Reality television saw a heydey in the early and mid 1950s, but in the U.S. the reality genre took a bit of a dive with the introduction of 1960s sitcoms hit the television line up.

Reality TV today often portrays a bit more sensationalism than it did back in the 1960s.  The everyday, yet odd or exceptional, neighbor next door seems to be one of the driving forces that still cause people to gravitate to reality television.

In the 1960s perhaps the most popular reality show in the U.S. actually originated in the United Kingdom where it aired in 1964.   Seven Up! was the  first of what was later labeled the Up Series which were actually broadcast interviews of ordinary seven-year olds from the United Kingdom.

These children were purposely picked from a broad cross section of society and were interviewed on camera about their reactions and perceptions to everyday life.

The Up  Series interviewed this same group of children every seven years and documented their life and beliefs and the conditions which helped mold their perspectives on daily life.  The 21-year series was designed as a very simple set of interviews with no designed plot. However, it did have the then-new effect of turning ordinary people into celebrities. This is much like modern reality TV, such as American Idol, who’s finalist and winners become mainstream news overnight.

The national  attention this particular reality program stirred helped to maintain the idea that TV audiences by and large still remained highly intrigued by real life, unscripted television programs that focused on everyday people. Who would imagine that American Idol may never have been produced without the Up Series that began in the 1960s?