1. Who's Whose

1951

This game show goes down in history as one of the earliest TV shows dumped after a single episode. If it's any consolation, few remember the indignity. The concept was simple: A panel of guests interviews a trio of scrambled married couples and tries to guess which man was wed to which woman. Unfortunately, a newspaper listing incorrectly stated that the aim was "to determine which of three people is married to a fourth." Also, host Phil Baker (standing in the photo) had a turban-wearing assistant named Gunga. No wonder people were confused.

Image: The Everett Collection

2. You're in the Picture

1961

They can't all be winners. On the evening of JFK's inauguration, Gleason hosted the first episode of his game show, You're in the Picture. It was a ratings flop. The following week, Gleason appeared on the screen in a bare studio and apologized for putting out such a dud. The show was immediately transformed into a talk show, The Jackie Gleason Show. Who else had the power to completely retool a show in a week and stay on the air?

SEE MORE: 18 FASCINATING FACTS ABOUT JACKIE GLEASON

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3. Turn-On

1969

The creation of George Schlatter, the co-creator and co-producer of Laugh-In, Turn-On was a brilliantly forward-thinking series that imagined a post-modern style of television with busy superimposed images, lightning-fast edits, heady concepts and progressive topics. It would live in ignominy as the only television show in history to be canceled before it even finished airing! It did not make it past its premiere at 8:30PM on February 5, 1969. A Cleveland network affiliate led a campaign to kill the show. Read the full story behind this fascinating flop.

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4. Co-Ed Fever

1979

National Lampoon's Animal House left a lot of bad television in its wake. A year after the film raked in cash at the box office, a slew of fraternity and sorority comedies hit the networks. Audiences were not up for the party. ABC offered Delta House, while NBC served up Brothers and Sisters. Both were turkeys that lasted mere weeks, but it was CBS's clunky Co-Ed Fever that got kicked off campus after one half hour. An uncommonly annoying theme song certainly didn't help. 

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5. Melba

1986

January 28, 1986, is one of those "Where were you?" dates. That morning, the Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart high above the waters of Cape Canaveral. The American public was shaken, which might explain why few tuned in to Melba Moore's new sitcom on CBS. It scored the lowest ratings of the week. The network immediately pulled it from the schedule and Melba was toast.

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6. South of Sunset

1993

Glenn Frey caught a bad case of "Smuggler's Blues" in the fall of '93. His new cop show, building off his experience on Miami Vice, was heavily promoted during the World Series. However, baseball fans must not have been the demographic, as the pilot earned terrible ratings when it aired on October 27. No worries for Frey, though. The rocker had all that Eagles fame to fall back on. In fact, VH1 would later air the remaining episodes of South of Sunset during an Eagles-themed week.

Image: The Everett Collection