10 TV series not streaming on Netflix, Hulu or anywhere else

With the streaming market welcoming Apple TV+ to the party, here's a look at 10 TV programs that you still can't stream online, along with their broadcast network and years the programs aired.

With Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime at the head of the streaming TV pack, Apple TV+ launching on Friday, Disney+ going live on Nov. 12, and services such as HBO Max and NBC Universal’s Peacock offering set to debut in the spring of 2020, it seems like there is a streaming outlet for everything that has ever been on TV.

But, believe it or not, not everything is streaming online.

Whether its because of price demands from studios, rights to use music that was played in show episodes, or a possible lack of demand or interest, there remain dozens of well-known shows that are nowhere to be found online (or, in some cases, only found with a few select episodes that are streaming). Some of these programs would certainly find huge audiences like “Friends” has on Netflix, while some would maintain the niche-level of reception they had during their broadcast runs.

So, with the streaming market welcoming Apple TV+ to the party, here’s a look at 10 TV programs that you still can’t stream online, along with their broadcast networks and years the programs aired. Note: Episodes of some of these programs can be purchased online, but not directly streamed.

Northern Exposure (CBS: 1990-1995)

The fish-out-of-water story of New York doctor Joel Fleischman (played by a never-better Rob Morrow) who was sent to work at a practice in very rural Cicely, Alaska is, for many, the Holy Grail of shows that should be streaming online. It took nine years after it left the air for “NX”, as it is known to its fans, to come out on DVD in the United States, and it wasn’t until 2007 before all of the series’ six seasons became available on DVD, due mostly to rights involving music used in the show. Fans are used to waiting for NX, but the ongoing absence of the show online is proving to be a real endurance test of their patience.

Leave it to Beaver (CBS: 1957-1958; ABC: 1958-1963)

Any latchkey kid who came home after school in the late 1970s and early 1980s watched at least a few reruns of this black-and-white classic. Ward, June, Wally and Theodore “Beaver” Cleaver spent 234 episodes engaging in harmless humor and learning life lessons against a background laugh track during the Eisenhower and Kennedy Administrations.

The Streets of San Francisco (ABC: 1972-1977)

Karl Malden, looking every bit the classic 1970s cop, with his fedora and trenchcoat, and a young Michael Douglas as his partner spent their time on this series catching murderers and bad guys in a San Francisco that was just coming out of the hippie era, and was decades away from becoming one of the most-expensive cities to live in the world. It remains as much a part of The City as the Golden Gate Bridge.

Maude (CBS: 1972-1978)

A spinoff from the legendary “All In The Family”, Maude, as played by Bea Arthur, was a liberal, feminist character in an era when the roles and responsibilities of men and women began to shift. And she had a backbone as solid as the Empire State Building.

The Fugitive (ABC: 1963-1967)

This remains one of the truly great series in television history. David Janssen created the character of a lifetime as Dr. Richard Kimble who, wrongly accused of killing his wife, spent the series on the run and seeking out a one-armed man that he saw commit the crime. How popular was “The Fugitive”? Its final episode, which aired 52 years ago, pulled in 78 million viewers, and remains the third-highest-rated series finale of all time.

Welcome Back, Kotter (ABC: 1975-1979)

The show that made John Travolta a star, and gave the world the group of high-school misfits called the Sweathogs, remains in detention when it comes to being streamed online.

Freaks and Geeks (NBC: 1999-2000)

This show, depicting high school life in Michigan in the early 1980s, has been available on Netflix before, but not in a few years. Masterminded by Judd Apatow and Paul Feig, “Freaks and Geeks” lasted only 18 episodes, but has a far-reaching legacy as the program that jump-started the careers of James Franco, Linda Cardellini, Seth Rogen and Jason Segel.

Police Woman (NBC: 1974-1979)

Angie Dickinson created an iconic role as Sergeant Leann “Pepper” Anderson, a Los Angeles police detective who often went undercover to catch criminals. “Police Woman” was one of multiple 1970s dramas about hard-bitten, and iconic cops (think “Kojak”), but was one of the few to make a woman the center of the series.

Frank’s Place (CBS: 1987-1988)

This short-lived dramedy centered around Frank Parrish, played by Tim Reid, who was a Brown University professor who inherited a restaurant in New Orleans. The show focused on Frank acclimating to life in Louisiana, and while it had a comedic edge, it also dealt with issues related to race and class. But, the 22-episode-long series was the classic example of a critical darling that just have the ratings to last.

WKRP In Cincinnati (CBS: 1978-1982)

Speaking of Tim Reid, you may remember him as Venus Flytrap, one of the handful of colorful DJs and staff that worked at radio station WKRP in this CBS sitcom. Les Nessman, Herb Tarlek, Jennifer Marlowe and, especially, Dr. Johnny Fever were characters that made you want to pursue a career in radio. And the show was responsible for the famous Thanksgiving Turkey Drop episode.