Inspired by a thread over on another site, this is where you can list shows that haven’t been seen on TV in a long time. There’s a lot of these as well.
I've wondered why networks have rarely tapped into their soap opera archives. There was the Soapnet channel that eventually went off the air but it rarely played complete episodes of old soap episodes unless it was part of some special. With all the channels that are so specialized it seems like there would be enough interest in having a channel that would replay (in chronological order) all those old soap operas (at least the episodes that still exist). Considering how many episodes of these shows were made there must be massive vaults where they are stored. I think it would be a fascinating look back in time at the issues of the day but maybe there just wouldn't be enough of an audience for these shows. I know "Dark Shadows" did release a complete set of its 1966-71 shows (131 dvd's, 1225 episodes!) - I wonder if ended up turning a profit.
Were these recorded or were they live. And even if filmed, I can't say that the networks would have held onto them all.
The whole run had been previously released as 32 four-disc sets, so there was definitely a demand. Between 2007 and 2011 I made my way through all 32 sets and loved it.
Re survival of old soap episodes, Dark Shadows is unusual in only having one episode missing. I believe Dan Curtis made a point of keeping it, which producers of other shows didn't.
A show that's long overdue for release: Journey To The Unknown. (As it was made on film, it could probably be made to look spectacular on Blu-ray.)
For the DVDs (and possibly VHS releases), the first 200 episodes or so had to be assembled from ABC's on-air tapes. Billed as DARK SHADOWS: THE BEGINNINGS, it deals with the early goings-on at Collinwood pre-Barnabas. It was originally thought that no-one would be interested in seeing these, since Barnabas Collins was the main reason that most people watched DARK SHADOWS, but there's still a strong fanbase that loves all of the episodes. The ABC tapes have the slate at the beginning, and the old network voice-over announcements over the credits to really "take you back." I hadn't seen those early BEGINNINGS episodes since they aired on ABC all those years ago, and it was a lot of fun to watch them all over again on the giant full-series "coffin" DVDs.
Soaps definitely come to mind. Folks seem to forget what a huge market they were in years past and just how many shows and episodes were airing each week.
Generally I think most soaps were recorded on videotape (not film) and like many shows back then the master tapes were often reused. I remember hearing that "All My Children" (which started in 1970) didn't start to archive their shows until the mid/late '70's (though some early episodes do exist).
Wendy and Me. George Burns and Connie Stevens. I've got several episodes that I taped on VHS in the '90s.
Trying to stick with shows that lasted longer at least 2-3 years: Archie Bunker's Place Soap Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman Simon & Simon The FBI (The original 60s version) Run for Your Life
All of these except Mary Hartment have been on TV in the last few years. Either on MeTV, AntennaTV, or one of the other channels that repeat older shows. I'd never seen Run For Your Life, and man - it's a weird show.
What's weird about it? It's pretty much a reworking of Huggins' big hit The Fugitive. Although more existential -- Paul Bryan is wandering b/c he chooses to, not b/c he has to. I've only see one complete episode, the Montana Red Dog game set in the Swiss Alps (which Huggins later rewrote for a classic Alias Smith & Jones episode). It was entertaining. I'd love to see some RFYLs, if only for the guest stars.