1977 in American television

This is a list of American television-related events in 1977.

Events

Date Event
January 3 Holly Hallstrom becomes the third model on The Price is Right along with Janice Pennington and Dian Parkinson. This lineup would remain unchanged for the next thirteen years until Kathleen Bradley joined in 1990.
January 15 Bill Murray joins the cast of Saturday Night Live, replacing Chevy Chase who left the previous year.
January 31 The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries premieres on ABC, featuring teen detectives Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys. The series alternates between The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew each week, with Pamela Sue Martin as Nancy Drew and Parker Stevenson and Shaun Cassidy as Frank and Joe Hardy. Co-starring includes Ed Gilbert as Fenton Hardy, Edith Atwater as Aunt Gertrude Hardy, and Lisa Eilbacher as Callie Shaw in the Hardy Boys part, with William Schallert as Carson Drew, Jean Rasey as George Fayne, and George O'Hanlon, Jr. as Ned Nickerson in the Nancy Drew part.
February 4 American Bandstand celebrates its 25th anniversary on television with a special hosted by Dick Clark. An "all-star band" made up of Chuck Berry, Seals & Crofts, Gregg Allman, Junior Walker, Johnny Rivers, the Pointer Sisters, Charlie Daniels, Doc Severinsen, Les McCann, Donald Byrd, Chuck Mangione and three members of Booker T and the MGs perform "Roll Over Beethoven."
February 27 Fed up with excessive violence and distorted images of sex on TV, the Reverend Donald Wildmon declares "Turn the Television Off Week." Few do.
March 1 "Match Game" is the #1 rated game show on television for the fifth year in a row
March 7 Second Chance, the forerunner to Press Your Luck, premieres on ABC.
March 15 Renata Scotto and Luciano Pavarotti are seen in "La bohème" on PBS and heard in stereo on local (mostly NPR) stations in the first live "simulcast" from the Met.
June 6 Lisa Peluso makes her first appearance on Search for Tomorrow.
August 16 Television stations nationwide interrupt regular programming following news of the death of Elvis Presley.
September 14 A tube top-clad woman named Yolanda Bowsley is called into Contestant's Row on The Price is Right, and while running down her breasts pop out of her shirt. The incident was censored with a large blue bar but it is still remembered today.
October 24 A new Peanuts special, It's Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown, airs on CBS. It shows and names "Heather", the Little Red-Haired Girl, thereupon ending the 'mystery'.
November 30 CBS commentator Eric Sevareid bade farewell in his final two-minute segment on The CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite, after 48 years at CBS News.
December 2 Billy Crystal sets a winner's circle record by getting the contestant to the top of the pyramid in 26 seconds on ABC's The $20,000 Pyramid. The record still stands today.

Programs

Series on air in 1977

ABC

CBS

NBC

PBS

In syndication

Debuts

Date Show Network
January 3 Lovers and Friends NBC
Shoot for the Stars
January 10 Circus of the Stars CBS
January 17 Busting Loose
January 30 The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries ABC
January 31 The Andros Targets CBS
February 2 Quinn Martin's Tales of the Unexpected NBC
February 18 Hunter CBS
March 7 Second Chance ABC
March 15 Eight Is Enough
Three's Company
March 20 Loves Me, Loves Me Not CBS
March 23 How Do You Like Your Eggs? QUBE
April 1 This Week in Baseball Syndication
April 19 The Amazing Spider-Man CBS
May 7 Quark NBC
June 13 It's Anybody's Guess
July 18 The Better Sex ABC
August 3 The Kallikaks NBC
September 5 The Fitzpatricks CBS
September 10 Baggy Pants and the Nitwits NBC
CB Bears
I Am the Greatest: The Adventures of Muhammad Ali
The New Archie and Sabrina Hour
The Red Hand Gang
Search and Rescue
Space Sentinels
Thunder
Scooby's All-Star Laff-A-Lympics ABC
The Skatebirds CBS
Space Academy
September 12 The Betty White Show
Young Dan'l Boone
Lucan ABC
September 13 Soap
Mulligan's Stew NBC
The Richard Pryor Show
September 14 Inside the NFL HBO
September 15 Carter Country ABC
CHiPs NBC
September 16 Sanford Arms
Logan's Run CBS
September 17 Operation Petticoat ABC
September 19 The San Pedro Beach Bums
September 20 Lou Grant CBS
September 21 The Oregon Trail NBC
September 22 Man from Atlantis
September 24 The Love Boat ABC
October 1 We've Got Each Other CBS
October 3 Knockout NBC
To Say the Least
October 9 On Our Own CBS
October 27 James at 15 NBC
December 1 Pinwheel Nickelodeon

Returning this year

Title Last aired Previous network New title New network Date of return
The Mickey Mouse Club 1959 ABC The New Mickey Mouse Club Syndication January 17

Ending this year

Date Show Debut
January 7 New Howdy Doody Show 1976
January 26 The Practice
March 3 The McLean Stevenson Show
March 18 Sanford and Son 1972
March 19 The Mary Tyler Moore Show 1970
March 30 The Streets of San Francisco 1972
April 13 Sirota's Court 1976
April 15 The Electric Company 1971
April 17 McCloud 1970
April 24 McMillan & Wife 1971
April 27 Loves Me, Loves Me Not 1977
May 16 The Andros Targets
May 27 Hunter
July 30 The Feather and Father Gang 1976
August 24 Quinn Martin's Tales of the Unexpected 1977
August 31 The Kallikaks
September 2 Let's Make a Deal 1971
October 4 The Richard Pryor Show 1977
October 14 Sanford Arms
November 16 Busting Loose
November 30 The Oregon Trail
December 3 Emergency! 1972
December 13 Mulligan's Stew 1977
December 19 The San Pedro Beach Bums

Changes of network affiliation

Show Moved from Moved to
The Bionic Woman ABC NBC
Wonder Woman CBS

Made-for-TV movies

Debut Name Network
May 13 The San Pedro Bums ABC
November 10 The Incredible Hulk CBS
November 26 The Hobbit NBC
December 11 It Happened One Christmas CBS

Miniseries

Debut Name Network
January 23 Roots ABC
April 3 Jesus of Nazareth NBC

Births

Date Name Notability
January 7 Dustin Diamond Actor (Saved by the Bell)
April 14 Sarah Michelle Gellar Actress (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
July 30 Jaime Pressly Actress (My Name Is Earl)
August 2 Edward Furlong Actor (CSI: NY)
August 27 Janet McLachlan Actress
December 6 Lindsey Alley Actress (On the Patio)

Deaths

Date Name Age Notability
January 28 Burt Mustin 92 Actor (Leave It to Beaver)
January 29 Freddie Prinze 22 Actor and comedian (Chico and the Man)
February 28 Eddie "Rochester" Anderson 71 Comedian (The Jack Benny Program)
March 27 Diana Hyland 41 Actress (The Fugitive)
June 14 Alan Reed 69 Actor (original voice of Fred Flintstone in The Flintstones)
August 16 Elvis Presley 42 Singer and actor (The Ed Sullivan Show)
August 19 Groucho Marx 86 Comedian, television host (You Bet Your Life)
August 22 Sebastian Cabot 59 Actor (Family Affair)
August 29 Jean Hagen 54 Actress (Make Room for Daddy)