1996 in American television

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The year 1996 in television involved some significant events. Below is a list of television-related events in 1996.

For the American TV schedule, see: 1996-97 United States network television schedule.

Events

January 1 - Speedvision premiered as a new cable channel, it will change its name to the Speed Channel in 2002.
January 15-March 11 - Our Friends in the North, a nine-part serial spanning the 1960s to the 1990s in the lives of four friends, is shown on BBC2.
January 28 - Chris Isaak and Brooke Shields make guest appearances on the television show Friends.
April 29- TV Land, a United States cable network launches.
May 14 - Doctor Who, an American television movie continuation of the famous British series of the same name, airs on the Fox Network in the Tuesday Night Movie slot. This television movie is regarded as being a part of the same story as the original series and is an unsuccessful pilot for a new, American co-produced series. Paul McGann stars as the Eighth Doctor. It was the only film considered canon, but Doctor Who only made a proper comeback in 2005
June 14 - After 32 years (barring six months in 1973), Top of the Pops moves from its traditional Thursday evening slot to Fridays.
July - When it becomes evident that Anna Stuart will be next to die in a serial killer storyline on Another World, many fans start letter-writing campaigns to save the actress; the NBC studios in New York City also report a high number of switchboard calls regarding Stuart's imminent demise. Executive producer Jill Farren Phelps decides that actress Alice Barrett will be killed off the show instead.
14-15 July - America's Talking ceases transmissions, and using its transponders and positions, MSNBC, a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC, launches the following morning.
September 1 - Sky 2 launches in the UK, a sister channel to Sky One. It closes a year later, but a channel of almost the same name (Sky Two) would later launch in 2005.
September 2 - The ITV region Tyne Tees Television is rebranded as Channel 3 North East. The rebranding is unsuccessful, and the original name returns two years later.
September 13 - The dubbed version of the Japanese series Dragonball Z premieres in the U.S.
September 17 - The O.J. Simpson civil trial begins.
October 7 - News Corporation gets into the cable news fray with the launch of Fox News Channel.
October 20 - Canada's Sesame Street switches to showing exclusively Canadian content, renaming itself Sesame Park 1996-2002), as it no longer uses any American made segments from Sesame Street
November 2 - Final episode of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the 1987 series airs. Episode is Divide and Conquer.
December 29 - Time On Our Hands, the final episode of a Christmas trilogy of the popular sitcom Only Fools and Horses, airs on BBC1. Publicised as the last ever episode, it draws 24.35 million viewers, the largest ever audience for a sitcom in the UK, and discounting Diana, Princess of Wales's funeral, the biggest UK television audience of the 1990s. In the event, however, the show returns for three subsequent specials, one shown each Christmas from 2001.
Zenith introduces the first HDTV-compatible front projection TV in the U.S. Broadcasters, TV & PC manufacturers set industry standards for digital HDTV.
Over a billion households worldwide now own television sets.

Debuts

Date	Debut	Canceled
January 2	The Demon Headmaster on BBC 1	1998
January 9	3rd Rock from the Sun on NBC	2001
January 23	Moesha on UPN	2001
February 7	Dragon Ball GT on Fuji TV	1997
March 29	Nash Bridges on CBS	2001
April 27	Dexter's Laboratory on Cartoon Network	1998 & 2003
April 28	The What-A-Cartoon! Show on Cartoon Network	1997
July 22	The Daily Show on Comedy Central
August 26	7th Heaven on The WB	2007
August 26	Malcolm & Eddie on UPN	2000
August 28	The Jamie Foxx Show on The WB	2001
September 2	Arthur on PBS
September 9	Access Hollywood in syndication
September 13	Dragonball Z in syndication
September 13	Everybody Loves Raymond on CBS	2005
September 16	Judge Judy in syndication
September 17	Spin City on ABC	2002
September 24	Relativity on ABC	1997
September 27	Sabrina, the Teenage Witch on ABC ¹	2003
September 28	Early Edition on CBS	2000
September 30	Shopping Spree on ABC Family	1998
October 7	Hey Arnold! on Nickelodeon	2004
October 21	The Newsroom on CBC	1997, (2003-2004)

Template:Fnb Sabrina, the Teenage Witch moved in 2000 from ABC to The WB.

Miniseries

Profit
Our Friends in the North (UK)

Television shows

1940s

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

1950s

Hallmark Hall of Fame (1951-present).
Guiding Light (1952-present).
The Today Show (1952-present).
Panorama (UK) (1953-present).
Face the Nation (1954-present).
The Tonight Show (1954-present).
This Is Your Life (UK) (1955-2003).
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).
General Hospital (1963-present).
Another World (1964-1999).
Top of the Pops (UK) (1964-2006).
Days of Our Lives (1965-present).
Play School (Australia) (1966-present).
The Money Programme (UK) (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).
Masterpiece Theatre (1971-present).
Soul Train (1971-present).
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).
Derrick (1974-1998).
Wish You Were Here...? (UK) (1974-present).
Arena (UK) (1975-present).
Good Morning America (1975-present).
Saturday Night Live (1975-present).
the fifth estate (Canada) (1975-present).
Wheel of Fortune (1975-present).
20/20 (1978-present).
Grange Hill (UK) (1978-present).
Antiques Roadshow (UK) (1979-present).
Nightline (1979-present).
This Old House (1979-present).

1980s

Entertainment Tonight (1981-present).
What Now (1982-present)
Timewatch (UK) (1982-present)
Jeopardy! (1964-1975, 1984-present).
The Bill (UK) (1984-present).
EastEnders (UK) (1985-present).
Neighbours (Australia) (1985-present).
Sally (1985-2002).
The Oprah Winfrey Show (1986-present).
Comic Relief (UK) (1986-present).
ChuckleVision (UK) (1987-present).
Inspector Morse (UK) (1987-2000).
Married... with Children (1987-1997).
The Bold and the Beautiful (1987-present).
America's Most Wanted (1988-present).
The American Experience (1988-present).
Electric Circus (Canada) (1988-2003).
Fair City (1988-present).
Home and Away (1988-present).
This Morning (UK) (1988-present).
Red Dwarf (UK) (1988-1999).
Murphy Brown (1988-1998).
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1988-1999).
Roseanne (1988-1997).
The Ward (UK) (1988-2000).
Baywatch (1989-2001).
COPS (1989-present).
Family Matters (1989-1998).
Seinfeld (1989-1998).
The Simpsons (1989-present).

1990s

Life's Work (1996-1997)
Law & Order (1990-present).
America's Funniest Home Videos (1990-present).
One Foot in the Grave (UK) (1990-2000).
Home Improvement (1991-1999).
Rugrats (1991-2004).
The Jerry Springer Show (1991-present).
The Red Green Show (1991-2006).
Absolutely Fabulous (UK) (1992-1996, 2001-2003).
Barney & Friends (1992-2002).
Dateline NBC (1992-present).
Mad About You (1992-1999).
The Larry Sanders Show (1992-1998).
The Real World (1992-present).
Shortland Street (NZ) (1992-present)
Beavis and Butt-head (1993-1997).
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990-1996).
Frasier (1993-2004).
Ricki Lake (1993-2004).
Late Night with Conan O'Brien (1993-present).
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993-1997).
NYPD Blue (1993-2005).
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993-1999).
The Late Show with David Letterman (1993-present).
The Nanny (1993-1999).
The X-Files (1993-2002).
WWF Monday Night RAW (1993-present).
ER (1994-present).
Friends (1994-2004).
Time Team (UK) (1994-present).
Party of Five (1994-2000).
Touched by an Angel (1994-2003).
JAG (1995-2005).
Pamela Wallin Live (Canada) (1995-1999).
Sesame Park (Canada) (1995-2002).
Sliders (1995-2000).
Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001).
Stickin' Around (1996-1998, 2004).
The Drew Carey Show (1995-2004).
The Wheezer Bros. (1995-2001).
Timon and Pumbaa (1995-1998).
Doctor Who (UK) (1963-1989, 1996, 2005-present).
Doug (1991-1994, 1996-1999).
Only Fools and Horses (UK) (1981-1983, 1985-1993, 1996-1997, 2001-2003).
Martin (1992-1997).
Kenan & Kel (1996-2000).
Captain Planet and the Planeteers (1990-1996)

Ending this year

Date	Show	Debut

February 3	Are You Afraid of the Dark?	1992
February 10	Mighty Morphin Power Rangers	1993	February 24	"Biker Mice From Mars"	1993	March 27	Neon Genesis Evangelion (Japan)	1995
March 31	Road to Avonlea	1990
May 4	Sisters	1991
May 16	Murder, She Wrote	1984
May 20	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air	1990
May 28	Matlock	1986
June 9	seaQuest DSV	1993
July 19	Tales from the Crypt	1989
November 2	Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles	1987
November 14	The Ren and Stimpy Show	1991
November 24	Rocko's Modern Life	1993
Unknown	WWF Wrestling Challenge	1986
Unknown	Dream On	1990

Changes of Network Affiliation

Show	Moved from	Moved to
Brotherly Love	NBC	The WB
Doug	Nickelodeon	ABC
Mystery Science Theater 3000	Comedy Central	Sci Fi Channel

Deaths

February 3 - Audrey Meadows, actress (Alice Kramden on The Honeymooners)
February 13 - Martin Balsam, actor (Murray on Archie Bunker's Place)
February 15 - McLean Stevenson, actor (Lt. Col. Henry Blake on M*A*S*H)
February 15 - Tommy Rettig, former child actor (Jeff on Lassie)
March 4 - Minnie Pearl, comedian
March 5 - Whit Bissell, character actor
March 9 - George Burns, 100, comedian
March 11 - Vince Edwards, actor (Ben Casey)
April 21 - Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder, sports commentator
May 20 - Jon Pertwee, 76, former star of Doctor Who.
June 2 - Ray Combs, 40, former host of Family Feud.
June 16 - Mel Allen, sports commentator
July 21 - Herb Edelman, actor (Stanley Zbornak on The Golden Girls)
August 27 - Greg Morris, actor (Mission: Impossible)
September 13 - Tupac Shakur, 25, actor/songwriter.
September 29 - Leslie Crowther, 63, British TV comedian & game show host
October 6 - Ted Bessell, actor (That Girl)
October 27 - Morey Amsterdam. actor and comedian (Buddy on The Dick Van Dyke Show)
December 8 - Howard E. Rollins, Jr., actor (Tibbs on the TV version of In the Heat of the Night)
December 11 - Willie Rushton, 59, comedian, actor, and performer.
December 12 - Larry Gates, soap opera actor (Guiding Light)