Stayin' Alive...In Front Of The TV
Back in the 70s, millions of Americans planned their evenings around television. Now it's time to find out whether you were actually paying attention. Some of these questions are easy. Some are sneaky. A few might have you staring at the screen saying, "I used to know this." But do you still? Let's see if you can get 8 out of 20.
1: On Three's Company, what was the name of the gang's favorite hangout?
A) The Regal Beagle
B) The Rusty Anchor
C) The Blue Dolphin
D) The Sand Dollar
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: The Regal Beagle
The Regal Beagle showed up so often it practically deserved its own place in the opening credits. If you watched Three's Company regularly, chances are you spent almost as much time there as Jack, Janet, and Chrissy did.
Screenshot from Three's Company, DLT Entertainment (1977-1984)
2: What was Hawkeye Pierce's first name on MASH*?
Everybody remembers Hawkeye. He was funny, sarcastic, and somehow managed to keep his sanity while surrounded by chaos. But what was Hawkeye's actual first name?
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: Benjamin
Captain Benjamin Franklin Pierce became one of television's most beloved characters. Most fans know Hawkeye instantly, but his actual first name tends to get lost somewhere between all the jokes, surgeries, and martinis.
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
3: Before Happy Days became its own television series, where did its pilot first air?
A) The Carol Burnett Show
B) Love, American Style
C) The Partridge Family
D) It debuted as a standalone series
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: Love, American Style
The original pilot aired as a segment called "Love and the Happy Days" in 1972. Two years later, ABC turned it into a full series, and the rest became television history.
Screenshot from Love, American Style, ABC(1969-1974), Enhanced
4: Which actress played Sabrina Duncan on Charlie's Angels?
A) Farrah Fawcett
B) Jaclyn Smith
C) Kate Jackson
D) Cheryl Ladd
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: Kate Jackson
Farrah Fawcett usually gets most of the attention when people remember Charlie's Angels, but Kate Jackson was there from the beginning as Sabrina Duncan. In fact, many fans considered her the heart of the original team.
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
5: Which actor famously turned down the role of Fonzie before Henry Winkler got it?
A) Mickey Dolenz
B) Richard Gere
C) Sylvester Stallone
D) John Travolta
A: Mickey Dolenz
Yep, one of The Monkees nearly became The Fonz. Television history could have looked very different if producers had gone in that direction. It's one of the most surprising casting near-misses of the decade.
6: What was the call sign of the television station on The Mary Tyler Moore Show?
Mary Richards worked in one of television's most famous newsrooms. The station itself became almost as recognizable as the people who worked there. Do you remember its call letters?
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: WJM-TV
WJM-TV became one of the most famous fictional television stations ever created. Even decades later, many fans can still picture Mary Richards walking into that Minneapolis newsroom and getting to work.
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
7: True Or False
Steve Austin from The Six Million Dollar Man was originally a professional football player.
The series gave viewers one of television's most famous action heroes. But before the bionic implants and slow-motion running scenes, what was Steve Austin's original profession?
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: False
Before becoming television's most famous cyborg, Steve Austin was a test pilot and astronaut. That background was a major part of the show's premise and was mentioned throughout the series.
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
8: Which classic 70s sitcom episode is still famous for a Thanksgiving promotion involving live turkeys?
A) Taxi
B) WKRP in Cincinnati
C) Barney Miller
D) Soap
Screenshot from WKRP In Cincinnati, CBS (1978-1982)
A: WKRP in Cincinnati
The legendary "Turkeys Away" episode became one of the most beloved sitcom episodes ever made. Decades later, television fans still talk about it every Thanksgiving and many consider it one of the funniest sitcom episodes ever produced.
9: True Or False
The Brady family's dog was named Tiger.
The Brady kids tend to get most of the attention, but longtime viewers may remember that the family had a four-legged member hanging around as well. The question is: was his name actually Tiger?
Screenshot from The Brady Bunch, Paramount Television (1969-1974), Enhanced
A: True
Tiger didn't stay around for very long, but viewers still remember him decades later. That's more than can be said for many television characters who actually stuck around for entire series runs.
Screenshot from The Brady Bunch, Paramount Television (1969-1974), Enhanced
10: Which of these future stars appeared on The Love Boat before becoming major celebrities?
A) Tom Hanks
B) Michael Keaton
C) Tom Selleck
D) All Of The Above
ABC Television Uploaded by We hope at en.wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons
A: All Of The Above
Turns out The Love Boat was practically a floating casting office for future stars. Dozens of actors appeared on the series before becoming household names, making it one of television's most impressive guest-star showcases.
Screenshot from The Love Boat, ABC (1977-1986)
11: What was Mr. Kotter's first name on Welcome Back, Kotter?
A) Gabe
B) Joe
C) Sam
D) David
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: Gabe
A lot of people remember the Sweathogs, Horshack, and a young John Travolta. Far fewer remember that Mr. Kotter's first name was Gabe. If you got this one right, you're doing pretty well.
ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
12: Which future Oscar-winning actor made an early appearance on The Waltons?
A) Jeff Bridges
B) Dustin Hoffman
C) Gene Hackman
D) Robert Duvall
Screenshot from The Waltons, Warner Bros. Discovery (1972-1981), Enhanced
A: Jeff Bridges
Long before the Oscar wins and The Big Lebowski, Bridges made an early appearance on the beloved family drama. Most viewers watching at the time had no idea they were seeing a future Hollywood icon.
Tristan Loper, Wikimedia Commons
13: Which classic 70s sitcom became so popular that it launched seven different spin-offs?
A) The Mary Tyler Moore Show
B) All in the Family
C) Happy Days
D) The Brady Bunch
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: All in the Family
Archie Bunker helped launch one of television's biggest family trees. The show's spin-offs included Maude, The Jeffersons, Good Times, Gloria, Archie Bunker's Place, Checking In, and 704 Hauser. That's an impressive legacy for one sitcom.
CBS Television, Wikimedia Commons
14: Which hit 70s show was so controversial that more than 30 local stations refused to air its first episode?
A) Soap
B) Three's Company
C) Charlie's Angels
D) Good Times
Screenshot from Soap, Sony Pictures Television (1977-1981), Enhanced
A: Soap
Religious groups protested before it even premiered. The controversy generated enormous publicity and helped make the show a hit. In many ways, the backlash ended up giving the series even more attention.
Screenshot from Soap, Sony Pictures Television (1977-1981), Enhanced
15: Which classic 70s sitcom became the first television series ever spun off from a spin-off?
A) The Jeffersons
B) Laverne & Shirley
C) Good Times
D) Mork & Mindy
Michael Ochs Archives, Getty Images
A: Good Times
Good Times came from Maude, which came from All in the Family. That makes it one of television's earliest examples of a spin-off that was itself spun off from another spin-off.
16: Which famous television producer created both Adam-12 and Emergency!?
A) Norman Lear
B) Aaron Spelling
C) Jack Webb
D) Garry Marshall
Screenshot from Adam-12, Universal Television (1968–1975)
A: Jack Webb
Most people know Webb from Dragnet, but he also helped create two of television's most successful police and emergency-service dramas. His influence on procedural television is still felt today.
NBC Television, Wikimedia Commons
17: True Or False
Before Peter Falk became television's most famous rumpled detective, the role of Columbo was offered to Bing Crosby. Was Bing Crosby almost television's most famous detective?
Screenshot from Columbo, NBCUniversal (1968 - 2003)
A: True
Believe it or not, Bing Crosby was reportedly considered for the role before Peter Falk made it his own. It's hard to imagine anyone else in the raincoat today, but television history almost took a very different turn.
Los Angeles Times, Wikimedia Commons
18: Which classic 70s drama became famous for ending nearly every episode with its hero hitchhiking down a lonely road?
A) Kung Fu
B) The Incredible Hulk
C) The Rockford Files
D) The Streets of San Francisco
Screenshot from The Incredible Hulk, CBS Television (1978-1982)
A: The Incredible Hulk
Week after week, David Banner would save the day, fail to find a cure, and hit the road again. The lonely hitchhiking ending became one of the most recognizable images in television history.
Screenshot from The Incredible Hulk, CBS Television (1978-1982)
19: Which future Oscar winner played Reverend Jim Ignatowski on Taxi?
A) Christopher Lloyd
B) Danny DeVito
C) Jeff Conaway
D) Tony Danza
Screenshot from Taxi, Paramount Global Distribution Group (1978-1983)
A: Christopher Lloyd
Long before Back to the Future, Lloyd was stealing scenes as Reverend Jim Ignatowski. The role helped establish him as one of television's most memorable and unpredictable comedic performers.
Screenshot from Taxi, Paramount (1978 - 1983)
20: What was Detective Columbo's first name?
For decades, viewers watched Peter Falk solve impossible cases while wearing the same rumpled raincoat and asking "just one more thing." But what was his first name?
NBC Television, Wikimedia Commons
A: Nobody Knows
The show never officially revealed Columbo's first name. Various theories have popped up over the years, but the writers intentionally left the mystery unsolved. Even television's greatest detective couldn't crack that case.
Screenshot from Columbo, NBCUniversal (1968 - 2003)
How Did You Do?
0–4 Correct: You may have watched some 70s television, but apparently not enough of it.
5–7 Correct: Not bad. You know more than the average viewer.
8–11 Correct: Congratulations. You passed the challenge.
12–15 Correct: That's some serious television knowledge.
16–19 Correct: You probably remember when many of these episodes first aired.
20 Correct: Either you're a walking 70s TV encyclopedia...or somebody was peeking at the answers.
ABC Television. Uploaded by We hope at en.wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons
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