2004 in American television

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The year 2004 in television involved some significant events. Below is a list of television-related events in 2004.

For the American TV schedule, see: 2004-05 United States network television schedule.

Events

• January 30 - ITV's News at Ten ends for a second time, with its replacement, the News at Ten Thirty, launching on Monday.
• February 1 - After the Janet Jackson/Justin Timberlake Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy, American television gets heavily censored as the FCC tightens its rules on idecency.
• February 2 - ITV plc is formed from the merger of Carlton and Granada. The News at Ten Thirty also debuts.
• February 9 - Kerry McFadden wins the third series of ITV1's I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!. 14.99 million watch the final, the programme's highest rated episode to this day.
• March 1 - The Price is Right airs its 6,000th episode.
• March 15 - Game Show Network rebranded as "GSN"
• March 20 - Christopher Eccleston is announced as the ninth actor to play The Doctor in Doctor Who.
• March 28 - Māori Television starts broadcasting in New Zealand.
• April 2 to 8 - TV Tokyo in Japan premières eight shows during the first week of the month.
• April 16 - Cartoon Network's Toonami ends its weekday run after 7 years.
• April 17 - Cartoon Network's Toonami moves from 5 p.m. Weekdays to 7 p.m. (prime time) Saturdays, and extends by four hours (from two to six).
• April 21 - Blue Heelers screens a live episode.
• May 6 - Friends airs its final episode.
• May 13 - Frasier airs its final episode, "Goodnight Seattle".
• May 15 - Jimmy Fallon makes his last appearance as a cast member of Saturday Night Live on its season finale.
• May 28 - TechTV merges with G4 to form G4techTV, one of the most controversial mergers in television history as less than a year later, the merged network becomes G4 once again.
• June 2 - A contestant on Jeopardy!, Ken Jennings of Salt Lake City, Utah, begins a long run as champion.
• June 4 - Kitten Pinder is evicted from the Big Brother UK house, shouting against the Queen and the aristocracy on the way out.
• June 14 - Quiz TV launches in the UK, one of the country's first phone-in quiz channels. Many more launched over the next few years, though Quiz TV itself would close down in 2006.
• June 17 - In the UK, the live feed of Big Brother is taken off air for a few hours as the housemates threaten to kill each other.
• June 24 - The highest rated audience of the year is recorded in the UK as 20.66 million watch England's football match against Portugal in the quarter finals of Euro 2004. This was also the last programme to get over 20 million viewers as of 2007. [1]
• September - with the start of the 2004-2005 television season in the United States, most of the major networks were now no longer producing original content for broadcast on Saturday nights, citing years of declining ratings. Beginning this season, Saturday becomes primarily a night for rebroadcasts of episodes from earlier in the week or movies. FOX Network is an exception, as it maintains its block of inexpensive, reality-based shows on Saturday.
• September 21 - Drew Daniel is crowned the winner of the American version of Big Brother 5. Runner-Up Michael "Cowboy" Ellis wins $50,000.
• September 28 - Longtime veteran Marcy Walker makes what has been termed by soap sources as her final appearance on All My Children after two decades of being affiliated with the program.
• October 2 - Amy Poehler succeeds Jimmy Fallon as Tina Fey's co-anchor on NBC's Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update skit, making the first Weekend Update female duos.
• November - Toon Disney removes a great number of the programs it was originally intended to show in order to make room for Jetix.
• November 1 - The Young and the Restless airs its milestone 8,000th episode.
• November 7 - Dallas airs a special nondescript series entitled: Dallas Reunion: Return to Southfork.
• November 18 - The video for the new charity single Do They Know It's Christmas? by Band Aid 20 airs simultaneously on all five main UK television networks, as well as over twenty satellite and cable stations. This unprecedented broadcast attracts over fourteen million viewers between 5:50 and 6 p.m..
• November 30 - After seventy-four consecutive wins, Ken Jennings finally loses on Jeopardy!, to competitor Nancy Zerg.
• November - All My Children rises to #2 in the daytime Nielsen ratings for the first time since the mid-1990s, rivaling ABC's soap General Hospital for the second slot.
• December 1 - Tom Brokaw steps down as anchorman of NBC Nightly News and is replaced by Brian Williams.
• December 6 - Joe Pasquale wins the fourth series of ITV1's I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!
• December 15 - CNN's financial news channel, CNNfn, signs off.
• December 16 - All My Children airs its milestone 9,000th episode.
• December 29 - Rogers Media buys remaining 20% ownership of Rogers Sportsnet from FOX's Los Angeles affiliate KTTV.
• General Electric, owner of NBC, purchases Universal Studios from Vivendi, leaving all six U.S. broadcast networks part of a company which also owns a film studio.
• Foe the first time in its history, Nielsen Media Research, the official American television ratings service, began counting original shows on premium channels in its prime-time ratings. At the time, most of these aired on competitors HBO and Showtime, but Starz has since began producing original shows.

Debuts

• January 7 - The Apprentice premieres on NBC (2004–present)
• January 11 - Drake & Josh premieres on TEENick (2004-present)
• January 12 - Rick Mercer's Monday Report premieres on CBC (2004–present; Rick Mercer Report since 2006)
• January 13 - Shameless premieres on Channel 4 in the UK (2004-present).
• January 17 - Astro Boy premieres on Kids' WB! (2004-present).
• January 18 - The L Word premieres on Showtime (2004–2009)
• January 22 - Corner Gas debuts on CTV (2004-present).
• February 2 - Sea of Souls debuts on BBC One in the UK (2004-present).
• February 15 - Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, which had debuted as a one-off special late in 2003, makes its debut as a weekly series on ABC (2004–present).
• March 4 - Pimp My Ride premieres on MTV
• March 21 - Deadwood premieres on HBO (2004-present).
• April 3 - Danny Phantom premieres on Nickelodeon (2003-2007). Premieres on Nickelodeon in Australia in April 5, 2003.
• April 19 - Miguzi introduces and premieres on Cartoon Network during the old Toonami time slot (2004-present).
• June 4 - TNA iMPACT! premieres on Fox Sports Net (2004–2005; on Spike 2005–present)
• June 16 - Quintuplets premieres on the Fox Network (2004-2005).
• June 19 - Winx Club premieres on 4KidsTV (2004-Present). Premieres in Italy in January 28, 2004.
• July 6 - Big Brother 5 premieres on CBS (2000-present).
• July 16 - Stargate Atlantis, a spin-off of Stargate SG-1 premieres on Sci Fi channel (2004–2009).
• July 18 - Entourage premieres on HBO (2004-present).
• July 21-Rescue Me premieres on FX (2004-present)
• July 29 - Blue Collar TV airs on WB and Comedy Central (2004-2006).
• August 2 - Blue's Room premieres on Nickelodeon Jr. (2004-2007).
• August 13 - Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends premieres on Cartoon Network (2004-2009)
• August 16 - Call for Help 2.0 premieres in Canada (2004-present).
• September 3 - Green Wing premieres on Channel 4 in the UK (2004-present).
• September 4 - The X Factor premieres on ITV1 in the UK (2004-present).
• September 9 - Joey premieres on NBC (2004-2006).
• September 11 - The Batman (2004-present) and Da Boom Crew (2004) premiere on Kids' WB!.
• September 12 - Jack & Bobby premieres on The WB (2004-2005).
• September 12 - Ned's Declassified premieres on Nickelodeon (2004-2007).
• September 15 - Instant Star premieres on CTV
• September 18 - The English-language versions of One Piece (2004-present) and F-Zero: GP Legend (2004-2005) debut on 4Kids TV.
• September 20 - Second Time Around premieres on UPN (2004-2005).
• September 22 - CSI: NY premieres CBS (2004-present).
• September 22 - Lost premieres on ABC (2004-present).
• September 22 - Veronica Mars premieres on UPN (2004-2007)
• October 3 - Desperate Housewives premieres on ABC (2004-present).
• October 3 - Boston Legal premieres on ABC (2004-present).
• October 8 - Krystala, a sci-fi/fantasy serial, debuts globally on ABS-CBN (Philippines), International Channel (United States) and The Filipino Channel (Worldwide).
• October 10-The Backyardigans premieres on Nickelodeon Jr. (2004-present).
• October 17 - Hex premieres on Sky One in the UK (2004-2006).
• October 27 - Drawn Together premieres on Comedy Central
• November 5 - Cartoon Alley premieres on Turner Classic Movies (2004-present).
• November 6 - Fullmetal Alchemist and Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex premiere on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block (2004-2006).
• November 16 - House premieres on FOX (2004-present).

Television shows

See also 2004-05 United States network television schedule

1940s

• Meet the Press (1947-present).
• Candid Camera (1948-present).

1950s

• Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951–present)
• Guiding Light (1952–present)
• Hockey Night in Canada (1952–present)
• The Today Show (1952–present)
• Kōhaku Uta Gassen (Japan) (1953–present)
• NHK Nodojiman (Japan) (1953–present)
• Panorama (UK) (1953–present)
• Face the Nation (1954–present)
• The Tonight Show (1954–present)
• The Wonderful World of Disney (1954–present under various titles)
• As the World Turns (1956–present)
• What the Papers Say (UK) (1956–present)
• The Sky at Night (UK) (1957–present)
• Blue Peter (UK) (1958–present)
• Grandstand (UK) (1958–2007)

1960s

• Coronation Street, UK (1960–present)
• Four Corners (Australia) (1961–present)
• It's Academic (1961–present)
• The Late Late Show, Ireland (1962–present)
• Pro Bowlers Tour (1962–present)
• The World Tonight, Philippines (1962–present)
• General Hospital (1963–present)
• Top of the Pops, UK (1964–2006)
• Days of our Lives (1965–present)
• Play School (1966–present)
• The Money Programme, UK (1966–present)
• Shoten, Japan (1966–present)
• 60 Minutes (1968–present)
• One Life to Live (1968–present)
• Sesame Street (1969–present)

1970s

• All My Children (1970–present)
• Monday Night Football (1970–present)
• NBC Nightly News (1970-present)
• Masterpiece Theatre (1971–present)
• Soul Train (1971–2006)
• Emmerdale, UK (1972–present)
• Newsround, UK (1972–present)
• The Price Is Right (1972–present)
• Last of the Summer Wine, UK (1973–present)
• The Young and the Restless (1973–present)
• Nova (1974-present)
• Wish You Were Here...?, UK (1974–present)
• Arena, UK (1975–present)
• the fifth estate, Canada (1975–present)
• Good Morning America (1975–present)
• The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer (1975-present)
• Saturday Night Live (1975–present)
• The Victory Garden (1975-present)
• Wheel of Fortune (1975–present)
• Austin City Limits (1976-present)
• Live from Lincoln Center (1976-present)
• Inside the NFL (1977-present)
• 20/20 (1978–present)
• ABC World News (1978–present)
• Grange Hill, UK (1978–2008)
• The South Bank Show, UK (1978–present)
• Antiques Roadshow, UK (1979–present)
• Eat Bulaga!, Philippines (1979–present)
• Nightline, US (1979–present)
• Nightly Business Report (1979–present)
• SportsCenter (1979–present)
• The Sunday Game, Ireland (1979–present)
• This Old House (1979–present)

1980s

• Lou Dobbs Tonight (1981–present)
• Entertainment Tonight (1981–present)
• CCTV New Year's Gala (China) (1982-present).
• Timewatch (UK) (1982-present)
• Waratte Iitomo (Japan) (1982-present).
• What Now (1982-present)
• Taggart, UK (1983-present)
• Jeopardy! (1964-1975, 1978-1979, 1984-present).
• SportsCentre, Canada (1984–present)
• EastEnders (UK) (1985-present).
• Neighbours (Australia) (1985-present).
• The Oprah Winfrey Show (1986-present).
• Comic Relief (UK) (1986-present).
• Casualty (UK) (1986-present).
• ChuckleVision (UK) (1987-present).
• The Bold and the Beautiful (1987-present).
• America's Most Wanted (1988-present).
• The American Experience (1988-present).
• Fair City (1988-present).
• Les Guignols de l'info, France (1988–present)
• Home and Away, Australia (1988–present)
• This Morning (1988-present).
• COPS (1989-present).
• The Simpsons (1989-present).
• Halloween(1987-present)

1990s

1990-1993

• Law & Order (1990-present).
• America's Funniest Home Videos (1990-present).
• The Jerry Springer Show (1991-present).
• The Red Green Show (Canada) (1991-present).
• Dateline NBC (1992-present).
• The Real World (1992-present).
• Barney & Friends (1992-present).
• Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993-present).
• NYPD Blue (1993-2005).
• The Late Show with David Letterman (1993-present).
• WWE Monday Night RAW (1993-present).

1994-1996

• All That (1994-2005)
• ER (1994–2009)
• Time Team, UK (1994–present)
• JAG (1995–2005)
• Modern Marvels (1995–present)
• 7th Heaven (1996–2007)
• Après Match, Ireland (1996–present)
• Arthur (1996-present)
• The Daily Show (1996-present).
• Everybody Loves Raymond (1996–2005)
• Hannity & Colmes (1996–2009)
• Judge Judy (1996-present).

1997-1999

• Y Clwb Rygbi, Wales (1997–present)
• Dream Team, UK (1997–2007)
• Family Affairs, UK (1997–2005)
• Johnny Bravo (1997-2003)
• King of the Hill (1997-present)
• South Park (1997–present)
• Stargate SG-1 (1997–2007)
• Charmed (1998–2006)
• The King of Queens (1998–2007)
• Nightline, New Zealand (1998–present)
• That '70s Show (1998–2006)
• Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (UK) (1998-present).
• Will & Grace (1998-2006)
• Ed, Edd n Eddy (1999-present).
• Family Feud (1976-1985, 1988-1995, 1999-present).
• Judge Mathis (1999-present).
• Judging Amy (1999-2005).
• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999-present)
• Passions (1999-present).
• Pokémon (Japan, U.S.) (1997,1998-present).
• Rocket Power (1999-present).
• Shocking Behavior: Caught on Tape (1999-present).
• The Sopranos (1999-present).
• SpongeBob SquarePants (1999-present).
• Tenacious D (1999-present).
• Third Watch (1999-2005).
• The West Wing (1999-2006)
• Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (U.S.) (1999-2002).
• WWE SmackDown (1999-present).

2000s

2000

• As Told by Ginger (2000–2004)
• Big Brother (2000–present)
• Buzz Lightyear of Star Command (2000–present)
• CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000–present)
• Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000–present)
• Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law (2000–2007)
• Malcolm in the Middle (2000–present)
• Survivor (2000–present)
• This Week in Baseball (1977–1998, 2000–present)
• The Weakest Link, UK (2000–present)
• Yes, Dear (2000–present)

2001

• 24 (2001-present).
• According to Jim (2001-present).
• Adult Swim (2001-present).
• Alias (2001-2006).
• Braceface (2001-present).
• Fear Factor (2001-present).
• Home Movies (1999, 2001-present).
• JR Digs (Canada) (2001-present).
• Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001-present).
• Living with Lydia (2001-2005)
• My Wife and Kids (2001-present).
• Pop Idol (UK) (2001-present).
• Scrubs (2001-present).
• Six Feet Under (2001-2005).
• Smallville (2001-present).
• Star Trek: Enterprise (2001-2005).
• The Amazing Race (2001-present).
• The Bernie Mac Show (2001-present).
• The Fairly OddParents (2001-present).
• The Saturday Show (UK) (2001-present).

2002

• 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter (2002-2005).
• Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (2002-present).
• American Dreams (2002-present).
• American Idol: The Search for a Superstar (2002-present).
• Codename: Kids Next Door (2002-present).
• CSI: Miami (2002-present).
• Dick and Dom in da Bungalow (UK) (2002-2006).
• The Dr. Phil Show (2002-present)
• Harry Hill's TV Burp (UK) (2002-present).
• I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! (UK) (2002-present).
• Kim Possible (2002-present).
• Less Than Perfect (2002-present).
• Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom (1963–1988, 2002–present)
• Spooks (UK) (2002-present).
• The Bachelor (2002-present).
• The George Lopez Show (2002-present).
• The Osbournes (2002-present).
• Without a Trace (2002-present).

2003

• All Grown Up! (2003-present).
• America's Next Top Model (2003-present)
• Arrested Development (2003-2005).
• Battlestar Galactica (UK) (2003-present).
• Carnivàle (2003-2005).
• Chappelle's Show (2003-present).
• Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003-2005).
• Cold Case (2003-present).
• Dead Like Me (2003-2004).
• The Ellen DeGeneres Show (2003-present)
• Eve (2003-present).
• Hope and Faith (2003-2006).
• Joan of Arcadia (2003-2005).
• Las Vegas (2003-present).
• Lilo & Stitch: The Series (2003-2006).
• My Life as a Teenage Robot (2003-present).
• NCIS (2003-present).
• The Newsroom (Canada) (1996-1997, 2003-2005).
• Nip/Tuck (2003-present).
• One Tree Hill (2003-present).
• QI(UK)(2003-present).
• Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (2003-2007).
• Reno 911! (2003-present).
• Romeo! (2003-present).
• Superstars (UK) (1973-1985, 2003-2005).
• The O.C. (2003-2007).
• Two and a Half Men (2003-present).
• Xiaolin Showdown (2003-present).

Returning in 2004

• Postman Pat (UK) (1981, 1996, 2004-present).

Ending this year

• January 25 - 10-8: Officers on Duty (2003-2004).
• January 28 - Becker (1998-2004).
• January 29 - Threat Matrix (2003-2004).
• January 30 - Boston Public (2000-2004).
• January 30 - The Handler (2003-2004).
• February 6 - Ed (2000-2004).
• February 14 - Lizzie McGuire (2001-2004).
• February 22 - Sex and the City (1998-2004).
• February 27 - Lloyd in Space (2001-2004).
• March 13 - Hack (2002-2004).
• March 25 - The Chris Isaak Show (2001-2004).
• April 6 - It's All Relative (2003-2004).
• April 9 - Life with Bonnie (2002-2004).
• April 20 - Happy Family (2003-2004).
• April 20 - Whoopi (2003-2004).
• April 23 - Married to the Kellys (2003-2004).
• April 27 - I'm with Her (2003-2004).
• April 29 - The Jamie Kennedy Experiment (2002-2004).
• May 1 - The District (2000-2004).
• May 4 - The Guardian (2001-2004).
• May 10 - The Parkers (1999-2004)
• May 6 - Friends (1994-2004).
• May 13 - Frasier (1993-2004).
• May 16 - The Practice (1997-2004).
• May 17 - Mutant X (2001-2004).
• May 19 - Angel (1999-2004).
• May 26 - Soul Food (TV series) (2000-2004)
• May 28 - Supermarket Sweep (1965-1967; 1990-1995; 2000-2003; reran until 2004).
• June 8 - Rugrats (1991-2004)
• June 8 - Hey Arnold! (1996-2004).
• June 11 - The Wild Thornberrys (1998-2004)
• June 19 - The Man Show (1999-2004).
• July 24 - CatDog (1998-2004).
• August 27 - Ricki Lake (1993-2004).
• September 8 - The Drew Carey Show (1995-2004).
• September 13 - InuYasha (Japan) (2000-2004)
• September 20 - Stickin' Around (1996-2004)
• September 25 - Samurai Jack (2001-2004)
• September 29 - Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Japan) (2000-2004)
• October 16 - Winning Lines (UK) (1999-2004).
• October 29 - All About Me (2002-2004)
• October 31 - Dead Like Me (2003-2004)
• November 11 - Unscrewed with Martin Sargent (2003-2004).
• November 22 - The Crocodile Hunter (1997–2004)
• December 15 - Wonderfalls (2004).
• December 31 - The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.

Changes of Network Affiliation

Show	Moved from	Moved to
The Surreal Life	The WB	VH1
Parkinson	BBC One	ITV
FA Premier League terrestrial highlights	ITV	BBC One
The Simpsons (UK terrestrial rights)	BBC Two	Channel 4
King of the Hill (UK Multi channel rights)	Sky One	FX
Family Guy (UK Multi channel rights)	Sky One	FX
South Park (UK rights)	Channel 4 and Sky One	Paramount Comedy 1 and MTV

Deaths

Date	Name	Age	Cinematic Credibility
January 2	Lynn Cartwright	76	U.S. actor.
January 17	Noble Willingham	72	U.S. film and T.V. actor
January 19	Jerry Nachman	57	MSNBC editor-in-chief.
January 23	Bob Keeshan	76	U.S. actor (Captain Kangaroo).
January 27	Jack Paar	85	The Tonight Show host.
January 29	Mary-Ellis Bunim	57	producer and co-creator of The Real World.
February 23	Carl Anderson	58	U.S. actor.
February 24	John Randolph	88	U.S. actor.
March 7	Paul Winfield	62	Emmy-winning actor.
March 8	Robert Pastorelli	50	actor (Murphy Brown).
March 17	J. J. Jackson	62	former MTV VJ.
March 26	Jan Sterling	82	U.S. actor.
March 27	Art James	74	game show host and announcer.
March 28	Sir Peter Ustinov	82	British actor.
March 30	Alistair Cooke	95	BBC broadcaster and transatlantic commentator.
March 30	Hubert Gregg	89	BBC broadcaster.
April 1	Carrie Snodgress	57	character actress.
May 9	Alan King	76	comedian.
May 14	Shaun Sutton	85	writer, director, producer and longest-serving Head of Drama at BBC Television.
May 17	Tony Randall	84	actor and star of television version of The Odd Couple.
May 21	Gene Wood	78	announcer of Family Feud and other U.S. game shows.
May 22	Richard Biggs	44	U.S. actor
July 9	Isabel Sanford	86	actress, (Louise "Weezie" Mills Jefferson on The Jeffersons), from natural causes.
July 28	Eugene Roche	75	actor (Soap, Webster, and many other series).
November 6	Howard Keel	85	actor/singer, (Clayton Farlow on Dallas).
December 28	Jerry Orbach	69	actor (Law & Order)

Movies

• Scary Godmother Halloween Spooktacular
• Zenon Z3
• Going to the Mat
• Halloweentown High