AM America

AM America 1970

1

AM America is a morning news program produced by ABC in an attempt to compete with the highly rated Today on NBC. The show never found an audience after its premiere on January 6, 1975. Lasting just under ten months, its final installment aired on October 31. The program's concept was based on Ralph Story's AM, the local morning show on the network's owned-and-operated Los Angeles station KABC-TV. Like Today, AM America employed two hosts and a news anchor. ABC chose Bill Beutel, who was co-anchor of Eyewitness News on the network's New York City flagship station WABC-TV, and Stephanie Edwards from Ralph Story's AM to host the program. Peter Jennings, who at the time was ABC's Washington correspondent, provided the news reports. One notable episode of AM America aired on April 25, 1975, when members of the British comedy troupe Monty Python made one of their earliest appearances on American television. Edwards quit the show by the end of May, and Beutel followed her out a few months later. On November 3, the Monday following its final broadcast, AM America was replaced by Good Morning America.

1970

The Children's Doctor

The Children's Doctor 1970

1

The Children's Doctor is an American daytime medical and parental advice program that ran on ABC for 3 years, from April 1967 to August 1969.

1970

ABC's Wide World of Entertainment

ABC's Wide World of Entertainment 1970

7.30

ABC's Wide World of Entertainment is a late night block of programs created by the American Broadcasting Company. It premiered on January 8, 1973 and ended three years later.

1970

Hot Seat

Hot Seat 1970

1

Hot Seat is an American game show which aired on ABC from July 12 to October 22, 1976. The series was created by Heatter-Quigley Productions, which at this point were best known for creating Gambit and The Hollywood Squares. Jim Peck was the host, with Heatter-Quigley veteran Kenny Williams as the announcer.

1970

Encounter

Encounter 1970

1

Encounter is a five-week anthology television series aired from Toronto, Canada, and carried by both CBC Television and ABC from October 5 to November 2, 1958. The one-hour dramas were either romance, adventure, or mystery stories. Patrick Macnee and Barry Morse were among those who appeared on Encounter.. In the United States, Encounter followed the western series Colt .45. The program faced competition on CBS from The Alfred Hitchcock Show and The $64,000 Question. NBC at the time aired part of The Dinah Shore Chevy Show. It is not known what program succeeded Encounter in the 9:30 Eastern time slot beginning on Sunday, November 9, 1958. The following season The Alaskans, an adventure program set in Alaska and starring Roger Moore, Dorothy Provine, and Jeff York, aired on ABC in that time period. Encounter is not the shortest-running series on an American television network. In the fall of 1966, The Tammy Grimes Show, a situation comedy starring Tammy Grimes, ran only four episodes on ABC before it was cancelled.100 Grand, an ABC quiz show, lasted for only three episodes after its debut in the fall of 1963 on the Sunday evening schedule. A program called Turn-On, promoted as a sophisticated answer to NBC's Laugh In, was cancelled on the air during its first and only episode.

1970

The Drew Pearson Show

The Drew Pearson Show 1970

1

The Drew Pearson Show was an early American television program originally broadcast on ABC and later on the now defunct DuMont Television Network. The series ran from 1952 to 1953. It was a public affairs program hosted by political columnist Drew Pearson. The program aired Sunday nights at 11 on ABC. When the series moved to the DuMont network, it aired on Wednesday nights at 7:30. The series was cancelled in mid-March 1953.

1970

The Magic Window

The Magic Window 1970

3.50

The Magic Window was an American children's television program broadcast on ABC affiliate WOI-TV in Ames, Iowa from 1951 to 1994. With a run of 43 years, it was the longest running children's television program in American history. For all but the first three years of the show, it was hosted by Betty Lou Varnum, a pioneer in central-Iowa broadcasting. Betty Lou Varnum, who is best known for The Magic Window, but was versatile enough to host such other shows as a teen dance party, election coverage, and a call in 'issues' show, hosted the show, along with a cast of puppets such as Gregory Lion, Dusty the Unicorn, and Catrina Crocodile. The heart of the show was Betty Lou teaching kids a new craft each episode. The puppets would help out by opening the curtain to the screen on which various featurettes were shown. These included episodes from Tales of the Riverbank, Felix the Cat, and a series called "Let's Be Friends" which introduced viewers to a child from another city or country, sharing their culture and lifestyle.

1970

Stop the Music

Stop the Music 1970

1

Stop the Music was a prime time television game show that aired for an hour on Thursday evenings on ABC from May 5, 1949 to April 24, 1952, and again for a half-hour from September 7, 1954 to June 14, 1956. The show had also been broadcast on radio from 1948 to 1949. The radio show was responsible for taking "The Fred Allen Show" off the air, as the shows were broadcast opposite each other in 1949. The hosts were Bert Parks and Dennis James. Similar to the later Name That Tune on NBC and then CBS, Stop the Music had players identify songs. After a song was played, a home viewer would be called and could win a prize by correctly naming the song. A correct guess won a prize and a chance to identify a short clip from the Mystery Melody for more prizes. If the viewer missed the first song, the viewer received a gift from the sponsor and members of the audience would be asked to identify the song. Among the vocalists and stars who appeared on Stop the Music were Jaye P. Morgan, Jimmy Blaine, June Valli, Broadway dancer Wayne Lamb, Estelle Loring, and Ann Sheridan. The program aired at 9 pm ET on Thursdays for all five seasons except for the 1954-1955 year, when it was broadcast at 10:30 pm ET on Tuesdays. Its competition in the 1951-1952 year was The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show and Amos 'n' Andy, both on CBS. In its last season from 1955 to 1956, it was aired opposite Jackie Cooper's The People's Choice on NBC.

1970

Make a Wish

Make a Wish 1970

9.00

Make a Wish is an American children's television series which ran on ABC from 1971 to 1976. Produced by ABC News, it was hosted by musician Tom Chapin and created and produced by Lester Cooper. It replaced Discovery, a similar series for children also produced by ABC News. Each episode of the series, broadcast on Sunday mornings, focused on a particular theme. One episode, for instance, was about snakes, and another was about motorcycles. Chapin would introduce the topic in much the same manner: "I think a snake is what I'll be. Imagine all the possibilities." After that there would be a sort of free association presentation on the theme featuring stock footage, animation, and Chapin's music and voiceover commentary. The quick-cutting, free-association, stream-of-consciousness style of the show caused Chapin, years later on a talk show, to describe Make a Wish as "a show for six-year old speed freaks." The series won a Peabody Award for Best Children's Series in 1971. Some songs performed on the show were written by Tom's brother, Harry Chapin. General composer of the show was Bernard Green, who also wrote the music to the title song "Make a Wish," with lyrics by Cooper, sung by Chapin.

1970

Little Clowns of Happytown

Little Clowns of Happytown 1970

1

Little Clowns of Happytown is an American animated television series that aired on ABC on Saturday morning from September 26, 1987 to July 16, 1988.

1970

Penny to a Million

Penny to a Million 1970

1

Penny to a Million was a primetime American television game show that aired on ABC from May 4 to October 19, 1955 on Wednesday nights, for alternate sponsors Brown & Williamson's Raleigh cigarettes, and W.A. Sheaffer Pen Company. The pilot was hosted by Bud Collyer, but he was replaced by Bill Goodwin when it became a series.

1970

Celanese Theatre

Celanese Theatre 1970

1

Celanese Theatre is an anthology television series which aired from October 3, 1951 to June 25, 1952 on ABC. The show aired as a 60-minute program on Wednesdays at 10pm ET. Beginning on January 9, 1952, the show aired in a 30-minute version which ran from 10pm to 10:30pm ET. The series was produced by the Celanese Corporation and the William Morris Agency, and featured plays by Maxwell Anderson, Philip Barry, Rachel Crothers, Eugene O'Neill, S. N. Behrman, Elmer Rice, John Van Druten, Sidney Howard, Paul Osborn, and Robert E. Sherwood. The show alternated with Pulitzer Prize Playhouse. For a short period beginning in October, Celanese Theatre alternated with a short-lived program King's Crossroads.

1970

Mysteries of Chinatown

Mysteries of Chinatown 1970

1

Mysteries of Chinatown is an American crime drama series that aired on the ABC television network from December 4, 1949 to October 23, 1950.

1970

On Your Way

On Your Way 1970

1

On Your Way is an American game show that aired on the DuMont Television Network from September 9, 1953 to January 20, 1954 before moving to ABC from January 23 to April 17. The series originated from New York City, and was sponsored by Welch's Family Wine.

1970

The Dotty Mack Show

The Dotty Mack Show 1970

1

The Dotty Mack Show is an American variety show originally broadcast on the now defunct DuMont Television Network in 1953, and on ABC from 1953 to 1956.

1970

Caryl & Marilyn: Real Friends

Caryl & Marilyn: Real Friends 1970

1

Caryl & Marilyn: Real Friends is an hour-long daytime talk/variety show that ran on ABC from June 10, 1996 to May 30, 1997. The series was produced by Viacom Productions.

1970

Murder Can Hurt You

Murder Can Hurt You 1970

5.70

Murder Can Hurt You is a 1980 ABC television movie that parodies detective and police TV shows of the 1960s and '70s, much like the way Murder by Death made fun of literary detectives. The plot involves a mysterious "Man in White" who's out to kill famous detectives in bizarre ways, and the heroes are obvious parodies of Kojak, Baretta, Starsky and Hutch, Ironside, Police Woman, Columbo, and McCloud.

1970

The Mail Story

The Mail Story 1970

1

The Mail Story, subtitled Handle with Care, is a half-hour dramatic television anthology series which aired on ABC for thirteen weeks from October 7 to December 30, 1954. In the premiere episode then Postmaster General Arthur Summerfield, who served in the administration of U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, introduced the program to American audiences. The program was partly documentary in offering explanations of the services available from the Post Office Department, now known as the U.S. Postal Service. It also had original dramas about individuals or groups who tried to misuse the mail and hence faced apprehension for their crimes. Such segments ranged in date from the 1850s with stagecoach robberies to contemporary times with sophisticated mail fraud cases. The three-month series aired at 8 p.m. on Thursdays opposite Meet Mr. McNutley, renamed The Ray Milland Show on CBS, and You Bet Your Life with Groucho Marx on NBC.

1970