1980s Miniseries Were Must See TV (and most of them are now free on YouTube)

remember TV miniseries they were events back in the 1980s for those too young for such Nostalgia the 8S was a time when the three broadcast networks ABC CBS and NBC would air made for TV movies that lasted anywhere from two nights to five straight nights this was appointment television that aired live and these miniseries usually popped up during sweeps months like November or may because they were ratings magnets a literal playground of gripping narratives and Unforgettable characters from biopics to Epic romances to sci-fi Thrillers to heart-wrenching True Crime dramas the 1980s gifted us with a treasure Trove of miniseries that deserve another look on our screens today and that's what this video is all about the very best the top 10 TV miniseries that defined an era ignited our passion for storytelling and left an indelible mark on television history each miniseries is a time capsule of Intrigue emotion and unparalleled entertainment and this is my list of the movies that you should be binging right now I'll also let you know where to find each one of these miniseries today in 2024 and spoiler alert a lot of them are available for free right here on YouTube so let's get started number 11 America okay so I had this whole video written and recorded for a top 10 when it hit me that I hadn't included the 1987 miniseries America so I'm adding it as a bonus at number 11 America Stars Chris kristopherson Mariel Hemingway Sam Neil Robert urick Christine lahi and a 17-year-old laara Flynn Bole described as the most ambitious American miniseries ever created America aired over seven nights in February of 1987 the miniseries was about life in the United States after a bloodless takeover were engineered by the Soviet Union America is set in 1997 10 years after the event and it focused on the demoralized American people after the Soviet Conquest the intent was to explore the American Spirit instead of portraying the conflict of the Soviet coup for my gen xers in the audience America has an indirect connection to another notable ABC ma for TV movie 1983's The Day After about a Soviet nuclear attack that hits lawence Kansas Nixon speech writer and 1990s game show host Ben Stein criticized the day after in a newspaper column and challenged ABC to make a movie about what life in the United States would be like if we lived under Soviet domination the column ended up being the inspiration for America which you can find on YouTube and I put a link to the entire miniseries in the description number 10 Hollywood wives based in a novel of the same name by Jackie Collins Hollywood wives was a miniseries that aired on ABC in February 1985 it followed several women who were connected to the entertainment industry in Hollywood and it starred a very 1980s cast including Candace Bergen Joanna Cassidy Mary Crosby Angie Dickinson Stephanie Powers Suzanne Summers Anthony Hopkins Rody McDow and Robert Stack produced by Aaron Spelling and with costume design by Nolan Miller this three-part 4 and a half hour miniseries is a 1980s guilty pleasure I confess it's a silly soap opera about horrible people and Jackie Collins actually hated the movie version of her book because the project was taken over by men which I kind of think is kind of fun she hated the casting choices and supposedly said quote the script was written for television by a man Direct by a man and produced by men so the strength of women in the story was diminished G the movie was a lot like Dynasty spellings top rated Prime Time soap at the time but watching it now 40 years later the 80s of it all and that delicious ending that puts this miniseries in my top 10 the entire series is on YouTube and the link is in the description below number nine North and South 2024 is the perfect time to watch a 1980s miniseries about America's first Civil War there was actually more than one choice in that category believe it or not but for me the best 1980s TV miniseries about the Civil War is north and south north and south was actually three different miniseries that aired on ABC with part one in 1985 part two in 1986 and part three airing in 1994 set before during and immediately after the Civil War these miniseries are based on the trilogy of North and South novels by author John Jake the 1985 first installment North and South is the official entry on this list and it's the seventh highest rated miniseries in TV history The Saga tells the story of the enduring friendship between ay M of South Carolina played by Patrick suy and George Hazard of Pennsylvania played by James Reed who become best friends while attending the United States Military Academy at West Point but later find themselves and their families on the opposite sides of the war all of book one the first miniseries is available on YouTube for free and the link is in the description below number eight poor little rich girl the Barbara Hutton story poor little rich girl is a 1987 miniseries that starred Farah fosset that chronicled the life of Barbara Hutton an extremely wealthy but troubled American Social white who lived in the early 1900s this movie is the true story of one of the richest women in America at the time the aist to the Woolworth Fortune but she actually came from money on both sides of her family her dad was one of the founders of financial firm EF Hutton and she inherited about $50 million as a child equivalent to about a billion dollars today and she gained access to all of this money right when the Great Depression started Barbara endured a childhood marked by the neglect of her father and the early loss of her mother when she was just four years old when Barbara became an adult she had difficulty forming relationships and was married and divorced seven times she acquired Grand foreign titles like princess and Countess throughout her marriages but she was maliciously treated and often exploited by several of her husbands publicly Barbara Hutton was envied and hated for her wealth her beauty and her apparent life of leisure especially while striking Woolworth workers couldn't make ends meet during the Depression privately Barbara was deeply insecure and took refuge in drinking drugs and Playboys when she died at the age of 66 rumor has it she was pretty much broke this is Farah faucet's first appearance on this list but it definitely won't be her last this entire miniseries is available on YouTube and the link is in the description number seven seven I know my first name is Steven I know my first name is Steven is a 1989 miniseries based on the true story of kidna victim Steven stainer the two-part miniseries was first broadcast on NBC in May of '89 and The Story begins with the kidnapping of seven-year-old Stephen by a man named Kenneth Parnell with the help of his partner in crime Irving Murphy for seven years Steven lived with Parnell and was a victim of horrific abuse when he turned 14 Parnell kidnapped another boy named Timmy and that prompted Steven to attempt an escape if you don't know the story of Steven stainer and his family I'm not going to spoil it for you I will say though that this movie was made well before the story was over just four months after the movie aired Steven was tragic killed in a hit-and run accident at the age of 24 but then the story gets crazier because of Steven's older brother Carrie for that part of the story you have to watch Hulu's three-part documentary called captive audience a real American Horror Story to watch the original 89 miniseries you can find it on Facebook and I put a link in the description below number six Guyana tragedy the story of Jim Jones Guyana tragedy the story of Jim Jones is a 1980 NBC miniseries that was based on the 1978 book Guyana Massacre the eyewitness account it's a dramatization of the life of murderous cult leader Jim Jones who led a mass suicide via Kool-Aid of nearly 1,000 of his people's Temple followers in Jonestown Guyana in November of 1978 this miniseries aired less than 2 years after the horrible tragedy the movie stars Powers Booth in the title role and co-stars Ned batty Lavar Burton Colleen DST James Earl Jones and Randy Quaid in supporting roles this is a miniseries not a documentary but the film does take the style of a true life portrayal of the events the final scenes of the film feature dialogue taken directly from the infamous Jonestown death tape and were produced in a documentary cinematic style the entire Mini series is available for free on YouTube and of course there's a link in the description below number five fatal vision fatal vision is a 1984 True Crime miniseries based on the 1983 novel of the same name by Joe mcginness the miniseries Stars Carl Malden Eva Marie Saint Barry Newman Gary Cole and Andy Griffith it recounts the celebrated case of Jeffrey R McDonald the former Green Beret physician who was convicted of murdering his pregnant wife and their two small children in 1970 this story is absolutely fascinating and it's not a sure thing that McDonald was guilty there are so many twists and turns to this story the movie doesn't even cover them all in 2017 a sequel to fatal vision titled final Vision the last word on Jeffrey McDonald starring Scott Foley was broadcast on TV and it told the story of crime author Joe mcguinness's journey to writing fatal vision the case is explored even further in the 2020 documentary A wilderness of error which I highly recommend fatal vision is available on YouTube for free and the link is in the description below number four Lonesome Dove Lonesome Dove is a 1989 American epic Western miniseries that is a four-part adaptation of the 1985 novel of the same name by Larry MC Mery and it's the first installment in The Lonesome Dove series the novel was based upon a screenplay by Peter bogdanovich and MC mtree the miniseries Stars an ensemble cast headed by Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones the series was originally broadcast by CBS from February 5th to February 8th in 1989 drawing a massive viewing audience earning numerous Awards and Reviving both the tele televion Western and the miniseries itself an estimated 26 million homes tuned in to watch Lonesome Dove unusually high numbers at the time for both a western and a miniseries by the show's end it had earned huge ratings and virtually revamped the entire 1989 1990 television season I do not have a link to this miniseries in the description but you can watch it for free on tub the C W the Roku Channel Pluto TV sling TV Plex or with a peacock subscription number three small sacrifices small sacrifices is a 1989 American made for TV True Crime miniseries based on the best-selling book by Anne rule of the same name the film is about the infamous Diana D's case and the murder and attempted murder of her three children it's Stars Farah faucet in one of the most memorable performances of her career along with Ryan O'Neal Gordon clap and John Shay the film premiered in two parts on ABC in November of 1989 this terrifying true story marked a high point in television drama that year and at the heart of the chilling tale of a mother's mental illness and unthinking cruelty is the performance of faucet who brings a sense of realism rarely seen in television miniseries a bonus for View viewers of small sacrifices who want to know even more about the story is that there are multiple documentaries and True Crime podcasts about the Diana D's case that you can watch and listen to after watching the movie the full miniseries is available on YouTube and there is a link in the description below number two V the original miniseries V is a two-part American Science Fiction TV minseries written and directed by Kenneth Johnson who is probably most well known for creating the TV series The Incredible Hulk first shown in 1983 V initiated the science fiction franchise about reptilian aliens known as the visitors who are trying to gain control of Earth and all of the ways the populace reacts to them V is one of my earliest pop culture memories and let me just tell you that Jane Bader's Diana gave 5-year-old me some serious nightmares the was so popular that 40 % of the television viewing audience at the time watched the miniseries its success spawned a sequel V the final battle which was meant to conclude the story but in spite of the appearing conclusion a weekly television series aired for one season from 1984 to 1985 that continued the story a year after the final battle and there was also a reboot that aired on ABC in 2009 but for me the only V I need is the original min Ares unfortunately you can't get this one for free online but V is available to rent on Amazon Prime and Google Play number one The Thornbirds The Thorn Birds was first broadcast on ABC from March 27th to March 30th 1983 and it starred Richard Chamberlain Rachel Ward Barbara Stanwick Christopher Plumber Piper Lori Jean Simmons Brian Brown and mayor Winningham based on the 1977 novel of the same name by Colleen McCulla the series was enormously successful this epic Saga centers around the lives of the clear family from the 1920s until the 1960s who are brought from New Zealand to the Australian Outback to help from the ranch of their Aunt Mary Carson but the real story of The Thornbirds is the forbidden love between megie clear and the family's priest father Ralph J basard The Thorn Birds is 1980s TV miniseries Perfection and all I have to say is two words Matlock Island if you know you know a followup titled The Thornbirds The Missing Years was broadcast by CBS in 1996 it tried to tell the story of the 19 years that are unaccounted for in the original miniseries and novel but it is not worth your time it's an absolute travesty that pales in comparison to the original and often directly contradicts events in both the book and the first miniseries no thank you the only Thorn Birds we need is the original miniseries which you can rent on Fandango at home or Amazon Prime video you can also get a DVD copy on Amazon if you want to add to your physical media collection I'm such a fan I actually still have my original VHS box set I think I'll pop this into my one remaining vcr and watch The Thorn Birds that way for my next watch so that's my list of the 10 best 1980s TV miniseries do you agree with my pics did I miss anything how many of these miniseries do you remember please let me know in the comments below and like And subscribe if you want to see more videos like this okay bye

Channel: My So-Called Gen X Life

Views: 265,166

Keywords: 1980s tv, tv, television, 1980s television, miniseries, tv miniseries, gen x, generation x, 1980s kids, made for tv movies, the thorn birds, nbc, abc, cbs, lonesome dove

Id: eh3lcA127-g

Length: 17min 14sec (1034 seconds)

Published: Wed Jun 05 2024