2000 in American television
| List of years in American television: 1997 1998 1999 – 2000 – 2001 2002 2003 |
| 2000-01 United States network television schedule |
The following is a list of events affecting American television in 2000. Events listed include television show debuts, finales, cancellations, and channel launches, closures and rebrandings, as well as information about controversies and carriage disputes.
Events
January
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 15 | Talk show host David Letterman undergoes quintuple heart bypass surgery at New York-Presbyterian Hospital, following an angiogram that revealed that one of his arteries was seriously constricted. |
| 17 | Robin Givens replaces Mother Love as host of the talk show Forgive or Forget. |
| 20 | SoapNet, a channel dedicated to daytime/primetime soap operas, is launched. |
February
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 2 | Oxygen is launched. |
| 4 | Star Force make its debut to television and cinemas from Paramount. |
| 15 | Rick Rockwell marries stranger Darva Conger in front of 22 million viewers on the Fox reality show Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire? While he and Darva are honeymooning, word surfaces that Rockwell—who is sometimes a comedian—had a restraining order against a former girlfiend, and he was not really a multi-millionaire. As a result, Fox cancels a rerun scheduled the following week, and does not air any new installments. In addition the couple break up shortly after the show's taping. |
| 21 | David Letterman returns to television following his quintuple heart bypass surgery in January. Letterman brings all of the doctors that had performed the operation out on stage with him, including Dr. O. Wayne Isom and Physician Louis Aronne, who makes frequent appearances on the show. In an unusual show of emotion, Letterman is nearly in tears as he thanked the doctors. The episode earned an Emmy nomination. Letterman's father died of a heart attack while still in his 50s. |
March
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1 | SportsChannel America ceased operations, before rebranding all of the Fox Sports Net stations. |
| fXM: Movies from Fox rebrands the Fox Movie Channel. |
April
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1 | Boomerang, The secondary Cartoon Network channel is launched. |
| 30 | Arabian Nights is shown on ABC in the United States. |
May
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 8 | VH1 Classic is launched. |
July
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 3 | KNTV terminated its second ABC affiliation and carries programming from The WB. |
| 5 | Big Brother premieres in the United States. The series is considered a major failure and is retooled and renewed for the next season. |
| 28 | Kathie Lee Gifford made its last-ever broadcast on Live! after 15 years of co-host. |
August
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 3 | KBEJ Channel 2, (now KCWX) commences programming in San Antonio, Texas. |
| 21 | 'ZDTV is renamed to TechTV. |
September
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 10 | The 52nd Primetime Emmy Awards were handed out by ABC. |
| 15 | While most shows debuted in the fall season, The 2000 Summer Olympics was televised on NBC for the second time. |
| 16 | CBS relaunches its Saturday morning block, Nick Jr. on CBS. |
| 25 | TNN is relaunched with The National Network, known as The New TNN. |
| 29 | Eddie McGee is crowned the winner of the first American season of Big Brother and wins $500,000. Runners-Up are Josh Souza, winner of $100,000, and Curtis Kin, winner of $50,000. Toon Disney and Playhouse Disney launches in the United Kingdom. |
October
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 2 | Triple Play is played for the first time on The Price is Right. This is the first pricing game in the show's history to offer three cars. |
December
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 14 | Barker's Beauties Janice Pennington and Kathleen Bradley both leave The Price is Right on CBS. Pennington has been on the show since its premiere in 1972. |
| 15 | Barker's Beauties auditions are held for several months on The Price is Right. In the end, Claudia Jordan and Heather Kozar are seleted as permanent models. |
| 18 | Actor Hank Azaria and actress Helen Hunt file for divorce. |
| 22 | The character of Bianca Montgomery, played by Eden Riegel on the soap opera All My Children, comes out as a lesbian to her mother, Erica Kane (played by Susan Lucci). |
| 31 | ABC airs "Dick Clark's Primetime New Year's Rockin' Eve" at 10 p.m. ET for the first time, followed by local programming and the main "New Year's Rockin' Eve", which returned later that year. |
Programs debuting in 2000
Programs returning in 2000
| Show | Last Aired | Previous Network | Retitled as/Same | New/Returning/Same Network | Returning |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Twenty One | 1958 | CBS | Same | NBC | January 9 |
| Shop 'til You Drop | 1998 | The Family Channel | Same | PAX TV | April 3 |
| Supermarket Sweep | 1995 | Lifetime | Same | PAX TV | |
| This Week in Baseball | 1998 | Syndication | Same | Fox | July 12 |
| To Tell the Truth | 1991 | NBC | Same | Syndication | September 18 |
| The Further Adventures of Zook & Alison | 1994 | PBS | Same | Noggin | September 21 |
Programs ending in 2000
| Date | Show | Debut |
|---|---|---|
| January 2 | The Moxy and Flea Show | 1993 |
| January 22 | KaBlam! | 1996 |
| February 4 | Sliders | 1995 |
| March 2 | I Am Weasel | 1997 |
| March 4 | Oh Baby | 1998 |
| April 28 | Cosby | 1996 |
| May 3 | Party of Five | 1994 |
| May 4 | Chicago Hope | 1994 |
| May 5 | Boy Meets World | 1993 |
| A Little Curious | 1998 | |
| May 11 | Mobile Suit Gundam Wing | 2000 |
| May 13 | Martial Law | 1998 |
| May 16 | Sports Night | 1998 |
| May 17 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | 1990 |
| May 22 | Malcolm & Eddie | 1996 |
| May 25 | Forgive or Forget | 1998 |
| June 9 | The Dating Game | 1996 |
| June 11 | Are You Afraid of the Dark? | 1991 |
| July 1 | Profiler | 1996 |
| July 13 | Stark Raving Mad | 1999 |
| September 10 | Double Dare 2000 | 2000 |
| October 7 | Mickey Mouse Works | 1999 |
| November 18 | Beast Machines | 1999 |
| Power Rangers: Lightspeed Rescue | 2000 | |
| December 26 | Suddenly Susan | 1996 |
Miniseries
Changes of Network Affiliation
| Show | Moved from | Moved to |
|---|---|---|
| Candid Camera | CBS | PAX TV |
| The Hughleys | ABC | UPN |
| Sabrina, the Teenage Witch | ABC | The WB |
| The PJs | Fox | The WB |
| WWF RAW is WAR | USA Network | TNN |
Deaths
- January 15 – Fran Ryan, character actress (Doris Ziffle #2 on Green Acres), sister of Irene Ryan
- February 10 – Jim Varney, 50, actor and comedian who created the character Ernest P. Worrell
- February 12 – Charles M. Schulz, 77, cartoonist, creator of Peanuts
- March 25 – Helen Martin, 90, veteran African American character actress (Pearl on 227)
- April 10 – Larry Linville, 60, actor (Frank Burns on the TV version of M*A*S*H)
- June 18 - Nancy Marchand, 71, actress on "The Sopranos"
- July 14 – Meredith MacRae, 56, actress on Petticoat Junction
- August 6 - Sir Robin Day, 76, political broadcaster and commentator
- August 12 – Loretta Young, 87, actress
- September 14 – Beah Richards, 80, actress
- September 17 – Paula Yates, 41, presenter
- September 26 – Richard Mulligan, 67, actor (Burt on Soap and Harry on Empty Nest)
- October 18 – Julie London, 74, singer, actress (Emergency!)
- October 30 – Steve Allen, 78, comedian, composer, talk show host, author
- December 6 – Werner Klemperer, 80, actor (Col. Wilhelm Klink on Hogan's Heroes)
- December 23 - Victor Borge, 90, Danish comedian and pianist
- December 26 – Jason Robards, 78, actor