TV Guide's 100 Most Memorable Moments in TV History
to...@fred.net
: I thought that Baby Jessica being stuck in the well in Midland, Texas
: would have made it. So many people watched as they tried to get her
: out of that well. I know I did!
Come to think about it, I agree (as do I believe the wrong Lucy memory
got picked -- Little Ricky, indeed!)
Challenger should have made Top Ten. "Get a Life!" and BoBW should have
swapped places.
To...@Fred.Net
http://www.fred.net/tomr
William December Starr
In article <4qsn8c$d...@dfw-ixnews7.ix.netcom.com>,
cer...@ix.netcom.com(Michael C. Cerone) said:
> I thought that Baby Jessica being stuck in the well in Midland,
> Texas would have made it. So many people watched as they tried to
> get her out of that well. I know I did!
Really? I know I did too, but only because it was pre-empting the
regularly scheduled show that I wanted to watch... I'm not a
cold-hearted "Who cares about some little girl trapped in a well, I
wanna see my show!" zombie, but let's face it, folks, the live
coverage was _way_ out of proportion to the importance of the story.
I could easily have waited for the eleven o'clock news to find out
what happened.
-- William December Starr <wds...@crl.com>
Laura Beth Weiss
short-sighted (then again, I just hate reading *anything* about O.J. Simpson
anymore).
The Challenger disaster should have been higher on the list;
Was the Reagan assasination attempt included?
I thought that the birth of Little Ricky was obviously missing;
As for important shows premiering, what about "thirtysomething"?
What about the Quayle/Bensen debate where Bensen tells Quayle "You're no Jack
Kennedy?"
How about the NBC "Digest" in 1983, where Jessica Savitch completely slurred
the entire broadcast, showing millions of people the ravages of cocaine
addiction?
"Who Shot J.R?" should have been higher on the list.
I think that I also noticed a mistake...on the last episode of MTM, I believe
Lou Grant states "I treasure you PEOPLE," instead of "I treasure you GUYS." I
could be wrong, but I seem to remember Mr. Grant saying "people."
--laura w. :-)
_______________________________________________________________________
Fashion is Me Too. Style is Me Only.
--Hubert de Givenchy
Laura Weiss Linger
wei...@cfs.purdue.edu
Standard Disclaimers Apply
Gyge
would have the birth of Little Ricky.
Michelle
DonnaB
95 One Life on the Stand (March 6, 1979) On One Life to Live, Karen
Wolek is torn. The wife of one of Llanview's leading doctors, she can
provide an alibi for Viki Riley, on trial for murder, but only by
divulging her shameful secret. Under intense grilling, she finally
erupts: "What do you want from me, Mr. Callison? Do you want me to
tell the court that I'm a common street hooker?" A riveting
performance by Judith Light and a shocking social issue (housewives
who hook) made this one of daytime's most potent scenes.
84 The Alexis and Krystle Catfight (April 13, 1983) Alexis (Joan
Collins) always likes to go for the soft underbelly. So when she sees
Krystle (Linda Evans) sitting placidly and prettily by the lily pond,
she starts needling the current Mrs. Carrington mercilessly about her
inability to conceive. Now the gloves are off. "You miserable bitch,"
cries Krystle, diving at her tormentor. They plunge into the pond and
start waling on each other, wet hair, soggy silk and all. When Alexis
tries to escape, Krystle says, "Oh, no, you don't," and cracks her one
right on the kisser.
83 The Debut of NYPD Blue (September 21, 1993) Almost a quarter of
ABC's 225 affiliates refused to air the first episode of Steven
Bochco's daring drama. Their viewers missed an extraordinary hour of
TV, during which the relationship between detectives John Kelly (David
Caruso) and Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz) was delineated with unusual
rawness -- and poignance.
80 Jeff Baker's Car Wreck on As the World Turns (August 23, 1962) TV
GUIDE called it the "automobile accident that shook the nation." Actor
Mark Rydell, who had played Jeff Baker for six years on the top-rated
CBS soap, refused to sign a long-term contract. And so, the producers
ripped asunder America's favorite daytime sweethearts in a blur of
twisting metal:Jeff died instantly; his wife, Penny (Rosemary Prinz),
fell into a lengthy coma.
65 Hill Street Blue (January 15, 1981) Captain Furillo locks up the
bad guys and feisty public defender Joyce Davenport springs them. By
the second commercial in Hill Street Blues' dazzling debut, she has
called him a fascist and promised to bring him up on charges. So when
she's at home at episode's end, kissing her lover's chest, and we see
it is Furillo, we realize this is a couple that will create some
sparks.
52 Bobby's in the Shower on Dallas (May 16, 1986) Pam Ewing -- still
pining for her do-good hubbie, Bobby, who had died the previous year
-- woke up one morning to the sound of the shower. She swung open the
door of the steam-filled shower stall to find a cheery, lathery Bobby.
"Good morning," he said -- season-ending freeze-frame. In the fall, we
found out Bobby's death -- in fact, conveniently, the whole
misbegotten preceding season -- had just been a dream of Pam's.
16 The Wedding of Luke & Laura (November 16-17, 1981) On the lawn of
the Port Charles mayoral mansion, on a perfect autumn afternoon, Laura
Webber Baldwin -- a vision in white -- and Lucas Lorenzo Spencer -- in
a gray cutaway, his permed hair rustling in the breeze -- spoke their
vows with quivering lips. It had been a stormy romance, starting with
the night a drunken Luke raped Laura in a deserted disco. Ah well, the
course of love never runs smooth on daytime. But their relationship on
General Hospital resulted in the most celebrated wedding in the annals
of soaps. As they walked down the aisle, Luke pumped his two fists in
a show of giddy victory. Then we heard a shadowy, uninvited guest (OK,
it was Elizabeth Taylor) swear, "Curse you, Laura and Luke!" So much
for happy endings.
13 Who Shot J.R.? (March 21, 1980) It is night, and coldhearted J.R.
Ewing sits in his office alone. And no wonder: In the course of the
previous 50 minutes, he has managed to alienate, infuriate, and betray
most of Texas, and all of his relatives. It's Miller time! Then a door
in the outer office opens and someone enters. "Who's there?" J.R.
asks. BLAM! He clutches his chest. BLAM! He hits the floor, exhales
and...dies? The following November, more than 80 million viewers --
nearly as many as voted in the presidential election that month --
tuned in to Dallas for the resolution of this tantalizing cliffhanger.
In case you forgot: It was Kristin who wounded J.R.
08 The Wedding of Charles & Diana (July 29, 1981) Only a few thousand
people received invitations to St. Paul's Cathedral for the royal
nuptials. But 750 million showed up -- via worldwide TV, including
throngs in this country who got up in the middle of the night to
witness all the glorious pomp. First, the processional, as carriages
conveyed Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, princes Charles and
Andrew, and finally, Lady Diana Spencer past the cheering crowds from
Buckingham Palace. Then the breathtaking ceremony. A camera affixed to
the cathedral ceiling provided a magnificent tableau: the bride making
her way down the aisle, the long white train of her gown flowing
behind her as the organ played, a chorus sang, and the man who would
be king awaited her at the altar. After conducting the vows, the
Archbishop of Canterbury expressed a universal sentiment, noting,
"This is the stuff of which fairy tales are made."
06 The Final Episode of The Fugitive (August 29, 1967) Convicted of
killing his wife, Dr. Richard Kimble (David Jansen) -- "an innocent
victim of blind justice" -- was finally able to vindicate himself in
the second half of a two-parter that was the most-seen regular series
episode at that time. (The show attracted 72 percent of the viewing
audience.) Kimble convinced Philip Gerard, the police lieutenant
obsessed with his capture, to grant him 24 hours to track down the
real killer, the notorious one-armed man. The confrontation took place
at an abandoned amusement park at the top of the towering Mahi-Mahi
ride. The killer's confession was heard by Kimble alone before the
one-armed man plunged to his death. Fortunately, a witness finally
came forward and Kimble was acquitted. As he walked from the
courtroom, a free man at last, a squad car screamed up to the curb and
two policemen hurried out. In that moment, we saw in Kimble's haunted
eyes and tensed body that he was getting ready to flee. But the cops
walked right past him and then, only then, did Kimble realize that
this was the day the running stopped.
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The List of 100 - The Sports Events & Some Sorta Sporting Events That
Made It
81 The U.S. Hockey Victory Over the U.S.S.R. at the 1980 Olympic
Games (February 22, 1980) They said it would never happen, but with
only five seconds to go, and the U.S. holding on to a tenuous lead of
4-3, ABC Sports announcer Al Michaels asked, "Do you believe in
miracles?" then answered his own question with a resounding "Yes!"
Michaels' words were immortalized -- and, he said, unplanned, because
"the thought of the American team winning that game was ludicrous."
71 Dan Jansen Skates to Victory (February 18, 1994) Sometimes good
guys do finish first. Speed skater Jansen had known nothing but
Olympic disappointment. Favored in the previous two Winter Games, he
failed to earn a medal. (In 1988, he had been distraught over the
death of his sister.) Then, in Lillehammer, having slipped again in
his favored event, the 500-meter, he faced his last chance but came
through, winning the 1,000-meter gold. His setbacks only made the
triumph sweeter, and he skated a victory lap with his baby, Jane,
named after his late sister.
69 Terrorists at the Olympics (September 5, 1972) In the middle of
the night, Arab guerillas stole into the athletes' compound at the
Munich Olympics, killing two Israelis and taking nine hostage. After
negotiations failed, West German police made a rescue attempt that
resulted in a tragic firefight in which all the hostages died. Pressed
into service to cover the 23-hour crisis, ABC Sports announcer Jim
McKay somberly reported, "They're all gone."
63 Al Campanis on Nightline (April 6, 1987) It was supposed to be a
celebration of progress -- marking the 40th anniversary of Jackie
Robinson's entry into the major leagues. But Ted Koppel's guest, Al
Campanis, a front-office executive with the Los Angeles Dodgers and a
former teammate of Robinson's, was busy proving how deeply entrenched
prejudice remains. He amiably asserted that blacks "may not have some
of the necessities to be a…field manager or perhaps a general
manager." Campanis was fired almost immediately, but his comments
revealed how racism can fester, blithely unchecked, beneath a smiling
façade of tolerance.
61 Namath in Panty Hose (1974) With sensuous languor, the camera
panned up the shapely, clean-shaven legs of a reclining model. The
effect was somewhat marred by a pair of green shorts. As the camera
continued up, we saw a hairy arm emerging from a football jersey
emblazoned with the number 12 and, finally, the grinning face and
twinkling blue eyes of New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath. As
promised, the ad proved "to the women of America that Beautymist Panty
Hose can make any legs look like a million dollars." Using Namath, a
symbol of cocky machismo, made the spot the ultimate gender bender.
56 Golfing on The Honeymooners (October 15, 1955) As usual, Ralph has
bitten off a good deal more than he can chew. He's got a golf date
with a big shot at the bus company in two days and he doesn't know a
putt from a potato. Well, first things first: the clothes. Let's see,
plaid pants, argyle socks, and a floppy Scottish tam with a little
ball on top. "How do I look, Norton?" he asks. "Deee-vine!" enthuses
his pal. Now it's time for the lesson. Norton reads from a manual.
Address the ball, it suggests. Norton grabs a club, works his body
like a double-jointed hula dancer, salutes, and shouts, "Helloooo,
ball." Hole-in-one humor.
54 Ali Defeats Foreman (October 29, 1974) Awesome. Invincible. That's
how writers described domineering heavyweight boxing champ George
Foreman. Muhammad Ali, then 32, was given no chance when he faced
Foreman in a steamy soccer stadium in Kinshasa, Zaire, at 4 A.M. (The
starting time was designed to accommodate millions of Americans
watching on closed-circuit TV.) For eight rounds Ali employed his
passive "rope-a-dope" technique, leaning back and letting Foreman
pound away at Ali's arms and elbows. Then Ali turned the tables,
unleashing a quick and devastating flurry. Foreman buckled and ever so
slowly toppled to the canvas. WITNESS: Ferdie Pacheco was Ali's
cornerman in the Zaire fight. "We were shocked [by the rope-a-dope],"
says Pacheco. "Our entire corner yelled at him until we lost our
voices. I don't think even Ali knew he was going to do that."
49 Cal Ripken Jr. Breaks the Record (September 6, 1995) Boy, did we
need a hero! Baseball fans were still disillusioned by the previous
year's major league strike that had robbed them of a World Series for
the first time since 1904. So the soft-spoken Baltimore Orioles
shortstop had the ideal summer in which to play his 2,131st
consecutive game, thus shattering a seemingly unbreakable mark set by
legendary Iron Horse Lou Gehrig. As Ripken came out of the dugout in
the fifth inning, after the game had become official, it wasn't just
his athletic prowess that prompted the 22-minute standing ovation.
(ESPN motormouth Chris Berman honored the occasion with silence.) No,
we were saluting Cal's more heroic, but all too easily overlooked,
accomplishment: doing his job with consistent devotion. WITNESS: Mel
Proctor, the Orioles play-by-play announcer, says, "[After he broke
the record], I was quiet for about two minutes -- I know the guys on
ESPN held out longer. When he took the victory lap, I tried to talk
sparingly."
46 Mary Lou Retton Scores a 10 (August 3, 1984) Talk about pressure.
Retton was attempting to accomplish what no American woman ever had:
win an Olympic gold medal in all-around gymnastics. But her principal
rival, Ecaterina Szabó of Romania, had just scored an astounding 9.9
on the uneven bars. That all but mathematically eliminated Retton, the
spunky 16-year-old from West Virginia. She would need a perfect score
in her final event -- the vault -- to overtake Szabó. Inhaling deeply,
Retton rose on her toes, bounded down the runway, and launched herself
at the vault. After catapulting through the air, she stuck her landing
as the crowd at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion rose to their feet to cheer.
Retton flung up her fists in exultation and flashed that infectious,
megawatt smile. When the score was posted, it confirmed what everyone
already knew: 10.00!
42 Monday Night Football (October 9, 1972) Down on the field, the
Raiders are blowing out the Oilers. The camera flashes up to the
stands, where a disgruntled Oilers fan slumps, surrounded by a sea of
empty seats. As Howard Cosell begins to pontificate ("Right there is a
very vivid picturization…"), the fan makes an obscene gesture on live
TV. Dandy Don Meredith quickly quips, "He's saying they're No. 1 in
the nation," and everyone in the booth cracks up. The incident
reflected the chemistry that made the show such a captivating TV
institution.
27 Buckner Muffs the Ball (October 25, 1986) The Curse of the Bambino
was finally about to be put to rest. The Boston Red Sox had not won a
World Series since 1917, a losing streak superstitious fans attribute
to the team's trading of Babe Ruth to the Yankees. But at long last
the Bo Sox had one in the bag. The Red Sox needed only one out to win
the Series against the Mets, and Mookie Wilson had just tapped a weak
grounder to Boston's first baseman Bill Buckner. Incredibly, the ball
rolled right between Buckner's legs. The Mets went on to win that game
and then the Series. Curses! Foiled again.
26 The Birth of Air Jordan (April 20, 1986) The Boston Celtics' Larry
Bird scored 36 points. Pretty impressive. Until you realize that his
opponent on the Chicago Bulls, a 23-year-old sapling out of North
Carolina named Michael Jordan, almost doubled Bird's output. In an
incredible offensive display, the second-year pro knocked in 63
points, erasing Elgin Baylor's playoff scoring record. Boston won the
game 135-131 in double overtime and subsequently swept the series. But
everyone who witnessed that incendiary performance recognized that the
NBA landscape had just shifted.
22 Requiem for a Heavyweight (October 11, 1956) The '50s, a time of
ambitious live dramas on television, are often referred to as the
medium's golden age. And no event possessed the luster of this
supernal Playhouse 90 production, written by Rod Serling. Jack Palance
played Mountain McClintock, a boxer forced into retirement. Desperate
for money to help his unscrupulous manager, Maish (Keenan Wynn),
Mountain is reduced to professional wrestling. Dressed up in a
hillbilly costume and stripped of his dignity, he confronts himself in
the mirror. Soon after, he finds out that his own manager bet against
him in his last fight. "You know," he says, "in all the dirty, crummy
14 years I fought for you, I never felt ashamed.…Now I feel ashamed."
It is perhaps TV drama's most heartbreaking moment, rendered with
exquisite pathos by Palance.
20 The White Bronco Chase (June 17, 1994) The networks broke into
regularly scheduled programming with a news bulletin that looked like
a bizarre episode of Cops. A white Ford Bronco drifted slowly down a
Los Angeles freeway with a phalanx of LAPD cruisers trailing behind.
Maybe it was the parade-route pace, but the police cars seemed to be
escorting the Bronco rather than pursuing it. Crouched inside, we were
told, was a desperate O.J. Simpson, wanted for a heinous double
murder. The strange but curiously mesmerizing spectacle marked the
beginning of our national obsession with the Simpson case.
18 Hank Aaron Hits #715 (April 8, 1974) He was so steady, so
workmanlike. Although Aaron ended 1973 one home run shy of Babe Ruth's
record of 714, there was little drum-beating or merchandising in the
off-season. The slugger from Mobile, Alabama, simply refused to
participate in the hype. We didn't have to wait long to celebrate.
Aaron tied Ruth on the first day of the new season and, the same week,
swatted an Al Downing fastball into the left-field bleachers. The fans
went crazy -- in fact, Aaron had to shrug off two of them who tried to
join him as he circled the bases. At home plate his teammates waited,
whooping and jumping up and down. Then this remarkable, stoic man,
never varying his deliberate, dignified trot, disappeared into the
welcoming maelstrom.
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The List of 100 - The Earliest & The Most Recent, Spanning 43 Years
02 Lucy in the Candy Factory (September 15, 1952) To prove a point to
their spouses, Lucy (Lucille Ball, right) and Ethel (Vivian Vance) get
jobs at Kramer's Kandy Kitchen. After failing at a number of tasks
around the plant, the gals get one last chance in the wrapping
department. Their mission: Make sure every bonbon that comes down the
conveyor belt gets a paper cup. Miss even one and they're fired. "This
is easy," says Lucy. Famous last words. And classic slapstick -- the
chaotic, crowning moment of I Love Lucy. Suddenly the conveyor belt
speeds up and the chocolates are bunched closer together. Unable to
keep up, Lucy and Ethel begin frantically gobbling candies, shoveling
them into their chef hats, and scooping them into their blouses. The
supervisor returns. Seeing everything perfectly wrapped, and oblivious
to Lucy and Ethel's panic, she says, "Well, you're doing splendidly."
And then, to the conveyor operator, "Speed it up a little!"
07 The O.J. Simpson Verdict (October 3, 1995) The "trial of the
century" had dragged on for more than a year, yet it took the jury
only four hours to reach a verdict. The entire country, it seemed,
paused to witness the outcome. At Judge Lance Ito's instruction, the
nattily dressed defendant warily turned to the 12 unseen determiners
of his fate as the court clerk read the verdict: "We, the jury, in the
above entitled action, find the defendant, Orenthal James Simpson" --
America held its breath -- "not guilty of the crime of murder." Across
the nation, people either gasped or cheered. In the courtroom, Simpson
blinked twice and bit his lip. Then the second count was read -- again
not guilty -- and attorney Johnnie Cochran hugged Simpson from behind.
The Simpson family rejoiced; the victims' families appeared shocked,
particularly Fred Goldman, who sat open-mouthed while his daughter,
Kim, sobbed. Relieved and exhausted, Simpson himself finally smiled,
then nodded toward the jury and mouthed, "Thank you, thank you."
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Deborah A. Currie
August 1985, when Delta 191 slammed into the water tower at the north
end of the airport after touching down for a second on some poor man's
car on the highway.
Unfortunately, air disasters are all too frequent. But this was the
first one that happened in the town where I lived. It happened on a
Friday around 6:00 pm. One local TV station preempted all programming
the entire weekend and showed the goings-on at the airport non-stop.
We were glued to our TVs, in shock, watching this continuous coverage
all weekend. I know that sounds strange -- but it was mesmerizing, in
a tragic way, and I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't been there.
_______________________________________________________________
Debbie (dacu...@ix.netcom.com) Dallas,TX
Annie Keitz
>Locally in Dallas -- that horrible weekend back in the beginning of
>August 1985, when Delta 191 slammed into the water tower at the north
>end of the airport after touching down for a second on some poor man's
>car on the highway.
Yea that was a local memorable moment.
Here in Washington, DC some meorable moments captured on TV included
the hostage situation at the Binay Brith building downtown by Moslem
extremist in the 1970's that included the shooting of our present
mayor, and the crash of an Air Floridia plane into the 14th street
bridge (and a horrible metrorail accident that day as well!) and the
time some nut tried to hold the Washington Monument hostage by
threatening to blow it up.
Annie, Save Due South
Friends of Due South Write CBS!
Annandale, VA USA
ke...@his.com
jim grunst
#101: Tony Nelson uncorks bottle and out pops Barbara Eden :)