slowly, but surely, the 1970s are disappearing. the 1980s will be upon us. what a decade it is, coming up. happy new year! >> as you begin the '80s, in the

television world, the landscape was, on any given evening, nine out of ten people were watching only one of three networks. >> more than 30 million people are addicted to it. social critics are mystified by its success. what is it? it's television's prime-time pot boiler, dallas. >> a move like that will ruin our family name. >> i assure you a thought like that never crossed my mind. >> brother or no brother, whatever it takes, i will stop you. >> in terms of a weekly, one-hour show, that literally captivated america for 13 years. >> "dallas" is a television shows which, in some ways, is rooted in the 1970s. this character, jr, as a pop phenomenon. >> tell me, jr, which slut are you going to stay with tonight? >> what difference does it make? got to be more interesting than the slut i am looking at now.

>> he was such a delicious villain, everyone was completely enamored by this character. at this point, so many people were watching television, that you could do something so unexpected, that it would become news, overnight. >> the national obsession, in 1980, around who shot jr. it's hard to imagine how obsessed we all were with that question but we were. >> who shot jr is about as ideal a cliffhanger as you possibly could get. >> who did shoot jr? i mean, the people who produced that program are going to keep us in suspense for as long as they possibly can. >> we shot jr. and then, we broke for the summer. then, coincidentally, the actors went on strike and it delayed the resolution. and it just started to percolate through the world.

>> i remember, going on vacation to england, that summer, and that's all that people were talking about there. >> well, we know you don't die. i mean, you couldn't die. >> don't know that. >> well, how could you die? you couldn't come back, next season. >> that's what i mean. i couldn't come back, but the show could still go. >> oh, but you wouldn't. what is that show without jr? >> well, that's what i figure. >> i guess, if you don't know, by now, who shot jr, you probably do not care. but last night, some 82 million americans did, and they watched the dallas episode. it could become the most-watched television show, ever. >> who shot jr is a reflection of old-fashion television. it's a moment that gathers everybody around the electronic fi fireplace, which is now the television set. >> one special american television program, critics said it comes in its popularity every other american statement about war. and something happened today to surgical hospital 4077 that will touch millions of americans. >> it was the kind of event that

would draw the world's press. 20th century fox studios. the end of the korean war. the television version. "mash." >> it's been an honor and a privilege to have worked with you, and i am very, very proud to have known you. >> there were those landmark times, when shows that had been watched through the '70s and into the '80s, like "mash," had its final episode. and we were all sad to see them go. >> i'll miss you, a lot. >> all over the country, armies of fans crowded around television sets to watch the final episode, and to bid "mash" farewell. >> the finale of "mash" was unprecedented. 123 million people watched one television program, at the same time. >> you know, i really should be allowed to go home. i -- there's nothing wrong with me. >> when we ended the show, we

got telegrams of congratulations from ronald reagan. the size of the response and the emotional nature of the response that we were getting was difficult for us to understand. >> who shot jr and the last episode of "mash" are the last call for the pre-cable world of television. it's like they are the last time that that huge audience will all turn up for one event. >> all right. that's it. let's roll. hey. let's be careful out there. >> when quality does emerge on television, the phrase, too good for tv, is often heard. one recent, network offering, that seems to deserve that phrase is hill street blues. >> "hill street" is one of the

changing points of the entire industry and history of tv. >> we had all watched a documentary about cops, and had this real handheld, in-the-moment quality, that we were very enamored of. >> the minute you looked at it, it looked different. it had a mood to it. you could almost -- you could almost smell the stale coffee. >> we didn't want to do a standard, cop show where, you know, you got a crime and you got your two cops. and you go out and catch the bad guy and you sweat him and he confesses and that's it. cops have personal lives that impact their behavior, in profound ways. >> well, what about it? is he here? or is he elsewhere? >> we are working on it. >> how is this for logic? if he is not here and if he's not elsewhere, he's lost. >> we didn't say that, counselor. >> never, in my entire life, have i listened to so much

incompetence covered up by so much unmitigated crap. >> find my client, or i swear i'll have you up on charges. >> there'd be these ongoing arcs for these characters, that would play out over five, six episodes. sometimes, an entire season. and in a way, for certain stories, over the entire series. and no one had really done that in an hour-long, dramatic show. >> these past five months, i've missed you. i had to find that out. come home. >> i think, in the past, people had watched television passively. and the one thing i think we did set out to be were provocateurs. >> what the hell is the matter with you, man? >> i tell you something. they don't pay me enough to deal with animals like this. the first thing they see is a white face and all they want to do is -- >> it was white that pulled the

trigger, not a black one. >> an audience can accept characters being deeply flawed even though they are in this uniform. and i thought that was important to finally get across. >> we wanted to make a show that made you participate, made you pay attention. and i think that worked pretty well. >> and the winner is -- >> "hill street blues." >> 21 nominations. and we went on to win eight emmy's and it put us on the map, literally. and that's when people finally checked us out. >> about shows like hill street, what the american public wants is a cheeseburger. and what you are trying to give them is a french delicacy. and he said, your job is to keep shoving it down their throat until, after a while, they'll say that doesn't taste bad. and maybe, they'll even order it, themselves, when they go to the restaurant. >> the success of hill street

blues is a critical phenomenon, influenced everything that came after. and then, of course, you saw shows like st. elsewhere. >> you know what people call this place? st. elsewhere. a place you wouldn't want to send your mother-in-law. >> when it first came on, it was actually promoted as hill street in the hospital. >> you gave your patients wrong antibiotics, you write the worst progress notes. you're pathetic. pathetic! >> phil. >> what? >> dr. murray needs you right away. >> sorry. >> st. elsewhere broke every rule there was, and then built some new rules. >> called a little while ago. they ran a routine panel on that pint of blood. t-cell count was off. >> there was real heartache, in these people's lives. and you really felt for them. >> i've got aids? >> television, at its best, is a mirror of society in the moment. >> st. elsewhere challenged people, and it challenged you as

an actor, much less the audience, to think. the stuff they gave you was extreme. and what they did, whether they were dealing with aids or having one of their main-doctor characters raped in a prison. >> they tackled lots of difficult subjects. >> st. elsewhere was run by people who were trying to stretch the medium. and in the '80s, television producers were encouraged to stretch the medium. >> okay, clear. if you have postmenopausal osteoporosis and a high risk for fracture, now might not be the best time to ask yourself, 'are my bones strong?' life is full of make or break moments. that's why it's so important to help reduce your risk of fracture with prolia®. only prolia® is proven to help strengthen and protect bones

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a lot of people used to say i was there. now, people say they watch it on television. >> just a lot of excitement connected to sports in the '80s. you used to have to depend on the five minutes at the end of your local newscast. there just hadn't been enough, you know? give us a whole network of sports. >> there's just one place you need to go for all the names and games making sports news. espn sportscenter. >> what happens in the 1980s is sports becomes a tv show. and what are tv shows built around? they're built around characters. >> you can't be serious, man. you cannot be serious! >> mcenroe, the perfect villain. the new york peoper people love

hate. >> what tennis really wants is to get its two best players playing over and over again in the final. whether john mcenroe, that's what we went into it, over and over and over. >> this man has a smile that lights up a television screen from here to maine. >> magic johnson, this urban kid, from michigan. and larry bird, this guy who work worked carrying trash. it's a great story. >> several passes. here is larry bird. >> magic johnson leads the attack. >> look at that pass. oh, what a show. >> when those championship games are in primetime, and people are paying attention to that. television feeds into those rivalries, and makes them bigger

than they've ever been before. >> prim -- primitive skill. they're just as good as dead. >> every mike tyson fight was an event. when he put michael spinx, the electricity, you could just feel watching that tv. tyson was made for tv because there was drama. >> mike tyson has won it! >> not a lot of junior high school kids can dunk. >> but everybody tries, now. everybody tries. >> i think that he is starting to transcend the sport, that he is becoming something of a figure. >> michael jordan becomes the model every other athlete wants to shoot for. they want to be a brand, and that's what television for these athletes. turns them into worldwide, iconic brands. >> here is michael on the foul line. the bulls win!

>> athletes, in the '80s, became part of an ongoing group of people that we cared about. we just had enormous, pent-up demand for sports and the '80s began to provide, thank goodness. >> it's estimated it will go into 1 million more u.s. households this year. >> with cable television, suddenly, offering an array of different channel choices, the audience bifurcated. that's an earthquake. >> i want my mtv. >> i want my mtv. >> i want my mtv. >> a new concept is born. the best of tv, combined with the best of radio. this is it. welcome to mtv, music television. the world's first, 24-hour stereo-video music channel. >> music television. what a concept. mtv was, pow, in your face. you were not going to turn us off. >> mtv did nothing but play current music videos, all day

long. so, let me get this straight. you turn the tv and it's like the radio? >> i'm martha quinn. the music will continue nonstop on mtv music television, the newest component of your stereo system. >> when mtv launched, a generation was launched. 18 to 24-year-olds were saying i want my mtv. i want my mtv videos. i want my mtv fashion. >> mtv was the first network really focused on the youth market. and becomes hugely influential because they understand each other, the audience and the network. >> mtv had a giant impact, visually and musically, on every part of the tv culture that came next. >> miami vice. >> friday nights on nbc are different, this season, thanks to "miami vice." it's a show with an old theme, but a lot of new twists. described by one critic as containing flashes of brilliance, nonetheless.

shot entirely on location, in south miami, the story centers around two undercover vice cops. >> i don't know how this is going to work, tubs. i mean, not exactly up my alley, style and persona wise. >> heaven knows. >> television, very much, was the small screen. what was interesting about tony's pilot screenplay for miami vice was it was exactly not that. very much, the approach was, okay, they call this a television series but we are going to make one-hour movies, every single week. >> here we go. stand by. >> action. >> they were just describing the show as sort of a new-wave-cop show. >> yeah. it's a cop show for the '80s. we use a lot of mtv images, and -- and rock music to help describe the mood and feeling of our show. >> in a lot of ways, you don't get "miami vice," without mtv. because miami vice was a long video. music was such a big part of that show. >> there was an allure to using

great music, that everybody was listening to, as opposed to the routine kind of tv scoring of that period. >> not only was it not afraid to let long scenes play out. it would drag -- a car, going from point a to point b, could be a four-minute phil collins song, you know, and it was. >> being able to take a television series, like "miami vice," and let's really kind of rock and roll with this until somebody says stop, are you guys crazy, you can't do that. and nobody ever did. >> police!

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the private investigator? >> you're probably wondering about the goat. just let me drop off my friend, and then we'll talk. >> when we entered the '80s, a lot of one-hour dramas that were lighthearted, like magnum pi, were very popular. >> after "mash" went off the air, the next season, there wasn't a single sitcom in the top ten.

first time that had ever happened in tv history. >> the prevailing feeling was that the sitcom was dead. >> nbc programming chief says reports of the sitcom's death were greatly exaggerated. >> time and time again, if you study television history, just when someone is counting a forum out, that is exactly the forum of programming that leads to the next, big hit. >> so, 1984, "the cosby show" comes on. bill cosby is not new to tv. he's had other tv shows but the cosby show is very different, it stands apart from everything else he's done. >> they talked about parenting. previous to that, on television, the kids were cool and the parents were idiots. and then, cosby says the parents are in charge. and that was something new. >> instead of acting disappointed because i'm not like you, maybe, you can just

accept who i am and love me, anyway. because i'm your son. >> that's the dumbest thing i've ever heard, in my life. >> you know, it helps, the casting, if anything, helps a lot in television and the kids were just great. >> if you were the last person on this earth, i still wouldn't tell you. >> you don't have to tell me what you did. just tell me what they're going to do to you. >> unlike every other show on tv, it's showing an upper middle-class, black family. they weren't tackling, you know, deep issues but that was okay. the mere fact that they existed was a deep issue. >> the decade was waiting for something real. in other words, unless it's real, it doesn't seem like it moves anybody. if someone's feeling something, you get to the heart. you get to the mind. and if you can hit the hearts and minds, you got yourself a hit. >> how was school? >> i brought home two children that may or may not be ours.

>> cosby's show brought this tremendous aud kwleience to nbc that was a bridge to us. i mean, our ratings went way up. >> even the theme song to "cheers" puts you in a good mood. >> evening, everybody. >> what's shaking? >> all four cheeks and a couple of chins, coach. >> by the end of the "cheers" pilot, not only did you know who everybody was, but you wanted to come back and see what was going to happen. >> it's like, all you have to do is watch it once, you are going to love these people. these are universal characters, and the humor worked, on so many levels. >> i was up till 2:00 in the morning. >> i hope he thanked you for it. >> you have to create a community that people are identifying with. and "cheers" gives you that

community. >> boy, i tell ya. i always wanted to skydive. i just never had the guts. >> what would it feel like? >> have to imagine what sex is like. >> i've had plenty of sex and plenty of this, too. why don't you just get off my back. okay? >> in the first episode, there was a rather passionate annoyance. saying, ah, something's going on here. >> a really intelligent woman would see your line of bs, a mile away. >> i've never met an intelligent woman that i'd want to date. >> on behalf of intelligent women around the world, may i just say, phew. >> we saw what ted and shelly had together, we said, oh, no, you got to do this relationship. >> ted and i understood what they were writing, right away. >> if you'll admit that you are

carrying a little torch for me, i'll admit that i am carrying a little one for you. >> i am carrying a little torch for you. >> well, i'm not carrying one for you. >> diane knew how to tease sam. sam knew how to tease diane. and i guess, we knew how to tease the audience. >> this incredible chemistry, between the two of them, ignited the show. and that's what drove the show for the first five years. >> oh, i am daeevastated. i need something expeditious and brutal to numb my sensibilities, and blast me into oblivion. >> we had the luck to be able to rotate cast. and every time we put somebody in, they were explosions. >> there was something very special about that setting, those characters, that i never got tired of writing that show.

>> sophisticated surveys, telephonic samplings, test audiences. all of those things help separate winners from losers and make midcourse corrections. all you can hope is that every night turns out like thursday. >> next. >> how rude. >> he's quick. i'll give him that. >> television said, oh, well, maybe sitcoms are alive again and that's all that it took. it took one success. >> a few years from now, something new may pick what we see. whatever gets hot for a season or two, the men and women who create good, television comedy, will be laughing all the way to the bank. ♪ ♪ ♪

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this is my last broadcast as the anchorman of the cbs evening news. a moment long planned but which, nevertheless, comes with sadness. and that's the way it is. friday, march 6th, 1981. i will be away on assignment, and dan rather will be sitting in here, for the next few yearsmeyears. good night. >> uncle walter had dominated, certainly cbs, but in a way, the

country. people used to say he was the most trusted man in the country. >> once walter cronkite retires, all network news anchors within a couple years switch over to a new generation. the '80s may have been the last gasp where people watching the media, trusted the media. >> expected to be the major topic of president reagan's news conference, tonight. leslie stall is at the white house. >> reporter: the white house is hoping tomorrow. >> in the '80s, women came into the newsroom. when i first joined, it was '72 and there were very few. by the '80s, there were more and more. >> the decade of the '80s was still a time of sink or swim. you had to be resilient in your own way to survive, in a period when you were going up against a lot of people who still didn't think women had what it took. >> the best producers -- i am going to get fired -- the best

producers at cbs news are women, and they are at the level of taking hold and making decisions about individual pieces. they're not, yet, executive producers of all the new shows, but they will be. >> for the past 24 hours, christine craft has taken her cause to many of the nation's news and talk programs. >> i didn't set out to be joan of arc but i think what happened to me deserves some attention. >> christine craft had a very successful career. but, there she was, in her late 30s, and the tv station said to her we are taking you off the air because you have gotten older, and you're not as attractive as you once were, which was outrageous. and she decided to make an issue of it. she filed a lawsuit, and it became a huge, national topic of discussion. >> a jury said she got a raw deal because she is a woman. >> and so, women in television, news, everywhere, were asked what do you think about christine craft? >> the emphasis has been

increasingly on physical appearance. and to extent, this swings back to substance and journalism, i think we have got something to be happy about. >> what mattered is what kind of reporter are you, but it took the christine craft incident, i think, to -- to bring that conversation out, into the open. >> this coming sunday, a new te television network opens for business. cnn, cable news network. >> throwing all the dice on this one. >> why not? one fair lady. >> well, on that original point, mr. turner, thank you very much, indeed. >> i wanted to see what was going on in the world. and it was no way that you could do it, watching all the regular television stations. news only comes on at 6:00 and 10:00. but, if there's news on 24 hours, people could watch it anytime. >> barring satellite problems in the future, we won't be signing off until the world ends.

>> this is a fool's errand. how can you possibly find an audience? well, he did. >> good evening, i'm david walker. >> and i'm lois hart. now, here is the news. >> television news, before this, was stuff that had already happened. for the first time, cnn brought the world to people, in realtime. >> cnn. the world's most important network. >> i didn't do cable news network because somebody told me it couldn't be done. i figured it was a very viable concept, and i went ahead and did it. it was after we announced that we were going to do it that the detractors showed up. >> is cable-news network just going to be a new means of delivering the same kind of fare? >> no, it already does provide different fare. cable-news network is a perfect, and maybe the best, example of that. >> people love news, and we had lots of it. and the other guys had not very

much. so, choice and quantity won out. >> new york city, hello. >> a major catastrophe in america's space program. >> jessica mcclure, trapped for almost three days now in a dry artesian well. >> good evening, i am pat buchanan, the conservative in crossfire. >> the american people appreciated the new television. they certainly came to -- came to cnn, in droves. >> both agree on the desirability of freer and more extensive, personal contact between the peoples of the soviet union and the united states. >> we began to realize that the best way to get a message to a foreign leader was to have the president go in the rose garden and make a statement because everybody was watching cnn. >> cnn was a breakthrough. it changed the whole world. >> it changed, quickly, the

network-news business. that business, that we weren't the only ones. it's hard to be on the top, little perch and have to come down off it. >> special segment, tonight. the network news. the first in a two-part series on profound changes taking place in television news. changes being brought about by business, competition, and technology. >> there are a variety of reasons people who worked at the broadcast networks were freaked out, in the 1980s. one of them was cnn and the rise of cable. another was being taken over by foreign entities, in corporate america. >> new owners spent billions buying the networks, recently. and all of them want their money's worth. >> people began to find out that news could be a profit center and not focused a lot of attention on us, a lot from people in wall street, for instance. >> if you think about the news divisions of cbs, nbc, and abc, they were part of a really proud tradition. a journalistic tradition that really matters. we serve the public.

this is not about profit and loss. and the people who worked at those news, were totally freaked out by what it meant that they were now owned by these larger, corporate entities. >> at some point, there won't be any more television news on the networks. >> i worry about people who are only interested in money and power getting ahold of television. it has higher purposes than that. >> we have seen the news and it is us. this is the sound of an asthma attack...

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sometimes, ambition in a woman is considered to be a dirty word, unfortunately. >> i don't hear a lot of female voices reverberating in this business.

>> i'm surprised there aren't more shows about women. >> directing seems to be an area that is almost impossible to break through. >> i think, the '80s was the era when women were being looked at with a little skepticism. but definitely, with more acceptability. you could see the door opening. but it wasn't wide open. >> it was huge, that they would be two women and they had a serious job and they solve crimes and they were out on the streets. they were tough. that was emblematic, or maybe, out in front, a little, of what was actually happening in the country. >> we're a terrific team. >> this is true. terrific, we are. >> by that point, hundreds of buddy-cop shows but these buddies were women and had never been done, before. >> i didn't go after this job because i couldn't find anything else. all right? i did not come here because i needed some kind of work to help

pay the orthodontist. this means something to me. >> what the hell are we talking about here? >> we didn't even realize that this was going to be such a big deal. and strangely, all these guys would say to us, well, yeah. i mean, it's a good script. but who's going to save them, in the end? >> all right, come on. we're taking you out of here. >> where are you taking my wife? >> you don't take one more step, you understand me? sergeant nelson, you have until 8:00 tomorrow morning to turn yourself in. if you don't, i will. >> it was the time, where you really saw an emergence of women on television who were not, necessarily, just 20 and blonde and had a small role. but, women who had substantial roles. >> it was unpredictable that an audience, a young audience,

not-so-young audience, and lots in between, could relate to those older ladies. >> ma, if you couldn't see, why didn't you call me to come get you? >> i tried to but every time i put in a dime to dial, a condom popped out. i got five in my pocket. here, dorothy. a lifetime supply. >> she was recently named, along with norman leer and jim brooks as one of television's most gifted, creative writers. it's easy to see susan harris's impact. >> susan harris was the greatest writer, in my opinion, of her generation, of that time, singularly. so, you know, all credit to her for coming up with so many iterations of something so amazing. >> do you think there is a woman's voice as a writer? >> well, generally, they speak higher, softer. yes, of course, there's a

woman's voice. women have a different perspective. women laugh at different things. so, yes, there, very definitely, is a woman's voice. >> oh, do you know how many problems we have solved over a cheesecake at this kitchen table? >> no, dorothy, exactly how many? >> 147. >> hi, brian. it's cutthroat prime-time this fall as new shows compete. >> here is one just about everybody predicts will be a big hit. four friends forming an interior-decorating business, and giving each other the business. >> suzanne, if sex were fast food, there'd be an arch over your bed. >> created one of the funniest, most unusual shows in designing women. they were a different group of women than you really saw on television. they were feisty. they were sexy. and linda's voice came through,

shining. >> men can get away with anything. i mean, look at reagan's neck. it sags down to here. everybody raves about how great he looks. can you imagine if nancy had that neck? be putting her in a nursing home for turkeys. >> they had given me this 23 minutes to address whatever topic i want, and it's such a privilege. it's more than the president of the united states gets, and it's kind of thrilling to have that every week. i would be lying if i said i didn't put my opinions in the show. >> excuse me, but you lovely ladies look like you are in need of a little male companionship here. >> trust me when i tell you that you have completely misassessed the situation at this table. >> moving on to scene "d." >> i am a woman and i am a writer, but i don't really enjoy being called a woman's writer. i think labels are harmful to us. >> with "murphy brown," just about everything about that

program felt new. the civil rights movement and the women's movement had just begun to sort of be reflected in the programming that you saw on television in the '80s. >> murphy, you know the dunfree's club is for men only. >> and they have great dinners with great guests, and i don't get to go for one reason and one reason only, and it has to do with something you've got and i don't. a tiny, pathetic, little, "y" chromosome. >> murphy brown was sea change because she was so popular and such a strong, independent, tough woman. >> no matter what you think of a guest or their views, you are obligated to ask the questions in a dignified manner. james, she was unprofessional, am i right? >> well, i, uh -- >> do you believe this, jim? he thinks it's neat that his office chair swivels and he's calling me unprofessional. when it comes to autism,

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you are in a good mood tonight, and i tell you, we have put a great show together. it will be on a week from thursday. [ laughter ] >> johnny carson in the '80s is making the transition from being the king of late night to being a national treasure. he was a throwback to that old show biz stuff. >> i haven't been on with you

for some time. >> it's been a long time. >> yeah, well, you've been busy with other things. >> the tide is starting to turn in terms of where late-night television is going to go, but johnny is kind of holding out. he was not necessarily of his time in the '80s, but he did sustain a certain timelessness. he's the king. [ laughter ] >> he's all right. he's just playing. >> playing? [ bleep ]. >> my next guest not only has a college degree, but he also has a high school degree. >> that's right, i do. >> as well. he's hosted "the tonight show" practically as often as johnny carson and now he has his very own show, weekday mornings at 10:00 on nbc. >> what you're witnessing here is a good idea gone awry. a fun-filled surprise turning into an incredible screw-up.

>> david letterman originally had a one-hour daytime show, and nbc, after like 13 weeks, decided to cancel it. >> today is our last show on the air. monday, las vegas -- [ booing ] have these people been frisked? >> it was a dismal failure in terms of the ratings, but not in terms of introducing us to letterman. >> david, thank you for being with us tonight. >> thank you very much for having me. i appreciate it. >> in spite of all this nonsense that goes around in the background, stay with it, don't give up. stay with us here in new york. >> dave is back in new york. you're going to host a late-night television program that premieres monday night. what are critics likely to say tuesday morning? >> i don't much care because i found a way to deal with that, pills and whiskey. >> david, you're on. >> oh, i'm on? i'm sorry. >> proceed.

>> i'm enjoying listening to you snort. >> they gave him "the late night show" after "the tonight show." and at the time, people thought who's going to watch television at 12:30 at night? who's up? i'll tell you who's up. young people. college people. >> is it going well? i know this is the first show and i think this guy needs a little support, dave letterman. >> he was anti-establishment at his core. he was thumbing his nose to any existing social structures. >> who are those women out there by the way? >> neighbors. >> i'll get rid of them. hey, excuse me. keep it moving. come on, get out. >> he kind of spoofed the whole notion of talk shows. >> it's the late-night guest cam. please say hello to tom hanks. there he is. >> no one could go on "the david letterman show" and try to steer it towards a point of view or push something in particular. he just wouldn't stand for it. you're on to do one thing and one thing only, be as funny as the rest of the show. >> you know, we could get in a

two-shot here, dave. >> we could actually send the crew home, couldn't we? >> you know, as a comedian, you want the biggest audience that you could get. for dave, he knew a lot of things that he would do were going to alienate people, and he didn't care. he wanted his thumbprint out there, and that's the most important thing. >> it's time for small-town news. paul -- excuse me, paul? do you have any accompanying music here for small-town news? paul shaffer, ladies and gentlemen. >> the show making fun of itself and turning itself inside-out that way was something kind of new. >> i mean, don't we look like guys you'd see hanging around together? >> absolutely. >> would you like to hang around with me? >> nope. >> i'll say it again, this is the stupidest show -- >> i thought that i would never want to do this show with you. >> now why? because you thought i was a [ bleep ]? >> there is one rule i keep trying to abide by, and unfortunately, i only get to it

about 12% of the time. and that is, it's only television. we're not doing cancer research. if the 40-year-odd history of commercial broadcasting has taught us one thing, there's nothing sacred about television. >> all right, steven is upstairs. >> hey, dave, i was just curious. is there any way i can get mtv on this? >> actually, steve, that's a -- that's just a monitor and all you can get on that is our show. >> oh. that's okay. >> there was a degree of cynicism that was needed in the art form at that time, and it's a cynicism that just became common sense after a while, because it never got old. >> i've watched johnny carson. and you are no johnny carson. ♪ goo goo goo goo goo goo goo goo ♪ >> welcome the great white north canadian corner. i'm bob mckenzie, this is my brother doug.

today we got a real big show -- >> there was a second city chicago company, there was a second city toronto company. the toronto one is the one that fueled the sctv series which originally was syndicated and got to the states that way. >> hail, hail! >> hail, hail. thank you very much for that marvelous reception. i particularly want to thank my supporters over there in the cesarean section. >> it's healthy to be an outsider, you know, as a comedian. and canadians are always outsiders, but they're looking at the other culture which is right next door to them. >> i love you, i want to bear your children! ha ha ha! >> it was the type of comedy that had only been accessible if you could have gotten into the improv clubs in chicago and toronto. i had never seen anything like second city tv. >> james bridgeman, parkdale. >> sorry, no, never mind, i'm sorry. >> it was far more conceptual in its humor because it didn't have to be performed in front of an

audience. and there was also just the idea that it was this sort of low-rent thing. it was this sort of by the seat of their pants kind of operation that gave it an authenticity. >> now that our programming day has been extended i'm going to be spending -- >> where do you want me to put the kielbasa, mrs. brickley? >> put it in the fridge, butch. >> you were rooting for the show and the characters they created. there was something you got behind. whereas "snl" right from the gate and through the '80s was this big enterprise. >> after five golden years, lorne decided to leave and so did those close to him, including me, al franken. so nbc had to pick a new producer. now most knowledgeable people, as you might imagine, hoped it would be me, al franken. >> well, there was a real question of whether "saturday night live" would continue at all, whether it would just die.

>> the press hasn't been overly kind. >> yeah, i read that stuff. is "saturday night live" "saturday night dead"? >> oh, man, come on. >> my favorite is "vile from new york." >> please, come on. >> that's funny, that's funny. >> they were having a hard time. and then came the man that saved the show, eddie murphy. there was buzz about him, so you tuned in. and there was this kind of explosion of talent in front of your eyes. ♪ >> it really kind of rejuvenated the show. >> i am gumby, dammit! you don't talk to me that way! >> after awhile, the show regained its status and its clout and became even more of an institution than it had been. >> hey, bob. >> hey, peters looks great today >> listen, if you're unhappy with my work, tell me now! >> you're through, you hear me, through! you'll never work in this town

again! >> don't leave me hanging by a thread. let me know where i stand! >> we were a little worried at first because we had a new cast. but everyone loves us. >> you guys have been so nice to us during our stay. >> isn't that special. >> i am hans. >> and i am franz. and we just want to pump you up. >> a lot of things they could do on "saturday night live" they couldn't do on a sitcom. the humor was more daring and more satirical, and it was political. >> you still have 50 seconds left, mr. president. >> let me just sum up. on track, stay the course, a thousand points of light, stay the course. >> governor dukakis, rebuttal? >> i can't believe i'm losing to this guy. [ phone rings ] >> i'll get it. >> it's the garry shandling show. >> people were taking the old principles of comedy and trying to turn them into something new. we spent years and years watching sitcoms and dramas and talk shows by then, we knew them by heart, that if somebody

played on that and parodied it, we got it instantly. >> i appreciate you coming in under these conditions, lewis, i really do. you want to hold the credits? okay. now see, we were going to show the credits and you screwed that up, okay, because you're late. >> "the garry shandling show" was aware of the fact that it was a situation comedy. it highlighted the cliches in funny ways. >> are you looking into the camera? >> no. no, i didn't. >> don't look into the camera. >> i didn't. >> don't. you don't come in here and look into the camera. >> i didn't. >> i'll bop you. i will. if i see a tape of this show and you're looking into the camera -- >> well, it's about that time. >> "pee-wee's playhouse" on cbs, a so-called saturday morning kids' show that adults could watch and wink at each other as they were watching it, is very clever. >> good morning. >> what's today's secret word?

>> the secret word is -- good! >> it was a show certainly for kids, and it was for stoned baby boomers who were totally wasted on saturday morning and watched "pee-wee's playhouse" and saw god. >> i sure had a lot of fun. see you all real soon. until then, everybody be good.

1968, the summer before junior high school, and i don't mind saying i was a pretty fair little athlete. >> "the wonder years" was a guy in modern times looking back on his childhood. that in itself is not new, but "the wonder years" did it with a wit and with the music. it was a brilliantly written show and a great performance by that entire young cast. >> hey, steve -- it looks like my baby brother and his girlfriend have found each other. >> she's not my girlfriend. >> kevin arnold has to cope with all the timeless problems of growing up during one of the most turbulent times that we have known. >> kevin arnold is just like a

regular kid except in the 1960s, and he's not really aware of many of the events. like in one of the episodes, the whole family is watching the apollo 8 take off, but i'm just sitting there trying to call a girl. >> the first episode of "the wonder years," anybody who saw it remembers the ending where the first kiss with winnie and kevin arnold. the song they play is "when a man loves a woman." that moment seemed so pure and so real. ♪ when a man loves a woman can't keep his mind on nothing else ♪ >> the tone of the baby boomers in the 1960s is about rebellion, about being students. by the 1980s, it's time to grow up. and so they shave their beards, give up their dashikis, and put on power suits, a whole new notion. >> oh, the yuppies. last year the politicians were all talking about winning their votes. now the young urban professionals and the rest of

their baby boom generation are being wooed by advertisers and their agencies. >> by the '80s, it was pretty clear that the generation after the generation of the '60s may be embodied by alex keaton on "family ties," seeming to be a lot more interested in the corner office than the new jerusalem. >> you're a young man, you shouldn't be worried about success. you should be thinking about hopping on a tramp steamer and going around the world. >> the '60s are over, dad. >> thanks for the tip. >> you weren't laughing at michael j. fox's character for being too conservative. you were actually laughing at the parents for being too hopelessly liberal. >> what is this? i found it in the shower. >> that's generic brand shampoo. >> no! >> this is him. this is the guy i've been telling you about. this is everything you want in a president. >> the genius of "family ties," it allows a kind of youthful reaganite to emerge that's focused on the future, that's focused more on a critique of the '60s.

>> michael j. fox as alex keaton really became the center of the show. and the writers were smart enough to see that they had something special, and they wrote to that. >> it's not fair, alex. >> yeah. there's nothing you can do about it, jen. my advice to you is that you just enjoy being a child for as long as you can. i know i did. it was the best two weeks of my life. >> alex is a little bill buckley. the "wall street journal" is his bible. he has a tie to go with his pajamas. he's a very conservative and very intense 17-year-old. >> the first thing your teacher is going to ask is what did you do over the summer? a lot of kids will say i went to the zoo or i went to the beach or i went to a baseball game. what are you going to say? >> i watched the iran contra hearings. >> if mom and dad thought this generation was going to the dogs, think again.

this is the generation that has discovered hard work and success. >> american culture is changing in the '80s. and in terms of television, there's a whole notion of demographic segmentation. >> networks were beginning to not be afraid to appeal to a very specific demographic. >> hey, handsome. look at that shirt. is that a power shirt or what? >> nice suit, alan. good shoulder pads. you looking to get drafted by the eagles? >> 30-somethings said we're not going to have cops, lawyers or doctors. we're just going to be about people. >> what are we doing here, why did we start this business? >> to do our thing. but right now we got two wives, three kids, four cars, two mortgages, a payroll. and that's life, pal. you be the breadwinner now. >> is that what i am? >> "30 something" is a very important show as you are going into this era of television being more introspective and more emotional. and some people weren't buying it. but for other people when they were talking about things like having kids and who is going to

go back to work and some of these issues that hadn't been talked about a whole lot, it was important to people. >> i was so looking forward -- i was so looking forward to doing this. to be a grown-up for just an hour. >> in the beginning, there was talk of this being the yuppie show. and you mentioned it tonight. you said if there were a category for the most annoying show, this might win as well. >> now what some people perceive as annoying has nothing to do with yuppie. i think yuppie is a word made up by demographers and advertisers to sell soap. it doesn't have anything to do with what the show is. >> "30 something" was not a giant hit, but it was a niche hit. it attracted an enormously upscale group of advertisers. >> the network cared who was watching, not how many were watching. and that was more and more catching on in the '80s. >> the prosecution will ask you that you look to the law, and this you must do. but i ask of you that you look

to your hearts as well. thank you. >> "l.a. law" was partly a classic lawyer show. but it was intertwined with their personal lives and different lawyers who were sleeping together and trying to get ahead. >> the reality level on that show was like a foot or two off the ground. and you're willing to go with that because it was a whole new spin on a law show. >> uh-uh, tell the truth. if you had to do it all over again and she walked into your office and she said, take my case, would you? >> well -- >> of course you would, because it is juicy, newsy, exciting stuff. >> it was really fun to take the "hill street blues" format and use it to frame an entirely different social and cultural strata with vastly different results. >> i wonder if i might engage with my client privately. >> certainly.

>> what are you doing for dinner tonight? >> i was planning on having you. >> in that case, skip lunch. >> the formula had gotten established of how you can do a dramatic show, and yet still have an awful lot of fun. we didn't used to be able to accept that very easily in a tv hour. and even before the '80s were out, it's like, okay, i get it. so it's like, all right, what are the rules now? >> what are you doing? >> i'm doing what i should have done all along. what i wanted to do originally. what i should have done last night. stop that, david. i'm calling the police, david. hello, police? >> the networks realized there was an audience looking for something less predictable than traditional primetime fare. >> "moonlighting" was another of those shows that said, okay, i've seen the formulas that we've had up to here, let's do different things. >> hello. >> hello. >> we're looking a little pale today, aren't we? who have we here? >> i don't know.

>> "moonlighting" was a really experimental show. they had a shakespeare episode, they had a black and white episode. they did a musical episode. they tried a lot of different stuff. >> i don't give a flying fig about the lines in my face, the crows' feet by my eyes, or the altitude of my caboose. >> well, i'm at a loss. i don't know what a flying fig is. >> that's okay. they do. >> there's no trouble on the set. there is no trouble on the set. >> well, we have a very volatile relationship. there is a hate/love element to it. >> the flirtations were great and bruce and cybill were great. glenn caron kept them apart for a long time, and bravo to him. >> what they did is they took the sam and diane dynamic from "cheers" and escalated it. "cheers" was will they, won't they? "moonlighting" was, do they even want to? >> stay away from me. >> here i come. >> but i don't want you. i never wanted you. >> yeah, right.

>> does entertaining mean at some point stopping the tease of dave and mattie? do they get together at some point? >> well, that's going to be resolved this year. we like to think of it as two and a half years of foreplay. >> people who had been watching "moonlighting" for years were waiting for this moment. and your emotions are already there built on to the emotions that you're seeing on the screen. so when "be my baby" by the ronettes starts playing, it's like a perfect storm of romance. ♪ ♪ the night we met i knew i needed you so ♪ proven ingredients that fuel 5 indicators of brain performance. memory, focus, accuracy, learning, and concentration. try our new gummies for 30 days and see the difference.

in recent years, it seems that television has become a kind of electronic confessional. where guests are willing to expose painful and sometimes embarrassing aspects of their lives quite readily to millions of viewers. >> at the beginning of the decade, we get the dominance of phil donahue, and that's sort of a maturation of women's issues, and he seemed to talk to them in the audience. he seemed to talk to them through the tv screen. >> i'm glad you called. kiss the kids. we'll be back in just a moment. >> if you look at the body of work we've had, you're going to see the '80s there. >> i'm not here to say you're wrong, but let's understand

this. when you bring a moral judgment without knowing them, against them for the way that they look, they feel that confirms the reason for their rebellion, if that's what you want to call it. >> he really believed that daytime television needed to talk about the ideas we were thinking about, the issues we were concerned about. >> i don't want to characterize his question, but why don't you get this fixed instead of doing this screwy stuff? >> there's not a single recorded case in history of any transsexual that ever, through psychological treatment, changed. it has never happened yet. >> and we were putting very important people on the program. all kinds of people. gay people. people going to jail. people running for office. sometimes the same people. it was a magic carpet ride. >> you really do paint a very, very grim picture of the sitting president of the united states. >> let me just say this, i think he's probably the laziest

president i've ever seen. >> the audience for phil donahue built and built and built and built, and led the way to oprah. ♪ >> hello, everybody. >> oprah has a particularly magical combination of her own background, her own experience, her own incisive mind, and empathetic spirit. >> thank you. i'm oprah winfrey, and welcome to the very first national "oprah winfrey show." >> i was surprised at the rocket pace that oprah took off. because it took us a lot longer. "the donahue show" rearranged the furniture, but oprah remodeled the whole house. >> there are a lot of other people out there watching who really don't understand what you mean when you say, we're in love. because i remember questioning

my gay friends, you mean you feel about him the way i feel about -- it's kind of a strange concept, you know, for a lot of people to accept. >> oprah was connecting with people in a way that no one had on tv before. and it was really special to see. >> well, did you know that for the longest time i wanted to be a fourth grade teacher because of you? >> my, i was not aware of inspiring anyone. >> i think you did exactly what teachers are supposed to do, they create a spark for learning. it's the reason i have a talk show today. >> oprah winfrey now dominates the talk show circuit, both in the ratings and popularity. >> i want to use my life as a source of lifting people up. that's what i want to do. that's what i do every day on my show. you know, we get accused of being tabloid television and sensational and so forth. but what i really think we do more than anything else is we serve as a voice to a lot of people who felt up until perhaps my show or some of the others, they were alone. >> this is what 67 pounds of fat

looks like. i can't lift it. it is amazing to me that i can't lift it but i used to carry it around every day. >> there's nothing more endearing to an audience than to have that kind of honesty and humility and courage on the part of a host. and that, i think, has a lot to do with her power. >> feels like i could do some good here, and i really do think that show does a lot of good. >> american television is drowning in talk shows. but it's never seen anything like morton downey jr. >> i want to tell you -- >> sit down and shut up! >> other competitors come and take the television talk show into two different directions. so you start seeing the phenomenon of daytime television shows becoming less tame and more wild. >> the '80s brought a lot of belligerence to television. whether it was morton downey jr. being the offensive caricaturish

person that he was, or geraldo. he did his own outlandish things. >> stay with us, ladies and gentlemen. we're going to get into the mind of another all-american boy who came under the influence of satanism and took part in a crime without passion or motive -- >> geraldo rivera takes the power of the talk show to a whole other level, trying to put people on stage who hate each other, who are going to fight -- >> in the case of the temple of set and the church of satan, we have not had any problems with criminal behavior -- >> but yet when you hear story after story after story of people committing these wretched crimes and violent crimes in the devil's name -- >> the more tension there is, the more conflict and violence there is, the more the ratings go up. and the american people love to complain about it, but they also love to watch. >> geraldo rivera is back in a controversy tonight. rivera drew sharp criticism with his recent television special on devil worship. but today he found himself in a real free-for-all. >> i get sick and tired of seeing uncle tom here, sucking up, trying to be a white man -- >> go ahead. go ahead.

>> sit down. >> hey, hold it. hold it. >> sit down. >> rivera suffered a broken nose, but he said the show will be broadcast later this month in its entirety. >> well, that's not something i would have done. but there was a lot of hypocrisy. one of the major magazines put the picture of geraldo getting hit with a chair on the cover, and the article said, isn't this awful, look what's happened to television. yet they couldn't wait to use it to sell their own magazine. >> let's go to the audience, all right? i want to speak to you guys. >> over the years, broadcasting has deteriorated. and now in this era of deregulation, it's deteriorating further. >> give people light, and they will find their own way. relax, america will survive the talk shows.

s

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♪ the big thing that changes in the '80s is the number of hours spent watching television goes up. the number of hours spent talking about television goes up. one of the symbols of this phenomenon is "entertainment tonight." >> hi, i'm tom hallic.

welcome to our opening night. the premiere edition of "entertainment tonight." >> all of the critics were kind of unanimous in that they said it will never last because there simply isn't enough entertainment news to fill a half hour every night. >> "entertainment tonight" has surveyed tv critics in the united states and canada to find out which television shows had the most impact on viewers over the years. >> now up until this time, nobody had done television like this. nobody. >> burt reynolds, the hottest actor in hollywood. >> i'm surprised to see you here. >> well, i'm glad to see you. >> oh, thank you. >> we can meet here every night if you like. >> thank you. >> a lot of what makes successful television programming is being in the right place at the right time. and it was the right time. >> entertainment journalism evolved as viewers got more curious and had more access. until that point, the entertainment business had been something we didn't know all that much about. >> we could go behind the scenes

in our effort to really give an insider's look. >> the crafty old j.r. of "dallas" fame was with his mother actress mary martin as he was presented with a star on the hollywood walk of fame. >> it was very honorific of the industry. they would do serious coverage of it. it wasn't salacious. and you would see actors speaking as actors instead of on a johnny carson show. >> what are you like on camera? >> i'm like this. this is on camera. >> this is on camera. >> it was the beginning of a lot of money being made talking about entertainment and celebrities. >> robert redford plays the good guy in the movies, but don't tell that to his neighbors in utah. they are still birth, and redford is the target of their ire. >> the audience grew and grew. and that was showing us the appetite for celebrity news was big. it was big. >> get ready for "lifestyles of the rich and famous." television's most dazzling hour of excitement. >> hi, i'm robin leach in monaco.

the glittering gem of the riviera. >> and you've got a vip ticket to prince rainier's private party. >> your sunday newspaper is still delivered with the comics around the news. and that was what i always thought "lifestyles" was. we were the comic around the news. except we did it as seriously as they did news. >> finally in the driving seat of his own career, he burned rubber in a new direction. david hasselhoff, rock idol. >> it was a time where pushing the limits with wealth and ostentatiousness in a lot of cases was very comfortable. >> one of the earliest stories that we presented to you on "lifestyles" was about the amazing real estate wizard donald trump. if he didn't shock and surprise you back then, he's had plenty of time since. >> with all of this costing billions, not millions, do the figures ever frighten you? >> the answer is no, it's my business, it's my life. it's my lifestyle. i love it. the good, the bad.

>> does this bring with it political aspiration? >> no political aspiration. >> your show has gotten a lot of ridicule. there are people who say it's nothing more than trash. >> that doesn't upset me, because i think it's the best trash there is on television. i am not in the business of brain surgery. i am in the business of fluff. >> it's the fantasy element at i time when the access is possible. it's escapism, and it's aspirational. you want to stand in a hot tub with a glass of champagne, rock on. >> we've never seen that kind of wealth ever before. we didn't mock it. we didn't say it was right, and we didn't say it was wrong. we were just through the keyhole. >> sometimes it absolutely amazes me. i walk away from a shoot and i think, well, we did it again. >> there was more of everything in tv by the '80s. your opportunities for watching stuff is increasingly vast.

>> nbc presents "real people." >> my name's michael lee wilson. this dawned on me, that the application of a small motor on a pair of roller skates might really be a great thing. >> somebody once said that each one of us will be a star for 15 minutes, and i think that that's probably going to happen. >> american culture used to be a culture that celebrated privacy. in the 1980s as we're watching celebrities sort of play out on stage, hey, i want to join too. all the world becomes a stage. you start seeing shows like "real people" or "the people's court." >> "the people's court." where reality television is taken one step further. >> to see more tv, producers had to come up with new and different ways to give them television. >> don't be stupid! >> get over here! >> i told you not to be stupid. >> what "cops" did was, it took away the script and just brought the camera people and the crews on location to try and catch actual things happening.

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♪ with this ring -- >> with this ring -- >> -- i thee wed. >> -- i thee wed. >> with my body -- >> with my body -- >> -- i thee honor. >> -- i thee honor. >> the biggest television event of the 1980s is the marriage of charles and diana. it's like the world stops when that happened. i mean, that was like just massive. >> this was the final act of a spectacle that may never again be seen again in this century, if ever. >> the archbishop of canterbury called the wedding of prince charles and lady diana spencer today the stuff of fairy tales. >> good evening. the royal couple at this hour is off on the honeymoon, while a lot of people here in london tonight are still talking about the events of the day. >> when you have great moments like the royal wedding, they are part of history. and it's done beautifully and

everybody has a chance to watch it all on television, and everybody just wants to drink a toast to chuck and di. >> a princess who must now be aware, as it was on this day, that every single move she makes in public will be recorded and observed. a very difficult life indeed. >> we'll be back in just a moment with some closing observations and one final look at what has justifiably been called the wedding of the century. >> by the authority of the state of new york, i pronounce that they are husband and wife. you may kiss the bride. >> your wedding was seen by an astonishing number of people. 16 and 19 million viewers. how do you account for that kind of popularity? >> oh, i can't. i can't. the way it's grown is just amazing to me. >> it did appear in the '80s that it was a good time for daytime soap operas, especially for a show like "general hospital" which had that huge success with luke and laura's wedding.

>> i remember when luke and laura got married because it was nighttime newsworthy. >> the soap opera discovers the blockbuster mentality, the sweeps month mentality. like, what can we do to get even more people watching? you have a wedding. you have a kidnapping. you have an evil twin. and primetime stole from daytime. >> after "dallas" proved that ewing oil was better than real oil for cbs, the networks rushed to give the public more. >> the great primetime soap operas of the 1980s, "dallas," "dynasty," they're all about excess. this is about being over the top, stabbing each other in the back, going for the gusto, and having fun. >> i know what's wrong with you. the empty-armed madonna. mourning the baby that she couldn't have and the baby that she almost got to adopt. that is it, isn't it? >> you miserable bitch!

>> there was a bigness to the stories. and they could afford to do it on a network if you're doing one episode a week. you can't do that if you're doing five episodes a week for a daytime show. so just the production value gave it that pizzazz. >> if you can't have it, watch other people with it, or so say the three networks who are programming nearly 40% of their primetime fare with series about the very rich, and the public is devouring it at such a rate that make-believe money has become ratings gold. >> the characters were larger than life. they were more evil and more cunning and manipulative. and more gorgeous. i mean, really, look at the way they were dressed. look at the way they lived. everything, it was fascinating. >> alexis. >> yes? >> i didn't thank you for your present. >> it's he you should slap, dear, not i.

>> we all wanted to live like everyone on "dynasty," like the carringtons. and it all just ended up being a wonderful picture of fun and debauchery. >> greed was encouraged in the '80s. there was a sense of conspicuous consumption as being okay. and those shows kind of exploited that. >> primetime families like the carringtons who live here in luxury on the "dynasty" sound stage are not the only rich folk on tv. in the last five years, more than half of all new shows have featured the wealthy. ten years ago, that figure was zero. >> it was an accident. your father's dead. >> "falcon crest" was a wine family. there's lorenzo lamas, and there's ronald reagan's first wife. jane wyman is on that show. >> emma is pregnant. >> i know a doctor who can take care of it right away. >> that will never happen. >> all of the shows, where, oh, my god, what's next? what's going to happen with that? he can't get away with that. and then you tune in, it was

appointment television. >> what will become of the missing twins on "knots landing"? >> what? >> they all had spinoffs. "dallas" spinoff "knots landing." "the colbys" was a spinoff for "dynasty." they were seeing how much they could max this stuff out. because it was really successful. >> where's your son miles? isn't he going to be part of this venture or just playing polo as usual? >> the colbys can always find room for another trophy. >> you had these people fighting over oil and mansions and -- it was fantasy, but in a kind of so over the top way that it was fun. >> there's nothing devious about using your femininity. >> these shows took themselves so unseriously that they were camp, but that was okay with the central audience that was loving them. >> it was entertainment. we weren't trying to do high drama. we were there to entertain. we were glossy. there was no getting around it,

we knew what we were there for, and we did it as best we could.

export may be neither its animals, nor its beer, nor its films. could be, in fact, one rupert

murdock. in the midst of building what "forbes" magazine says is the most extensive media empire, in history. >> the hegemony of the three broadcast networks was presumed to be complete. and murdock arrives in america, and basically says, i'm going to make another one. this was a big, bold bet. >> meantime, he will have to become an american citizen if he is to own tv stations here. something, murdock says he is willing to do. >> there are some people saying it'll take you 20 years to get your fox network onto par with the big three. are you prepared to wait that long? >> sure. i certainly intend to live that long. but i don't believe in the 20 years. >> the reaction to murdock's idea for a fourth network was similar to the reaction of ted turner starting cnn. it's ridiculous. you know, what does he know about television? >> we don't think of ourselves as cbs or nbc, there is no question, we have inferior lineup of stations to our

counterparts. it means we will have to work harder to get our message across and get shows sampled. >> they had an idea that, in order to succeed, we have to differentiate ourselves from the networks. we have to do things they would not do. >> fox started throwing anything against the wall, not knowing what was going to go. first shows were things like "21 jump street." joan rivers, in terms of late night. >> we have been banned in boston, which i think is wonderful. wxne so pick a finger. >> and the "tracy almond show." it was a sketch show, and they needed something to go between the sketches. again, they were looking for something different. >> i've got to have those candy bars. >> better not be thinking of stealing those candy bars. >> that's it. >> "the simpsons" would never have come along, had it not been for the "tracy ulman show." >> ultimately, crime hurts the

criminal. >> that's not true, mom, i got a free ride home, didn't i? >> fox was thrilled that it was different. they said, sure, be experimental. do whatever you want. we're just happy to have a show on the air. >> i'm home! >> "married with children" was their first, big, big hit, in that way, that said, if all the rest of television is going this way, we're going that way. >> bud, kelly, you want to come down and help me in the kitchen? >> that should buy us about ten minutes. seven more than we'll need. >> the title of "married with children," on the script, was not "the cosby show." how great? i mean, you have to love that. just taking the piss out of american families. fun. great fun. >> never wanted kids, i get two of them. how the hell did this happen? >> the bundys were almost like a

purposeful reaction to the perfection of the huxtables. and it was funny because you had this wonderful, perfect, black family. and these horrible, miserable, white people. and each show works on its own terms, because you could find things to relate to, in both. >> howdy, neighbor. >> why don't we sit down? >> there was a lot of fun to be had, in, you know, al and peg bundy. >> after fox introduces "married with children," it does very, very well. then, back on abc, they came up with another, major hit. "roseanne." >> oh, yeah? >> yeah. and you think everything gets done by some wonderful wizard. oh, poof, the laundry's folded. poof. dinner's on the table. >> you want to fix dinner? i'll fix dinner. i'm fixing dinner. >> oh, well, honey, you just fixed dinner three years ago. >> typical, american families weren't on television, for the longest time. you know, the early days, the father knows best, hardly anybody really lived like that. that was the way advertisers

wanted you to live. >> i know what just might make you feel better. >> me, too. but i bet it's different than what you got. >> the ideal situation is if you can subvert whatever common stuff is said about families and about parenting. >> what's in this? >> oh, i got you kids no lew le irons. >> her loudness and her unfilteredness were key to why we liked her. she was saying stuff about working-class people. she was saying stuff about men and women. so, it was about marriage and about raising kids, and about how hard it is. >> oh, great. i'm just gonna look like a freak. that's all. >> what else is new? >> shut up. >> this is why some animals eat their young. >> tv, in the '80s, was a big decade for the evolution of comedy, for the evolution of drama. it just pushed everything forward. >> do you think, perhaps, this generation are paying more attention to the dialogue, to the relationships that they see on television, than in years previous? >> clearly, the people that are

watching our shows are. and -- and -- and 30 something and "cheers" and seen elsewhere. it's their words that define them, and i think that's what people like. >> the one thing people can trust. if you go out there like a bunch of nightriders, what the hell are you but just another vicious street gang? >> that decade spawned an extraordinary number of shows that really carved out a unique niche for themselves. we began to turn television into an art form. and for the first time, people were proud to say i write for television. >> up until that point, television was second class. in the '80s, it was something else entirely. and it was new, and it was kind of interesting. >> it's like, everyone in the '80s starts to want to tell their stories. that's what really changes

things. >> in the '80s, predictability lost its cache. >> television has an impact on every era, every decade. >> television still shapes the thinking of america, like no other element in our country. sometimes, for the better. sometimes, for the worse. >> it gave rise to people pursuing artistic content, in a way that, i think, has raised the bar in television production, exponentially. >> i love you, guys. >> there is a shift, in the '80s, from just wanting to placate the audience, to wanting to please and challenge the audience. and that's the decade when it happened. >> we had one hell of a run, didn't we, partner? >> yeah, we sure did, sonny. >> i'm gonna miss you, man. >> i'm gonna miss you, too, sonny. >> can i give you a ride to the airport? >> why not ?

it's a new year. but coronavirus is still out of control here, in the united states, and in many parts of the world. and vaccines are not being administered nearly fast enough. also, a legislative blow to donald trump in the waning days of his presidency. >> hello, and welcome to our viewers here, in the united states, and right around the world. i'm paula newton, and this is cnn "newsroom."