1973 in American television

This is a list of American television-related events in 1973.

Events

Date Event Ref.
March 11 Charlottesville, Virginia finally receives a television station when NBC affiliate WVIR-TV signs-on.
March 23 Concentration, the longest-running game show at the time, airs for the 3,796th and final time on NBC, ending its run after 14 years and seven months. The show was the longest-running daytime game show to date until 1987, when the record was eclipsed by The Price is Right, which began its run in 1972.
April 3 WIIL-TV (now WAWV-TV) signs on the air, giving the Terre Haute market its first full-time ABC affiliate.
April 16 A TV documentary about the career of Paul McCartney, entitled James Paul McCartney, airs on ABC in the U.S.
May 10 ABC concludes its initial run at broadcasting the National Basketball Association, marking the last NBA broadcast on ABC until the network regained the rights prior to the 2002-03 season. CBS would take over the over-the-air rights as the NBA’s broadcast television partner the next season. ABC’s final NBA broadcast sees the New York Knicks defeat the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, which clinched the Knicks’ NBA Championship.
May 17 Daytime television on ABC is interrupted by news coverage of the hearings pertaining to the Watergate scandal. Following ABC's coverage on this day, CBS televises the next day's hearings, followed the day after that by NBC. The three networks continue cycling coverage in this way until August 7.
July 2 CBS debuts the 1970's version of Match Game, which will become the #1-rated daytime television program for 1973, 1974, and 1975, and the #1 game show for its first four years on the air.
September 15 The fourth season of The Mary Tyler Moore Show premieres on CBS with Betty White making her first appearance on the show as Sue Ann Nivens.
September 30 Billie Jean King defeats Bobby Riggs in a televised tennis match held at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas. Billed as The Battle of the Sexes, the global television audience, including viewers watching on ABC in the United States, is estimated at 90 million viewers in 36 countries.
October 4 WMBB in Panama City, Florida signs-on the air, returning NBC to the market after WJHG-TV dropped that affiliation to become a full-time ABC affiliate the previous year.
October 8 WHFV signs-on the air from Fredericksburg, Virginia as a NBC affiliate.
November 20 The animated Thanksgiving special A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving premieres on CBS. It ends up winning an Emmy Award the following year.
December 12 On CBS, Kojak’s trademark lollipop makes its debut in the episode “Hot Sunday”.
December 19 After reading a news item that said the federal government had fallen behind in getting bids to supply toilet tissue, Johnny Carson inadvertently triggers an unprecedented three-week panic when he announces, on NBC's The Tonight Show, that there is an acute shortage of toilet paper in the United States. The panic was settled in January 1974.
December 28 CBS affiliate KZTV in Corpus Christi, Texas signs-on satellite station KVTV, bringing CBS programming into the Laredo market.

Television programs

Programs

Debuting this year

Ending this year

Date Show Debut
January 16 Bonanza 1959
March 23 Love is a Many Splendored Thing 1967
Where the Heart Is 1969
March 30 Ghost Story 1972
Mission: Impossible 1966
May 20 Laugh-In 1968
August 24 The Mod Squad
September 9 The Doris Day Show
Bridget Loves Bernie 1972
Runaround
October 27 The New Scooby-Doo Movies
December 28 Needles and Pins 1973

Networks and services

Network launches

Network Type Launch date Notes Source
Trinity Broadcasting Network Cable/satellite and over-the-air Unknown date Founded by Paul Crouch, the station began after he purchased KLXA-TV to start a religious television network by converting the former independent station into the network’s flagship, which eventually became KTBN-TV.

Television stations

Sign-ons

Date City of License/Market Station Channel Affiliation Notes/Ref.
February 22 Greensboro, North Carolina WUNL-TV 26 PBS via UNC-TV
March 11 Charlottesville, Virginia WVIR-TV 29 NBC
April 3 Terre Haute, Indiana WIIL-TV 38 ABC
May 30 Youngstown, Ohio WNEO 45 PBS
June 2 Montclair, New Jersey WNJN 50 PBS Part of the New Jersey Network
New Brunswick/Trenton, New Jersey WNJB 58
June 29 Las Cruces, New Mexico KRWG-TV 22 PBS
July 26 Zanesville, Ohio WOUC-TV 44 PBS Satellite of WOUB-TV in Columbus, Ohio
September 16 Eagle Butte, South Dakota KPSD-TV 13 PBS Part of South Dakota Public Broadcasting
October Portsmouth, Ohio
(Huntington, West Virginia/Ashland, Kentucky)
WPBO-TV 42 PBS
October 4 Panama City, Florida WDTB-TV 13 NBC
October 8 Fredericksburg, Virginia WHFV 69 NBC
November 5 Los Angeles, California KLCS 58 PBS
November 18 New York City WSNL-TV 67 Independent
December 28 Laredo, Texas KVTV 13 CBS

Network affiliation changes

Date City of license/Market Station Channel Old affiliation New affiliation Notes/Ref.
October 4 Panama City, Florida WJDM-TV 7 NBC (primary)
ABC (secondary)
ABC (exclusive) Rejoined NBC in 1982
Unknown date Fayetteville, Arkansas KNAC-TV 5 NBC (exclusive) NBC (primary)
ABC (secondary)
Fontana, California/Los Angeles, California KLXA-TV 40 Bilingual independent TBN (O&O) Licensed reassigned to Santa Ana in 1983, became KTBN-TV in 1977

Station closures

Date City of license/Market Station Channel Affiliation Sign-on date Notes
December 7 Fayetteville, Arkansas KGTM-TV NBC February 8, 1969
Unknown date LaSalle, Illinois WEEQ 35 NBC November 7, 1957 Satellite of WEEK-TV/Peoria, Illinois

Births

DateNameNotability
January 4 Damon Gupton American actor (Criminal Minds)
January 11 Rockmond Dunbar American actor (Soul Food, Prison Break)
January 16 Josie Davis American actress (Charles in Charge, The Young and the Restless)
January 23 Lanei Chapman American actress
January 29 Miranda Krestovnikoff English archaeologist and television host
January 31 Portia de Rossi Australian actress (Ally McBeal, Arrested Development, Scandal)
February 12 Tara Strong Canadian voice actress (voice of Timmy Turner on The Fairly OddParents)
February 15 Sarah Wynter Australian actress (24)
February 19 Eric Lange American actor (The Bridge, Narcos)
March 8 Boris Kodjoe Austrian-German actor (Soul Food, The Last Man on Earth)
March 17 Amelia Heinle American soap opera actress
Michelle Nolden Canadian actress (Numb3rs, Saving Hope)
March 20 Cedric Yarbrough American actor, comedian (Reno 911!, The Boondocks, Speechless)
March 21 Jerry Supiran American actor (Small Wonder)
March 24 Jim Parsons American actor (Sheldon Cooper on The Big Bang Theory)
March 26 T. R. Knight American actor (Grey's Anatomy)
April 2 Roselyn Sánchez Puerto Rican singer, model and actress (Without a Trace, Devious Maids)
April 3 Adam Scott American actor (Parks and Recreation)
April 8 Emma Caulfield American actress (Beverly Hills, 90210, General Hospital, Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
April 11 Jennifer Esposito American actress (Spin City, Related, Samantha Who?, Blue Bloods, Taxi Brooklyn, Mistresses, NCIS)
April 12 Christina Moore American actress (Hyperion Bay, Mad TV, That '70s Show, Hawthorne)
April 23 John Lutz American actor, comedian (30 Rock)
April 27 Jillian Bach American actress (Two Guys and a Girl)
April 28 Elisabeth Röhm German-American actress (Bull, Angel, Law & Order, The Client List, Stalker)
Melissa Fahn American voice actress (Cowboy Bepop, Digimon, FLCL, Invader Zim, Eureka Seven) and singer
Jorge Garcia American actor (Becker, Lost)
May 5 Tina Yothers American actress (Family Ties)
May 16 Tori Spelling American actress (Beverly Hills, 90210) and daughter of Aaron Spelling
May 17 Sasha Alexander American-Serbian actress (Dawson's Creek, NCIS, Rizzoli & Isles)
May 25 Molly Sims American model, actress (Las Vegas)
Demetri Martin American actor, comedian (The Daily Show, Important Things with Demetri Martin, We Bare Bears)
May 27 Jack McBrayer American actor, comedian (30 Rock, Wander Over Yonder)
June 9 Keesha Sharp American actress (Girlfriends)
June 12 Mel Rodriguez American actor (Getting On, The Last Man on Earth)
June 15 Neil Patrick Harris American actor (Doogie Howser, M.D., How I Met Your Mother)
June 16 Eddie Cibrian American actor (Sunset Beach, CSI: Miami)
June 21 Juliette Lewis American actress (The Firm)
June 26 Rebecca Budig American actress (Guiding Light, All My Children, General Hospital)
July 3 Patrick Wilson American actor (A Gifted Man, Fargo)
July 6 William Lee Scott American actor (The Steve Harvey Show)
July 8 Kathleen Robertson Canadian actress (Maniac Mansion, Beverly Hills, 90210)
July 9 Enrique Murciano American actor (Without a Trace)
July 15 Brian Austin Green American actor (Beverly Hills, 90210)
July 20 Omar Epps American actor (House, [[Shooter (TV series)|Shooter]]) and rapper
July 21 Ali Landry American actress (Eve)
July 23 Kathryn Hahn American actress (Crossing Jordan)
July 25 David Denman American actor (The Office)
August 1 Tempestt Bledsoe American actress (The Cosby Show)
August 2 Kia Goodwin American actress (227)
August 6 Vera Farmiga American actress (Touching Evil, Bates Motel)
August 11 Frank Caeti American actor, comedian (Mad TV)
August 22 Kristen Wiig American actress, comedian (Saturday Night Live)
August 24 Dave Chappelle American actor, comedian (Chappelle's Show)
Carmine Giovinazzo American actor (CSI: NY)
Grey DeLisle American voice actress (current voice of Daphne Blake in the Scooby-Doo Franchise) and singer-songwriter
September 3 Jennifer Paige American singer and actress
September 5 Rose McGowan Italian-American actress (Charmed, Chosen)
September 7 Shannon Elizabeth American actress (Cuts)
September 14 Andrew Lincoln English actor (The Walking Dead)
September 18 James Marsden American actor (Westworld)
September 25 Bridgette Wilson American actress (Santa Barbara)
October 3 Neve Campbell Canadian actress (Party of Five, House of Cards)
Keiko Agena American actress (Gilmore Girls)
October 9 Jennifer Aspen American actress (Party of Five, Rodney, GCB)
Steve Burns American actor and entertainer (Blue's Clues)
October 10 Mario Lopez American actor, host (Saved by the Bell, Extra)
October 26 Seth MacFarlane American actor, comedian and director (Family Guy, The Cleveland Show, American Dad!)
November 1 David Berman American actor (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation)
November 2 Marisol Nichols American actress (24, Riverdale)
November 7 Yunjin Kim American-South Korean actress (Lost, Mistresses)
November 8 David Muir American journalist (20/20, World News Tonight)
November 9 Alyson Court Canadian actress
November 25 Eddie Steeples American actor (My Name is Earl)
November 28 Gina Tognoni American actress (Guiding Light, Venice: The Series, One Life to Live, The Young and the Restless)
December 3 Holly Marie Combs American actress (Picket Fences, Charmed, [[Pretty Little Liars (TV series)|Pretty Little Liars]])
December 4 Tyra Banks American actress, model and host (The Tyra Banks Show, America's Next Top Model)
December 9 Nicole Randall Johnson American comic actress (Mad TV)
December 10 Arden Myrin American actress, comedian (Mad TV, Shameless)
December 14 Thuy Trang Vietnamese-born American actress, (Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers) (died 2001)
December 27 Wilson Cruz American actor (My So-Called Life, Noah's Arc)
December 28 Seth Meyers American comedian, host (Saturday Night Live, Late Night)
December 30 Jason Behr American actor (Roswell)
Maureen Flannigan American actress (Out of This World)

Deaths

DateNameAgeNotability
January 24 J. Carrol Naish 77 Character actor (Life With Luigi)
January 28 John Banner 63 Actor (Sgt. Schultz on Hogan's Heroes)
March 13 Stacy Harris 54 U.S. actor (Dragnet, The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp)
April 26 Irene Ryan 70 Actress (Granny on The Beverly Hillbillies)
September 21 Diana Sands 39 Actress (The Fugitive)
October 2 Paul Hartman 69 Actor (Emmett Clark on The Andy Griffith Show)
December 23 Irna Phillips 72 Soap opera writer and creator (The Guiding Light, As the World Turns)

See also

References

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