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'{| align=right cellpadding=3 id=toc style="margin-left: 15px;" |- | style="text-align:center;"| <small>'''[[List of years in television|List of years in American television]]:'''</small><br> <small>[[1993 in American television|1993]] [[1994 in American television|1994]] [[1995 in American television|1995]]&nbsp;&ndash; </small>1996&nbsp;&ndash; <small>[[1997 in American television|1997]] [[1998 in American television|1998]] [[1999 in American television|1999]]</small><hr> |- | style="text-align:center;"| <small>''[[1996-97 United States network television schedule]]''</small> |}<!--no space 1996--> The following is a list of events affecting '''American television in 1996'''. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, cancellations, and channel launches, closures and rebrandings, as well as information about controversies and carriage disputes. ==Events== {| class="wikitable" |- " ! Date || Event |- |January 1 |''[[Speedvision]]'', a cable channel devoted to motor sports, commences programming. The network will be rechristened ''[[Speed Channel]]'' in 2002. |- |January 20 |[[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] introduces its [[FoxTrax]] "glowing puck" during its telecast of the [[46th National Hockey League All-Star Game]]. |- |January 28 |[[Chris Isaak]] and [[Brooke Shields]] make guest appearances on a post-[[Super Bowl XXX|Super Bowl]] episode of ''[[Friends]]''. |- |March 1 |Over 1 billion households worldwide now own television sets. |- |March 4 |[[DISH Network]], a Direct Broadcast Satellite service, is launched in the United States by EchoStar. |- |April 29 |[[TV Land]], an offshoot of [[Nick at Nite]] devoted to round-the-clock airings of classic television shows, launches in the United States. |- |May 16 |Over 12 million Americans tune in to watch the final episode of ''[[Murder, She Wrote]]'' on [[CBS]], "[[Death By Demographics]]" then through its 12-year run, the series becomes the longest-running American Murder Mystery Drama. |- |May 19 |[[Sundance Channel (United States)|Sundance Channel]] is launched. |- |May 24 |CBS launched its full-time investigation channel, [[Investigation Discovery|CBS Eye on People]]. |- |June 1 |[[Major League Baseball]] broadcasts air for the first time on [[Major League Baseball on Fox|Fox]], where it remains to this day. |- |June 3 |[[Zenith Electronics Corporation|Zenith]] introduces the first [[High-definition television|HDTV]]-compatible front projection TV in the U.S. |- |June 30 |After 33 years of [[Public Broadcasting Service|Public broadcasting]], [[WPXN-TV|WNYC-TV]], signs off for the final time. this was later though the next day when it becomes WBIS. |- |July 6 |When it becomes evident that [[Anna Stuart]] will be next to die in a serial killer storyline on ''[[Another World (TV series)|Another World]]'', many fans start letter-writing campaigns to save the [[actress]]; the [[NBC]] studios in New York City also report a high number of switchboard calls regarding Stuart's imminent demise. Executive producer [[Jill Farren Phelps]] decides that actress [[Alice Barrett]] will be killed off the show instead. |- |July 15 |The talk-oriented cable network [[America's Talking]] ceases broadcasting and is replaced by [[MSNBC]], an all-news joint venture between [[NBC]] (AT's owner) and [[Microsoft]]. |- |August 2 |[[MTV]]'s sister channel, [[MTV2|M2]] (now known as MTV2), is launched. |- |August 23 |''[[The Price is Right]]'' celebrates its 25th Anniversary Special and it was broadcast on [[CBS]]. |- |September 13 |The dubbed version of the Japanese series ''[[Dragonball Z]]'' premieres in the U.S. |- |September 15 |The children's programming block [[USA Cartoon Express]] was shown for the last time by [[USA Network]]. |- |September 17 |The [[O.J. Simpson]] civil trial begins. |- |October 1 |[[Animal Planet]] (known as Discovery's Animal Planet), is launched. |- |October 4 |[[Science Channel|Discovery Science]] is launched. |- |October 7 |[[News Corporation]] gets into the cable news fray with the launch of [[Fox News Channel]]. |- |November 1 |[[ESPNNEWS]], a sports news channel from [[ESPN]], debuts. |- |November 2 |The [[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987 TV series)|original animated series]] of ''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]'' airs its final episode, [[Divide and Conquer (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episode)|"Divide and Conquer"]]. |- |November 11 |[[Discovery Kids]] is launched (up until October 10, 2010 when it became [[The Hub (TV channel)|The Hub]]). |- |December 9 |Broadcasters, TV & PC manufacturers set industry standards for digital HDTV. |- |December 12 |[[CNN Sports Illustrated]] (also known as CNN/SI) debuts. |- |December 15 |Five years after its series finale, a one-off movie of [[Dallas (TV series)|Dallas]], entitled ''[[Dallas: J.R. Returns]]'', airs on [[CBS]]. |- |December 17 |[[TBS (TV channel)|TBS]] returned to its ''Superstation'' name. After 6 years when it was no longer used. |} ==Debuts== {| class="wikitable" |- style="background:#ccc;" ! Date || Debut |- |January 9 |''[[3rd Rock from the Sun]]'' on [[NBC]] |- |January 21 |''[[Savannah (TV series)|Savannah]]'' on [[WB Television Network|The WB]] |- |January 23 |''[[Moesha]]'' on [[UPN]] |- |February 3 |''[[C Bear and Jamal]]'' on Fox |- |March 20 |''[[The Sentinel (TV series)|The Sentinel]]'' on UPN |- |March 29 |''[[Nash Bridges]]'' on [[CBS]] |- |April 20 |''[[Power Rangers: Zeo]]'' on [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] |- |April 28 |''[[Dexter's Laboratory]]'' on [[Cartoon Network]] |- |June 2 |''[[Big Bag]]'' on Cartoon Network |- |June 3 |''[[Debt (game show)|Debt]]'' on [[Lifetime Television|Lifetime]] |- |June 10 |''[[The Rosie O'Donnell Show]]'' in Syndication |- |July 22 |''[[The Daily Show]]'' on [[Comedy Central]] |- |August 25 |''[[The Steve Harvey Show]]'' on The WB |- |rowspan="5"| August 26 |''[[7th Heaven]]'' on The WB |- |''[[Goode Behavior]]'' on UPN |- |''[[Malcolm & Eddie]]'' on UPN |- |''[[In The House (TV series)|In The House]]'' on UPN |- |''[[Sparks (TV series)|Sparks]]'' on UPN |- |August 27 |''[[Homeboys in Outer Space]]'' on UPN |- |rowspan="2"| August 28 |''[[The Jamie Foxx Show]]'' on The WB |- |''[[Nick Freno: Licensed Teacher]]'' on The WB |- |September 1 |''[[Big Deal (game show)|Big Deal]]'' on Fox |- |September 3 |''[[The Burning Zone]]'' on UPN |- |September 6 |''[[The Mighty Ducks (TV series)|The Mighty Ducks]]'' on ABC |- |rowspan="2"| September 7 |''[[Big Bad Beetleborgs]]'' on Fox |- |''[[Road Rovers]]'' on The WB |- |rowspan="5"| September 8 |''[[Blue's Clues]]'' on [[Nickelodeon]] |- |''[[Bureau of Alien Detectors]]'' on UPN |- |''[[The Incredible Hulk (1996 TV series)|The Incredible Hulk]]'' on UPN |- |''[[Jumanji (TV series)|Jumanji]]'' on UPN |- |''[[The Mouse and the Monster]]'' on UPN |- |rowspan="4"| September 9 |''[[Access Hollywood]]'' in Syndiacation |- |''[[Lush Life (TV series)|Lush Life]]'' on Fox |- |''[[Party Girl (TV series)|Party Girl]]'' on Fox |- |''[[Real TV]]'' in Syndication |- |rowspan="2"| September 13 |''[[Dragonball Z]]'' in Syndication |- |''[[Everybody Loves Raymond]]'' on CBS |- |rowspan="2"| September 14 |''[[Bailey Kipper's P.O.V.]]'' on CBS |- |''[[Project G.e.e.K.e.R.]]'' on CBS |- |rowspan="3"| September 16 |''[[Cosby]]'' on CBS |-"[[Beast wars]]" |''[[Judge Judy]]'' in Syndication |- |''[[Pearl (TV series)|Pearl]]'' on CBS |- |rowspan="2"| September 17 |''[[Promised Land (TV series)|Promised Land]]'' on CBS |- |''[[Spin City]]'' on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] |- |rowspan="2"| September 18 |''[[Men Behaving Badly (U.S. TV series)|Men Behaving Badly]]'' on NBC |- |''[[Townies]]'' on ABC |- |rowspan="3"| September 19 |''[[Moloney (TV series)|Moloney]]'' on CBS |- |''[[The Pretender (TV series)|The Pretender]]'' on NBC |- |''[[Suddenly Susan]]'' on NBC |- |rowspan="2"| September 20 |''[[Clueless (TV series)|Clueless]]'' on ABC |- |''[[Mr. & Mrs. Smith (TV series)|Mr. & Mrs. Smith]]'' on CBS |- |September 21 |''[[Dark Skies]]'' on NBC |- |September 24 |''[[Relativity (TV series)|Relativity]]'' on ABC |- |September 27 |''[[Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (TV series)|Sabrina, the Teenage Witch]]'' on ABC |- |September 28 |''[[Early Edition]]'' on CBS |- |September 29 |''[[Profiler (TV series)|Profiler]]'' on NBC |- |rowspan="6"| September 30 |''[[Dangerous Minds (TV series)|Dangerous Minds]]'' on ABC |- |''[[Pappyland]]'' on [[TLC (TV channel)|TLC]] |- |''[[Shop 'til You Drop]]'' (revival, as ''The New Shop 'til You Drop'') on [[ABC Family|The Family Channel]] |- |''[[Shopping Spree]]'' on The Family Channel |- |''[[Small Talk (US game show)|Small Talk]]'' on The Family Channel |- |''[[Wait 'til You Have Kids]]'' on The Family Channel |- |October 6 |''[[Hannity & Colmes]]'' on [[Fox News Channel]] |- |rowspan="3"| October 7 |''[[Hey Arnold!]]'' on Nickelodeon |- |''[[Arthur (TV series)|Arthur]]'' on [[Public Broadcasting Service|PBS]] |- |''[[Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego? (game show)|Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?]]'' on PBS |- |October 11 | ''[[KaBlam!]]'' on Nickelodeon |- |October 13 | ''[[The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss]]'' on Nickelodeon |- |October 21 |''[[Ink (TV series)|Ink]]'' on CBS |- |October 25 |''[[Millennium (TV series)|Millennium]]'' on Fox |- |October 27 |''[[EZ Streets]]'' on CBS |} ==Miniseries== *''[[Profit (TV series)|Profit]]'' *''[[Our Friends in the North]]'' (UK) ==Television shows== ===1940s=== *''[[Meet the Press]]'' (1947–present). *''[[Candid Camera]]'' (1948–2004). ===1950s=== *''[[Hallmark Hall of Fame]]'' (1951–present). *''[[Guiding Light]]'' (1952–2009). *''[[Hockey Night in Canada]]'' (1952–present). *''[[Today (NBC program)|The Today Show]]'' (1952–present). *''[[Face the Nation]]'' (1954–present). *''[[The Tonight Show]]'' (1954–present). *''[[As the World Turns]]'' (1956–2010). ===1960s=== *''[[General Hospital]]'' (1963–present). *''[[Another World (TV series)|Another World]]'' (1964–1999). *''[[Days of our Lives]]'' (1965–present). *''[[60 Minutes]]'' (1968–present). *''[[One Life to Live]]'' (1968–present). *''[[Sesame Street]]'' (1969–present). ===1970s=== *''[[All My Children]]'' (1970–present). *''[[Monday Night Football]]'' (1970–present). *''[[Masterpiece Theatre]]'' (1971–present). *''[[Soul Train]]'' (1971–2007). *''[[The Price Is Right]]'' (1972–present). *''[[The Young and the Restless]]'' (1973–present). *''[[Derrick (TV series)|Derrick]]'' (1974–1998). *''[[Good Morning America]]'' (1975–present). *''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' (1975–present). *''[[Wheel of Fortune (US game show)|Wheel of Fortune]]'' (1975–present). *''[[This Week in Baseball]]'' (1977–1998, 2000–present) *''[[20/20 (US television show)|20/20]]'' (1978–present) *''[[Nightline (US news program)|Nightline]]'' (1979–present) *''[[SportsCenter]]'' (1979–present) *''[[This Old House]]'' (1979–present). ===1980s=== ====1980-1986==== *''[[Lou Dobbs Tonight]]'' (1980–2009). *''[[Entertainment Tonight]]'' (1981–present). *''[[Jeopardy!]]'' (1964–1975, '''1984–present'''). *''[[Murder, She Wrote]]'' (1984–1996). *''[[Sally Jessy Raphaël|Sally]]'' (1985–2002). *''[[The Oprah Winfrey Show]]'' (1986–2011). ====1987==== *''[[Married... with Children]]'' (1987–1997). *''[[The Bold and the Beautiful]]'' (1987–present). *''[[Unsolved Mysteries]]'' ('''1987–1998''', 2001–2002, 2008–present). ====1988==== *''[[America's Most Wanted]]'' (1988–present). *''[[The American Experience]]'' (1988–present). *''[[Fair City]]'' (1988–present). *''[[Home and Away]]'' (1988–present). *''[[Murphy Brown]]'' (1988–1998). *''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' (1988–1999). *''[[Roseanne (TV series)|Roseanne]]'' (1988–1997). ====1989==== *''[[Baywatch]]'' (1989–2001). *''[[COPS (TV series)|COPS]]'' (1989–present). *''[[Family Matters (TV series)|Family Matters]]'' (1989–1998). *''[[Seinfeld]]'' (1989–1998). *''[[The Simpsons]]'' (1989–present). ===1990s=== ====1990==== *''[[America's Funniest Home Videos]]'' (1990–present). *''[[Beverly Hills, 90210]]'' (1990–2000) *''[[Law & Order]]'' (1990–present). *''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air]]'' (1990–1996). ====1991==== *''[[Home Improvement (TV series)|Home Improvement]]'' (1991–1999). *''[[The Jerry Springer Show]]'' (1991–present). *''[[The Red Green Show]]'' (1991–2006). *''[[The Ren and Stimpy Show]]'' (1991–1996). *''[[Sisters (TV series)|Sisters]]'' (1991–1996). ====1992==== *''[[Barney & Friends]]'' (1992–present). *''[[Dateline NBC]]'' (1992–present). *''[[Mad About You]]'' (1992–1999). *''[[Martin (TV series)|Martin]]'' (1992–1997). *''[[Melrose Place (1992 TV series)|Melrose Place]]'' (1992–1999). *''[[The Larry Sanders Show]]'' (1992–1998). *''[[The Real World]]'' (1992–present). ====1993==== *''[[Animaniacs]]'' (1993–1998) *''[[Beavis and Butt-head]]'' (1993–1997) *''[[Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman]]'' (1993–1998) *''[[Frasier]]'' (1993–2004) *''[[Late Night with Conan O'Brien]]'' (1993–2009) *''[[Living Single]]'' (1993–1998) *''[[Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman]]'' (1993–1997). *''[[NYPD Blue]]'' (1993–2005). *''[[Ricki Lake (talk show)|Ricki Lake]]'' (1993–2004). *''[[Rocko's Modern Life]]'' (1993–1996). *''[[seaQuest DSV]]'' (1993–1996). *''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' (1993–1999). *''[[The Late Show with David Letterman]]'' (1993–present). *''[[The Nanny (TV series)|The Nanny]]'' (1993–1999). *''[[The X-Files]]'' (1993–2002). *''[[WWE Raw|WWF Monday Night RAW]]'' (1993–present). *''[[Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' (1993-1993) ====1994==== *''[[All That]]'' (1994–2005) *''[[Babylon 5]]'' (1994-1998) *''[[Duckman]]'' (1994–1997). *''[[ER (TV series)|ER]]'' (1994–2009) *''[[Friends]]'' (1994–2004). *''[[Party of Five]]'' (1994–2000) *''[[The Magic School Bus]]'' (1994-1997). *''[[Touched by an Angel]]'' (1994–2003) *''[[Spider-Man (1994 TV series)|Spider-Man]]'' (1994-1998). ====1995==== *''[[The Drew Carey Show]]'' (1995–2004). *''[[KaBlam!]]'' (1995–2000). *''[[JAG (TV series)|JAG]]'' (1995–2005). *''[[Modern Marvels]]'' (1995–present). *''[[The Puzzle Place]]'' (1995-1998). *''[[Sliders]]'' (1995–2000). *''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'' (1995–2001). *''[[The Cartoon Cartoon Show|What A Cartoon!]]'' (1995–2008). *''[[Timon & Pumbaa (TV series)|Timon and Pumbaa]]'' (1995–1998). ==Returning this year== {| class="wikitable" |- " ! Show || Last Aired || Previous Network || Retitled as/Same || New/Returning/Same Network || Returning |- |''[[Doug]]'' |1994 |[[Nickelodeon]] |Disney's Doug |[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] |September 7 |- |''[[Candid Camera]]'' |1992 |Syndication |The All-New Candid Camera |[[CBS]] |October 11 |} ==Ending this year== {| class="wikitable" |- style="background:#ccc;" ! Date || Show || Debut |- | January 9 |''[[Live Shot]]'' | 1995 |- | January 11 |''[[The Commish]] | 1991 |- |rowspan="2"| February 3 |''[[Are You Afraid of the Dark?]]'' |1992 |- |''[[Dumb and Dumber (TV series)|Dumb and Dumber]]'' |1995 |- | February 17 |''[[Mighty Morphin Power Rangers]]'' |1993 |- | February 23 |''[[Strange Luck]]'' |1995 |- | February 24 |''[[Biker Mice From Mars]]'' |1993 |- | March 27 |''[[Dream On (TV series)|Dream On]]'' |1990 |- | April 1 |''[[Partners (1995 TV series)|Partners]]'' |1995 |- | May 4 |''[[Sisters (TV series)|Sisters]]'' |1991 |- | May 16 |''[[Murder, She Wrote]]'' |1984 |- |rowspan="2"| May 20 |''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air]]'' |1990 |- |''[[Nowhere Man (TV series)|Nowhere Man]]'' |1995 |- | June 2 |''[[Space: Above and Beyond]]'' |1995 |- | June 9 |''[[seaQuest DSV]]'' |1993 |- | June 28 |''[[Central Park West (TV series)|Central Park West]]'' | 1995 |- | July 19 |''[[Tales from the Crypt (TV series)|Tales from the Crypt]]'' |1989 |- | November 2 |''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987 TV series)|Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]'' |1987 |- | November 14 |''[[The Ren and Stimpy Show]]'' |1991 |- | November 24 |''[[Rocko's Modern Life]]'' |1993 |- | November 27 |''[[Power Rangers: Zeo]]'' |1996 |- | December 14 |''[[California Dreams]]'' |1992 |} ==Changes of Network Affiliation== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Show ! Moved from ! Moved to |- | ''[[Brotherly Love (1995 TV series)|Brotherly Love]]'' | [[NBC]] | [[WB Television Network|The WB]] |- | ''[[Doug]]'' | [[Nickelodeon (TV channel)|Nickelodeon]] | [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] |- | ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' | [[Comedy Central]] | [[Syfy|Sci Fi Channel]] |} ==Births== *April 14 – [[Abigail Breslin]], actress ==Deaths== *February 3 – [[Audrey Meadows]], actress (Alice Kramden on ''[[The Honeymooners]]'') *February 13 – [[Martin Balsam]], actor (Murray on ''[[Archie Bunker's Place]]'') *February 15 – [[McLean Stevenson]], actor (Lt. Col. Henry Blake on ''[[M*A*S*H (TV series)|M*A*S*H]]'') *February 15 – [[Tommy Rettig]], former child actor (Jeff on ''[[Lassie (1954 TV series)|Lassie]]'') *March 4 – [[Minnie Pearl]], comedian *March 5 – [[Whit Bissell]], character actor *March 9 – [[George Burns]], 100, comedian *March 11 – [[Vince Edwards]], actor (''[[Ben Casey]]'') *April 21 – [[Jimmy Snyder|Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder]], sports commentator *May 20 – [[Jon Pertwee]], 76, former star of ''[[Doctor Who]]''. *June 2 – [[Ray Combs]], 40, former host of ''Family Feud'', ([[suicide]]) *June 5 - [[Vito Scotti]], 78, American character actor, ''Gilligan's Island'' *June 16 – [[Mel Allen]], sports commentator *July 21 – [[Herb Edelman]], actor (Stanley Zbornak on ''[[The Golden Girls]]'') *August 27 – [[Greg Morris]], actor (''[[Mission: Impossible]]'') *September 13 – [[Tupac Shakur]], 25, actor/songwriter. *September 29 – [[Leslie Crowther]], 63, British TV comedian & game show host *October 6 – [[Ted Bessell]], actor (''[[That Girl]]'') *October 13 - [[Beryl Reid]], actress *October 27 – [[Morey Amsterdam]]. actor and comedian (Buddy on ''[[The Dick Van Dyke Show]]'') *December 8 – [[Howard Rollins|Howard E. Rollins, Jr.]], actor (Tibbs on the TV version of ''[[In the Heat of the Night (TV series)|In the Heat of the Night]]'') *December 11 – [[Willie Rushton]], 59, comedian, actor, and performer. *December 12 – [[Larry Gates]], soap opera actor (''Guiding Light'') *December 14 - [[Edward K. Milkis]], 65, producer {{DEFAULTSORT:1996 In American Television}} [[Category:1996 in television| ]] [[Category:1996 in American television| ]] [[Category:1990s in American television]]'