Big hair, big nails, and all-neon everything embody the 1980s. Reaganomics guided the 1980s, which were defined by materialism, consumerism, and popularizing the term “yuppie.” HIV, the crack epidemic, urban decay, and other maladies also marred the era, providing the backdrop for some of the most legendary music of the modern age.
The “decade of decadence,” then, certainly had its share of highs and lows. Despite all the good, bad, and ugly of one of the greatest decades, the 1980s also saw the creation of some of the greatest television shows of all time.
From sitcoms to groundbreaking children's shows, and even primetime soap operas, these 15 TV shows stood out as the best of the best. These shows have also withstood the test of time, and have been extensively enjoyed by future generations. Some even introduced running gags that continue into the 2020s.
1. The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls was not only the greatest television show of the 1980s, it was one of the greatest television shows of all time, and it remains in syndication to this day. With its iconic theme song and its head-on tackling of salient issues, Dorothy, Rose, Blanche, and Sophia became everyone's beloved mothers, grandmothers, aunties, and friends.
They unabashedly addressed social concerns surrounding hom*osexuality, AIDS, ageism, s*xual harassment, and complicated relationships with boyfriends, ex-husbands, children, and grandchildren…and did it all with a heavy dose of love. “Thank you for being a friend,” indeed.
2. You Can't Do That on Television
A groundbreaking sketch comedy series that came to American shores from the Great White North,You Can't Do That on Television was one of the best children's shows of the 1980s.
Nickelodeon, then a nascent cable station, broadcast the Canadian show because it was much cheaper than creating brand-new shows in American studios. In addition to launching the career of a young up-and-comer named Alanis Morissette,You Can't Do That On Television also launched an iconic Nickelodeon running gag that continues in the modern day: green slime.
3. Cheers
Another show with an iconic theme song and an even more iconic cas, Cheersran for eleven seasons and launched the careers of Kelsey Grammer (who originated the role of Dr. Fraser Crane on the show), Woody Harrelson, Ted Danson, the late Kirstie Alley, and Rhea Perlman.
Set in Boston, Cheers focuses on the life and times of the various patrons of the titular bar, who come for drinks and relaxation but end up in shenanigans involving their fellow patrons. Most of the shenanigans were courtesy of Danson's Sam Malone, a resident loverboy until Diane caught his eye. Later, Sam tries macking on Rebecca (Kirstie Alley) without much luck — and finally gives up when Rebecca runs away with a plumber and quits working at the bar.
4. Miami Vice
Rife with neon colors and set against the sweltering backdrop of Miami,Miami Vice featured Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas in career-defining roles.
As Detectives Sonny Crockett and Ricardo Tubbs, respectively, the pair combated the growing drug trade and other serious crimes while enjoying some of the finer things in life, including fast cars, luxe homes, and beautiful women. Filming of the show took place in the South Beach district of Miami, an area rife with crime at that time. However Miami Vice was credited with revitalizing the area, and the city enjoys a bustling tourism economy to this day.
5. The Cosby Show
Bill Cosby's questionable personal legacy aside,The Cosby Show single-handedly reshaped the way American audiences viewed Black families on television. The show ran from 1984 until 1992, winning six Emmys along the way. The Cosby Show focused on the life and times of Dr. Heathcliff “Cliff” Huxtable (Cosby), his lawyer wife Claire (Phylicia Rashad), and their children.
In 2022, Malcolm Jamal-Warner, who played eldest son Theo Huxtable, explained why he was “proud” of the show's legacy despite the fictional patriarch's legal issues.
“Prior to The Cosby Show, Black sitcom humor was predicated on being Black, the specificity of the ‘Black' experience. Though the Huxtables were clearly Black — reflected quite obviously by their dress, the Black art on the walls, the music — the family issues all were universal. And though Cliff was a doctor and Claire was an attorney, the family dynamic was one that practically every family — no matter the ethnicity, socio-economic status or even family makeup — could find something to relate to.”
6. Magnum, P.I.
Today, Tom Selleck has become many Nanas' favorite TV star thanks to his role as Police Commissioner Francis “Frank” Reagan on Blue Bloods.
But before that, he played Thomas Sullivan Magnum IV onMagnum, P.I., which ran from 1980 to 1988 on CBS. Like every other show in the 1980s, the show indulged in expressing the extravagance of the era, from Magnum's lush Hawaii compound to his turbo-charged luxury sports cars. And who doesn't love a good helicopter ride around “The Big Island” of the tropical paradise? It almost made viewers forget they were watching a crime drama.
7. Dynasty
The drama! The wealth! The inimitable Dame Joan Henrietta Collins asthe Alexis Carrington Colby!
Few shows of the 1980s had the charisma and the camp ofDynasty, a primetime soap opera that put middle-aged women at the forefront of desirability and intrigue. The 2017 reboot of the same name couldn't hold a candle to the original formula, which focused on the lives of the Carringtons, led by the oil magnate patriarch Blake Carrington (John Forsythe), and the nonstop drama between Blake's current wife, Krystle (Linda Evans) and his ex-wife Alexis.
8. Family Ties
Family Ties will forever be known as the sitcom that gave the world the treasure that is Michael J. Fox. In the classic 1980s series, which ran from 1982 to 1989, Fox played Alex Keaton, an aspiring millionaire and the personification of the “Yuppie” movement.
Alex Keaton was the polar opposite of his hippie parents, Steven and Elyse Keaton (Michael Gross and Merideth Baxter Birney, respectively). Justine Bateman and Tina Yothers round out the cast as Mallory Keaton and Jennifer Keaton, respectively.
9. Punky Brewster
Soleil Moon Frye became a child superstar thanks to the success ofPunky Brewster, one of the most beloved sitcoms of the decade — and one with a dark premise.
The titular Punky became a foster child after her father walked out on the family and her mother abandoned her and her dog, Brandon, in a grocery store. Punky finds an apartment in a Chicago building, which is owned by the curmudgeonly Henry Warnimont (George Gaynes), who takes her in and ultimately adopts her.
10. Dallas
“Who shot JR?” That question dominated the cultural zeitgeist when Dallas posted it on March 21, 1980. That episode, along with its resolution episode “Who Done It,” became one of the most-watched broadcasts in television history.
Dallas first aired in 1979, and ran until 1991, making it one of the longest-running television shows in history alongside the likes of Gunsmoke, Bonanza, Law & Order, and Law & Order: SVU. Dallas also spawned a spin-off, Knots Landing, which ran for 14 seasons beginning in 1979.
11. Diff'Rent Strokes
With a theme song by Alan Thicke and an actor who introduced a catchphrase that defined the 1980s (“What'chu talkin'bout, Willis?”), Diff'rent Strokes had all the right ingredients for success.
The show focuses on the lives of Arnold and Willis Jackson (Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges, respectively), who are taken in by a wealthy Park Avenue businessman, Phillip Drummond (Conrad Bain), and his daughter Kimberly (Dana Plato) after their mother passes away.
The Jackson brothers' attempts at adapting to their newfound wealth invited plenty of laughs. Unfortunately, the personal tragedies of the child actors who brought the characters to life marred the legacy of the show.
12. The Facts of Life
The Drummond family's housekeeper, Mrs. Edna Garrett (played by the late, great Charlotte Rae), got her own spin-off show withThe Facts of Life.
The show told the story of Mrs. Garrett becoming the “house mother” at the fictional East Lake School for Girls, where her charges included Blair (Lisa Welchel), Tootie (future Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kim Fields), Natalie (Mindy Cohn), and Jo (Nancy McKeon). The show also brought George Clooney and Mackenzie Astin into the mainstream.
13. The Greatest American Hero
AlthoughThe Greatest American Hero only lasted for two seasons beginning in 1981, it still left a lasting impact on television audiences, mostly thanks to its chart-topping theme song written by future Law & Order composer Mike Post.
The show focuses on the life of Ralph Hinkley, a hapless schoolteacher who received a black and red superhero suit from visiting aliens. Unfortunately for Ralph, he learned about most of his “superpowers” through trial and error, as he'd lost the instruction booklet on the black and red superhero suit.
14. Growing Pains
Growing Pains was a sitcom set in the real town of Huntington, N.Y., a wealthy hamlet with historical roots. It focused on the life and times of the Seaver family, who were going through it thanks to the shenanigans of their eldest son, Mike, who fancied himself a bit of a rebel without a clue and a hapless ladies' man.
The show introduced Leonardo DiCaprio to living rooms nationwide when he joined the cast in its seventh and final season. It also turned Kirk Cameron into a teen heartthrob.
15. ALF
In September 1986, a strange but hilarious show namedALF (short for Alien Life Form) premiered on NBC. And few, if any, shows were more stereotypically 1980s in their absurdity.
ALF had a simple premise: an alien from the fictional planet Melmac crashed onto Earth and into the home of the Tanner family (no relation to the Tanners on Full House, apparently). Behind the scenes, the tension between the actors and the show's creator — ALF puppeteer Paul Fusco — became so toxicthat none would return for the 1996 made-for-TV coda, Project ALF.
