60 Minutes: Milestones

(CBS)  In the super-competitive world of primetime television where any show that attracts a significant audience for four years is a success, 60 Minutes, which is entering its 38th season, is a phenomenon. While it continues to break its own records, here are some milestones, some of which probably will never be matched.

Longest Ever Nielsen Top 10 Streak
60 Minutes has finished on the Nielsen Top 10 highest-rated programs list for 23 consecutive seasons (1977-1978 to 1999-2000 -- among regular series programs airing more than six times) -- a feat that will probably never be equaled. The next longest top 10 streak in television history belongs to CBS's legendary "Lucy," which managed 10 straight seasons on the list in two different incarnations ("The Lucy Show" and "Here's Lucy" 1962-1963 to 1971-1972).

Only Broadcast to Finish #1 in Three Different Decades
The broadcast finished the season as the most watched program in America five times, a record it shares with CBS's "All in the Family" and NBC's "The Cosby Show." But achieving the status in three different decades is another record never likely to be broken. 60 Minutes was number one in the 1979-1980, 1982-1983, 1991-1992, 1992-1993 and 1993-1994 seasons.

Most Emmy Awards for a Primetime Program
No other primetime program has matched the 78 Emmy awards that 60 Minutes has won over its 37 years.

Some Other Major Awards:

11 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards

11 University of Georgia George Foster Peabody Awards

2 George Polk Memorial Awards

Overseas Press Club Lifetime Achievement Award

National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame