Talk:List of longest-running scripted American primetime television series

the list is painfully missing the actually longest series: Guiding Light Gabor vasarus (talk) 11:32, 21 March 2023 (UTC)


 * what happened to the top 1-6? You can't change things just to fit your agenda. They gave to be FACTS. Actual Facts. Where is the TV Show COPS? I'm reporting you for misuse. 2607:FB91:1A30:4BA7:9023:D15B:E3B5:8B7C (talk) 03:29, 24 June 2023 (UTC)

The first sentence of the article contradicts the article title
I would have removed the sentence outright, but it seems it has been there since its inception. Still, it's a deeply problematic contradiction that the article title is a "List of longest-running scripted U.S. primetime television series" and then adds the additional criteria of only shows that have aired on major broadcast networks. Either the article title should be changed, or someone should fix the article to match the title. Or both, if you wanted to split it into two articles. The last options seems like the most sensible. Beansy (talk) 23:19, 17 October 2017 (UTC)
 * Ok, but which minor networks would you include? Since now anyone can write and produce their own show, and post it on a web site, there needs to be some restriction. I suspect people reading this assume some definition of major, though maybe not the same as yours. Gah4 (talk) 22:49, 9 July 2021 (UTC)
 * Probably from any network eligible for primetime Emmy Awards. In the instructions it says no HBO, Comedy Central, FX, OWN, Showtime, Netflix despite all of those networks having shows which have won primetime Emmy awards.
 * Streaming originals have only really been a thing for the last 10 years or so, so I can't imagine many would actually make the list at this time but not including It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia despite being the longest running primetime US sitcom of all time is ridiculous. Same reason for South Park. Simkinsjohn1 (talk) 13:22, 2 April 2023 (UTC)
 * I agree with this comment. If a series is eligible for the Emmys, it should be considered. 2600:8802:5512:CD00:D1C7:B8:D3D9:6F4E (talk) 18:00, 30 April 2023 (UTC)
 * I agree with this comment. If a series is eligible for the Emmys, it should be considered. 2600:8802:5512:CD00:D1C7:B8:D3D9:6F4E (talk) 18:00, 30 April 2023 (UTC)

List
South Park should be on this list. YES, IT SHOULD GOD DAMN IT FOR THE HOLY SHIT. Someone wrote that Comedy Central is not a major network, but that is not the title of the article, the title is "List of longest-running scripted U.S. primetime television series" and it certainly fits that bill. FrozenMan (talk) 05:22, 20 March 2017 (UTC)

It is always sunny in picachuville is on for it's 1st season. Should be noted on here. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 73.93.143.2 (talk) 06:41, 12 March 2017 (UTC)

law and Order Criminal Intent should be on this list. I aired for ten seasons — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.166.238.194 (talk) 20:37, 14 April 2016 (UTC)


 * There are a lot of such exclusions, but that's not the biggest problem here. There is a references section which should be reserved for actual cited references, but not one of these is a source citation. These should be reformatted as footnotes and sourced. As it stands, it's simply a section of pure OR. As you said, the editors of the list seem to have a selective memory. Star Trek: Voyager is included but neither Star Trek: The Next Generation nor Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, both of which predate it, are present; all three ran seven seasons. A footnote says that the 24 revival somehow counts as a ninth season of the original series, but no such claim is made for either Dallas or Hawaii Five-0, both of which had revivals that lasted longer than one season. I'm not asking that this become a cruft dump for every series of at least seven seasons, but a more sensible system for inclusion should be developed. 50.153.250.113 (talk) 13:21, 29 May 2016 (UTC)

You forgot Stargate SG1. The show went on for 10 years! Release Original network Showtime (seasons 1–5) Syfy (seasons 6–10) Original release	July 27, 1997 – March 13, 2007 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 63.110.109.170 (talk) 20:09, 8 September 2016 (UTC)

Why wouldn't snl be the 1st Ahutoron (talk) 22:52, 15 March 2017 (UTC)

I agree with the first topic. Southpark absolutely deserves a spot. Major network or not, it has achieved just as impressive a showing! At the very least you could slot it with "noticeable credit x although comedy central is not a primetime station".

Give the credit, where credit is due! ;-) Rakkasan11B (talk) 04:37, 25 March 2017 (UTC) Octonauts should also be on this list due to its very educational factors.

Why are broadcast vs. cable separated when it comes to scripted U.S primetime?
To me it seems that this article just arbitrarily added the lines "Only shows that have aired on a major broadcast network are included. Those that moved to a cable network or syndication are noted below." without any real reason.

We already have articles that point to other longest running lists (longest US, longest US cable, longest US broadcast, longest US primetime) which at least some of include cable and other premium channels.

Why not include cable here? Or at the very least create two articles. One that is for Scripted US. Primetime Broadcast and another for Scripted US. Primetime Cable.

Then again I could make an argument that separating them makes less sense. Soon we'll get in the the realm where we're excluding series like House of Cards and other series that may run for over 7 seasons but because they were/are distributed on Netflix/Amazon/Hulu/Crackle they don't count? Netflix already has several series renewed through season 6 and Orange is the New Black is renewed through a seventh. This isn't looking at Nielsen ratings or anything like that, strictly time "on air" and number of seasons and/or episodes.

I don't really care, but as it stands now this article is kind of silly. The only reference is in the first line and it's been there (arbitrarily) since creation.

I haven't edited wikipedia in awhile and I'm not really up for creating a whole bunch of work, but it seems that a lot of edits and redactions stem from an inherent problem with this article.

Thoughts? Chupon (talk) 20:17, 8 June 2017 (UTC)


 * I'm in favor of expanding the list to include cable (and streaming) shows. If there are no objections, I'll start assembling the missing shows on one of my user pages, and will link the work here until it's ready to join. Dralwik&#124;Have a Chat 22:35, 25 September 2017 (UTC)

Big Brother
Does reality TV count as scripted? -KaJunl (talk) 20:11, 30 December 2017 (UTC) KaJunl (talk) 20:11, 30 December 2017 (UTC)

Is SNL Primetime?
SNL doesn't come on until 11:30 PM on Saturdays. Given that primetime is generally considered weekdays from 7 PM to 10 PM, is SNL really a primetime show? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.218.12.208 (talk) 22:33, 8 April 2018 (UTC)
 * I wondered about that too, but one could make the case that since the show is now broadcast live on the West Coast, it's a primetime show in that time zone. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 04:36, 20 April 2018 (UTC)
 * But even if being broadcast in Prime Time in one time zone (with just 1/6 of the population living there) counted, it should still only count THOSE episodes that were broadcast in prime time. Not every one that has aired. Otherwise, this list would be topped by a whole lot of soap operas that used to occasionally air some prime time episodes in the heyday of soap operas. So, any way you look at it, including SNL on this list makes the title of the list useless. My god..the cast used to literally be called "The NOT Ready for Prime Time Players" (BTW, to the OP...Prime Time is 8:00 to 11:00 on weekdays and 7:00 to 11:00 on Sundays, unless you are in the Central Time Zone.) Lakawak (talk) 12:58, 23 April 2018 (UTC)
 * Fair enough. I'll remove SNL from the list, because it doesn't have 7 seasons' worth of prime time broadcasts by any reasonable standard, much less 43. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 02:07, 24 April 2018 (UTC)
 * But when they do have seven seasons in Pacific time, can we include them? Gah4 (talk) 18:34, 11 October 2021 (UTC)

Non-broadcast-network shows
I removed the following shows from the list because they didn't meet the criterion that "Only shows that have aired on a major broadcast network for seven or more seasons are included": It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Stargate SG-1, The Walking Dead, Dexter, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Futurama, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. It's Always Sunny, Stargate, The Walking Dead, and Dexter were cable shows. Star Trek: TNG was syndicated. Futurama and L&O: CI started on major broadcast networks, but spent less than seven years on broadcast television before moving to cable. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 04:34, 20 April 2018 (UTC)

Dexter
Dexter shouldn't be on this list. It doesn't qualify for two reasons: 1) it aired on Showtime (CBS aired edited reruns of the first season in 2008) and 2) there were only 96 episodes. RiflingThrough (talk) 06:08, 26 July 2018 (UTC)

Murphy Brown
How should the list handle "Murphy Brown" which is currently in production of what is being called its 11th season, but after years of being off the air?
 * The list needs to handle "Murphy Brown" the same way the list handles "Roseanne" and "Will and Grace". The new shows are part of the same program, just with a large break between seasons. I've updated the list to reflect that. David Reiss (talk) 03:01, 12 November 2018 (UTC)

I'd like to see someway to show in a entry the specific runs for shows that have been revived (not reboots like "Magnum P.i." or "Hawaii Five-O"), like the ones listed above, as the current setup is misleading. Multiple start/end dates. Nothing underlying appears to involve a calculation. — Preceding unsigned comment added by DPJ626 (talk • contribs) 15:34, 17 April 2019 (UTC)

Ninjago
After 9 seasons, Ninjago has had 94 episodes. The 10th season will be released soon with only 4 episodes. Although that makes 98, the series have two pilot episodes. I was wondering if those two would count. If so, it would be put in the list. Thanks. 98.16.141.205 (talk) 20:31, 23 January 2019 (UTC)
 * Shows need to meet 100 episodes at a minimum. So if there are fewer than that, the don't meet the criteria. More so, they also need to be prime time televisions and broadcast upon a major network (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, CW, etc.) Cable TV channels don't count.  So no cartoon network.  We also don't include South Park or Always Sunny in Philadelphia because of that rule. So those are other reasons it wouldn't qualify for this list.  Once it gets to 100 episodes, it would seem to qualify for the List of longest-running United States television series. dreiss2 (talk) 21:38, 23 January 2019 (UTC)

Whoa wait!
So we’re just going to leave The Walking Dead off the list and call this accurate! Shemaiahrh (talk) 08:20, 24 November 2019 (UTC)

The Walking Dead is NOT on broadcast television. It does not qualify for this list. You would already know this fact if you bothered to read the requirements for a program to be included here. dreiss2 (talk) 11:26, 24 November 2019 (UTC)

Southpark
What about southpark? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.64.94.22 (talk) 00:35, 13 April 2020 (UTC)


 * Please read the rest of this page, and even the heading on the main page. Comedy Central does not qualify as a Major Broadcast network.  So Southpark does not qualify for this list.  Also, your comment on this page was originally not included in the proper place on the page.  The layout of the page is supposed to be helpful for people who actually read the pages.   Please read the pages before posting random questions.  You will find, more often than not, that your question was already directly addressed.  dreiss2 (talk) 01:54, 13 April 2020 (UTC)

South park?
Why is south park not on the list with 23 seasons and running since 1997? J cool bro  (talk) (c) 21:24, 5 June 2020 (UTC)


 * This has already been answered. Scroll up on this very page. Or read the comments in the text of the page itself. This is explained in multiple different places. Read those answers.  If you refuse to read then no answer from me here is going to help because you will just once again refuse to read it. dreiss2 (talk) 22:48, 5 June 2020 (UTC)

Would Pokémon Count?
I realize it was primarily produced in Japan but the dubbing still occured in the U.S. and it has 23 seasons. Aired on American broadcast television, is scripted, and is (or is now ) airing during prime time. Chaotic_Dagger (talk) 15:35, 26 October 2020 (UTC)

Why does Survivor link to SVU?
And why does it have so many ? symbols?

hours
I notice some counts have a comment on counting multiple show episodes separately. It seems to me, though, that half-hour and hour long shows should somehow be counted differently. That is, what is important is the total amount of show time. Not that I know of a solution, but it does seem important in the case of some shows. Gah4 (talk) 22:54, 9 July 2021 (UTC)

WP:Articles_for_deletion/List_of_Nobel_laureates_by_university_affiliation
There is a discussion in: WP:Articles_for_deletion/List_of_Nobel_laureates_by_university_affiliation about deleting an article that is a list of things that reminds me of this article. Among the discussion is it being WP:SYNTH and WP:OR. It seems that similar reasoning applies to this article, and some related List of ... television series articles. Gah4 (talk) 22:48, 12 October 2021 (UTC)

It’s always sunny in Philadelphia is missing from this list
IASIP has been running for 15 seasons and should be added 69.204.227.28 (talk) 00:54, 13 July 2022 (UTC)

Sesame Street
If anyone wants a little tidbit Sesame Street is still on the air and has been running for 53 years. There for making it being aired longer than the Simpsons. 2601:681:8700:B040:B83B:25C0:EEDA:56E4 (talk) 16:03, 31 July 2022 (UTC)


 * I don't think Sesame Street counts as a prime time show. ThePlug111 (talk) 05:45, 27 February 2023 (UTC)

The Woodwright's Shop
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Woodwright%27s_Shop

This show has been running continuously since 1979, nationally since 1981 on PBS.

How is this not at the top of the list? indy_muaddib (talk) 02:21, 26 August 2022 (UTC)

And before someone says PBS is not a major network, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_over-the-air_television_networks

It's a major network. indy_muaddib (talk) 02:23, 26 August 2022 (UTC)


 * Not sure if that counts as "scripted". ThePlug111 (talk) 05:44, 27 February 2023 (UTC)

Survivor
Survivor is getting ready to air its 43rd season on CBS. 2603:8081:7300:109F:6112:370F:7A3C:EB10 (talk) 02:56, 13 September 2022 (UTC)


 * Survivor is not scripted. ThePlug111 (talk) 05:43, 27 February 2023 (UTC)

Rick and Morty
Rick and Morty has been airing since 2013, shouldn't it be on this list? ThePlug111 (talk) 05:42, 27 February 2023 (UTC)

Why seven seasons?
Why was seven seasons chosen as a criteria for this list? It seems rather arbitrary and penalizes older shows that had many more episodes per season than our current era. For example, I LOVE LUCY had over 180 episodes, but it is ineligible because it only ran for six seasons. That's a remarkable achievement for a series that was undeniably a cultural juggernaut, yet it falls one season short of qualifying? I think the season number criteria should be either lowered or removed entirely. 2600:8802:5512:CD00:D1C7:B8:D3D9:6F4E (talk) 17:59, 30 April 2023 (UTC)

Ancient Aliens
Not sure if it qualifies but Ancient Aliens is up to season 19 Ronncraddock (talk) 01:37, 26 May 2023 (UTC)