1961 in American television
List of years in American television: |
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1960–61 United States network television schedule |
1961–62 United States network television schedule |
List of American television programs currently in production |
This is a list of American television-related events in 1961.
Events
Date | Event | Ref. |
---|---|---|
January 20 | President John F. Kennedy becomes the first president to be inaugurated with a color telecast. NBC's news division provided coverage in color. | |
January 25 | John F. Kennedy held the first live televised presidential press conference. | |
March 5 | The launch of the spacecraft Freedom 7 in a 15-minute sub-orbital spaceflight is seen by 45 million American television viewers.[1] Alan B. Shepard becomes the first U.S. astronaut in space. He was the second person to travel into space, [2]following the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. [3] | |
May 5 | In a speech on "Television and the Public Interest" to the National Association of Broadcasters, Federal Communications Commission chairman Newton N. Minow describes commercial television programming as a "vast wasteland" and tells the broadcasters that they could do a better job of serving the public. | |
May 29 | Dave Garroway announces that he would be leaving the Today show on NBC. | |
July 1 | The Brighter Day airs its first episode after moving to Los Angeles from New York City. The move also marks the writing out of Baby Dennis and his love interest, because the actors who played them didn't want to relocate. | |
September 23 | NBC begins its long-running series of movie presentations under the umbrella banner, NBC Saturday Night at the Movies. The first movie to be broadcast was the 1953 film How to Marry a Millionaire, starring Marilyn Monroe. | |
November 19 | Lucille Ball marries Gary Morton |
Other events in 1961
- The Sports Broadcasting Act was passed into law.
Television programs
Debuts
Changes of network affiliation
Show | Moved from | Moved to |
---|---|---|
Walt Disney Presents | ABC | NBC |
The Detectives | ||
Rocky and His Friends | ||
The Wonderful World of Disney | ||
Bachelor Father | NBC | ABC |
Mister Ed | Syndication | CBS |
Ending this year
Date | Show | Network | Debut | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
January 2 | Riverboat | NBC | September 12, 1959 | |
January 6 | Dan Raven | NBC | September 23, 1960 | |
January 27 | You're in the Picture | CBS | January 20, 1961 | |
February 9 | Take a Good Look | ABC | October 22, 1959 | |
February 13 | Klondike | NBC | October 10, 1960 | |
March 29 | Wanted Dead or Alive | CBS | September 6, 1958 | |
March 30 | The Ann Sothern Show | CBS | October 6, 1958 | |
March 31 | DuPont Show of the Month | CBS | September 24, 1957 | |
April 3 | The DuPont Show with June Allyson | CBS | September 21, 1959 | |
April 7 | Happy | NBC | June 8, 1960 | |
April 12 | My Sister Eileen | CBS | October 5, 1960 | |
April 16 | Omnibus | NBC | November 9, 1952 (on CBS) | |
April 17 | Sugarfoot | ABC | September 17, 1957 | |
April 24 | Acapulco | NBC | February 27, 1961 | |
April 30 | The Tab Hunter Show | September 18, 1960 | ||
May 1 | The Play of the Week | NTA Film Network | October 12, 1959 | |
May 15 | The Americans | NBC | January 1961 | |
May 18 | Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre | CBS | October 5, 1956 | |
May 23 | The Tom Ewell Show | CBS | September 27, 1960 | |
May 31 | Peter Loves Mary | NBC | October 12, 1960 | |
June 1 | Bat Masterson | NBC | October 8, 1958 | |
June 3 | Gunslinger | CBS | February 9, 1961 | |
June 17 | Lock-Up | Syndication | September 26, 1959 | |
June 18 | The Rebel | ABC | October 4, 1959 | |
June 25 | The Asphalt Jungle | CBS | April 2, 1961 | |
June 27 | Stagecoach West | ABC | October 4, 1960 | |
June 27 | The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp | ABC | September 6, 1955 | |
June 29 | The Ford Show | NBC | October 4, 1956 | |
July 1 | The Deputy | NBC | September 12, 1959 | |
July 3 | Bringing Up Buddy | CBS | October 10, 1960 | |
July 4 | Alcoa Presents One Step Beyond | ABC | January 20, 1959 | |
July 14 | 'Way Out | CBS | March 31, 1961 | |
July 16 | Shirley Temple's Storybook | CBS | January 12, 1958 | |
September 9 | The Adventures of Spunky and Tadpole | First-run Syndication | September 6, 1958 | |
September 18 | Peter Gunn | NBC | September 22, 1958 | |
September 21 | Great Ghost Tales | July 6, 1961 | ||
September 22 | Five Star Jubilee | March 17, 1961 | ||
The Lawless Years | April 22, 1959 | |||
Westinghouse Preview Theatre | July 14, 1961 | |||
September 23 | Sea Hunt | First-run Syndication | January 4, 1958 | |
September 28 | Frontier Justice | CBS | July 7, 1958 | |
October 20 | The Quick Draw McGraw Show | First-run Syndication | September 28, 1959 | |
October 30 | Whispering Smith | CBS | May 8, 1961 | |
December 1 | The Huckleberry Hound Show | First-run Syndication | September 29, 1958 | |
December 15 | Sam and Friends | WRC-TV (Washington, D.C.) | May 9, 1955 | |
December 28 | The Investigators | CBS | October 5, 1961 | |
December 30 | Matty's Funday Funnies | ABC | October 11, 1959 | |
Unknown date | Shotgun Slade | Syndication | October 24, 1959 | |
Unknown date | This Is Your Life | NBC | October 1, 1952 |
Network launches
Network | Type | Launch date | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Christian Broadcasting Network | Religious-formatted television network | October 1 | First religious broadcasting network in the United States |
Network closures
Network | Type | End date | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
NTA Film Network | Broadcast | November | Launched in October 1956, the NTA Film Network was another attempt to create a fourth television network in the wake of the closing of the DuMont Television Network two months prior. The network relied on filming the programming before sending it to air on its affiliates. |
Networks and services
Closures
Network | Type | Closure date | Notes | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|
NTA Film Network | Cable television | November |
Television stations
Station launches
Date | City of License/Market | Station | Channel | Affiliation | Notes/Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 21 | Idaho Falls, Idaho | KIFI | 8 | NBC (primary) ABC (secondary) |
|
January 30 | Phoenix, Arizona | KAET | 9 | NET | |
February 1 | Hot Springs, Arkansas | KFOY-TV | 9 | NBC | |
February 6 | Portland, Oregon | KOAP-TV | 10 | NET | Flagship of Oregon Public Broadcasting |
February 27 | Douglas, Arizona | KCDA | 3 | Independent | |
March 29 | Kansas City, Missouri | KCSD-TV | 19 | NET | |
June 18 | Beaumont, Texas | KBMT | 12 | ABC | |
July 5 | Vermillion, South Dakota | KUSD-TV | 2 | NET | Later became the flagship of the South Dakota Public Broadcasting television network |
July 22 | Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands | WBNB-TV | 10 | CBS (primary) NBC (secondary) |
First licensed television station in the Virgin Islands |
August 7 | Elk City, Oklahoma | KSWB | 8 | CBS | |
September 5 | Charlotte, North Carolina | WUTV | 36 | ABC (primary) NBC/CBS (secondary) |
|
September 16 | Louisville, Kentucky | WLKY | 32 | ABC | |
September 25 | Tacoma, Washington | KTPS | 28 | NET | |
September 27 | Norfolk, Virginia | WHRO-TV | 15 | NET | |
October 2 | Washington, D.C. | WETA | 26 | NET | |
October 3 | Medford, Oregon | KMED-TV | 10 | NBC (primary) ABC (secondary) |
|
October 10 | Richland, Washington | KNDU | 25 | ABC (primary) NBC (secondary) |
|
November 5 | New York City | WUHF | 31 | Independent | |
November 6 | Carbondale, Illinois | WSIU-TV | 15 | NET | |
November 13 | Augusta/Portland, Maine | WCBB | 10 | NET | Maine's first educational station; now part of the Maine Public Broadcasting Network |
November 19 | Waycross/Valdosta, Georgia | WXGA-TV | 8 | NET | Part of the Georgia Public Broadcasting television network |
November 27 | Hilo, Hawaii | KHAW-TV | 11 | NBC | Satellite of KHAW-TV (now KHON-TV)/Honolulu |
December 18 | Flagstaff, Arizona | KVLS | 13 | Independent | |
Fresno, California | KAIL | 53 |
Network affiliation changes
Date | City of license/Market | Station | Channel | Old affiliation | New affiliation | Notes/Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
April 2 | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | WISN-TV | 12 | ABC | CBS | |
WITI | 6 | CBS (primary) NTA Film Network (secondary) |
ABC (exclusive) | |||
September 16 | Louisville, Kentucky | WAVE | 3 | NBC (primary) ABC (secondary) |
NBC (exclusive) | |
October 3 | Klamath Falls, Oregon | KOTI | 2 | NBC (primary) ABC (secondary) |
ABC (primary) NBC (secondary) |
|
Medford, Oregon | KOBI | 5 | CBS (primary) ABC/NBC (secondary) |
CBS (primary) ABC (secondary) |
||
Unknown date | Lexington, Kentucky | WKYT-TV (formerly WKXP-TV) | 27 | CBS (exclusive) | ABC (primary) CBS (secondary) |
|
Mankato, Minnesota | KEYC-TV | 12 | NBC | CBS | ||
Ogden, Utah | KVOG-TV | 9 | NTA Film Network | Independent |
Station closures
Date | City of license/Market | Station | Channel | Affiliation | First air date | Notes/Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
February 16 | Fort Pierce, Florida | WTVI | 19 | CBS | November 23, 1960 | |
August | Douglas, Arizona | KCDA | 3 | Independent | February 27, 1961 | |
Rochester, New York | WVET-TV | 10 | CBS/ABC | November 1, 1953 | Merged operations with current CBS affiliate WHEC-TV |
Births
Deaths
References
- ^ Swenson, Grimwood & Alexander 1966, pp. 360–361.
- ^ Burgess 2014, pp. 99–100.
- ^ Swenson, Grimwood & Alexander 1966, pp. 332–333.
- ^ "Time Listings: Jan. 20, 1961". Time. January 20, 1961. Archived from the original on March 8, 2008. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
- ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 929–933. ISBN 978-1476665993.
- ^ Rico, Diana. Kovacsland. San Diego, CA: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1990. Retrieved January 22, 2019
- ^ McNeil, Alex, Total Television: The Comprehensive Guide to Programming From 1948 to the Present, New York: Penguin Books, 1996, p. 64.
- ^ Brooks, Tim, and Earle Marsh, The Complete Directory to Prime-Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present, Sixth Edition, New York: Ballantine Books, 1995, ISBN 0-345-39736-3, p. 63.
- ^ "50th Anniversary of Wide World of Sports Celebrated". ESPN MediaZone. April 21, 2011. Information about the broadcasters obtained directly from the original telecast.
- ^ The DuPont Show of the Week: Awards at the Internet Movie Database
- ^ Brooks, Tim, and Earle Marsh, 2009, p. 486.
- ^ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 254. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
- ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (June 24, 2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing Group. p. 355. ISBN 978-0-307-48320-1. Retrieved June 22, 2022.
- ^ McNeil, Alex, Total Television: The Comprehensive Guide to Programming From 1948 to the Present, Fourth Edition, New York: Penguin Books, 1996, ISBN 0 14 02 4916 8, p. 917.
- ^ Brooks, Tim, and Earle Marsh, The Complete Directory to Prime-Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present (Sixth Edition), New York: Ballantine Books, 1995, ISBN 0-345-39736-3, p. 1138.
- ^ "CTVA US Drama - "Window on Main Street" (1961-62) starring Robert Young". ctva.biz. Retrieved 2020-09-10.
- ^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 24. ISBN 978-1538103739.
- ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing Group. p. 853. ISBN 978-0-307-48320-1. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
Sources
- Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House. ISBN 9780307483201.
- Burgess, Colin (2014). Freedom 7: The Historic Flight of Alan B. Shepard Jr. Springer-Praxis books in space exploration. New York; London: Springer. ISBN 978-3-319-01155-4. OCLC 902685533.
- Swenson, Loyd S. Jr.; Grimwood, James M.; Alexander, Charles C. (1966). This New Ocean: A History of Project Mercury. The NASA History Series. Washington, DC: National Aeronautics and Space Administration. OCLC 569889. NASA SP-4201. Archived from the original on June 17, 2010. Retrieved June 28, 2007.