LEGENDARY TV SERIES

The Saint

Starring Roger Moore as the detective Simon Templar, this series, based on the novels of Leslie Charteris lasted for seven years and over the course of seasons changed its style from a straightforward mystery series to secret agent and fantasy-style plots. It was also one of the series that during the course of their run switched from black and white to colour.

The main character was a dashing, sophisticated and independently wealthy Robin Hood-like perosna, dedicated to justice but often using illegal means to achieve his goals, which usually included a damsel in distress and a villain.

Star Trek

The seminal science-fiction series, a landmark in tv history, the original Star Trek series was clever and engaging. It was also an outright phenomena that spanned tv, film, books and comic books and became an integral part of popular culture. Tackling themes such as racism, sexuality, discrimination, war and poverty through scripts that projected these themes onto aliens, the show tried to bring the ideas of equality and tolerance to viewers, while at the same time providing great entertainment. Of note is also that the first interracial kiss on American TV took place in an episode of this series, between Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols).

Mission: Impossible

A classic of the spy-fi genre, this series chronicled the missions of an elite group of secret agents, fighting fictitious communist powers, saving wrongly imprisoned diplomats and recovering secret documents. It’s groundbreaking use of gadgetry and special effects won the series several Emmy awards and it was also praised for well written plots and retaining the sense of mystery by revealing nothing to the viewers about the personal lives of its characters. Later continuations of the series and movie adaptations have failed to equal its popularity and status as a tv classic.

Dragnet

A long-running television police procedural, Dragnet was praised for its painstaking realism and an attempt to portray the real-life police work as close to reality as it was possible. It also improved the public opinion of police officers and influenced the way cop shows would be filmed in the future.

The Flintstones

The first animated series made for Prime Time TV, it parodied popular live action sitcoms and precisely because of that found an adult audience who enjoyed it for its satire of suburban life. 

Lost in space

A show about the spacefaring Robinson family that tried to return to Earth after a sabotage of  their spaceship’s drive, it gave the viewers Space Dogs, carrot monsters, giant plants, floating heads, galactic showmen and one of the most famous villains, Dr Smith.

A prime example of children television, it is today fondly remembered by many.

Daktari

Daktari was a tv series about a veterinarian in Africa, depicting the work of Dr. Tracy, his family and co-workers as they protected Africa’s wildlife. Animals were also some of the most popular characters, with the cross-eyed lion Clarence and the chimpanzee Judy being one of the most memorable television characters ever.

Doctor Who

The longest running sci-fi series in TV history, it began as a concept for a children’s educational program, but turned into an enduring tv classic. This show about a quirky time-travelling explorer and adventurer and his rotating cast of adventuring  companions  has over the years has built a fanatical following and a huge fan base, equaled only by that of Star Trek.

You can see posters of these TV series in the Gallery!