The 50 best TV shows from 1980 to now
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- CreatorDavid CraneMarta KauffmanStarsJennifer AnistonCourteney CoxLisa KudrowFollows the personal and professional lives of six twenty to thirty year-old friends living in the Manhattan borough of New York City.
- CreatorAaron SorkinStarsMartin SheenRob LoweAllison JanneyInside the lives of staffers in the West Wing of the White House.
- CreatorMitchell HurwitzStarsJason BatemanMichael CeraPortia de RossiLevel-headed son Michael Bluth takes over family affairs after his father is imprisoned. But the rest of his spoiled, dysfunctional family are making his job unbearable.
- CreatorDavid ChaseStarsJames GandolfiniLorraine BraccoEdie FalcoNew Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano deals with personal and professional issues in his home and business life that affect his mental state, leading him to seek professional psychiatric counseling.
- 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.
- CreatorDavid AngellPeter CaseyDavid LeeStarsKelsey GrammerJane LeevesDavid Hyde PierceDr. Frasier Crane moves back to his hometown of Seattle, where he lives with his father and works as a radio psychiatrist.
- CreatorAlan BallStarsPeter KrauseMichael C. HallFrances ConroyA chronicle of the lives of a dysfunctional family who run an independent funeral home in Los Angeles.
- CreatorLarry DavidStarsLarry DavidCheryl HinesJeff GarlinLarry David stars as an over-the-top version of himself in this comedy series that shows how seemingly trivial details of day-to-day life can precipitate a catastrophic chain of events.
- CreatorBill LawrenceStarsZach BraffDonald FaisonSarah ChalkeIn the unreal world of Sacred Heart Hospital, intern John "J.D." Dorian learns the ways of medicine, friendship and life.
- CreatorBruno HellerWilliam J. MacDonaldJohn MiliusStarsKevin McKiddRay StevensonPolly WalkerA down-to-earth account of the lives of both illustrious and ordinary Romans set in the last days of the Roman Republic.
- CreatorDennis KleinGarry ShandlingStarsGarry ShandlingJeffrey TamborWallace LanghamA comedic behind the scenes look at a late night talk show.
- CreatorMichael Patrick KingLisa KudrowStarsLisa KudrowLance BarberRobert Michael MorrisAn ex A-list celebrity attempts to rekindle the flame of her once prominent acting career with nothing but a camera crew and some determination.
- CreatorMatthew WeinerStarsJon HammElisabeth MossVincent KartheiserA drama about one of New York's most prestigious ad agencies at the beginning of the 1960s, focusing on one of the firm's most mysterious but extremely talented ad executives, Donald Draper.
- CreatorJ.J. AbramsJeffrey LieberDamon LindelofStarsJorge GarciaJosh HollowayYunjin KimThe survivors of a plane crash are forced to work together in order to survive on a seemingly deserted tropical island.
- CreatorVince GilliganStarsBryan CranstonAaron PaulAnna GunnA chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer turns to manufacturing and selling methamphetamine with a former student in order to secure his family's future.
- 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.
- CreatorSteve FranksStarsJames Roday RodriguezDulé HillTimothy OmundsonWhen a novice sleuth convinces the police he has psychic powers, he and his reluctant best friend are hired on as consultants to help solve complicated cases.
- CreatorMark FrostDavid LynchStarsKyle MacLachlanMichael OntkeanMädchen AmickAn idiosyncratic FBI agent investigates the murder of a young woman in the even more idiosyncratic town of Twin Peaks.
- CreatorShawn RyanStarsMichael ChiklisCatherine DentWalton GogginsDrama series following the lives and cases of dirty cop Vic Mackey and the corrupt LAPD unit under his command.
- CreatorDavid SimonStarsDominic WestLance ReddickSonja SohnThe Baltimore drug scene, as seen through the eyes of drug dealers and law enforcement.
- CreatorGreg DanielsRicky GervaisStephen MerchantStarsSteve CarellJenna FischerJohn KrasinskiA mockumentary on a group of typical office workers, where the workday consists of ego clashes, inappropriate behavior, tedium and romance.
- CreatorRicky GervaisStephen MerchantStarsRicky GervaisMartin FreemanMackenzie CrookThe story of an office that faces closure when the company decides to downsize its branches. A documentary film crew follow staff and the manager David Brent as they continue their daily lives.
- CreatorAlan BallStarsAnna PaquinStephen MoyerSam TrammellTelepathic waitress Sookie Stackhouse encounters a strange new supernatural world when she meets the mysterious Bill Compton, a southern Louisiana gentleman and vampire.
- CreatorTina FeyStarsTina FeyAlec BaldwinTracy MorganLiz Lemon, head writer of the sketch-comedy show "TGS with Tracy Jordan", must deal with an arrogant new boss and a crazy new star while trying to run a successful television show without losing her mind.
- CreatorDavid E. KelleyStarsDylan McDermottKelli WilliamsLara Flynn BoyleWe follow the exploits and cases of defense attorneys of a Boston law firm. Bobby Donnell is the senior defense attorney and founder of the firm.
- CreatorDavid E. KelleyStarsJames SpaderWilliam ShatnerCandice BergenBoston Legal is a spin-off of the long-running David E. Kelley series The Practice (1997), following the exploits of former Practice character Alan Shore (James Spader) at the legal firm of Crane, Poole, and Schmidt.
- CreatorMichael CrichtonStarsAnthony EdwardsGeorge ClooneyJulianna MarguliesThe doctors who work in the ER at the County General Hospital in Chicago grapple with ups and downs in their personal and professional lives while trying to give apt medical care to their patients.
- CreatorAndy BreckmanStarsTony ShalhoubJason Gray-StanfordTed LevineThe series follows Adrian Monk, a brilliant former San Francisco detective, who now consults the police as a private consultant whilst battling with an obsessive-compulsive disorder.
- CreatorMatt NixStarsJeffrey DonovanGabrielle AnwarBruce CampbellA spy recently disavowed by the U.S. government uses his special ops training to help others in trouble.
- StarsConan O'BrienThe Tonight Show BandAndy RichterOpening monologues, sketches, celebrity interviews, and musical performances are commonly featured.
- CreatorDick WolfRick EidStarsJerry OrbachJesse L. MartinDennis FarinaNew York's finest police detectives and prosecutors fight to make the city a safer place. With integrity as the guiding force from investigation to verdict, the teams weigh every perspective in their commitment to finding justice.
- CreatorDick WolfStarsMariska HargitayChristopher MeloniIce-TThis series follows the Special Victims Unit, a specially trained squad of detectives in the New York City Police Department that investigate sexually related crimes.
- CreatorDoug EllinStarsKevin ConnollyAdrian GrenierKevin DillonFilm star, Vince Chase, navigates the vapid terrain of Los Angeles with a close circle of friends and his trusty agent.
- CreatorLarry DavidJerry SeinfeldStarsJerry SeinfeldJulia Louis-DreyfusMichael RichardsThe continuing misadventures of neurotic New York City stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld and his equally neurotic New York City friends.
- CreatorJames L. BrooksMatt GroeningSam SimonStarsDan CastellanetaNancy CartwrightHarry ShearerThe satiric adventures of a working-class family in the misfit city of Springfield.
- CreatorMadeleine SmithbergLizz WinsteadStarsJon StewartTrevor NoahStephen ColbertA comedy news show featuring humorous takes on top stories.
- CreatorStephen ColbertBen KarlinJon StewartStarsStephen ColbertJay KatsirJon StewartSatirical newscaster Stephen Colbert provides humorous commentary on the big issues going on in the United States and the rest of the world, with his larger-than-life ego and overly-patriotic spirit along with him every step of the way.
- CreatorDavid LettermanStarsDavid LettermanPaul ShafferAlan KalterThe Late Show with David Letterman is an hour-long weeknight comedy and talk-show broadcast by CBS from the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway in New York City.
- CreatorPaul FeigStarsLinda CardelliniJohn Francis DaleyJames FrancoA high school mathlete starts hanging out with a group of burnouts while her younger brother navigates his freshman year.
- CreatorSydney NewmanStarsJodie WhittakerPeter CapaldiPearl MackieThe further adventures in time and space of the alien adventurer known as the Doctor and his companions from planet Earth.
- StarsConan O'BrienThe Max Weinberg 7Andy RichterConan O'Brien, a Harvard Lampoon alumnus, hosts this late-night comedy/talk-show, which is often silly and whimsical.
- StarsJimmy FallonThe RootsSteve HigginsComedian Jimmy Fallon hosts a late-night talk show.
- CreatorMarshall HerskovitzEdward ZwickStarsTimothy BusfieldPolly DraperMel HarrisSeven tricenarians living in Philadelphia struggle with everyday adult angst.
- StarsJay LenoKevin EubanksEdd HallJay Leno takes over the Tonight Show with interview, sketches, and plenty of laughs.
- CreatorDavid E. KelleyStarsCalista FlockhartGreg GermannJane KrakowskiFollows the personal and professional life of lawyer Ally.
- CreatorChris CarterStarsDavid DuchovnyGillian AndersonMitch PileggiTwo F.B.I. Agents, Fox Mulder the believer and Dana Scully the skeptic, investigate the strange and unexplained, while hidden forces work to impede their efforts.
- CreatorJoss WhedonStarsSarah Michelle GellarNicholas BrendonAlyson HanniganA young woman, destined to slay vampires, demons and other infernal creatures, deals with her life fighting evil, with the help of her friends.
- CreatorCharlie ParsonsStarsJeff ProbstLillian MorrisJon DaltonA reality show where a group of contestants are stranded in a remote location with little more than the clothes on their back. The lone survivor of this contest takes home a million dollars.
- CreatorRobert CochranJoel SurnowStarsKiefer SutherlandMary Lynn RajskubCarlos BernardCounter Terrorism Agent Jack Bauer races against the clock to subvert terrorist plots and save his nation from ultimate disaster.