 1970s, Ranked
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The 1970s saw an explosion of exciting shows on television. Each year, a show like M*A*S*H would debut, changing the television landscape with an innovative presentation and a unique creative voice audiences weren’t accustomed to seeing in their living rooms. The shows on television began to look more like movies, and the choice between which to see became harder.
To celebrate such an important decade in entertainment, we look back at the most formative program that premiered each year. From iconic comedies to unforgettable detective shows, these were the best shows to debut each year of the ’70s, ranked by the lasting legacy they have in the decade.
10‘Knots Landing’ (1979–1993)
Created by David Jacobs
Knots Landing tells the story of a group of people living in a small cul-de-sac in a neighborhood of Los Angeles. Created as a spin-off of the mega-popular Dallas, Knots Landing first followed Gary and Valene Ewing (Ted Shackelford and Joan Van Ark) as they moved from Texas to the West Coast in search of a fresh start. The series would quickly expand to the other families that lived in the cul-de-sac, chronicling their romances, careers, and crises.
Dallas and its many iconic plotlines were consistently headline-grabbing, but Knots Landing slowly developed a strong following that led to a lengthy run of 14 seasons. During that time, the prime-time soap ran through all types of storylines that included abductions, addictions, and romances of all varieties for the characters to weather. The sleepy suburban backdrop for high drama became a staple of television that lived on in popular shows such as Desperate Housewives.
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Knots Landing
Not Rated
SoapRelease Date1979 – 1992NetworkCBS
Cast
Michele LeeKaren MacKenzie- Ted ShackelfordGary Ewing
- Joan Van ArkValene Ewing
- Kevin DobsonM. Patrick MacKenzie
Michele LeeKaren MacKenzie9‘Alice’ (1976–1985)
Created by Robert Getchell
The long-running sitcom Alice was a spin-off from an unlikely dramatic Oscar winner. Based on the film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Ellen Burstyn, the sitcom took a lighter tone than the source material. Linda Lavin would step into the title role of Alice, with the show focusing on her time as a waitress while trying to raise her young son Tommy (Philip McKeon).
Episodes primarily took place in the diner where Alice worked, with the female staff commiserating through their shifts. The premise was a far cry from the other sitcoms on television, where mothers were homemakers instead of providers, and resonated with viewers who related to Alice’s struggles. Grounded comedy mixed with real-world issues kept Alice on the air for an impressive nine seasons and led to a spin-off of its own, Flo, which ran for two seasons.
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Alice
TV-PG
Comedy
DramaRelease Date1976 – 1984NetworkCBS
Cast
- Adam WestUncredited
- Avery SchreiberElliot Novak
Bill MaherBelle Dupree- Candace Cameron BureAlice Hyatt
Bill MaherBelle Dupree8‘Happy Days’ (1974–1984)
Created by Garry Marshall
One of the most popular shows of the ‘70s took viewers back to the ‘50s when Happy Days premiered. The sitcom followed the adventures of Richie Cunningham (Ron Howard) with his friends and family in 1950s Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Although the show was initially presented as a loose ensemble of talent, the character of motorcycle-loving Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli (Henry Winkler) became a breakout sensation.
Happy Days’ enduring success proved nostalgia was in great demand, with viewers searching for comfortable escapism in their programming that reflected a safer form of entertainment. Not only was Happy Days a popular sitcom in its own right, but the comedy left a larger legacy in the form of countless spin-offs, such as Laverne & Shirley and Mork & Mindy. The influence of Happy Days‘ gentle comedy, which relied on lovable characters with catchphrases, can still be felt in family-friendly comedies that air today.
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Happy Days
TV-G
Comedy
9.0/10Release Date1974 – 1983DirectorsJerry Paris
Cast
Ron Howard
Marion Ross
Marion Ross7‘Kojak’ (1973–1978)
Created by Abby Mann
One of the most distinctive detectives on television during the ’70s was Telly Savalas as Lieutenant Kojak in the crime drama, Kojak. The series followed the tough but charismatic Kojak as he worked cases in New York City, often with his trademark lollipop in hand to cut down on smoking. While Kojak heavily focused on case work, viewers would also get glimpses into the Lieutenant’s personal life.
Kojak told stories in a world where answers to problems were hardly black and white, leaving Kojak to break protocol if he thought it was necessary to bring the guilty party to justice. Kojak would run for five seasons before gradually declining ratings would cause CBS to pull the plug; however, reruns would give the detective series a second life, and Kojak would return to solve crimes in a string of TV movies.
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Kojak
TV-PG
Crime
Action & Adventure
MysteryRelease Date1973 – 1977NetworkABC, CBS
Cast
- Ahna CapriCarol
- Alan DexterKen Dimin
- Alan FeinsteinLenny Grenfell
- Albert ColeSutton
6‘Lou Grant’ (1977–1982)
Created by James L. Brooks, Allan Burns, and Gene Reynolds
Lou Grant was a popular and surprisingly dramatic spin-off of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, which focused on the continued career of Lou Grant (Ed Asner). Lou Grant followed the reporter to Los Angeles, where he would take a job as city editor for the fictional newspaper, the Los Angeles Tribune. The series saw Lou fight for journalistic integrity while keeping readers interested in stories that mattered.
Viewers had gotten to know Lou as a gruff but lovable character for seven seasons on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and there was enough curiosity to see a dramatic shift to give Lou Grant an early boost. Lou Grant was a hit with audiences and critics, earning Asner Emmy wins for acting in his spin-off, making Asner the only actor to win Emmy awards for the same character in a comedy and dramatic series.
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Lou Grant
Comedy
DramaRelease Date1977 – 1981NetworkCBS
Cast
- Allen WilliamsAssistant Foreign Editor
- Alley MillsUncredited
- Bobby Rolofson5th Grader (as Robert Rolofson)
- Buck KartalianLeon Hartounian
5‘Taxi’ (1978–1983)
Created by James L. Brooks, Stan Daniels, and David Davis
The day-to-day joys and struggles of a group of taxi drivers were the driving force behind the popular sitcom Taxi. Starring Judd Hirsch as Alex Reiger, Taxi caught up with Alex and his co-workers in between shifts while they swapped stories in the fleet garage of the Sunshine Cab Company. Alex considers himself a lifer behind the wheel, but the majority of his fellow drivers see the job as a stepping stone to paying the bills while they work on pursuing their careers.
Taxi’s working-class setting gave the sitcom a unique premise that separated it from the other TV comedies of the ’70s, but the ensemble cast was the show’s biggest strength. The cast list reads like a who’s who of film and TV legends, featuring Danny DeVito as the abrasive dispatcher Louie De Palma, Christopher Lloyd as the spaced-out Revered “Iggy” Ignatowski, and avant-garde comedian Andy Kaufman as the mechanic Latka Gravas. Taxi had a strong run of five seasons, but the future trajectory of its stars kept the show popular in reruns for years after.
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Taxi
TV-PG
ComedyRelease Date1978 – 1982
Cast
Judd Hirsch- Jeff Conaway
Danny DeVito
Marilu Henner
Danny DeVito
Marilu Henner4‘The Jeffersons’ (1975–1985)
Created by Norman Lear, Don Nicholl, and Michael Ross
A flourishing business prompts dry-cleaner chain owner George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley) and his wife Louise (Isabel Sanford) to pack up and move to a high-rise condo in The Jeffersons. While the couple enjoys their new life, George’s quick temper usually creates conflict with their neighbors, the maid Florence (Marla Gibbs), and often Louise herself.
Unlike the down-on-their-luck father-son duo on Sanford and Son, The Jeffersons had achieved financial success, and much of the humor came from their adjustment to their new surroundings. While The Jeffersons regularly tackled social issues, they did so without ever losing a sense of humor, largely due to the charisma and screen presence of Hemsley as George. His comedic timing, paired with the chemistry of his wife Louise, filled each episode of The Jeffersons with a unique energy no other shows had.
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The Jeffersons
TV-PG
Comedy
FamilyRelease Date1975 – 1985-00-00ShowrunnerNorman Lear
Cast
- Isabel Sanford
- Sherman Hemsley
- Roxie Roker
- Franklin Cover
3‘M*A*S*H’ (1972–1983)
Created by Larry Gelbart
The wartime sitcom M*A*S*H follows the harrowing experiences of the doctors and trained medical staff who operated on wounded soldiers during the Korean War. Although death is a daily occurrence, Surgeon “Hawkeye” Pierce (Alan Alda) distracts himself with jokes and romances that don’t always make him a favorite among strict military officers.
M*A*S*H didn’t look or feel like any other sitcom on television, where moments of levity could immediately give way to life-or-death moments with heartbreaking results. The humor still carried the gallows humor influence of the Robert Altman-directed movie on which it was based, but the writing was adapted smoothly to avoid the wrath of network censors. The majority of shows slowly lose an audience after an extended stay on television, but M*A*S*H commanded a large audience, with its finale still one of the most-watched shows in history.
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M*A*S*H
Comedy
9.0/10Release Date1972 – 1983-00-00NetworkCBS
Cast
- Alan AldaHawkeye Pierce
Loretta SwitMargaret Houlihan
Loretta SwitMargaret HoulihanExpand
2‘All in the Family’ (1971–1979)
Created by Norman Lear
One of the most controversial sitcoms of the ’70s, All in the Family, remains one of the most influential, inspiring the comedies that followed it or spun off from it to tackle social issues with a bluntness not seen before. The sitcom brought viewers into the home of the Bunkers, where patriarch Archie (Carroll O’Connor) would rant about the plight of the working man while constantly butting heads with his tenant and son-in-law, Mike (Rob Reiner).
All in the Family was a drastic departure from the sitcoms that came before it, casting aside pleasant conversation for charged arguments about the issues facing people in the early ’70s. In an era when TV dads were still doling out measured wisdom, Archie hurled insults when faced with dissenting opinions, and audiences tuned in each week to see what he would say next. All in the Family brought social issues to the forefront and made audiences laugh while doing so.
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All In The Family
TV-PG
Comedy
DramaRelease Date1971 – 1978NetworkCBS
Cast
- Carroll O’ConnorArchie Bunker
- Jean StapletonEdith Bunker
- Sally StruthersGloria Stivic
Rob ReinerMichael Stivic
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1‘The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ (1970–1977)
Created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns
Mary Tyler Moore charmed audiences as the wife of Rob Petrie (Dick Van Dyke) on The Dick Van Dyke Show, but she broke new ground for women when she starred in The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Moore starred as Mary Richards, a woman who moved to Minneapolis after a called-off engagement to create a better life for herself. She soon finds a job at a television station, gaining new experience and quickly making new friends.
Fashions change and culture shifts, but comedy done well is timeless, and The Mary Tyler Moore Show achieves such an effort each week. The sitcom would be remembered today if for nothing else than being funny, but The Mary Tyler Moore Show discarded the notion of what a woman was capable of in the workplace. The Mary Tyler Moore Show features one of the strongest casts in comedy, doing unforgettable character work that contributes to the show aging better than its contemporaries.
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NEXT:Popular ’70s TV Shows That Have Aged Poorly
