1968 in American television
Television related events in the USA during 1968
This is a list of American television -related events in 1968.
Events
Date
Event
Ref.
January 20
The TVS Television Network broadcasts the first-ever syndicated primetime college basketball game at the Houston Astrodome . Billed as "The Game of the Century ", the Houston Cougars defeat the UCLA Bruins 71–69.
February 6
ABC 's coverage of the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble , France became the first Olympics, Summer or Winter, to be telecast in color on any American network.
April 2
NBC broadcasts a television special in which British singer Petula Clark appears with Harry Belafonte as her guest. An innocent, affectionate gesture between the two during a song (Clark touches Belafonte on the arm) has prompted concern from the show's sponsor (Chrysler Corporation ) due to the difference in their races.
April 4
Singer James Brown appears on national television in an attempt to calm feelings of anger following the assassination of Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr.
September 9
Two CBS soap operas, Search for Tomorrow and The Guiding Light , expand to 30 minutes per episode.
October 12–27
ABC broadcasts coverage of the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, D.F. , Mexico . This was the first Summer Olympics to be telecast in color in the United States.
October 14
First live television broadcast from a spacecraft in orbit, during the Apollo 7 mission. There are six broadcasts during the eleven-day mission.
October 19
Bea Benaderet makes her final physical appearance as Kate Bradley on the CBS sitcom Petticoat Junction . This particular episode actually aired six days after her death from lung cancer . Benaderet's final overall episode of Petticoat Junction would air one week later and would feature only her voice with her stand-in filmed from the rear.
November 17
Protest ensues when NBC breaks away from the final minutes of an American Football League game to air a TV movie adaptation of Heidi , much to the outrage of the network's AFL viewers. After the break away, the Oakland Raiders scored two touchdowns to defeat the New York Jets , 43–32, in the final minute of play.
[ 1] [ 2] [ 3]
WABC-TV debuted the Eyewitness News format on behalf of news director Al Primo .
[ 4]
November 22
An interracial kiss was aired in the Star Trek episode "Plato's Stepchildren ". The kiss was shared by William Shatner and Nichelle Nichols .
December 24
The reading a passage from the Book of Genesis from Apollo 8 is telecast worldwide, with a report that there is a Santa Claus . This marked the fourth television broadcast from the spacecraft during the space mission.
[ 5]
Other events and statistics in 1968
The last round-screen color TV sets were produced by all American manufacturers.
Television programs
Debuts
Ending this year
Television specials
Networks and services
Network launches
Network conversions and rebrandings
Television stations
Sign-ons
Date
City of License /Market
Station
Channel
Affiliation
Notes/Ref.
January 1
Macon, Georgia
WMUM-TV
29
NET
Part of the Georgia Public Broadcasting television network
January 2
San Francisco, California
KBHK-TV
44
Independent
January 4
Joplin, Missouri
KUHI-TV
16
CBS
January 6
Dayton, Ohio
WSWO-TV
26
Independent
January 19
Cleveland, Ohio
WKBF-TV
61
Independent
February
Galveston, Texas
KVVV-TV
16
Independent
February 4
Brookings, South Dakota
KESD-TV
8
NET
Part of South Dakota Public Broadcasting
February 5
Dallas, Texas
KDTV
39
Independent
February 13
Lexington /Jackson, Tennessee
WLJT-TV
11
NET
February 15
Vincennes, Indiana
WVUT
22
NET
February 26
St. Johnsbury, Vermont
WVTB
18
NET
Satellite of WETK /Burlington ; part of the Vermont ETV network
March 15
Las Vegas, Nevada
KLVX
10
NET
March 18
Rutland, Vermont
WVER
9
NET
Satellite of WETK /Burlington; part of the Vermont ETV network
Windsor, Vermont
WVTA
24
April 1
San Francisco, California
KEMO-TV
20
Bilingial independent
April 11
Hanover, New Hampshire
WHED-TV
15
PBS
Part of New Hampshire Public Television
May 12
Binghamton, New York
WSKG-TV
46
NET
May 21
Keene, New Hampshire
WEKW-TV
49
NET
Satellite of WENH-TV /Durham, NH as part of New Hampshire Public Television
June 2
Lexington, Kentucky
WBLG-TV
62 (now on 36)
ABC
June 10
Kalispell, Montana
KCFW
9
CBS
Meridian, Mississippi
WHTV
24
CBS
August 1
Fon du Lac, Wisconsin
KFIZ-TV
34
Independent
Newport, Kentucky (Cincinnati, Ohio )
WXIX-TV
19
Independent
August 4
Paterson, New Jersey /New York City , New York
WXTV
41
Independent
August 19
Burlington, Vermont ((Plattsburgh, New York )
WEZF-TV
22
ABC
Olney, Illinois
WUSI-TV
16
NET
Satellite of WSIU-TV /Carbondale, Illinois
September 9
Louisville, Alabama
WGIA
43
NET
Part of the Alabama Educational Television network.
September 15
Lorain /Cleveland, Ohio
WUAB
43
Independent
Detroit, Michigan
WXON-TV
62 (now 28)
Independent
Palm Springs, California
KMIR-TV
36
NBC
Poplar Bluff, Missouri
KPOB-TV
15
ABC
Satellite of WSIL-TV of Harrisburg, Illinois
September 22
Springfield, Missouri
KMTC
27
ABC
September 23
Ashland, Kentucky
WKAS [ 21]
25
NET
Part of Kentucky Educational Television [ 21]
Bowling Green, Kentucky
WKGB-TV [ 21]
53
Elizabethtown, Kentucky
WKZT-TV [ 21]
23
Hopkinsville, Kentucky
W64BR
64
Translator of WKMA/Madisonville, Kentucky; part of Kentucky Educational Television
Lexington, Kentucky
WKLE [ 21]
46
Flagship of Kentucky Educational Television
Madisonville, Kentucky
WKMA-TV [ 21]
35
Part of Kentucky Educational Television
Morehead, Kentucky
WKMR [ 21]
38
Owenton, Kentucky
WKON [ 21]
52
Somerset, Kentucky
WKSO-TV [ 21]
29
September 30
Macon, Georgia
WCWB-TV
41
NBC
October 5
Palm Springs, California
KPLM-TV
42
ABC
October 9
Murray, Kentucky
WKMU [ 21]
21
NET
Part of Kentucky Educational Television
October 26
Sacramento, California
KTXL
40
Independent
November 4
Durham /Raleigh, North Carolina
WRDU-TV
28
NBC
Tampa, Florida
WTOG
44
Independent
November 11
Lubbock, Texas
KSEL-TV
28
Independent
November 18
Hastings, Nebraska
KHNE-TV
29
NET
Part of Nebraska ETV
December 4
Little Rock, Arkansas
KETS
2
NET
Flagship of the Arkansas Educational Television Network
December 6
Fort Lauderdale /Miami, Florida
WSMS-TV
51
Independent
December 9
Merriman, Nebraska
KRNE-TV
12
NET
Part of Nebraska ETV
December 11
El Centro, California (Yuma, Arizona , USA /Mexicali , Baja California , Mexico )
KECC-TV
9
ABC
December 14
Ventura /Los Angeles , California
KKOG-TV
16
Independent
December 16[ 22]
Hazard, Kentucky
WKHA [ 21]
35
NET
Part of Kentucky Educational Television
December 18
Fort Myers, Florida
WBBH-TV
20
NBC (primary) ABC (secondary)
December 24
Augusta, Georgia
WAGT
26
NBC
December 28
San Francisco, California
KUDO
38
Independent
Unknown date
Corpus Christi, Texas
KVDO-TV
22
Independent
Hollywood /Miami, Florida
WYHS
69
Independent
Satellite of WCIX-TV (now WFOR-TV ) Miami
Network affiliation changes
Date
City of license/Market
Station
Channel
Old affiliation
New affiliation
Notes/Ref.
January 1
Joplin, Missouri
KODE-TV
12
CBS (primary) ABC (secondary)
ABC (exclusive)
KUHI would take the CBS affiliation in Joplin, Missouri, three days later.
June 2
Lexington, Kentucky
WLEX-TV
18
NBC (primary) CBS/ABC (secondary)
NBC (exclusive)
WKYT-TV
27
ABC (primary) CBS (secondary)
CBS (exclusive)
September 30
Macon, Georgia
WMAZ-TV
13
CBS (primary) ABC and NBC (secondary)
CBS (primary) ABC (secondary)
Station closures
Date
City of license/Market
Station
Channel
Affiliation
Sign-on date
Notes
August 23
Lebanon, New Hampshire
WRLH
31
NBC
July 29, 1966
Would return to the air in August 1971
Births
Deaths
References
^ "The 'Heidi' game in Birmingham" . Birmingham Rewound. October 25, 2008. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
^ Matt Schudel (July 5, 2012). "NBC Chief faced "Heidi Bowl" wrath (obituary for Julian Goodman)" . The Washington Post .
^ Lowry, Cynthia (November 18, 1968). " 'Heidi' Blocks Out Football Game; TV Viewers Deluge NBC Switchboard". Lancaster New Era . p. 8.
^ "Looking back on 50 years of history at Eyewitness News" . November 16, 2018.
^ The Apollo 8 Flight Journal - Video Index - NASA
^ Woolery, George W. (1985). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981, Part II: Live, Film, and Tape Series . The Scarecrow Press. pp. 212–213. ISBN 0-8108-1651-2 .
^ Bianculli, David (February 19, 2018). "It's A Beautiful 50th Birthday For 'Mister Rogers' Neighborhood' " . NPR . Retrieved February 19, 2018 .
^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946–Present . Random House. p. 68. ISBN 978-0-307-48320-1 .
^ Schemering, Christopher (September 1985). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia . pp. 158–166. ISBN 0-345-32459-5 .
^ Waggett, Gerard J. (November 1997). "One Life to Live ". The Soap Opera Encyclopedia . Harper Paperbacks . pp. 163–188 . ISBN 0-06-101157-6 .
^ Woolery, George W. (1983). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981 . Scarecrow Press. pp. 8–9. ISBN 0-8108-1557-5 . Retrieved March 14, 2020 .
^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. p. 378. ISBN 978-1476665993 .
^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows . Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 426–427. ISBN 978-1538103739 .
^ The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present . Ballantine Books. p. 898. ISBN 0-345-45542-8 .
^ "Adam-12 episode/season list (season 7 of 7)" . IMDb. Retrieved February 5, 2012 .[unreliable source? ]
^ Mayberry RFD , TV Guide
^ Day's TV work - Doris Day.com
^ "The Mod Squad" . St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture .
^ Journey to the Unknown episode guide .
^ "The Andy Griffith Show - American television program" . Encyclopædia Britannica . Retrieved September 21, 2022 .
^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Nash, Francis M. (1995). Towers Over Kentucky: A History of Radio and TV in the Bluegrass State . ISBN 9781879688933 .
^ Television Factbook 1979, pages 970-b
External links