So how did that 1976 Fall NBC schedule work?

We had a little fun here and on our Facebook group on Thursday. It was a celebration of the schedule reveal--a 1976 NBC schedule reveal. How much was there to celebrate, though?

The network used an array of last-minute changes and big events (like The Big Event!) to load up its schedule, especially early in the new season. Some of its showcase events were the MLB World Series, the network premiere of Gone with the Wind (a huge draw), and NBC: The First 50 Years.

Also in the lineup was Saturday Night Live's infamous Mardi Gras special.

The strategy gave NBC some real momentum early in the season, and it challenged surging ABC for a while, but it was unable to match the success that #1 ABC, which had the event of the year with Roots, enjoyed with its regular series.

New show Quincy would stay in the lineup for years, and Baa Baa Black Sheep made it to a second season (renamed Black Sheep Squadron), but The Gemini Man, Van Dyke and Company, and The Quest were all one and done. If you don't count The Big Event and NBC Monday Night Movie, then the only NBC series in the season-end top 25 was Little House on the Prairie.