In 1979, television in the United States saw a number of significant events, including the debuts, finales, and cancellations of television shows; the launch, closure, and rebranding of channels; changes and additions to network affiliations by stations; controversies, business transactions, and carriage disputes; and the deaths of individuals who had made notable contributions to the medium.
Events Date EventJanuary 3The USA Network is founded.January 10The Music for UNICEF Concert is televised from New York City on NBC.February 11In the U.S., 43 million viewers watch Elvis, an ABC movie starring Kurt Russell as Elvis Presley, despite being the first Elvis biopic film ever made.February 18The Daytona 500 is broadcast live from start to finish, in its entirety for the very first time by CBS. It was won by Richard Petty.February 20Melody Thomas makes her first appearance as Nikki Reed on The Young and the Restless.March 5KSTP-TV in Saint Paul, Minnesota ends its 31-year relationship as the Twin Cities' NBC affiliate and joins ABC in what is called the network's biggest coup yet. NBC, meanwhile, aligns with Metromedia-owned independent station WTCN-TV, while former ABC affiliate KMSP-TV, having failed to procure an NBC affiliation, becomes independent itself.March 6On NBC, Another World becomes the only soap opera to air regularly scheduled 90-minute telecasts (it would go back to 60-minute episodes in 1980). Meanwhile, on ABC, Family Feud increases its goal to 300 points.March 19C-SPAN, an American television channel focusing on government and public affairs, is launched.April 1Nickelodeon is founded.April 8On CBS, the final episode of All in the Family is seen by 40.2 million American viewers (it will relaunch the following season as Archie Bunker's Place).April 20The 1,439th and final CBS episode of Match Game 79 airs – however, the show didn't air on April 5, causing the Friday episode from that week to air on April 9. The last 9 aired episodes were culled together from 3 separate taping sessions, leaving 6 unaired until Game Show Network aired them for the first time. Match Game continues for 3 more years in syndicated daytime (sans the omnipresent 2-year designation in the title).April 22Friendly Fire, an ABC movie starring Carol Burnett as a mother who wants to know how her son died in Vietnam, airs.April 23The game show Whew!, hosted by Tom Kennedy, premieres on CBS. The new daytime programme airs at 10:30 am, leading to the hour-long game show The Price Is Right moving thirty minutes later, at 11:00 am, which is the time slot that it still holds to this day. As a result, soap opera Love of Life is relegated to 4:00 pm, taking over this timeslot from cancelled game show Match Game 79. In addition, the noon slot, held until then by The Young and the Restless, is given to local stations, with the latter soap opera moving to 1:00 pm.May 16Kate Jackson makes her final appearance as Sabrina Duncan on Charlie's Angels.May 17The Season 5 finale of Barney Miller features the cast stepping out of character to pay tribute to the late Jack Soo, who played detective Nick Yemana. Soo, who died of cancer on January 11, 1979, made his final appearance in the series in the season's ninth episode, "The Vandal".May 26Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi's make their final appearances on NBC's Saturday Night Live as cast members.June 1In Indianapolis, Indiana, NBC affiliate WRTV swaps affiliations with ABC affiliate WTHR, citing a stronger affiliation (at the time, NBC is in last place among the three major networks).July 10KSD-TV, NBC affiliate in St. Louis, changes its call sign to KSDK-TV.July 30The Satellite Program Network (SPN) is founded.September 7ESPN, an all-sports channel, launches and becomes the first cable TV channel to be launched as a 24-hour channel.September 9KNXV-TV goes on the air for the first time as Phoenix's first UHF station, airing with ONTV. It was soon stripped off ONTV in 1983, eventually going first with Fox in 1986, then to ABC via an affiliation agreement with Scripps Howard in 1995.September 12On the two-hour season four premiere of Charlie's Angels on ABC, Shelley Hack is introduced as new angel Tiffany Welles, replacing Sabrina Duncan played by Kate Jackson.September 19On the two-hour Eight Is Enough season premiere on ABC, both David and Susan Bradford married their respective loves in a double ceremony.September 22The character Scrappy-Doo makes his first appearance in the Scooby-Doo franchise. Scrappy-Doo would become a mainstay in the franchise going into the following decade. October 6KTAB-TV in Abilene, Texas begins broadcasting as a CBS affiliate, taking that affiliation from KTXS-TV. KTXS-TV then elevates its secondary ABC affiliation to full-time status, making Abilene one of the last markets in the country to receive full service from the three major networks.November 4Jaws is broadcast on television for the first time on ABC. November 9 SIN broadcasts the final of the 2nd National OTI-SIN Festival live from San Antonio.November 25Pat Summerall calls his first NFL telecast (Minnesota Vikings–Tampa Bay Buccaneers) with John Madden.December 1The Movie Channel, an American premium cable channel, begins broadcasting movies 24/7. The first movie to air was Roman Holiday.
Programs Debuting this year Date Show Network January 8 All Star SecretsNBC Password Plus January 18 Delta HouseABC January 20 Salvage 1 January 21 Brothers and SistersNBC January 22 Nightly Business ReportPBS January 26Hello, LarryNBC$weepstake$Turnabout The Dukes of HazzardCBS January 28 CBS News Sunday Morning February 1 Makin' ItABC February 3 The New Fred and Barney ShowNBC February 7 Supertrain February 8 AngieABC February 20 This Old HousePBS February 26 BillyCBS Flatbush February 27 CliffhangersNBC March 4 Stockard Channing in Just FriendsCBS March 13 The RopersABC March 15 Harris and CompanyNBC March 24 The Bad News BearsCBS March 28 Dear DetectiveABC April 6 The MacKenzies of Paradise Cove April 12 Highcliffe ManorNBC Whodunnit? April 18 Real People April 23 Whew!CBS May 10 HizzonnerNBC May 24 Comedy Theatre (returning from 1976) July 31 Detective SchoolABC August 24 The Facts of LifeNBC August 25 Hart to HartABC August 28 240-Robert September 1 Lap Quilting with Georgia BonesteelPBS The Woodwright's Shop September 7 SportsCenterESPN September 8 Fred and Barney Meet the ThingNBC September 9 Jason of Star CommandCBS Out of the BlueABC September 13 Benson September 15 Working StiffsCBS September 16 A New Kind of FamilyABC September 17 Three's a CrowdSyndication September 18 The Misadventures of Sheriff LoboNBC September 19 The Last ResortCBS Struck by Lightning September 20 Buck Rogers in the 25th CenturyNBC September 21 Eischied September 22 Casper and the Angels A Man Called Sloane The New Adventures of Flash Gordon The New Shmoo The Super Globetrotters Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-DooABC Spider-Woman September 23 The Associates Archie Bunker's PlaceCBS September 25 California Fever Trapper John, M.D. September 29 Big Shamus, Little Shamus Paris October 26 ShirleyNBC October 29 Freedom RoadNBC November 8 Nightline (debuting as The Iran Crisis–America Held Hostage)ABC November 28 Young MaverickCBS December 17 House Calls December 27 Knots Landing
Ending this year Date Show DebutJanuary 12The Eddie Capra Mysteries1978January 14The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries1977January 16Grandpa Goes to Washington1978January 21Lamp Unto My Feet1948March 2Jeopardy! (returned in 1984)1964March 16Makin' It 1979March 30$weepstake$ 1979Turnabout 1979April 8All in the Family1971April 24The Paper Chase (returned in 1983)1978April 28What's Happening!! (returned in 1985)1976April 29Battlestar Galactica (returned in 1980)1978May 15Starsky and Hutch1975May 17Whodunnit?1979May 18Rhoda1974June 8Welcome Back, Kotter1975June 23Stockard Channing in Just Friends1979June 28Comedy Theatre1976June 29Operation Petticoat1977July 6The Amazing Spider-Man1977July 11Sword of Justice1978July 12David Cassidy: Man UndercoverAugust 1Good Times1974September 11Wonder Woman1976October 20The New Fred and Barney Show1979November 24Detective SchoolDecember 8Godzilla1978
Made-for-TV movies and miniseries Title Network Premiere dateBackstairs at the White House NBC January 29 Murder by Natural Causes CBS February 17Roots: The Next Generations ABC February 18 (7 episodes)Survival of Dana CBS May 29 Death Car on the Freeway CBS September 25All Quiet on the Western Front CBS November 14Salem's Lot CBS November 17 and 24Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July ABC November 25The Berenstain Bears' Christmas Tree NBC December 3The Miracle Worker NBC October 14
Networks and services Launches Network Type Launch date Notes Source Christian Television Network Cable television Unknown National Christian Network Cable television Unknown C-SPAN Cable television March 19 Take 2 Cable television April 1 Galavision Cable television April 2 Cornerstone Television Cable television April 15 Satellite Program Network Cable television July 30 ESPN Cable television September 7
Conversions and rebrandings Old network New network Type Conversion date Notes Source WTCG-TV SuperStation WTBS Cable television Unknown C-3 Nickelodeon Cable television April 1 Star Channel The Movie Channel Cable television December 1
Closures There are no closures for Cable and satellite television channels in this year.
Television stations Sign-ons Date City of License/Market Station Channel Affiliation Notes/Ref. January 3 Boston, Massachusetts WQTV 68 Independent January 12 Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico XHRIO-TV 2 English-language independent March North Platte, Nebraska K57CZ 57 CBS LPTV translator of KOLN/Lincoln, Nebraska; now KNPL-LD channel 10, a semi-satellite of KOLN April 15 Greensburg/Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania WPCB-TV 40 Religious independent April 28 Red Deer/Harrisburg, Pennsylvania WGCB 49 Independent May 3 Austin, Texas KLRU 18 PBS Originally a satellite of KLRN/San Antonio, Texas June 1 Springfield, Illinois WBHW 55 Independent June 12 Charlottesville, Virginia W64AO 64 ABC Low-powered translator of WHSV-TV/Harrisonburg, Virginia June 18 Bismarck, North Dakota KBME-TV 3 PBS Part of Prairie Public Television August El Paso, Texas KCIK-TV 14 Religious independent August 10 Denver, Colorado KDVR 31 Independent September 2 Flagstaff/Phoenix, Arizona KTVW 33 SIN September 9 Paducah, Kentucky WKPD 29 PBS This station was previously on the air 1971-1975 as commercial independent station WDXR-TV; it returned to the air as a satellite of WKLE/Lexington as part of the Kentucky Educational Television network. Phoenix, Arizona KNXV-TV 15 Independent September 24 Greensboro, North Carolina WGNN-TV 45 Independent Norfolk, Virginia WTVZ-TV 33 Independent October 6 Abilene, Texas KTAB-TV 32 CBS October 22 Grand Junction, Colorado KJCT 8 ABC October 24 Tampa, Florida WCLF 22 CTN October 28 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma KGMC 34 Independent December 22 Warrensburg/Sedalia, Missouri KMOS-TV 6 PBS Returned to the air after being taken off the air in 1978 as a CBS affiliate Unknown date Hartford, Connecticut W61AH 51 SIN Translator of WXTV/New York City Miami, Florida W56AZ 56 PBS Translator of WPBT-TV
Network affiliation changes Date City of License/Market Station Channel Old affiliation New affiliation Notes/Ref. March 5 Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota KMSP-TV 9 ABC Independent KSTP-TV 5 NBC ABC WTCN-TV 11 Independent NBC June 1 Indianapolis, Indiana WRTV-TV 6 NBC ABC WTHR-TV 13 ABC NBC October 6 Abilene, Texas KTXS-TV 12 CBS (primary) ABC (secondary) ABC (exclusive)
Births