# 1985–86 United States network television schedule
**The 1985–86 United States network television schedule** covered the prime time hours of the three commercial networks, with all times Eastern and Pacific except for shows such as *Monday Night Football*; PBS, whose member stations set their own schedules, is excluded from the grid.[1](https://americantvdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/1985%E2%80%9386_United_States_network_television_schedule) • [2](https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/1985-86_American_network_television_schedule) It was the 1987–88 season in which Nielsen people meters were used for nationwide audience measurement, largely replacing the diary system in place since the 1950–1951 season.[3](https://manybooks.io/wiki/1985-86-united-states-network-television-schedule/) • [10](https://sites.nielsen.com/timelines/our-history/) *The Cosby Show* on NBC was the top-rated program with a 33.7 rating, and NBC won the season with a 17.5 rating, an 8% increase over its 16.2 the previous year.[1](https://americantvdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/1985%E2%80%9386_United_States_network_television_schedule) • [4](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/1987/International-Television-Almanac-1987.pdf) New programming trends included four anthology series, black-family sitcoms such as *227* and *Charlie & Co.*, and "Miami Vice"-style dramas.[5](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1985/09/22/tvs-fall-lineup-at-a-glance/aac6bbf2-ba25-4f50-b6ba-da4c459a8f82/)
All times were Eastern and Pacific, with exceptions such as *Monday Night Football*.[1](https://americantvdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/1985%E2%80%9386_United_States_network_television_schedule) PBS was in operation during the season but its schedule was set by each local station, so it is not part of the network grid.[2](https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/1985-86_American_network_television_schedule)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Networks | Three commercial networks; PBS excluded because member stations set their own schedules[2](https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/1985-86_American_network_television_schedule) |
| Measurement | Nielsen people meters did not yet measure nationwide television ratings, which they would do beginning with the 1987–88 season, largely replacing the diary system in place since 1950–51[3](https://manybooks.io/wiki/1985-86-united-states-network-television-schedule/) • [10](https://sites.nielsen.com/timelines/our-history/) |
| Top-rated program | *The Cosby Show* (NBC), #1 with a 33.7 rating[1](https://americantvdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/1985%E2%80%9386_United_States_network_television_schedule) |
| Season winner | NBC, finishing with a 17.5 rating, an 8% increase over its 16.2 the previous season[4](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/1987/International-Television-Almanac-1987.pdf) |
| Programming trend | Four anthology series debuted, along with new black-family sitcoms (*227*, *Charlie & Co.*) and "Miami Vice"-style dramas[5](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1985/09/22/tvs-fall-lineup-at-a-glance/aac6bbf2-ba25-4f50-b6ba-da4c459a8f82/) |
## Sunday and the weekly grid
Sunday nights opened the broadcast week with three different strategies. ABC ran *Ripley's Believe It or Not!* at 7:00, *MacGyver* at 8:00, and *The ABC Sunday Night Movie* at 9:00. CBS countered with *60 Minutes*, *Murder, She Wrote*, *Crazy Like a Fox*, and *Trapper John, M.D.* NBC scheduled *Punky Brewster*, *Silver Spoons*, Steven Spielberg's *Amazing Stories*, *Alfred Hitchcock Presents*, and *NBC Sunday Night at the Movies*.[2](https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/1985-86_American_network_television_schedule) In final Nielsen rankings, *NBC Sunday Night at the Movies* placed #21 with an 18.5 rating while *MacGyver* reached #50 at 14.6.[1](https://americantvdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/1985%E2%80%9386_United_States_network_television_schedule)
**Midweek nights.** On Mondays, ABC paired *Hardcastle and McCormick* with *Monday Night Football*; CBS ran *Scarecrow and Mrs. King*, *Kate & Allie*, *Newhart*, and *Cagney & Lacey*; NBC carried *TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes* and the *NBC Monday Night at the Movies* (ranked #22 with an 18.3 rating).[6](https://www.classic-tv.com/features/schedules/1985-1986-tv-schedule) • [3](https://manybooks.io/wiki/1985-86-united-states-network-television-schedule/) Wednesdays gave ABC *The Insiders*, *Dynasty*, and *Hotel*, CBS *Stir Crazy*, *Charlie & Co.*, *George Burns Comedy Week*, and *The Equalizer*, and NBC *Highway to Heaven*, *Hell Town*, and *St. Elsewhere*. Fridays saw ABC's comedy block (*Webster*, *Mr. Belvedere*, *Diff'rent Strokes*, *Benson*) leading into *Spenser: For Hire*, CBS's *The Twilight Zone*, *Dallas*, and *Falcon Crest*, and NBC's *Knight Rider*, *[Misfits of Science](https://www.edgepedia.org/misfits-of-science)*, and *Miami Vice*.[6](https://www.classic-tv.com/features/schedules/1985-1986-tv-schedule)
**The Thursday block.** NBC's Thursday lineup became the season's strongest sequence: *The Cosby Show* (#1, 33.7), *Family Ties* (#2, 30.0), *Cheers* (#5, 23.7), *Night Court* (#11, 20.9), and *Hill Street Blues* (#35, 16.1).[1](https://americantvdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/1985%E2%80%9386_United_States_network_television_schedule) • [6](https://www.classic-tv.com/features/schedules/1985-1986-tv-schedule) CBS opposed it with *Magnum, P.I.*, *Simon and Simon*, and *Knots Landing*, and ABC with *The Fall Guy*, *Lady Blue*, and *20/20*.[6](https://www.classic-tv.com/features/schedules/1985-1986-tv-schedule) On Saturdays, NBC built a comedy block of *Gimme a Break!*, *The Facts of Life*, *The Golden Girls*, and *227* ahead of *Hunter*, while CBS aired *Airwolf* and its Saturday movie showcase, whose *Dallas*-adjacent dramas held up: *Dallas* ranked #6 with a 21.9 rating and *Falcon Crest* #26 at 18.1.[6](https://www.classic-tv.com/features/schedules/1985-1986-tv-schedule) • [1](https://americantvdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/1985%E2%80%9386_United_States_network_television_schedule)
## New series and programming trends
Contemporary coverage identified the season's themes before it began: anthologies, a resurgence of the black family sitcom following the success of *The Cosby Show*, a pair of "Miami Vice" clones, and an assortment of detective and comedy series.[5](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1985/09/22/tvs-fall-lineup-at-a-glance/aac6bbf2-ba25-4f50-b6ba-da4c459a8f82/) The four anthologies were *George Burns' Comedy Week*, *The Twilight Zone*, *Amazing Stories*, and *Alfred Hitchcock Presents*; the trade press of the period likewise noted an emphasis on anthology series, a genre not much in fashion in recent years.[5](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1985/09/22/tvs-fall-lineup-at-a-glance/aac6bbf2-ba25-4f50-b6ba-da4c459a8f82/) • [7](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/1986/Television-Almanac-1986.pdf) The two new black-family situation comedies were *227* (NBC's Saturday block, which reached the top 30) and *Charlie & Co.* on CBS, and [Alan Thicke](https://www.edgepedia.org/alan-thicke) returned to series work with the family comedy *Growing Pains* on ABC, which ranked #17 with a 19.5 rating by season's end.[5](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1985/09/22/tvs-fall-lineup-at-a-glance/aac6bbf2-ba25-4f50-b6ba-da4c459a8f82/) • [3](https://manybooks.io/wiki/1985-86-united-states-network-television-schedule/)
Networks entered the season at different strengths. ABC, then in third place, announced nine new series plus the NBC castoff *Diff'rent Strokes*, dropping shows including *T.J. Hooker*, *Matt Houston*, and *Finder of Lost Loves*; NBC, which had bumped ABC to third for the first time in ten years, announced six new shows.[8](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/style/1985/05/07/6055ee63-bfd3-4431-bad6-8a2e47356b4a/)
## Midseason changes
Schedules shifted during the season. On ABC, *The Colbys* replaced *Lady Blue* in mid-November 1985, and after the death of [Samantha Smith](https://www.edgepedia.org/samantha-smith) the network moved *Lady Blue* into *White Street*'s time period in November.[5](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1985/09/22/tvs-fall-lineup-at-a-glance/aac6bbf2-ba25-4f50-b6ba-da4c459a8f82/) • [6](https://www.classic-tv.com/features/schedules/1985-1986-tv-schedule) CBS added its Sunday Night Movie at 9:00 p.m. from March through May 1986, NBC's midseason sitcom *You Again?* aired Mondays from March through June 1986, and ABC's *Perfect Strangers* ran Tuesdays at 8:30 from March 25 through April 29, 1986.[6](https://www.classic-tv.com/features/schedules/1985-1986-tv-schedule)
## Ratings and measurement
The season marked a change in how audiences were counted: it was the first in which Nielsen people meter technology was used for nationwide audience measurement, largely replacing the diary system in place since the 1950–1951 season.[3](https://manybooks.io/wiki/1985-86-united-states-network-television-schedule/) Nielsen's own historical rankings record *The Cosby Show* as the 1985–86 leader with a 33.8 household rating and a 51 share.[9](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Ratings-Documents/Nielsen-2000-Report-on-Television.pdf) In the competitive standings, NBC finished with a 17.5 rating, up 8% from its 16.2 the year before, while the industry's backdrop included ownership changes at ABC and NBC and a decline in CBS's 1985 net income of 87%.[4](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/1987/International-Television-Almanac-1987.pdf) Network television as a whole still dominated American viewing in 1985–86, as it had in earlier decades, even as cable and videocassette recorders began fragmenting audiences.[7](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/1986/Television-Almanac-1986.pdf)
## References
1. [1985–86 United States network television schedule, American TV Database Wiki](https://americantvdatabase.fandom.com/wiki/1985%E2%80%9386_United_States_network_television_schedule)
2. [1985-86 American network television schedule, Academic Kids](https://academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/1985-86_American_network_television_schedule)
3. [1985–86 United States network television schedule, Manybooks](https://manybooks.io/wiki/1985-86-united-states-network-television-schedule/)
4. [The Year in Review, International Television Almanac 1987](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/1987/International-Television-Almanac-1987.pdf)
5. [TV's Fall Lineup at a Glance, The Washington Post, September 21, 1985](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/tv/1985/09/22/tvs-fall-lineup-at-a-glance/aac6bbf2-ba25-4f50-b6ba-da4c459a8f82/)
6. [1985 - 1986 TV Schedule, Classic TV Database](https://www.classic-tv.com/features/schedules/1985-1986-tv-schedule)
7. [The Year in Review, Television Almanac 1986](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-International-Television-Almanac/1986/Television-Almanac-1986.pdf)
8. [The TV Column: Now Here's the News, The Washington Post, May 6, 1985](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/style/1985/05/07/6055ee63-bfd3-4431-bad6-8a2e47356b4a/)
9. [Historical Rankings, Nielsen 2000 Report on Television](https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Ratings-Documents/Nielsen-2000-Report-on-Television.pdf)
10. [Nielsen, Celebrating Our History of Innovation](https://sites.nielsen.com/timelines/our-history/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Seasons, episodes, and installments › Screen seasons › Years in television seasons*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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