January 27: This Day in TV History

[Stanislav]

Just a few random TV related events that happened on January 27. Discuss or comment as you please……

1918: Musician “Skitch” Henderson (The Tonight Show) is born (as Lyle Russell Cedric Henderson) in Halstad, Minnesota.

1958: CKBI-TV (channel 5) signs on in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.

1959: Journalist/sportscaster/political commentator Keith Olbermann (SportCenter, Countdown with Keith Olbermann) is born in New York City.

1959: Football player and sportscaster Cris Collinsworth is born in Dayton, Ohio.

1968: The Lennon Sisters make their final appearance on The Lawrence Welk Show.

1976: “Schlemiel! Schlimazel! Hasenpfeffer Incorporated!" Laverne & Shirley debuts on ABC.

1979: Announcer Dick Wesson (The Wonderful World of Disney, Hawaiian Eye, The Fugitive, and The Invaders) commits suicide in Costa Mesa, California, aged 59, after a long battle with cancer.

1993: Wrestler André the Giant dies of heart failure in Paris, France, aged 46.

1993: Journalist Edward P. Morgan dies in McLean, Virginia, aged 82.

1995: The Golf Channel launches.

1997: One of those ubiquitous character actors, Richard X. Slattery, dies in Los Angeles, aged 71. While his craggly face and gravelly voice graced scads of guest appearances in film and TV, he may be best remembered by some as “Murph,” the gas station owner in 1970’s commercials for Union 76. DYK: Slattery started out as an NYPD officer, and caught the acting bug when he began appearing in police academy training films.

2004: Talk show host Jack Parr dies in Greenwich, Connecticut, aged 85.

2007: Writer Bob Carroll, Jr. (I Love Lucy, The Lucy Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy, Life With Lucy) dies in Los Angeles, aged 88. Carroll, with his professional partner, Madelyn Pugh, wrote over 400 TV epsiodes.

2007: Actor Tige Andrews (The Mod Squad) dies of cardiac arrest in Encino, California, aged 86.

(Just a little featurette I hope to do as time permits. It’s an entirely random selection based on a quick Net search, and is not meant to be comprehensive. So, don’t post nasty messages about “you forgot THIS” or “how could you not mention THAT?” Do so, and I’ll just take my keyboard and go home…..)

 

[Ultimajock]

2004: Talk show host Jack Parr dies in Greenwich, Connecticut, aged 85.

...correction on the spelling: the talk show host's name was Jack Paar. Jack Parr is the baby character in The Incredibles ;D ...

 

[Stanislav]

2004: Talk show host Jack Parr dies in Greenwich, Connecticut, aged 85.

...correction on the spelling: the talk show host's name was Jack Paar. Jack Parr is the baby character in The Incredibles ;D ...

Oh, well....I usually make a typo somewhere -- it's Paar for the course......

 

[Tim from Springfield IL]

1968: The Lennon Sisters make their final appearance on The Lawrence Welk Show.

At least on my local PBS stations, that particular Welk program from 1968 with the last appearance of the Lennon Sisters might have actually been the one from early that year that aired the Saturday before last (on Jan. 16)--I was watching bits and pieces of it that night.

 

[therealjm12]

1979: Announcer Dick Wesson (The Wonderful World of Disney, Hawaiian Eye, The Fugitive, and The Invaders) commits suicide in Costa Mesa, California, aged 59, after a long battle with cancer.

The things you learn on this board. I never knew his name. I always admired his work. Just a great set of pipes. I,also, didn't know he had died. I guess I just figured he had retired.

 

[therealjm12]

1997: One of those ubiquitous character actors, Richard X. Slattery, dies in Los Angeles, aged 71. While his craggly face and gravelly voice graced scads of guest appearances in film and TV, he may be best remembered by some as “Murph,” the gas station owner in 1970’s commercials for Union 76. DYK: Slattery started out as an NYPD officer, and caught the acting bug when he began appearing in police academy training films.

He guest starred on too many shows to mention. Most notable to me, I know he was on at least one episode of Bewitched, maybe more. He, also played Barney's boss on Andy Griffith after he moved to the state capitol and got a job in the finger printing section of the state police.

 

[LKellerIII]

1997: One of those ubiquitous character actors, Richard X. Slattery, dies in Los Angeles, aged 71. While his craggly face and gravelly voice graced scads of guest appearances in film and TV, he may be best remembered by some as “Murph,” the gas station owner in 1970’s commercials for Union 76. DYK: Slattery started out as an NYPD officer, and caught the acting bug when he began appearing in police academy training films.

He guest starred on too many shows to mention. Most notable to me, I know he was on at least one episode of Bewitched, maybe more. He, also played Barney's boss on Andy Griffith after he moved to the state capitol and got a job in the finger printing section of the state police.

That capitol would be Raleigh, which of course, is about 55 miles southeast of Mount Pilot, and 65 miles from Mayberry. ;D

I just saw one of Slattery's Union 76 commercials on a YouTube clip of a late 80's Bay Area newscast. Here's a link to one of those Union 76 commercials with Slattery as "Murph."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5eV73q-kw0

 

[MarcB]

1995: The Golf Channel launches.

Originally as a pay channel, it became a regular channel due to lack of subscribership. When I moved into my apartment in Bristol, CT and got cable in April 2009 it's the first time I saw Golf Channel on Expanded Basic cable. (Of course now everything above channel 24 is Digital). My parents live in another town and have a different provider and Golf Channel is on Digital in a Sports Tier.