SCHEDULES OF THE PAST: 1986-1987 Mondays

I'm kicking off the 1986-87 season this week with a look at Mondays!

ABC	8:00	9:00	10:00
Sep	MacGyver	Monday Night Football
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan		Monday Night Movie
Feb
Mar
Apr
May

ABC found their perfect companion for Monday Night Football in the 1986-87 season. MacGyver had been a modestly rated drama on Sundays and then Wednesdays in its first season but ABC brought it to Monday nights. Though it never did break out in the ratings, the show fit like a glove with Monday Night Football with its male skew and heavy action. Monday Night Football ushered in a new era with the arrival of Al Michaels as the play-by-play commentator. He was paired with returning Frank Gifford for a two man booth. Michaels was best known at the time for calling the "Miracle on Ice" but he ended up having an iconic run, lasting all the way until the franchise left ABC after the 2005 season. As usual, a movie replaced football in January but it paled in the ratings compared to NBC's movie.

CBS	8:00	8:30	9:00	9:30	10:00
Sep	Kate & Allie	Together We Stand	Newhart	Designing Women	Cagney & Lacey
Oct		My Sister Sam
Nov
Dec				The Cavanaughs
Jan
Feb
Mar				Designing Women
Apr					West 57th
May					Cagney & Lacey

CBS revamped its Monday night lineup after having the same lineup for much of the previous three seasons. They went with a four sitcom block for the first time since 1982-83. Kate & Allie moved up an hour to become the lead-off show. While it was briefly followed by a two episode preview of Together We Stand, the actual follow-up show was the new My Sister Sam. Starring Pam Dawber and Rebecca Schaeffer as San Francisco sisters, the series held most of the Kate & Allie audience for its first season. After airing for four seasons in mostly 9:30pm slots, Newhart became an anchor show for the first time in its history by moving to 9pm. It ended up being ready for the upgrade and became the night's top rated show for CBS. It was followed by a new show, Designing Women. The Atlanta-set sitcom boasted a strong cast of women in Dixie Carter, Delta Burke, Jean Smart and Annie Potts. While Smart and Potts probably went on to have bigger careers after the show, Carter and Burke were the more well-known names at the time. The show had some trouble out of the gate and was moved for a time to Thursdays and then Sundays and on the verge of cancellation before returning to Mondays (thanks in part to a letter-writing campaign by fans). While it was gone from the night, it was replaced by The Cavanaughs, a family sitcom set in Boston and starring Barnard Hughes. It lasted for thirteen episodes and was renewed, but did not return until Summer 1988, well over a year after it had previously aired. Cagney & Lacey finished things off at 10pm again. It was showing its age in the ratings but still acclaimed. It was briefly put on hiatus and replaced by returning newsmagazine West 57th for the month of April.

NBC	8:00	8:30	9:00	10:00
Sep	ALF	Amazing Stories	Monday Night Movie
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Mar		Valerie
Apr
May

NBC revamped the 8pm hour of their Monday night lineup and started it with a new sitcom - ALF - about an extraterrestrial ("Alien Life Form") who crash-lands and then lives with a suburban family. The show was never a critical darling (surprise, surprise) but did connect with viewers and was a pretty solid lead-off performer on Mondays. It was initially followed by another show with a sci-fi angle, season two of Amazing Stories. The drama anthology was probably a reach renewal and struggled even more in its second season. It was pulled off Mondays in February and then cancelled at the end of the season. It has since become a cult favorite despite its short run. When the sci-fi companion show didn't work, NBC went with a family sitcom companion by returning Valerie to the night it had aired on the previous season. It had struggled on Sundays but showed improvement once it returned to Mondays. After the season, series star Valerie Harper asked for a raise and all hell broke loose over the Summer of 1987 that resulted in a bitter battle between her and the producers. It resulted in Harper being fired (though ultimately successful in court) and the show being renamed Valerie's Family for season three. A movie aired at 9pm for the whole season and was a pretty successful movie night for the network.

Top Rated Monday Show in 1986-87: Newhart (#12)
Lowest Rated Monday Show in 1986-87: Amazing Stories (#52)

What would I have watched on Mondays in 1986-87?
Monday Night Football, Newhart and Designing Women. Probably Valerie too and I would have given My Sister Sam a shot.

Tomorrow: Top 10 Halloween/Haunted Episodes (1995-Present)

Next Monday: A look at Tuesdays in 1986-87!