1972–73 United States network television schedule
Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:USTV The following is the 1972–73 network television schedule for the three major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers prime-time hours from September 1972 through August 1973. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and series cancelled after the 1971–72 season. All times are Eastern and Pacific, with certain exceptions, such as Monday Night Football.
New fall series are highlighted in bold.
Each of the 30 highest-rated shows is listed with its rank and rating as determined by Nielsen Media Research.<ref name="BM2">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. Template:ISBN.</ref>
The Prime Time Access Rule, intended to increase diversity in programming and enacted abruptly at the beginning of the previous season was slightly modified, with primetime network programming beginning at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time from Monday through Saturday and 7:30 p.m. on Sundays, limited to 21 weekly hours. This scheme would remain in place until 1975.
PBS is not included; member stations have local flexibility over most of their schedules and broadcast times for network shows may vary.
Legend
Sunday
| Network | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Local programming | The F.B.I. (29/19.2) (Tied with The ABC Monday Movie and Kung Fu) |
Template:Highlight | |||||
| CBS | Fall | Anna and the King | M*A*S*H | The Sandy Duncan Show | The New Dick Van Dyke Show | Mannix | Local programming | |
| Winter | The New Dick Van Dyke Show | Mannix | Barnaby Jones (25/19.9) (Tied with The Little People and The ABC Wednesday Movie of the Week) | |||||
| NBC | Fall | The Wonderful World of Disney (9/23.5) | Template:Highlight | Night Gallery | ||||
| Spring | Escape | |||||||
| April | Night Gallery | |||||||
Note: 60 Minutes aired at 6:00-7:00 pm on CBS from January to June 1973.
Monday
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | The Rookies (23/20.0) (Tied with The ABC Sunday Night Movie) |
Template:Highlight | ||||
| Winter | Template:Highlight | ||||||
| CBS | Fall | Gunsmoke (7/23.6) (Tied with The Mary Tyler Moore Show) |
Here's Lucy (15/21.9) | The Doris Day Show | The New Bill Cosby Show | ||
| Spring | Medical Center | ||||||
| NBC | Fall | Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In | Template:Highlight | ||||
| Summer | The Baseball World of Joe Garagiola (8:00) / Monday Night Baseball (8:15) | ||||||
Tuesday
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Temperatures Rising | Template:Highlight | Marcus Welby, M.D. (13/22.9) | ||||
| CBS | Maude (4/24.7) | Hawaii Five-O (3/25.2) | The New CBS Tuesday Night Movie | ||||
| NBC | Fall | Bonanza | The Bold Ones: The New Doctors | NBC Reports / First Tuesday* / NBC White Paper / America: A Personal History of the United States | |||
| Winter | NBC Tuesday Night at the Movies | ||||||
* formerly Chronolog<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Wednesday
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | The Paul Lynde Show | Template:Highlight | The Julie Andrews Hour | |||
| Winter | Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law | ||||||
| Summer | Thicker than Water | ||||||
| August | Love Thy Neighbor | ||||||
| CBS | Fall | The Carol Burnett Show (22/20.3) | Medical Center (19/20.6) (Tied with The Partridge Family and The Waltons) |
Cannon (14/22.4) | |||
| Winter | The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour | ||||||
| Spring | Dan August (R) | ||||||
| NBC | Adam-12 (11/23.3) | NBC Wednesday Mystery Movie: Madigan / Cool Million / Banacek | Search | ||||
Note: Dan August consisted of reruns of the 1970-1971 ABC series.
Thursday
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | The Mod Squad | The Men: Assignment Vienna / The Delphi Bureau / Jigsaw | Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law | |||
| Winter | Kung Fu (29/19.2) (Tied with The ABC Monday Movie and The F.B.I.) |
The Streets of San Francisco | |||||
| CBS | The Waltons (19/20.6) (Tied with The Partridge Family and Medical Center) |
CBS Thursday Night Movie | |||||
| NBC | Fall | The Flip Wilson Show (12/23.1) | Ironside (10/23.4) | The Dean Martin Show | |||
| Summer | The Helen Reddy Show | Dean Martin Presents Music Country | |||||
Friday
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | The Brady Bunch | The Partridge Family (19/20.6) (Tied with The Waltons and Medical Center) |
Room 222 | The Odd Couple | Love, American Style | |
| Summer | The Odd Couple | Love Thy Neighbor | |||||
| Follow-up | The Corner Bar | ||||||
| CBS | Fall | The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour | The CBS Friday Night Movie | ||||
| December | Mission: Impossible | ||||||
| Summer | 60 Minutes | ||||||
| NBC | Fall | Sanford and Son (2/27.6) | The Little People (25/19.9) (Tied with Barnaby Jones and The ABC Wednesday Movie of the Week) |
Ghost Story | Banyon | ||
| Winter | Circle of Fear | The Bobby Darin Show | |||||
Note: Ghost Story was retooled slightly and retitled Circle of Fear (under the same production team) with the episode broadcast January 5, 1973.
Saturday
| Network | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | Alias Smith and Jones | The Streets of San Francisco | The Sixth Sense | |||
| Winter | Here We Go Again | A Touch of Grace | The Julie Andrews Hour | The Men: Assignment Vienna / The Delphi Bureau / Jigsaw | |||
| May | The Paul Lynde Show | The Strauss Family | |||||
| Summer | The Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour | ||||||
| CBS | Fall | All in the Family (1/33.3) | Bridget Loves Bernie (5/24.2) (Tied with The NBC Sunday Mystery Movie) |
The Mary Tyler Moore Show (7/23.6) (Tied with Gunsmoke) |
The Bob Newhart Show (16/21.8) | Mission: Impossible | |
| December | The Carol Burnett Show (22/20.3) | ||||||
| Summer | Mission: Impossible | ||||||
| NBC | Emergency! | NBC Saturday Night at the Movies | |||||
By network
Template:Col-begin Template:Col-3 Returning Series
- The ABC Monday Night Movie
- ABC NFL Monday Night Football
- The ABC Sunday Night Movie
- ABC Tuesday Movie of the Week
- ABC Wednesday Movie of the Week
- Alias Smith and Jones
- The Brady Bunch
- The Corner Bar
- The F.B.I.
- Love, American Style
- Marcus Welby, M.D.
- The Mod Squad
- The Odd Couple
- Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law
- The Partridge Family
- Room 222
- The Sixth Sense
Template:Col-3 New Series
- The Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour *
- Here We Go Again *
- The Julie Andrews Hour
- Kung Fu
- Love Thy Neighbor *
- The Men: Assignment Vienna / The Delphi Bureau / Jigsaw
- The Paul Lynde Show
- The Rookies
- The Strauss Family *
- The Streets of San Francisco
- Temperatures Rising
- Thicker than Water *
- A Touch of Grace *
Template:Col-3 Not returning from 1971–72:
- The ABC Comedy Hour
- Bewitched
- The Courtship of Eddie's Father
- Getting Together
- The Ken Berry "Wow" Show
- Longstreet
- The Man and the City
- The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine
- Monday Night Special
- Nanny and the Professor
- The Persuaders!
- Shirley's World
- The Smith Family
- The Super
Template:Col-begin Template:Col-3 Returning Series
- 60 Minutes
- All in the Family
- Cannon
- The Carol Burnett Show
- The Doris Day Show
- Gunsmoke
- Hawaii Five-O
- Here's Lucy
- Mannix
- The Mary Tyler Moore Show
- Medical Center
- Mission: Impossible
- The New CBS Tuesday Night Movies
- The New Dick Van Dyke Show
- The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
- CBS Thursday Night Movie
Template:Col-3 New Series
- Anna and the King
- Barnaby Jones *
- The Bob Newhart Show
- Bridget Loves Bernie
- M*A*S*H
- Maude
- The New Bill Cosby Show
- The Sandy Duncan Show
- The Waltons
Template:Col-3 Not returning from 1971–72:
- Arnie
- Bearcats!
- Cade's County
- The Chicago Teddy Bears
- The David Steinberg Show
- The Don Rickles Show
- Funny Face
- The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour
- The Jerry Reed When You're Hot You're Hot Hour
- The John Byner Comedy Hour
- The Life of Leonardo da Vinci
- Me and the Chimp
- My Three Sons
- O'Hara, U.S. Treasury
- Suspense Theatre
Template:Col-begin Template:Col-3 Returning Series
- Adam-12
- The Bold Ones
- Bonanza
- Columbo
- The Dean Martin Show
- Emergency!
- First Tuesday
- The Flip Wilson Show
- Ironside
- McCloud
- McMillan & Wife
- Monday Night Baseball
- NBC Action Playhouse
- NBC Monday Night at the Movies
- The NBC Mystery Movie
- NBC Saturday Night at the Movies
- Night Gallery
- Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
- Sanford and Son
- The Wonderful World of Disney
Template:Col-3 New Series
- Banacek
- Banyon
- The Bobby Darin Show
- Cool Million
- Dean Martin Presents Music Country *
- Escape *
- Ghost Story/Circle of Fear
- Hec Ramsey
- The Helen Reddy Show *
- The Little People/The Brian Keith Show
- Love Thy Neighbor
- Madigan
- The Magician *
- NBC Reports
- Search
Template:Col-3 Not returning from 1971–72:
- The D.A.
- Dean Martin Presents the Bobby Darin Amusement Co.
- The Funny Side
- The Good Life
- The Jimmy Stewart Show
- NBC Reports
- Nichols
- The Partners
- Sarge
Note: The * indicates that the program was introduced in midseason.
References
Additional sources
- Castleman, H. & Podrazik, W. (1982). Watching TV: Four Decades of American Television. New York: McGraw-Hill. 314 pp.
- McNeil, Alex. Total Television. Fourth edition. New York: Penguin Books. Template:ISBN.
- Brooks, Tim & Marsh, Earle (1985). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows (3rd ed.). New York: Ballantine. Template:ISBN.