The upstart American TV network Fox debuted its primetime programming in April 1987… and so just celebrated its 25th birthday. It’s been a quarter of a century of game-changing TV. Fox wasn’t always first out of the gate with a trend, but it almost always made the biggest and often most enduring splash with shows such as:
Married… with Children (the new raunch)
The X-Files (the new paranoia; novelistic drama)
The Simpsons (animated sitcom)
In Living Color (sketch comedy with black cast and wide appeal)
Ally McBeal (feminism; fantasy)
24 (terrorism; the new new paranoia)
Arrested Development (quality comedy)
House (most watched show on the planet)
American Idol (reality competitions)
Glee (musical comedy)
21 Jump Street (Gen X drama; launch of Johnny Depp’s career)
Firefly (quality science fiction)
Beverly Hills 90210 (teen soap)
The Adventures of Brisco County Jr. (genre busting; genre comedy)
America’s Most Wanted (reality TV)
This list is not intended to be inclusive.
What is the greatest aspect of Fox’s legacy, 25 years in? One of these shows? Another series? Something else entirely?
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