SCHEDULES OF THE PAST: 1985-1986 Thursdays

Here's a look at Thursdays in the 1985-86 season!

ABC	8:00	9:00	10:00
Sep	The Fall Guy	Lady Blue	20/20
Oct
Nov	Shadow Chasers	Various Programs
Dec		The Colbys
Jan
Feb	Ripley’s Believe It  or Not
Mar
Apr
May

With NBC dominating the night with its sitcom lineup, ABC went with two hours of drama to start off the night. At 8pm was The Fall Guy. The action drama had been a decent-sized hit, but was fading away in its fifth season. It was followed by the new Lady Blue, a Chicago-set police drama that was notable for being extremely violent for a network show. It was targeted by some watchdog groups and unlike a later police drama, NYPD Blue, it didn't translate to ratings. Both dramas were yanked off the night in mid-October and sent to Saturdays. Networks were quick to shuffle around their lineup back in those days. The 8pm replacement was Shadow Chasers, a sci-fi drama about a Paranormal Research Unit. It had the dubious distinction of being the lowest rated show on TV in 1985-86 but managed to last 10 episodes before it was replaced by a transplanted Ripley's Believe it or Not for the rest of the season. ABC went with a pretty strong effort for 9pm in late November by launching The Colbys, a spinoff of Dynasty. The show was incredibly similar down to the opening credits. It premiered on Wednesday, November 20 after a Dynasty episode and did well. It was supposed to air the next night but was preempted for an address by President Reagan. Reportedly, star Charlton Heston called Reagan to try to convince him to reschedule his address but it did not work. When it did premiere on Thursday a week later, it was already not nearly as strong as Dynasty. It was still an improvement for Thursdays and got renewed, but it was not the next great soap opera for the network. Throughout the entire season, 20/20 aired in the 10pm slot. The still-running newsmagazine was less than a decade old at that point.

CBS	8:00	9:00	10:00
Sep	Magnum P.I.	Simon & Simon	Knots Landing
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May	Simon & Simon	Bridges to Cross

Although all attention was on NBC on Thursday nights, CBS had a stable lineup of their own with three dramas that were airing together for a fourth year in a row. All three dramas had placed in the Top 15 the previous year. But they took a pretty hard fall this year. It was as if the audience just suddenly decided this night needed a shakeup though all three dramas continued for several more years, just not together. Season six of Magnum P.I. started things off but took the hardest fall. The youngest show was Simon & Simon at 9pm, in season five. Soap opera Knots Landing occupied the 10pm slot and was the night's top show for CBS. Very late in the season, CBS made a change by sending Magnum to Saturdays and sliding Simon & Simon up an hour to make room for the new drama Bridges to Cross. Despite boasting a solid cast including Suzanne Pleshette, Roddy McDowall and Eva Gabor, the magazine drama was pretty doomed from the start with an April 24 premiere date. It lasted just six episodes.

NBC	8:00	8:30	9:00	9:30	10:00
Sep	The Cosby Show	Family Ties	Cheers	Night Court	Hill Street Blues
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May

The previous season, NBC had turned Thursday night into a destination with The Cosby Show and the night became an even bigger success in 1985-86. It boasted the top show on all of TV in Cosby plus the #2 show (Family Ties), #5 show (Cheers) and #11 show (Night Court). These shows were all fairly young too and all except Night Court were nominated for the Outstanding Comedy Series Emmy Award, so this was an exciting night of television that had a very bright future. The Cosby Show had turned around NBC's comedy fortunes while Family Ties and Cheers were slow starters that had become big hits. In particular, this was Family Ties' year because series star Michael J. Fox had just appeared in the biggest movie hit of the summer, Back to the Future. Cheers was navigating the addition of Woody Harrelson following the passing of beloved supporting actor Nicholas Colasanto but they famously navigated that very well. Despite this ridiculously successful comedy lineup, the 10pm drama was nowhere near the top of the ratings. In fact, Hill Street Blues only ranked #33 for the year. Always a critical darling, Blues never became a breakout ratings hit. It was in its sixth season and showing its age. Series stars Daniel J. Travanti and Veronica Hamel were not nominated for Emmys for the first time though the show still was. With the comedy lineup just dominating, a change was coming for 10pm.

Top Rated Thursday Show in 1985-86: The Cosby Show (#1)

Lowest Rated Thursday Show in 1985-86: Shadow Chasers (#82)

What would I have watched on Thursdays in 1985-86?

The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Cheers and Hill Street Blues. If I was watching all those, I probably would have gotten into Night Court too.

Tomorrow: Top 10 TV Neighbors!

Next Monday: Fridays in 1985-86!