Today in Broadcast History

It’s the date of birth for Paul Simon, Marie Osmond, Nana Mouskouri, deejay Cousin Brucie Morrow, and Billy Bush. 'Kukla Fran & Ollie’ debuted on local Chicago TV, Bing Crosby & Frank Sinatra co-hosted an ABC-TV special introducing Ford’s Edsel; the third Kennedy-Nixon Presidential debate was televised with the nominees a continent apart; and after 22 years CBS radio cancelled ‘Art Linkletter’s House Party. Leaving us this date were Ed Sullivan, Al Martino (pictured), Gary Collins, newsmen Douglas Edawards and Hughes Rudd, and actress Bea Benaderet. Details and ALL the Oct. 13th milestones INSIDE.

Born this date were daytime radio star Jane Ace, Dick Gregory, Hugh Jackman, Nancy Kulp, Kirk Cameron, plus sportscasters Tony Kubek and Dan Russell. After 15 years on radio ‘Burns and Allen’ made their debut on CBS-TV; ‘Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons’ began its 18 year run on network radio; Walter Cronkite spent all 3 prime time hours on CBS-TV on the memoirs of Dwight Eisenhower; the late singer Karen Carpenter received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; and Vancouver-based Nickelback scored their first #1 album. Celebrities leaving us on Oct. 12th include announcers Joel Aldred and Johnny Olsen, musicians Ray Conniff, Carmen Cavallero, John Denver and Gene Vincent, Bullwinkle producer Jay Ward, and veteran actor Leon Ames. Details and ALL the Oct 12th milestones INSIDE.

Happy Birthday today to Luke Perry, David Morse, Joan Cusack, Emily Deschanel, Jane Krakowski and Daryl Hall. The ‘American Album of Familiar Music’ began its long Sunday night run on NBC radio; Hugh Downs (pictured) left both ‘NBC-TV’s ‘Today show’ and Concentration’ for a year off; Canada’s first hockey telecast aired in French on Montreal’s CBFT; Rod Stewart got his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; Elton John’s ‘Candle in the Wind’ began its 12-week run atop the charts; and Bob Dylan played Vancouver’s Pacific Coliseum. Bowing out this date sadly were CBS newsman Douglas Edwards, ventriloquist Wayland Flowers, singers Connee Boswell, Tex Williams and Russ Hamilton, and actor/sportscaster Gil Stratton Jr. Details and ALL the Oct. 11th milestones INSIDE.

Born this date were Helen Hayes, Peter Coyote, Ivory Joe Hunter, Ben Vereen, Tanya Tucker, Mario Lopez, David Lee Roth and Thelonious Monk. The first of 165 episodes of ’77 Sunset Strip’ aired on ABC-TV; ‘Zorro’ and later ‘The Geena Davis Show’ also had their premieres on ABC. Frank Sinatra recorded his iconic ‘Come Fly With Me’; The Supremes appeared for the 1st time on CBS-TV’s ‘Ed Sullivan Show’; Queen released ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ as a single; Neil Diamond scored his first #1 hit with ‘Cracklin’ Rosie’; the BBC inexplicably banned the PG-rated ‘Monster Mash’; and Victoria got country music back when CKXM AM1200 signed on, replacing CKDA. Obits Oct 10th include Redd Foxx, Eddie Cantor, Christopher Reeve, Alex Karras, Solomon Burke, and announcer Tony Marvin. Details and ALL the milestones for the date INSIDE.

Celebrating birthdays this date are Sharon Osbourne, Scott Bakula, John O’Hurley, and Jackson Browne.. It was not only the late John Lennon’s date of birth, it was the day he met Yoko, and the date she gave birth to his son Sean. Dupont’s ‘Cavalcade of America’ debuted on CBS radio; it was the day the Vancouver Canucks debuted on Hockey Night in Canada, with Jim Robson at the mike; Howard Stern began his legendary morning show career at WCCC radio in Hartford Conn.; ‘Topper’ began its 21-month run on CBS-TV, Doc Severinsen (pictured) took over leadership of NBC-TV’s ‘Tonight Show’ band, and Joan Rivers started her ill-fated ‘Late Show’ on the Fox TV network. The regional sports network ‘CTV Sportsnet’ debuted on Canadian cable systems, and ‘Hit the Road Jack’ by Ray Charles was the #1 song. ALL the milestones for Oct. 9th are INSIDE.

Happy Birthday to Nick Cannon, Matt Damon, Bruno Mars, Dawna Friesen, Sigourney Weaver, Angus T. Jones, and Chevy Chase. Ozzie & Harriet (pictured) got married this date, and nine years later to the day began their weekly radio sitcom on CBS; the radio show with the distinctive opening, ‘Grand Central Station’ also debuted on CBS; ‘Quirks & Quarks’ began its long run on CBC Radio; ‘Empty Nest’ and ‘Ed’ had their premieres on NBC-TV, ‘Royal Canadian Air Farce’ began its weekly TV run on the CBC; ‘Cagney and Lacey’ got their start as a TV movie on ABC; Jerry Lee Lewis recorded his smash hit ‘Great Balls pf Fire’; and Stan Freberg’s satirical ‘St. George and the Dragonet’ was the #1 recording. Departing this ‘veil of tears’ were actors Fernando Lamas, Nigel Bruce and Karl Swenson, musicians Roger Williams and Jimmy Ferguson (Irish Rovers), and NBC newsman Frank Bourgholtzer. Details and ALL the milestones for Oct. 8th INSIDE.

It’s the birthday of Simon Cowell, Joy Behar, John Mellancamp, Toni Braxton, Andy Devine and Vaughn Monroe. The Fox News channel began programming on US cablesystems; the CBC began an ill-fated experiment with a 9 pm TV newscast; the original Hawaiian Eye aired the first of its 134 episodes on ABC-TV; The Rolling Stones performed on NBC’s Saturday Night Live; Bruce Springsteen was interviewed on CBS-TV’s 60 minutes; and Dennis Reid received the OK to sell his three Cariboo radio stations in BC. Alanna Morissette became the first Canadian woman to top the Billboard album chart; and obits include singers Billy Daniels and Mario Lanza, and Winnipeg media mogul Izzy Asper. ALL the milestones for Sept. 7th INSIDE.

It’s the birthday of CBS president Les Moonves, actors Jeremy Sisto and Ioan Gruffudd, plus the late Robert Mitchum, Canadian radio inventor Reginald Fessenden, and early Vancouver broadcaster Gerry Wilmot. Both ‘Show Boat’ and the human interest radio show ‘Hobby Lobby’ debuted on NBC, which also introduced Frank Sinatra as ‘Rocky Fortune’: ‘The Ed Wynn Show’ became the first regular live TV origination from the West Coast; Pat Boone guested on Rod Serling’s NBC-TV show ‘Night Gallery’; 21-yr old Barbra Streisand guested on CBS-TV’s ‘Judy Garland Show’; ‘Dear John’ starring Judd Hirsch (pictured) debuted on NBC-TV; the TV special ‘Ray Charles:50 Years of Music’ aired on FOX; and Howard Stern announced he would soon be moving to satellite radio. ALL the milestones for Oct. 6th can be found INSIDE.

It’s the birthday of Kate Winslet, Bob Geldof, Daniel Baldwin, Steve Miller, and the late Bernie Mac, Allen Ludden (pictured) and Godfrey announcer Tony Marvin. CBS radio’s ‘Hollywood Hotel’ became the first major national show to originate from Hollywood;’The Honeymooners’ were seen for the first time on the old Dumont Network; ‘Inner Sanctum Mysteries’ aired for the final time on ABC Radio, while ‘Gilmour’s Albums’ began its 40 year run on CBC radio, and Danny Finkleman began his 20 year run with ‘Finkleman’s 45′s’ Saturday night on the CBC. ‘Meet the Press’, still with us 70 years later, aired for the 1st time on Mutual radio, Details and ALL the milestones for Oct. 5th INSIDE.

It’s the date when Victoria’s 2nd TV station, ‘The New VI’ signed on; when Gordon MacRae hosted and sang on radio’s very first ‘Railroad Hour’; and when two East Coast US radio stations aired game one of the first complete World Series to be broadcast. Bryant Gumbel began his run as co-host of NBC-TV’s Today Show; Barbara Walters became the first woman to co-anchor a network newscast (ABC); CBS premiered the TV shows December Bride, Playhouse 90 and Leave It To Beaver. CBC Vancouver telecast its first live hockey game, and CBC News aired the first show in the ‘This Hour Has Seven Days’ series. Louis Armstrong and Pat Boone were headliners on CBS-TV’s Ed Sullivan Show; and Blondie starring Penny Singleton made the move from comic strips and radio to the TV screen. ALL the milestones for Oct. 4th can be found INSIDE.