The 1940s

4 shows that began in the 1940s, and the 4 title sequences they opened with.

Filed by first broadcast. A show that ran for thirty years appears once, under the decade it started in.

The Ed Sullivan Show

1948–1971CBSDocumentary

Twenty-three years of Sunday nights, and the stage the Beatles and Elvis were introduced to America from.

1949–1957ABCDrama

Rossini's William Tell overture attached so firmly to a masked rider that the music has never fully got free of it.

1949–1958NBCComedy

A radio sitcom moved to television twice, the second time with William Bendix finally allowed to play the part he had on radio.

1947–NBCDocumentary

The longest-running programme in television history, and fifteen seconds of titles to show for seventy-seven years.