This Day in Media

The Paley Center for Media is commemorating key dates in media history with clips from our collection. And by “key dates” we mean everything from President Kennedy’s assassination (November 22, 1963) to Sammy Davis, Jr. smooching with Archie Bunker (February 19, 1972) to Kelly Clarkson being crowned the first American Idol winner (September 4, 2002)—so be sure to keep checking us out; you never know what will pop up next.

All of these programs are available to watch in full at the Paley Center in New York and Los Angeles. Come visit us to watch these and many more programs.

This Day in Media History Videos
 

 
Arrested Development  
Tobias gets on the wrong boat.
  In the Collection
 
Arrested Development  
Michael realizes he’s not the only one not seeing things clearly.
  In the Collection
 
Arrested Development  
Barry Zuckercorn reenters the dating scene.
  In the Collection
 
Arrested Development  
Gob gets married the old fashioned way: on a dare.
  In the Collection
 
Arrested Development  
George Sr. teaches a lesson.
  In the Collection
 
May 16, 1983  
Michael Jackson debuts the Moon Walk during his performance of “Billie Jean” on Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever.
  In the Collection
 
May 13, 1965  
The Emmy winning drama The Defenders airs its final episode with guest star Robert Duvall.
  In the Collection
 
May 12, 1986  
NBC celebrates their 60th anniversary with an all star special.
  In the Collection
 
May 9, 1997  
Sabrina the Teenage Witch is shown in 3D.
  In the Collection
 
May 7, 1987  
Shelley Long makes her final regular appearance on Cheers.
  In the Collection
 
May 6, 1955  
James Dean makes his final television appearance on Schlitz Playhouse of Stars.
  In the Collection
 
May 5, 1956  
Noël Coward stars in Ford Star Jubilee’s production of Coward’s This Happy Breed.
  In the Collection
 
May 3, 1991  
Dallas ends its original run.
  In the Collection
 
May 1, 1999  
Nickelodeon’s popular animated series, SpongeBob SquarePants, is seen for the first time.
  In the Collection
 
April 30, 1997  
Ellen DeGeneres comes out on the milestone “Puppy Episode” of Ellen.
  In the Collection
 
April 28, 2002  
Comic book legend Stan Lee guest stars on The Simpsons.
  In the Collection
 
April 25, 1967  
Leonard Bernstein examines the contemporary music scene in Inside Pop – The Rock Revolution.
  In the Collection
 
April 24, 1973  
George Segal and Shirley Knight star in The Lie, written by Ingmar Bergman.
  In the Collection
 
April 22, 1979  
Carol Burnett stars in the Emmy-winning drama Friendly Fire.
  In the Collection
 
April 21, 1974  
The stars of Mary Poppins reunite for the special Julie and Dick in Covent Garden.
  In the Collection
 
April 19, 1952  
Bette Davis makes her television debut on The Jimmy Durante Show.
  In the Collection
 
April 18, 1981  
Fred Astaire receives the AFI Lifetime Achievement Award.
  In the Collection
 
April 16, 1978  
The Emmy-winning miniseries Holocaust begins its run.
  In the Collection
 
April 14, 1974  
Valerie Harper & Gene Wilder & Bob Newhart in James L. Brooks's TV movie Thursday’s Game.
  In the Collection
 
April 13, 1983  
Elizabeth Taylor surprises Carol Burnett on All My Children.
  In the Collection
 
April 11, 2001  
The Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar airs on Great Performances.
  In the Collection
 
April 9, 1969  
Martial arts icon Bruce Lee guest stars on Here Come the Brides.
  In the Collection
 
April 7, 1989  
Sesame Street celebrates its twentieth anniversary with a prime-time special.
  In the Collection
 
April 6, 1952  
Charles Laughton cuts up with Abbott & Costello on The Colgate Comedy Hour.
  In the Collection
 
April 5, 1967  
The Emmy winning Sid Caesar Imogene Coca Carl Reiner Howard Morris Special reunites the cast of Your Show of Shows.
  In the Collection
 
April 3, 1961  
The Play of the Week presents Burgess Meredith and Zero Mostel in Waiting for Godot.
  In the Collection
 
April 1, 1993  
L.A. Law partner's meeting confused by the renaming of The Museum of Broadcasting.
  In the Collection
 
March 31, 1957  
Cinderella, starring Julie Andrews, and featuring Rodgers and Hammerstein’s only score for television, airs.
  In the Collection
 
March 30, 1976  
Lucille Ball stars in a dramatic television special, What Now, Catherine Curtis?.
  In the Collection
 
March 29, 1973  
Hal Holbrook stars in the Emmy and Peabody Award winning Pueblo, based on the true story of the capture of a US Navy vessel.
  In the Collection
 
March 28, 1967  
Raymond Burr plays the role of Ironside for the first time in a made for TV movie.
  In the Collection
 
March 26, 1967  
The Tony Awards are broadcast on nationally network television for the first time with Cabaret winning Best Musical.
  In the Collection
 
March 24, 2001  
Mike Nichols wins an Emmy for directing Emma Thompson in Wit.
  In the Collection
 
March 22, 1966  
Carol Burnett stars in the highly rated variety special Carol Plus Two.
  In the Collection
 
March 21, 1995  
The ensemble comedy Newsradio premieres.
  In the Collection
 
March 19, 1953  
The Academy Awards is televised for the first time with Shirley Booth winning Best Actress.
  In the Collection
 
March 18, 1981  
The Greatest American Hero, a satiric look at a superhero, premieres.
  In the Collection
 
March 17, 1967  
Julie Harris and Lynn Fontanne star in Anastasia on Hallmark Hall of Fame.
  In the Collection
 
March 15, 1955  
The United States Steel Hour presents Andy Griffith in No Time for Sergeants.
  In the Collection
 
March 14, 1971  
The special Singer Presents: Burt Bacharach airs, with Barbra Streisand among those singing with the songwriter.
  In the Collection
 
March 13, 1974  
Martin Sheen stars in the Emmy-winning movie The Execution of Private Slovik.
  In the Collection
 
March 12, 2002  
The adult police drama, The Shield, starring Michael Chiklis, premieres on FX.
  In the Collection
 
March 10, 1997  
Buffy the Vampire Slayer, with Sarah Michelle Gellar in the title role, debuts on the WB.
  In the Collection
 
March 9, 1962  
Milton Berle welcomes an all-star line-up of guests to his 1962 special.
  In the Collection
 
March 7, 1967  
Gore Vidal speaks out on CBS’s notorious documentary The Homosexuals.
  In the Collection
 
March 6, 1984  
Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy re-create their Broadway roles in the televised version of The Gin Game.
  In the Collection
 
March 4, 1997  
David E. Kelly’s Emmy-winning legal drama, The Practice, premieres.
  In the Collection
 
March 3, 1993  
An all-star cast, including Liza Minnelli, participates in Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall.
  In the Collection
 
March 2, 1977  
The First Barry Manilow Television Special airs.
  In the Collection
 
March 1, 1971  
Peter Falk stars in Ransom for a Dead Man, the pilot for his long running Columbo series.
  In the Collection
 
February 28, 1954  
Frank Sinatra and Ethel Merman team up for Cole Porter’s Anything Goes.
  In the Collection
 
February 26, 1976  
Anthony Hopkins stars in the Emmy Award-winning TV movie The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case.
  In the Collection
 
February 25, 1972  
The pilot for Happy Days airs on Love American Style.
  In the Collection
 
February 23, 1969  
Richard Schaal stars in Jim Henson’s absurdist, non-puppet special The Cube.
  In the Collection
 
February 20, 1979  
Bob Vila premieres his influential fix-it-up series, This Old House.
  In the Collection
 
February 19, 1968  
Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood begins its 33 year run on public television.
  In the Collection
 
February 17, 1997  
TV’s fabricated pop group reunites for the ABC special Hey, Hey, It’s the Monkees.
  In the Collection
 
February 16, 1981  
Ruby Dee portrays groundbreaking playwright Lorraine Hansberry in To Be Young, Gifted and Black on Great Performances.
  In the Collection
 
February 14, 1962  
A Valentine to the nation, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy takes viewers on A Tour of the White House.
  In the Collection
 
February 12, 1971  
The assassination of Abraham Lincoln is recreated for the special They’ve Killed President Lincoln.
  In the Collection
 
February 11, 1962  
Hitchcock’s Spellbound is remade for television with Maureen O’Hara and Hugh O’Brian.
  In the Collection
 
February 10, 1967  
Guest star Agnes Moorehead wins The Wild Wild West its only Emmy Award.
  In the Collection
 
February 9, 1974  
Real life newsman Walter Cronkite meets fictional newsman Ted Baxter on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
  In the Collection
 
February 7, 1957  
On Playhouse 90, Teresa Wright and Patty McCormick star in William Gibson’s adaptation of The Miracle Worker, which led to the award-winning play and film.
  In the Collection
 
February 6, 1962  
The special Henry Fonda and "The Family" looks at the American family of the early 1960s, with guest Dick Van Dyke.
  In the Collection
 
February 5, 1978  
The American Broadcasting Company commemorates 25 years with ABC’s Silver Anniversary Celebration.
  In the Collection
 
January 31, 1998  
Angelina Jolie stars in the award winning HBO film Gia.
  In the Collection
 
January 30, 1974  
Stephen Sondheim makes his only television acting appearance in June Moon.
  In the Collection
 
January 28, 1979  
Fred Astaire makes his final appearance on episodic television on Battlestar Galactica.
  In the Collection
 
January 27, 1961  
Jackie Gleason spends the second and final episode of You’re in the Picture apologizing for the disastrous premiere.
  In the Collection
 
January 26, 1995  
My So-Called Life ends its brief, but acclaimed run.
  In the Collection
 
January 24, 1968  
Truman Capote’s adaptation of Laura, with Lee Bouvier Radziwill in the title role, airs.
  In the Collection
 
January 23, 1977  
The landmark miniseries Roots debuts.
  In the Collection
 
January 22, 1976  
Mary Tyler Moore travels back in time in the musical special Mary’s Incredible Dream.
  In the Collection
 
January 20, 1970  
Patty Duke and Al Freeman Jr. star in the Emmy Award-winning TV movie My Sweet Charlie.
  In the Collection
 
January 19, 1953  
A record 44 million television viewers watch Lucy give birth to Little Ricky on I Love Lucy.
  In the Collection
 
January 18, 1964  
Jack Klugman gives an Emmy Award-winning performance as a blacklisted actor on The Defenders.
  In the Collection
 
January 17, 1986  
A star studded group gathers for George Burns’s 90th Birthday.
  In the Collection
 
January 16, 1973  
Bonanza ends its long run with an episode written and directed by star Michael Landon.
  In the Collection
 
January 15, 1981  
The innovative police drama Hill Street Blues premieres.
  In the Collection
 
January 14, 1956  
Noel Coward stars in a TV version of his stage comedy Blithe Spirit with Lauren Bacall and Claudette Colbert.
  In the Collection
 
January 12, 1971  
The groundbreaking All in the Family premieres.
  In the Collection
 
January 11, 1973  
The forerunner to modern reality shows, An American Family, which chronicled the day-to-day activities of the Loud family, premieres.
  In the Collection
 
January 10, 1999  
The Sopranos, one of the most acclaimed and influential TV series of all time, debuts.
  In the Collection
 
January 9, 1996  
The Emmy winning comedy 3rd Rock from the Sun premieres.
  In the Collection
 
January 7, 1966  
The Sammy Davis Jr. Show premieres with superstars Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton appearing.
  In the Collection
 
January 6, 1974  
The acclaimed British series Upstairs, Downstairs makes its US television debut.
  In the Collection
 
January 5, 1976  
The soap opera takeoff Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, starring Louise Lasser, first airs.
  In the Collection
 
January 4, 1961  
James Caan makes his TV debut on Naked City.
  In the Collection
 
January 3, 1980  
Frank Sinatra celebrates his show business anniversary in the all-star special Sinatra: The First 40 Years.
  In the Collection
 
January 2, 1995  
Cybill Shepherd returns to television in the award winning sitcom Cybill.
  In the Collection
 
January 1, 1986  
The Peanuts gang celebrates in Happy New Year, Charlie Brown!
  In the Collection
 
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