Today in History: Friday, March 15, 2024

Television
The CBS Morning Show” premiered with hosts Walter Cronkite and Jack Paar in 1954, which could not find an audience opposite NBC’s dominant “Today” show…Two classic ABC series debuted in 1977: family dramedy “Eight is Enough” and sitcom “Three’s Company.” During that first short season of “Eight is Enough,” the late Diana Hyland was featured as Bradford matriarch Joan.

ABC sitcom “Mr. Belvedere,” starring Christopher Hewitt, launched in 1985. It ran for six seasons and was based on the Lynn Aloysius Belvedere character created by Gwen Davenport for her 1947 novel “Belvedere” (which was later adapted into the 1948 film “Sitting Pretty”).

Barbara Eden and Don Murray starred in the hit telefilm “The Stepford Children” which premiered on NBC in 1987. It was the sequel to “The Stepford Wives”…Eight short-lived comedies debuted on this day. First were NBC’s “Sanford” with Redd Foxx in 1980; and CBS’ “Ace Crawford, Private Eye” with Tim Conway in 1983. Then there were three CBS sitcoms in 1988 — “Trial & Error” with Paul Rodriguez; “The Dictator” with Christopher Lloyd; and “Coming of Age” with Paul Dooley. And, finally, ABC’s “Aliens in the Family” in 1996; CBS’s “Payne” starring JoBeth Williams and John Larroquette in 1999; and family sitcom “Crowded” on NBC which starred Patrick Warburton, Carrie Preston, Stacy Keach and Miranda Cosgrove in 2016…15 million watched the 33rd animated “Peanuts” special “Why, Charlie Brown, Why?” on CBS in 1990. The program focused on Charlie and Linus coping with their new friend who has leukemia…Three short-lived series launched in 2008: 1) Andy Richter private eye comedy “Andy Barker, P.I.” on NBC; 2) Jeff Goldblum private eye dramedy “Raines” on NBC; and 3) coming-of-age drama “October Road” on ABC which starred Bryan Greenberg and Laura Prepon…Three other short-lived series debuted: NBC fantasy monarchy drama “Kings” with Ian McShane in 2009; ABC limited series “Missing” that starred Ashley Judd in 2012; E! soap opera “The Royals” with Elizabeth Hurley in 2015…”V,” the revival of the 80’s supernatural drama which starred Elizabeth Mitchell and Morena Baccarin concluded its condensed two-season run in 2011.

Real estate heir and suspected serial killer Robert Durst accidentally left his mic on in the bathroom after an interview and said “What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course.” in the final scene of the six-part murder mystery documentary “The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst” on HBO in 2015…Also in 2015, ESPN premiered the “30 for 30” sports documentary “I Hate Christian Laettner” that explored why the famous 90’s Duke basketball player polarized so many college basketball fans. It was narrated by Rob Lowe…Taye Diggs and Laura San Giancomo guest starred on the 300th episode of military crime procedural “NCIS” on CBS in 2016…Offbeat workplace comedy “Workaholics” which starred Adam Devine, Anders Holm and Blake Anderson ended their 7-season, 86-episode series run on Comedy Central in 2017…The complete first season of six episodes of comedy “Shrill” starring “SNL” cast member Aidy Bryant was released on Hulu in 2019. It ran for three abbreviated seasons.

Movies:
“The Godfather”, based on the book by Mario Puzo, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Richard Castellano and Diane Keaton opened in New York City in 1972. It was the first installment of “The Godfather” trilogy, and it won three Oscars (including Best Picture and Marlon Brandon for Best Actor.

Music:
Justin Timberlake released his third studio album “The 20/20 Experience” in 2013. It won the Billboard Album of the Year.

Sports:
Pitcher Cy Young retired from baseball with 511 wins in 1912.

News:
Christopher Columbus returned to Spain after his first voyage to the New World in 1493…Four officers of the Los Angeles Police Department were charged with excessive force over the beating of Rodney King in 1991.

Celebrity Birthdays:
Actor Judd Hirsch (“Taxi”) is 89; singer Mike Love of the Beach Boys is 83; singer-keyboardist Sly Stone of Sly and the Family Stone is 81; actor Frances Conroy (“American Horror Story,” ″Six Feet Under”) is 71; actor Craig Wasson (“Body Double”) is 70; singer Dee Snider of Twisted Sister is 69; actor Joaquim de Almeida (film’s “Clear and Present Danger,” TV’s “24”) is 67; actress Park Overall (“Empty Nest”) is also 67; male model Fabio is 65; singer Terence Trent D’Arby is 62; singer Bret Michaels of Poison is 61; singer Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray is 56; actress Kim Raver (“Grey’s Anatomy”) is 55; actress Eva Longoria (“Desperate Housewives”) is 49; musician will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas is also 49; actor Kellan Lutz (“The Legend of Hercules,” The “Twilight” films) is 39.

Did You Know?
When Marlon Brandon won his Academy Award for Best Actor for “The Godfather” on March 27, 1973, the Native American actress Sacheen Littlefeather attended the ceremony in Brando’s place, stating that the actor “very regretfully” could not accept the award, as he was protesting Hollywood’s portrayal of Native Americans in film….When the producers of “Three’s Company” were planning spin-off series “Three’s a Crowd” with John Ritter for the 1984-85 season featuring Jack Tripper and his live-in girlfriend, Suzanne Somers reportedly unsuccessfully lobbied to reprise her Chrissy Snow character as Jack’s love interest. Don Knotts (Ralph Furley) and Richard Kline (Larry Dallas) were offered recurring roles on the series, but turned them down. When ABC, in the spring of 1985, needed to decide which one of its then freshman comedies it was going to renew for a second season — “Three’s a Crowd” or “Who’s The Boss?” — it wisely chose the Tony Danza sitcom (which ultimately ran for eight seasons).