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September 10, 1898 – Empress Elisabeth of Austria was not a particularly happy royal. Known as the Princess Diana of her day, she was estranged from her husband, Franz Joseph, Emperor of Austria (because of the stifling nature of court life) she lost her daughter, Sophie, in 1857, and her favorite cousin, King Ludwig IIContinue reading “Sometimes it’s not good to be an Empress”

September 10, 1993 – The science fiction television series The X-Files premiered with the episode Pilot on the Fox network on this date. Dana Scully was named after the famous sports journalist Vin Scully. Mulder is the maiden name of Chris Carter’s mother.

September 10, 1955 – Gunsmoke premiered on CBS-TV on this date. The television series ran from September 10, 1955 until September 1, 1975 on CBS for 635 episodes. It had the longest run of any scripted series with continuing characters in American primetime television. William Conrad was the first choice to play Marshall Matt DillonContinue reading “Ah, if only Raymond Burr”

September 9, 1956 –Elvis Presley made his first-ever appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show, performing four songs for guest host Charles Laughton on this date. Ed himself had vowed never to have Presley on his show, but Sullivan was at home this evening, recuperating from a severe head injury, from a drunken fall.

September 9, 1966 –The cult favorite series, The Green Hornet, starring Van Williams, Bruce Lee, and William Dozier (as the narrator), premired on ABC-TV on this date. Van Williams became good friends with Bruce Lee and repeatedly negotiated with the show’s producers to give Lee more screen time and lines. Bruce Lee once said thatContinue reading “And now to protect the rights and lives of decent citizens”

September 8, 1994 –At the MTV Video Music Awards, Beastie Boy Adam Yauch (MCA), in character as “Nathanial Hornblower,” rushes the stage when R.E.M.’s Everybody Hurts beats Sabotage for Best Direction. It’s the first such intrusion at the VMAs. Frequent Beastie Boys collaborator Nathaniel Hörnblowér has an impressive resume. He directed classic Beasties videos (includingContinue reading “Oh those wacky Beastie Boys”

September 8, 2015 –Stephen Colbert debuted as the new host of CBS’s The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on this date. (It was a stretch but he felt that he was up to the challenger.) The Ed Sullivan Theater (where the show is taped) underwent an extensive renovation during the time between David Letterman’s retirementContinue reading “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert premiered”

September 8, 1966 – Star Trek debuted on NBC-TV, with the airing of an episode titled The Man Trap on this date. (The series had to overcome calls from within the network to cancel the series before it even aired.) Although this was the first episode to air on NBC, it was actually the sixthContinue reading “The original Star Trek premiered”

September 8, 1997 – We got to meet the people who worked at the Boston law firm Cage and Fish when Fox TX aired Ally McBeal for the first time on this date. Lara Flynn Boyle auditioned to play Ally. Although she didn’t win the role, David E. Kelley liked her so much that heContinue reading “Ally McBeal premiered”

September 7, 1927 –Philo T. Farnsworth (all of 21 years old) succeeded in transmitting an image through purely electronic means by using an image dissector on this date. He used an “image dissector” (the first television camera tube) to convert the image into a current, and an “image oscillite” (picture tube) to receive it. WhenContinue reading “The first transmission of an image via electronic means”