The following is the 1979–80 network television schedule for the three major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 1979 through August 1980. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and series cancelled after the 1978–79 season. All times are Eastern and Pacific, with certain exceptions, such as Monday Night Football.
New fall series are highlighted in bold.
Each of the 30 highest-rated shows is listed with its rank and rating as determined by Nielsen Media Research.[1]
Yellow indicates the programs in the top 10 for the season.
Cyan indicates the programs in the top 20 for the season.
Magenta indicates the programs in the top 30 for the season.
PBS, the Public Broadcasting Service, was in operation but the schedule was set by each local station.
| Network | 7:00 PM | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | Out of the Blue | A New Kind of Family | Mork & Mindy (27/20.2) | The Associates | The ABC Sunday Night Movie (29/20.0) (Tied with Tenspeed and Brown Shoe, Vega$ and Knots Landing) | |||
| November | Salvage 1 | ||||||||
| Winter | Galactica 1980 | Tenspeed and Brown Shoe (29/20.0) (Tied with The ABC Sunday Night Movie, Vega$ and Knots Landing) | |||||||
| Summer | When the Whistle Blows | ||||||||
| CBS | 60 Minutes (1/28.4) | Archie Bunker's Place
| One Day at a Time (10/23.0) | Alice (4/25.3) (Tied with M*A*S*H) | The Jeffersons (8/24.3) | Trapper John, M.D. (19/21.2) | |||
| NBC | Fall | Disney's Wonderful World | The Big Event | Prime Time Sunday | |||||
| Summer | CHiPs | The Big Event | |||||||
(*) Formerly known as All in the Family.
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | 240-Robert | ABC NFL Monday Night Football | |||||
| Winter | Repeats | The ABC Monday Night Movie | ||||||
| Follow-up | Laverne & Shirley | Angie | Stone | Family | ||||
| Spring | That's Incredible! (3/25.8) | Family | Stone | |||||
| Summer | One in a Million | Monday Night Baseball | ||||||
| CBS | Fall | The White Shadow | M*A*S*H (4/25.3) (Tied with Alice) | WKRP in Cincinnati (22/20.7) | Lou Grant | |||
| Winter | House Calls (14/22.1) (Tied with Real People) | |||||||
| Follow-up | WKRP in Cincinnati (22/20.7) | The Last Resort | ||||||
| Spring | The Stockard Channing Show | Flo (7/24.4) | ||||||
| Summer | Phyl & Mikhy | House Calls | ||||||
| NBC | Little House on the Prairie (16/21.8) | NBC Monday Night at the Movies | ||||||
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | Happy Days (17/21.7) | Angie | Three's Company (2/26.3) | Taxi (13/22.4) | The Lazarus Syndrome | |
| Follow-up | Hart to Hart | ||||||
| Winter | One in a Million | ||||||
| February | Goodtime Girls | ||||||
| March | Laverne & Shirley | ||||||
| CBS | Fall | California Fever | The CBS Tuesday Night Movies | ||||
| Follow-up | Hawaii Five-O | Paris | |||||
| Winter | The White Shadow | ||||||
| Follow-up | The CBS Tuesday Night Movies | ||||||
| NBC | Fall | The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo | NBC Tuesday Night at the Movies | ||||
| Spring | The Big Show | United States | |||||
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Eight Is Enough (12/22.8) | Charlie's Angels (20/20.9) (Tied with Barney Miller) | Vega$ (29/20.0) (Tied with Tenspeed and Brown Shoe, The ABC Sunday Night Movie and Knots Landing) | ||||
| CBS | Fall | The Last Resort | Struck by Lightning | The CBS Wednesday Night Movies | |||
| October | The Bad News Bears | ||||||
| November | Young Maverick | ||||||
| March | Beyond Westworld | ||||||
| NBC | Fall | Real People (14/22.1) (Tied with House Calls) | Diff'rent Strokes (26/20.3) | Hello, Larry | The Best of Saturday Night Live (repeats) | ||
| Spring | From Here to Eternity | ||||||
| Summer | Quincy, M.E. | ||||||
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | Laverne & Shirley | Benson (23/20.6) (Tied with The Love Boat) | Barney Miller (20/20.9) (Tied with Charlie's Angels) | Soap (25/20.5) | 20/20 | |
| Winter | Mork & Mindy (27/20.2) | ||||||
| Spring | The Associates | ||||||
| Follow-up | The Ropers | ||||||
| CBS | Fall | The Waltons | Hawaii Five-O | Barnaby Jones | |||
| Winter | Barnaby Jones | Knots Landing (29/20.0) (Tied with Tenspeed and Brown Shoe, The ABC Sunday Night Movie and Vega$) | |||||
| Spring | Palmerstown, U.S.A. | The Contender | |||||
| Summer | The Waltons | ||||||
| NBC | Fall | Buck Rogers in the 25th Century | Quincy, M.E. | Kate Loves a Mystery | |||
| Winter | Skag | ||||||
| Spring | The Rockford Files | ||||||
| Summer | NBC Thursday Night at the Movies | ||||||
| Follow-up | Games People Play | ||||||
(*) Formerly known as Mrs. Columbo
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | Fantasy Island (28/20.1) | The ABC Friday Night Movie | ||||
| Winter | B.A.D. Cats | ||||||
| Spring | When the Whistle Blows | ||||||
| Summer | The ABC Friday Night Movie | Tenspeed and Brown Shoe | |||||
| Follow-up | Benson | Goodtime Girls | The ABC Friday Night Movie | ||||
| CBS | The Incredible Hulk | The Dukes of Hazzard (9/24.1) | Dallas (6/25.0) | ||||
| NBC | Pre-Fall | Hello, Larry | The Facts of Life | Various Programming | |||
| Fall | Shirley | The Rockford Files | Eischied | ||||
| Spring | Here's Boomer | The Facts of Life | Pink Lady | ||||
| Follow-up | Me and Maxx | Various Programming | |||||
| Summer | Hello, Larry | The Rockford Files | A Man Called Sloane | ||||
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | The Ropers | Detective School | The Love Boat (23/20.6) (Tied with Benson) | Hart to Hart | ||
| Follow-up | Fantasy Island (28/20.1) | ||||||
| December | A New Kind of Family | ||||||
| Winter | One in a Million | The Ropers | |||||
| Spring | Angie | Goodtime Girls | |||||
| CBS | Fall | Working Stiffs | The Bad News Bears | Big Shamus, Little Shamus | Paris | ||
| Follow-up | Various Programming | The CBS Saturday Night Movies | |||||
| Winter | The Chisholms | ||||||
| Spring | The Tim Conway Show | Hawaii Five-O | Hagen | ||||
| Follow-up | CBS Saturday Movie | ||||||
| Summer | The Bad News Bears | The Stockard Channing Show | |||||
| July | One Day at a Time | The Bad News Bears | |||||
| Follow-up | Universe | ||||||
| NBC | Fall | CHiPs (18/21.5) | B. J. and the Bear | A Man Called Sloane | |||
| Winter | Prime Time Saturday | ||||||
| Spring | B. J. and the Bear | Sanford | Me and Maxx | ||||
| Follow-up | Joe's World | ||||||
| Summer | Buck Rogers in the 25th Century | Various | Good Time Harry | ||||
Note: In November 1979, CBS took Paris off their Saturday night lineup before scheduling it in the 10:00-11:00 pm time slot on Tuesdays beginning December 4.
Returning Series
New Series
Not returning from 1978–79:
Returning Series
New Series
Not returning from 1978–79:
Returning Series
New Series
Not returning from 1978–79:
Note: The * indicates that the program was introduced in midseason.