Best TV Shows Ever: Top 100 Television Programs

What's the best TV show of all time? Who knows? This poll is strictly about favorite shows, the programs people in Hollywood hold nearest to their hearts — that remind them of better times or speak to their inner child or inspire their creativity or just help them unwind after a crappy day at the studio — even if one or two of the programs listed here aren't exactly masterpieces of the medium.

Last year, THR published the world's first movie list based on a polling of Hollywood pros. This year's TV survey was handled in a similar fashion. We asked more than 2,800 industry people — including 779 actors, 365 producers and 268 directors, among others — to choose their favorite series of all time (excluding talk shows and news programs). Although the survey was anonymous, some big names were willing to go on the record. "My favorite is Twin Peaks," says Damon Lindelof, co-creator of Lost (No. 15 on the list, five above David Lynch's mystery). "It quite literally changed the way my brain worked." Mike Hopkins, CEO of Hulu, picks The Sopranos (No. 6). "It's just classic. It had everything," he says. But even when respondents didn't volunteer their own identities for the public, the results of this survey are full of surprises, starting with the show Hollywood chose as its all-time No. 1 favorite.