TV Flashback: The Top 10 Shows of 1965-66
By John Roberts
@JohnRoberts (109848)
Los Angeles, California
April 26, 2016 9:20am CST
What a difference 50 years makes. There were still a few black and white series playing. A handful of over the air antenna channels compared to today's 100s of cable and streaming channels. The shows from 50 years ago received higher viewership and Nielsen ratings than contemporary shows. A top 10 series today would not crack the top 20 then. That is due to greater choice of programming and options. Most of these show titles should be familiar. If you are not old enough to have watched as a kid, surely you may have run across them in perpetual rerunland.
10. Batman (Wed)-This briefly hot tongue-in-cheek take on the caped crusader was televised twice weekly.
9. Hogan's Heroes-"I know nothing" says Sgt. Shultz. Today's sensibilities have expressed disdain for Nazi POW camp hijinx.
7. Bewitched-Twitchy nosed Samantha the witch. (tie)
7. The Beverly Hillbillies-Yep, the Clampett Clan. Jed, Granny, Jethro, Elly Mae. (tie)
6. The Andy Griffith Show-Andy, Barney Fife and the Mayberry gang.
5. Batman-Thursday edition.
4. The Red Skelton Show-Who knew Red's variety show was more popular than Ed Sullivan, Dean Martin or Jackie Gleason.
3. The Lucy Show-Lucille Ball. Enough said.
2. Gomer Pyle, USMC.-Gollllllllly! CBS ruled the airwaves with these cornpone comedies. Green Acres was #11.
1. Bonanza-The famed western about the Cartwrights on the Ponderosa. The show was #1 for years.
Any old favorites here?
15 people like this
17 responses
@JohnRoberts (109848)
• Los Angeles, California
26 Apr 16
I have never been a fan of Bonanza. Not that it's so much hokey just less interesting than Gunsmoke which is the greatest TV western.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109848)
• Los Angeles, California
26 Apr 16
@LadyDuck And little Natalie Wood was in the movie.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109848)
• Los Angeles, California
26 Apr 16
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir starred Hope Lange and Edward Mulhare and based on a 1940s movie with Rex Harrison and Gene Tierney.
1 person likes this
@pgiblett (6524)
• Canada
26 Apr 16
Hailing from across the pond I know of a good many of those shows but many were not shown in the UK.
The fact that today's shows don't rank against these is hardly surprising, the acting in many is very bad, which is wierd since technically the viewing quality is better than ever before.
1 person likes this
@pgiblett (6524)
• Canada
27 Apr 16
@JohnRoberts Very true and the other thing that is killing the entertainment industry is the insistence on reality TV.
@JohnRoberts (109848)
• Los Angeles, California
26 Apr 16
Technical advancement can never replace acting, writing and directing ability. All the grand special effects in the world cannot overcome bad acting and writing.
1 person likes this
@ElizabethWallace (12074)
• United States
26 Apr 16
The three B's, Bonanza, Bewitched and Batman. Did not care for the others. Well, Lucy once in awhile.
1 person likes this
@arthurchappell (45002)
• Preston, England
27 Apr 16
never saw Red Skelton, loved Batman and the Hillbillies but I hated Bonanza apart from the theme tune
@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
26 Apr 16
Wow most of them are favorites and we really could use a show like thee Old Red Skelton show these days.
@JohnRoberts (109848)
• Los Angeles, California
27 Apr 16
We could use a whole lotta shows like those oldies. The variety show does not exist anymore.
1 person likes this
@LindaCPearson (2241)
• United States
3 May 16
I loved Lucy and Bonanza! I wasn't all that crazy about Red Skelton (or maybe my parents didn't watch it in our "one" shared TV. It was family tradition to watch Ed Sullivan and Jackie Gleason. I really do miss what were called the "variety" shows like Ed Sullivan - something for everyone!
@teamfreak16 (43419)
• Denver, Colorado
26 Apr 16
I watched all of them. I'm still fond of Andy and Hogan.
@BettyB (4117)
• Summerville, South Carolina
26 Apr 16
I loved watching most of the shows you listed. I loved Hogan's Heroes. My husband ended up buying the DVD set of all the episodes.
@Chellezhere (5357)
• United States
27 Apr 16
I was born in 1968, so these shows are a little older than I am, but I do like the shows that you listed. TV used to be a luxury item used for entertainment purposes, and most didn't have very many channels. TV time was also family time.
@Hatley (163781)
• Garden Grove, California
26 Apr 16
most of the m b ut green acres I did not l ike but my hubbie loved it lol ugh but Bonanza was our favorilte and lucy of course. Gomer too I l iked him also.
@mammots (3209)
• Philippines
26 Apr 16
1965-1966 ...i was still 5 - 6 years old. We were so poor then we couldnt afford to have our own television so my sisters and i watched from our neighbors house but we were not allowed inside ... we just watched from the window. I remember Bonanza... Batman ... i think also Bewitched. Hmm brings back sad and painful memories.
