Best family TV shows of the '70s
The 1970s may have been when the term "Me Generation" was coined, in reference to entitled baby boomers, but the decade produced a whole lot of TV shows about families as a whole. Of course there was the "Brady Bunch," which debuted in 1969 but had its reign in the '70s; then, there was another musically gifted group in "The Partridge Family"; and who could forget the Ingalls family of "Little House on the Prairie" or the self-titled family on the historical drama "The Waltons"?
Those who were quite young in the 1970s will likely remember growing up watching Kermit and Miss Piggy on "The Muppet Show," Bert and Ernie on "Sesame Street," and of course, the titular Fred Rogers of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood." (Like "The Brady Bunch," the latter two series debuted in the late '60s but aired new episodes throughout the '70s.)
You may be surprised to learn, however, that none of those aforementioned series are the best family TV show of the '70s—at least, according to IMDb voters. Stacker compiled a list of the best '70s family TV shows based on IMDb user rating. To qualify, the show had to have family as one of its genres on IMDb and have at least 5,000 IMDb user votes. Data was collected in December 2022. Show posters are from OMDb.
Some of these hit shows have remained part of the zeitgeist and continue to air today. The creatively overhauled 56th season of "Sesame Street," for example, will launch in 2025. And the upcoming 15th season of the long-running British sci-fi program "Doctor Who" is also expected to debut in early 2025. But for many audiences, nothing quite compares to the episodes that aired back in the '70s.
Read on to see which family TV show was the best the '70s had to offer—and find out where your favorite ranks!
#30. Fantasy Island
- IMDb user rating: 6.5
- Years on air: 1977 to 1984
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#29. Diff'rent Strokes
- IMDb user rating: 6.6
- Years on air: 1978 to 1986
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#28. The Yogi Bear Show
- IMDb user rating: 6.6
- Years on air: 1961 to 1988
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#27. The Brady Bunch
- IMDb user rating: 6.8
- Years on air: 1969 to 1974
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#26. The Facts of Life
- IMDb user rating: 6.8
- Years on air: 1979 to 1988
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#25. Laverne & Shirley
- IMDb user rating: 6.9
- Years on air: 1976 to 1983
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#24. Mork & Mindy
- IMDb user rating: 7.1
- Years on air: 1978 to 1982
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#23. The Beverly Hillbillies
- IMDb user rating: 7.2
- Years on air: 1962 to 1971
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#22. Green Acres
- IMDb user rating: 7.3
- Years on air: 1965 to 1971
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#21. Star Trek: The Animated Series
- IMDb user rating: 7.3
- Years on air: 1973 to 1975
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#20. The Sylvester & Tweety Show
- IMDb user rating: 7.3
- Years on air: 1976 to 2022
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#19. I Dream of Jeannie
- IMDb user rating: 7.4
- Years on air: 1965 to 1970
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#18. Happy Days
- IMDb user rating: 7.4
- Years on air: 1974 to 1984
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#17. Heidi: A Girl of the Alps
- IMDb user rating: 7.5
- Years on air: 1974 to 1974
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#16. Little House on the Prairie
- IMDb user rating: 7.5
- Years on air: 1974 to 1983
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#15. Wacky Races
- IMDb user rating: 7.5
- Years on air: 1968 to 1970
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#14. Bewitched
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Years on air: 1964 to 1972
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#13. The Pink Panther Show
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Years on air: 1969 to 2011
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#12. The New Scooby-Doo Movies
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Years on air: 1972 to 1973
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#11. The Waltons
- IMDb user rating: 7.6
- Years on air: 1972 to 1981
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#10. The New Tom & Jerry Show
- IMDb user rating: 7.8
- Years on air: 1975 to 1977
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#9. Scooby Doo, Where Are You!
- IMDb user rating: 7.9
- Years on air: 1969 to 1970
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#8. Sesame Street
- IMDb user rating: 8.1
- Years on air: 1969 to present
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#7. Get Smart
- IMDb user rating: 8.2
- Years on air: 1965 to 1970
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#6. Doctor Who
- IMDb user rating: 8.4
- Years on air: 1963 to 1989
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#5. The Muppet Show
- IMDb user rating: 8.4
- Years on air: 1976 to 1981
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#4. Well, Just You Wait!
- IMDb user rating: 8.6
- Years on air: 1969 to 2017
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#3. The Carol Burnett Show
- IMDb user rating: 8.7
- Years on air: 1967 to 1978
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#2. Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
- IMDb user rating: 8.7
- Years on air: 1968 to 2001
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#1. El Chavo del Ocho
- IMDb user rating: 8.7
- Years on air: 1972 to 1983
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