| Date |
Event |
| 1 |
WPGA-TV/Macon, Georgia drops its ABC affiliation to become independent. WGXA, the Fox affiliate in Macon, adds ABC to its digital subchannel, reuniting the station with the network it was previously affiliated with.[1] |
| Unable to reach a deal with Scripps Networks Interactive concerning retransmission fees, Cablevision temporarily drops Scripps-owned HGTV and the Food Network from its lineup.[2] The dispute is resolved on January 21.[3] |
| 2 |
Time Warner Cable and News Corporation sign a new retransmission deal, thus averting what would have been a blackout of the Fox broadcast network and several cable networks on Time Warner Cable systems.[4] |
| 5 |
The ABC soap All My Children celebrates 40 years on the air. Additionally, the program will convert to high definition as it moves production from New York to Los Angeles (the first episodes in the format air in February).[5] |
| 6 |
David Hasselhoff announces that he will not return as a judge for America's Got Talent due to pursuing other projects.[6] |
| 7 |
Sinclair Broadcast Group reaches a one-year retransmission agreement with Mediacom.[7] |
| Reports surface that NBC may move Jay Leno back into the 11:35 p.m. ET/PT slot and move Conan O'Brien's Tonight Show back to 12:05 AM (ET/PT);[8] an NBC representative later confirms that Leno's primetime show will end in February.[9] NBC's plan displeases O'Brien, who in a January 12 open letter states his refusal to do The Tonight Show at any other time slot other than its traditional 11:35PM time.[10] Thus begins a bitter divorce between O'Brien and NBC that would result in a $45 million exit deal[11] from NBC for O'Brien—but not before the controversy becomes a media cause celebre, with O'Brien gaining sympathy from fellow talk hosts and the general public and NBC receiving a public relations black eye. |
| Top-ranked Alabama defeats second-ranked Texas, 37–21, in college football's 2010 BCS National Championship Game. It is the last BCS game to air on broadcast television (on ABC), with cable network ESPN taking over coverage of the entire BCS the following season. (Fox's relationship with the BCS ended on January 4 with its broadcast of the Fiesta Bowl.) |
| 10 |
Fox's animated sitcom The Simpsons celebrates 20 years on the air as a weekly television series with the episode "Once Upon a Time in Springfield" (Anne Hathaway, Jackie Mason and Eartha Kitt are guest voices).[12] A one-hour 20th anniversary special, hosted by Morgan Spurlock, follows the episode. |
| Howie Mandel is announced as the new judge for America's Got Talent.[13] |
| 11 |
Fox announces that Simon Cowell will depart from American Idol in May in order to launch a US version of X Factor in Fall 2011.[14] |
| 20 |
The FCC votes to close the terrestrial loophole that keeps fiber delivered regional sports networks such as Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, 4SD, Cox Sports Television, Time Warner Cable SportsNet, and Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast off of satellite systems.[15] Comcast files an appeal the next day.[16] |
| 22 |
Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief, an international telethon to provide relief for survivors of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, airs live on all major United States broadcast networks, many cable channels, and many other television channels across the world. |
| Conan O'Brien's 7½-month, 146-episode run as host of The Tonight Show comes to an end (and with it his 20+ year relationship with NBC). Tom Hanks and Neil Young are his final guests; Steve Carell makes a surprise appearance, conducting an "exit interview" with O'Brien; and Beck, Ben Harper, Billy Gibbons, and Will Ferrell perform "Free Bird" with O'Brien and The Tonight Show Band in the closing segment. |
| 26 |
Competitors DirecTV and Dish Network team up to file a lawsuit in Massachusetts alleging discrimination in reaction to the state's new 5% satellite TV tax.[17] |
| 28 |
Samantha Harris announces that she will not return as the co-host of Dancing with the Stars in order to focus on other projects like her correspondent duties at The Insider and Entertainment Tonight.[18] |
| 31 |
In what can be described as rarity for having a person who works for one network appearing on a competitor, Fox News Channel president Roger Ailes is among the guest panelists on ABC's This Week; in a roundtable discussion, Ailes defends his network's reputation from the other panelists.[19] |
| Date |
Event |
| 4 |
ESPN360, an ESPN Internet site that streams live sporting events, is rebranded as ESPN3.[44] |
| 5 |
Galaxy 15, a TV communications satellite operated by Intelsat, is reportedly drifting out of control thousands of miles above the Earth. The satellite, which transmits programming feeds from MTV Networks, Lifetime Entertainment Services, Univision, Hallmark, Showtime, C-SPAN and A&E, threatens to wander into another satellite's orbit and interfere with cable programming across the United States.[45] |
| 8 |
ESPN's first round coverage of the 2010 Masters Tournament becomes the most-watched golf telecast in cable history, as 4.9 million people tune in to see Tiger Woods' first golf outing since his highly-publicized scandal.[46] |
| 12 |
After months of speculation about Conan O'Brien's future in television following his controversial exit from NBC, TBS announces that O'Brien will host a new show to air Monday-thru-Thursdays at 11PM ET beginning in November. Lopez Tonight, which had been airing in that time slot, will move to midnight.[47] |
| Kevin Eubanks, bandleader for Jay Leno's Tonight Show and prime-time series, announces his departure after 18 years with Leno. |
| 13 |
LIN TV Corporation re-brands itself LIN Media in an effort to emphasize its internet and mobile interests (although the corporate name remains LIN TV Corporation).[48] |
| 14 |
Comedy Central airs the 200th episode of South Park, with many of the celebrities the series has previously mocked banding together to sue the town. After the broadcast, Islamic website Revolution Muslim posts a warning to co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, stating they could face serious repercussions for their depictions of the prophet Muhammad.[49] The followup to the episode, "201", is heavily censored and airs only once, with the network disallowing streaming of the original, unedited version on the Internet. Authorities later investigate whether there is a connection between South Park and the Times Square car bomb attempt, which was discovered near Comedy Central parent Viacom's headquarters at One Astor Plaza in New York City on May 1.[50] |
| 15 |
Executives at Fox News Channel cancel a taped broadcast of Hannity from Cincinnati, Ohio after it was discovered that the event's organizers, the Cincinnati Tea Party, were billing host Sean Hannity as a centerpiece of the event and charging admission to the taping.[51][52] |
| 17 |
Matt Smith's U.S. debut as the Eleventh Doctor on the long-running British series Doctor Who pulls in the highest ratings in BBC America's history (with 1.2 million viewers).[53] |
| 22 |
Entering into a joint bid with Turner Sports, CBS is granted the rights to continue broadcasting the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, which it has done since 1982. From 2011 to 2015, CBS and Turner will split coverage of early rounds through the Sweet Sixteen, with CBS carrying the regional finals, Final Four and national championship. Turner will then pick up the later rounds on an alternating basis beginning in 2016. Turner's coverage will air on TBS, TNT, and truTV.[54] |
| The NFL Draft, starting in prime time for the first time ever, sets a record for number of viewers (8.3 million total between NFL Network and ESPN, 7.29 million on the latter network alone).[55] |
| Date |
Event |
| 2 |
Conan O'Brien makes his first appearance on television since his Tonight Show finale, sitting down with Steve Kroft for an interview on CBS' 60 Minutes to discuss the Tonight Show controversy and its aftermath.[56] |
| 4 |
London Broadcasting Company announces a deal to acquire KIII/Corpus Christi from McKinnon Broadcasting Company for $10 million.[57] |
| 8 |
Betty White hosts Saturday Night Live, the result of a successful push by her fans on Facebook to get the veteran actress on the long-running NBC variety show. Former SNL cast members Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Molly Shannon, Maya Rudolph, Ana Gasteyer and Rachel Dratch also appear on the show, which airs into Mother's Day.[58] White's appearance is critically acclaimed, and she goes on to win the Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series, her seventh overall. |
| 10 |
Barbara Walters announces on The View that she will take a leave of absence to undergo surgery to repair a faulty heart valve.[59] |
| 12 |
Haim Saban's Saban Brands purchases the Power Rangers franchise back from Disney; the company plans to air a new 19th season of Power Rangers on Nickelodeon in Spring 2011, with the previous 700 episodes being rerun on Nicktoons.[60][61] |
| 13 |
Former Food Network celebrity Juan-Carlos Cruz is arrested in Santa Monica, California for attempting to recruit homeless people to perform a murder-for-hire plot.[62] |
| 14 |
NBC confirms it has canceled Law & Order.[63] Series executive producer Dick Wolf reportedly considers moving the show to TNT, where it has aired in reruns for several years.[64] (AMC would consider picking up the show as well.)[65] Neither network makes the move, and as a result the series fails to surpass Gunsmoke's 20-season record for the longest running primetime drama on American television. |
| After a single season, Fox cancels The Wanda Sykes Show, its most recent attempt at original late-night programming on Saturdays (a time slot that previously aired MADtv and Talkshow with Spike Feresten).[66] Reruns of current FOX shows (i.e. Terra Nova, New Girl, etc.) occupy the time slot. FOX is slated to launch new programming in the slot in 2013 with late night animation programming. |
| 18 |
CNN prime time host Campbell Brown announces she is leaving the channel, citing difficulty in competing with Fox News' Bill O'Reilly and MSNBC's Keith Olbermann as her main reason as well as a desire to spend more time with her family.[67] |
| 20 |
The Parents Television Council announced that it plans to target CBS and its affiliates after the network announces that the new sitcom $#*! My Dad Says was added to the 2010–2011 fall TV lineup. The PTC cites both the show's title and its Thursday night 8:30PM timeslot as reasons.[68] The show is cancelled after one season. |
| 21 |
In a dispute over carriage fees and allegations of the network's gravitation from information to entertainment-based programming, Dish Network drops The Weather Channel and replaces it with its own channel, "The Weather Cast.".[69] The dispute is resolved 3 days later as Dish restores The Weather Channel and shutters The Weather Cast, making it the shortest-lived cable/satellite channel in history.[70] |
| 22 |
Fuse TV airs Gulf Aid: Concert For The Coast a benefit concert in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.[71] |
| 23 |
Daystar Television Network launches the digital signals of the remaining stations it purchased from Equity Media Holdings, which had been caught in limbo due to Equity's bankruptcy and the digital transition. The sign-ons come just three weeks before the stations' licenses would have automatically been forfeited back to the FCC.[72] |
| LOST airs its final episode. |
| 26 |
Disney/ABC announces it will shut down SoapNet in 2012 and replace it with a channel aimed at pre-schoolers named Disney Junior.[73] |
| 31 |
Fine Living Network is shut down, relaunched and rebranded as Cooking Channel, an instructional counterpart to Food Network.[74] |
| Date |
Event |
| 1 |
DirecTV and Panasonic launch n3D, the world's first 24 hour 3DTV channel.[86] |
| 7 |
Due to poor sales and possibly a decline in ratings and interest in American Idol's 9th season, the accompanying "American Idols LIVE! Tour 2010" cancels eight of its 38 shows.[87] |
| 8 |
NBA player LeBron James buys an hour of airtime on ESPN to announce he will sign with the Miami Heat via free agency instead of staying with the Cleveland Cavaliers. The advertising proceeds from the special, titled The Decision, go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.[88] |
| 9 |
A profanity-laced video parody involving the news department at NBC affiliate KARK-TV in Little Rock, Arkansas that later surfaces on YouTube leads to station management dismissing four employees involved in the stunt.[89][90] |
| 10 |
Dish Network/EchoStar launches its newest satellite, EchoStar XV.[91] |
| 11 |
The final match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, in which Spain defeats the Netherlands, becomes the most watched soccer match in American television history, with 24.3 million people tuning into ABC and Univision to watch the final.[92] |
| 12 |
MTV Tr3́s drops the "MTV" from its name and simply becomes Tr3́s, with a new slogan "MTV: Musica y Mas" (Spanish for MTV: Music and More).[93] |
| With over 7.5 million viewers,[94] the premiere of the TNT drama Rizzoli & Isles sets a record as the highest-rated debut for a commercial-supported cable series; it is also the second-highest debut ever for a basic cable TV series.[95][96] |
| 15 |
AT&T Uverse and Rainbow Media reach a new carriage deal, resolving a dispute that would have kept WE tv, AMC, Sundance Channel and IFC from being on the IPTV provider.[97] |
| 16 |
Rich Fields announces on his website that he has been let go as announcer of The Price is Right, as producers look to change certain aspects of the game show, including adding performances by live bands and putting a comedian at the podium Fields occupied for six years.[98] Fields is the only announcer in the history of the long running CBS game show to leave without dying. Fields however, would be one of the group of guest announcers on Wheel of Fortune (U.S. game show) in November following the death of longtime wheel announcer Charlie O'Donnell. |
| 27 |
Residents in the state of Hawaii lose cable, television, telephone and Internet service from Oceanic Time Warner Cable for nearly two hours after its fiber optic cable system, located 3,000 feet deep in the Molokai Channel, is severely damaged. The hardest hit areas are the island counties of Maui and Hawaii (The Big Island). A new fiber optic cable system is expected to be in place within three to five weeks.[99] |
| 29 |
American President Barack Obama pays a visit to The View, making him the first sitting president to appear on a daytime talk show. |
| 30 |
Ellen DeGeneres announces that she will leave as American Idol judge after one season, saying in a statement that the series "didn't feel like the right fit for me".[100] This is followed by the announcement that Kara DioGuardi had been fired from her role as a judge after two seasons on the show.[101] |
| 31 |
Baylor University-owned PBS outlet KWBU-TV/Waco, Texas signs off the air after 21 years due to the university's budgetary concerns.[102][103][104] |
| Date |
Event |
| 1 |
Sony launches a new movie channel called Sony Movie Channel, its first wholly-owned American channel.[127] |
| Fox Sports en Español changes its name to Fox Deportes.[128] |
| Dish Network drops Fox-owned channels FX, National Geographic Channel, and 19 FSN affiliates due to a carriage dispute.[129] Fox Cable Networks also informs Dish Network customers that the contracts for owned and operated Fox and MyNetworkTV broadcast stations, along with Fox affiliates formerly owned by the network and since sold to Local TV LLC expire on November 1.[130] |
| Dish Network drops MSG Media-owned channels MSG Network and MSG Plus due to a carriage dispute that continues to this day.[131] |
| CNN announces it has terminated Rick Sanchez, one day after the anchor made comments on a radio show that referred to Jon Stewart as a "bigot" and suggested that CNN is run by Jewish people.[132] |
| 6 |
BET's 106 & Park celebrates 10th anniversary of the past years of broadcasting since 2000. |
| 8 |
For the first time in its 46 years, PBS affiliate KCET/Los Angeles announces that it will become an independent educational station and drop PBS on December 31, 2010.[133] |
| 10 |
Discovery Kids is relaunched (and rebranded) as The Hub, a new kids and family channel jointly operated by Discovery Communications and Hasbro, Inc.[134] |
| 11 |
Caitlin Sanchez, the voice of Dora the Explorer, sues Nickelodeon for $7 million in back pay stemming from a contract dispute.[135] |
| 14 |
A debate about the Ground Zero mosque controversy with Fox News host Bill O'Reilly results in Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar storming off the set of The View.[136] |
| 16 |
Cablevision pulls Fox-owned channels WNYW, WWOR-TV, WTXF-TV, National Geographic Wild, Fox Business Network, and Fox Deportes due to a carriage dispute.[137] |
| 21 |
NPR fires commentator Juan Williams for saying he gets worried and nervous when he sees people wearing Muslim attire on planes during a segment on Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor the previous day.[138] Williams would later accept a lucrative contract (worth $2 million) to join Fox news full-time.[139] |
| 29 |
Dish Network and Fox come to terms on a renewal of their carriage agreement for their broadcast stations and cable networks two days before Fox's broadcast stations, along with the formerly Fox-owned affiliates now owned by Local TV LLC were to be removed.[140] |
| 30 |
Cablevision and Fox come to terms on a new carriage agreement, restoring Fox's networks and cable channels to their systems in New York, Connecticut and New Jersey, although Cablevision calls the cost for the channels "unfair" in their release detailing the new deal under undisclosed terms.[141][142] |
| 31 |
Video on Demand service Fearnet launches a linear high definition channel.[143] Currently, no carriage deals have been reached for the channel.[144] |
| Date |
Event |
| 1 |
After a 21 year run on Univision, Cristina Saralegui's self-titled talk show, El Show de Cristina airs its final episode; though Saralegui was against Univison's cancellation,[145] she continues to work with the network on a number of projects and specials.[146] |
| DirecTV removes G4 due to a carriage dispute.[147] |
| Dish Network and Belo Corporation come to terms on a new carriage agreement minutes before the Belo-owned stations were to be pulled in a separate carriage dispute.[148] |
| 4 |
ABC announces it will sell WTVG/Toledo and WJRT-TV/Flint back to former owner SJL Broadcasting, pending FCC approval.[149] |
| 5 |
MSNBC suspends Keith Olbermann for donating to three Democratic congressional candidates in the last weeks before the November general election against NBC News policies.[150] Initially an indefinite suspension, MSNBC reinstates Olberman on November 9,[151] when the host thanks his supporters and viewers but slams MSNBC, claiming that he did not know about their policy against donating money to political candidates or parties.[152][153] |
| AT&T Uverse removes the suite of Scripps Networks channels, (excluding Travel Channel, which remains under a previous carriage agreement under former owner Discovery Networks) in a carriage dispute.[154] They are restored on November 7, 2010.[155] |
|
A woman on Wheel of Fortune solved the puzzle ("I've Got a Good Feeling About This!") with one letter. In the same episode hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White pay tribute to their announcer Charlie O'Donnell who died earlier in the week on November 1. |
| 7 |
Jo Frost announces that she is leaving Supernanny to start a family of her own, thus ending the series' run after seven seasons.[156] |
| 8 |
Conan debuts on TBS, 9½ months after host Conan O'Brien's departure from The Tonight Show. The premiere, which attracts 4.2 million viewers, features guest appearances by Arlene Wagner, Seth Rogen, and Lea Michele; a musical performance from Jack White; pre-taped warm wishes from Ricky Gervais; and a filmed cold-open sketch that features Larry King and Jon Hamm (as his Mad Men character Don Draper).[157] |
| ESPN announces the breakup of its longtime Sunday Night Baseball announcing team of Jon Miller and Joe Morgan, as Morgan's contract is not renewed and Miller is asked to move to radio broadcasts (Miller declines the move and leaves ESPN entirely).[158] |
| ION Media Networks announces it is acquiring ShopNBC affiliate WQEX/Pittsburgh from WQED Multimedia for $3 million. If the FCC approves, the move will give Pittsburgh its first Ion affiliate (under the new call sign WINP).[159] |
| 10 |
Oprah Winfrey invites former talk show hosts Phil Donahue, Sally Jessy Raphael, Geraldo Rivera, Ricki Lake and Montel Williams as guests on her show, the first time Winfrey had fellow talk hosts appear together since their programs left the air.[160] |
| Fox Business Network announces ex-CNN anchor Lou Dobbs will join the channel in 2011.[161] |
| 11 |
After more than 40 years, Gene Shalit leaves The Today Show.[162] |
| 13 |
In the wake of Demi Lovato's decision to enter a treatment facility to deal with "emotional and physical issues," The Disney Channel announces that her sitcom Sonny With a Chance will be temporarily revamped, focusing on sketches from the show-within-a-show "So Random," until she returns for the show's third season in January 2011.[163] |
| 15 |
St. Louis television stations KSDK (NBC affiliate owned by Gannett Company) and KDNL-TV (ABC affiliate owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group) announce that they will start joint-venturing on daily 5PM and 10PM newscasts for KDNL beginning January 3, 2011. The move will create the first local newscasts on KDNL since it dropped its own low-rated news in 2001.[164] |
| 16 |
Former reality TV producer Bruce Beresford-Redman is arrested for the murder of his wife.[165] |
| 17 |
Freedom Communications puts all of its 10 television stations on the selling block for $500 million.[166] |
| 19 |
Two weeks after Keith Olbermann's suspension for political donations, MSNBC suspends Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough for making contributions to Florida Republican candidates.[167] |
| 24 |
Dish Network drops Comcast SportsNet California after losing in FCC arbitration.[168] |
| 30 |
Susan Boyle abruptly stops her live performance of "O Holy Night" on The View after starting to cough. The singer asks to start over, but the segment ends instead with thanks from hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Shepherd and Boyle stating that she had a "frog in (her) throat." The performance is rerecorded for the West Coast airing,[169] but the live version makes its rounds through YouTube.[170] |
| Date |
Name |
Age |
Notability |
Source |
| January 2 |
David Gerber |
86 |
American television executive (Columbia Pictures Television and MGM Television) and TV producer (Police Woman, Batman, Room 222, thirtysomething, In the Heat of the Night, Medical Story) |
[373] |
| January 4 |
Rory Markas |
54 |
American television and radio sportscaster (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and Milwaukee Brewers play-by-play announcer; Sports anchor/reporter at Fox Sports West/Prime Ticket and Los Angeles TV stations KCBS-TV and KTTV) |
[374] |
| January 9 |
Art Clokey |
88 |
American animator (Creator of Gumby) |
[375] |
| January 13 |
Teddy Pendergrass |
59 |
American R&B singer (Pink Lady and Jeff, 1985 Live Aid Telecast) |
[376] |
| January 19 |
Jennifer Lyon |
37 |
American reality television participant (Survivor: Palau) |
[377] |
| January 22 |
Jean Simmons |
80 |
British-American actress, Emmy Award winner for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries for The Thorn Birds |
[378] |
| January 24 |
James Mitchell |
89 |
American television/film/stage actor (All My Children, The Edge of Night, Where the Heart Is) |
[379] |
| January 24 |
James Henry Quello |
95 |
American broadcaster, politician, lawyer, consultant, and commissioner of the FCC; VP of Capital Cities Communications |
[380] |
| January 25 |
Pernell Roberts |
81 |
American actor/singer (Bonanza, Trapper John, M.D.) |
[381] |
| January 27 |
Johnny Seven |
83 |
American character actor (Ironside, Amy Prentiss) |
[382] |
| January 27 |
Zelda Rubinstein |
76 |
American television/film actress and activist (Jennifer Slept Here, Picket Fences) |
[383] |
| January 29 |
Tom Brookshier |
78 |
Former all-pro football player and NFL commentator for CBS |
[384] |
| January 30 |
Aaron Ruben |
95 |
American television creator, screenwriter, director and producer (The Andy Griffith Show, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., The Headmaster, Sanford and Son, Too Close for Comfort) |
[385] |
| February 2 |
Justin Mentell |
27 |
American television/film actor (Boston Legal) |
[386] |
| February 3 |
Frances Reid |
95 |
American actress (Days of our Lives) |
[387] |
| February 5 |
Cecil Heftel |
85 |
American politician (Hawaii's 1st congressional district), broadcaster and television/radio station group owner (Founder of Heftel Broadcasting, the first owners of KGMB/Honolulu, Hawaii) |
[388][389] |
| February 5 |
Frank Magid |
78 |
Broadcasting/marketing consultant (founder of Frank N. Magid Associates) |
[390] |
| February 10 |
Phil Harris |
53 |
American fishing boat captain and reality show participant (Deadliest Catch) |
[391] |
| February 11 |
Caroline McWilliams |
61 |
American television/film/stage actress and director (Soap, Benson, Another World, Guiding Light, Beverly Hills, 90210) |
[392] |
| February 17 |
Bo Griffin |
51 |
American television/radio personality (Good Day Live, Extra, GSN Live, & The Big Reveal on HGTV) |
[393] |
| February 25 |
Andrew Koenig |
41 |
American actor (Growing Pains) |
[394] |
| March 4 |
Nan Martin |
82 |
American actress (The Drew Carey Show) |
[395] |
| March 10 |
Corey Haim |
38 |
Canadian-American film/television actor (half of the acting duo The Two Coreys, also appeared in a reality show of the same name). |
[396] |
| March 10 |
Merlin Olsen |
69 |
American football player (Los Angeles Rams) and commentator (NBC/CBS Sports), actor (Little House on the Prairie, Father Murphy), commercial spokesman (FTD Florists) |
[397] |
| March 14 |
Peter Graves |
83 |
American actor (Mission: Impossible, 7th Heaven), host of Biography |
[398] |
| March 18 |
Fess Parker |
85 |
American actor (Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone) |
[399] |
| March 19 |
Bill McIntyre |
80 |
American actor (Newhart, Dallas, Murphy Brown) |
[400] |
| March 21 |
Margaret Moth |
58 |
New Zealand-born American photojournalist for CNN |
[401] |
| March 24 |
Robert Culp |
79 |
American actor (I Spy, The Greatest American Hero, Everybody Loves Raymond) |
[402] |
| March 25 |
Chet Simmons |
81 |
American sports executive, first president of ESPN, later commissioner for the United States Football League |
[403] |
| March 30 |
David Mills |
48 |
Emmy Award winning American television writer (NYPD Blue, The Corner, Kingpin, ER, The Wire, Homicide: Life on the Street) |
[404] |
| April 1 |
John Forsythe |
92 |
American actor (portrayed Blake Carrington on Dynasty, off-screen voice of Charlie on Charlie's Angels, and starred in Bachelor Father. Also narrator/host for World of Survival) |
[405] |
| April 7 |
Christopher Cazenove |
64 |
British television/film actor (Played Blake Carrington's brother Ben on Dynasty) |
[406] |
| April 9 |
Meinhardt Raabe |
94 |
American television/film actor (Played Munchkin who declares "the witch is dead" in The Wizard of Oz) |
[407] |
| April 10 |
Dixie Carter |
70 |
American television/film actress (Designing Women, Diff'rent Strokes, Out of the Blue, The Edge of Night, Family Law, Desperate Housewives) |
[408] |
| April 15 |
Benjamin Hooks |
85 |
Former executive director of NAACP, first African-American commissioner on the FCC |
[409] |
| April 16 |
Peter Haskell |
75 |
American television/film/stage actor (Bracken's World, Ryan's Hope) |
[410] |
| April 18 |
Allen Swift |
87 |
American television/film/radio voice actor (The Howdy Doody Show, Mighty Mouse, Underdog) |
[411] |
| April 20 |
Myles Wilder |
77 |
American screenwriter (McHale's Navy, The Dukes of Hazzard) |
|
| April 27 |
Dorothy Provine |
75 |
American television/film actress, comedienne, dancer and singer (The Roaring 20s, The Alaskans, Man Without a Gun) |
[412] |
| May 1 |
Helen Wagner |
91 |
American television/film actress (As the World Turns) |
[413] |
| May 2 |
Lynn Redgrave |
67 |
British television/film/stage actress (House Calls, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?, spokesperson for Weight Watchers) |
[414] |
| May 4 |
Ernie Harwell |
92 |
American TV/radio sportscaster (voice of the Detroit Tigers for 42 seasons, called the "Shot Heard 'Round the World" on TV, recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award). |
[415] |
| May 9 |
Lena Horne |
92 |
American actress, singer and entertainer (Hosted her own TV specials in 1969 and 1973; Performed on Kraft Music Hall, The Ed Sullivan Show, The Dean Martin Show, The Bell Telephone Hour, The Judy Garland Show, The Hollywood Palace, and The Andy Williams Show; Appeared as herself on The Muppet Show, Sesame Street, Sanford and Son, The Cosby Show and A Different World) |
[416] |
| May 12 |
Allan Manings |
86 |
American television creator and screenwriter (McHale's Navy, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, Good Times, One Day at a Time) |
[417] |
| May 19 |
Martin Cohan |
77 |
American screenwriter and producer (Diff'rent Strokes, Silver Spoons, Who's the Boss?) |
|
| May 26 |
Art Linkletter |
97 |
Canadian-American radio and television personality/host (House Party, People Are Funny, Kids Say the Darndest Things) |
[418] |
| May 28 |
Gary Coleman |
42 |
American actor, politician and former child star (Diff'rent Strokes) |
[419] |
| May 29 |
Dennis Hopper |
74 |
American film director and actor (E-Ring, spokesperson for Ameriprise Financial) |
[420] |
| June 3 |
Rue McClanahan |
76 |
American actress (Maude, Mama's Family, The Golden Girls) |
[421] |
| June 5 |
Robert Wussler |
73 |
Broadcasting executive (CBS, Turner Sports) |
[422] |
| June 13 |
Jimmy Dean |
81 |
American singer, television personality and businessman (The Jimmy Dean Show) |
[423] |
| June 23 |
Allyn Ferguson |
85 |
Emmy winning composer (Charlie's Angels and Barney Miller theme songs) |
[424] |
| June 24 |
Vince O'Brien |
91 |
American television, film and stage character actor (Westinghouse Studio One, Dark Shadows, Ryan's Hope, Law & Order; was best known as The Shell Answer Man) |
[425] |
| June 27 |
Robert Byrd |
92 |
American politician and musician (appeared on Hee Haw as a musical guest) |
[426] |
| July 11 |
Bob Sheppard |
99 |
American public address announcer for the New York Yankees from 1951–2007 and for the New York Giants from 1956–2006. Voice can be heard in shows and films set at Yankees and Giants games (including several episodes of Seinfeld), as well as in commercials for YES Network. |
[427] |
| July 13 |
George Steinbrenner |
80 |
American businessman, owner of the New York Yankees since 1973, founder and owner of YES Network. |
[428] |
| July 15 |
Peter Fernandez |
83 |
American voice actor (Speed Racer, Courage the Cowardly Dog) |
[429] |
| July 16 |
James Gammon |
70 |
American actor (Nash Bridges, Bagdad Cafe) |
[430] |
| July 20 |
Peta Rutter |
51 |
New Zealand actress (Udonna the Sorceress in Power Rangers: Mystic Force). |
[431] |
| July 23 |
Daniel Schorr |
93 |
American radio/television news reporter and journalist for CBS News and CNN |
[432] |
| July 27 |
Maury Chaykin |
61 |
American-born Canadian actor who portrayed Nero Wolfe in the made-for-television film The Golden Spiders: A Nero Wolfe Mystery and the A&E Network 2001–2002 television series A Nero Wolfe Mystery. |
[433] |
| July 28 |
John Aylesworth |
81 |
Canadian-born American screenwriter and producer (Co-creator of Hee Haw; writer for Your Hit Parade, The Sonny and Cher Show, The Julie Andrews Hour, Hullabaloo, and Kraft Music Hall) |
[434] |
| July 29 |
Lorene Yarnell |
66 |
American actress, mime performer, dancer and television personality (Shields & Yarnell) |
[435] |
| July 30 |
Dan Resin |
79 |
American television and film actor (On Our Own, Edge of Night, Lovers and Friends, David Frost Review, Go USA, Captain Kangaroo, Madhouse Brigade, Remember WENN) |
[436] |
| July 30 |
Bernie West |
92 |
American actor, screenwriter and director (All In The Family, Maude, Three's Company, The Jeffersons, The Ropers) |
[437] |
| July 31 |
Mitch Miller |
99 |
American musician, band leader, record executive and television personality (Sing Along With Mitch) |
[438] |
| August 8 |
Patricia Neal |
84 |
American film, television and theater actress (played Olivia Walton in The Homecoming: A Christmas Story and as herself in The Patricia Neal Story ) |
[439] |
| August 8 |
Ted Stevens |
86 |
American politician (U.S. Senator from Alaska, 1968–2009); member of The United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which oversees Communications in the United States, including the television industry, of which he made critical opinions and decisions about during his tenure. |
[440] |
| August 10 |
David L. Wolper |
82 |
American Emmy Award-winning television producer (North and South, Roots, The Thorn Birds and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles). |
[441] |
| August 13 |
Edwin Newman |
78 |
American television broadcast journalist, NBC anchor, and author (Today, Meet the Press) |
[442] |
| August 14 |
Gloria Winters |
78 |
American film and television actress and author (Sky King). |
[443] |
| August 15 |
James Kilpatrick |
89 |
American conservative commentator, journalist, newspaper editor and television personality (60 Minutes). |
[444] |
| August 23 |
Harold Dow |
62 |
American radio and television journalist for CBS News. |
[445] |
| September 2 |
Morgan White |
86 |
American actor and children's television host (Played Pogo Poge on Checkers & Pogo at KGMB-TV/Honolulu and on Hawaii Five-O). |
[446] |
| September 5 |
David Dortort |
93 |
American television producer and screenwriter (Bonanza, The High Chaparral). |
[447] |
| September 7 |
John Kluge |
95 |
German-born American television/radio broadcaster and founder/chairman of Metromedia |
[448] |
| September 10 |
Billie Mae Richards |
88 |
Canadian television voice actress (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, The Undersea Adventures of Captain Nemo, The Care Bears) |
[449] |
| September 11 |
Harold Gould |
86 |
American character actor (Rhoda, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Golden Girls) |
[450] |
| September 11 |
Kevin McCarthy |
96 |
American stage, film, and TV character actor (Flamingo Road) |
[451] |
| September 17 |
Marilyn Cantor Baker |
89 |
American screenwriter and actress (Love, Sidney) |
[452] |
| September 23 |
Arthur Holch |
86 |
American Emmy Award-winning television director and producer |
[453] |
| September 25 |
Art Gilmore |
98 |
American actor and voice actor (Highway Patrol) |
[454] |
| September 29 |
Greg Giraldo |
44 |
American stand-up comedian (Last Comic Standing, The Comedy Central Roasts) |
[455] |
| September 29 |
Tony Curtis |
85 |
American actor (Some Like It Hot, The Defiant Ones, guest spots on several TV shows, including his only starring series, McCoy) |
[456] |
| September 30 |
Stephen J. Cannell |
69 |
American television creator, screenwriter, director, author, and actor (The A-Team, The Greatest American Hero, Hunter, The Rockford Files, Renegade) |
[457] |
| October 14 |
Simon MacCorkindale |
69 |
British actor (Manimal, Falcon Crest, Counterstrike, Jesus of Nazareth) |
[458] |
| October 16 |
Barbara Billingsley |
94 |
American actress, best known as June Cleaver on Leave It to Beaver; also the voice of "Nanny" on Muppet Babies. |
[459] |
| October 18 |
Dean Olmstead |
55 |
President of Echostar Satellite Services |
[460] |
| October 19 |
Tom Bosley |
83 |
American actor (Happy Days, Murder, She Wrote, Father Dowling Mysteries, Wait Till Your Father Gets Home, The World of David the Gnome) |
[461] |
| October 27 |
Denise Borino-Quinn |
46 |
American television actress and lawyer (The Sopranos) |
[462] |
| October 28 |
James MacArthur |
72 |
American actor (played Danny "Danno" Williams in the original Hawaii Five-O) |
[463] |
| October 29 |
James Wall |
92 |
American television actor and stage manager (Mr. Baxter on Captain Kangaroo; stage manager for CBS shows including 60 Minutes and Face the Nation) |
[464] |
| October 30 |
Arthur Bernard Lewis |
84 |
American producer (Dallas) |
|
| November 1 |
Charlie O'Donnell |
78 |
American announcer (Wheel of Fortune, American Bandstand) and news anchor (KCOP-TV) |
[465] |
| November 4 |
Julien Hug |
35 |
American reality television participant and restaurant owner (The Bachelorette Season 5) |
[466] |
| November 4 |
Sparky Anderson |
76 |
Former Major League Baseball manager (led both the Cincinnati Reds and Detroit Tigers to World Series titles), later a baseball color commentator on TV and radio. |
[467] |
| November 5 |
Jill Clayburgh |
66 |
American film and television actress (Ally McBeal) |
[468] |
| November 10 |
Dave Niehaus |
75 |
Ford C. Frick Award-winning American sportscaster, voice of the Seattle Mariners since the team's inception in 1977. |
[469] |
| November 28 |
Leslie Nielsen |
84 |
Canadian-born American actor (Most known as Lieutenant Frank Drebin on Police Squad! and The Naked Gun films) |
[470] |
| November 29 |
Alfred Masini |
80 |
American television producer (creator of Entertainment Tonight, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, Solid Gold, and Star Search) |
[471] |
| December 5 |
Don Meredith |
72 |
Retired NFL player (Dallas Cowboys), later color commentator on Monday Night Football and NBC's NFL coverage. |
[472] |
| December 14 |
Neva Patterson |
90 |
American actress (The Governor and J.J., V: The Original Miniseries, V: The Final Battle) |
[473] |
| December 16 |
Blake Edwards |
88 |
American television and film producer, director and screenwriter (Peter Gunn, The Pink Panther films) |
[474] |
| December 20 |
Steve Landesberg |
65 |
American actor and comedian (Barney Miller) |
[475] |
| December 25 |
Bud Greenspan |
84 |
American documentarian television/filmmaker, screenwriter and sports reporter |
[476] |
| December 26 |
Teena Marie |
54 |
American R&B/Dance singer-songwriter and actress (The Beverly Hillbillies; her 1981 song "Square Biz" was re-worked by Marie as the theme for The Hollywood Squares) |
[477] |