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The Television Portal

Flat-screen television receivers on display for sale at a consumer electronics store in 2008

Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, entertainment, news, and sports. The medium is capable of more than "radio broadcasting," which refers to an audio signal sent to radio receivers.

Television became available in crude experimental forms in the 1920s, but only after several years of further development was the new technology marketed to consumers. After World War II, an improved form of black-and-white television broadcasting became popular in the United Kingdom and the United States, and television sets became commonplace in homes, businesses, and institutions. During the 1950s, television was the primary medium for influencing public opinion. In the mid-1960s, color broadcasting was introduced in the U.S. and most other developed countries.

In 2013, 79% of the world's households owned a television set. The replacement of earlier cathode-ray tube (CRT) screen displays with compact, energy-efficient, flat-panel alternative technologies such as LCDs (both fluorescent-backlit and LED), OLED displays, and plasma displays was a hardware revolution that began with computer monitors in the late 1990s. Most television sets sold in the 2000s were flat-panel, mainly LEDs. Major manufacturers announced the discontinuation of CRT, Digital Light Processing (DLP), plasma, and even fluorescent-backlit LCDs by the mid-2010s. LEDs are being gradually replaced by OLEDs. Also, major manufacturers have started increasingly producing smart TVs in the mid-2010s. Smart TVs with integrated Internet and Web 2.0 functions became the dominant form of television by the late 2010s. (Full article...)

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The fourteen episodes of the thirteenth season of South Park, an American animated television comedy series, originally aired in 2009. The show focuses on the exploits of protagonists Stan, Kyle, Cartman, Kenny and Butters in the fictional Colorado mountain town of South Park. The 13th season satirized such topics as the ACORN scandal, Japanese whaling, piracy in Somalia and the marketing tactics of the Walt Disney Company. Celebrities were spoofed throughout the season, including the Jonas Brothers, Kanye West, Carlos Mencia, Paul Watson and Glenn Beck. The season received mixed reviews: some critics called it one of South Park's strongest seasons, while others claimed the series was starting to decline in quality. The season maintained the average Nielsen rating viewership for the series, around 3 million viewers per episode. The episode "Margaritaville", which satirized the global recession then affecting much of the industrialized world, won the 2009 Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour). "Fatbeard" was praised by the crew of the USS Bainbridge, which was involved in the 2009 rescue of the MV Maersk Alabama from Somalian pirates.

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Credit: Todd Ehlers

A remote control is an electronic device used for the remote operation of a machine. The term remote control can be also referred to as "remote" or "controller" when abbreviated. It is known by many other names as well, such as the "clicker", "channel-changer", "splat", "magic hand", etc. Commonly, remote controls are used to issue commands from a distance to televisions or other consumer electronics such as stereo systems and DVD players.

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... that DTK Computer was one of the first companies to have its computers sold via satellite television?
... that Chuck Eisenmann went from professionally pitching in baseball to owning and training the dogs that starred on the Canadian television series The Littlest Hobo?
... that among the special events broadcast by the Maine Television Network during its brief existence were a fashion show, a basketball tournament, and an ordination ceremony?
... that when her boss told her to quit her unpaid television commenting role, Katie Phang quit her paid job instead?
... that Uncle Waffles learned how to DJ during the COVID-19 lockdowns, and then retired from being an Eswatini TV presenter once her music career took off?
... that Montana television station KOPR-TV brought forward its start date by several months, only to last just one year?

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If there's anything unsettling to the stomach, it's watching actors on television talk about their personal lives.

— Marlon Brando

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...that Richard Hanley's book South Park and Philosophy: Bigger, Longer, and More Penetrating analyzes issues of applied ethics as presented in South Park?

...that The O.C.'s music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas worked in the music department of over fifty Roger Corman B-movies before her television debut?

...that Augie Hiebert not only built Alaska's first television station, KTVA, but also founded the state's first FM radio station, KNIK-FM?

...that Gordon Murray, the creator of classic British children's television shows Trumpton, Camberwick Green and Chigley, burnt all but one of his puppets on a bonfire in the 1980s?

...that Russian television implied that Filipp Kirkorov won the Eurovision Song Contest 1995 with "Kolibelnaya Dlya Vulkana" when he in fact only came 17th?

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John Le Mesurier (/lə ˈmɛʒərə/, born John Elton Le Mesurier Halliley; 5 April 1912 – 15 November 1983) was an English actor. He is probably best remembered for his comedic role as Sergeant Arthur Wilson in the BBC television situation comedy Dad's Army (1968–1977). A self-confessed "jobbing actor", Le Mesurier appeared in more than 120 films across a range of genres, normally in smaller supporting parts.

Le Mesurier became interested in the stage as a young adult and enrolled at the Fay Compton Studio of Dramatic Art in 1933. From there he took a position in repertory theatre and made his stage debut in September 1934 at the Palladium Theatre in Edinburgh in the J. B. Priestley play Dangerous Corner. He later accepted an offer to work with Alec Guinness in a John Gielgud production of Hamlet. He first appeared on television in 1938 as Seigneur de Miolans in the BBC broadcast of The Marvellous History of St Bernard. During the Second World War Le Mesurier was posted to British India, as a captain with the Royal Tank Regiment. Following the war, he returned to acting and made his film debut in 1948, starring in the second feature comedy short Death in the Hand, opposite Esme Percy and Ernest Jay. (Full article...)

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James T. Aubrey Kroger Babb Rudolph Cartier Sydney Newman Eric Bana Kylie Minogue Peter Jennings KaDee Strickland Austin Nichols Aaron Sorkin Jake Gyllenhaal Dan Rather Brad Pitt Walter Cronkite Tom Brokaw George Formby Dan Castellaneta Perry Como Red Skelton Rose Catherine Pinkney

General images

The following are images from various television-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1LG Electronics smart TV from 2011 (from Smart TV)
Image 2DBS satellite dishes (from History of television)
Image 3Samsung's discontinued Orsay platform (from Smart TV)
Image 4A map depicting digital terrestrial television standards (from Digital television)
Image 5LG Smart TV using the Web browser (from Smart TV)
Image 6This live image of actress Paddy Naismith was used to demonstrate Telechrome, John Logie Baird's first all-electronic color television system, which used two projection CRTs. The two-color image would be similar to the basic Telechrome system. (from Color television)
Image 7Ad for the beginning of experimental television broadcasting in New York City by RCA in 1939 (from History of television)
Image 8Smart TVs on display (from Smart TV)
Image 9Ferdinand Braun (from History of television)
Image 10Baird in 1925 with his televisor equipment and dummies "James" and "Stooky Bill" (right) (from History of television)
Image 11The Nipkow disk. This schematic shows the circular paths traced by the holes, which may also be square for greater precision. The area of the disk outlined in black shows the region scanned. (from History of television)
Image 12RCA CT-100 at the SPARK Museum of Electrical Invention playing Superman. The RCA CT-100 was the first mass-produced color TV set. (from Color television)
Image 13An early Smart TV from 2012 running the discontinued Orsay platform (from History of television)
Image 14First television test broadcast transmitted by the NHK Broadcasting Technology Research Institute in May 1939 (from History of television)
Image 15Family watching TV, 1958 (from History of television)
Image 16Manfred von Ardenne in 1933 (from History of television)
Image 17Philo Farnsworth in 1924 (from History of television)
Image 18The Philco Predicta, 1958. In the collection of The Children's Museum of Indianapolis (from History of television)
Image 19Color bars used in a test pattern, sometimes used when no program material is available (from History of television)
Image 20The first mass-produced Czechoslovak TV-set Tesla 4001A (1953–57) (from History of television)
Image 21RCA 630-TS, the first mass-produced television set, which sold in 1946–1947 (from History of television)
Image 22Hovannes Adamian c. 1900s (from Color television)
Image 23An RCA Victor Color TV ad featuring milliner Lilly Daché in 1959. (from Color television)
Image 24Comparison of image quality between ISDB-T (1080i broadcast, top) and NTSC (480i transmission, bottom) (from Digital television)

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Featured lists have been determined by the Wikipedia community to be the best lists on English Wikipedia.

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The episodes of Night Wizard: The Animation, the 2007 Japanese animated television series, are directed by Yusuke Yamamoto and produced by Hal Film Maker and Omnibus Promotion, which produced the animation and sound respectively. They are based on the Night Wizard! role-playing game released by Enterbrain in 2002, and adapt the source material over thirteen episodes. The plot of the episodes follows Renji Hiiragi, a magic user known as a "Night Wizard" that protects the world against demonic beings called Emulators, as he protects newly ordained Night Wizard Elis Shihō on their quest to find the Jewels of Virtue.

The episodes aired from October 2, 2007, to December 25, 2007, on Chiba TV, Tokyo MX TV, and TV Aichi. TV Osaka and TV Saitama broadcast the episodes later in October, and Kids Station started airing the episodes in November. (Full article...)
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The first season of the television comedy series 30 Rock originally aired between October 11, 2006, and April 26, 2007, on NBC in the United States. The season was produced by Broadway Video, Little Stranger and NBC Universal, and the executive producers were series creator Tina Fey, Lorne Michaels, JoAnn Alfano, Marci Klein, and David Miner.

The series focuses on TGS with Tracy Jordan, a fictional sketch comedy series, and its head writer Liz Lemon, portrayed by Fey, as she juggles her job and her personal life. The season consisted of 21 episodes; 19 episodes were approximately 22 minutes long, and the other two episodes were approximately 26 minutes long due to NBC "supersizing" those episodes. The season moved timeslots three times during its run. The first four episodes aired on Wednesdays at 8:00 pm, the next thirteen episodes aired on Thursdays at 9:30 pm, and the final four episodes aired on Thursdays at 9:00 pm. (Full article...)
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The seventh season of Degrassi: The Next Generation commenced airing in Canada on 14 January 2008, concluded on 23 June 2008, and consists of twenty-four episodes. Degrassi: The Next Generation is a Canadian serial teen drama television series. This season takes place during the winter/spring semester of the school year that began in season six and continues to depict the lives of a group of high school sophomores, juniors, seniors and graduates as they deal with some of the challenges and issues young adults face, such as rape, school violence, cancer, drug use, prostitution, sexual misconduct, racism, sexism, parenthood, HIV and relationships.

Season seven aired Mondays at 7:30 p.m. (7:00 p.m. in Quebec) on CTV, a Canadian terrestrial television network. In the United States, it premiered on the Noggin cable channel during its programming block for teenagers, The N. Season seven debuted in the US three months before it began broadcasting in Canada, on 5 October 2007. In total, sixteen episodes aired in the US before they did Canada. Further to being broadcast on television, episodes were made available for free streaming on CTV's website; the season is also available on US and Canadian iTunes. The second Degrassi dedicated soundtrack, Music from Degrassi: The Next Generation, was released 9 December 2008. (Full article...)
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The first season of Degrassi: The Next Generation, a Canadian serial teen drama television series, commenced airing in Canada on 14 October 2001 and concluded on 3 March 2002, consisting of fifteen episodes. The series introduces a group of seventh and eighth grade school children, and follows their lives as they deal with some of the challenges and issues teenagers face such as online predators, body image, dysfunctional families, sex, puberty, rumours, peer pressure, stress, and drug use.

The first season was broadcast on the Canadian terrestrial television network CTV, on Sundays at 7:00 p.m. It debuted with a one-hour movie of the week special, "Mother and Child Reunion", which form the first two episodes of season one. In the United States, it was broadcast on the Noggin cable channel during its programming block for teenagers, The N. The season was released domestically on DVD as a three disc boxed set on 19 October 2004 by Alliance Atlantis Home Entertainment, although it was released to the US market almost a month earlier, on 28 September 2004. The season is also available on iTunes. (Full article...)
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The anime series Buso Renkin is based on the manga series of the same name written by Nobuhiro Watsuki. The series is directed by Takao Kato and produced by Xebec. The episodes follow Kazuki Muto who becomes an Alchemic warrior in the battle against Alchemic monsters known as Homunculi.

The production of the Buso Renkin anime was announced by the release of a minute-long internet trailer. Buso Renkin aired between October 5, 2006, and March 29, 2007, on TV Tokyo. The episodes were later released in nine DVD compilations between January 25, 2007, and September 21, 2007, by Geneon Universal Entertainment. A DVD box set containing the whole series was released on November 26, 2009. (Full article...)
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The sixth season of the Bleach anime series is named the Arrancar: The Arrival arc (破面・出現篇, Arankaru Shutsugen Hen). In the English adaptation of the anime released by Viz Media, the title of the season is translated as The Arrancar. The episodes are directed by Noriyuki Abe, and produced by TV Tokyo, Dentsu and Studio Pierrot. The season adapts Tite Kubo's Bleach manga series from the rest of the 21st volume to the 26th volume (chapters 183–229), with the exception of episodes 128–131 (filler). The episodes' plot centers on the burgeoning war between the Soul Reapers and the Arrancar led by former Soul Reaper captain Sōsuke Aizen.

The season aired on TV Tokyo from January to June 2007. The English adaptation of the Bleach anime is licensed by Viz Media, and aired on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim in the United States from April to July 2009. (Full article...)
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The 2023 recipient:
Michelle Stafford

The Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series is an award presented annually by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) and Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). It is given to honor an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role while working within the daytime drama industry.

The 1st Daytime Emmy Awards ceremony was held in 1974, with Elizabeth Hubbard receiving the award for her role as Althea Davis on The Doctors. The award has undergone several name changes, originally honoring actresses in leading and supporting roles. Following the introduction of a new category in 1979, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series, the award's name was altered to Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series, before changing once again, to its current title, years later. The awards ceremony was not aired on television in 1983 and 1984, having been criticized for voting integrity. In 1985, another category was introduced: Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series; one criterion for this category was altered, requiring all actresses to be aged 26 or above. (Full article...)
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Seth MacFarlane, shown here in 2012, created Family Guy, which premiered on January 31, 1999.

Family Guy is an American animated television sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the dysfunctional Griffin family, which consists of father Peter (MacFarlane), mother Lois (Alex Borstein), daughter Meg (Lacey Chabert in Episodes 1–9, then Mila Kunis from Episode 10 onwards), son Chris (Seth Green), baby Stewie (MacFarlane), and Brian (MacFarlane), the family dog. The show is set in the fictional town of Quahog, Rhode Island, and lampoons American culture in the form of cutaway gags, science fiction and tangential vignettes.

The concept of Family Guy was conceived by MacFarlane in 1995 while studying animation at the Rhode Island School of Design. He created two shorts entitled The Life of Larry and Larry & Steve, both of which played a key role in Fox executives' decision to pick up the series in 1998. After two seasons, Fox decided to cancel the show. Despite the cancellation, a third season was produced, after which the series was officially cancelled at the end of the 2001–2002 season. Reruns on Cartoon Network's block Adult Swim drove up interest, and a letter-writing campaign, along with impressive DVD sales, encouraged Fox to bring the show back for the 2005–2006 television season. (Full article...)
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Louie is an American television comedy created, written, directed by, and starring stand-up comedian Louis C.K. The series has aired for five seasons on the cable channel FX since June 29, 2010. The show centers on a fictionalized version of C.K.'s life as a comedian, father, and divorcé.

Since its debut, the series has earned widespread critical acclaim and has been nominated for a variety of different awards, including twenty-two Primetime Emmy Awards (three wins for the series), eight Television Critics Association Awards (three wins), two Golden Globe Awards, four Writers Guild of America Awards (three wins), three Directors Guild of America Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and two Producers Guild of America Awards. (Full article...)
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D.Gray-man is an anime series adapted from the manga of the same title by Katsura Hoshino. Produced by TMS Entertainment and directed by Osamu Nabeshima, the series follows the adventures of Allen Walker, an exorcist that wields the power of "Innocence" in order to fight against the Millennium Earl, an ancient sorcerer seeking to destroy the world with monsters called akuma.

The episodes began airing on October 3, 2006, in Japan on TV Tokyo. The first season of the anime, known as the "1st stage", aired for 51 episodes, finishing its run on September 25, 2007. The second season, known as the "2nd stage", began airing on October 2, 2007, and finished its run on September 30, 2008, lasting 52 episodes. In 2008, Funimation acquired the series for an English-language release in North America and reformatted the series into four separate seasons. In June 2016, Funimation acquired the rights to the second half of the anime. A sequel titled D.Gray-man Hallow premiered in Japan in July 2016. (Full article...)
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The first season of Veronica Mars, an American drama television series created by Rob Thomas, premiered on UPN in the United States on September 22, 2004. The series was produced by Warner Bros. Television, Silver Pictures Television and Rob Thomas Productions, and Joel Silver and Thomas served as the executive producers.

The season revolves around Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell), a high school student and private investigator in the fictional Southern California seaside town of Neptune. When Veronica's best friend, Lilly Kane (Amanda Seyfried), is murdered, her life falls apart. Her father, County Sheriff Keith Mars (Enrico Colantoni), accuses Lilly's father of being involved in the murder. This provokes Neptune's wrath and Keith's ousting as sheriff in a recall election. Veronica's mother, Lianne (Corinne Bohrer), develops a drinking problem and leaves town. Veronica's "09er" friends—wealthy students from the fictional 90909 ZIP code—force her to choose between them and her father; she chooses her father. Keith opens a private investigation agency, Mars Investigations, where Veronica works part-time. (Full article...)
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The fourth season of 30 Rock, an American television comedy series, consists of 22 episodes and began airing on October 15, 2009, on the NBC network in the United States. The season was produced by Broadway Video, Little Stranger, and NBC Universal; the executive producers were series creator Tina Fey, Lorne Michaels, Marci Klein, David Miner, and Robert Carlock.

30 Rock is centered on The Girlie Show with Tracy Jordan (TGS), a fictional sketch comedy series, and its head writer Liz Lemon, portrayed by Fey. The series follows Lemon as she juggles her job and her personal life. Early in the season Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) and Liz work to find a new cast member for TGS. The season also sees NBC being purchased by Kabletown, a fictionalized depiction of the acquisition of NBC Universal by Comcast. Additionally, Liz has an ongoing relationship with a man she thought might be her "Future Husband" later in the season. (Full article...)
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The Office is an American television sitcom developed by Greg Daniels and based on the British series of the same name created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. The show premiered on NBC on March 24, 2005, and concluded on May 16, 2013, after airing 201 episodes across nine seasons. Filmed as a mockumentary, the series depicts the everyday lives of a group of office employees in the Scranton, Pennsylvania, branch of the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. The Office initially featured Steve Carell as Michael Scott, Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute, John Krasinski as Jim Halpert, Jenna Fischer as Pam Beesly, and B. J. Novak as Ryan Howard; the show's cast changed significantly during its run.

Despite premiering to mixed reviews during its first season, The Office's subsequent seasons received widespread acclaim and became a success for NBC, though later seasons were criticized for a dip in quality. From 2006 to 2011, the show was nominated six consecutive times for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series, winning for its second season. The show was also nominated for three Golden Globe Awards for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy; five Producers Guild of America Awards for Best Episodic Comedy, winning once; the 2006 TCA Award for Program of the Year; and four TCA Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy, winning twice. The Office was named as one of the top television programs of 2006 and 2008 by the American Film Institute, and in 2007, the series was recognized with a Peabody Award. (Full article...)
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The fourth season of Degrassi: The Next Generation commenced airing in Canada on 7 September 2004, concluded on 14 February 2005 and contains twenty-two episodes. Degrassi: The Next Generation is a Canadian serial teen drama television series. This season depicts the lives of a group of high school sophomores and juniors as they deal with some of the challenges and issues teenagers face such as bullying, dysfunctional families, school shootings, mental disorders, STDs, disabilities, gambling, homosexuality, and inappropriate student-teacher relationships.

Every episode is titled after a song from the 1980s, except for the two-part season finale "Goin' Down the Road", which took its name from the 1970 Canadian film Goin' Down the Road. Filming took place between April and November 2004. (Full article...)
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Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series that premiered on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) as a mid-season replacement on March 27, 2005. The series focuses on the fictional lives of surgical interns and residents as they evolve into seasoned doctors while trying to maintain personal lives. The show's premise originated with Shonda Rhimes, who serves as an executive producer, along with Betsy Beers, Mark Gordon, Krista Vernoff, Rob Corn, Mark Wilding, and Allan Heinberg. The series was created to be racially diverse, utilizing a color-blind casting technique. It is primarily filmed in Los Angeles. The show's title is a play on Gray's Anatomy, the classic human anatomy textbook.

Episodes have been broadcast on Thursday nights since Grey's third season. The first two seasons aired after Desperate Housewives in the Sunday 10:00 pm EST time-slot. All episodes are approximately forty-three minutes, excluding commercials, and are broadcast in both high-definition and standard. Episodes are also available for download at the iTunes Store in standard and high definition, and Amazon Video, with new episodes appearing the day after their live airings. ABC Video on demand also releases episodes of the show, typically one to two days after their premieres. Recent episodes are available on ABC's Android/iTunes app or at ABC's official Grey's Anatomy website, and Hulu. (Full article...)

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