1952: Guiding Light moves to television After 15 years on the radio, the venerable soap began airing on CBS Television. It didn’t stop airing until 2009—a combined 72 years of life, in one form or another, making Guiding Light the second-longest program in broadcast history. Even more impressive, it produced over 18,000 episodes. That’s nearly twice … Continue reading »
In this week’s book club, it’s all about ER and we think NBC comes off as really REALLY lucky. Continue reading »
1981: TBS introduces “TBS time” Trying to boost viewers’ awareness of its programming, the Atlanta-based Superstation offset the start times of its shows by five minutes. By beginning at the :05 or :35, TBS shows were listed in a separate time slot in listings such as TV Guide, and thus stood out more. The pattern fell … Continue reading »
Cory Barker kicks off Our Old TV feature with a look at how the NBA Draft informed his television (and life) experiences. Continue reading »
Elaine throws a party for her art gallery colleagues, and Bobby volunteers to pose as Louie for a high school reunion. Continue reading »
1951: Amos ‘n’ Andy make their TV debut Controversial from its earliest radio days, Amos ‘n’ Andy depicted a pair of African-Americans trying to make it big in Chicago. Almost immediately, it generated protests from organizations such as the NAACP for portraying its leads as derogatory characters—indeed, the radio program was the work of two white … Continue reading »
The George Marlow investigation comes to a close on Prime Suspect, and the result is a hauntingly well done psychological study of both sides of the law. Continue reading »
Jaime Weinman concludes his look at the multi-network flop of The Tony Randall Show Continue reading »
1966: Dark Shadows premieres During its five-year run, the cult soap aired over 1,200 episodes. Thought it relied on a gothic aesthetic from the start, it didn’t adopt the supernatural elements for which it’s best known until several months later. And the show’s most iconic character, brooding vampire Barnabas Collins, did not first appear until nearly … Continue reading »
Jaime Weinman begins his look at sitcom flops of the 1970s with a 2-part series on The Tony Randall Show. Continue reading »
Things heat up and cool down for the Super Friends as an evil scientist plays havoc with the weather. Continue reading »
1993: Late Night says goodbye to David Letterman After 11 seasons and over 1,800 shows at 12:30 a.m., the seminal talk show host concluded his NBC career. A few months before, Letterman was passed over for the honor of succeeding Johnny Carson as host of the The Tonight Show in favor of Jay Leno. His … Continue reading »
Cory considers the daunting and yet irresistible challenge to watch everything that’s out there. Continue reading »
In this week’s Hill Street Blues review, Cory explores the show’s ever-improving use of comedy. Continue reading »
1951: CBS airs the first color program It was an hour-long variety show called “Premiere,” and it featured a roster of contemporary personalities such as Ed Sullivan. The broadcast only reached four cities outside New York—Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C.—but the experiment established CBS as a pioneer in the burgeoning technology. The only problem? This … Continue reading »
1949: Hopalong Cassidy, the first TV Western, debuts The famous cowboy had a long history in short stories, novels, and movie serials throughout the first half of the 20th century. But the character became a sensation when actor William Boyd brought him to NBC. As the Western genre faded from cinemas, it found new life on … Continue reading »
1980: The David Letterman Show debuts Before carving out his place on the Mt. Rushmore of late night comedy, Letterman began his full-time NBC career with this short-lived morning show. He had first caught the network’s attention after becoming one of Johnny Carson’s favorite guest hosts for The Tonight Show in 1978. But the offbeat, … Continue reading »
This week’s installment of the TV Book Club considers Mad About You, Frasier, Friends, and fake TV executives. Continue reading »
2011: Glee Live! In Concert! hits Europe The crowd-pleasing concert tour, based on Ryan Murphy’s pop-song-and-unfathomable-plot pastiche, began a nine-date swing through the U.K. and Ireland with a show in Manchester, England. Star cast members who crossed the pond in a reverse-British Invasion included Lea Michele, Chris Colfer, Dianna Agron, and Chord Overstreet. Some may … Continue reading »
The hopes and dreams of two the garage’s drivers are on display this week in our TV Roundtable on Taxi Continue reading »
1993: Fox begins broadcasting seven nights a week By launching a movie-of-the-week on Mondays, then the only vacant night on its schedule, the fledgling network programmed a full week of prime time for the first time in its history. Coupled with its acquisition of NFL broadcasting rights later that year, this move established Fox as … Continue reading »
