TV Shows of the 1980's
Great shows from the last great decade in no order.
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- CreatorDonald P. BellisarioGlen A. LarsonStarsTom SelleckJohn HillermanRoger E. MosleyThe adventures of a Hawaii-based private investigator.
- CreatorPhilip DeGuere Jr.StarsJameson ParkerGerald McRaneyMary CarverTwo brothers of disparate tastes and manners run a private detective agency.
- CreatorJohn WilderStarsRobert UrichAvery BrooksRon McLartyMystery and suspense series based on Robert Parker's "Spenser" novels. Spenser, a private investigator living in Boston, gets involved in a new murder mystery each episode.
- CreatorLawrence GordonStarsLee HorsleyPamela HensleyLincoln KilpatrickMatt Houston is a wealthy Texan who moves to California to oversee his family's offshore drilling enterprises but spends most of his time dabbling in his private investigator hobby.
- CreatorGlen A. LarsonLeslie StevensStarsGil GerardErin GrayFelix SillaA 20th-century astronaut emerges out of 500 years of suspended animation into a future time to become Earth's greatest hero.
- CreatorDick ClairHoward LeedsJerry MayerStarsLisa WhelchelKim FieldsMindy CohnMrs. Edna Garrett, housemother and dietitian at the Eastland School, teaches a group of girls in her charge how to solve those problems that every teenager has to face.
- CreatorStephen J. CannellFrank LupoStarsGeorge PeppardMr. TDwight SchultzFour Vietnam vets, framed for a crime they didn't commit, help the innocent while on the run from the military.
- CreatorDon ReoStarsJeff ConawayWalter OlkewiczDuncan RegehrThe legendary Kingdom of Camarand is ruled by good King Baaldorf and Queen Lattinia. Their daughter, Ariel, is engaged to Prince Erik, who becomes Camarand's Champion against a neighboring kingdom ruled by evil Prince Dirk Blackpool.
- CreatorReinhold WeegeStarsHarry AndersonJohn LarroquetteRichard MollAn eccentric fun-loving judge presides over an urban night court and all the silliness going on there.
- CreatorJames BurrowsGlen CharlesLes CharlesStarsTed DansonRhea PerlmanJohn RatzenbergerThe regulars of the Boston bar "Cheers" share their experiences and lives with each other while drinking or working at the bar where everybody knows your name.
- CreatorLane SlateStarsRobert StackDorian HarewoodRichard RomanusCaptain Frank Murphy is in charge of a division that only handles the most difficult cases of the Los Angeles police department. He has assembled a diverse team to take on the craftiest criminals.
- CreatorStephen J. CannellPatrick HasburghStarsBrian KeithDaniel Hugh KellyJoe SantosA retired judge and his last defendant follow up on cases that were dismissed due to technicalities.
- CreatorStephen J. CannellFrank LupoStarsPerry KingJoe PennyThom BrayThe cases of a private investigations agency run by two Vietnam War veterans and their computer geek friend from high school, armed with toughness, their own helicopter, and the third's technical ability.
- CreatorDonald P. BellisarioStarsJan-Michael VincentAlex CordErnest BorgnineAs part of a deal with an intelligence agency to look for his missing brother, a renegade pilot goes on missions with an advanced battle helicopter.
- StarsJames FarentinoDana CarveySandy McPeakAn advanced prototype police helicopter and their ground support crew battle crime.
- CreatorEsther ShapiroRichard Alan ShapiroStarsJohn ForsytheLinda EvansJoan CollinsThe trials and tribulations of two feuding families, the Carringtons and the Colbys, both oil rich families in Denver, Colorado.
- CreatorRick HuskyStarsWilliam ShatnerHeather LocklearAdrian ZmedThe weekly adventures of tough-as-nails veteran police officer Sgt. T.J. Hooker, who rides the beat with his rookie partner Vince Romano.
- CreatorKenneth JohnsonStarsMarc SingerFaye GrantMichael IronsideA year after Liberation Day, courtesy of the red-dust bacteria, the humanoid, lizard-like aliens develop a resistance to the micro-organism and try to regain control of the Earth--only now, some humans are knowingly working with them.
- CreatorGy WaldronStarsTom WopatJohn SchneiderCatherine BachThe adventures of the fast-drivin', rubber-burnin' Duke boys of Hazzard County.
- CreatorGene RoddenberryStarsPatrick StewartBrent SpinerJonathan FrakesSet almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before.
- CreatorGlen A. LarsonStarsDavid HasselhoffEdward MulhareRichard BasehartA lone crimefighter battles the forces of evil with the help of a virtually indestructible and artificially intelligent supercar.
- CreatorDonald P. BellisarioStarsStephen CollinsJeff MacKayCaitlin O'HeaneyThe adventures of a 1930's Pacific Islands bush pilot and his companions.
- CreatorFrank CardeaGeorge SchenckStarsBruce BoxleitnerClyde KusatsuRon O'NealPith-helmeted Buck is a Great White Hunter who here (unlike the real one from the 1940s) works out of the Raffles Hotel bar in Singapore during the 1930s fighting all kinds of bad guys in pre-war Malaya.
- CreatorAnthony YerkovichStarsDon JohnsonPhilip Michael ThomasSaundra Santiago-Resplendent with authentic 1980s music, fashion, and vibe, "Miami Vice" follows two undercover detectives and their extended team through the mean streets of Miami, Florida.
- CreatorRichard LindheimMichael SloanStarsEdward WoodwardKeith SzarabajkaRobert LansingA retired Intelligence Agent turned private detective helps various threatened clients to equalize the odds.
- CreatorRon KoslowStarsRon PerlmanRoy DotriceJay AcovoneThe adventures and romance of a sensitive and cultured lion-man and a crusading assistant district attorney in Manhattan, New York City.
- CreatorMichael LeesonStarsBill CosbyPhylicia RashadMalcolm-Jamal WarnerThe goings-on in the life of a successful African-American family.
- StarsTom SmothersDick SmothersJim StaffordTom and Dick Smothers return to TV in this revival of the traditional variety show, mixing comedy skits, stand-up routines and musical numbers. Joining the Smothers each week were a number of aspiring young talents and veteran performers.
- CreatorL. Travis ClarkSteve DuncanStarsTerence KnoxStephen CaffreyTony BeckerThe trials of a U.S. Army platoon serving in the field during the Vietnam War.
- CreatorGlen A. LarsonStarsLee MajorsDouglas BarrHeather ThomasThe adventures of a film stuntman who moonlights as a bounty hunter when movie work is slow.
- StarsJack ScaliaLisa HartmanRick EdwardsBrennan Flannery is a former race car driver, who runs a school for aspiring drivers. He is then approached by Blue Stratton, a former military intelligence operative, who wants to start his own bodyguard business, who convinces Brennan to expand the school to include that. Now, Blue along with Brennan's daughter, Kate, who is survival expert, and Shane Adams, an aspring race car driver, go out on a mission every episode, protecting someone or something.
- CreatorJim AbrahamsDavid ZuckerJerry ZuckerStarsLeslie NielsenAlan NorthEd WilliamsSight gags, puns and non-sequiturs ensue as bumbling Sgt. Det. Lt. Frank Drebin and his colleagues at Police Squad solve various puzzling cases.
- CreatorTom MankiewiczStarsRobert UrichPatrick MacneeKate ReidRobert Gavilan is a former CIA agent. who is now working for Oceanographic Institute headed by Marion Jaworski. Now was in awhile someone from his past as a spy comes to him asking for his help. Or one of the jobs that he is on, somehow turns into trouble. Or someone just needs his help as both as former spy or/and as an Oceanographer. Milo Bentley is an old friend of his father's who is staying in Robert's guest room and uses his history with his father to freeload and mooch off him.
- CreatorDick ClairJenna McMahonStu SilverStarsGail EdwardsBarrie YoungfellowPaul KreppelThis series featured a group of waitresses (and a pianist, Sonny) who work at a fancy restaurant at the top of a skyscraper.
- CreatorBrian CookeEarl BarretArne SultanStarsTed KnightNancy DussaultJim J. BullockIn liberal San Francisco a conservative cartoonist tries to keep his two daughters, who rent an apartment below him, safe. In season 6 the cartoonist buys a small-town newspaper in Tiburon.
- CreatorLarry BrodyStarsStacy KeachLindsay BloomDon StroudThe cases of Mickey Spillane's classic private eye character.
- CreatorAlan SpencerStarsDavid RascheAnne-Marie MartinHarrison PageThe adventures of a deranged and dumb police detective who always looks for the most violent solution to any problem.
- StarsCliff PottsYaphet KottoShelley SmithFort Geller Texas is training center for paratroopers with instructors China Bell and more lenient Eugene Allard molding diverse recruits into a unit. Their captain is rascist Stephen Wiecek whose adulterous wife Phyllis drinks excessively.
- StarsLorna PattersonHal WilliamsEileen BrennanThe misadventures of a spoiled young woman who joins the army and her friends.
- CreatorSidney SheldonStarsRobert WagnerStefanie PowersLionel StanderThe globe-trotting adventures of amateur detectives Jonathan and Jennifer Hart.
- CreatorDouglas Stefen BorghiDean HargroveJoel SteigerStarsWilliam ConradJoe PennyAlan CampbellVeteran district attorney "Fatman" McCabe solves cases with the help of his easygoing private investigator partner Jake Styles.
- CreatorMichael SloanStarsLee Van CleefTimothy Van PattenShô KosugiAn aging American ninja master and his headstrong young apprentice search for the elder man's daughter.
- CreatorStephen J. CannellStarsWilliam KattConnie SelleccaRobert CulpA teacher is asked to be a superhero using a special alien suit with powers he can barely understand or control.
- CreatorFrank LupoStarsFred DryerStepfanie KramerCharles HallahanRick Hunter is a renegade cop who bends the rules and takes justice into his own hands. Partnered with the equally stunning and rebellious Sgt. McCall, he sets out to crack down on L.A.'s slimiest criminals.
- CreatorGlenn Gordon CaronStarsCybill ShepherdBruce WillisAllyce BeasleyThe quirky cases of a former model and a smart aleck detective who manage a private detective agency.
- CreatorRobert ButlerMichael GleasonStarsStephanie ZimbalistPierce BrosnanDoris RobertsThe cases of a female private detective partnered with a former thief who assumes the role of a fictitious detective in the business.
- CreatorChuck AdamsonGustave ReiningerStarsDennis FarinaBill SmitrovichTony DenisonThe saga of a Chicago police detective's efforts to stop a young hood's ruthless rise in the ranks of organized crime.
- StarsBarbara MandrellLouise MandrellIrlene MandrellCountry music-variety series starring country superstar Barbara Mandrell and her sisters, Louise, and Irlene.
- CreatorJerry BelsonJames L. BrooksKen EstinStarsTracey UllmanDan CastellanetaSam McMurrayTracey Ullman hosts a variety show containing sketches, song-and-dance routines, and The Simpsons.
- CreatorGarry ShandlingAlan ZweibelStarsGarry ShandlingMolly CheekMichael TucciGarry Shandling pokes fun at sitcom conventions in his own unique fourth-wall breaking meta sitcom.
- CreatorBarry KempSheldon BullStarsBob NewhartMary FrannTom PostonThe misadventures of an author-turned-innkeeper and his friends in rural Vermont.
- CreatorDonald R. BoyleGlen A. LarsonStarsSimon MacCorkindaleMelody AndersonReni SantoniA suave and elegant university professor, who can shape-shift into any animal, fights crime along with a female New York detective and his right-hand man.
- CreatorBrad BucknerEugenie Ross-LemingStarsKate JacksonBruce BoxleitnerBeverly GarlandThe adventures of a housewife and a spy, with whom she fell in love.
- CreatorGary David GoldbergStarsMichael J. FoxMichael GrossMeredith BaxterChronicles liberal ex-hippies Steven and Elyse Keaton, their conservative son Alex, daughters Mallory and Jennifer, and later, youngest child Andrew.
- CreatorDanielle AlexandraMichael JacobsStarsPaul ReiserGreg EviganStaci KeananWhen Marcy Bradford dies, she leaves her teenage daughter Nicole in the custody of two ex-boyfriends: straight-laced, formal Michael and wild artist Joey.
- CreatorBarbara AvedonBarbara CordayStarsTyne DalySharon GlessAl WaxmanTwo female police detectives cooperate with each other both in their professions and in their personal lives.
- CreatorSherry CobenStarsSusan Saint JamesJane CurtinFrederick KoehlerTwo divorced mothers and their children share an apartment.
- CreatorDiane EnglishStarsCandice BergenGrant ShaudRobert PastorelliThe personal and professional misadventures of an opinionated but beloved woman working as a television journalist.
- CreatorTom PatchettJay TarsesStarsDabney ColemanJoanna CassidyMax WrightEgotistical Buffalo TV host Bill Bittinger bullies crew and guests, driving station manager Karl Shub mad with lawsuits. Only director Jo Jo White stands up to Bill's tantrums as he fails to break into bigger markets.
- CreatorAnne BeattsStarsSarah Jessica ParkerAmy LinkerMerritt ButrickPatty Greene and Lauren Hutchinson, two awkward teenage girls, are desperate to fit in at Weemawee High School.
- CreatorDavid W. DuclonBob IllesJames R. SteinStarsJean SagalLiz SagalJames VallelySitcom about the antics between two twins, Kate and Allison. Allison was always the serious outgoing sister, while Kate was more fun and laid-back.
- CreatorHoward LeedsStarsRichard ChristieMarla PenningtonJerry SupiranThe zany adventures of a suburban family, their next-door neighbors, and an innovative robot designed to look like a human child.
- CreatorCharlie HauckStarsJason BatemanJeremy LichtDan PonceOriginally is was the saga of a working mom raising her three sons alone while her pilot husband was away, but after star Valerie Harper left, Sandy Duncan stepped in as the boys' aunt.
- CreatorStu SilverStarsEmmanuel LewisAlex KarrasSusan ClarkThe post-retirement season is suddenly disrupted for football player George Papadapolis and his wife Katherine when Webster, the orphaned son of a former teammate, moves in. Laughter, and life lessons, in every episode.
- CreatorDavid W. DuclonStarsSoleil Moon FryeGeorge GaynesCherie JohnsonYoung Punky Brewster is abandoned with her dog, Brandon, in a supermarket. When she befriends Henry Warnimont, her new family life begins.
- CreatorFrank DunganJeff SteinStarsChristopher HewettBob UeckerIlene GraffThe humourous adventures of an English housekeeper working for an American family.
- CreatorFred Fox Jr.Brian LevantStarsDerek McGrathJerry O'ConnellWanda CannonThe adventures of a superpowered teen and his scientist friend.
- CreatorRoseanne BarrMatt WilliamsStarsRoseanne BarrJohn GoodmanLaurie MetcalfA revival of the popular 1990s sitcom "Roseanne," which centered on the everyday life of an American working-class family.
- StarsCathy Lee CrosbyJohn DavidsonFran TarkentonA collection of amazing feats of human and animal endeavor.
- StarsPriscilla PresleyBurgess MeredithJim StaffordA show focusing on various animals both in the studio and in nature footage.
- CreatorChris ThompsonRobert L. BoyettThomas L. MillerStarsTom HanksPeter ScolariDonna DixonTwo young single ad men must disguise themselves as women to live in the one apartment they can afford.
- CreatorSteven BochcoMichael KozollStarsDaniel J. TravantiMichael WarrenBruce WeitzThe lives and work of the staff of an inner city police precinct.
- StarsDonna PescowMaureen FlanniganBurt ReynoldsA teenager discovers that her birth father is an alien and that she has supernatural powers.
- CreatorLinda Bloodworth-ThomasonStarsDelta BurkeDixie CarterAnnie PottsThe misadventures of four women and their handyman running a design firm in Atlanta, Georgia.
- CreatorSusan HarrisStarsBea ArthurBetty WhiteRue McClanahanFour previously married women live together in Miami, sharing their various experiences together and enjoying themselves despite hard times.
- StarsErnest ThomasHaywood NelsonShirley Hemphill"What's Happening Now!" is a sequel to "What's Happening!," a TV series about the adult main characters (Raj, Dwayne, Rerun, Shirley, and Dee) as teenagers/children.
- CreatorJohn FuriaBarry OringerStarsJames BrolinConnie SelleccaNathan CookThe misadventures of the staff and guests of the St. Gregory Hotel.
- StarsWilliam ConradLee HorsleyGeorge VoskovecThe short-lived adventures of portly detective Nero Wolfe, who would rather eat and tend to his orchids than hit the streets tracking down leads. That's why he hired hunky Archie Goodwin, who provides the brawn that complements Wolfe's brains.
- CreatorLawrence GordonRick HuskyStarsPatrick SwayzeRandy BrooksPaul MonesAn urban street gang operates as undercover agents for the police.
- CreatorDean HargroveStarsAndy GriffithLinda PurlKene HolidayBen Matlock is a very expensive criminal defense attorney, who charges one hundred thousand dollars to take a case. Fortunately, he's worth every penny, as he and his associates defend his clients by finding the real killer.
- CreatorEric BercoviciStarsJames ArnessMarshall ColtGeorge DiCenzoJim McClain was a cop and after being injured and deemed unfit for duty he was retired and for the past fifteen years was working on a fishing boat. One day he and his partner sell their boat. His partner cashes the check and is walking around with the cash in his pocket and is robbed and killed. McClain feels that the police are not doing enough so he tried to get reinstated, which the current head of homicide opposes. However, McClain gets what he wants and after apprehending his partner's killer, he stays on, which doesn't make his current boss all that happy because he doesn't like McClain's way of doing things or disregard for the rules.
- StarsLynda CarterLoni AndersonWalter OlkewiczWhen their ex-husband Raymond winds up murdered, Carole and Sydney set out to find his killer and eventually decide to run the detective agency Raymond has left them.
- CreatorEarl PomerantzStarsJoel HigginsCarlene WatkinsMeeno PeluceThe Wild West misadventures of a mild-mannered store owner turned town Marshal.
- CreatorMichael EliasRich EustisStarsWilliam G. SchillingJeannetta ArnetteDan FrischmanA laidback teacher provides needed guidance about life for a special class of exceptional students.
- CreatorJames L. BrooksMatt GroeningSam SimonStarsDan CastellanetaNancy CartwrightHarry ShearerThe satiric half-hour adventures of a working-class family in the misfit city of Springfield.
- CreatorMartin CohanBlake HunterStarsTony DanzaJudith LightAlyssa MilanoTony Micelli, a retired baseball player, becomes the housekeeper of Angela Bower, an advertising executive in New York. Together they raise their kids, Samantha Micelli and Jonathan Bower, with help from Mona Robinson, Angela's man-crazy mother.
- CreatorDale McRavenStarsBronson PinchotMark Linn-BakerMelanie WilsonA high-strung and cynical man's life is never the same when his naive but good-natured cousin comes to America to live with him.
- CreatorBill BoulwareJack ElinsonMichael G. MoyeStarsHelen MartinMarla GibbsHal WilliamsThis series took place in an apartment building numbered 227. The cast would frequently be sitting outside on a large set of stone stairs, involved in some discussion that would unfold into the weekly plotline.
- CreatorSteven BochcoTerry Louise FisherStarsCorbin BernsenJill EikenberryAlan RachinsThe lives and work of the staff of a major Los Angeles law firm.
- CreatorEd. WeinbergerStarsSherman HemsleyClifton DavisAnna Maria HorsfordRev. Rueben Gregory, finds dealing with the headstrong, opinionated, and unethical Deacon Ernest Frye--who works as a lawyer when not tending to church business--won't make his job easy.
- CreatorJeff FranklinStarsBob SagetJohn StamosDave CoulierA widowed sportscaster raises his three daughters with assistance from his rock and roll brother-in-law and madcap best friend.
- StarsRalph BatesPeter BlakePeter DenyerJohn Lacey comes home one evening to discover a letter from his wife, starting with "Dear John" and informing him that she is leaving him. Lonely and now divorced, John joins a club where lonely divorced people can meet.
- CreatorPeter S. FischerRichard LevinsonWilliam LinkStarsAngela LansburyWilliam WindomRon MasakProfessional writer and amateur sleuth Jessica Fletcher uses her intellect, charm, and persistence to get to the bottom of every crime she encounters.
- CreatorSusan HarrisStarsRichard MulliganDinah ManoffDavid Leisure"Empty Nest" tells of the day to day misadventures of a widowed pediatrician named Harry Weston and his two adult daughters, Barbara and Carol, who have come back to live with him after failed marriages.
- StarsPeter CookMimi KennedyOliver ClarkTelevision talk-show host and single mother Nan Gallagher needs help managing her home, so she places an ad in the newspaper for a housekeeper and English butler Robert Brentwood answers it. He's arrogant and pompous and not particularly fond of Americans, but Nan decides to give him a try, and he decides to give her, and American life, a try.
- CreatorNeal MarlensStarsAlan ThickeJoanna KernsKirk CameronThe misadventures of a family with a home business father and a journalist mother.
- CreatorDan GuntzelmanSteve MarshallStarsBill KirchenbauerDeborah HarmonHeather LangenkampGym teacher Graham Lubbock and his wife Elizabeth live in Eureka, California with their eight children.
- CreatorBernie KukoffStarsJoseph BolognaTisha CampbellBlanca De GarrA wealthy widowed businessman adopts five daughters to live with him at his mansion.
- CreatorMartin CohanDavid W. DuclonRon LeavittStarsRicky SchroderErin GrayJoel HigginsRicky Stratton is a spoiled rich kid who lives the life that many kids dream of, but he still suffers from the problems that many teens do.
- CreatorBarbara WeisbergMichael JacobsBarbara WeisbergStarsScott BaioWillie AamesNicole EggertCharles, a college student, is a live-in housekeeper in the Powell household. Charles, along with his friend Buddy, attempts to juggle his studies, friendships, and duties to the family.