1001 TV Series You Must Watch Before You Die (2015)

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Created by Apu.

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This is the 1st edition (October 2015) and the latest addition to the bestselling and highly acclaimed 1001-series.

"From "Leave it to Beaver" to "Breaking Bad", "The Honeymooners" to "Homeland", this compilation of important and groundbreaking television shows is packed full of trivia and will be sure to make you want to pick up the remote or start streaming. Selected by an international team of experts and covering a worldwide spectrum of programs from the classics of the 1950s to the cutting-edge shows of today, 1001 TV Series is one of the most comprehensive books ever published on the topic of television."

This volume is virtually impossible to finish (as you have to watch every single episode of every single entry). Not to mention many of the shows are still running this very day.

If the authors instead chose to focus only on TV-series/TV-Mini-series/TV-movies you might have had a chance, but unfortunately, TV shows - including Game shows, Reality and Talk shows - are also included.

NOTE: the book contains some TV-movies or stand-alone episodes from TV-series, but the vast majority of the entries are either TV-series, TV-Mini-series or TV shows.

The genres are:

Action/Adventure: 43
Animation: 13
Awards show: 3
Biography: 1
Comedy: 246
Comedy/Drama: 31
Crime: 1
Crime/Mystery: 101
Documentary: 18
Drama: 226
Fantasy/Horror/Sci-Fi: 107
Game show: 26
Historical drama: 60
Music/Musical: 13
Reality: 31
Soap opera: 28
Sports: 2
Talk Show: 16
Variety: 22
Western: 13

= 1001

TV-series/shows/movies that, according to the introduction by Robb Pearlman, "could not be included" (it is never argued why):

The Winds of War (1983)
Lonesome Dove (1989)
Requiem for a Heavyweight (1962) [???????]
Sybil (1976)
Gia (1998)
Trilogy of Terror (1975)
Duel (1971)
V (1983)
Recount (2008)
Game Change (2012)
An Early Frost (1984)
And the Band Played On (1993)
Brian's Song (1971)
Mildred Pierce (2011)
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows (2001).

Some entries that most likely will cause some problems in terms of checking them are the Awards shows: Academy Awards (#17), Golden Globe Awards (#50), MTV Video Music Awards (#365) as well as "Eurovision Song Contest" (#32). Instead of adding every single annual event for these shows, I decided to add only the earliest entry I could locate on IMDb (as if you care about those shows and/or will finish this list anyway).

NOTE: "1001 TV Series You Must Watch Before You Die" and "1001 TV Shows You Must Watch Before You DIe" have identical entires (1948-2015) - as well as the same page total (960) - although they're two different books. Generally speaking, the only differences between the two books are:
- the introduciton is longer in "Shows" (an introduction by Robb Pearlman) whereas "Series" have a much shorter introduction and instead have an additional index (Index by Genre). The "Index by Genre" is not featured in "Shows".
- "Shows" is in hardcover whereas "Series" is in paperback.
- The front and back cover are different.

If you spot any errors (or if any of the abovementioned series/shows I've listed earlier has been added to IMDb), or if you have any questions about the entries or the list as a whole, please don't hesitate to PM me.

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  1. 1 new

    Toast of the Town

    1948 — a.k.a. The Ed Sullivan Show, in 0 top lists Check
  2. 3 new

    The Lone Ranger

    1949, in 0 top lists Check
  3. 4 new

    The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show

    1950, in 0 top lists Check
  4. 5 new

    The Jack Benny Program

    1950, in 0 top lists Check
  5. 6 new

    What's My Line?

    1950, in 0 top lists Check
  6. 7 new

    Your Show of Shows

    1950, in 0 top lists Check
  7. 8 new

    Dragnet

    1951, in 0 top lists Check
  8. 12 new

    I Love Lucy

    1951, in 0 top lists Check
  9. 15 new

    This Is Your Life

    1952, in 0 top lists Check
  10. 16 new

    Adventures of Superman

    1952, in 0 top lists Check
  11. 18 new

    The Quatermass Experiment

    1953, in 0 top lists Check
  12. 20 new

    Make Room for Daddy

    1953, in 0 top lists Check
  13. 22 new

    Father Knows Best

    1954, in 0 top lists Check
  14. 23 new

    Tonight!

    1953, in 0 top lists Check
  15. 24 new

    Alfred Hitchcock Presents

    1955, in 0 top lists Check
  16. 25 new

    Dixon of Dock Green

    1955, in 0 top lists Check
  17. 26 new

    Gunsmoke

    1955, in 0 top lists Check
  18. 27 new

    The Adventures of Robin Hood

    1955, in 0 top lists Check
  19. 29 new

    The Honeymooners

    1955, in 0 top lists Check
  20. 31 new

    The Phil Silvers Show

    1955, in 0 top lists Check
  21. 35 new

    The Price Is Right

    1956, in 0 top lists Check
  22. 39 new

    Leave It to Beaver

    1957, in 0 top lists Check
  23. 44 new

    Wagon Train

    1957, in 0 top lists Check
  24. 55 new

    Bonanza

    1959, in 0 top lists Check
  25. 58 new

    Rawhide

    1959, in 0 top lists Check
  26. 60 new

    The Andy Griffith Show

    1960, in 0 top lists Check
  27. 61 new

    The Flintstones

    1960, in 0 top lists Check
  28. 65 new

    Car 54, Where Are You?

    1961, in 0 top lists Check
  29. 67 new

    Mister Ed

    1958, in 0 top lists Check
  30. 72 new

    The Dick Van Dyke Show

    1961, in 0 top lists Check
  31. 74 new

    Steptoe and Son

    1962, in 0 top lists Check
  32. 84 new

    Der 90. Geburtstag oder Dinner for One

    1963 — a.k.a. Dinner for One, in 0 top lists Check
  33. 86 new

    Doctor Who

    1963, in 0 top lists Check
  34. 89 new

    The Fugitive

    1963, in 0 top lists Check
  35. 91 new

    The Outer Limits

    1963, in 0 top lists Check
  36. 95 new

    Gilligan's Island

    1964, in 0 top lists Check
  37. 99 new

    Seven Up!

    1964, in 5 top lists Check
  38. 100 new

    7 Plus Seven

    1970, in 2 top lists Check
  39. 101 new

    21 Up

    1977, in 2 top lists Check
  40. 102 new

    28 Up

    1984, in 5 top lists Check
  41. 103 new

    35 Up

    1991, in 2 top lists Check
  42. 104 new

    42 Up

    1998, in 2 top lists Check
  43. 105 new

    49 Up

    2005, in 2 top lists Check
  44. 107 new

    The Addams Family

    1964, in 0 top lists Check
  45. 109 new

    Jeopardy!

    1984, in 0 top lists Check
  46. 112 new

    The Munsters

    1964, in 0 top lists Check
  47. 115 new

    I Dream of Jeannie

    1965, in 0 top lists Check
  48. 116 new

    Green Acres

    1965, in 0 top lists Check
  49. 118 new

    Hogan's Heroes

    1965, in 0 top lists Check
  50. 119 new

    Lost in Space

    1965, in 0 top lists Check
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Last updated on Nov 3, 2023; source