1950s TV was led by sitcoms and game shows. Obviously specials were still a big deal and color TV was starting to gain some traction.
I Love Lucy enjoyed a magical three year run at the top of the ratings. Game shows like $64,000 Question and The Price is Right were very popular too.
But in the late 50s, westerns completely took over. In 1958, 8 of the top 10 TV shows were westerns.
Obviously many people were beginning to make the switch from radio to TV for their news. TV specials were very important to spreading the message back then and they attracted huge audiences.
Let’s have a year-by-year breakdown on 1950s TV!