Felix the Cat is the longest lasting cartoon character in history, making his debut in 1919 (and if we count an even earlier prototype short, it may even be 1917) having appeared in over 150 theatrical cartoons, decades worth of comics, hundreds of TV cartoons, two movies, and the two TV revivals The Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat and Baby Felix, and he is still appearing in merchandise to this day. And he even has a new cartoon series, as well as some more direct-to-video movies, well on the way. In fact, one of the very first TV broadcasts featured Felix way back in 1928. Meow!
The Grand Ole Opry: Airing weekly on Nashville radio station WSM-AM since 1925, with an edited version of the program being carried on national radio and television outlets since the 1940s.
Radioavisen: Daily news broadcast on Danmarks Radio (DR) starting August 1, 1926. At first with two daily programmes, gradually with more. Now there is a Radioavis every hour. Aired nationwide since 1927.
Hamburger Hafenkonzert (Hamburg harbour concert): Broadcast weekly on NDR in Germany since June 1929 — even through WWII.
Music and the Spoken Word: Weekly broadcast of music by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir (and a short sermon), which started in 1929.
The Metropolitan Opera airs a radio broadcast season each year. Although going since 1931 (and broadcast in 1910 over experimental radio broadcasts), unlike The Guiding Light it only airs episodes during a season and is not continuous.
Hockey Night in Canada began airing on radio in 1931 and moved to television in 1952 (the first year of regular television broadcasts in Canada), and is the world's longest-running sports show.
At least 70 years
Pause Signal Danmarks Radio (DR). This little tune first aired on August 28, 1931 and has since been used to fill up short spaces between programmes. The tune is a melody from the 1300s, the oldest known Danish folk melody. Irregular scheduling, yet frequently heard for decades. Nowadays used as regular broadcast only on one channel (P5), the tune has become waiting music on DR's telephone system, and since early 2009 the signal that calls the audience to the second half of concerts in the broadcaster's new concert hall.
Guiding Light: 72 years, 7 months, 26 days (57 of those on television), from January 25, 1937 to September 19, 2009. It was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest continuously-running program on any medium, in any genre, until the CBS World News Roundup broke its record in November of 2010. It would take a listener over eighteen months, 24 hours a day, to listen to it from beginning to end (although the large number of Missing Episodes from the first 40 years would make such an archive binge impossible). It may be the largest single work of fiction in human history.
CBS World News Roundup made its first broadcast on March 13, 1938 as a special report on the Anschluss; still runs every day at 8:00 AM EST. It surpassed Guiding Light's record on November 8, 2010, and is now listed as the longest continuously-running program in any medium.
The National Research Council Time Signal, heard at 1:00 PM EST every day since November 5, 1939 on the CBC radio network.
Desert Island Discs has been airing on BBC Radio since 29 January 1942, making it the longest-running programme in the history of British broadcasting. It still uses the original theme tune, Eric Coates' "By the Sleepy Lagoon" (with overdubbed seagull noises), and has only had four regular presenters (Roy Plomley, Michael Parkinson, Sue Lawley, Kirsty Young).
At least 60 years
Arbeidsvitaminen is the longest running daily radio show in the world, having started in February 1946.
Meet the Press (weekly on television since November 6, 1947; debuted on radio in 1945 as American Mercury Presents: Meet the Press)
Giro 413 has aired weekly on Danmarks Radio (DR) since January 8, 1950. This is a family programme to which people donate money collected at celebrations such as wedding anniversaries and 50th birthdays. Listeners also request songs. DR in turn donates the money collected to a variety of charities.
Danmarks Radio is also responsible for Julehilsen til Grřnland (Christmas greetings to Greenland), which first aired in 1932 as a way for people in Denmark to send greetings to friends and family in Greenland and vice versa.
Letter From America ran on BBC Radio from 1946-2004, ending when Alastair Cooke retired less than a month before his death.
Come Dancing, the BBC televised ballroom dancing competition, originally ran from 1949-95, with intermittent specials in 1996 and 1998. Its revival with celebrity contestants as Strictly Come Dancing has aired since 2004.
British children's TV favourite The Sooty Show ran roughly from 1952-2004 under slightly different title changes and presenters. There are currently plans for a revived new series.
Today (American morning news running daily since 1952)
Current affairs show Panorama has been airing on the BBC since 1953 and is presently the longest-running programme in the history of British television. Across the Channel, the German version of the programme, produced by NDR and also called Panorama, has aired on Das Erste since 1961.
The Major League Baseball Game of the Week (ran on various networks from 1953-93; has aired on FOX since 1996)
Brain of Britain, Britain's longest-running quiz programme in any medium, began as a segment of What Do You Know? on BBC Radio in 1953, and has been a standalone programme on Radio 4 since 1967. It has only had three regular presenters: Franklin Engelmann from 1953-72, Robert Robinson from 1973-2008, and Russell Davies since 2009.
The Sky at Night (airing once a lunar cycle since 1957, longest-running show still with its original presenter — Patrick Moore has missed the sum total of one episode, and then only due to food poisoning. Moore is now wheelchair-bound, so the show comes from his home and has a number of co-presenters)
Today, a British news daily on Radio Four running since 1957. There is a (probably apocryphal) story that if a British nuclear submarine commander failed to receive the Today programme three days in a row, they were to assume Britain had been nuked and open their sealed orders.
Telediario is a Spanish daily news programme which started running in 1957. Nowadays, its title has become synonymous with "TV news" in Spain.
Blue Peter (4,000+ episodes since 1958, the longest-running children's show ever)
Dutch sports program Studio Sport celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2009.
The Nature of Things (science documentary series on CBC since November 1960; hosted continuously by zoologist and environmentalist David Suzuki since 1979)
It's Academic: Washington, D.C. televised academic game show, continually produced since 1961; listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running quiz show in television history.
Four Corners (Australian current-affairs show, running since August 1961)
The 700 Club: Religious program airing since 1966 on WYAH, in national syndication since 1974, and on CBN since 1977; well-known as one of two CBN / Family Channel shows remaining on FOX Family / ABC Family (it, Living the Life, the annual day-long CBN telethon, and the channel's "Family" title were all stipulations when Pat Robertson sold the network in 1998). Has been hosted by Robertson since its inception.
Folies Bergere, one of the original Las Vegas showgirl extravaganzas, opened in 1959 at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino and closed a few months shy of what would have been its 50th anniversary in 2009.
Golgo 13: 142 volumes spread across 40 years; started in 1969.
Ideas (anthology series on CBC Radio since 1965)
Just a Minute: Running on BBC Radio 4 since 1967. Still presented by the original chairman, Nicholas Parsons, although the original regular panellists have all passed away (Kenneth Williams in 1988, Derek Nimmo in 1999, Peter Jones in 2000, and Clement Freud in 2009). The Swedish version of the programme, Pĺ Minuten, has aired since 1969 (with a hiatus from 1988-94).
Ireland's The Late Late Show (since 1962, and is still on its third presenter. Not to be confused with the American The Late Late Show, which has "only" been running since 1995.)
Lupin III (Manga came around in 1967, three TV shows aired from 1971-1972, 1977-1980 and 1984-1985 respectively, six movies were made (A live-action one in 1974, five animated ones in 1978, 1979, 1985, 1995 and 1996) along with three OAVs (in 1987, 2002, and 2008) and, to top it all off, TMS Entertainment is still producing annual TV-specials since 1989.)
Magic Roundabout The original French version has been running since 1964.
Masterpiece Theatre (has aired on PBS since 1971, although it's just called Masterpiece now; its sister program, Mystery! {now known as Masterpiece Mystery}, has aired since 1980)
Match of the Day (started in 1964, survived in various forms and now has a spin-off and magazine).
Mazinger Z: Manga came around in 1972. An anime show and a second, manga series parallel to the original one were made in that same year, two sequels and several movies in that same decade, a related anime show (God Mazinger) in the eighties, an OVA series and movie in 2001 and a reboot in 2009. And then you have to count several alternate manga versions and one-shots produced throughout four decades. And this year the creatorhas stated he intends to make more Mazinger manga and anime.
Play School (Australian children's show, running since 1966 and isn't going anywhere any time soon)
The Price Is Right (1956-65, then since 1972; originally hosted by Bill Cullen {1956-65}, then Bob Barker {1972-2007}, then Drew Carey {2007-})
A Question of Sport kicked off in 1968, making it the oldest Panel Game in existence and arguably the longest continually running Game Show (while The Price Is Right has run for five more years overall and started twelve years earlier, it also spent seven years off the air).
Romper Room (41 years, 1953-94)
Sabado Gigante (started in 1962, Channel Hopped from Chile's Canal 13 to Univision in 1986; longest-running variety show in the world)
Sazae-san (began in 1969, and is the longest-running anime ever)
Tatort (also known as Scene of the Crime in the USA) started airing 1970 in West Germany with over 800 episodes in total. It's East German counterpart Polizeiruf 110 is on air since 1971. Both shows share a timeslot in The Berlin Republic.
Top of the Pops (started in 1964; weekly show stopped in 2006, but lives on in special editions)
University Challenge (on ITV from 1962-87 with Bamber Gascoigne, and on BBC2 since 1994 with Jeremy Paxman; British television's longest-running quiz show)
Ultra Series, a Japanese Tokusatsu series that began in 1966. So far, over 1,200+ episodes and seven movies.
Vecernicek is a Czech bedtime story programme that has been running every evening since 1965, even with the opening unchanged for all these years.
W-Five (airing since 1966, longest-running newsmagazine program in North America)
The World at Six (flagship dinner-hour newscast on CBC Radio One since 1966)
Doctor Who ran from 1963 to 1989, and again from 2005 to present, for a total of 32 years. And that's only counting when the TV series itself was airing. Technically the franchise never died, continuing with in canon audio dramas, comics and light novels.
Don McNeill's Breakfast Club aired on NBC Blue (later ABC Radio) from 1933-68.
Doraemon (second longest-running anime ever, until recently with the same principal voice cast. Aired one season in 1973, then continuously on a different network since 1979. They tried canning it in 2005, an idea which lasted all of a month before it was Un Cancelled.)
The Fifth Estate (CBC-TV newsmagazine program since 1975)
Front Page Challenge (Canadian celebrity panel quiz show that ran from 1957-95)
Glass Mask (the manga has been running since 1976. Has had several anime adaptations, the oldest ran during 1984 and the newest in 2005. And we're not counting the dorama, the Noh play, etc.)
Gundam: 16 TV and OAV series', 11+ movies, more manga and video games (separate and original stories mind you, not just adaptations) than we dare to count, and good Lord, the model kits!
Worth noting that if one were to watch every Gundam animated work continuously, not counting eating, sleeping, or bathroom breaks, the total runtime would last more than one week. There are literally over a thousand hours' worth of Gundam animated work.
The House (CBC Radio parliamentary affairs show, year-round since October 1977)
The Howard Stern Show (some incarnation of the show has existed since the late 1970s)
Alan Dean Foster's Humanx Commonwealth novels began with 1972's The Tar-Aiym Krang, and their Pip/Flinx subseries was wrapped up with Flinz Transcendent in 2009. Given Foster's track record, more Humanx books will probably follow.
I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue has been running on BBC Radio 4 since 1972. Tim Brooke-Taylor and Graeme Garden have been regular panelists since the very beginning (except for occasional breaks due to medical problems or other commitments), and Barry Cryer has been a regular panelist since the second series after alternating with Humphrey Lyttelton in the moderator's chair for the first series.
Inside The NFL (1977-2008 on HBO, Showtime 2008-present)
The original theatrical Looney Tunes series ran from 1930-69. In that period it went through various directors, animators, producers, and not to mention characters. And that's not counting the various spinoffs, revivals, and movies.
Marketplace (consumer advocacy program on CBC-TV since 1972)
Mastermind (British quiz show airing since 1972; from 1972-97 on BBC1 with Magnús Magnússon, 1998-2000 on BBC Radio 4 with Peter Snow, 2001-02 on Discovery with Clive Anderson, and 2003-present on BBC2 with John Humphrys)
Oke No Monshou: Shoujo manga by Chieko Hosokawa, has been running ever since 1976 just like Glass Mask. Had a short video drama as well.
Pobol y Cwm (Welsh-language Soap Opera, The BBC's longest-running television soap began in October 1974 and is still going.)
A Prairie Home Companion (radio variety show, running since 1974 with two very similar shows running during the breaks from 1987-89 and 1989-92. Garrison Keillor has been hosting this show, but not the very similar ones that ran during its breaks)
Question Time (British current affairs debate show, running since 1979)
Quirks and Quarks (general-interest science program on CBC Radio since 1975)
Quote Unquote, that innocuous literary quiz that appears at lunchtimes, has been on BBC Radio 4 with the same host (Nigel Rees) since 1976.
Royal Canadian Air Farce (since 1973 on radio, since 1993 on TV; ended with a New Year's Eve special on December 31, 2008)
Saturday Night Live (premiered October 11, 1975 and is still going with roughly 700+ episodes [and that's not even counting the clip shows and anniversary episodes], 36 completed seasons, and is currently in its 37th. Survived cast changes, writer changes, executive producer changes (with Lorne Michaels, who was executive producer from 1975 to 1980, left for five years, then returned in 1985, as the most prominent), four directors (Don Roy King is the current director), three announcers [with Don Pardo as their most-used], Seasonal Rot leading to threats of cancellation in its 6th, 11th, and 20th seasons, several rival sketch shows that aired alongside it, fickle fans, cynical critics, seven cast member deaths (John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Danitra Vance, Michael O'Donoghue, Chris Farley, Phil Hartman, and Charles Rocket), four writers' strikes (with the 2007-08 one being the most recent), seven Presidential administrations (starting with Gerald Ford), controversial events behind the scenes (Nora Dunn's boycotting the Andrew "Dice" Clay episode, Chevy Chase's fight with Bill Murray backstage, Garrett Morris' cocaine-induced nervous breakdown after being forced to play a monkey in a Canadian The Wizard of Oz parody, etc), and a boatload of modern historical events and pop culture trends that have changed society for better and worse (some of which were mocked by SNL).
Sazae-san: The manga ran from 1946-74.
Scooby-Doo (multiple series; at least one series was in first-run almost every year from 1969-91 and since 2002, plus one or more direct-to-video movies each year since 1998.)
SportsCenter (celebrated its 30th anniversary September 7, 2009; runs for at least two hours every day {the latter of which is repeated throughout the following morning}, and quite a bit more as of August 2008. According to The Other Wiki, it currently stands at 31,000+ episodes, usually 60 or 90 minutes each.)
) Whether it counts depends on the definition of a "show", since each year the program in the time slot is set in a different world with a different team of superheroes (or "rangers") in color-coded uniforms who ride giant transforming and combining robots. It does have a series of crossover films between different teams set outside the television continuity (the Super Sentai Versus Series) and the current series, Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger, is a year-long crossover involving all the previous teams. If you count it, it's the longest running sci-fi program in the world just by number of years, and the fact that it airs an episode a week with no Summer break (over 1,700 episodes and counting) means it vastly exceeds most rivals' lengths in total airtime, including Doctor Who.
Top Gear (1977-2001, 2002-Present; if you include Wheelbase, Top Gear has been running in one form or another since 1964.)
The Victory Garden (1975-), an American gardening show on PBS.
The Walt Disney anthology series, which aired continuously under various titles from 1954-83 and has been revived several times since.
Wetten, dass...? (German language show, broadcast in Germany, Austria and Switzerland since 1981)
Wonderama (1955-1986), a weekly children's show that ran on New York's WNEW and other stations owned by the Metromedia syndicate.
The Woodwright's Shop (1979-), an American woodworking show on PBS.
Woody Woodpecker made his first appearance in 1940 (although he wouldn't get his own series until the next year) and his theatrical cartoons lasted all the way up to 1972 (and are still being re-run on television in some parts of South America). He also had a brief revival in the late 1990s.
Yeralash (1975-), a Soviet/Russian comedy show for kids.
America's Funniest Home Videos (original pilot aired in November 1989, launched January 1990. From 1999-2000, it ran only as occasional specials, but the Tom Bergeron-hosted revamp returned it to series status)
Only Fools And Horses, despite only running from 1981-1991 (10 years), continued for another 7 years with annual Christmas specials, well putting it under this trope.
Americas Most Wanted (began in 1987; longest-running show on FOX. It was actually canceled in Fall 1996 but fans, law enforcement, and the governments of 32 states rallied together to successfully persuade FOX to uncancel the show a month and a half later. Upon returning, it resumed its regular Saturday-night timeslot and paired with COPS. This combination itself is a long runner as one of the longest unchanged primetime schedules in American television history, currently in its 15th year.)
At the Movies (Siskel & Ebert): From 1986-99 with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, 1999-2000 with Ebert and guests, 2000-06 with Ebert and Richard Roeper, 2006-08 with Roeper and guests, 2008-09 with Ben Lyons and Ben Mankiewicz, and 2009-10 with A.O. Scott and Michael Phillips, for a total of 24 years. Revived on PBS in 2011 as Roger Ebert Presents "At the Movies".
If one counts their 1975-82 tenure on Opening Soon at a Theater Near You/Sneak Previews (which ran for another 14 years after they left for a total run of 21 years) and their 1982-86 stint on the original At the Movies, Siskel and Ebert were co-presenting film review programmes for 24 years.
Bastard!!: First volume published in 1988 (with a one-shot pilot in 1987 titled Wizard!!). It was serialized irregularly by Weekly Jump before switching to Ultra Jump in 2000 (with a seven-year hiatus between 2001 and 2008) and as a result, only a relatively small set of 26 volumes have been published.
Battle Tech (this futuristic wargame just celebrated its 25th Anniversary)
Berserk: First volume published in 1990 (with a one-shot pilot in 1989), and has been serialized in Young Animal since 1992. However, it's only published bimonthly, so it has the comparatively-small 33 volumes. However, the anime was only 25 episodes and only lasted half a year; the fact that it went through 13 volumes of story in that time is telling as to why.
The Bill (pilot in 1983, full series in 1984, weekly since 1987. Ended in September 2010.)
The Bold and the Beautiful (1987-)
Brookside, (Channel 4 UK soap opera and one of the channel's first shows, 1982-2003)
Gunsmoke (1955-75) Famously the longest running drama series in primetime television, a title it now officially shares with Law & Order. Technically, Gunsmoke still ran longer; due to changes in the way the year was divided into television seasons, Gunsmoke ran from September 1955 to September of 1975, with 635 episodes; Law & Order ran from September of 1990 to May of 2010 (falling short of 20 years by three months), with 456 episodes.
Hajime No Ippo (manga serialization started in 1989 and is still running)
Have I Got News for You (British satirical panel show, started 1990 and still going despite several libel cases and not having a permanent presenter since sacking Angus Deayton in 2002)
Issues and Answers (1960-81) that, along with Meet the Press and Face the Nation, represented the height of Sunday- morning political television in the US.
The Jerry Springer Show (running in syndication since 1991, started as a public-affairs talk show based at WLWT in Cincinnati; its parent company syndicated it nationally as it slowly evolved into its current "freakshow" format. It switched distributors from Multimedia to Universal when Multimedia was bought out by a newspaper company in 1995, along with Sally Jessy Raphael's show)
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (started in 1987 on Weekly Jump; it switched to Ultra Jump (a monthly publication) in 2004, and is currently at 100 volumes spanning seven major story arcs)
Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Kôen Mae Hashutsujo (called Kochikame for short, and for good reason — it's the longest continuously-running manga series in terms of number of volumes, though Golgo 13 beats it in years. Started in 1976, with 1,400+ chapters in 162+ tankoban volumes, it's still running. It also has a 367-episode anime adaptation and two movies.)
Law & Order: September 13, 1990 - May 24, 2010. Fell just short of beating Gunsmoke's record, though at least they're now tied. Was the longest-running first-run drama series in primetime for all of The Noughties.
Legends in Concert, a celebrity impersonator revue, opened at the Imperial Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV in 1983 and ran there until 2009 — when it moved next door to Harrah's Hotel and Casino and picked up where it left off. Sister productions in Atlantic City, NJ, Branson, MO, and Myrtle Beach, SC have all had decade-plus runs; the latter two are still performing.
The Letter People: First broadcast in 1976, it ran clear into the 1990s.
Love of Life (7,315 episodes from 1951-80)
Media Watch (Australian media analysis program; first aired in May 1989, isn't going anywhere any time soon)
Monitor (NBC Radio weekend show, 1955-75)
Morningside (CBC Radio morning show, 1976-97)
The Movie Show (running since 1986 in Australia; the original hosts switched networks in 2004 and now present At The Movies, which is the same show in all but name).
The London production of The Phantom of the Opera has been running since 1986; the Broadway staging since 1988.
The Phil Donahue Show (1967-96 on national TV, 3 years on Dayton, Ohio local TV) The show that inspired most Talk Shows after it, including Oprah and Sally Jessy Raphael.
Play School (BBC children's show, 1964-88)
Poirot (first episode shown in 1989, an occasional break in the 1990s and 2000s and a final series scheduled for 2011)
The Polka Dot Door (Canadian children's show, 1971-93)
Saltimbanco, a Cirque du Soleil show, hits the 20-year mark in Spring 2012. It originally closed in February 1997, but was brought back in October 1998; as a tent-based tour it ran until 2006, and relaunched as an arena tour in 2007 to visit cities that cannot support the tent tours.
The Secret Storm (squeaks in at 20 years and 7 days, 1954-74)
Shadowrun (FASA's premier RPG survived the downfall of its parent company and just celebrated its 20th Anniversary)
The Simpsons (completed its 22nd season, is in its 23rd, and has been renewed for seasons 24 and 25 after FOX announced that season 23 was going to be its last season). Has been on the air as a TV series since 1989, though the show itself got its start as animated shorts on The Tracy Ullman Show back in 1987)
Slayers: Began in 1989 in a serialized magazine as a novel series; had an anime run (1995-97); had two OVAs and five movies (1995-2001); anime was Un Cancelled in 2008 and released two more seasons. The bulk of the long run was through the novels, which kept running through the new millennium and are still being made.
Star Trek (22 years in all its TV incarnations, 1966-69; 1973-74; 1987-2005, plus 24+ on film {not counting the seven-year hiatus between Nemesis and Star Trek 2009})
Taggart (20+ years, longest running cop show on UK TV at the moment)
Thomas the Tank Engine, a TV show based on an old series of books, has been going since 1984.
Time Shock (Japanese quiz show, aired weekly 1969-1986, 1989-1990, and Time Shock 21 in 2000-2002, plus periodic specials 2002-present)
To Tell the Truth (1956-68, 1969-78, 1980-81, 1990-91, 2000-01; total of 24 seasons)
Transformers has been present in some form, either TV or comics, more or less continuously since 1984.
Truth or Consequences (1950-51, 1954-75, 1977-78, 1987-88; total of 24 seasons, although it is best known for the 19 years {1956-75} hosted by Bob Barker)
WCW Saturday Night managed 27 years, with a couple of name changes along the way.
Warhammer 40000, the first game Rogue Trader, was released in 1986.
Warhammer, the game of fantasy battles, actually appeared first, in 1983.
X Japan, albeit with a long pause due to disbandment from 1997-2007. The band first formed in 1982 and lasted in some form until 1997, which made it over a decade Long Runner without qualification.
You've Been Framed, British home video series, first broadcast in 1989.
Barney & Friends: The first videos came out in 1987. The show premiered in 1992 and has been running for 19 years.
Beachcombers (387 episodes from 1972-91; longest dramatic series in Canada)
Beat the Clock: Total of 18 years (1950-61, 1969-74, 1979-80, 2002-03).
Big Brother: The show premiered in the Netherlands in 1999. While the original version has ended, several international versions continue to air and would belong here.
Bleach: First published in 2001, with more than 440 chapters, 320 episodes, 2 OVAs, and 4 movies.
Blue Heelers (Australian police drama/soap opera, 1994-2006)
Cat And Girl, a web comic that has been running since 1999.
Catch Phrase, a British game show that lasted sixteen years. (Not to be confused with the much less successful American version upon which it was based.)
Cheers (11 years, immediately followed by spinoff Frasier which went another 11. As a result, Kelsey Grammer played Frasier Crane from 1984-2004.)
Chilly Willy (produced by Walter Lantz) ran from 1953 to 1972. Note, however, that the studio only did an average of three cartoons per year with the character. As a result he only has 50 shorts despite being in production for 19 years.
Comedy Central Presents (1998-present, 14 seasons, over 260 episodes; a show that has about 30 minutes of Stand-Up Comedy by a different comedian each episode)
The Daily Show (as its anniversary celebration put it, "10 F$!king Years", although current and best-known host Jon Stewart first showed up in 1999; the show debuted in 1996 with host Craig Kilborn)
Detective Conan (in publication since 1994 and on the air since 1996 with 600+ episodes, 15 movies, and 70+ volumes. It's still going in both anime and manga form)
Degrassi: The Next Generation (running since 2001, now known as Degrassi 261 episodes in 10 1/2 seasons so far; the very first incarnation of it was actually in 1979 with Kids of Degrassi Street)
Dragon Ball (manga started in late 1984, ended in 1995. Anime started in 1986 with and ended in 1997 with GT. Dragon Ball Kai may or may not count as additional seasons. It is still quite alive in terms of people finding ways to try and make money out of it.
Ed Edd n Eddy (started in 1999, ended in 2009 with Ed Edd n Eddy's Big Picture Show)
The Fairly Oddparents (premiered on Oh Yeah! Cartoons in September 1998; the show proper debuted in March 2001 and ended on December 2011, being exactly 10 years on air.)
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids. Lasted from 1972 to 1984 in the original format, plus 1984 to 1985 in first-run syndication.
Good Eats (debuted July 7, 1999; Food Network's longest-running consecutive original program, with 14 seasons and 249 episodes). Ended in 2011.
Gute Zeiten Schlechte Zeiten (German soap with 4,000+ episodes, running since 1992; based on a Dutch soap called Goede Tijden, Slechte Tijden, which has run for 3,500 episodes since 1990)
Hana Yori Dango (the manga ran for 11 years, and dramas based on it are still in development)
Hannity and Colmes (12 and a half years, plus Hannity)
Heartbeat (17+ years, although it's to be "rested" in 2010)
InuYasha (although the anime got axed when it was going to overtake the manga, the manga itself ran from 1996-2008; the anime came back and finished the story in 2009-2010. That's 14 years if you count the anime as part of its run as well)
Iron Chef (started in 1993; between Iron Chef Japan and Iron Chef America, that's nearly (but not quite) two decades in one form or another.)
The Late Late Show (since 1995 on CBS; hosted by Tom Snyder {1995-99}, Craig Kilborn {1999-2005}, Craig Ferguson {2005-})
The Late Show with David Letterman (1993-; adding the Late Night years at NBC, 27 years)
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999-; 12 years as of 2010, when it also became the longest-running first-run drama series in primetime, carrying on the mantle of its parent series)
MADtv (1995-2009; is considered Saturday Night Live's longest-running rival sketch show, and like SNL had its share of cast changes, writer changes, and executive producer changes)
Major (15 years; started in 1994 and recently reached 700 chapters).
The Match Game (18 years—1962-69 on NBC, 1973-82 on CBS and syndication, 1983-84 as The Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour, 1990-91 on ABC and 1998-99 in syndication)
My Family (first aired 2000, its final series set to air in 2011)
Naruto (first published in 1999 and aired in 2002. Now has 50 volumes, 350 episodes, 5 OVA, 1 novel, numerous games, and 7 movies. With more to come, of course.)
Never Mind The Buzzcocks (first broadcast in 1996. As of latest broadcast season, they now have 227 episodes.)
The Now Show (first broadcast in 1998 and still airing)
Nick News with Linda Ellerbee (1992-present, albeit only bi-monthly now)
One Piece (started publication in 1997. Over 600 manga chapters in 60+ volumes, more than 500 episodes, eleven movies, and counting.)
In 2010, the creator announced that the story had reached its halfway point; if this is true, then the series will run for a total of 26 years.
Incredibly ironic given that when Eiichiro Oda initially started the series he planned to end it after 5 years. He scrapped the idea when the story just started writing itself.
Power Rangers (began in 1993 with only a one-year hiatus so far (which Saban is counting to the official season count), hit 700 episodes as of the Season 17 finale)
The PyramidGame Show series: 18 years (26 years worth of episodes due to the overlapping syndicated versions):
1973-74, CBS (The $10,000 Pyramid)
1974-80, ABC (The $10,000/$20,000 Pyramid)
1974-79, syndicated (The $25,000 Pyramid)
1981, syndicated (The $50,000 Pyramid)
1982-88, CBS (The $25,000 Pyramid; called The New $25,000 Pyramid from November 8, 1982 - January 28, 1985)
1985-88, syndicated (The $100,000 Pyramid)
1991, syndicated (The $100,000 Pyramid)
2002-04, syndicated (Pyramid)
The Real World (1992-, over 400 episodes, one of the first successful Reality TV shows and MTV's longest running show.)
The Red Green Show (1990-2005, 300 episodes and a movie. Could go for almost thirty years if you count the length of time Steve Smith has been playing the Red Green character, having first done it on Smith and Smith in the late 1970s.)
Rugrats (12 years, disregarding its brief cancellation period and lackluster spin-offs. 177 aired episodes; however, each episode has two (or three in later seasons) stories. When you add them all together, include the pilot, the two "Tales From the Crib" movies, and the three feature films, the approximate number of episodes becomes roughly 351.)
Sally Jessy Raphael (ran from 1983-2002; canceled by distributor Studios USA due to the fading popularity of talk shows. And yet Jerry's been on for going on 18 years now...)
Says You!! has been running since 1997, and as of 2011 is in its 12th season.
Schlock Mercenary (published daily since June 12, 2000...and not missing a single day)
Shortland Street is Television New Zealand's longest-running soap opera, first aired on May 25, 1992 and still going strong (as of early 2010).
Sponge Bob Square Pants (began in 1999, rose in popularity in 2000, widely considered as the most popular cartoon of the decade and rightfully took its place as one of the most successful cartoons of all time. Of course, still ongoing.)
South Park (1997-, 15 seasons, renewed through a 20th)
Stargate SG-1 (10 years, longest continuously running Sci Fi show on U.S. television after MST3K. Also 5 years for its spinoff, Stargate Atlantis. Universe picking up immediately after Atlantis ended means that there has always been a current Stargate Verse series since 1997.)
Survivor has been on the air since 2000 and is currently in its 23rd season.
Talk Soup ran from 1991-2002. It's successor, plainly titled The Soup has been airing since 2004, putting total air time near the twenty-year mark.
Tech Infantry, which started as a fan-made Tabletop RPG expansion pack in the mid-1990s, still has a couple of people writing short stories set in that universe today.
Tokyo Friend Park II (Japanese game show, aired nearly every week from April 1994 through March 2011, plus another year prior if you count the original Tokyo Friend Park which aired from October 1992 through September 1993)
Toonami : Cartoon Network's longest running block at over 11 years, from March 17, 1997 - September 20, 2008.
True Life: MTV documentary series, with topics running from "I'm A Staten Island Girl" to "I Need A Transplant", running since 1998, 10 seasons so far.
User Friendly has published daily since 1997, with only short hiatus periods lately due to serious losses in the author's family.
Whose Line Is It Anyway? started out on Radio 4 in 1988, then moved onto Channel Four the same year, where it lasted for 10 seasons; the show moved to Hollywood in 1998, when it got picked up by ABC. The show was cancelled in 2003 — and by cancelled, it stopped filming new episodes; new episodes continued to air on ABC Family until November 2006.
WWERAW (airing since 1993, has aired over 900 episodes, the most of any weekly primetime entertainment show in US history)
And if one is inclined to say Raw is a Re Tool of Prime Time Wrestling, this one's a two-and-a-half decade show.
Due to the unique properties of "Sports Entertainment" (an umbrella Vince popularized), the "primetime entertainment show" designation is debatable.
SmackDown, which has been airing regularly since late 1999.
XPlay has been on the air for 13 years, starting as Game Spot TV on ZDTV in 1998.
The following Cirque du Soleil troupes:
Mystere (opened in 1993 at Las Vegas' Treasure Island Hotel and Casino; longest nonstop run. Current contract expires in 2016.)
Alegria (1994-98, then as a resident show at a casino in Biloxi, MS from 1999-2000, then resumed touring in 2001; relaunched as an arena show in mid-2009)
Quidam (1996-2010 as a tent show, 2010- in arenas)
