When it debuted in 1957 Beaver Cleaver was a 7-year old in 2"d grade while I was a 5-year old in kindergarden so that was my generation being represented in the first TV series to depict how kids see the world.  In its 234 episodes with more than 40 recurring characters "Leave It To Beaver" had no shortage of story lines. Alcoholism, divorce and poverty were among the subjects covered but Beaver was basically a sweet show about a loving family. Universal Studios Revue Productions was the laboratory grinding out this and a lot of my other favorite shows including "Tales Of Wells Fargo", "M Squad" and "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" all feeding off the Raoul Kraushaar movie soundtracks of the 1950s.  Beaver took us from that time of American prosperity in the 1950s to just shortly before the JFK assassination and the arrival ofThe Beatles. Not only did the show make its mark on that era but a sequel series "Still The Beaver" updated the concept with many of the same original cast members during the 1980s.  While it didn't have as many stand-alone classic episodes as "I Love Lucy" or "The Twilight Zone" Beaver had the city of Mayfield and its inhabitants which seemed like the TV version of home.

No more "calling all cars" crap. Dragnet was the first TV series to utilize actual police cases and termonology. Through cautious language the series was able to do story lines about child molesters and rapists without the network censors preventing it. It wasn't as much about fist fights, shootouts or car chases as it was about the tedium of gathering information, following up on clues and interrogating suspects. The formula was crime committed/investigation/apprehension and the fact that the criminal was brought to justice made America more confident in the system. Dragnet was just as lurid as Leave It To Beaver was sweet but like Beaver the police drama enjoyed a second run in its old Thursday night time spot during the late 1960s.

TV's first science fiction series for adults "The Twilight Zone" was known for its twist endings where the tightly focused camera would pull back to reveal the full meaning of the story which was much different than originally perceived. Because each episode featured a different setting and cast of characters there are probably more classic episodes of Twilight Zone than any other television series. Everyone remembers William Shatner dealing with the ape like creature attempting to sabotage the airplane he was flying on or Burgess Meredith finally having all the time required to read books when his glasses smash leaving him in a world forever out of focus. SciFi Channel paid tribute to this series which made their birth possible by presenting an annual marathon of The Twilight Zone every New Year's Eve.

Television's first show set mostly underwater wasn't a network offering but rather the accomplishment of Frederick Ziv who invented first run syndication with series that included "The Cisco Kid" (TV's first color series)  and "Highway Patrol" (the first rural police drama). Ziv shows often drew greater Nielsen ratings than their network competitors, a thorn in the side to the big three

national networks. Sea Hunt taught us that if we peacefully co-exist with the creatures of the ocean they will probably not bother us in return.

One of the greatest fantasies ever hatched by TV. What guy wouldn't want to come home after a difficult day at work to find Jeannie waiting for him? True, her powers could be manipulative enough to complicate your life but it would have been worth it. Jeannie was a lot like "Bewitched" in a harem outfit with its fast paced sight gags and storyline where sane people are driven crazy explaining the impossible events caused by her magic. NBC had few censorship rules at the time except that Barbara Eden's navel was to remain forever tucked away in the costume as not to corrupt baby boom children during the family hour. The 1985 TV movie "I Dream Of Jeannie Fifteen Years Later" spotlighted the long anticipated naval while showing that Jeannie's magic wasn't the answer to all problems.  Jeannie was no dumb blonde, just a woman having to do a lot of catching up with contemporary culture after being imprisoned in a bottle for 2000 years.

TV's other great fantasy was billionaire John Beresford Tipton dispatching courier Michael Anthony to award a million dollar check to a total stranger. Sometimes the money made dreams come true, at other times it was a magnet for trouble. Like "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" this series was one of television's first dramadies, mixing equal parts of drama and comedy. Each week featured a different cast of characters and story line. Although the series was fiction millions of viewers hoped that the next knock at the door would be Anthony with the loot.

The English tabloid 21 Century created Supercar, the versatile vehicle that could do everything from speed on land like a race car, submerge in water like a submarine or fly on the fringes of outer space. Gerry and Sylvia Anderson brought it to syndicated TV as a children's show featuring marionettes. The march music for Supercar's takeoff/flight became a standard for Saturday morning kiddie time as did Dr. Horatio Beeker's famous snippets of dialogue; "Satisfactory. Most satisfactory." and "Well, now who's the fool?" The Andersons utilized other 21 Century comic strips in subsequent puppet series including "Fireball XL5", "Stingray" and "Thunderbirds", our first indication several years before The Beatles that something hip was emanating from England.  Surprizingly no one on any of the shows spoke with an English accent unless the character was specifically from England.

The chase-within-a-chase concept originated here as Dr. Richard Kimble pursued the one armed man Fred Johnson who murdered his wife while police lieutenant Phillip Girard doggedly chased Kimble who was wrongly convicted of the murder and headed for the gallows at the time of his escape. Each week Kimble would assume a new identity -anything but doctor- in another town, often missing capture by inches as he and Girard were walking through revolving doors in opposite directions.  In the series finale Fred Johnson is captured by Los Angeles police for breaking up a bar and Kimble travels there to confront him. Also in L.A. Girard meets Johnson for the first time and begins to believe that Kimble's story of the murderer has merit. All three end up back in the Indiana town where the murder took place, Girard having to kill Johnson to save Kimble's life. Fortunately, a person who was at the Kimble home the night of the murder comes forward clearing the doctor of all charges. In the final scene Kimble and Girard shake hands as the doctor finally walks away a free man.

The first daytime soap opera to feature vampires, ghosts, witches, werewolves and zombies was also a love story. Vampire Barnabas  Collins' tragic love affair with Josette Dupree in 1795 haunts him anew when he is finally released from his coffin in the 1960s.  Neither time travel nor imprisoning a girl with a resemblance to Josette is anything like the original relationship for Barnabas so he is forever trapped in an unhappy longing for the woman that his vampirism destroyed.  Robert Cobert's spooky music created much of the show's atmosphere.  Since we were usually in school while this series aired we did our best to catch up during summer and Christmas vacations and later in reruns.

My favorite type of western was where the loner rode into a different town every week, took on overwhelming odds, righted all the wrongs and rode away expecting nothing except the satisfaction of a job well done.  Both of these series were like that and both featured memorable background music that told the story as effectively as the writing or the acting. Dale Robertson and Rory Calhoun were my two favorite TV cowboys so imagine my glee when I found them co-starring in the 1953 movie "The Silver Whip".  This was TV with few gray areas - there were heroes and villains and a few people who just fell short.