# 1958–59 United States network television schedule

The following is the 1958–59 network television schedule for the four major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 1958 through March 1959. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and series cancelled after the 1957–58 season.
According to television historians Castleman and Podrazik (1982), the networks' schedules were thrown "into complete chaos" by the quiz show scandals that erupted during fall 1958. At first only one series, Dotto, was implicated in the game-fixing charges. Ed Hilgemeier, a contestant on the program, filed a complaint with the show's sponsor, Colgate-Palmolive. Colgate withdrew its sponsorship of the Tuesday evening (on NBC) and daytime (on CBS) versions of Dotto, and the show did not appear on either network's fall 1958 schedule.
The $64,000 Challenge (on CBS) similarly did not appear that fall, and by November, The $64,000 Question (CBS) and Twenty-One (NBC) were also removed from the network schedules, amidst accusations of game rigging. NBC's primetime Tic-Tac-Dough lasted through December. According to Castleman and Podrazik, "NBC and CBS were adamant in their own statements of innocence" since they only aired, and did not produce, the rigged series. They also claimed the cancellations were due to low ratings, not because of game-fixing accusations. ABC had few game shows on its 1958–59 schedule, and "eagerly pointed out" its innocence in the quiz show mess. The network affirmed its commitment to Westerns, which could not be rigged.
Western TV series continued to be popular with audiences, and for the first time, the three highest-rated programs on television, CBS's Gunsmoke and, Have Gun – Will Travel alongside NBC's Wagon Train were all Westerns. ABC's new series, The Rifleman even hit #4, quite a feat for a network which had had no series in the top 30 five years earlier.
Although ABC, CBS, and NBC remained the largest television networks in the United States, they were not the only companies operating television networks during this era. In May 1958, Ely Landau, president of the NTA Film Network, announced an NTA Film Network schedule for the 1958–59 season. The schedule consisted of three and a half hours of programs on Friday nights: Man Without a Gun at 7:30, followed by This is Alice at 8:00, then How to Marry a Millionaire at 8:30, and Premiere Performance, a package of films from the network's minority shareholder 20th Century Fox, from 9:00 to 11:00. Although the NTA Film Network had over 100 affiliate stations, only 17 agreed to air the Friday night schedule "in pattern" (during the scheduled time). Other NTA Network affiliates carried the network's programs whenever they had available slots, and outside of Gun, Alice, Millionaire and Performance, NTA's programs were aired whenever the local stations preferred. National Educational Television (NET), the predecessor to PBS founded in 1952, also allowed its affiliate stations to air programs out of pattern.
New series are highlighted in bold.
All times are U.S. Eastern and Pacific time (except for some live sports or events). Subtract one hour for Central and Mountain times.
Each of the 30 highest-rated shows is listed with its rank and rating as determined by Nielsen Media Research.

## Legend

* Light blue indicates local programming
* Light green indicates live sporting events.
* Light purple indicates movies.
* Red indicates series being burned off and other irregularly scheduled programs, including specials.
* Yellow indicates the programs in the top 10 for the season.
* Cyan indicates the programs in the top 20 for the season.
* Magenta indicates the programs in the top 30 for the season.

## Sunday

| Network | Network | 7:00 PM | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM |
| ABC | Fall | You Asked For It | Maverick (6/30.4) | Maverick (6/30.4) | The Lawman (27/26.0) | Colt .45 | Encounter | Encounter | Local |
| November | Local | Local | Local | You Asked For It | Maverick (6/30.4) | Maverick (6/30.4) | The Lawman (27/26.0) | Colt .45 |
| Winter | Deadline for Action* | Deadline for Action* | Maverick (6/30.4) | Maverick (6/30.4) | The Lawman (27/26.0) | Colt .45 | Local |
| CBS | Fall | You Asked For It | Lassie | The Jack Benny Program / Bachelor Father | The Ed Sullivan Show | The Ed Sullivan Show | General Electric Theater (25/26.7) (Tied with Name That Tune) | Alfred Hitchcock Presents (24/26.8) | The $64,000 Question | What's My Line? |
| CBS | November | Keep Talking | Lassie | The Jack Benny Program / Bachelor Father | The Ed Sullivan Show | The Ed Sullivan Show | General Electric Theater (25/26.7) (Tied with Name That Tune) | Alfred Hitchcock Presents (24/26.8) | | What's My Line? |
| CBS | February | Richard Diamond, Private Detective | Lassie | The Jack Benny Program / Bachelor Father | The Ed Sullivan Show | The Ed Sullivan Show | General Electric Theater (25/26.7) (Tied with Name That Tune) | Alfred Hitchcock Presents (24/26.8) | | What's My Line? |
| CBS | June | Richard Diamond, Private Detective | Lassie | That's My Boy (reruns) | The Ed Sullivan Show | The Ed Sullivan Show | General Electric Theater (25/26.7) (Tied with Name That Tune) | Alfred Hitchcock Presents (24/26.8) | | What's My Line? |
| NBC | Fall | Saber of London | Northwest Passage (In COLOR) | The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) | The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) | The Loretta Young Show | Local |
| NBC | Winter | Saber of London | The Music Shop (In COLOR) | The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) | The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) | The Loretta Young Show | Local |
| NBC | Follow-up | Saber of London | The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) | The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) | Pete Kelly's Blues | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) | The Loretta Young Show | Local |
| NBC | Summer | Saber of London | The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) | The Steve Allen Show (In COLOR) | Dragnet | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (In COLOR) | The Loretta Young Show | Local |
| NTA | NTA | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local |
NOTES: The Canadian-produced anthology series Encounter aired only five episodes on ABC before cancellation.
Deadline for Action on ABC consisted of reruns of episodes that starred Dane Clark of the 1956–1957 series Wire Service.
From February to September 1959, Richard Diamond, Private Detective, starring David Janssen, aired for a third and final season on CBS, on the Sunday schedule at 10 p.m. Eastern. It switched to NBC and returned to the air for a fourth season during the 1959–60 television season.

## Monday

| Network | Network | Network | 7:00 PM | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM |
| ABC | Fall | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Polka Go-Round | Polka Go-Round | Bold Journey | The Voice of Firestone | Anybody Can Play | This is Music | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| ABC | Follow-up | Follow-up | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Tales of the Texas Rangers | Polka Go-Round | Bold Journey | The Voice of Firestone | Anybody Can Play | The Patti Page Oldsmobile Show | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| ABC | Winter | Winter | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Tales of the Texas Rangers | Polka Go-Round | Bold Journey | The Voice of Firestone | Dr. I.Q. | The Patti Page Oldsmobile Show | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| ABC | Spring | Spring | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Tales of the Texas Rangers | Polka Go-Round | Bold Journey | The Voice of Firestone | This is Music | The Patti Page Oldsmobile Show | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| ABC | Summer | Summer | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Polka Go-Round | Polka Go-Round | Bold Journey | Pantomime Quiz | Top Pro Golf | Top Pro Golf | | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| CBS | CBS | CBS | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | Name That Tune (25/26.7) (Tied with General Electric Theater) | The Texan (15/28.2) | Father Knows Best (13/28.3) (Tied with Zane Grey Theater) | The Danny Thomas Show (5/32.8) | The Ann Sothern Show (21/27.0) (Tied with Sugarfoot and The Perry Como Show) | Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse / The Westinghouse Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show (once a month) | Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse / The Westinghouse Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show (once a month) |
| NBC | NBC | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Tic-Tac-Dough (In COLOR) | The Restless Gun | Tales of Wells Fargo (7/30.2) | Peter Gunn (16/28.0) (Tied with Wanted: Dead or Alive) | Alcoa Theatre / Goodyear Television Playhouse | The Arthur Murray Party (In COLOR) | Local |
| NBC | NBC | Winter | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Buckskin | The Restless Gun | Tales of Wells Fargo (7/30.2) | Peter Gunn (16/28.0) (Tied with Wanted: Dead or Alive) | Alcoa Theatre / Goodyear Television Playhouse | The Arthur Murray Party (In COLOR) | Local |
| NTA | NTA | NTA | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local |
Note: The Westinghouse Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show was later rebroadcast and syndicated as The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour. In most areas, Douglas Edwards with the News and The Huntley-Brinkley Report aired at 6:45 p.m.

## Tuesday

| Network | Network | Network | 7:00 PM | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM |
| ABC | Fall | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Cheyenne (18/27.9) / Sugarfoot (21/27.0) (Tied with The Ann Sothern Show and The Perry Como Show) / Bronco | Cheyenne (18/27.9) / Sugarfoot (21/27.0) (Tied with The Ann Sothern Show and The Perry Como Show) / Bronco | The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp (10/29.1) | The Rifleman (4/33.1) | Naked City | Confession | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| ABC | Winter | Winter | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Cheyenne (18/27.9) / Sugarfoot (21/27.0) (Tied with The Ann Sothern Show and The Perry Como Show) / Bronco | Cheyenne (18/27.9) / Sugarfoot (21/27.0) (Tied with The Ann Sothern Show and The Perry Como Show) / Bronco | The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp (10/29.1) | The Rifleman (4/33.1) | Naked City | Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| CBS | Fall | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | Stars in Action (repeats) | Keep Talking | To Tell the Truth | The Arthur Godfrey Show | The Red Skelton Show (In COLOR) (12/28.5) | The Garry Moore Show | The Garry Moore Show |
| CBS | Follow-up | Follow-up | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | Stars in Action (repeats) | The Invisible Man | To Tell the Truth | The Arthur Godfrey Show | The Red Skelton Show (In COLOR) (12/28.5) | The Garry Moore Show | The Garry Moore Show |
| CBS | Summer | Summer | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | Stars in Action (repeats) | The Invisible Man | To Tell the Truth | Peck's Bad Girl | The Red Skelton Show (In COLOR) (12/28.5) | The Andy Williams Show | The Andy Williams Show |
| NBC | NBC | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Dragnet | The George Gobel Show (In COLOR) / The Eddie Fisher Show (In COLOR) | The George Gobel Show (In COLOR) / The Eddie Fisher Show (In COLOR) | Colgate Theatre | The Bob Cummings Show | The Californians | Local |
| NBC | NBC | Late October | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Dragnet | The George Gobel Show (In COLOR) / The Eddie Fisher Show (In COLOR) | The George Gobel Show (In COLOR) / The Eddie Fisher Show (In COLOR) | The George Burns Show | The Bob Cummings Show | The Californians | Local |
| NTA | NTA | NTA | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local |
Confession, with host Jack Wyatt, which had begun as a local program in the Dallas, Texas, market in early 1957, premiered as a summer replacement on ABC on June 19, 1958, in advance of the 1958–59 television season. It ended on January 13, 1959, and was succeeded on January 20, 1959, by the paranormal anthology series Alcoa Presents: One Step Beyond.

## Wednesday

| Network | Network | 7:00 PM | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM |
| ABC | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Lawrence Welk's Plymouth Show | Lawrence Welk's Plymouth Show | The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet | The Donna Reed Show | The Patti Page Oldsmobile Show | The Wednesday Night Fights | The Wednesday Night Fights |
| ABC | Follow-up | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Lawrence Welk's Plymouth Show | Lawrence Welk's Plymouth Show | The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet | The Donna Reed Show | Accused | The Wednesday Night Fights | The Wednesday Night Fights |
| ABC | Summer | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Music For a Summer Night | Music For a Summer Night | | The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet | The Donna Reed Show | Accused | The Wednesday Night Fights | The Wednesday Night Fights |
| CBS | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | Twilight Theater (repeats) | Pursuit | Pursuit | The Millionaire (30/25.6) | I've Got a Secret (9/29.8) | Armstrong Circle Theatre/ The United States Steel Hour | Armstrong Circle Theatre/ The United States Steel Hour |
| CBS | Summer | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | Twilight Theater (repeats) | Pursuit | Pursuit | The Millionaire (30/25.6) | I've Got a Secret (9/29.8) | Armstrong by Request/The United States Steel Hour | Armstrong by Request/The United States Steel Hour |
| NBC | NBC | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Wagon Train (2/36.1) | Wagon Train (2/36.1) | The Price is Right (In COLOR) (11/28.6) | Milton Berle starring in the Kraft Music Hall (In COLOR) | Bat Masterson | This Is Your Life (29/25.8) | Local |
| NTA | NTA | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local |
Notes: On CBS, Armstrong Circle Theatre alternated with The United States Steel Hour. Armstrong by Request, which also alternated with The United States Steel Hour and aired in place of Armstrong Circle Theatre from July 8 to September 16, 1959, consisted of reruns of six documentary dramas which originally had aired on Armstrong Circle Theatre during the 1958–1959 season.
On NBC, Milton Berle starring in the Kraft Music Hall formerly was known as The Milton Berle Show.

## Thursday

| Network | Network | 7:00 PM | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM |
| ABC | ABC | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | Leave It to Beaver | Zorro | The Real McCoys (8/30.1) | The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom | The Rough Riders | Traffic Court | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| CBS | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | I Love Lucy (repeats) | December Bride | Yancy Derringer | Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre (13/28.3) (Tied with Father Knows Best) | Playhouse 90 | Playhouse 90 | Playhouse 90 |
| CBS | Summer | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | The Invisible Man | December Bride | Yancy Derringer | Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre (13/28.3) (Tied with Father Knows Best) | Playhouse 90 | Playhouse 90 | Playhouse 90 |
| NBC | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Jefferson Drum | The Ed Wynn Show | Twenty-One | Behind Closed Doors | The Ford Show (20/27.2) (In COLOR) | You Bet Your Life | Masquerade Party (In COLOR) |
| NBC | October | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Jefferson Drum | The Ed Wynn Show | Concentration | Behind Closed Doors | The Ford Show (20/27.2) (In COLOR) | You Bet Your Life | Masquerade Party (In COLOR) |
| NBC | November | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Jefferson Drum | The Ed Wynn Show | It Could Be You | Behind Closed Doors | The Ford Show (20/27.2) (In COLOR) | You Bet Your Life | Masquerade Party (In COLOR) |
| NBC | Winter | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Jefferson Drum | Steve Canyon | It Could Be You | Behind Closed Doors | The Ford Show (20/27.2) (In COLOR) | You Bet Your Life | Masquerade Party (In COLOR) |
| NBC | Spring | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Jefferson Drum | The Lawless Years | Oldsmobile Music Theatre | Laugh Line | The Ford Show (20/27.2) (In COLOR) | You Bet Your Life | Masquerade Party (In COLOR) |
| NBC | Summer | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Jefferson Drum | The Lawless Years | Too Young to Go Steady | Laugh Line | 21 Beacon Street | You Bet Your Life | Masquerade Party (In COLOR) |
| NTA | NTA | Local* | Local* | Local* | Local* | Local* | Local* | Local* | Local* |
* The 90-minute series Jazz Party aired from May 8 to December 25, 1958, on WNTA-TV Thursdays at 9pm ET and was offered to NTA Film Network affiliates; a successor to a similar program on the NYC DuMont station WABD, Art Ford's Greenwich Village Party, as the DuMont Network was ceasing operations.

## Friday

| Network | Network | 7:00 PM | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM |
| ABC | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin | Walt Disney Presents | Walt Disney Presents | Man with a Camera | 77 Sunset Strip | 77 Sunset Strip | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| ABC | March | 7:00 Local / 7:15 ABC News | The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin | Walt Disney Presents | Walt Disney Presents | Tombstone Territory | 77 Sunset Strip | 77 Sunset Strip | 10:30 John Daly and the News / 10:45 Local |
| CBS | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | Your Hit Parade | Trackdown | The Jackie Gleason Show | The Phil Silvers Show | Schlitz Playhouse/Lux Playhouse | The Lineup | Person to Person |
| CBS | Winter | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Douglas Edwards with the News | Your Hit Parade | Rawhide (28/25.9) | Rawhide (28/25.9) | | The Phil Silvers Show | Schlitz Playhouse/Lux Playhouse | The Lineup | Person to Person |
| NBC | Fall | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Buckskin | The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen (In COLOR) | The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen (In COLOR) | M Squad | The Thin Man | 10:00 Gillette Cavalcade of Sports / 10:45 Fight Beat | 10:00 Gillette Cavalcade of Sports / 10:45 Fight Beat |
| NBC | Winter | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Northwest Passage (In COLOR) | The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen (In COLOR) | The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen (In COLOR) | M Squad | The Thin Man | 10:00 Gillette Cavalcade of Sports / 10:45 Phillies Jackpot Bowling | 10:00 Gillette Cavalcade of Sports / 10:45 Phillies Jackpot Bowling |
| NBC | Summer | 7:00 Local / 7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report | Northwest Passage (In COLOR) | The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen (In COLOR) | The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen (In COLOR) | M Squad | Colgate Western Theatre | 10:00 Gillette Cavalcade of Sports / 10:45 Phillies Jackpot Bowling | 10:00 Gillette Cavalcade of Sports / 10:45 Phillies Jackpot Bowling |
| NTA | NTA | Local | Man Without a Gun | This is Alice | How to Marry a Millionaire | Premiere Performance | Premiere Performance | Premiere Performance | Premiere Performance |
Notes: On January 9, Phillies Jackpot Bowling premiered in the 10:45-11 p.m. spot on NBC, while on March 13 Tombstone Territory replaced Man with a Camera on the ABC schedule.
On NBC, the summer anthology series Colgate Western Theatre consisted of repeats Western dramas originally aired on other anthology series, primarily General Electric Theatre and Schlitz Playhouse.

## Saturday

| Network | Network | 7:30 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:30 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:30 PM | 10:00 PM | 10:30 PM |
| ABC | Fall | The Dick Clark Saturday Night Beech-Nut Show | The Billy Graham Crusade | The Billy Graham Crusade | Lawrence Welk's Dodge Dancing Party | Lawrence Welk's Dodge Dancing Party | Sammy Kaye's Music from Manhattan | Local |
| ABC | November | The Dick Clark Saturday Night Beech-Nut Show | Jubilee USA | Jubilee USA | | Lawrence Welk's Dodge Dancing Party | Lawrence Welk's Dodge Dancing Party | Sammy Kaye's Music from Manhattan | Local |
| ABC | Winter | The Dick Clark Saturday Night Beech-Nut Show | Jubilee USA | Jubilee USA | Lawrence Welk's Dodge Dancing Party | Lawrence Welk's Dodge Dancing Party | The Billy Graham Crusade | The Billy Graham Crusade |
| CBS | Fall | Perry Mason (19/27.5) | Perry Mason (19/27.5) | Wanted Dead or Alive (16/28.0) (Tied with Peter Gunn) | The Gale Storm Show | Have Gun – Will Travel (3/34.3) | Gunsmoke (1/39.6) | Local |
| CBS | Summer | Perry Mason (19/27.5) | Perry Mason (19/27.5) | Wanted Dead or Alive (16/28.0) (Tied with Peter Gunn) | Brenner | Have Gun – Will Travel (3/34.3) | Gunsmoke (1/39.6) | Markham |
| NBC | Fall | People are Funny | The Perry Como Show (21/27.0) (Tied with Sugarfoot and The Ann Sothern Show) (In COLOR) | The Perry Como Show (21/27.0) (Tied with Sugarfoot and The Ann Sothern Show) (In COLOR) | Steve Canyon | Cimarron City | Cimarron City | Brains & Brawn |
| NBC | Winter | People are Funny | The Perry Como Show (21/27.0) (Tied with Sugarfoot and The Ann Sothern Show) (In COLOR) | The Perry Como Show (21/27.0) (Tied with Sugarfoot and The Ann Sothern Show) (In COLOR) | Black Saddle | Cimarron City | Cimarron City | The D.A.'s Man |
| NTA | NTA | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local | Local |
Note: On NBC, Brains & Brawn was replaced on January 3, 1959, by The D.A.'s Man. On CBS, Markham premiered Saturday, May 2, 1959, at 10:30 pm.

## By network
### NTA

Note: The * indicates that the program was introduced in midseason.