10 Favorite Television Shows From My Childhood (late 1960s and 1970s)

We actually didn’t watch a lot of television shows when I was a kid in the 1970s. We MUCH preferred playing outside with friends and creating our own adventures. Plus – we only had 4 television stations (can you believe that?), so there wasn’t a lot to choose from. Well, okay maybe 6 stations if you had a UHF antennae on your rabbit ears.

There were times however when television was entertaining. Right after school while eating a snack, on rainy days, and when you were allowed to stay up until 9:00pm when you were a little older.

I’m sure we all have our favorite shows from the late 60’s and 70’s and I’d love to hear which shows you loved! Here are some of the shows I enjoyed as a tween.

Lost in Space

This was our after-school show. It’s was a science fiction series about the adventures of a pioneering family of space colonists. The family had adventures while they struggled to survive in strange and hostile universes, after their ship was sabotaged and thrown off course.

I really wished I could travel with them! Dr. Smith was such a trouble maker and he kind of drove me crazy. But oh, how I had a crush on Will Robinson! I thought the robot was pretty cool, too. “Danger! Will Robinson! Danger!”

Lost in Space ran for three seasons with 83 episodes airing between 1965 and 1968.

Here’s the opening scene…

Night Gallery

This was one of my most favorite shows! I loved the opening to the show by Rod Serling. His voice just set the mood and I couldn’t wait for the episode to start. Then at the end of the episode, Rod Serling recapped the show with thought-provoking questions. What a COOL show this was!

Night Gallery was about horror and the macabre. And it was so good! It was similar to The Twilight Zone – which was more of a science fiction show – but Night Gallery was more about the supernatural.

Night Gallery ran from 1970 to 1973.

Twilight Zone

Another show I loved. How can you not love this show?

Like Night Gallery above, this show was presented by Rod Serling. This show was a series of standalone episodes that featured people dealing with disturbing or unusual events. The show often ended with a surprise and a moral. One of my most favorite episodes was called Time Enough at Last. It was about a man who was a book lover and only wanted enough time to read his books. I won’t give away the ending in case you haven’t seen it. 😉

Twilight Zone ran for five seasons from 1959 to 1964.

Here’s the opening to this show…

The Sixth Sense

I loved this show! Dr. Michael Rhodes was a professor of parapsychology. Along with his assistant, Nancy, they solved supernatural crimes and mysteries. Hmmm… maybe this show is what inspired The X Files later in the 1980s and 1990s?

The Sixth Sense only ran for two seasons – both in 1972.

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

Of course, you have to love anything Alfred Hitchcock!

This show featured dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. All the shows had an interesting ending and a recap by Alfred Hitchcock. The stories were unique and entertaining and always left you thinking.

This show aired between 1955 and 1965.

Dark Shadows

I was never into soap operas. Ever. But looking back, I guess Dark Shadows WAS a kind of soap opera – who knew?!

Dark Shadows ran from 1966 to 1971. It was a show about the wealthy Collins family of Collinsport, Maine. The main story was about the supernatural. I’ll always remember the music from the opening scene.

Do you suppose the recent series Supernatural was created based on this show?

And then when I was a little bit older….

Rowen & Martin’s Laugh In

Sock it to me! This show made me laugh! I loved the crazy antics.

This show featured sketch comedy, hosted by comedians Dan Rowan and Dick Martin.

I admit, as a tween, I probably didn’t understand all of the sexual innuendo or politics of the show, but it still made me laugh. I especially loved when the characters would pop out of the walls, and of course Lily Tomlin as the switchboard operator. “One ringy dingy, two ringy dingies…“.

Laugh In ran for 140 episodes from 1968 to 1973.

Here’s a video of some of the best moments of the show.

Love, American Style

This comedy series was so much fun!

This weekly show featured unrelated stories of romance with a comedic spin. I liked that each show had different characters, stories and locations, yet still had some of the same people playing different characters in the various episodes. And that big brass bed popped up again and again in many of the episodes.

Love, American Style ran from 1969 to 1974.

Mission Impossible

“Your mission, should you decide to accept…”

I loved the self-destructing tape that the characters got at the beginning of the show telling them what their mission was. The clever and detailed plots were really interesting, and I loved all the special skills each team member had.

I have to tell you, when I was in college the CIA was recruiting students. I seriously considered a career in the CIA – mostly attributed to the adventures that the Mission Impossible team had. I was always intrigued by that kind of adventure! Go ahead and admit it – you wanted to be on the Mission Impossible team, too, didn’t you?!

Mission Impossible ran from 1966 to 1973. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen every episode.

Medical Center

Another show I really liked (and was able to stay up to watch) was Medical Center.

I decided if I wasn’t going to be an agent on Mission Impossible, then I’d have to become a doctor like Dr. Joe Gannon. This show was about the lives of the doctors as well as their patients. A different episode aired each week.

This medical drama series ran from 1969 to 1976.

There you have it! My 10 most favorite television shows from when I was a kid. Do you remember any of them?

I would love to hear what shows you enjoyed as a kid/tween. Share in a comment below!