Today in History: Sunday, September 24, 2023

Television
Series of note that launched: “The Donna Reed Show” (ABC) in 1958; “The Munsters” (CBS) in 1964; “The Mod Squad” (ABC), “The Doris Day Show” (CBS) and “60 Minutes” (CBS) in 1968; “The Odd Couple” (ABC) in 1970; “The Love Boat” (ABC) in 1977; “Growing Pains” (ABC) in 1985; “A Different World” (NBC) in 1987; “Boy Meets World” (ABC) in 1993; “Dharma & Greg” (ABC) in 1997; “The Big Bang Theory” (CBS) in 2007; and “The Goldbergs” (ABC) in 2013…Actress Kirstie Alley officially joined the cast of NBC’s “Cheers” as the bar’s new manager Rebecca Howe in the sitcom’s sixth season premiere in 1987.

Movies:
“The Social Network” starring Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake at the New York Film Festival.

Music:
Elvis Presley single “Jailhouse Rock,“ which won the Billboard Song of the Year, was released in 1957...Paul McCartney release “No More Lonely Nights”… “Tell Her About It” by Billy Joel reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1983…Rock band Nirvana released their 2nd studio album “Nevermind” in 1991

News:
In 1979, CompuServe launched as the world’s first consumer internet service, featuring the first public electronic mail service.

Sports:
The New York Mets, whose franchise launched in 1962 and had been one of baseball’s worst teams for almost the entire decade of the 60’s, clinched the National League East division title in 1969. The team was dubbed “The Miracle Mets.”

Celebrity Birthdays
News anchor Lou Dobbs is 77; legendary NFL defensive tackle “Mean” Joe Greene is 76; actor Gordon Clapp (“NYPD Blue”) is 74; actor Kevin Sorbo (“Hercules: The Legendary Journeys”) is 64; actress Nia Vardalos (“My Big Fat Greek Wedding” is 60; pro football Hall of Fame running back Eddie George is 49; TV personally Ross Matthews is 43; actor Ben Platt (“The Politician”) is 29.

Did You Know?
Both equally eccentric “The Addams Family” and “The Munsters” aired for only two seasons — from 1964 to 1966. But since the norm was a 30+ episode season back then, the pair seemed to last longer…Together Jack Klugman and Tony Randall on “The Odd Couple” dominated the Emmy category of Best Actor in a Comedy Series in 3 of the 5 seasons it ran…Combining his roles on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and “The Love Boat,” Gavin MacLeod was featured every Saturday in primetime from 1970 to 1986.