I'll start out with some TV facts. but post whatever is a "first" in history that seems almost shocking.
Some surprizing stats:
First TV show - The Queen's Messenger 1928, I was shocked at the year but then found out it was in New York on September 11, 1928.
First angry TV football fans - Viewers hoping to see the wild conclusion of the AFL game between the New York Jets and Oakland Raiders got a huge shock on November 17, 1968, when the broadcast was cut off so NBC could air a movie version of "Heidi" starring Jennifer Edwards. Angry fans flooded NBC's switchboard with calls. From then on, all networks stayed with their football contests until the end before moving to regularly scheduled programming. (The Raiders scored two touchdowns in the final minute to come back and beat the Jets in what would forever be known as "The Heidi Game.")
First interracial kiss - William Shatner (Capt Kirk) kissed Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura) on Star Trek in 1968. It actually raised a lot of eyebrows in hollywood at the time. Good ol Canadian
First interracial kiss - William Shatner (Capt Kirk) kissed Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura) on Star Trek in 1968. It actually raised a lot of eyebrows in hollywood at the time. Good ol Canadian
Maybe it will depend on what you want to label as a kiss, but Sammy Davis Jr. gave a peck to the cheek of Frank Sinatra's daughter, Nancy, the year prior to Star Trek.
I dunno if it qualifies, but the 9/11 terrorist attacks were I believe the first foreign terrorist attacks on American soil to be broadcast live. To me it was the true beginning of the real time news and online news concept. It was really the first time we got to watch something unfolding so quickly and as it happened.
The chills down my spine when the first building collapsed... I'll never forget it. I thought I just witnessed the start of WW3.
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Maybe it will depend on what you want to label as a kiss, but Sammy Davis Jr. gave a peck to the cheek of Frank Sinatra's daughter, Nancy, the year prior to Star Trek.
Very end
Just guessing but those type of pecks were probably done before Sammy did it.
Shatners had passion that apparently wasn't seen before.
To me it was the true beginning of the real time news and online news concept. It was really the first time we got to watch something unfolding so quickly and as it happened.
I'd have to say that was the Gulf War, and that little fledging news station of Ted Turner; CNN, was broadcasting those opening salvos of the war live from their hotel room in downtown Baghdad.
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Just guessing but those type of pecks were probably done before Sammy did it.
When Sammy did it, they say it was carefully planned so that there wouldn't be enough time to do a re-take. We're talking about just a year or so after the Jim Crow laws were revoked, small pecks were still controversial.
The white Clark and the black Harry Belafonte had a controversial duet in 1968 that Chrysler, the sponsor of the show, didn't want it to be shown. The reason? They touched arms.
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Originally Posted by T@T
Shatners had passion that apparently wasn't seen before.
And arguably was still not shown. Last I heard Shatner denied they actually touched lips.
There had also been other interracial kisses between other races before, heck before Shatner kissed Nichols he had already kissed Vietnamese France Nuyen. And more importantly UK television had broadcast a romantic kiss between a white and black couple in 1964 on the television show Emergency - Ward 10.
It's more accurately described as the first scripted interracial kiss between a white and black couple on American television.
I don't understand why the Shatner/Nichols kiss is cited so often. In the story, the kiss was forced on them as a humiliation.
I'm pretty sure the story line mattered none too much to the racists.
Interesting facts about the kiss:
- Originally it was supposed to be Nichols/Nimoy, but when Shatner saw them rehearsing the kiss he demanded a script change so he could
- The NBC executives wanted them to reshoot the scene without the kiss. Roddenberry was upset with the suits, but agreed to shoot the scene with and without the kiss. But the crew were well into overtime and due to some rules, they only had two hours to get both scenes done. Shatner would do the kiss scene and then say he didn't like it and want to re-shoot it. So they did kiss scene over and over and over - for two hours. At the end he had wasted so much time that they didn't have time to shoot the alternate scene. So the suits had the choice of airing the kiss or not airing the episode at all.
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First gay kiss on prime time network TV was on L.A. Law in 1991. However, there was still quite a controversy when Star Trek did it in 1995 when Dax kissed a woman on DS9.
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Reception to the kiss scene was controversial, as Ronald D. Moore recalled, "Some of the response was pretty angry. Some felt betrayed, didn't want to see this in their homes. An affiliate down south cut the kiss from their broadcast. I remember thinking, it's been a long time since Star Trek was banned in the South. Maybe it's time that we get banned again." Similarly, Rene Echevarria noted, "My mother was absolutely scandalized by the episode. Shocked and dismayed. She told me, 'I can't believe you did that. There should have been a parental guidance warning.' But it's exactly what I wanted to happen, to sneak it right into the living room." (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion, p.279)
Probably the only way it could get past the studio's censors.
This seems like such a bizarre concern now. We will probably chuckle at the lack of nudity/swearing on prime time 15-20 years from now. Which begs the question, will cable/network tv even exist in 10 years?
First "birth" on TV - I Love Lucy was a national phenomenon, so when Lucille Ball became pregnant in real life, it was immediately written into the storyline and achieved the series' highest ratings ever. On January 19, 1953, Little Ricky appeared for the first time on the show - just 12 hours after the real-life Lucy gave birth via Caesarian section to Desi Arnaz, Jr. The episode received higher ratings than Eisenhower's inauguration the next day and Queen Elizabeth II's coronation six months later. Lucy never was referred to as "pregnant," though - merely "expecting."
Game 6, Calgary Flames vs. Tampa Bay. This was the first time for me being at the game knowing that Stanley Cup was in the house and that there was a chance to see Flames hoisting it. The feeling was absolutely unreal and difficult to explain.
For golfers: there have been plenty (although still difficult and rare) hole-in-one's. However, the first hole-in-one on a par 5 was:
The first-known ace of this nature occurred in 1962, according Golf World. "Larry Bruce took his drive over a stand of scrawny pines on the 480-yard dogleg right par-5 fifth hole at Hope Country Club" in Arkansas, and found the cup.
Location: Chiefs Kingdom, Yankees Universe, C of Red.
Exp:
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Originally Posted by pylon
I dunno if it qualifies, but the 9/11 terrorist attacks were I believe the first foreign terrorist attacks on American soil to be broadcast live. To me it was the true beginning of the real time news and online news concept. It was really the first time we got to watch something unfolding so quickly and as it happened.
The chills down my spine when the first building collapsed... I'll never forget it. I thought I just witnessed the start of WW3.
Lee Harvey Oswald being shot on live TV. Like Dennis Leary put it "My generation watched Lee Harvey Oswald get shot on live TV and was scared to change the channel for the next 20 f$&@ing years!"
- The NBC executives wanted them to reshoot the scene without the kiss. Roddenberry was upset with the suits, but agreed to shoot the scene with and without the kiss. But the crew were well into overtime and due to some rules, they only had two hours to get both scenes done. Shatner would do the kiss scene and then say he didn't like it and want to re-shoot it. So they did kiss scene over and over and over - for two hours. At the end he had wasted so much time that they didn't have time to shoot the alternate scene. So the suits had the choice of airing the kiss or not airing the episode at all.
According to Nichols it sounds like they did manage one shoot of the alternate scene but Shatner, whether he thought it was insane they were forcing the alternative option on them or because he's Shatner, destroyed any value of it by making a goofy face.
Around 6:30. Fun video to listen to either way though.
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Lee Harvey Oswald being shot on live TV. Like Dennis Leary put it "My generation watched Lee Harvey Oswald get shot on live TV and was scared to change the channel for the next 20 f$&@ing years!"
Scary effen times. The Cuban crises followed by the Kennedy assassination. I was 5 pin bowling at UBC when I heard Kennedy got shot. I think there was a TV on at the time. It was a long walk back to the dorm. Oswald just added to the unreal situation.
The crazy "firsts" thread
