Welcome to Day 1 of the Blog Relaunch! On Mondays, I will take a look at schedules of the past starting with the 1985-86 season. If you're on a mobile device and the formatting looks weird for the grid, try it on a desktop or laptop! Here's a look at Mondays in the 1985-86 season!
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ABC
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8:00
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9:00
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10:00
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Sep
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Hardcastle & McCormick
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Monday Night Football
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Oct
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Nov
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Dec
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Jan
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Monday Night Movie
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Feb
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Mar
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Apr
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May
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ABC went all-in on the male audience on Monday nights in the Fall of 1985 with the third season of action drama
Hardcastle and McCormick continuing at 8pm leading into
Monday Night Football.
Hardcastle centered on the unlikely pairing of a judge (Brian Keith) and ex-con race car driver (Daniel Hugh Kelly). They, along with a totally awesome car, go after criminals. Playing like a buddy cop comedy and with a pulsing 80s soundtrack, the show was only a modest performer. It had dropped from #15 its first season to #39 in season two and now to #52, which resulted in a cancellation at the end of the season.
Monday Night Football was just two years removed from the departure of the legendary Howard Cosell and had an ill-fated attempt at adding famed Jets quarterback Joe Namath to the broadcast booth alongside Frank Gifford and, yes, OJ Simpson. Namath only lasted one year in the booth as both he and Simpson were replaced for 1986. As was often the case, a movie replaced football for the winter and spring.
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CBS
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8:00
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9:00
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9:30
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10:00
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Sep
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Scarecrow and Mrs. King
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Kate & Allie
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Newhart
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Cagney & Lacey
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Oct
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Nov
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Dec
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Jan
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Feb
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Mar
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Apr
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May
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The female-skewing CBS lineup stayed the same for all of 1985-86 with three shows having an "and" in their title. It was also the same lineup that aired in 1984-85 and for most of 1983-84 so even though this was a solid lineup, CBS was not tempted to mess with it by trying to put new shows in the mix. Season three of
Scarecrow and Mrs. King led off the night and saw a slight downturn in ratings that got it moved to Fridays for the following season. That segued into a comedy hour anchored by
Kate & Allie. Although it doesn't get much attention in reruns, it was a critically acclaimed hit in its day.
Newhart followed at 9:30pm in its fourth season. Like
The Bob Newhart Show before it, it was a popular show that never got the attention that some of its more critically acclaimed contemporaries got. The night ended with
Cagney & Lacey, a show that had gotten cancelled by CBS twice early in its run before becoming a Monday night staple. In its fifth season, the show won the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series this season and star Sharon Gless won Outstanding Lead Actress (beating co-star Tyne Daly, who had won the previous three years).
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NBC
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8:00
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8:30
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9:00
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10:00
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Sep
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TV’s Bloopers and Practical Jokes
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Monday Night Movie
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Oct
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Nov
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Dec
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Jan
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Feb
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Mar
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You Again?
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Valerie
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Apr
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May
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In the Fall of 1985, ABC had action and sports and CBS had comedies and dramedies so NBC kept their lineup from the previous year with an unscripted show and a movie.
TV's Bloopers and Practical Jokes was a variety show hosted by Dick Clark. It ended as a weekly series after this season but remained a series of specials that filled in for over a decade. It was pulled from the regular lineup in February to make room for a comedy block with two new sitcoms, both starring 1970s sitcoms stars in their return to the format.
You Again? starred Jack Klugman of
The Odd Couple as a gruff supermarket manager who suddenly had an estranged son, played by John Stamos, move in. It was followed by the family sitcom
Valerie, which brought Valerie Harper of
The Mary Tyler Moore Show and
Rhoda back to TV as a busy mom raising three sons (including Jason Bateman as the oldest). Of course this show gained notoriety due to Harper's feud with the producers and departure from the series, but more on that in future seasons. The new sitcom block fared well with
You Again? even placing in the Top 20 and both were renewed for a second season. A movie aired from 9-11pm all season and did significantly better than ABC's movie night (though
Monday Night Football beat the NBC movie).
Top Rated Monday Show in 1985-86: Kate & Allie (#14)
Lowest Rated Monday Show in 1985-86: Hardcastle and McCormick (#62)
What would I have watched on Mondays in 1985-86?Monday Night Football and Newhart for sure. I definitely would have given Valerie a try. Maybe I would have been a Cagney & Lacey fan too?
Tomorrow: Top 10 First Episodes of Comedies!
Next Monday: Tuesdays in 1985-86!
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