Do you remember the old TV Guide magazine?
By Marie Coyle
@MarieCoyle (38735)
September 1, 2024 10:38pm CST
I heard it mentioned tonight on an old show we had on, but now I can't remember the name of the show. My son said, TV Guide? Do they still print that?
I do recall seeing them for sale at Barnes and Noble about a year ago and was surprised it was even a thing anymore. So, I looked it up. Now, instead of it being weekly, one issue includes 3 weeks. But...who buys these?
It turns out, not very many people. Their entire circulation had an average circulation of 963,789 for the six months ending June 30th, 2024. It's a victim of a lot less channel changing, cable being dumped for streaming services, and such. I recall my Dad and my grandparents liking the TV Guide when I was growing up, but honestly have not seen one in anyone's home for years and years now. I can see why they have a circulation of less than a million subscribers.
I don't know the price. It seems sort of redundant for anyone to have a subscription to the TV Guide now, but hey, to each his own, I guess. They did say that pretty much their entire subscription base is older people without streaming.
Do you get TV Guide? Do you know anyone who does?
We can blame the internet, advancements in technology, streaming, or whatever we want to, but the TV Guide will no doubt be a victim of changing times very soon.
24 people like this
25 responses
@Orson_Kart (6842)
• United Kingdom
2 Sep
TV guides used to be big sellers over here, especially at Christmas, when many people used to want to know what movies and specials were going to be on, to plan their viewing. This was before the internet, and also when there were fewer channels to watch. Up until the 80’s, we only had 3 channels to watch, so it was easy to put together a TV guide. Now there are so many channels to chose from it would need to be a tome to cover them all. I don’t think I personally ever bought one, but I did used to buy newspapers, especially on a Sunday, but not for many years now.
4 people like this
@TheHorse (220275)
• Walnut Creek, California
2 Sep
@MarieCoyle Yep. We got the Trib and the Sun Times.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
Yes, if a completely accurate TV Guide, with all the streaming, etc. even existed, it would probably be the size the New York City phone book used to be when everyone had a landline.
I sometimes miss the old newspapers. Loved the Chicago Tribune on Sundays, it was huge and had so many neat articles, etc. It definitely saves trees not to publish all the news all the time and have those huge newspapers, but there are still many Sundays when I wish they still published it in the old way, with all of that content. Now, it's a lot smaller!
4 people like this
@Orson_Kart (6842)
• United Kingdom
2 Sep
@MarieCoyle I used to be a paperboy in the early 70’s delivering those huge papers, which on a Sunday had a number of supplements that made my bag very heavy. Back then I didn’t love those papers one bit. 
2 people like this
@JudyEv (342175)
• Rockingham, Australia
2 Sep
@MarieCoyle It's the same here. The one daily newspaper we have is about half the size it used to be.
3 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
@JudyEv
There is definitely not much to any newspaper anymore. I know exactly one neighbor here gets our daily newspaper delivered, and it's tiny now.
3 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
Honestly, here in the US many newspapers are either out of business or print a small paper. The internet has taken over the news for the most part.
3 people like this
@kaylachan (71804)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
2 Sep
I do remember it, but I cut the cord the day we bought the house to help cot costs. I haven't looked back since. Even when I still had cable, the t.v. guide was its own channel or a button on the remote. A little in-between between the guide of yester-year and today's advancing technology.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
I don’t think I have ever purchased a copy. I did have older family members and friends who always had a copy by the television. But it’s been years since I’ve seen it in anyone’s home. I recall an aunt and uncle always having a copy on the table by their Lazy-Boy chairs, but that had to be in the 90’s, they have been gone a long time now.
Raising a family and working, I didn’t have a lot of time for television!
4 people like this
@kaylachan (71804)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
2 Sep
@MarieCoyle As a kid, I had my shows after school, but I wasn't one who spent hours in front of the television.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
@kaylachan
Even when I was very young, I didn't use the TV Guide if there was one in the house. But I know many adults did, they HAD to have a copy every single week!
4 people like this
@jstory07 (139996)
• Roseburg, Oregon
2 Sep
@MarieCoyle I would never order or buy TV Guide.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
@jstory07
Me, either. I wouldn’t even open it up,there would be no point.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
I am rather surprised they have hung in there, myself. Evidently most of their subscribers are elderly, from what I have read. There can't be a lot of hope that their subscriber list would grow, not now.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
I don't, either. I wouldn't think it would be a very profitable business to be in, not in today's world.
1 person likes this
@pitsipeahie (5010)
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2 Sep
I don’t even watch TV anymore, except for the local news in the evening, so I haven’t really kept up with TV Guide. I’m not sure if it’s still around or if many people still use it. It seems like streaming and the internet have pretty much taken over.
3 people like this
@pitsipeahie (5010)
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2 Sep
@MarieCoyle Same here, once a day 6pm local news then I get the rest of the scoops on the internet. The print newspaper is something I haven't read in ages, as in it has been years since I last read one. I just read the newspaper on their official website.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
Yes, you are correct. I try to catch the local news once per day/evening, but we used to get the real ''scoops'' on the news in our newspapers.
2 people like this
@FourWalls (69033)
• United States
2 Sep
I used to stop by the A&P on the corner of Main and Grandview in Daytona Beach on my way home from school and get the next week’s guide for sixteen cents (15c and a penny tax). The first place I turned to was Saturday night to make sure M*A*S*H, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Bob Newhart Show, and The Carol Burnett Show were going to be on (and to see who was on Carol’s show)…then through the week for The Electric Company to make sure I’d get a heavy dose of Skip Hinnant. 
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
I loved M*A*S*H*. My son had it on the other day and was watching it.
Sixteen cents...not much of anything you can buy now for that amount!
2 people like this
@Juliaacv (51407)
• Canada
2 Sep
Growing up in the 70's, I definitely remember the TV Guide.
We always had one in our family room, although I often wondered why, as we were on an antennae and only received a limited number of channels.
But I haven't seen a TV Guide in decades, and am surprised that they even exist since everyone that I know has a guide that comes up on the TV screen.
2 people like this
@Juliaacv (51407)
• Canada
2 Sep
@MarieCoyle We only had 4 channels.
And that was up until the time I was about 16 or 17 years old.
Watching television was a very low priority at our house.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
Yes, there isn't a need for it when we can just scroll through the guide on the TV.
Once upon a time, we had 3 channels. And possibly rabbit ear antennas, with some aluminum foil on the ears if the reception wasn't good!
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
@Juliaacv
We only watched certain programs, mostly the ones the grandparents liked.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
Oh, newsstands! Another thing from days gone by that I miss!
3 people like this
@TheHorse (220275)
• Walnut Creek, California
2 Sep
@MarieCoyle Dang! I rarely go to big cities. Are newsstands gone in NYC too?
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
@TheHorse
I haven’t been there in some time, so I can’t answer that question.
@TheHorse (220275)
• Walnut Creek, California
2 Sep
@MarieCoyle Right now it's People. I catch up on my gossip when I have a crown put on. I have not heard of most of the humans they discuss.
3 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
I can’t believe they are, either. No way would I ever pay money or want a TV Guide.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
Oh yes, that’s right. If any office/waiting room existed, there was always a dog-eared copy somewhere !!
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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3 Sep
@nela13
I honestly don't know a single person here that looks at these TV Guide things. But evidently, they are still a thing.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
Wow, I didn't realize any of them ever printed once a week anymore. Here, according to what I have read, the old TV Guide publishes every 3 weeks.
3 people like this
@LindaOHio (181821)
• United States
2 Sep
I don't have a subscription; but I remember it very well. Dish also offers a subscription to a "TV guide"....Have a good holiday today.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
If I were to see one I don't think I would even pick it up to look at it. They used to be in so many homes.
2 people like this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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2 Sep
Yes, they said they offer an online copy (for a fee, of course) but I honestly do not know of anyone who would even use a TV Guide anymore here.
1 person likes this
@much2say (56087)
• Los Angeles, California
6 Sep
TV Guide was part of my childhood . . . I remember my mom buying it at the grocery store. There were only X amount of channels back then . . . our house never got into cable. Yep - no need for TV Guide now - in fact I hadn't even thought about TV Guide in a million years (guess we hadn't needed it 
).
).1 person likes this
@much2say (56087)
• Los Angeles, California
9 Sep
@MarieCoyle Is it still those little booklets? I think I even remember the inside layout . . . I read it so much that it was ingrained in my head 
. I remember 2,4,5,7,9 and 13 . . . and then U where there quite a few sub channels.
. I remember 2,4,5,7,9 and 13 . . . and then U where there quite a few sub channels.1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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7 Sep
I wasn't even aware it was even still in print. We were surprised.
I basically remember 3-4 TV channels for most of my younger years, no matter where I lived.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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10 Sep
@much2say
I haven't seen a copy of one since that time a year ago or so when I was walking through Barnes and Noble with my daughter. We were both amazed that it was still in print then. I think it was still a small-ish little booklet, but I don't know if it still is now.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (20039)
• United States
3 Sep
no. But I remember those magazines. My uncle used to get the newspaper and there was a tv guide type magazine with the Sunday edition.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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4 Sep
I think a lot of people had the TV listings in their newspapers for a long time.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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3 Sep
I know, but times always change in some ways. We can’t go back, even if we want to. Just have to accept the changes, and move forward.
1 person likes this
@porwest (92624)
• United States
7 Sep
@MarieCoyle Yep. Same here. It's not that I don't feel the content is worth being paid for. But when there are other options to get paid for my being there...yeah, I am going to look somewhere else for what I want.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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8 Sep
@porwest
Most definitely. I am not going to pay for it if I can find reliable sources to read it for free.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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6 Sep
I have to agree. Time and technology take their toll on a lot of things. Newspapers and magazines are definitely very much affected.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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4 Sep
I never had it in my own home, it was more of a big deal when I was very young. Then I married, had school and children and a job, not much time for TV!
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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5 Sep
@grenery8
So very true. It seemed like we were always on the run from morning until night.
@grenery8 (11164)
• Zagreb, Croatia (Hrvatska)
4 Sep
@MarieCoyle yes. when real life happens, who cares about this kind of things.
1 person likes this
@RevivedWarrior (2476)
• India
3 Sep
I used to have the TV guide while I was a teenager. I would plan my TV watching plan based on the shows and timing. The Tv guide as your rightly mentioned has almost a month's schedule. It used to be fun as we would know the movie timings in advance alongwith the movie names. I used the TV guide for almost 3 years. And with my business schedule and with internet and OTT available, never went back to tv guides. Not sure, if the TV viewing styles of people also changed. I for sure has seen it change for me and my friends. Most of us , have now slightly increased viewing things on internet and OTT.
@MarieCoyle (38735)
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3 Sep
Yes, most people I know don’t have cable or satellite television anymore. Way too expensive, and streaming offers me all my local news as well as national and world news and a ton of programs.
The best part about streaming is you can watch shows and movies when you want to, you are near the mercy of a set time to change the channel and be available for a certain program when you are too busy.
1 person likes this
