Television History
1968 - In the U.K., the TV special "Elvis" aired on BBC2-TV.
1971 - Peter Duel was found dead in his apartment in Hollywood Hills of an apparent suicide. Duel played the role of Hannibal Heyes in the series "Alias Smith and Jones."
1972 - "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" special aired for the first time.
1984 - ESPN debuted in Hawaii, making it available in all 50 states.
1988 - "Simon & Simon" was aired for the last time on CBS.
2000 - CBS Sports aired a two-hour special that told the stories behind the 2000 Paralympic Games in Sydney, Australia.
1966 - Mrs. Miller performed "Downtown" and "A Lover's Concerto" on "American Bandstand."
1966 - The Blues Magoos performed "We Ain't Got Nothin' Yet" on "American Bandstand."
1983 - ABC performed "That Was Then, but This Is Now" and "S.O.S." on "American Bandstand."
1983 - Oingo Boingo performed "Wake Up It's 1984" on "American Bandstand."
1994 - A taped performance by KISS was played on ABC's "Dick Clark's New Years Rockin' Eve '94."
2001 - In New York, Dick Clark counted down to midnight from Times Square for the 30th consecutive year.
2005 - Regis Philbin hosted "New Year's Rockin' Eve" from Times Square. It was the first time in 32 years that Dick Clark was unable to host the show.
Television History
1953 - The first color TV sets went on sale for about $1,175.
1954 - James Arness made his dramatic TV debut in "The Chase." The "Gunsmoke" series didn’t begin for Arness until the fall of 1955.
1980 - "The Wonderful World of Disney" was cancelled by NBC after more than 25 years on the TV. It was the longest-running series in prime-time television history.
1984 - CBS began airing the series "Crazy Like a Fox."
1967 - Rose Garden performed "Next Plane to London" on "American Bandstand."
1967 - A tape of The Who performing "I Can See for Miles" was aired on "American Bandstand."
1972 - Rick Springfield performed "What Would the Children Think" on "American Bandstand."
1978 - Chanson performed "Don't Hold Back" on "American Bandstand."
1978 - Justin Heywood performed "Forever Autumn" on "American Bandstand."
1999 - Dick Clark was the first guest on David Letterman's "Late Show."
Television History
1949 - KC2XAK of Bridgeport, CT, became the first ultrahigh frequency (UHF) television station to begin operating on a regular daily schedule.
1965 - CBS acquired the rights to the NFL regular-season games in 1966 and 1967, with an option for 1968, for $18.8 million per year.
1985 - Phil Donahue and a Soviet radio commentator hosted the "Citizens’ Summit" via satellite TV.
Today in
1973 - Eddie Kendricks performed "Keep On Truckin'" and "Boodie Down" on "American Bandstand."
1979 - Terry Desario with K.C performed "Yes, I'm Ready" on "American Bandstand."
1979 - The Captain & Tennille performed "Do That To Me One More Time" on "American Bandstand."
1984 - Donna Summer performed "Supernatural Love" and "I'm Free" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1956 - After five years on television, the last "Ding Dong School" was aired on NBC-TV.
Today in
1962 - Mary Wells performed "Two Lovers" on "American Bandstand."
1968 - Brian Hyland performed "Tragedy" on "American Bandstand."
1968 - Spanky & Our Gang performed "Yesterday's Rain" on "American Bandstand."
1974 - Gloria Gaynor performed "Never Can Say Goodbye" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1947 - The children's television program "Howdy Doody," hosted by Bob Smith, made its debut on NBC.
1964 - The Supremes made their first appearance on TV's "Ed Sullivan Show."
1971 - The "Sonny & Cher Show" began airing on CBS. The show ran for four 1/2 years.
1979 - The pilot episode of "Knots Landing" aired on CBS.
Today in
1960 - Smokey Robinson & the Miracles performed "Shop Around" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1986 - "Search for Tomorrow" was seen for the last time on CBS-TV. The show had been on the air for 35-years.
1991 - Michael Jackson was featured on ABC-TV's "Entertainers '91." The show featured the top 20 entertainers of 1991.
1960 - Maurice & the Zodiacs performed "Stay" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - The Belmonts performed "I Need Someone" on "American Bandstand."
1964 - Bobby Vee performed "Every Little Bit Hurts" on "American Bandstand."
1970 - The Grass Roots performed "Temptation Eyes" on "American Bandstand."
1981 - Rod Stewart performed "Young Turks" on "American Bandstand."
1981 - James Ingram performed "Just Once" and "One Hundred Ways" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1978 - Abba's pre-recorded appearance on BBCI-TV's "Mike Yarwood Christmas Show" aired in Britain.
2002 - David Letterman spent the day with U.S. troops in southern Afghanistan.
Today in
1957 - The Mike Pedicin Quartet performed "Shake a Hand" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - The Lettermen performed "When I Fall in Love" on "American Bandstand."
1971 - Les Crane performed "Desiderata" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1951 - Gian Carlo Menotti's "Amahl and the Night Visitors," was first broadcast by NBC. It was the first opera written specifically for television.
1955 - The Lennon Sisters debuted as featured vocalists on "The Lawrence Welk Show" on ABC-TV.
1948 - For the first time ever, a midnight Mass was broadcast on television. It was held at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City.
1966 - Hard Times performed "Fortune Teller" on "American Bandstand."
1983 - The Romantics performed "Talking In Your Sleep" and "Rock You Up" on "American Bandstand."
1983 - DeBarge performed "Time Will Reveal" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1943 - WRGB Schenectady broadcasted the first complete opera, "Hansel and Gretel."
1951 - A NFL championship game was televised nationally for the first time. The Los Angeles Rams beat the Cleveland Browns 24-17. The DuMont Network had paid $75,000 for the rights to the game.
Today in
1967 - Bruce Channel performed "Mr. Bus Driver" on "American Bandstand."
1967 - A tape of the Beatles performing "Hello Goodbye" was aired on "American Bandstand."
1972 - Jimmy Osmond performed "Tweedle-Dee" and "Long-Haired Lover From Liverpool" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1931 - The first experimental TV broadcast from a transmitter atop the Empire State Building took place. The transmitter was put up by NBC on October 30, 1931.
1975 - Mike and Gloria Stivic had a baby on CBS-TV's "All In The Family."
1976 - Production ended for "Let's Make a Deal."
1994 - The 100th episode of "Beavis and Butt-head" aired on MTV.
Today in
1959 - Duane Eddy performed "Bonnie Came Back" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - Tony Orlando performed "Happy Times Are Here to Stay" on "American Bandstand."
1979 - Joe Jackson performed "Is She Really Going Out With Him" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1969 - Diana Ross gave her last performance as a member of the Supremes on "The Ed Sullivan Show."
1974 - The 100th episode of "All In The Family" aired.
1992 - David Crosby was a guest on ABC-TV's "Roseanne."
2002 - NBC announced that an agreement was made to keep all six main characters of "Friends" for another season.
1962 - The Cookies performed "Chains" on "American Bandstand."
1963 - Vito & the Salutations performed "Unchained Melody" on "American Bandstand."
1963 - Neil Sedaka performed "Bad Girl" on "American Bandstand."
1968 - Al Martino performed "I Can't Help It" on "American Bandstand."
1974 - Kool & The Gang performed "Rhyme Time People" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1938 - Vladimir Kosma Zworykin patented the iconoscope television system.
1954 - Buick Motor Company signed Jackie Gleason to one of the largest contracts ever entered into with an entertainer. Gleason agreed to produce 78 half-hour shows over a two-year period for $6,142,500.
1962 - The Osmond Brothers appeared on NBC-TV's "Andy Williams Show" for the first time.
1993 - It was announced that NBC would retain the rights to the National Football League's (NFL) AFC package.
1961 - Gary U.S. Bonds performed "Dear Lady Twist" on "American Bandstand."
1975 - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles performed "Love Machine" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1964 - ABC used an overhead camera for the first time. The event was the Liberty Bowl.
1971 - The pilot television movie of "The Waltons" aired. The movie was titled "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story."
1973 - Johnny Carson started a fake toilet-paper scare on the "Tonight Show."
1979 - ESPN televised its first NHL game. The teams were the Washington Capitals and the Hartford Whales.
1985 - ABC Sports announced that it was severing ties with Howard Cosell and released ‘The Mouth’ from all TV commitments. Cosell continued on ABC Radio for another five years.
1997 - The 100th episode of "Boy Meets World" aired.
2001 - VH1 premiered "Too Legit: The MC Hammer Story."
2001 - Madonna appeared on television's "Dateline."
1971 - The pilot television movie of "The Waltons" aired. The movie was titled "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story."
1973 - Johnny Carson started a fake toilet-paper scare on the "Tonight Show."
1979 - ESPN televised its first NHL game. The teams were the Washington Capitals and the Hartford Whales.
1985 - ABC Sports announced that it was severing ties with Howard Cosell and released ‘The Mouth’ from all TV commitments. Cosell continued on ABC Radio for another five years.
1997 - The 100th episode of "Boy Meets World" aired.
2001 - VH1 premiered "Too Legit: The MC Hammer Story."
2001 - Madonna appeared on television's "Dateline."
Today in
1957 - Jerry Vale performed "Pretend You Don't See Her" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - Dion performed "The Majestic" on "American Bandstand."
1962 - Bobb B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans performed "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" on "American Bandstand."
1981 - Chilliwack performed "My Girl (Gone, Gone, Gone)" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - Dion performed "The Majestic" on "American Bandstand."
1962 - Bobb B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans performed "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" on "American Bandstand."
1981 - Chilliwack performed "My Girl (Gone, Gone, Gone)" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1953 - WPTZ, in Philadelphia, PA, presented a Felso commercial, it was the first color telecast seen on a local station.
1956 - "To Tell the Truth" debuted on CBS-TV.
1985 - The 50th episode of the "A-Team" aired.
1993 - The NFL announced a new 4-year agreement with ABC, ESPN, TNT and FOX. FOX had taken the NFC championship package from CBS.
Today in
1958 - Bobby Day performed "Rockin' Robin," "The Bluebird, the Buzzard and the Oriole" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - James Ray performed "If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody" on "American Bandstand."
1962 - Timi Yuro performed "The Love of a Boy" on "American Bandstand."
1976 - The Walter Murphy Band performed "Flight 76" on "American Bandstand."
1976 - Johnny Bristol performed "Do It to My Mind" on "American Bandstand."
1982 - Billy Idol performed "Hot in the City" on "American Bandstand."
1982 - The Gap Band performed "You Dropped a Bomb on Me" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1936 - The "The Rudy Vallee Show" debuted on CBS.
1953 - The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) decided to approve RCA’s color television specifications.
1969 - Television history was made when Tiny Tim and Miss Vicki Budinger were married on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson.
1976 - WTCG-TV, Atlanta, GA, changed its call letters to WTBS, and was uplinked via satellite. The station became the first commercial TV station to cover the entire U.S.
1977 - Elvis Costello and the Attractions appear on NBC's "Saturday Night Live" in place of the Sex Pistols. The Sex Pistols could not get visas to enter the U.S.
1986 - Wayne "Danke Schoen" Newton won a $19.2 million suit against NBC News. NBC had aired reports claiming a link between Newton and mob figures. The reports were proven to be false.
1989 - The first episode of "The Simpsons" aired on FOX.
1990 - Olivia Newton-John appeared in the TV movie "A Mom For Christmas."
1993 - FOX outbid CBS for the National Football Conference TV package.
1993 - The "Perry Mason Mystery" TV movie "The Case of the Wicked Wives" aired.
1999 - Crossover jazz saxophonist, Grover Washington, collapsed and died in New York after taping a performance for CBS's "The Saturday Early Show." He was 56. The show aired the next day.
Today in
1957 - Bobby Darin appeared on "American Bandstand."
1966 - The Sandpipers performed "Louie Louie" and "Guantanamera" on "American Bandstand."
1966 - The Monkees performed "I'm a Believer" and "Steppin' Stone" on "American Bandstand."
1983 - Kim Carnes performed "Invisible Hands" and "You Make My Heartbeat" on "American Bandstand."
1983 - Peter Shilling performed "Major Tom" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1951 - NBC-TV debuted "Dragnet" in a special preview on "Chesterfield Sound Off Time". The show began officially on January 3, 1952.
1972 - The 50th episode of "All In The Family" aired on CBS.
1993 - MTV aired Nirvana's New York "Unplugged" performance.
1995 - Fox-TV aired a fight between Mike Tyson and Buster Mathis Jr. Tyson knocked Mathis out in the third round. The fight brought in Fox's highest Nielsen rating to date.
2002 - VH1 began airing a 10-hour, five-night miniseries entitled "I Love the '80s."
2002 - Liza Minnelli and her husband, David Gest, filed a $23 million dollar lawsuit against VH1, MTV Networks, Viacom and Remote Productions, Inc. for breach of contract. The lawsuit was filed because plans were dropped on a reality show that was centered on the lives of Minnelli and Gest.
2010 - CNN's "Larry King Live" aired for the last time.
1957 - Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps performed "Dance to the Bop" on "American Bandstand."
1959 - Mark Dinning performed "Teen Angel" on "American Bandstand."
1960 - Fabian performed "Kissin' & Twistin'" on "American Bandstand."
1960 - The Viscounts performed "Wabash Blues" on "American Bandstand."
1967 - American Breed performed "Bend Me, Shape Me" on "American Bandstand."
1967 - Pink Floyd appeared on "American Bandstand."
1972 - Johnny Nash performed "I Can See Clearly Now" on "American Bandstand."
1978 - Eric Carmen performed "Change of Heart" on "American Bandstand."
1978 - The Pointer Sister performed "Fire" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1968 - Grace Slick appeared in blackface when Jefferson Airplane appeared on the "Smothers Brothers" TV show on CBS.
1977 - The Sex Pistols were denied visas to enter the U.S. only two days before they are to appear on NBC's "Saturday Night Live."
1994 - "Elvis - The Tribute" aired on ABC-TV.
1999 - Garth Brooks said on TNN's "Crook & Chase" show that he planned to keep an "extremely low" profile in 2000 and that he would "probably" announce his retirement at the end of the year.
2001 - It was announced that Siena Heights University would begin offering a class called "Animated Philosophy and Religion." The two-credit class would cover how religion and philosophy are part of popular culture and is based on the television series "The Simpsons
Today in
1958 - The Four Coins performed "The World Outside" on "American Bandstand."
1960 - Safaris performed "The Girl with the Story in Her Eyes" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - Glen Campbell performed "Turn Around, Look at Me" on "American Bandstand."
1973 - Billy Preston performed "Space Race" on "American Bandstand."
1973 - Aerosmith performed "Dream On" on "American Bandstand."
1979 - Lauren Wood performed "Please Don't Leave" on "American Bandstand."
1984 - The video for the Honeydrippers' "Sea of Love" was aired on "American Bandstand."
1984 - Michael Furlong performed "Two Hearts" on "American Bandstand."
1984 - Evelyn "Champagne" King performed "Just for the Night" and "Out of Control" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1966 - Chad & Jeremy and Don Ho were guests on ABC-TV's "Batman."
1984 - Howard Cosell retired from the NFL's Monday Night Football.
1988 - CBS won the exclusive rights to major league baseball's 1990-94 seasons for $1.1 billion.
1995 - "Frank Sinatra: 80 Years My Way" aired on ABC-TV.
Today in
1960 - Jimmy Clanton performed "What Am I Gonna Do" on "American Bandstand."
1974 - Hues Corp. performed "Rock the Boat" and "Rockin' Soul" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1925 - Actor-comedian Dick Van Dyke was born.
1966 - The rights to the first four Super Bowls were sold to CBS and NBC for at total of $9.5 million.
1975 - "Saturday Night Live" was told by the network to run a five-second delay for the first time.
1996 - The 100th episode of "Renegade" aired.
2001 - NBC-TV announced that it would begin running hard liquor commercials. NBC issued a 19-point policy that outlined the conditions for accepting liquor ads.
Today in
1961 - Del Shannon performed "Hey! Little Girl" on "American Bandstand."
1962 - Connie Francis performed " I'm Going to Be Warm This Winter" on "American Bandstand."
1969 - Oliver performed "Jean" and "Sunday Mornin'" on "American Bandstand."
1975 - People's Choice performed "Do It Anyway You Wanna" on "American Bandstand."
1980 - Jimmy Hall performed "I'm Happy That Love Has Found You" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1980 - The first episode of "Magnum, p.i." aired.
1995 - NBC secured the rights for the 2004, 2006 and 2008 Olympics for $2.3 billion.
1997 - Denver Pyle received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
1957 - Frankie Avalon performed "De De Dinah" on "American Bandstand."
1958 - Fabian performed "I'm a Man" on "American Bandstand."
1960 - Dante & The Evergreens performed "Time Machine" on "American Bandstand."
1964 - Neil Sedaka performed "Sunny" on "American Bandstand."
1964 - Freddy Cannon performed "Action" on "American Bandstand."
1970 - Gene Chandler performed "Simply Call It Love" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1967 - The NBC-TV special "Movin' with Nancy Sinatra" aired.
1985 - General Electric Company agreed to buy RCA Corporation for $6.3 billion. Also included in the deal was NBC Radio and Television.
1959 - Johnny Tillotson performed "Why Do I Love You So" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - Jimmy Elledge performed "Funny How the Time Slips Away" on "American Bandstand."
1976 - Jermaine Jackson performed "Let's Be Young Tonight" on "American Bandstand."
1982 - Kim Carnes performed "Does It Make You Remember?" on "American Bandstand."
1982 - The Little River Band performed "The Other Guy" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1994 - The 100th episode of "Baywatch" aired.
Today in
1962 - "Little" Esther Phillips performed "Release Me" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1960 - The first episode of "Coronation Street" was screened on ITV.
1995 - "Free as a Bird," debuted on a six-hour ABC documentary on the Beatles.
Today in
1967 - The Sunshine Company performed "Back on the Street Again" on "American Bandstand."
1967 - Glen Campbell performed "By The Time I Get to Phoenix" on "American Bandstand."
1972 - A taped of The Who performing "Join Together" was aired on "American Bandstand."
1978 - Sylvester performed "Dance" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1952 - On the show "I Love Lucy," a pregnancy was acknowledged in a TV show for the first time.
1968 - In the U.S., the TV special "Elvis" aired on NBC-TV.
1986 - The 100th episode of "Newhart" aired on CBS.
1990 - "Wiseguy" was aired for the last time on CBS.
2004 - It was announced that Martha Stewart would revive her daily homemaking show in September 2005.
Today in
1960 - Danny & The Juniors performed "Twistin' USA" on "American Bandstand."
1973 - David Gates performed "Sail Around the World" on "American Bandstand."
1984 - Bryan Adams performed "Run To You" and "Kids Just Wanna Rock" on "American Bandstand."
1984 - The video for Chaka Khan's "I Feel For You" was aired on "American Bandstand."
1984 - Teena Marie performed "Lovergirl" on "American Bandstand."
2004 - It was reported that Dick Clark had suffered a mild stroke earlier in the week.
Television History
1930 - W1XAV Boston broadcasted a video portion of the CBS radio program "The Fox Trappers" orchestra program.
1963 - CBS introduced the first-ever "Instant Replay" during the Army-Navy football game.
1985 - The 200th episode of "Saturday Night Live" aired on NBC.
1988 - The 100th episode of "Highway to Heaven" aired.
Today in
1959 - Kitty Kallen performed "If I Give My Heart to You" on "American Bandstand."
1960 - Annette (Funicello) performed "Talk To Me Baby" on "American Bandstand."
1961 - Dick Dale & His Del-Tones performed "Let's Go Trippin'" on "American Bandstand."
1962 - Brian Hyland performed "I May Not Live to See Tomorrow" on "American Bandstand."
1974 - Andy Kim performed "Baby I'm on Fire" on "American Bandstand."
1974 - Al Wilson performed "La La Peace Song" on "American Bandstand."
1977 - The video for The Babys "Isn't It Time?" was aired on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1997 - Metallica performed "Fuel" and "The Memory Remains" with Marianne Faithfull on NBC's Saturday Night Live
1975 - The Hudson Brothers performed "Lonely School Year" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1976 - The sixth and final season of "McMillan and Wife" began.
2002 - ABC-TV aired a prime-time interview with Whitney Houston.
Today in
1960 - Ronnie Love performed "Chills and Fever" on "American Bandstand."
1964 - Mickey Lee Lane performed "Shaggy Dog" on "American Bandstand."
1970 - The Carpenters performed "We've Only Just Begun" and "Close to You" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1990 - Madonna appeared on "Nightline" to defend her "Justify My Love" video. She denied the video's explicit contents were intended to stir up controversy and get her publicity. The video was banned by MTV.
2002 - The first part of an interview with John Houston, Whitney Houston's father, was aired on ABC's "Celebrity Justice." In the interview he stated to his daughter, "You get your act together, honey, and you pay me the money that you owe me. If you do that, you haven't got a lawsuit." John Houston had filed a lawsuit against his daughter for failure to pay for negotiating work with Arista and drug charges from 2000.
Today in
1965 - Gary Lewis & the Playboys performed "Everybody Loves a Clown" on "American Bandstand."
1976 - Judy Collins performed "Send in the Clowns" on "American Bandstand."
1982 - America performed "Right Before Your Eyes" on "American Bandstand."
1982 - Scandal performed "Goodbye to You" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1968 - Elvis Presley's NBC-TV special "Elvis" was aired.
1987 - The 200th episode of "Knots Landing" aired.
Today in
1959 - The Drifters performed "Dance With Me" and "True Love, True Love" on "American Bandstand."
1966 - Otis Redding performed "Fa Fa Fa Fa Fa" on "American Bandstand."
1966 - Music Machine performed "Talk Talk" and "The People in Me" on "American Bandstand."
1977 - The Village People appeared on "American Bandstand."
1983 - Glen Shorrock performed "Little Girls Get Lonely" and "Til I Love You" on "American Bandstand."
1983 - James Ingram performed "Party Animal" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1988 - ESPN aired its 10,000th Sports Center, making it the most televised cable program in history.
2009 - The first episode of "Steven Seagal: Lawman" aired.
Today in
1957 - Danny & the Juniors performed "At the Hop" on "American Bandstand."
1957 - Jimmy Dee & the Off-Beats performed "Henrietta" on "American Bandstand."
1967 - The Candymen performed "Georgia Pines" on "American Bandstand."
1967 - Brenton Wood performed "Baby You Got It" on "American Bandstand."
Television History
1975 - "The Edge of Night" became the first serial in television history to switch networks.
1978 - The 100th episode of "The Rockford Files" aired on NBC.
1985 - The TV movie "Perry Mason Returns" aired.
1994 - The Game Show Network was launched.
1998 - Westinghouse Electric changed its name to CBS Corp. Westinghouse had owned CBS since November 1995.
2004 - NBC anchor Tom Brokaw made he final appearance as anchor on "NBC Nightly News". He began his run on the show in April 1982. It was planned that Brokaw would host at least three documentaries a year for NBC.
