1958 in American television

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This is a list of American television-related events in 1958.

Events[edit]

Date Event Ref.
August 15 Dotto, a pioneer in big-money quiz shows, becomes the first game show to be cancelled due to the probe in the quiz show scandals. This was due to a federal investigation that started with the allegation that a contestant of that program has been given answers in advance of the show's taping. Several other quiz shows were later canceled due to the investigation.
October 17 Fred Astaire makes his television starring debut in An Evening with Fred Astaire, an NBC special that later won nine Emmy Awards, and is one of the first television specials to be preserved by means of videotape.
September 16 Orson Welles's The Fountain of Youth is broadcast on NBC-TV's Colgate Theatre. Filmed in 1956 for a proposed Desilu series, the half-hour program airs only once and becomes the only unsold pilot ever to win a Peabody Award. [1]: 424–425 [2][3]: 307 

Other television-related events in 1958[edit]

Television programs[edit]

Debuts[edit]

Date Debut Network
January 4 Sea Hunt Broadcast syndication
January 7 Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Broadcast syndication
January 12 Shirley Temple's Storybook NBC
January 18 Young People's Concerts CBS
February 10[4] J. P. Patches KIRO-TV
February 10 Walt Disney Presents: Annette ABC
February 15[5] The Dick Clark Show ABC
March[6] Target Broadcast syndication
April 25[7] Jefferson Drum NBC
May 8 Jazz Party Dumont
July 3[8] Buckskin NBC
July 7 Frontier Justice CBS
August 25 Concentration NBC
September 6[9] The Adventures of Spunky and Tadpole Broadcast syndication
September 6 Wanted Dead or Alive CBS
September 14 Northwest Passage NBC
September 22[10] Peter Gunn NBC
September 23 Bronco ABC
September 23[11] Rescue 8 Broadcast syndication
September 24 The Donna Reed Show ABC
September 26 Frontier Doctor Broadcast syndication
September 27 Cimarron City NBC
September 29[12] The Huckleberry Hound Show Broadcast syndication
September 29 The Texan CBS
September 30 Naked City ABC
September 30 The Rifleman ABC
October This Is Alice NTA Film Network
October 1 Mackenzie's Raiders Broadcast syndication
October 2[13][14] Behind Closed Doors NBC
October 2 Felix the Cat Broadcast syndication
October 2[15] Pixie and Dixie and Mr. Jinks Broadcast syndication
October 2 The Rough Riders ABC
October 2 Yancy Derringer CBS
October 3[16] Lux Playhouse NBC
October 5 Lawman ABC
October 6 The Ann Sothern Show CBS
October 6 Cannonball Broadcast syndication
October 6 Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse CBS
October 8 Bat Masterson NBC
October 8 Kraft Music Hall NBC
October 10 77 Sunset Strip ABC
October 10 Man with a Camera ABC
October 21 The George Burns Show NBC
October 22[17] Pursuit CBS
November 4 Flight Broadcast syndication

Ending this year[edit]

Date Show Network Debut Notes
August 15 Dotto CBS (daytime)
NBC (primetime)
January 6, 1958 This program was one of several that were implicated in the quiz show scandals.
September 7 The $64,000 Challenge CBS April 8, 1956
October 16 Twenty-One NBC 1956
November 2 The $64,000 Question CBS June 7, 1955
December 11 Jefferson Drum NBC April 25, 1958[7]

Networks and services[edit]

Network launches[edit]

Network Type Launch date Notes Source
Badger Television Network Over-the-air regional January A three-station regional television network involving three ABC affiliated stations in Wisconsin, including in Milwaukee, Madison, and Green Bay, with Milwaukee's WISN-TV serving as the network's flagship. [18]

Network closures[edit]

Network Type End date Notes Source
Badger Television Network Over-the-air regional August 8 It ceased operations due to financial issues. [18]

Television stations[edit]

Station launches[edit]

Date Market Station Channel Affiliation Notes/References
January 1 Helena, Montana KXLJ-TV 12 NBC
Peoria, Illinois WMBD-TV 31 CBS
January 6 San Juan, Puerto Rico WIPR-TV 6 NET
January 20 Salt Lake City, Utah KUED 7 NET
January 21 Rapid City, South Dakota KRSD-TV 3 NBC
January 23 Minot, North Dakota KMOT-TV 10 NBC (primary)
ABC (secondary)
semi-satellite of KFYR-TV Bismarck
February 1 Orlando, Florida WLOF-TV 9 ABC
February 2 San Juan, Puerto Rico WSTE-TV 7 Independent
February 8 Seattle, Washington KIRO-TV 7 CBS
February 17 Atlanta, Georgia WETV 30 NET
March 3 Oakland/San Francisco, California KTVU 2 Independent
March 5 Scottsbluff, Nebraska KDUH-TV 4 ABC
March 15 Billings, Montana KGHL-TV 8 NBC (primary)
ABC (secondary)
April 1 Eureka, California KVIQ-TV 6 NBC
May 1 Albuquerque, New Mexico KNME-TV 5 NET
September 2 Salina, Kansas KAYS-TV 7 CBS (primary)
ABC (secondary)
Semi-satellite of KTVH (now KWCH-DT) in Hutchinson
September 5 Louisville, Kentucky WFPK 15 NET Now KET/PBS affiliate WKPC-TV
September 10 Jacksonville, Florida WJCT 7 NET
September 14 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania WTAE-TV 4 ABC
September 20 Nacogdoches, Texas KTES 19 Independent
October 5 Great Falls, Montana KRTV 3 NBC
October 8 Alexandria, Minnesota KCMT 7 CBS Satellite of WCCO-TV/Minneapolis, Minnesota
October 12 Flint, Michigan WJRT-TV 12 ABC
October 17 Tampa, Florida WEDU 3 NET
October 20 Kalispell, Montana KULR 9 Independent
October 27 Tampa, Florida WEDU 3 NET
November 5 Garden City, Kansas KGLD 11 NBC Satellite of KCKT/Hays
November 9 Nampa, Idaho (Boise, Idaho) KCIX-TV 6 Independent
November 10 Gainesville, Florida WUFT 5 NET
November 17 Wailuku, Hawaii KAII-TV 7 NBC Satellite of KONA-TV (now KHON-TV) in Honolulu
November 27 Aberdeen, South Dakota KXAB-TV 9 NBC (primary)
ABC (secondary)
November 30 Buffalo, New York WKBW-TV 7 ABC
December 1 Odessa, Texas KVKM-TV 9 ABC
December 5 Toledo, Ohio WTOL 11 CBS (primary)
NBC (secondary)
December 15 North Platte, Nebraska KNOP-TV 2 NBC

Network affiliation changes[edit]

Date Market Station Channel Old affiliation New affiliation References
November 16 Hartford, Connecticut WTIC-TV (original) 3 Independent CBS
Unknown date Lexington, Kentucky WKXP-TV 27

Station closures[edit]

Date City of license/Market Station Channel Affiliation First air date Notes/Ref.
April 7 Kalispell, Montana KGEZ-TV 9 Independent July 9, 1957
May 7 Honolulu, Hawaii KHVH-TV 13 Independent May 5, 1957 Merged with KULA-TV (now KITV)
May 11 Fort Lauderdale, Florida WITV 17 ABC November 25, 1953
May 31 York, Pennsylvania
(Harrisburg/Lebanon)
WNOW-TV 49 NTA Film Network November 9, 1953
June 5 Bloomington, Illinois WBLN 15 December 1, 1953
June 20 Fayetteville/Raleigh, North Carolina WFLB-TV 18 ABC (primary)
CBS/NBC (secondary)
June 21 San Francisco KSAN-TV 32 Independent March 9, 1954
July 16 Honolulu, Hawaii KHVH-TV 13 Independent May 5, 1957
September 10 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Pennsylvania WILK-TV 34 ABC (primary)
NTA Film Network (secondary)
September 7, 1953 Merged with current ABC affiliate WNEP-TV in Scranton.
September 13 Wilmington, Delaware WVUE 12 Indepdendent March 23, 1949
September 30 Buffalo, New York WBUF 17 NBC August 17, 1953 Returned to the air in 1959 as NET member station WNED-TV

Births[edit]

Deaths[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Welles, Orson, and Peter Bogdanovich, edited by Jonathan Rosenbaum, This is Orson Welles. New York: HarperCollins Publishers 1992 ISBN 0-06-016616-9
  2. ^ Adams, Val, "Peabody Awards for 1958 Listed". The New York Times, April 8, 1959.
  3. ^ Arnaz, Desi. A Book. New York: William Morrow, 1976. ISBN 0-688-00342-7
  4. ^ "58th Anniversary of the First Show". jppatches.com. Archived from the original on September 13, 2017. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  5. ^ Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earle (Edition 7 — 1997), The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows: 1946—Present, Random House Inc., page 537, ISBN 0-345-45542-8
  6. ^ Tim Brooks; Earle Marsh (2003). "Target (Dramatic Anthology)". The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946–Present (Eighth ed.). New York: Ballantine Books. p. 1172. ISBN 978-0-345-45542-0.
  7. ^ a b "Jefferson Drum". ctva.biz. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
  8. ^ Woolery, George W. (1985). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981, Part II: Live, Film, and Tape Series. The Scarecrow Press. pp. 76–77. ISBN 0-8108-1651-2.
  9. ^ DataBase, The Big Cartoon. "The Adventures of Spunky and Tadpole Episode Guide -Beverly Hills Prods". Big Cartoon DataBase (BCDB). Retrieved 5 October 2019.[dead link]
  10. ^ Snauffer, Douglas (2006). Crime Television. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 22–24. ISBN 978-0-275-98807-4. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
  11. ^ "The Ferris Wheel on Rescue 8, September 23, 1958". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
  12. ^ Woolery, George W. (1983). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981. Scarecrow Press. pp. 144–146. ISBN 0-8108-1557-5. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  13. ^ 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. 84.
  14. ^ 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. 88.
  15. ^ Tipton Tribune, Sept. 29, 1958, p. 7
  16. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (24 June 2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing Group. p. 823. ISBN 978-0-307-48320-1. Retrieved November 4, 2021.
  17. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (1999). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present (7th ed.). New York: The Ballentine Publishing Group. p. 833. ISBN 0-345-42923-0.
  18. ^ a b Dick Golembiewski (2008). Milwaukee Television History: The Analog Years. Marquette University Press. pp. 230-231. ISBN 0-87462-055-4

External links[edit]