Today in History: Sunday, December 3, 2023

Television and Radio
In an episode of the ABC anthology drama “Bus Stop” in 1961 titled “A Lion Walks Among Us”, pop singer Fabian portrayed a young vagrant accused of murder. Twenty-five ABC affiliates refused to air the telecast due to what was then deemed as an “obscene” depiction of violence. It was directed by Robert Altman…The first Elvis Presley TV special, also known as his comeback special, aired on NBC in 1968. It was Elvis’ first personal performance on TV in nearly ten years; the special famously concluded with the song “If I Can Dream“…Here comes the bride…again: It was J.R. (Larry Hagman) and Sue Ellen‘s (Linda Gray) wedding day on CBS serial drama “Dallas” in 1982…CBS’ long-running “Knots Landing” reached the 200-episode milestone in 1987. The series concluded after 344 episodes (and 14 seasons) on May 13, 1993…Short-lived police drama “True Blue” starring John Bolger, Ally Walker, Nestor Serrano and Grant Show debuted on NBC in 1989…On Fox’s animated “The Simpsons” in 1992, baby Maggie Simpson uttered her very first word: ‘Daddy.’ Maggie was voiced by Elizabeth Taylor…The U.S. version of the drama “Queer As Folk” debuted on Showtime in 2000. Based on the British original, it ran for five seasons…“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” hosted by former “Trading Spaces” personality Ty Pennington debuted on ABC in 2003. It soon became a staple on Sunday nights and was an immediate top-20 hit. It initially ran for eight seasons. In 2020, HGTV revived the series with former “Modern Family” star Jesse Tyler Ferguson as host…Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, Michael “The Situation” Sorrentino and the rest of the housemates debuted in 2009 on MTV docuseries “Jersey Shore.“ It aired for seven editions (through the end of 2012) and is currently revived as “Jersey Shore Family Vacation.“ It also spun-off half-hours “Snooki & JWoww,” with Snooki and Jennifer “JWoww” Farley; and “The Pauly D Project,” with Pauly DelVecchio.

Movies:
Boxing film classic “Rocky“, written by and starring Sylvester Stallone, opened in theaters in 1976. It was the film that catapulted Stallone into major stardom and would upset then-award favorite “All the President’s Men” to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards in the spring of 1977…”Frances,” the film depicting life of actress Frances Farmer and starring Jessica Lange, was released in 1982. Lange was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Leading Actress for her efforts, but lost to Meryl Streep for “Sophie’s Choice.” Lange did, however, win the Oscar Best Supporting Actress for “Tootsie” that year.

Music:
Reaching No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart: “Baby, I Love Your Way/Free Bird Medley” by Will To Power in 1988; “On Bended Knee” by Boyz II Men in 1994.

News:
The original version of the musical “Camelot” opened on Broadway in 1960. It starred Richard Burton (in his Tony Award-winning role as King Arthur), Julie Andrews and Robert Goulet. Although its Broadway run lasted just 25 months, its plot was most associated with the description of John F. Kennedy and the Kennedy family at the White House… Sony released its original PlayStation home video game console in 1994.

Sports:
In 1968, the MLB rules committee adopts changes in an effort to increase offensive production such as lessening the height of the pitching mound from 15 inches to 10 inches and narrowing the batter’s strike zone… the ever-confident Chicago Bears released their famous music video “Super Bowl Shuffle” in 1985. The team would successfully live up to their own lofty expectations by winning the Super Bowl several weeks later.

Celebrity Birthdays:
Singer Jaye P. Morgan (“The Gong Show”) is 92; actor Nicolas Coster (“Buck Rogers”) is 90; Ozzy Osbourne is 75; actor Steven Culp (“Desperate Housewives”) is 68; Oscar winner Julianne Moore (“Still Alice”) is 63; actress Daryl Hannah (“Splash”) is also 63; two-time Olympic gold medalist figure skater Katarina Witt is 58; actor Brendan Fraser (“The Whale”) is 55; singer Montell Jordan is also 55; actress Holly Marie Combs (“Charmed”) is 50; actress-comedienne Tiffany Haddish (“Girls Trip”) is 44; actress Anna Chlumsky (“Veep”) is 43; actress-dancer Jenna Dewan (“World of Dance”) is also 43; actor Brian Bonsall (“Family Ties”) is 42; singer-songwriter Andy Grammer is 40; actress Amanda Seyfried (“Mamma Mia”) is 38; actor Jake T. Austin (“Wizards of Waverly Place”) is 29.

Did You Know?
The 200th episode of “Knots Landing,“ which was early in season nine, coincided with the passing of original character Laura Avery Sumner. Due to budget cuts, both Constance McCashin (Laura) and Julie Harris (Lilimae) exited the series.