Looking back...Primetime Ratings from the 80's

[Khan]

No.  BERRENGER'S was a soap about nothing.  THE COLBYS was a soap about nothing GOOD.

[Soapsuds]

Like I said I don't recall one story from it. It's like I never saw its original run.

Edited February 23, 2022 by Soapsuds

[Khan]

It was that traumatizing, huh, lol?

[Soapsuds]

1980-1981 season

Ratings ending April 19th

1. Dallas  31.3

2. Mash 25.5

3. Dukes 25.2

4. 60 minutes 24.9

5. Three's Company 22.2

 

13.  Facts of Life  20.1

15. Alice  18.8

17. Hart to Hart  18.4

19. The Jefferson's 18.3

32. Dynasty  16.3

36. One Day At A Time  15.5

44. The Incredible Hulk  14.8

49. Brady Brides  14.2

62. Flo  10.9

[dragonflies]

To think ratings in the top 5 nowadays are like 10 million at best lol. What a change

[kalbir]

When looking at 1980s ratings, it's clear that the first half of the 1980s is when hour long dramas dominated and the second half of the 1980s is when sitcoms dominated.

[Paul Raven]

The complete Top 20 of that week posted above

1. Dallas CBS 31.3/56 

2. MASH CBS  25.5/38

3. Dukes of Hazzard CBS 25.2/43 

4. 60 Minutes CBS  24.9/49 

5. Three's Company ABC 22.2/34 

8. Private Benjamin CBS 22.0/35 

7. Difrrent Strokes NBC 21.5/35 8. House Calls CBS 21.1/33 

9. "Ten Commandments" (movie) ABC 20.8/40 

10. Too Close for Comfort ABC 20.7/32 

11. Two of Us CBS 20.5/31 

12. Magnum, P.I. CBS 20.4/34 

13. Facts of Life NBC 20.1/33

14. Lou Grant CBS 19.0/33

15. Alice CBS 18.8/31

16. Love Boat ABC 18.7/34 

17. Hart To Hart ABC 18.4/32 

18. Greatest American Hero ABC 18.4/30 

19. The Jeffersons CBS 18.3/31 

20. Happy Days ABC  18.2/29

And the bottom five

66. "Family Plot" (movie) NBC 10.0/17

67. Disney's Wonderful WorldNBC 9.1/18

68. "The Filth Musketeer (movie) ABC 8.8/15

69. NBC Magazine with David Brinkley NBC 5.6/12

70. Omnibus (special) ABC 6.4/13

[Khan]

Just as "60 Minutes" and "Murder, She Wrote" were there for CBS when the network was struggling, so, too, were "Diff'rent Strokes" and "Facts of Life" there for NBC when their lineup could not have been any worse.

Edited February 27, 2022 by Khan

[Paul Raven]

Diff'rent Strokes served NBC well.

It started off at Fri @8 but got moved to Wed @9 which seemed a wrong footed move but managed to damage Charlie's Angels. Then it got moved to Thurs @9 where it didn't fare as well before settling into the Sat @8 slot till NBC dropped it.

Facts of Life had a rocky start on Fridays but took off on Wed after DS. Then it had a solid run Wed @9 before moving to Saturdays.

I wonder which show moved timeslots the most? 

Any guesses? i think I will have to do some sleuthing...

[Khan]

I'll take a stab and guess FOL had more time slot changes.

[Paul Raven]

I actually meant shows in general, not just those two.

Off the top of my head FOL started Fri @ 8.30, then Wed @9.30, Wed @ 9, Sat @8.30 then Sat @ 8.

[Soapsuds]

1986-1987 season  

Week 4

 

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[Khan]

"Life with Lucy" at no. 53.  Such a sad ending for a true TV pioneer.

[Paul Raven]

Everything was wrong about Lucy's return.

A dated concept, bland supporting cast and watching a 75 yr old doing physical comedy that had the audience scared she'd hurt herself.

How about  Lucy  in a Murder She Wrote type light comedy mystery? 

She could be the nosy mom/grandmon of a private eye who stumbles into mysteries.

Something a bit different with strong elements of the Lucy character w/o being an inferior version of what went before.

 

[BetterForgotten]

Everything about “Life With Lucy” was so wrong. Someone should have talked some sense into her that it was the 80’s and playing a variation of the same character she had been playing since the 50’s wasn’t going work or do her any favors. 

It was said she took the failure of this show especially hard and until her death a few years after.

That said, the love and admiration she received from the audience at the 1981 Emmy’s always warms my heart.

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