Date
|
Event
|
January 1
|
VH1
begins in the United States.
|
January 4
|
Sesame Street
broadcasts its 2,000th episode.
|
January 7
|
During an appearance on
ABC
's
Good Morning America
, actor
Yul Brynner
, who was suffering from terminal
lung cancer
, mentioned his wish to make a
public service announcement
to be run after his death to tell others to not
smoke
.
|
January 20
|
For the first time ever, the
Super Bowl
is televised by
ABC
, who join the annual broadcast rotation of the game with
CBS
and
NBC
. This also marked the first time that a Super Bowl had
closed captioning
provided in real-time. In this game, the
San Francisco 49ers
would defeat the
Miami Dolphins
38-16.
|
January 24
|
The first part of a two part
Family Ties
episode
airs on
NBC
concerning
Elyse Keaton
going into labor while performing on-air at her husband, Steven's TV station.
|
February 4
|
NBC
becomes the first commercial television network to use
satellite
interconnection for its stations; as a result, it is the first network to discontinue use of chime intonations at the beginning of each telecast, to signal to its affiliates to start broadcasting the network feed.
|
February 8
|
CBS
airs the
final episode
of
The Dukes of Hazzard
.
|
February 10
|
CBS
airs the first part of a two part
miniseries
that examines the so-called "
Atlanta child murders
" of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Atlanta officials criticized
[1]
[2]
The Atlanta Child Murders
, claiming that it distorted
[3]
the facts
[4]
of the case.
[5]
After a series of negotiations, CBS executives agreed
[6]
to insert a disclaimer
[7]
alerting viewers that the film is based on fact but contains fictional elements.
[8]
|
March 2
|
The
NBC
situation comedy
Gimme a Break!
broadcasts an episode live.
|
March 18
|
Capital Cities Communications
, a station owner group based in
Albany, New York
, stuns the broadcast industry by announcing that it is acquiring
ABC
for $3.5 billion. The move will prompt the company to sell off several of its television and radio stations to satisfy
FCC
ownership limits. The deal will be finalized on January 3, 1986.
[9]
[10]
|
March 20
|
Norman Lear
sells
Tandem Productions
and
Embassy Television
companies to
The Coca-Cola Company
, which also owns
Columbia Pictures
company, for $485 million.
|
March 22
|
KXXV
signs on the air in
Waco
as an
NBC affiliate
. However, the NBC affiliate didn't last long, and it moved to
ABC
.
|
March 31
|
The World Wrestling Federation (now
WWE
) telecasts
WrestleMania
to select
pay-per-view
areas (and to a greater extent,
closed-circuit
locations across the country). The event is wildly successful (drawing over a million viewers on closed-circuit) and marks the beginning of the annual series of
WrestleMania
events which continue to air on pay-per-view to this day. There is, however, a near-riot in
Pittsburgh
when a technical glitch prematurely ends the feed at the
Civic Arena
, prompting the WWF to appease angry fans by showing the event in its entirely on
ABC
affiliate
WTAE-TV
two weeks later.
[11]
[12]
[13]
|
April 1
|
Financial News Network
stopped airing on broadcast stations, and began a 24-hour cable feed, with the introduction of
Score
.
|
April 6
|
The first edition of
World Championship Wrestling
to be produced by
Jim Crockett Promotions
airs on
TBS
.
|
April 9
|
The
series finale
of
Three's a Crowd
airs on
ABC
, ending
John Ritter
's run as
Jack Tripper
which begin with the debut of
Three's Company
back in
1977
.
|
April 11
|
KMSS
commences broadcasting in
Shreveport, Louisiana
, making it the first station in the market to sign on the air since
KTBS
signed on in 1955 and the first independent station in the market. It would later become one of the few charter affiliates of
Fox
in Louisiana.
|
April 27
|
Frank Glieber
makes what turns out to be his final play-by-play assignment for
CBS Sports
, which is Game 1 of the
NBA playoff
series between the
Los Angeles Lakers
and
Portland Trail Blazers
. Glieber would die of a
heart attack
four days later. Glieber was also scheduled to call Game 4 of the Los Angeles-Portland series alongside
James Brown
for
CBS
, but he would ultimately be replaced by
Verne Lundquist
.
|
April 28
|
WLIG commences broadcasting. (The call letters would change to
WLNY-TV
on September 1, 1996).
|
April 29
|
The two-night adaptation of
Ken Follett
's
The Key to Rebecca
, shown on
WPIX
Channel 11 in
New York City
, has
non-pixelated toplessness
from both of its female stars,
Season Hubley
and Lina Raymond.
|
May 4
|
News Corporation
and
20th Century Fox Film Corporation
announces their intent on purchasing
Metromedia
's television stations and Metromedia Producers Corp. for $3.5 billion. This would soon lay the ground work for the
Fox Broadcasting Company
, which would debut in October 1986.
|
May 9
|
Nicholas Colasanto
makes his final appearance as
Coach Ernie Pantusso
on
Cheers
. While he technically last appeared in the
cold opening
of
"Rescue Me"
, Colasanto's last filmed appearance as Coach was in the episode "Cheerio, Cheers". Following Colasanto's death,
Woody Harrelson
, would join the cast as his replacement,
Woody Boyd
beginning in the
fourth season
.
|
May 11
|
The first episode of
Saturday Night's Main Event
is broadcast by
NBC
, the first time that professional wrestling had been broadcast by network television since the 1950s.
|
Dolph Sweet
makes his final appearance as Chief Carl Kanisky on
Gimme a Break!
. The
Season 4 finale
aired on
NBC
three days after his death.
|
May 12
|
During halftime of the
Boston Celtics
–
Philadelphia 76ers
NBA playoff game
,
CBS
televises the first ever
NBA draft lottery
.
|
May 14
|
On
The CBS Morning News
, co?anchor
Phyllis George
interviews false rape accuser
Cathleen Mae Webb
and the man whom she had falsely accused,
Gary Dotson
. In an effort to get the two to make amends to each other, George makes a simple suggestion: "How about a hug?" Both Webb and Dotson graciously refuse. That infamous interview alienates audiences and is blasted by critics, helping to put an unpleasant close to George's television career at this initial mark.
|
May 15
|
The season finale of
Dynasty
on
ABC
sees the entire wedding party of
Amanda Carrington
(
Catherine Oxenberg
) and
Prince Michael of Moldavia
(
Michael Praed
) shot by revolutionaries in what is known as the
Moldavian Massacre
.
|
May 17
|
The season finale of
Dallas
on
CBS
finds character
Bobby Ewing
(
Patrick Duffy
) on his deathbed after his crazed ex-sister-in-law Katherine Wentworth (
Morgan Brittany
) runs him down with her car.
|
May 19
|
WOIO-TV
commences broadcasting in
Cleveland
. Initially an independent station, it will become a charter affiliate of
Fox
in 1986 and switch to
CBS
in 1994 as a result of the
1994 United States broadcast TV realignment
.
|
May 25
|
CBS
[14]
[15]
[16]
airs the fourth game of the
Major Indoor Soccer League
's championship series between the
San Diego Sockers
and the
Baltimore Blast
. This would be the final year the MISL would have games aired on network television. CBS used
Gary Bender
and
Kyle Rote Jr.
[17]
on commentary.
|
May 30
|
The
USA Network
airs its final
National Hockey League
telecast
, Game 5 of the
Stanley Cup Finals
. NHL contests wouldn't be seen in any shape or form on USA again until the
2015 Stanley Cup playoffs
.
|
June 14
|
ABC
broadcasts its 2,311th and last daytime episode of
Family Feud
after 9 years. Richard Dawson gives an emotional speech at the end of the broadcast. Dawson would return to the series during 1994 for one more season. Meanwhile, on
CBS
,
Press Your Luck
broadcasts the episode in which all three contestants would be invited back after a mistake on a question about the cartoon character
Sylvester
was corrected by
Mel Blanc
telephoning
Peter Tomarken
at the end of the show.
|
June 24
|
Kathie Lee Johnson
(later Gifford) officially joins
Regis Philbin
as his co-host on
WABC
's
The Morning Show
. Their chemistry proves to be successful as
The Morning Show
soon becomes number 1 in the market
[18]
and goes on to debut in
national syndication
on September 5, 1988, when the title is changed to
Live with Regis and Kathie Lee
.
|
July 1
|
Nick at Nite
, a nighttime program service with an emphasis on classic television reruns, is launched in the United States, being broadcast on the same channel as
Nickelodeon
. At the same time,
A&E
, which previously shared Nickelodeon's channel, begins broadcasting as its own 24-hour cable channel in January of that year on a separate satellite transponder.
|
July 2
|
The
final episode
of
The Jeffersons
airs on
CBS
.
|
July 4
|
NBC
's
Minneapolis
/
St. Paul
(
Twin Cities
)
affiliate
WTCN-TV changes its name to WUSA-TV to reflect its co-ownership with
USA Today
. This would be displaced a year after by
KARE-TV
.
|
July 13
|
The
Live Aid
concerts are broadcast from
London
and
Philadelphia
. In the U.S., the concerts are broadcast by
MTV
and
over-the-air syndication
, with
ABC
joining in a 3-hour prime-time period.
|
July 16
|
NBC's
telecast of the
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
out of the
Metrodome
in
Minnesota
is the first program to be broadcast in
stereo
[19]
by a television network.
|
Rock Hudson
joined his old friend
Doris Day
for a Hollywood press conference announcing the launch of her new TV cable show
Doris Day's Best Friends
in which Hudson was videotaped visiting Day's ranch in
Carmel, California
, a few days earlier. He appeared gaunt and his speech was nearly incoherent; during the segment, Hudson did very little speaking, with most of it consisting of Day and Hudson walking around as Day's recording of "
My Buddy
" played in the background, with Hudson noting he had quickly tired out. His appearance was enough of a shock that the reunion was broadcast repeatedly over national news shows that night and for days to come.
|
July 22
|
Douglas Marland
starts his critically acclaimed eight-year run writing for the
CBS
soap opera
As the World Turns
.
|
August 4
|
Capital Cities Communications
continues its acquisition of
ABC
when its
CBS
affiliate in
Durham, North Carolina
,
WTVD
, swaps affiliations with ABC affiliate
WRAL-TV
in
Raleigh
.
[20]
|
August 19
|
A taping of an outdoor interview for NBC's
Today
is interrupted by
David Letterman
, who, while taping his own
Late Night
, leans out of an office window and announces, "My name is
Larry Grossman
(then-president of
NBC News
) and I'm not wearing any pants!"
|
September 2
|
NBC
becomes the first broadcast network in the U.S. to broadcast its prime time programs with stereo sound.
|
September 5
|
Showtime
begins airing weekly 10 p.m. showings of 52 hours worth of
"lost"
episodes
of
The Honeymooners
.
|
September 8
|
Capital Cities Communications
continues its acquisition of
ABC
when
KFSN-TV
, its
CBS
affiliate in
Fresno, California
, swaps affiliations with the market's existing ABC affiliate,
KJEO
.
|
September 9
|
ABC
affiliate
WSAV-TV
swaps affiliations with
NBC
affiliate
WJCL
, thus reversing a swap that took place in 1982.
[21]
|
The Price Is Right
returns to daily syndication after a five-year hiatus, but with
Tom Kennedy
hosting. After 170 episodes produced, the show went on hiatus until
1994
. Besides
Johnny Olson
,
Gene Wood
and
Rod Roddy
shared announcing duties.
|
September 14
|
In part one of a three-part season premiere of
The Facts of Life
on
NBC
, Edna's Edibles, which had been the main locale of the long-running series since
1983
, is burned to the ground. Edna Garrett and the girls would rebuild and replace it with an ice cream and gift shop named Over Our Heads.
|
September 16
|
After a 22-year hiatus, new
episodes
of
The Jetsons
debut. The
syndicated
revival would run for two seasons.
|
Cleveland
's
CBS affiliate
WJKW-TV
changes its name back to WJW-TV.
|
September 18
|
"Top Ten Things That Almost Rhyme With Peas" is the subject of the first
"Top 10 List"
on
NBC
's
Late Night with David Letterman
.
|
September 22
|
The first
Farm Aid
concert is telecast from
Champaign, Illinois
, in
syndication
and by
TNN
.
|
September 23
|
Jackie Gleason
and
Art Carney
reunite in the
CBS
movie
Izzy and Moe
.
|
Broadcast on
NBC
two nights before the start of
Family Ties
'
fourth season, the Keatons take a vacation to
England
in television film
Family Ties Vacation
. The movie was later split into four individual episodes when the series entered syndication.
|
September 27
|
The
pilot episode
for a
revival
of the
anthology television series
,
The Twilight Zone
airs on
CBS
. This particular iteration of
The Twilight Zone
would run for three seasons, the first two on CBS and the final one in
syndication
.
|
September 28
|
ABC
broadcasts an episode of
The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians
called
"The Fear"
, in which
Batman
's origin is depicted for the first time in media outside of the
comic books
.
|
Three years after being canceled by
ABC
following its second season, the sitcom
It's a Living
is relaunched for the
first-run syndication
market. It would continue for
four more seasons
before its conclusion in 1989.
|
September 29
|
Howard Cosell
makes what turns out to be his final assignment for
ABC Sports
, a
Major League Baseball
game between the
Kansas City Royals
and
Minnesota Twins
from the
Metrodome
in
Minneapolis
. Cosell is later removed from his scheduled announcing duties for that year's
World Series
due to the controversy surrounding his book
I Never Played the Game
. Cosell is replaced on the
ABC
broadcasts by
Tim McCarver
, who would work the 1985 World Series alongside
Al Michaels
and
Jim Palmer
.
|
October 4
|
The
PBS
program
Electric Company
concludes after 8 straight years in reruns.
|
NBC
officially wins the rights to
broadcast
the
1988 Summer Olympics
from
Seoul
,
South Korea
.
|
October 6
|
Jem and the Holograms
debuts
as one of four six-minute matinee segments on
Super Sunday
. [It becomes a regular half-hour program in 1986].
|
Spectrum
is discontinued.
|
October 20
|
The
I Dream of Jeannie
reunion movie,
I Dream of Jeannie... Fifteen Years Later
is broadcast on
NBC
. It's the first of two reunion movies, as
the next one
, would be broadcast six years later.
|
November 5
|
CBS
broadcasts the
made-for-television
drama film
Stone Pillow
. It stars
Lucille Ball
, in an attempt to make a dramatic "breakout" from her years in comedy, as an older homeless woman with few resources and even fewer options. The film received rather mixed reviews, but was a
ratings
success. The telecast ranked 9th out of 68 programs airing that week, and brought in a 23.3 rating and a 33 share.
[22]
The success of the film led Ball to make one last attempt to return to her comedy roots with
Life with Lucy
the next year.
|
November 6
|
KRRT-TV
goes on the air, giving the
San Antonio
market
its first
independent station
.
|
November 8
|
The final episode of
The Price Is Right
with
Johnny Olson
as announcer is broadcast by
CBS
. Olson had died on October 12; the show was broadcast as an "in memoriam" tribute to him on October 29.
|
November 9
|
On
NBC
,
Saturday Night Live
begins its
11th season
, with
Lorne Michaels
returning as executive producer and an all-new cast that includes
Jon Lovitz
and
Dennis Miller
.
|
November 17
|
Kane & Abel
, a
miniseries
based on the bestselling
Jeffrey Archer
novel, debuts on
CBS
.
|
November 18
|
Elmo
, a new character for
Sesame Street
, is introduced on
PBS
. In the same episode, the adult cast of
Sesame Street
come face-to-face with
Aloysius Snuffleupagus
for the first time since the character's 1971 introduction.
|
November 28
|
Jim Crockett Promotions
and the
National Wrestling Alliance
hold the
third annual
Starrcade
event. Transmitted via
closed-circuit television
, this particular
event
took place from the
Greensboro Coliseum Complex
in
Greensboro, North Carolina
and
Omni Coliseum
in
Atlanta, Georgia
, with the event going back and forth from both arenas.
|
December 3
|
Copacabana
, an original musical featuring
Barry Manilow
(based on his 1978 song of the same name),
Annette O'Toole
, and
Estelle Getty
, is broadcast by
CBS
.
|
Courteney Cox
uses the word "
period
" (referring to menstruation) on U.S. television for the first time, in a commercial for
Tampax
brand tampons.
|
December 5
|
A
Wheel of Fortune
contestant Terry Wharton missolves a puzzle "The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of Defeat" (a quote from
Jim McKay
), leaving $62,400 cash unclaimed. This was to date, the largest cash unclaimed for a round in the history of the show, which, at the time, would have set then the biggest winnings record during the maingame alone.
[23]
|
December 12
|
General Electric
announces plans to purchase
RCA
, owner of
NBC
for $6.3 billion, and eventually wants to convert General Electric's TV station
KCNC
into an
NBC owned and operated station
. The deal would be finalized on June 9, 1986.
|
December 29
|
In
Waco
,
ABC
affiliate
KCEN
swaps affiliations with
NBC
affiliate
KXXV
.
|