List Rules Daytime soap operas that aired on television during the 1970s
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70s television was filled to the brim with some of the top soap operas to ever air on television. Shows like "As the World Turns," "Another World," and "Guiding Light" were the highest rated soap operas of the decade, continuing their success after decades of being on the air. This list of the best daytime soap operas that aired during 1970 to 1979 has been voted on and ranked by the community.
The 70s saw the introduction of many new soap operas. Some of them became huge hits that lasted for many years, such as "The Young and the Restless," "Ryan’s Hope," and "All My Children." Others didn’t enjoy the same level of success, including "Bright Promise," "Somerset," "A World Apart" and "How to Survive a Marriage." "Love is a Many Splendored Thing" ended its run in 1973 after being on the air since the mid-60s. The top daytime soap operas saw about 10 million viewers an episode.
What are the best daytime soap operas from the 1970s? Vote up the best 70s soaps below.
list ordered by
1
98 44
Dark ShadowsJonathan Frid, Grayson Hall, Alexandra Isles Dark Shadows is an American gothic soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966, to April 2, 1971. The series became hugely popular when vampire ...more
2
82 36
The Edge of NightMartin Sheen, Marcia Cross, Lori Loughlin The Edge of Night is an American television mystery series/soap opera produced by Procter & Gamble. It debuted on CBS on April 2, 1956, and ran as a live broadcast on that network for most ...more
3
91 44
Another WorldVictoria Wyndham, Constance Ford, Hugh Marlowe Another World is an American television soap opera that ran on NBC for 35 years from May 4, 1964 to June 25, 1999. It was created by Irna Phillips along with William J. Bell, and was produced by ...more
4
89 46
All My ChildrenCameron Mathison, Michael E. Knight, Alicia Minshew All My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC for 41 years, from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and on The Online Network from April 29, 2013, to September 2, ...more
5
81 48
One Life to LiveHayden Panettiere, Kourtney Kardashian, Marcia Cross One Life to Live is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on ...more
6
71 40
Ryan's HopeMorgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Mary-Louise Parker Ryan's Hope is an American soap opera created by Claire Labine and Paul Avila Mayer, originally airing for 13 years on ABC from July 7, 1975 to January 13, 1989. It revolves around the trials ...more
7
66 46
Guiding LightHayden Panettiere, Matt Bomer, Brittany Snow Guiding Light is an American television soap opera that is listed in Guinness World Records as the longest-running drama in television in American history, broadcast on CBS for 57 years from ...more
8
71 55
Days of Our LivesPamela Anderson, Shelley Hennig, Melinda Clarke Days of Our Lives is an American daytime soap opera broadcast on the NBC television network. It is one of the longest-running scripted television programs in the world, airing nearly every ...more
9
59 48
As the World TurnsJulianne Moore, Sarah Hyland, Ming-Na Wen As the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956 to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her ...more
10
55 46
General HospitalEva Longoria, James Franco, Kelly Monaco General Hospital is an American daytime television medical drama that is listed in Guinness World Records as the longest-running American soap opera in production and the third longest-running ...more
11
54 46
Search for TomorrowSusan Sarandon, Viggo Mortensen, Kevin Bacon Search for Tomorrow is an American soap opera that aired on CBS from September 3, 1951 to March 26, 1982, and on NBC from March 29, 1982 to December 26, 1986. At the time of its final broadcast, ...more
12
57 51
The Young and the RestlessEva Longoria, Shemar Moore, Tatyana Ali The Young and the Restless is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in a fictional Wisconsin town called Genoa City, which is ...more
13
42 38
Love of LifeDana Delany, Christopher Reeve, Roy Scheider Love of Life is an American soap opera which aired on CBS from September 24, 1951, to February 1, 1980. It was created by Roy Winsor, whose previous creation Search for Tomorrow had premiered ...more
14
41 38
The Secret StormJoan Crawford, Roy Scheider, Audrey Landers The Secret Storm is a soap opera which the CBS television network transmitted from February 1, 1954, to February 8, 1974. It was created by Roy Winsor, who also created the long-running soap ...more
15
3 4
Where the Heart IsRue McClanahan, Marsha Mason, James Mitchell Where the Heart Is is an American soap opera telecast on the CBS television network from September 8, 1969 to March 23, 1973. Created by Lou Scofield and Margaret DePriest, the program ran for ...more
16
33 42
SomersetSigourney Weaver, Ted Danson, JoBeth Williams Somerset is an American television soap opera which ran on NBC from March 30, 1970, until December 31, 1976. The show was a spin-off of another NBC serial, Another World.
17
1 3
Bright PromiseDabney Coleman, Coleen Gray, Anthony Geary Bright Promise is an American daytime soap opera that ran on NBC from September 29, 1969 to March 31, 1972. It aired weekdays at 3:30 PM Eastern/2:30 PM Central.
18
35 47
The DoctorsAlec Baldwin, Kathleen Turner, Terry O'Quinn The Doctors is an American television soap opera which aired on NBC Daytime from April 1, 1963, to December 31, 1982. There were 5280 episodes produced, with the 5000th episode airing in ...more
19
0 3
The Best Of EverythingSusan Sullivan, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Gale Sondergaard The Best of Everything is an American daytime soap opera which aired on ABC from March 30, 1970 to September 25, 1970. The series was a spin-off of the 1959 film of the same name and the novel ...more
20
24 42
Return to Peyton PlaceMary Frann, John Hoyt, Frank Ferguson Return to Peyton Place is an American daytime serial which aired on NBC from April 3, 1972 to January 4, 1974. The series was a spin-off of the primetime drama series Peyton Place rather than an ...more
21
26 46
Love Is a Many Splendored ThingSusan Lucci, Donna Mills, Paul Michael Glaser Love Is a Many Splendored Thing is an American daytime soap opera which aired on CBS from September 18, 1967 to March 23, 1973. The series was created by Irna Phillips, who served as the first ...more
22
19 37
A World ApartSusan Sarandon, Susan Sullivan, David Birney A World Apart is an American daytime drama which ran from March 30, 1970 to June 25, 1971 on the ABC television network.
23
12 50
How to Survive a MarriageArmand Assante, Ken Kercheval, Allan Miller How to Survive a Marriage is an American soap opera which aired on the NBC television network from January 7, 1974 to April 17, 1975. The serial was created by Anne Howard Bailey, with much ...more
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List Rules: Daytime soap operas that aired on television during the 1970s
