Events in Film & TV
- 1979-11-08 ABC broadcasts "Iran Crisis: American Held Hostage" with Frank Reynolds (forerunner to "Nightline")
- 1980-03-24 "Nightline with Ted Koppel" premieres on ABC
Iran Hostage Crisis
1980-03-24 ABC's nightly Iran Hostage crisis program renamed "Nightline"
- 1981-01-05 Late night television news program "Nightline" with Ted Koppel extended from 20 mins to 30 mins
- 1981-05-30 "Nightline" extends from 4 nights to 5 nights a week (Friday)
- 1982-03-12 PLO chief Yassar Arafat appears on "Nightline"
- 1983-04-25 "Nightline" expands from ½ hour to a full hour
- 1984-04-21 "Nightline" reverts from 1 hour to ½ hour format
- 1984-06-19 1st live TV appearance by Chief Justice Warren Burger (Nightline)
- 1985-05-18 1st remote location for "Nightline" (South Africa)
Film & TV History
1986-02-05 Corazon Aquino & Ferdinand Marcos appear on "Nightline"
- 1987-04-06 Los Angeles Dodger's GM Al Campanis appears on TV program ABC News: Nightline saying Blacks may not be equipped to be in baseball management, sparking a racial controversy
- 1987-04-07 Al Campanis, Dodger executive for more than 40 years, resigns, after making racial remarks on "Nightline"
- 1987-05-27 Christian evangelists Jim and Tammy Bakker appear on "Nightline" after PTL scandal
- 1987-06-05 "Nightline" presents its 1st "Town Meeting" the subject is AIDS and the show runs until 3:47 AM
- 1987-09-09 Gary Hart admits on "Nightline" to cheating on his wife
- 1987-12-10 "Nightline" is seen in USSR for 1st time
- 1988-04-25 American news program "Nightline" goes on location to Jerusalem Israel
- 2005-11-22 Ted Koppel retires from late night television news program "Nightline with Ted Koppel", after 25 years with the show, 41 Emmy Awards, and 42 years with ABC
Birthdays in Film & TV
- 1940-02-08 Ted Koppel, German-American Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist (ABC's Nightline; NPR; CBS), born in Lancashire, England
- 1943-06-10 Jeff Greenfield, American media commentator (Firing Line; Nightline), born in NYC, New York
- 1966-05-20 Dan Abrams, American TV reporter (Nightline)
- 1971-07-26 Dan Harris, American journalist and TV anchor (Nightline; Good Morning America), born in Newton, Massachusetts
Deaths in Film & TV
- 2008-08-15 Leroy Sievers, American journalist (CBS News, Nightline), dies of cancer at 53
Barbara Walters
Ernesto Teodoro Moneta
Harry Reasoner
Hunter S. Thompson
Joachim Fest
Richard Hammond