1952 in television

The year 1952 in television involved some significant events. Below is a list of television-related events in 1952.

Events

• January 14 – NBC's Today show debuts, with host Dave Garroway, newsreader Jim Fleming and announcer Jack Lescoulie.
• February 15 – The funeral of King George VI is televised in the UK.
• July 20 – Arrow to the Heart, the first collaboration between director Rudolph Cartier and scriptwriter Nigel Kneale, is broadcast by BBC Television.
• August 1 – First TV broadcast in the Dominican Republic by La Voz Dominicana, a TV station based on the radio station of the same name.
• September 6 – TV debuts in Canada with the launch of CBFT in Montreal, Quebec.
• September 8 – CBLT in Toronto, Ontario goes to air as Canada's second TV station.
• September 20 – The first commercial UHF television station in the world, KPTV (today a Fox affiliate), begins broadcasting in Portland, Oregon on channel 27.
• October 7 – WFIL-TV Philadelphia's afternoon show Bandstand, which will become American Bandstand, changes focus to teens dancing to popular records
• November 16 - CBS Television City in Hollywood California opens.
• The first political advertisements appear on US television. Democrats buy a 30 minute slot for their candidate, Adlai Stevenson. Stevenson is bombarded with hate mail for interfering with a broadcast of I Love Lucy. Dwight Eisenhower buys 20 second commercial spots and wins the election.
• The first telecast of an atomic bomb detonation (KTLA).
• The FCC sets aside channels for non-commercial, public broadcasting.
• There are approximately 146,000 television sets in Canada and most antennas are pointed towards Buffalo's WBEN-TV (now WIVB).
• The first telecast of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is broadcast by CBS.

Debuts

• January 14 – The Today Show premieres on NBC (1952–present).
• March 1 – Death Valley Days premieres in syndication (1952–1975).
• June 19 – I've Got a Secret premieres on CBS (1952–1967).
• June 30 – The Guiding Light premieres on CBS (1952–2009). This soap opera began on radio in 1937 and finished in 1952. It went on to become the longest-running regularly scheduled drama program in television history.
• September – This Is the Life on DuMont. This religious drama ran from 1952 through the late 1980s, for most of its life in syndication.
• September 19 – Adventures of Superman premieres in syndication (1952–1958).
• October 26 – Victory at Sea, one of the first historic documentary series, premieres on NBC (1952–1953).
• November 1 – Hockey Night in Canada premieres on CBC (1952–present).
• November 6 - Biff Baker, U.S.A. premieres on CBS (1952–1953)
• December 1 - The Abbott and Costello Show premieres in syndication (1952–1954)
• December 15 – Flower Pot Men premieres on BBC Television (1952).
• American Bandstand, originally called Bandstand, premieres as local program in Philadelphia (1952–1989).
• Life Is Worth Living with Bishop Fulton J. Sheen premiers on DuMont (1952–1955), then on ABC (1955–1957)
• My Little Margie (1952–1955), starring Gale Storm.
• See It Now premieres, hosted by Edward R. Murrow.
• The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet on ABC (1952–1966).
• The Ernie Kovacs Show premieres. Kovacs pushes the limits of television technology with his use of camera tricks and special effects (1952–1953).
• Meet the Masters, a program about classical music, premieres on NBC and WGN-TV.
• This Is Your Life premieres in the US (1952–1961).
• Life with Elizabeth Famous sitcom starring Betty White (1952–1955).

Television shows

listed by starting year

• Muffin the Mule (UK) (1946–1955).
• Gillette Cavalcade of Sports (1946–1960).
• Kaleidoscope (UK) (1946–1953).
• Café Continental (UK) (1947–1953).
• Author Meets the Critics (1947–1954).
• Juvenile Jury (1947–1954).
• Kukla, Fran and Ollie (1947–1957).
• Howdy Doody (1947–1960)
• Kraft Television Theater (1947–1958)
• Meet the Press (1947–present)
• Candid Camera (1948–present)
• Television Newsreel (UK) (1948–1954)
• The Ed Sullivan Show (1948–1971)
• The Texaco Star Theater (1948–1953)
• Bozo the Clown (1948–present).
• Come Dancing (UK) (1949–1995)
• Martin Kane, Private Eye (1949–1954)
• The Goldbergs (1949–1955)
• The Voice of Firestone (1949–1963)
• Hawkins Falls (1950, 1951–1955)
• Cisco Kid (1950–1956)
• The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1950–1958)
• The Jack Benny Show (1950–1965)
• Truth or Consequences (1950–1988)
• Your Hit Parade (1950–1959)
• Your Show of Shows (1950–1954)
• What's My Line (1950–1967)
• Amos & Andy (1951–1953)
• Dragnet (1951–1959)
• I Love Lucy (1951–1960)
• Love of Life (1951–1980)
• Search for Tomorrow (1951–1986)
• Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951–present)
• The Roy Rogers Show (1951–1957)
• Life with Elizabeth (1952–1955)

Ending this year

• Picture Page (UK) (1936–1939; 1946–1952).
• Stop the Music (1949–1952, revived 1954-1956)

Births

• March 2 – Laraine Newman, actress, comedian, Saturday Night Live
• March 4 - Ronn Moss, actor, musician, The Bold and the Beautiful
• April 1 - Annette O'Toole, actress
• April 5 - Mitch Pileggi, actor, The X-Files
• April 6 - Marilu Henner, actress & producer
• May 4 – Michael Barrymore, British comedian & presenter
• May 6 - Gregg Henry, actor & musician
  • Michael O'Hare, actor, Babylon 5
• May 11 - Frances Fisher, British-born actress
• May 21 – Mr. T, actor, The A-Team
• June 18 – Carol Kane, actress
• June 20 – John Goodman, actor
• July 1 – Dan Aykroyd, Canadian actor, comedian, Saturday Night Live
• July 17 – David Hasselhoff, actor
• August 10 - Daniel Hugh Kelly, actor
• August 18 – Patrick Swayze, actor & dancer (died 2009)
• August 19 - Jonathan Frakes, actor, director, Star Trek: The Next Generation
• September 25 – Christopher Reeve, actor (died 2004)
• October 9 – Sharon Osbourne, The Osbournes, The X Factor
• October 28 - Annie Potts, actress, Designing Women
• November 3 – Roseanne Barr, actress & comedian
• November 8 - Alfre Woodard, actress
• December 9 - Michael Dorn, actor, Star Trek: The Next Generation
• December 12 - Sarah Douglas, English actress