Overview of the events of 1975 in television
The year 1975 involved some significant events in television. Below is a list of television-related events which happened that year.
Events
January 3
The original Jeopardy! ends its run after almost 11 years and 2,753 episodes on NBC
Also on NBC, the biggest prize in American daytime television game shows at the time is won on Jackpot , $38,750, split between two contestants
January 6
January 11 – On All in the Family (CBS), a tearful Edith Bunker says goodbye to her neighbor Louise Jefferson as The Jeffersons moves on up to their own sitcom
March 1 – "C-Day" in Australia: Full-time color television production takes effect today
March 4
March 18 – McLean Stevenson 's character dies in the M*A*S*H episode "Abyssinia, Henry ", its third season finale
April 1 – The New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation is dissolved; NZBC TV is renamed Television One
April 3 – Meg Richardson (Noele Gordon ) marries Hugh Mortimer (John Bentley ) on British soap opera Crossroads
April 5 – The Super Sentai series makes its debut on TV Asahi with Himitsu Sentai Gorenger
April 12 – On The Jeffersons , Mike Evans makes his last appearance (until 1979), with Damon Evans (no relation to Michael) joining the cast
April 21 – Days of Our Lives becomes the second American soap opera to expand from thirty minutes to an hour in length
April 25 – Alice Cooper: The Nightmare airs on ABC
April 28 – Tom Snyder interviews John Lennon on NBC's The Tomorrow Show
June 5 – Fred Silverman becomes the head of ABC Entertainment, whose programming choices resulted in ABC achieving ratings dominance (and initiating an era of what is disparagingly called "T&A" or "Jiggle television ")
June 30 – TV2 launches in New Zealand, becoming the country's second television network
September 5 – A bomb explodes in the wine bar/delicatessen on Australian soap opera Number 96 in an attempt to shake up the cast and earn back lost viewers
September 8 – In the United States:
The Price is Right is expanded to an hour in length, with six games and two Showcase Showdowns, for one week as an experiment; the format is made permanent two months later
Match Game starts airing weekly episodes in syndicated primetime as Match Game PM
September 29 – WGPR-TV, channel 62 in Detroit, becomes the first television station in the U.S. to be owned and operated by blacks (It later becomes CBS -owned WWJ-TV )
October 1 (10:00 a.m. local time; September 30 in the Americas) – Home Box Office cable television becomes the first pay-per-view television network to deliver a continuous signal via satellite by broadcasting the "Thrilla in Manila " boxing title fight (in which Muhammad Ali defeats Joe Frazier in Manila, Philippines) live to the United States.[ 1] The fight is watched live by well over 100 million and perhaps as many as one billion viewers worldwide[ 2] including the 500,000 on HBO[ 3] and 100 million viewers watching on closed-circuit theatre television .[ 4] It is broadcast in the Philippines by KBS and in the United Kingdom by the BBC
October 11 – The premiere episode of Saturday Night Live is broadcast on NBC
October 16 – The "Balibo Five " Australian television journalists are killed at Balibo by Indonesian Army special forces in the buildup to the Indonesian invasion of East Timor
October 21 – NBC broadcasts the now legendary 12-inning long sixth game of the World Series between the Boston Red Sox and Cincinnati Reds . The game ends with Boston catcher Carlton Fisk 's home run to send the series to a climatic seventh game. In what becomes an iconic baseball film highlight, the NBC left-field game camera[ 5] catches Fisk wildly waving his arms to his right after hitting the ball and watching its path while drifting down the first base line, as if he is trying to coax the ball to "stay fair". The ball indeed stays fair and the Red Sox tie the Series. (According to the NBC cameraman Lou Gerard, located inside the left field wall scoreboard, cameramen at this time are instructed to follow the flight of the ball. Instead, Gerard is distracted by a rat nearby, thus he loses track of the baseball and instead decides to capture the image of Fisk "magically" waving the ball fair).[ 6] The game is ranked Number 1 in MLB Network 's 20 Greatest Games .[ 7]
October 25 – The classic "Chuckles Bites the Dust " episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show airs on CBS
October 28 – A James Bond film is shown on British television for the first time, Dr. No on ITV
November – Sony introduces the Betamax video recorder in the US, which comes in a teakwood console with a 19" color TV set and retails for $2,495
November 7 – The New Original Wonder Woman TV movie airs as a pilot for the series Wonder Woman (which premieres in 1976)
November 10 – The Guiding Light on CBS changes its name to Guiding Light , in an attempt to modernize the show's image (The show's announcer, however, continues to call the series The Guiding Light in his announcements until the early 1980s)
November 23 – Memories of the "Heidi Game " return to haunt NBC as that network is forced to join Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory in progress at the conclusion of an overtime NFL game
December 1 – Top-rated As the World Turns , bowing to competition from NBC, expands to one hour in length; The Edge of Night moves to ABC
December 25 – World television premiere of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid , on BBC1
Programs
60 Minutes (1968–present)
All in the Family (1971–1979)
All My Children (1970–2011)
American Bandstand (1952–1989)
Another World (1964–1999)
Are You Being Served? (UK) (1972–1985)
As the World Turns (1956–2010)
Aşk-ı Memnu (Turkey) (1975)
Barnaby Jones (1973–1980)
Blue Peter (UK) (1958–present)
Bozo the Clown (1949–present)
Candid Camera (1948–present)
Captain Kangaroo (1955–1984)
Chico and the Man (1974–1978)
Columbo (1971–1978)
Come Dancing (UK) (1949–1995)
Coronation Street , UK (1960–present)
Countdown (Australia) (1974–1987)
Crossroads , UK (1964–1988, 2001–2003)
Dad's Army (UK) (1968–1977)
Days of Our Lives (1965–present)
Dean Martin Celebrity Roast (1974–1984)
Derrick (1974–1998)
Dinah! (1974–1980)
Dixon of Dock Green (UK) (1955–1976)
Doctor Who , UK (1963–1989, 1996, 2005–present)
Emergency! (1972–1977)
Emmerdale Farm (UK) (1972–present)
Face the Nation (1954–present)
Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (1972–1984)
Four Corners , Australia (1961–present)
General Hospital (1963–present)
Get Some In! (UK) (1975–78)
Good Times (1974–1979)
Grandstand (UK) (1958–2007)
Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951–present)
Happy Days (1974–1984)
Hawaii Five-O (1968–1980)
Hee Haw (1969–1993)
Hockey Night in Canada (1952–present)
It's Academic (1961–present)
John Craven's Newsround (UK) (1972–present)
Kaynanalar (Turkey) (1974–2004)
Kojak (1973–1978, 2005–present)
Land of the Lost (1974–1977)
Last of the Summer Wine (UK) (1973–present)
Little House on the Prairie (1974–1983)
Love of Life (1951–1980)
Magpie (UK) (1968–1980)
Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969–1976)
Mary Tyler Moore (1970–1977)
M*A*S*H (1972–1983)
Masterpiece Theatre (1971–present)
Match Game (1962–1969, 1973–1984, 1990–1991, 1998–1999)
Maude (1972–1978)
McCloud (1970–1977)
McMillan & Wife (1971–1977)
Meet the Press (1947–present)
Monday Night Football (1970–present)
Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom (1963–1988, 2002–present)
Old Grey Whistle Test (UK) (1971–1987)
One Life to Live (1968–2012)
Opportunity Knocks (UK) (1956–1978)
Panorama (UK) (1953–present)
Play for Today (UK) (1970–1984)
Play School (1966–present)
Police Woman (1974–1978)
Rhoda (1974–1978)
Sanford and Son (1972–1977)
Schoolhouse Rock! (1973–1986)
Search for Tomorrow (1951–1986)
Sesame Street (1969–present)
Soul Train (1971–2008)
Superstars (UK) (1973–1985, 2003–2005)
Tattletales (1974–1978, 1982–1984)
The Benny Hill Show (UK) (1969–1989)
The Bionic Woman (1976–1978)
The Bob Newhart Show (1972–1978)
The Carol Burnett Show (1967–1978)
The Doctors (1963–1982)
The Edge of Night (1956–1984)
The Good Old Days (UK) (1953–1983)
The Guiding Light (1952–2009)
The Late Late Show , Ireland (1962–present)
The Lawrence Welk Show (1955–1982)
The Mike Douglas Show (1961–1981)
The Money Programme (UK) (1966–present)
The Price Is Right (1972–present)
The Rockford Files (1974–1980)
The Six Million Dollar Man (1973–1978)
The Sky at Night (UK) (1957–present)
The Today Show (1952–present)
The Tomorrow Show (1973–1982)
The Tonight Show (1954–present)
The Waltons (1972–1981)
The Wonderful World of Disney (1954–present; 1969–79 with this title)
The Young and the Restless (1973–present)
This Is Your Life (UK) (1955–2003)
Tiswas (UK) (1974–1982)
Tom and Jerry (1965–1972, 1975–1977, 1980–1982)
Top of the Pops , UK (1964–2006)
Truth or Consequences (1950–1988)
What the Papers Say (UK) (1956–present)
Wide World of Sports (1961–1997)
Wish You Were Here...? (UK) (1974–present)
World of Sport , UK (1965–1985)
Z-Cars , UK (1962–1978)
Debuts
Ending this year
Changes of network affiliation
Births
Date
Name
Notability
January 2
Dax Shepard
Actor (Parenthood )
January 3
Danica McKellar
Actress (The Wonder Years , Young Justice , Static Shock )
Jason Marsden
Actor (Adventures of the Gummi Bears , Boy Meets World , The Weekenders , Static Shock , Justice League , The Fairly OddParents , Kim Possible , Loonatics Unleashed , Generator Rex )
January 4
Jill Marie Jones
Actress (Girlfriends )
January 5
Bradley Cooper
Actor (Alias )
January 7
Stephanie Birkitt
American attorney
January 9
Patrick Sabongui
Canadian actor (The Flash )
January 12
Lisa Rieffel
Actress
January 17
Freddy Rodriguez
Actor (Six Feet Under , The Night Shift )
January 23
Tito Ortiz
Mixed martial artist[ 8]
January 28
Terri Conn
Actress (As the World Turns , One Life to Live )
January 29
Sharif Atkins
Actor (ER , White Collar )
Sara Gilbert
Actress (Roseanne , The Talk )
February 11
Nischelle Turner
TV host
February 18
Sarah Joy Brown
Actress (General Hospital )
February 22
Drew Barrymore
Actress and producer (Saturday Night Live , Santa Clarita Diet , The Drew Barrymore Show )
February 23
Michael Cornacchia
Actor (Legion of Super Heroes , The Kids Are Alright )
February 25
Chelsea Handler
Actress and producer
February 27
Christina Nigra
Actress (Out of This World )
March 1
Shane Johnson
Actor
March 2
Jesse Bochco
Producer
March 5
Jolene Blalock
Actress and model (Star Trek: Enterprise )
March 7
Audrey Marie Anderson
Actress (Once and Again , The Unit , Arrow )
T. J. Thyne
Actor (Bones )
March 9
Chaske Spencer
Actor
March 12
Marc Menard
Canadian actor (All My Children , House , Watch Over Me )
March 15
Eva Longoria
Actress (Desperate Housewives )
will.i.am
Rapper
March 17
Test
Pro wrestler (died 2009)
Tracy Wolfson
Sportscaster
March 22
Guillermo Diaz
Actor (Weeds )
March 21
Justin Pierce
Actor (died 2000)
March 27
Fergie
Rapper and singer
April 2
Adam Rodriguez
Actor (CSI: Miami , Criminal Minds )
Deedee Magno Hall
Filipino-American actress (Pearl on Steven Universe )
April 3
Aries Spears
Comedian and actor (Mad TV )
April 5
Mike Bloom
Musician
April 6
Zach Braff
Actor (Scrubs )
April 14
Antwon Tanner
Actor (One Tree Hill )
Amy Birnbaum
Voice actress (Pokémon , Sonic X , Kirby: Right Back at Ya! , Magical DoReMi ,Yu-Gi-Oh! ) and singer
Anderson Silva
Brazilian mixed martial artist (UFC )[ 9]
Lita
Pro wrestler
April 22
Dannah Feinglass
Actress (Mad TV , WordGirl , The Mighty B! , Newsreaders )
April 30
Johnny Galecki
Actor (Roseanne , The Big Bang Theory )
May 3
Christina Hendricks
Actress (Mad Men , Another Period )
Dulé Hill
Actor (The West Wing , Psych )
Willie Geist
American television personality
May 8
Wilmer Calderon
Actor (The Shield , Bosch )
May 10
Andrea Anders
Actress (Joey , Better Off Ted )
Julie Nathanson
Actress (The Zeta Project , Avengers Assemble , Elena of Avalor )
May 11
Coby Bell
Actor (Third Watch , The Game )
May 20
Tahmoh Penikett
Canadian actress (Battlestar Galactica )
May 24
Will Sasso
Canadian actor and comedian (Mad TV )
May 27
Jamie Oliver
English chef and TV host
May 29
Daniel Tosh
Actor and comedian
May 30
CeeLo Green
Musician (The Voice )[ 10]
June 4
Angelina Jolie
Actress (Gia Carangi on Gia ) and daughter of Jon Voight
June 6
Staci Keanan
Actress (My Two Dads , Step by Step )
June 7
Allen Iverson
NBA basketball player
June 10
Isaac Hayes III
Voice actor
June 12
Michael Muhney
Actor (Veronica Mars , The Young and the Restless )
June 14
Laurence Rickard
Actor
June 16
Frederick Koehler
Actor (Kate & Allie , Oz )
June 17
Jennifer Irwin
Canadian actress (Still Standing )
Lisa Gwilym
Welsh broadcaster
June 24
Carla Gallo
Actress (Carnivàle , Bones )
June 25
Linda Cardellini
Actress (ER , Freaks and Geeks , Mad Men , Regular Show , Gravity Falls , Sanjay and Craig )
June 27
Tobey Maguire
Actor
Bianca Del Rio
Actor
July 2
Elizabeth Reaser
Actress
July 3
Ryan McPartlin
Actor (Chuck )
July 6
50 Cent
Rapper and actor
July 11
Jon Wellner
Actor (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation )
July 14
Taboo
Actor
July 17
Daffney
Pro wrestler (WCW , TNA )[ 11] (d. 2021)
July 20
Ray Allen
NBA basketball player
Judy Greer
Actress (Glenn Martin DDS , Two and a Half Men , Archer , Reluctantly Healthy )
July 24
Eric Szmanda
Actor (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation )
Laura Fraser
Actress
July 26
Liz Truss
British politician[ 12]
July 31
Annie Parisse
Actress (Law & Order )
August 5
Ami Foster
Actress (Punky Brewster )
August 7
Charlize Theron
Actress (2-time host of Saturday Night Live )
August 11
Tinsley Mortimer
American television personality
August 16
George Stults
Actor (7th Heaven )
August 18
Kaitlin Olson
Actress (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia )
August 19
Tracie Thoms
Actress (Cold Case )
August 21
Alicia Witt
Actress and singer (Cybill , Justified )
August 22
Rodrigo Santoro
Brazilian actor (Lost , Westworld )
August 25
Michelle Beaudoin
Canadian actress (Madison , Sabrina the Teenage Witch )
August 29
Dante Basco
Actor (American Dragon: Jake Long , Avatar: The Last Airbender , The Legend of Korra )
August 31
Sara Ramirez
American-Mexican actress (Grey's Anatomy )
September 1
Scott Speedman
British-Canadian actor (Felicity )
September 3
Redfoo
Actor and singer
September 8
Larenz Tate
Actor (The Royal Family , South Central )
September 18
Charlie Finn
Actor (Spud on American Dragon: Jake Long )
Jason Sudeikis
Actor and comedian (Saturday Night Live )
September 22
Mireille Enos
Actress (The Killing , The Catch )
September 23
Jaime Bergman
Actress
October 3
India Arie
Singer
Alanna Ubach
Actress (Teamo Supremo , Ozzy & Drix , Brandy & Mr. Whiskers , El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera )
October 4
Reggie Lee
Filipino-American actor (Prison Break , Grimm )
October 5
Kate Winslet
English actress (Mildred Pierce )
Parminder Nagra
British actress (ER )
Scott Weinger
Actor (Full House , Aladdin , Fuller House )
October 7
Rhyno
Pro wrestler
October 8
Terryn Westbrook
Actress and singer
October 11
Nat Faxon
Actor (Ben and Kate )
October 12
Marion Jones
WNBA player
October 16
Kellie Martin
Actress (Life Goes On , Christy , ER )
October 22
Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Actor (Modern Family )
October 23
Boti Bliss
Actress (CSI: Miami )
Michelle Beadle
American sports reporter
October 26
Paula Faris
Television correspondent
October 30
Steve Kazee
Actor
November 1
Bo Bice
American singer (American Idol )
November 2
Danny Cooksey
Actor (Diff'rent Strokes , The Cavanaughs , Tiny Toon Adventures , Static Shock , Pepper Ann , Xiaolin Showdown , Dave the Barbarian , Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil )[ 13]
November 4
Heather Tom
Actress
Curtis Stone
Australian celebrity chef
November 12
Angela Watson
Model and actress (Step by Step )
November 11
Angélica Vale
Actress
November 17
Diane Neal
Actress (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit )
November 20
Joshua Gomez
Actor (Chuck )
November 21
Cherie Johnson
Actress (Punky Brewster , Family Matters )
November 30
Richard Bacon
English television and radio presenter
December 1
David Hornsby
Actor (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia , Fanboy & Chum Chum , Ben 10 )[ 14]
December 8
Celia Walden
British journalist
December 10
Emmanuelle Chriqui
Canadian actress (Entourage , Cleaners )
December 12
Mayim Bialik
Actress (Blossom , The Big Bang Theory ) and singer
December 13
James Kyson
South Korean-born American actor (Heroes )
December 14
KaDee Strickland
Actress (Private Practice )
December 17
Milla Jovovich
Actress
December 18
Trish Stratus
Pro wrestler (Canada's Got Talent )[ 15]
December 24
Stephanie Ruhle
Journalist
December 27
Heather O'Rourke
Actress (Happy Days ) (d. 1988)
December 28
Tannis Vallely
Director and actress (Head of the Class )
December 29
Shawn Hatosy
Actor (Southland )
December 30
Tiger Woods
Pro golfer
Deaths
Television debuts
See also
References
^ Parsons, Patrick (2003). "The Evolution of the Cable-Satellite Distribution System" (PDF) . Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media . 47 (1). Broadcast Education Association: 1– 17. doi :10.1207/s15506878jobem4701_1 . S2CID 62196864 . Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-11-02. Retrieved 2014-10-19 .
^ "54 Facts you probably don't know about Don King" . Boxing News 24 . 2008-01-14.
^ Smith, Ronald A. (2003). Play-by-Play: Radio, Television, and Big-Time College Sport . Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 101. ISBN 9780801876929 .
^ "Karriem Allah" . Black Belt . Active Interest Media: 35. 1976.
^ Verducci, Tom (2015-10-21). "Game Changer: How Carlton Fisk's home run altered baseball and TV" . Sports Illustrated .
^ Lowitt, Bruce (1999-11-23). "Rats! Fisk's homer" . St. Petersburg Times . Retrieved 2008-07-26 .
^ "MLB's 20 Greatest Games" . MLB. Retrieved 2012-12-27 .
^ "Tito Ortiz Biography" . ESPN . Retrieved 2024-12-20 .
^ "Anderson Silva Biography" . ESPN . Retrieved 2024-08-23 .
^ "CeeLo Green – The Vogue" . Retrieved 2024-02-23 .
^ Brow, Jason (2021-09-02). "Daffney Unger: 5 Things To Know About Wrestler Who Has Died At Age 46" . Hollywood Life . Retrieved 2024-12-20 .
^ "Liz Truss Fast Facts" . CNN . 2022-10-04. Retrieved 2024-09-02 .
^ "Danny Cooksey" . Discogs . Retrieved July 1, 2023 .
^ David Hornsby [@HornsByDavid] (April 28, 2012). "I was born 12/1/75. Put that #### in Fred C and stop being a dick" (Tweet ). Retrieved July 1, 2023 – via Twitter .
^ "Trish Stratus" . TheSportster . 2024-03-27. Retrieved 2024-11-08 .