Top 10 Longest Running TV Shows

Are you looking for the longest running TV shows that seem like never-ending? Well, then it is the right place for you because today I’m with 10 long-running TV shows ever in the history including ‘The Simpsons.’

Top 10 Longest Running TV Shows

I am going to include here the shows that got on the run in the 90s and stayed for a very long time over 20 years. So, be with me and know about these longest running TV series that are still on the track of airing.

1. LASSIE (1954-1971)

The TV show LASSIE was released after the releasing of the novel Lassie Come-Home in 1940. This show first debuted in 1954 and the last season was finished in 1971. The show was loved widely because of the character Lassie which covered almost 17 years of airing.

The novel got so viral in all over the America that there were several publications of Lassie in different forms like TV shows, Movies, even manga, and anime. Now you can imagine how much the novel was loved by every single one.

Lassie was the dog in this TV show that is intelligent and helpful to all the humans she lives with. In several movies and TV series, several dogs played the role of Lassie, and this character was loved the most among all the canines.

The first series took place in 1954 and released each episode on Sunday evenings, the animated series also got very popular named as Lassie’s Rescue Rangers and a new series ‘The New Lassie’ was released in 1989, so Lassie in all forms remained among these longest running TV shows.

2. Gunsmoke (1955-1975)

It was recognized as one of the famous TV shows and also the longest running TV series at that time that collected millions of fans all over. Gunsmoke was on the top of the list those days, and for its longest run, it is still famous among its viewers.

Gunsmoke gave a total of 635 episodes that is a very good number for any successful TV series. The first version of Gunsmoke was audible only as it was set up as the radio program. Later, it switched to visual entertainment when the first season was launched in 1955 that ran for 20 years and became one of the long-running TV shows.

In the black and white TV shows of that time, this one got famous with actor James Arness as the main character. This man plays as a lawman in the series that is always busy on establishing peace and ignoring gunfights.

Dillon also struggles for several disputes other than ignoring those gunfights such as land disputes and other Western conflicts. The show impressed all the audiences being in the category of live-action that stayed at No. 1 at that time.

3. My Three Sons (1960-1972)

Another one in the race of longest running TV shows that ended making 380 episodes and 12 seasons. This TV she was all about a widower named Steve Douglas and his three sons Mike, Robbie, and Chip as it is clear with its name.

After acting for some seasons, Mike left the show, and a new boy was hired that was perfect to fit with the theme of this show, and the show went on successfully.

In this series, the father’ role was played by Fred MacMurray as Steve Douglas wows famous for working with Disney movies who played several roles in more than 100 movies in his entire lifespan.

Due to his tight schedules, this incredible actor shot all the episodes of the entire season at once. This TV series put an end to continue it because the three boys grew up and their appearance changed by time.

These all issues abounded the show from going on and in 1972, the show ended with its last episode, but the show is still recognized one of the long-running TV shows.

4. STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES (1966-Going on)

In the beginning, Star Trek didn’t get much popularity, and there were only three seasons seated in 1966 and ended in 1969. So this first round didn’t go well, but even then, it was recognized as one of the most loved TV series.

After its original series that got canceled, its huge fans convinced the creator to come up with a new Star Trek series, and this was the animated version that was first debuted in 1973. The series included all the adventures in cartoon form up to 1975.

For approx. ten years, the studio didn’t create any other series, but they returned with a new live-action- Star Trek: The Next Generation which was first started in 1987.

The series got more popular than all other past series, and this made seven seasons along with four films. The series didn’t stop here, and it continued creating new seasons with several themes and names like the ‘Deep Space Nine’ that ran up to 1999.

After that, Voyager came from ’95 to ’01 and ‘Enterprise’ came in 2001 that was able to run only four seasons as being the least popular version.

This way, Star Trek series is continued to look forward with new names and being among these longest running TV shows.

5. ALL MY CHILDREN (1970-2011)

This one among these longest running TV shows got its run in 1970 for this first time. It was also the TV show having this much star casts, and the TV series went super hit that ran for almost 40 years.

So this grand TV series deserved being here as it covered forty huge years running successfully with different characters that changed over time. This show covered over 3,400 episodes in all those years and this way it created the history for airing so long.

There were several actors and actresses that stayed in all these episodes and nanny have changed according to the demand of the storyline. The main character in this TV series was Erica Kane, and the entire story revolves around her that tells how she married ten times over the years and settled with her family.

This daily soap opera created several fantastic fictions that were about the daily lives of characters playing in ‘ALL MY CHILDREN.’ this fiction took place in the Pine Valley county, and the drama continued there that went popular and loved all those years.

6. HAPPY DAYS (1974-1984)

The show ‘Happy Days’ was aired for a total of ten years from 74 to 84. This TV series showed the family living in Wisconsin included parents and their teenage kids. As its name, Happy Days pictured a happy American life which gained millions of viewers.

The TV series produced eleven seasons with 255 episodes being each one of half an hour with the star cast Ron Howard, Richie Cunningham, Henry Winkler, Tom Bosley and Marion Ross.

When the first two seasons released, all the episodes were about the teenager Richie Cunningham showing his difficulties he faced and his experiences. Additionally, the episodes also showed his family, school friends while he was in his high-school.

There were the seasons when the ratings were moderate and began to rise high. By the time, Happy Days encountered several changes in the storyline, and the entire theme was loved by all the viewers.

The show successfully gained its fans and especially for the characters ‘Fonzie’ and ‘Henry Winkler’ and this TV series became one of the longest running TV shows.

7. The Simpsons (1989-Going on)

It comes as one of the most famous TV shows while being as the longest running TV show as well. You may have all heard about this comical TV series that has been continuously spreading love among its viewers since 1989.

The show has completed over 400 episodes and still counting as being the most successful animated series. Matt Groening is known as the father of this animated series The Simpsons where the story goes on about all these Simpsons and their lives in the Springfield.

This TV show has no end, there are several video games and movies have also released after cooling millions of fans for this TV series. There are several bands like U2, Smashing Pumpkins, and Aerosmith that have contributed to this TV series for the sound play.

The animated series include the family with members Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie an all these are at the top of the entertainment world.

The theme has changed drastically over these years but The Simpsons are still loved by people worldwide and this way, the TV show completed its journey of being the longest running TV show in the world.

8. SOUTH PARK (1997-Going on)

Another animated series that deserves being in the list of longest running TV shows since 1997 it’s been going on and on. The series brings up four schooling boys with their bad mouths releasing bad languages all the time since its debut in 1997.

South Park is not a soft series of animation but it features darker, cruder, and more violent characters it is the reasons behind the popularity of this show. The TV series has gained enough reputation among teens who love to watch adult-themed cartoon dram.

The show started gaining popularity after two years of its first episode that a film was made on the theme of South Park. The film took this TV series storyline on the big screen as it was longer and Uncut which was loved by millions of viewers.

South Park went string that made it winning several awards like Primetime Emmys with several other nominations. The series is still on the track and producing its mind-blowing seasons that gain the highest rating all the time.

9. BEVERLY HILLS 90210 (1990-2000)

This show made a long run for over a decade starting in 1990 to 2000 as being one of the longest running TV shows. It is all about the teens pursuing their schooling at West Beverly Hills High School, a fictional school.

The storyline revolves around a group of teens, their friends and families and also their relationships for all these tenures. The show went from some cast changes according to the requirement of the storyline, and new casts took place to fit in the role.

This series was very popular in the 90s due to casting the story about teenagers and their schooling lives that all the teen and college-students loved seeing.

Over the time, the series showed the love interests of these characters which allowed the creators to create new seasons. In 2008, this series aired its five seasons successfully that later got several Teen Choice and People’s Choice nominations.

10. CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION (2000-2015)

CSI was a cop show that ran from 2000 to 15 and covered fifteen years very successfully. The show pictured the lives of cops and their investigations on different crime scenes.

So this TV series was full of unsolved theories that these cops took responsibility of serving as investigators and not as police. The series rated in Las Vegas with these CSIs investigators that ran one new crime each week in this dramatic series.

The show also got viral for its unique camera angles and unusual visuals that were captivating enough to attract the viewers and get the hits.

This one from the longest running TV shows released another series named as CSI: New York and CSI: Miami, booth followed the same concepts but in the different cities, with new crime scenes and new faces as cops.

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Conclusion

These longest running TV shows like Star Trek and The Simpsons are the longest-running franchises ever that take you to the fictional world and hold your imagination there.

Shows get in the long run because of worthy characters and strong storyline they use, the same concept was followed by the creator of these shows, and they got the long run. So, choose your longest and favorite TV show from my list here and share your opinions about it.

Top 10 Longest Running TV Shows