1979 in American television
This is a list of American television-related events of 1979.
| List of years in American television: |
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| 1978–79 United States network television schedule |
| 1979–80 United States network television schedule |
| List of American television programs currently in production |
Events
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| January 3 | The USA Network is founded. |
| January 10 | The Music for UNICEF Concert is televised from New York City on NBC. |
| February 11 | In the U.S., 43 million viewers watch Elvis, an ABC movie starring Kurt Russell as Elvis Presley. |
| February 18 | The Daytona 500 is broadcast live from start to finish, in its entirety for the very first time by CBS. |
| March 5 | KSTP-TV in Saint Paul, Minnesota ends its 31-year relationship as the Twin Cities' NBC affiliate and joins ABC in what is called the network's biggest coup yet. NBC, meanwhile, aligns with Metromedia-owned independent station WTCN-TV, while former ABC affiliate KMSP-TV, having failed to procure an NBC affiliation, becomes independent itself.[1][2] |
| March 6 | On NBC, Another World becomes the only soap opera to air regularly scheduled 90-minute telecasts (it would go back to 60-minute episodes in 1980). Meanwhile, on ABC, Family Feud increases its goal to 300 points. |
| March 19 | C-SPAN, an American television channel focusing on government and public affairs, is launched. |
| April 1 | Nickelodeon debuts on cable television, playing children's television shows 24 hours a day. Pinwheel, which first premiered on the channel C-3 in 1977, was one of the first shows to be broadcast on the channel. |
| April 8 | On CBS, the final episode of All in the Family is seen by 40.2 million American viewers (it will relaunch the following season as Archie Bunker's Place). |
| April 20 | The 1,439th and final CBS episode of Match Game 79 airs – however, the show didn't air on April 5, causing the Friday episode from that week to air on April 9. The last 9 aired episodes were culled together from 3 separate taping sessions, leaving 6 unaired until Game Show Network aired them for the first time. Match Game continues for 3 more years in syndicated daytime (sans the omnipresent 2-year designation in the title). |
| April 22 | Friendly Fire, an ABC movie starring Carol Burnett as a mother who wants to know how her son died in Vietnam, airs. |
| April 23 | The Price Is Right, on CBS, moves to 11:00 A.M. EST, the time slot that it holds to this day. |
| August 1 | In Indianapolis, Indiana, NBC affiliate WRTV swaps affiliations with ABC affiliate WTHR, citing a stronger affiliation (at the time, NBC is in last place among the three major networks).[3] |
| September 7 | ESPN, an all-sports channel, launches and becomes the first cable TV channel to be launched as a 24-hour channel. |
| September 12 | On the two-hour season four premiere of Charlie's Angels on ABC, Shelley Hack is introduced as new angel Tiffany Welles, replacing Sabrina Duncan played by Kate Jackson. |
| September 19 | On the two-hour Eight Is Enough season premiere on ABC, both David and Susan Bradford married their respective loves in a double ceremony. |
| October 6 | KTAB-TV in Abilene, Texas begins broadcasting as a CBS affiliate, taking that affiliation from KTXS-TV. KTXS-TV then elevates its secondary ABC affiliation to full-time status, making Abilene one of the last markets in the country to receive full service from the three major networks. |
| November 4 | Jaws is broadcast on television for the first time on ABC. |
| November 25 | Pat Summerall calls his first NFL telecast (Minnesota Vikings–Tampa Bay Buccaneers) with John Madden. |
| December 1 | The Movie Channel, an American premium cable channel, begins broadcasting movies 24/7. |
Programs
- ABC
- American Bandstand (1952–1989)
- The Edge of Night (1956–1984)
- General Hospital (1963–present)
- One Life to Live (1968–2012)
- All My Children (1970–2011)
- Monday Night Football (1970–present)
- Schoolhouse Rock! (1973–1996)
- Happy Days (1974–1984)
- Barney Miller (1975–1982)
- Good Morning America (1975–present)
- Ryan's Hope (1975–1989)
- Tom and Jerry (1965–1972, 1975–1977, 1980–1982)
- Welcome Back, Kotter (1975–1979)
- Charlie's Angels (1976–1981)
- Family Feud (1976–1985, 1988–1995, 1999–present)
- Laverne & Shirley (1976–1983)
- What's Happening!! (1976–1979)
- Eight Is Enough (1977–1981)
- Fantasy Island (1977–1984)
- The Love Boat (1977–1986)
- Soap (1977–1981)
- Three's Company (1977–1984)
- 20/20 (1978–present)
- Mork & Mindy (1978–1982)
- Taxi (1978–1983)
- CBS
- Love of Life (1951–1980)
- Search for Tomorrow (1951–1986)
- Guiding Light (1952–2009)
- Face the Nation (1954–present)
- Captain Kangaroo (1955–1984)
- As the World Turns (1956–2010)
- 60 Minutes (1968–present)
- Hawaii Five-O (1968–1980)
- All in the Family (1971–1979)
- Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (1972–1984)
- M*A*S*H (1972–1983)
- The Price Is Right (1972–present)
- The Waltons (1972–1981)
- Barnaby Jones (1973–1980)
- Match Game '79 (1962–1969, 1973–1984, 1990–1991, 1998–1999)
- The Young and the Restless (1973–present)
- Good Times (1974–1979)
- The Jeffersons (1975–1985)
- One Day at a Time (1975–1984)
- Alice (1976–1985)
- Wonder Woman (1976–1979)
- The Amazing Spider-Man (1977–1979)
- Lou Grant (1977–1982)
- Dallas (1978–1991)
- WKRP in Cincinnati (1978–1982)
- NBC
- Meet the Press (1947–present)
- The Today Show (1952–present)
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962–1992)
- The Doctors (1963–1982)
- Another World (1964–1999)
- Days of Our Lives (1965–present)
- The Wonderful World of Disney (1969–1979)
- The Tomorrow Show (1973–1982)
- Dean Martin Celebrity Roast (1974–1984)
- Little House on the Prairie (1974–1983)
- The Rockford Files (1974–1980)
- Saturday Night Live (1975–present)
- Wheel of Fortune (1975–present)
- Quincy, M.E. (1976–1983)
- CHiPs (1977–1983)
- Diff'rent Strokes (1978–1986)
- PBS
- Sesame Street (1969–present)
- Masterpiece Theatre (1971–present)
- Nova (1974–present)
- In syndication
- Candid Camera (1948–present)
- Truth or Consequences (1950–1988)
- The Lawrence Welk Show (1955–1982)
- The Mike Douglas Show (1961–1981)
- Hee Haw (1969–1992)
- Soul Train (1971–2006)
- Dinah! (1974–1980)
- Match Game PM (1975–1981)
- In Search of... (1976–1982)
- The Gong Show (1976–1980)
- The P.T.L. Club (1976–1987)
- The Muppet Show (1976–1981)
- This Week in Baseball (1977–1998, 2000–present)
- Battle of the Planets (1978–1985)
- HBO
- Inside the NFL (1977–present)
- Nickelodeon
- Pinwheel (1977–1990)
- America Goes Bananaz (1979–1980)
- Video Comic Book (1979–1981)
- Nickel Flicks (1979–1981)
- Hocus Focus (1979–1980)
Debuting this year
Ending this year
| Date | Show | Debut |
|---|---|---|
| January 12 | The Eddie Capra Mysteries | 1978 |
| January 14 | The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries | 1977 |
| January 16 | Grandpa Goes to Washington | 1978 |
| March 2 | Jeopardy! (returned in 1984) | 1964 |
| March 16 | Makin' It | 1979 |
| March 30 | Sweepstakes | 1979 |
| March 30 | Turnabout | 1979 |
| April 8 | All in the Family | 1971 |
| April 20 | Match Game | 1973 |
| April 24 | The Paper Chase (returned in 1983) | 1978 |
| April 28 | What's Happening!! | 1976 |
| April 29 | Battlestar Galactica | 1978 |
| May 15 | Starsky and Hutch | 1975 |
| June 8 | Welcome Back, Kotter | |
| June 23 | Stockard Channing in Just Friends | 1979 |
| July 6 | The Amazing Spider-Man | 1977 |
| July 11 | Sword of Justice | 1978 |
| July 12 | David Cassidy: Man Undercover | |
| August 1 | Good Times | 1974 |
| September 11 | Wonder Woman | 1976 |
| October 20 | The New Fred and Barney Show | 1979 |
| November 24 | Detective School | |
| December 8 | Godzilla | 1978 |
Made-for-TV movies and miniseries
| Title | Network | Premiere date |
|---|---|---|
| All Quiet on the Western Front | CBS | November 14 |
| Backstairs at the White House | NBC | January 29 |
| Roots: The Next Generations | ABC | February 18 (7 episodes) |
| Salem's Lot | CBS | November 17 and 24 |
| Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July | ABC | November 25 |
| The Berenstain Bears' Christmas Tree | NBC | December 3 |
| The Miracle Worker | NBC | October 14 |
Television stations
Sign-ons
Network affiliation changes
| Date | City of License/Market | Station | Channel | Old affiliation | New affiliation | Notes/Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 5 | Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota | KMSP-TV | ABC | Independent | ||
| KSTP-TV | 5 | NBC | ABC | |||
| WTCN-TV | 11 | Independent | NBC | |||
| August 1 | Indianapolis, Indiana | WRTV-TV | 6 | NBC | ABC | |
| WTHR-TV | 13 | ABC | NBC | |||
| October 6 | Abilene, Texas | KTXS-TV | 12 | CBS (primary) ABC (secondary) |
ABC (exclusive) | |
Births
Deaths
| Date | Name | Age | Notability |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 11 | Jack Soo | 61 | Actor (Nick Yemana on Barney Miller) |
| January 16 | Ted Cassidy | 46 | Actor (Lurch on The Addams Family) |
| January 27 | Dick Wesson | 59 | Actor, announcer (The Wonderful World of Disney) |
| February 2 | Sid Vicious | 21 | English musician (Sex Pistols) |
| June 22 | Hope Summers | 83 | Actress (Clara Edwards on The Andy Griffith Show) |
| July 29 | Bill Todman | 62 | Game show producer (Match Game, What's My Line?) |
| August 17 | Vivian Vance | 70 | Actress (Ethel Mertz on I Love Lucy) |
| November 1 | Mamie Eisenhower | 82 | First Lady of the United States and spouse of President Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| November 30 | Zeppo Marx | 78 | Actor and comedian |
References
- "ABC-TV bags largest game yet in affiliation hunt: KSTP-TV." Broadcasting, September 4, 1978, pp. 19–20.
- "In Brief." Broadcasting, October 2, 1978, pg. 30
- "Television Schedule". Marion Chronicle-Tribune. Marion, IN. May 30, 1979.
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