By Demetria Gallegos
"USA250 : The Story of the World's Greatest Economy" is a yearlong WSJ series examining America's first 250 years. Read more about it from Editor in Chief Emma Tucker.
Many Americans mark the different times of their lives by the TV shows that they loved. They remember the shows that defined their childhood; that had them planted on couches for appointment viewing; that they binged when streaming came into the picture; that were fodder for water-cooler conversations.
So what are the TV shows that have mattered most? Experts have their lists, but we knew there were plenty of other worthy series.
We asked Wall Street Journal readers, "What TV shows do you think have had the biggest impact in America since the medium was invented?"
Here are the nominees, chronologically from the first year of production.
The Ed Sullivan Show (1948 )
A pure entertainment hour, without which Elvis, the Beatles and countless other acts might not have had their phenomenal initial exposure.
The show was a time each week when everyone gathered around the TV together, to see something novel and to be entertained. There was no animation, digitization, AI, laser lights, elaborate sets or video montages. Just an act in front of a stage curtain: pure entertainment.
We cheered the great acts, and sympathized with the poor ones. They entered our living rooms, and our lives.
-- Jerry Lyons, Narberth, Pa.
I Love Lucy (1951 )
I grew up in the '50s and watched "I Love Lucy" on those lucky days I was sick (or pretending) and couldn't go to school.
Desi Arnaz came up with the three-camera filming technique, and they kept (and owned) tapes of every show, reruns and residuals. Everything flowed from there.
-- John Crowley, Des Moines, Iowa
Leave it to Beaver (1957)
I saw this as a very clean, wholesome, funny show, with innocent, though sometimes worrisome childhood struggles that many people could relate to, if only aspirationally for some. I didn't grow up in anything like the environment depicted in "Leave it to Beaver," inasmuch as I was in a big city with violence, drinking, racism and other human cruelty. Yet as a child, I felt I could relate to it and aim for that kind of life when I grew up.
In their own peculiar ways, the characters were all basically good people trying to do good things -- which I believe (or hope) is a universal human trait -- at least from childhood.
-- Michael Donnella, St. Davids, Pa.
CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite (1962)
The evening news shaped how we thought about life. It was hard to trust politicians. But I trusted Walter. I felt he was a straight shooter.
When Walter started opposing the war in Vietnam, the Vietnam War's days were numbered.
-- Don Snow, Santa Rosa, Calif.
The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson (1962)
Johnny and his sidekick, Ed McMahon, gave adults a relaxing reprieve from the stresses of everyday living by offering light humor without any negative slants. Carson's amazing comedic monologues and silly antics gave viewers humor without being annoying, his off-the-cuff quips were hilarious, and interviews with interesting guests sparked laughter. After watching his show, viewers often went to bed in a better mood.
-- Arlene Rodriguez-Harriman, Delavan, Wis.
Star Trek (1965)
The original series ran for only three seasons, but from its subsequent syndication and relaunch, the series developed a huge following. Now there are decades of content that is still fun to watch even for those who are not science-fiction nerds like myself.
So why does "Star Trek" have such staying power? For Americans in particular, pioneering is a deeply rooted cultural value. Also, America is a melting pot as most of us are descendants of immigrants. So we are also fascinated by characters whose cultural values are so far from anything we encounter in our daily life (like Klingons and Vulcans).
While the stories have connections to what is happening in the real world today, the science-fiction context provides just enough distance from reality to make any underlying moral lessons palatable.
-- Liz Prochnow, Sugar Land, Texas
The Carol Burnett Show (1967)
A groundbreaking comedy for its time, it paved the way for other sketch comedy that followed using the same formula, more or less, such as "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour" and "Saturday Night Live." We watched the show as a family. It never disappointed us for a laugh with its great cast and their recurring characters and movie spoofs. My mom adored Carol Burnett.
-- Brendan Manley, Melbourne Beach, Fla.
60 Minutes (1968)
As a kid in the pre-VCR '70s, I would run to a TV on Sunday nights to hear that "tick-tick-tick" and see what the main stories were going to be. I was always afraid they'd profile Jerry Garcia, and I'd miss it!
The writing, reporting and editing were good, and it felt like quality and truth. It was legit to me because it was TV that was acceptable to my parents. Then I went off to college and quit TV for good. (Until "The Simpsons" and "South Park.")
-- Ben Swett, Santa Monica, Calif.
All in the Family (1971)
Beginning with its first episode, I was addicted. Looking back over the 200+ episodes, the show covered such controversial topics as homosexuality, racism, the Vietnam War, labor unions and infidelity. Archie Bunker created his own lexicon and made the nickname "Meathead" as common as Bob. He spared no one when it came to his biases. He was an equal-opportunity racist who truly believed he was the sole source of wisdom in the family. He also showed his emotional side (e.g., his grandson's baptism and his disdain for Meathead's draft-dodging buddy), which often moved the viewer to tears.
Overall, the show opened our eyes to bigotry and racism while at the same time making us laugh. All the while we were becoming better people for having watched the show.
-- Cal Quast, St. Charles, Mo.
M*A*S*H (1972)
In the early '60s, war-themed sitcoms included "Hogan's Heroes" and "McHale's Navy." But once the evening news put the Vietnam War's reality into America's living room nightly, what was once funny and innocent just wasn't funny any more.
What made "M*A*S*H" so special as a comedy and drama was the writers' and actors' ability to entertain while exposing the human toll on those who served. A shellshocked soldier who thought he was Jesus. The death of Henry Blake. And Radar O'Reilly, who represented all those drafted as boys who came home as men.
-- David Grobisen, Cardiff-by-the-Sea, Calif.
Seinfeld (1989)
The show uses absurdist comedy set within the cultural backdrop of urban adult life in the 1990s. Absurdist humor often transcends age, time and place, recalling the works of writers like Samuel Beckett and Kurt Vonnegut.
Seinfeld also captures the small, everyday realities of life -- situations that many ordinary people recognize and relate to. When large audiences connect with the same experiences on screen, they share a collective cultural moment.
-- Katherine Jordan, Palo Alto, Calif.
The Real World (1992)
I was in my late teens when this series made its debut, and I remember really being struck by both the format and the content. I'd never seen anything like it. I'm not even sure the term "reality TV" had been coined at that point, but it truly did feel like you were getting a peek into the real lives of those on the show.
One was the awestruck girl from the South discovering New York City for the first time, another was the hunky model, aspiring actor, and so on. And they went on to leverage their newfound celebrity well after that first season was over, sometimes leaning in to those characters. While social media didn't yet exist in 1992, you could argue that the cast of that first season (and subsequent ones) were essentially the earliest reality-TV influencers.
-- Alain Schotland, Portland, Ore.
Sex and the City (1998)
I was in middle school or early high school when this show made its debut, and even though I wasn't the target audience, its cultural impact was impossible to miss. Girls I knew referenced the characters, and suddenly conversations about dating, relationships and sexuality -- topics that felt pretty taboo on television at the time -- were part of everyday pop culture.
The show also made New York City and female friendship feel like central characters, which was something television hadn't really centered before. Looking back, it clearly shifted what people expected TV to talk about and who those stories could focus on.
-- Robert Maier, Pittsburgh
American Idol (2002)
This was the defining show of my generation (I am 28). It made celebrities of the hosts, Ryan Seacrest, Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paul Abdul. Singers became overnight stars including Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and many more. It has had staying power over 24 seasons. It was embedded in the culture, constantly discussed, mocked and replicated with varying degrees of success. Missing an episode meant being left out of the conversation the next day.
-- Luke Michels, Hoboken, N.J.
Mad Men (2007)
The show appealed to a demographic of people who were born in the 1960s and 1970s in the U.S., when ads and TV commercials had an indelible imprint on their childhoods and their view of key consumer products (food brands, appliances, toys, etc.). I am one statistic in this demographic.
This same cohort witnessed and participated in the growing power of corporations in the 1980s and beyond, so "Mad Men" provided a grounding context on the power of brands built around individual stories.
Finally, I think the story lines involving the individual members of the production were gripping and also highlighted the changing social fabric, norms and mores of the 1960s that have defined our experience of the past 50 years.
-- Kaushik Bhaumik, Burlingame, Calif.
Yellowstone (2018)
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