1957–58 United States network television schedule

none March 2025 1957 The following is the 1957–58 network television schedule for the three major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 1957 through March 1958. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and series cancelled after the 1956–57 season. As in previous seasons, both CBS and ABC continued to add Westerns to their schedule, filling prime time with as many "oaters" (as they were derisively called) as possible. In addition to several returning Westerns which the network retained on its fall 1957 schedule, ABC's new western series included Sugarfoot and Broken Arrow on Tuesday nights, Tombstone Territory on Wednesdays, Colt .45 on Fridays, and Maverick on Sundays. ABC, third in the network Nielsen ratings, placed its new Western Maverick in a difficult time slot: Sunday night against two hit series: The Steve Allen Show on NBC, and The Ed Sullivan Show on CBS. ABC aired Maverick one half-hour prior to the Allen and Sullivan programs; the strategy was designed to "hook the audience before it fell into its usual viewing habits". Castleman Harry Walter J. Podrazik Watching TV: Four Decades of American Television https://archive.org/details/watchingtvfourde00cast registration McGraw-Hill 1982 New York 109–115 0-07-010269-4 This risky approach proved successful, as CBS' powerhouse Sunday night lineup slipped in the ratings, with Sullivan's show barely missing the top 30 after being among the ten most-watched programs of the previous season. NBC, late to the Western format, also began plugging Westerns into its fall schedule. New NBC Western series debuting in the 1957–58 season included Wagon Train, The Restless Gun, and The Californians (though one NBC executive insisted The Californians was not a Western but a drama set in California in the 1850s). Another programming shift occurred at NBC: the network's flagship news program, The Huntley-Brinkley Report, moved to the 7:15 PM weekday timeslot, for the first time going head to head against both ABC's and CBS's news programs.Castleman, H. and Podrazik, W. (1984) The TV Schedule Book: Four Decades of Network Programming from Sign-on to Sign-off. McGraw-Hill. pg 79-82. 0-07-010277-5 The face-off between the three networks' news programs would become the standard model for U.S. broadcast television; the three networks still air their network news programs against one another. 1958 saw a number of executive changes at the networks; these presidential shifts would affect the network television schedules. Oliver Treyz became the president of ABC on February 17, Louis G. Cowan became the president of CBS on March 12, and NBC programmer Robert Kintner became the president of NBC on July 11. Dr. Allen B. DuMont resigned as chairman of the board of the DuMont Broadcasting Corporation on May 13, and the name of the company was changed to Metropolitan Broadcasting Corporation. According to Castleman and Podrazik (1982) the final DuMont Network program, Monday Night Fights aired for the last time on August 4, 1958, carried on only five stations nationwide. NBC's Kraft Television Theatre, which had debuted in 1947 and was the oldest program still left on television, was cancelled in spring 1958. It was the dawn of a new era in television; producer David Susskind, who had produced KTT at the end, would call 1958 "the year of the miserable drivel". Each of the 30 highest-rated shows is listed with its rank and rating as determined by Nielsen Media Research.Highest-rated series is based on the annual top-rated programs list compiled by Nielsen Media Research and reported in: Brooks, Tim & Marsh, Earle (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows (9th ed.). New York: Ballantine. 978-0-345-49773-4. Legend #abbfff darkgray Light blue indicates local programming. #C0C0C0 darkgray Gray indicates encore programming. #6699CC darkgray Blue-gray indicates news programming. lightgreen darkgray Light green indicates sporting events. #FA8072 darkgray Red indicates series being burned off and other irregularly scheduled programs, including specials and movies. #FFE082 darkgray Light gold indicates programming produced outside of the United States. light white darkgray highlight lime Lime highlights indicates the number-one most watched program of the season. light white darkgray highlight yellow Yellow highlights indicates the top-10 most watched programs of the season. light white darkgray highlight cyan Cyan highlights indicates numbers 11-20 most watched programs of the season. light white darkgray highlight magenta Magenta highlights indicates numbers 21-30 most watched programs of the season. light white darkgray highlight black Highlights indicates that it falls in multiple of the above categories. Schedule New series are highlighted in bold. Repeat airings or same-day rebroadcasts are indicated by (R). All times are U.S. Eastern and Pacific Time (except for some live sports or events). Subtract one hour for Central, Mountain, Alaska and Hawaii–Aleutian times. Sunday Network7:00 p.m.7:30 p.m.8:00 p.m.8:30 p.m.9:00 p.m.9:30 p.m.10:00 p.m.10:30 p.m. ABC Fall You Asked For It Maverick Bowling Stars Open Hearing All-American Football Game of the Week Scotland Yard Local programming Winter Local programming Adventure at Scott IslandHarbormaster Formerly on CBS as Harbormaster Spring The Mike Wallace Interview Summer Anyone Can Play CBS Lassie (22/27.8) The Jack Benny Show (28/27.1) / Bachelor FatherBiweekly series Both programs aired on alternating weeks The Ed Sullivan Show (27/27.3) General Electric Theatre (7/31.5) Alfred Hitchcock Presents (12/30.3)(Tied with Cheyenne) The $64,000 Challenge What's My Line? NBC Fall The Original Amateur Hour Sally The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) The Loretta Young Show (30/26.6)(Tied with Zorro and The Real McCoys) Local Programming Winter My Friend Flicka (In COLOR) (R) No Warning! Summer Various programming The Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé Show (In COLOR) The Chevy Show (In COLOR) Decision Notes: On CBS, Air Power, narrated by Walter Cronkite, aired from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. from May 4 to October 19, 1958. It consisted entirely of reruns of the series from the 1956–1957 season. On NBC, the summer anthology series Decision consisted of a mix of unsold television pilots and reruns of episodes of The Ford Television Theatre, Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, and Screen Directors Playhouse. Monday Network7:00 p.m.7:30 p.m.8:00 p.m.8:30 p.m.9:00 p.m.9:30 p.m.10:00 p.m.10:30 p.m. ABC Fall Local programming (7:00) / John Daly and the News (7:15) #6699CC American Bandstand The Guy Mitchell Show Bold Journey The Voice of Firestone Lawrence Welk's Top Tunes and New Talent Local programming Winter O.S.S. Love That Jill Anybody Can Play This is MusicSpring American Odyssey Campaign Roundup Summer Cowtown Rodeo Polka Go-Round CBS Local programming (7:00) / Douglas Edwards with the News (7:15) #6699CCNewscasts Aired at 6:45 p.m. in some areas The Adventures of Robin Hood The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts The Danny Thomas Show (2/35.3) December Bride (9/30.7) Studio One in Hollywood NBC Fall Local programming (7:00) / The Huntley-Brinkley Report (7:15) #6699CCNewscasts The Price Is Right (In COLOR) The Restless Gun (8/31.4) Tales of Wells Fargo (3/35.2) Twenty-One (26/27.6) Turn of FateTurn of Fate Formerly Alcoa Theatre / Goodyear Theatre Suspicion Summer Haggis Baggis (In COLOR) Tuesday Network7:00 p.m.7:30 p.m.8:00 p.m.8:30 p.m.9:00 p.m.9:30 p.m.10:00 p.m.10:30 p.m. ABC Fall Local programming (7:00) / John Daly and the News (7:15) #6699CC Cheyenne (12/30.3)(Tied with Alfred Hitchcock Presents) / Sugarfoot (23/27.7)(Tied with Wagon Train and Father Knows Best)Biweekly series The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp (6/32.6) Broken Arrow Telephone Time The West Point Story Local programming Summer Confession CBS Fall Local programming (7:00) / Douglas Edwards with the News (7:15) #6699CC Name That Tune The Phil Silvers Show The Eve Arden Show To Tell the Truth The Red Skelton Show (15/28.9) (In COLOR) The $64,000 Question (19/28.1)(Tied with This Is Your Life) Assignment: Foreign Legion Winter Local programming Late winter Mr. Adams and EveSummer Bid 'N' Buy NBC Fall Local programming (7:00) / The Huntley-Brinkley Report (7:15) #6699CC The Nat King Cole Show The Eddie Fisher Show (In COLOR) / The George Gobel Show (In COLOR)Biweekly series Meet McGraw The Bob Cummings Show The Californians Local programming Summer The Investigator (In COLOR) DottoAugust Colgate Theatre Notes: Confession, with host Jack Wyatt, began as a local program in the Dallas, Texas, market in early 1957. It premiered as a summer replacement on ABC on June 19, 1958, in advance of the 1958–59 television season. Colgate Theatre consisted on unsold pilots. Wednesday Network7:00 p.m.7:30 p.m.8:00 p.m.8:30 p.m.9:00 p.m.9:30 p.m.10:00 p.m.10:30 p.m. ABC Fall Local programming (7:00) / John Daly and the News (7:15) #6699CC Disneyland Tombstone Territory The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet The Walter Winchell File The Wednesday Night Fights (10:00) / Famous Fights (10:45) Winter Date with the Angels Late winter The Betty White Show CBS Fall Local programming (7:00) / Douglas Edwards with the News (7:15) #6699CC I Love Lucy (R) The Big Record (In COLOR) The Millionaire (17/28.5) I've Got a Secret (5/33.4) Armstrong Circle Theatre / The United States Steel Hour Spring Leave It to Beaver The Big Record (In COLOR) NBC Fall Local programming (7:00) / The Huntley-Brinkley Report (7:15) #6699CC Wagon Train (23/27.7)(Tied with Sugarfoot and Father Knows Best) Father Knows Best (23/27.7)(Tied with Sugarfoot and Wagon Train) Kraft Television Theatre (In COLOR) This Is Your Life (19/28.1)(Tied with The $64,000 Question) Local programming Summer It Could Be You Thursday Network7:00 p.m.7:30 p.m.8:00 p.m.8:30 p.m.9:00 p.m.9:30 p.m.10:00 p.m.10:30 p.m. ABC Fall Local programming (7:00) / John Daly and the News (7:15) #6699CC Circus Boy Zorro (30/26.6)(Tied with The Loretta Young Show and The Real McCoys) The Real McCoys (30/26.6)(Tied with The Loretta Young Show and Zorro) The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom O.S.S. Navy Log Local programmingWinter Navy Log Make Me LaughSummer The Andy Williams Show Confession CBS Fall Local programming (7:00) / Douglas Edwards with the News (7:15) #6699CC Sergeant Preston of the Yukon Harbormaster Climax! (In COLOR) Playhouse 90 Winter Richard Diamond, Private Detective NBC Fall Local programming (7:00) / The Huntley-Brinkley Report (7:15) #6699CC Tic-Tac-Dough (In COLOR) You Bet Your Life (10/30.6) Dragnet The People’s Choice The Ford Show (14/29.7) The Lux Show Starring Rosemary Clooney (In COLOR) The Jane Wyman Show Summer The Price Is Right (In COLOR) Music Bingo Notes: On CBS, Shower of Stars (In COLOR) aired on an irregular basis at 8:30 p.m. From January 2 to June 26, 1958, Richard Diamond, Private Detective, starring David Janssen, aired for a second season on the CBS Thursday schedule at 8 p.m. Eastern. It returned to the air for a third season from February to September 1959. Friday Network7:00 p.m.7:30 p.m.8:00 p.m.8:30 p.m.9:00 p.m.9:30 p.m.10:00 p.m.10:30 p.m. ABC Fall Local programming (7:00) / John Daly and the News (7:15) #6699CC The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin The Adventures of Jim Bowie The Patrice Munsel Show The Frank Sinatra Show Date with the Angels Colt .45 Local programming Winter The Walter Winchell File CBS Fall Local programming (7:00) / Douglas Edwards with the News (7:15) #6699CC Leave It to Beaver Trackdown Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre (21/27.9) Mr. Adams and Eve Schlitz PlayhouseSchlitz Formerly Schlitz Playhouse of Stars The Lineup (18/28.4) Person to Person Late winter The Phil Silvers Show Mid-spring Dick and the Duchess #FFE082 Summer The Boing Boing Show (R) NBC Fall Local programming (7:00) / The Huntley-Brinkley Report (7:15) #6699CC Saber of LondonSaber Saber of London, with Donald Gray in the lead role, entered its seventh season with a new name, its fourth, and a new network, NBC. It had run on ABC from 1951 to 1954 and 1955 to 1957 under three previous titles: Mystery Theater, Inspector Mark Saber—Homicide Detective, and The Vise. Saber of London was later replaced in the 7:30 Friday time slot on NBC on April 25, 1958, by the western series, Jefferson Drum, starring Jeff Richards. The Court of Last Resort The Life of Riley M Squad The Thin Man Gillette Cavalcade of Sports (10:00) / Red Barber's Corner (10:45) Spring Jefferson Drum Summer The Big Game Saturday Network7:30 p.m.8:00 p.m.8:30 p.m.9:00 p.m.9:30 p.m.10:00 p.m.10:30 p.m. ABC Fall Keep It in the Family Country Music Jubilee Lawrence Welk's Dodge Dancing Party The Mike Wallace Interview Local programming Late winter The Dick Clark Saturday Night Beech-Nut ShowDick Clark Initially aired as simply The Dick Clark Show before Beech-Nut picked up sponsorship for the program from its third episode Midwestern Hayride Summer The Billy Graham Crusade CBS Fall Perry Mason Dick and the Duchess The Gale Storm Show (16/28.8) Have Gun – Will Travel (4/33.7) Gunsmoke (1/43.1) Local programming Mid-spring Top Dollar NBC Fall People Are Funny (29/27.0) The Perry Como Show (11/30.5) (In COLOR) The Polly Bergen Show / Club Oasis Biweekly series The Gisele MacKenzie Show What's It For? Your Hit Parade (In COLOR) Winter The Original Amateur HourSpring Turning Point Summer The Bob Crosby Show (In COLOR) Opening Night (R) #C0C0C0 / Club Oasis with Spike Jones Biweekly seriesClub Oasis Club Oasis, which had a different host for each episode, became Club Oasis with Spike Jones during the summer of 1958 when Spike Jones became the permanent host. The Joseph Cotten Show (R) Notes: Opening Night consisted of reruns of episodes of the ABC series Ford Theatre from the 1956–1957 season. Turning Point was a dramatic anthology series consisting of two unsold pilots and reruns of episodes from other anthology series. The Joseph Cotten Show consisted of reruns of the 1956–1957 series On Trial. By network ABC Returning Series The Adventures of Jim Bowie The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet The Adventures of Rin-Tin-Tin The Billy Graham Crusade Bold Journey Broken Arrow Cheyenne Circus Boy (moved from NBC) Country Music Jubilee Date with the Angels Disneyland Famous Fights John Daly and the News Jubilee USA Lawrence Welk's Dodge Dancing Party Lawrence Welk's Top Tunes and New Talent The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp Midwestern Hayride Navy Log Open Hearing Telephone Time The Voice of Firestone The Wednesday Night Fights The West Point Story (moved from CBS) You Asked for It New Series All-American Football Game of the Week American Bandstand American Odyssey * The Andy Williams Show * Anybody Can Play * The Betty White Show * Bowling Stars (moved from NBC as National Bowling Championships) Campaign Roundup * Colt .45 Confession * Cowtown Rodeo * The Dick Clark Show * The Frank Sinatra Show The Guy Mitchell Show Adventure at Scott Island (moved from CBS as Harbourmaster) Keep It in the Family Love That Jill * Make Me Laugh * Maverick The Mike Wallace Interview O.S.S. The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom The Patrice Munsel Show Polka Go-Round * Scotland Yard Sugarfoot This is Music * Tombstone Territory The Walter Winchell File Not returning from 1956–57: Air Time '57 The Big Beat Circus Time Compass Conflict Crossroads Deadline for Action Focus Industries for America It's Polka Time Kukla, Fran and Ollie Life Is Worth Living The Lone Ranger Masquerade Party Omnibus Press Conference The Ray Anthony Show Treasure Hunt The Vise (Moved to NBC and retitled Saber of London) CBS Returning Series The $64,000 Challenge The $64,000 Question The Adventures of Robin Hood Alfred Hitchcock Presents Armstrong Circle Theatre Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts Climax! The Danny Thomas Show (moved from ABC) December Bride Douglas Edwards with the News The Ed Sullivan Show The Gale Storm Show General Electric Theater The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show Gunsmoke I Love Lucy (repeats) I've Got a Secret The Jack Benny Show Lassie Masquerade Party The Millionaire Mr. Adams and Eve Person to Person The Phil Silvers Show Playhouse 90 The Red Skelton Show Richard Diamond, Private Detective Schlitz Playhouse Sergeant Preston of the Yukon Shower of Stars The Spike Jones Show Studio One in Hollywood To Tell the Truth The United States Steel Hour What's My Line Zane Grey Theatre New Series Assignment: Foreign Legion Bachelor Father Bid 'n' Buy * The Big Record The Boing Boing Show Dick and the Duchess DuPont Show of the Month The Eve Arden Show Frontier Justice * Harbourmaster Have Gun - Will Travel High Adventure Leave It to Beaver Perry Mason Top Dollar * Trackdown The Twentieth Century Not returning from 1956–57: The 20th Century Fox Hour The Bob Cummings Show (moved to NBC) The Brothers Dr. Christian Giant Step The Herb Shriner Show Hey, Jeannie! (Moved to first-run syndication, retitled The Jeannie Carson Show) High Finance I Love Lucy (first-run episodes) My Friend Flicka Pick the Winner Private Secretary The Vincent Lopez Show You're on Your Own Dumont Not returning from 1956–57: Ethel Barrymore Theatre NBC Returning Series American Profile The Art Linkletter Show The Bob Cummings Show (moved from CBS) Chet Huntley Reporting The Dinah Shore Chevy Show Dragnet Father Knows Best The Ford Show The George Gobel Show Gillette Cavalcade of Sports Goodyear Theatre The Huntley–Brinkley Report Kraft Television Theatre The Life of Riley Meet McGraw The Nat King Cole Show Omnibus (moved from ABC) The Original Amateur Hour People Are Funny The People's Choice The Perry Como Show Red Barber's Corner Saber of London (Moved from ABC, formerly known as The Vise) The Steve Allen Show Tales of Wells Fargo This Is Your Life Twenty-One Wide Wide World You Bet Your Life Your Hit Parade New Series The Big Game * The Bob Crosby Show * The Californians Club Oasis with Spike Jones * Colgate Theatre * The Court of Last Resort Decision * Dotto Dragnet The Eddie Fisher Show The Gisele MacKenzie Show The Investigator * It Could Be You * The Jane Wyman Show Jefferson Drum * The Lux Show Starring Rosemary Clooney M Squad Music Bingo * No Warning! The Price Is Right The Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé Show The Subject Is Jazz * Suspicion The Thin Man This is Music * Tic-Tac-Dough Turn of Fate (Alcoa Theatre) Wagon Train What's It For? Not returning from 1956–57: The Adventures of Hiram Holliday The Andy Williams and June Valli Show The Big Moment The Big Story Blondie Break the $250,000 Bank Caesar's Hour Circus Boy (Moved to ABC) The Dinah Shore Show Dollar a Second The Jonathan Winters Show The Joseph Cotten Show The Julius LaRosa Show The Kaiser Aluminum Hour National Bowling Championships (moved to ABC as Bowling Stars) Panic! Producer's Showcase Robert Montgomery Presents Saturday Color Carnival Stanley Summer Playhouse Tales of the 77th Bengal Lancers The Web Wire Service NTA New series How to Marry a Millionaire Man Without a Gun Premiere Performance Note: The * indicates that the program was introduced in midseason. See also 1957–58 United States network television schedule (daytime) 1957–58 United States network television schedule (late night) Notes References Further reading McNeil, Alex. Total Television. Fourth edition. New York: Penguin Books. 0-14-024916-8. Brooks, Tim & Marsh, Earle (1964). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows (3rd ed.). New York: Ballantine. 0-345-31864-1. Category:United States primetime network television schedules United States network television schedule United States network television schedule