1975 in American television

This is a list of American television-related events in 1975.

List of years in American television:
1974–75 United States network television schedule
1975–76 United States network television schedule
List of American television programs currently in production

Events
Date Event Ref.
January 3 A day for NBC game shows that could be described as anything but uneventful. In the morning, Dennis James' version of Name That Tune and the Bob Stewart/Bill Cullen series Winning Streak end their run. In the afternoon, the biggest prize in American daytime television game shows at the time is won on Jackpot, in which two contestants split a cash prize of $38,750. Finally, the original Jeopardy! also ends its run after 2,753 episodes. It would return in nationwide syndication in 1984.
January 6 Another eventful day for NBC's daytime schedule. The morning sees the premiere episode of Wheel of Fortune, with Chuck Woolery as host and Susan Stafford as the assistant, while in the afternoon Blank Check, the Art James/Jack Barry game show debuts. Finally, Another World becomes the first American soap opera to become an hour-long program.
January 11 On CBS's All in the Family, the Bunkers say goodbye to their neighbors as The Jeffersons "move on up" to their own separate sitcom.
March 4 CBS airs the very first annual People's Choice Awards.
March 28 Gunsmoke airs its last televised episode on CBS. Ultimately, the plotline was cut short, so it was ended on a cliffhanger.
April 21 Following on from Another World less than three months ago, NBC's Days of Our Lives begins airing hour-long episodes.
April 25 ABC broadcasts the special program, Alice Cooper: The Nightmare.
Independent station WKBF-TV in Cleveland, Ohio merges its operations with rival independent WUAB and ceases operations. [1]
April 28 NBC's The Tomorrow Show finds Tom Snyder interviewing John Lennon.
May 29 NBC affiliate WHFV in Fredericksburg, Virginia, citing financial troubles, ceases operations. [2][3]
June 5 Fred Silverman becomes the head of ABC Entertainment. Silverman's programming choices will prove fruitful for ABC, resulting in its late-decade ratings dominance (and initiating an era of what was disparagingly called "T&A" or "Jiggle television").
September 8 The CBS game show The Price is Right is expanded to the length of one hour, with six games and two Showcase Showdowns as a week-long experiment. The format, which marked the debut of "The Big Wheel", is made permanent two months later. [4][5]
September 22 Television comes to Alpena, Michigan when CBS affiliate WBKB-TV signs-on.
September 29 The first television station in the U.S. to be owned and operated by African Americans signs on in Detroit, Michigan as WGPR-TV channel 62, which is present-day CBS O&O WWJ-TV.
September 30 HBO broadcasts the Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier title fight from the Philippines. Known as the "Thrilla in Manila", the live feed was sent via satellite to the U.S.
October 21 NBC broadcasts the now legendary 12-inning long sixth game of the 1975 World Series between the Boston Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds, in which the Red Sox tied the series on a Carlton Fisk home run more notable for Fisk's reaction. [6][7]
November 23 NBC is forced to join Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory in progress at the conclusion of an NFL football game between the Washington Redskins and the Oakland Raiders, which ended in overtime. This was done to avoid a repeat of the "Heidi Game" incident of 1968, in which the network interrupted coverage of an AFL game between the Raiders and the New York Jets to show the movie Heidi, a decision that infuriated football fans and haunted network executives.
Sneak Previews (under the name Opening Soon at a Theater Near You), the first American film review show, premieres and launches of critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert. They will remain a team, and a staple among film critics, through various programs for the next twenty-four years.
December 1 CBS makes its first soap opera expansion when the top-rated As The World Turns airs its first hour-long episode.

Other notable events
  • In November, Sony Corporation introduces the Betamax video recorder in the United States, which comes in a teakwood console alongside a 19 inches (480 mm) color television set. It sold for $2,495.
  • NBC retires the Laramie Peacock logo, which was used at the start of every color program on the network. The network later retires the NBC snake logo, used for promos and network identifications, in December.

Programs

^[e] signifies that this show has a related event in the Events section above.

Debuting this year
Date Show Network
January 6 Blank Check NBC
Wheel of Fortune
January 17 Baretta ABC
January 18 The Jeffersons CBS
January 23 Barney Miller ABC
April 21 Blankety Blanks
June 16 Spin-Off CBS
Musical Chairs
June 30 Showoffs ABC
July 7 The Magnificent Marble Machine NBC
Rhyme and Reason ABC
Ryan's Hope
September 4 Space: 1999 Syndication
September 6 The Great Grape Ape Show ABC
The New Tom and Jerry Show
September 8 Give-n-Take CBS
Match Game PM Syndication
Phyllis CBS
September 9 Welcome Back, Kotter ABC
September 14 Three for the Road CBS
September 29 Three for the Money NBC
October 11 NBC's Saturday Night NBC
November 3 Good Morning America ABC
November 7 Wonder Woman [lower-alpha 1] NBC
November 30 McCoy NBC
December 16 One Day at a Time CBS

Ending this year
Date Show Debut date Notes
January 3 Jeopardy! (returned in 1984) 1964 [lower-alpha 2]
January 16 Ironside 1967
March 7 The Odd Couple 1970
March 31 Gunsmoke 1955
April 13 Mannix 1967
April 18 How to Survive a Marriage 1974
April 26 Kung Fu 1972
May 20 Adam-12 1968
June 13 The Joker's Wild 1972 [lower-alpha 3]
Now You See It 1974 [lower-alpha 4]
June 27 Password 1961 [lower-alpha 5]
Split Second 1972 [lower-alpha 6]
August 1 Death Valley Days 1952
September 5 What's My Line? 1950
September 26 Jackpot 1974 [lower-alpha 7]

Notes
  1. The debut of this program is a TV movie, which serves as the pilot for the actual series, which premiered in early 1976.
  2. Jeopardy! returned in national syndication in 1984.
  3. Returned in 1977.
  4. Returned in 1989
  5. Returned in 1979 as Password Plus.
  6. Returned in 1986.
  7. Returned in 1985.

Changing networks
Show Moved from Moved to
The Edge of Night CBS ABC
The Bugs Bunny Show ABC CBS

Television specials

Networks and services

Network launches
Network Type Launch date Notes Source
Louisiana Public Broadcasting Over-the-air state network September 6 The Louisiana Educational Television Authority, established in 1971, approved the proposal to build and sign on the stations that would make up the network, starting with Baton Rouge-based WLPB-TV, the network's flagship.

Television stations

Sign-ons
Date City of License/Market Station Channel Affiliation Notes/Ref.
January 4 Sioux City, Iowa KSIN-TV 27 PBS/IPTV
January 20 Springfield, Missouri KOZK 21 PBS
February South Bend, Indiana WNIT 34 PBS
March 15 Biddeford/Portland, Maine WMEG-TV 26 PBS via Maine Public Broadcasting Net.
May 7 Anchorage, Alaska KAKM 7 PBS
June 10 Menomonie, Wisconsin WHWC-TV 27 PBS via WPT
August 13 San Francisco, California KDTV 14 Spanish Int'l Network
September 6 Baton Rouge, Louisiana WLPB-TV 27 PBS/LPB
September 7 Council Bluffs, Iowa KBIN-TV 32 PBS/IPTV
Red Oak, Iowa KHIN 36 PBS/IPTV
Sumter, South Carolina WRJA-TV 27 PBS/SCETV Satellite of WRLK-TV/Columbia, SC
September 21 Akron/Canton, Ohio WEAO 45 PBS Satellite of WNEO of Youngstown, Ohio
September 22 Alpena, Michigan WBKB-TV 11 CBS
September 29 Detroit, Michigan WGPR-TV 62 Independent First television station in the U.S. to be owned and operated by African Americans.
November 21 Alpena, Michigan WCML-TV 6 PBS Satellite of WCMU-TV/Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
Unknown Albuquerque, New Mexico KMXN-TV 23 SIN
Miami, Florida WFCB-TV 45 Independent

Network affiliation changes
Date City of license/Market Station Channel Old affiliation New affiliation Notes/Ref.
Unknown Harrisonburg, Virginia WHSV-TV 3 ABC (primary)
NBC (secondary)		 ABC (exclusive)

Station closures
Date City of license/Market Station Channel Affiliation First air date Notes/Ref.
February 11 Roanoke, Virginia WRLU 27 ABC September 7, 1974 Had been on air March 1966–April 1974 as WRFT-TV
April 25 Cleveland, Ohio WKBF-TV 61 Independent January 19, 1968 Station's operations were folded into WUAB/Lorain, Ohio[8]
May 29 Fredericksburg, Virginia WHFV 69 NBC October 8, 1973 [9]
September 1 Pembina, North Dakota KCND-TV 12 Independent (primary)
ABC (secondary)		 November 7, 1960 [10][11][12]
September 2South Bend, IndianaWMSH-TV46July 26, 1974 | Returned to air as WHME-TV on September 10, 1977
December Elko, Nevada KEKO 10 April 18, 1973 Satellite of KTVN/Reno
December 23 Los Angeles KVST-TV 68 Non-commercial independent May 5, 1974

Births
Main article: 1975 in television § Births

Deaths
Main article: 1975 in television § Deaths

See also

References
  1. The Plain Dealer, "...but employees go out with touch of class", April 20, 1975.
  2. Moore, Nancy (May 28, 1975). "Troubled WHFV-TV may go off the air". The Free Lance-Star. p. 1.
  3. Jones, Edward (May 30, 1975). "TV station 'goes dark', future still uncertain". The Free Lance-Star. p. 14.
  4. Schwartz, David; Ryan, Steve; Wostbrock, Fred (1999). The Encyclopedia of TV Shows (3rd ed.). New York: Facts on File. pp. 178–179. ISBN 0-8160-3846-5.
  5. The Price Is Right (Anniversary Week). September 12, 1975. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  6. Verducci, Tom (October 21, 2015). "Game Changer: How Carlton Fisks' home run altered baseball and TV". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
  7. MLB's 20 Greatest Games (2012)
  8. The Plain Dealer, "...but employees go out with touch of class", April 20, 1975.
  9. Moore, Nancy (May 28, 1975). "Troubled WHFV-TV may go off the air". Fredericksburg, VA: The Free Lance-Star, p. 1.
  10. Winnipeg Free Press, Aug. 30, 1975, p. 12
  11. Dulmage, Bill (January 2007). "Television Station History: CKND". Canadian Communications Foundation. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  12. Radio-Info: "Retro: Winnipeg • Sunday, August 31, 1975", July 17, 2010. (Source: Winnipeg Free Press (August 30, 1975 Edition)). Archived from the original October 6, 2011. Retrieved July 27, 2019.
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