Just a few random TV related events that happened on May 1. Discuss or comment as you please……
1918: TV personality Jack Paar is born in Canton, Ohio.
1931: The first televised marriage ceremony takes place on Jersey City, New Jersey’s W2XCR, as a station engineer and secretary tie the knot in front of the camera as a publicity stunt.
1939: Journalist Max Robinson (ABC World News Tonight) is born in Richmond, Virginia.
1950: WJIM-TV (channel 6, now WLNS-TV) signs on in Lansing, Michigan.
1954: WAPA-TV (channel 4) becomes the second TV station in Puerto Rico. Its call letters are an acronym of the station's original owners, the now-defunct Asociación de Productores de Azúcar, or Puerto Rico Sugar Grower's Association.
1957: Decades before the loud ties, the suspenders, and CNN (or even Mutual) stardom, a young janitor and gofer at Miami Beach’s WAHR (now WMBM) radio named Larry Zeiger gets his big break, thrust into the 9 a.m.-Noon DJ slot when an announcer abruptly quits. He is given the job officially (at $55 per week), changes his name to Larry King, and the rest is history.
1958: KNME-TV (channel 5) signs on, bringing public television to the Albuquerque, New Mexico market.
1967: The United Network (f/k/a The Overmeyer Network) officially launches on 106 stations with The Las Vegas Show, a late-night talk/entertainment series hosted by Bill Dana from the Hotel Hacienda in Las Vegas. The abortive attempt at a post-DuMont, pre-Fox “fourth network” would die a quick death, the network pulling the plug on its one and only program just a month later, declaring bankruptcy after running up a $700,000 debt. Almost certainly, a hot topic on this inaugural broadcast was probably the nuptials of Elvis and Priscilla, held down the Strip at the Aladdin earlier the same day. (Unlike that of the unnamed W2XCR engineer and secretary in 1931, their wedding was not televised...)
1976: Actor Darius McCrary (Family Matters) is born in Walnut, California.
1992: In the midst of the L.A. Riots, Rodney King appears in front of TV cameras and appeals for calm. And, no, he did not actually utter the mis-attributed quote “Can’t we all just get along?” His actual full statement was: “People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it, making it horrible for the older people and the kids?...It’s just not right. It’s not right. It’s not, it’s not going to change anything. We’ll, we’ll get our justice....Please, we can get along here. We all can get along. I mean, we’re all stuck here for a while. Let’s try to work it out. Let’s try to beat it. Let’s try to beat it. Let’s try to work it out.” (For the record, he also didn’t say “Play it again, Sam.” But then, neither did Bogie.....)
1999: SpongeBob SquarePants premieres on Nickelodeon.
2005: Family Guy returns to Fox after three years off the schedule. The return was brought about after the unexpected popularity of the series' cable reruns and DVD releases.
2008: Singer Jim Hager (Hee Haw), one of the Hager Twins, dies of an apparent heart attack in Nashville, Tennessee, aged 66. His twin brother and singing partner Jon would follow him in death just 8 months later.
(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…..)
1918: TV personality Jack Paar is born in Canton, Ohio.
1931: The first televised marriage ceremony takes place on Jersey City, New Jersey’s W2XCR, as a station engineer and secretary tie the knot in front of the camera as a publicity stunt.
1939: Journalist Max Robinson (ABC World News Tonight) is born in Richmond, Virginia.
1950: WJIM-TV (channel 6, now WLNS-TV) signs on in Lansing, Michigan.
1954: WAPA-TV (channel 4) becomes the second TV station in Puerto Rico. Its call letters are an acronym of the station's original owners, the now-defunct Asociación de Productores de Azúcar, or Puerto Rico Sugar Grower's Association.
1957: Decades before the loud ties, the suspenders, and CNN (or even Mutual) stardom, a young janitor and gofer at Miami Beach’s WAHR (now WMBM) radio named Larry Zeiger gets his big break, thrust into the 9 a.m.-Noon DJ slot when an announcer abruptly quits. He is given the job officially (at $55 per week), changes his name to Larry King, and the rest is history.
1958: KNME-TV (channel 5) signs on, bringing public television to the Albuquerque, New Mexico market.
1967: The United Network (f/k/a The Overmeyer Network) officially launches on 106 stations with The Las Vegas Show, a late-night talk/entertainment series hosted by Bill Dana from the Hotel Hacienda in Las Vegas. The abortive attempt at a post-DuMont, pre-Fox “fourth network” would die a quick death, the network pulling the plug on its one and only program just a month later, declaring bankruptcy after running up a $700,000 debt. Almost certainly, a hot topic on this inaugural broadcast was probably the nuptials of Elvis and Priscilla, held down the Strip at the Aladdin earlier the same day. (Unlike that of the unnamed W2XCR engineer and secretary in 1931, their wedding was not televised...)
1976: Actor Darius McCrary (Family Matters) is born in Walnut, California.
1992: In the midst of the L.A. Riots, Rodney King appears in front of TV cameras and appeals for calm. And, no, he did not actually utter the mis-attributed quote “Can’t we all just get along?” His actual full statement was: “People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it, making it horrible for the older people and the kids?...It’s just not right. It’s not right. It’s not, it’s not going to change anything. We’ll, we’ll get our justice....Please, we can get along here. We all can get along. I mean, we’re all stuck here for a while. Let’s try to work it out. Let’s try to beat it. Let’s try to beat it. Let’s try to work it out.” (For the record, he also didn’t say “Play it again, Sam.” But then, neither did Bogie.....)
1999: SpongeBob SquarePants premieres on Nickelodeon.
2005: Family Guy returns to Fox after three years off the schedule. The return was brought about after the unexpected popularity of the series' cable reruns and DVD releases.
2008: Singer Jim Hager (Hee Haw), one of the Hager Twins, dies of an apparent heart attack in Nashville, Tennessee, aged 66. His twin brother and singing partner Jon would follow him in death just 8 months later.
(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…..)