58 of the longest-running American TV shows of all time

Libby TorresJun 25, 2020, 03:07 IST

"The Simpsons" has been on air for 30 seasons.Fox

Some popular TV shows have proven they can stand the test of time, with runs that span decades.
Animated classics like "The Simpsons" and even "Family Guy" have been on for numerous seasons, while soap operas like "Days of Our Lives" and "As the World Turns" aired for over 50 years.
Other shows like "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" and "Jeopardy" have also been airing for many years.

While some television shows come to an untimely end, others just seem to go on forever.

It's impressive when a show lasts more than 10 years, but that doesn't come close to how long some hit shows have lasted. "The Bachelor" has been on for 18 years, while "The Simpsons" has been on the air for 30 years. Even longer? A few soap operas have been on TV for more than half a century.

Excluding British shows like "Doctor Who" and news and talk shows, we've come up with the shows that have been around for 12 years or longer.

Here are 58 of America's longest-running shows.

Anjelica Oswald contributed to an earlier version of this story.

"Guiding Light" (57 years)

"Guiding Light." CBS

"General Hospital" (57 years)

"General Hospital." ABC

"As the World Turns" (54 years)

"As the World Turns." CBS

"Days of Our Lives" (55 years)

There are a lot of weddings on soap operas. NBC

"Sesame Street" (51 years)

New puppets are added often. HBO

"The Price is Right" (48 years)

Bob Barker was the host for 35 years. CBS

"The Young and the Restless" (47 years)

"The Young and the Restless" in 2018. Howard Wise/JPI Studios

"One Life to Live" (44 years)

Tommy Lee Jones starred on "One Life to Live." ABC

"Saturday Night Live" (45 years)

From season one of "Saturday Night Live." NBC

"All My Children" (41 years)

Actors Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa met and fell in love on the set of "All My Children." ABC

"Search For Tomorrow" (35 years)

"Search for Tomorrow" started in 1951. CBS

"Another World" (35 years)

A wedding scene from 1975. NBC

"Wheel of Fortune" (37 years)

Pat Sajak (right) has hosted the syndication since the start. CBS Television Distribution

"Jeopardy!" (36 years)

Alex Trebek has been the host since 1984. Sony Pictures Television

"Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" (33 years)

Mr. Rogers is the focus of several recent films. PBS

"The Bold and the Beautiful" (33 years)

"The Bold and the Beautiful" in 2017. Howard Wise/JPI Studios

"Cops" (31 years)

Cops doing their job on "Cops." Spike

"The Simpsons" (31 years)

"The Simpsons." YouTube screencap

"America's Funniest Home Videos" (30 years)

Tom Bergeron was the host from 2001 until 2015. ABC

"Love of Life" (29 years)

The show was black-and-white until 1967. CBS

"Captain Kangaroo" (29 years)

Hugh Brannum and Bob Keeshan on "Captain Kangaroo." CBS

"The Edge of Night" (28 years)

The show was black-and-white until 1967. CBS

"The Real World" (28 years)

"Real World: New York" from 1992. MTV

"Power Rangers" (27 years)

The very first group of Power Rangers. Saban

"America's Most Wanted" (24 years)

John Walsh served as the host. Lifetime

"Reading Rainbow" (23 years)

Levar Burton hosted the entire show. PBS

"The Ed Sullivan Show" (23 years)

Ed Sullivan (in the middle) with the Beatles. Express Newspapers/Getty Images

"Arthur" (24 years)

"Arthur" is educational. PBS

"South Park" (23 years)

"South Park" began on August 13, 1997. Comedy Central

"The Challenge" (22 years)

"The Challenge" is in its 34th season. MTV

"SpongeBob SquarePants" (21 years)

SpongeBob is a recognizable character. Nickelodeon

"Family Guy" (21 years)

The Griffins often have misadventures. Fox

"Law and Order: Special Victims Unit" (21 years)

Mariska Hargitay and Christopher Meloni on "SVU." The CW

"Family Feud" (21 years)

Steve Harvey is the host now. ABC

"Gunsmoke" (20 years)

James Arness and Amanda Blake on "Gunsmoke." CBS

"Law and Order" (20 years)

Jerry Orbach and Chris Noth on "Law and Order." NBC

"The Secret Storm" (20 years)

Soap operas were popular. CBS

"The Red Skelton Show" (20 years)

From (L-R) Mickey Rooney and Red Skelton during a rehearsal for the "Red Skelton Show." AP Photo

"Survivor" (20 years)

Jeff Probst has been the host since season one. CBS

"Big Brother" (20 years)

Julie Chen has been the host since the beginning. Johnny Vy/CBS

"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" (20 years)

Regis Philbin hosted from 1999 to 2002. ABC

"The Amazing Race" (19 years)

A scene from season 30. CBS

"Lassie" (19 years)

Lassie and Jeff on season one. CBS

"The Doctors" (19 years)

It aired over 5,000 episodes. NBC

"The Bachelor" (18 years)

"The Bachelor" currently has 24 seasons. ABC/Craig Sjodin

"Death Valley Days" (18 years)

Ronald Reagan was on the show for a year. Warner Bros./Getty Images

"Barney and Friends" (17 years)

Barney and Baby Bop, Riff, and B.J. Donna McWilliam/AP

"What's My Line?" (17 years)

Colonel Sanders of KFC was a guest. CBS

"The Fairly OddParents" (16 years)

Wanda, Timmy, and Cosmo were a hit. Nickelodeon

"American Dad!" (15 years)

Seth MacFarlane was one of the co-creators of "American Dad!" The show began in 2005. 20th Television

"Grey's Anatomy" (15 years)

Sandra Oh, Ellen Pompeo, and Katherine Heigl starred on "Grey's Anatomy." ABC

"Supernatural" (15 years)

Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles star on "Supernatural." The CW

"Knots Landing" (14 years)

"Knots Landing" first aired in 1979. CBS

"Bonanza" (14 years)

"Bonanza" was set in the 1860s. Bonanza / YouTube screencap

"Criminal Minds" (14 years)

Mandy Patinkin stars on "Criminal Minds." CBS

"Dallas" (12 years)

"Dallas" focused on a wealthy Texas family. Dallas (TV Series)

"The Big Bang Theory" (12 years)

"The Big Bang Theory" aired its final episode in 2019. Michael Yarish/CBS

"Hawaii Five-O" (12 years)

"Hawaii Five-O" is known for its iconic theme song. CBS

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