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The Television Portal

Flat-screen television receivers on display for sale at a consumer electronics store in 2008

Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set, rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, entertainment, news, and sports. The medium is capable of more than "radio broadcasting", which refers to an audio signal sent to radio receivers.

Television became available in crude experimental forms in the 1920s, but only after several years of further development was the new technology marketed to consumers. After World War II, an improved form of black-and-white television broadcasting became popular in the United Kingdom and the United States, and television sets became commonplace in homes, businesses, and institutions. During the 1950s, television was the primary medium for influencing public opinion. In the mid-1960s, color broadcasting was introduced in the U.S. and most other developed countries.

In 2013, 79% of the world's households owned a television set. The replacement of earlier cathode-ray tube (CRT) screen displays with compact, energy-efficient, flat-panel alternative technologies such as LCDs (both fluorescent-backlit and LED), OLED displays, and plasma displays was a hardware revolution that began with computer monitors in the late 1990s. Most television sets sold in the 2000s were flat-panel, mainly LEDs. Major manufacturers announced the discontinuation of CRT, Digital Light Processing (DLP), plasma, and even fluorescent-backlit LCDs by the mid-2010s. LEDs are being gradually replaced by OLEDs. Also, major manufacturers have started increasingly producing smart TVs in the mid-2010s. Smart TVs with integrated Internet and Web 2.0 functions became the dominant form of television by the late 2010s. (Full article...)

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KYOU-TV (channel 15) is a television station licensed to Ottumwa, Iowa, United States, serving Ottumwa and Kirksville, Missouri, as an affiliate of Fox, NBC and The CW Plus. The station is owned by Gray Television and maintains studios on West 2nd Street in Downtown Ottumwa; its transmitter is located one mile (1.6 km) east of Richland, Iowa. A translator, K30MG-D, offers additional coverage in the Kirksville area.

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Credit: Adam Kliczek, [1]

CRT TV set "Wisła" ("Vistula") made in Poland, since 1955, by Warszawskie Zakłady Telewizyjne

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... that just four years after starting up, the president of Satellite Television & Associated Resources commented that his entire industry had "gone down the drain"?
... that the day employees of Boston television station WLVI received new business cards, they learned the station would be sold and they would lose their jobs?
... that the 1999 video game Interplay Sports Baseball Edition 2000 used a public-address announcer while its rivals were switching to two commentators as featured on real MLB game broadcasts?
... that One Chun, a Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand restaurant, has black-and-white televisions, transistor radios, and aged clocks on a wall?
... that Ukrainian actress Oksana Shvets, who was killed in the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, starred in the 2013 joint Ukrainian–Russian television family saga House with Lilies alongside Russian actors?
... that Japanese actor Kouhei Higuchi prepared for his role on the television drama adaptation of My Personal Weatherman by learning from a weather forecaster?

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Television - a medium. So called because it is neither rare nor well-done.

— Ernie Kovacs

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...that the Simpsons short Good Night aired April 19, 1987 on The Tracey Ullman Show and was the first ever appearance of the Simpson family on television?

...that the fight scene between Peter Griffin and a giant chicken on Family Guy episode Blind Ambition was originally created for the episode Cleveland Loretta Quagmire?

...that Black Entertainment Television comedy series We Got to Do Better, had its name changed from Hot Ghetto Mess amidst allegations of enforcing negative stereotypes of African Americans?

...that Gordon Murray, the creator of classic British children's television shows Trumpton, Camberwick Green and Chigley, burnt all but one of his puppets on a bonfire in the 1980s?

...that Dr. Andrew Rochford, a presenter on the popular Australian television show What's Good For You, got his break after he won the popular show The Block?

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Cronkite in 1983

Walter Leland Cronkite Jr. (November 4, 1916 – July 17, 2009) was an American broadcast journalist who served as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years, from 1962 to 1981. During the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll. Cronkite received numerous honors including two Peabody Awards, a George Polk Award, an Emmy Award and in 1981 was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Jimmy Carter.

Cronkite reported many events from 1937 to 1981, including bombings in World War II; the Nuremberg trials; combat in the Vietnam War; the Dawson's Field hijackings; Watergate; the Iran Hostage Crisis; and the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, civil rights pioneer Martin Luther King Jr., and Beatles musician John Lennon. He was also known for his extensive coverage of the U.S. space program, from Project Mercury to the Moon landings to the Space Shuttle. He was the only non-NASA recipient of an Ambassador of Exploration award. Cronkite is known for his departing catchphrase, "And that's the way it is", followed by the date of the broadcast. (Full article...)

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James T. Aubrey Kroger Babb Rudolph Cartier Sydney Newman Eric Bana Kylie Minogue Peter Jennings KaDee Strickland Austin Nichols Aaron Sorkin Jake Gyllenhaal Dan Rather Brad Pitt Tom Brokaw John Le Mesurier George Formby Dan Castellaneta Perry Como Red Skelton Rose Catherine Pinkney

General images

The following are images from various television-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1A map depicting digital terrestrial television standards (from Digital television)
Image 2Color bars used in a test pattern, sometimes used when no program material is available (from History of television)
Image 3Smart TVs on display (from Smart TV)
Image 4An early Smart TV from 2012 running the discontinued Orsay platform (from History of television)
Image 5Comparison of image quality between ISDB-T (1080i broadcast, top) and NTSC (480i transmission, bottom) (from Digital television)
Image 6A color television test at the Mount Kaukau transmitter site, New Zealand in 1970.
A test pattern with color bars is used to calibrate the signal. (from Color television)
Image 7Family watching TV, 1958 (from History of television)
Image 8DBS satellite dishes (from History of television)
Image 9The first mass-produced Czechoslovak TV-set Tesla 4001A (1953–57) (from History of television)
Image 10This live image of actress Paddy Naismith was used to demonstrate Telechrome, John Logie Baird's first all-electronic color television system, which used two projection CRTs. The two-color image would be similar to the basic Telechrome system. (from Color television)
Image 11RCA CT-100 at the SPARK Museum of Electrical Invention playing Superman. The RCA CT-100 was the first mass-produced color TV set. (from Color television)
Image 12LG Smart TV using the Web browser (from Smart TV)
Image 13Hovannes Adamian c. 1900s (from Color television)
Image 14The Philco Predicta, 1958. In the collection of The Children's Museum of Indianapolis (from History of television)
Image 15Samsung's discontinued Orsay platform (from Smart TV)
Image 16RCA 630-TS, the first mass-produced television set, which sold in 1946–1947 (from History of television)
Image 17Manfred von Ardenne in 1933 (from History of television)
Image 18The Nipkow disk. This schematic shows the circular paths traced by the holes, which may also be square for greater precision. The area of the disk outlined in black shows the region scanned. (from History of television)
Image 19Philo Farnsworth in 1924 (from History of television)
Image 20Ferdinand Braun (from History of television)
Image 21LG Electronics smart TV from 2011 (from Smart TV)
Image 22Public television in France uses 819 line b&w high definition, from 1959 until 1983 (TF1). (from History of television)
Image 23Baird in 1925 with his televisor equipment and dummies "James" and "Stooky Bill" (right) (from History of television)
Image 24Ad for the beginning of experimental television broadcasting in New York City by RCA in 1939 (from History of television)
Image 25First television test broadcast transmitted by the NHK Broadcasting Technology Research Institute in May 1939 (from History of television)

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Featured lists have been determined by the Wikipedia community to be the best lists on English Wikipedia.

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From left to right: ALMA Award-winning actor Jorge Garcia, Daniel Dae Kim, and Primetime Emmy Award-winning executive producers Damon Lindelof, Carlton Cuse and Bryan Burk

Lost is an American drama series that aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 until May 23, 2010. It was nominated for numerous awards, including 54 Primetime Emmy Awards (11 wins), 54 Saturn Awards (13 wins), 33 Teen Choice Awards, 17 TCA Awards (4 wins), 13 Golden Reel Awards (5 wins), 8 Satellite Awards (1 win), 7 Golden Globe Awards (1 win), 7 Writers Guild of America Awards (1 win), 6 Directors Guild of America Awards, 6 Producers Guild of America Awards (1 win), 4 People's Choice Awards, 2 BAFTA TV Awards, 2 NAACP Image Awards (1 win), and 2 Screen Actors Guild Awards (1 win). Amongst the wins for the series are the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series (1 win), Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama (1 win), Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (1 win), Saturn Award for Best Network Television Series (5 wins), TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Drama (3 wins), and Peabody Award (1 win).

The series has an ensemble cast and several different Lost actors have received acting award nominations. Michael Emerson and Terry O'Quinn are the only actors to win Primetime Emmy Awards. Matthew Fox has been nominated for 19 individual awards (winning three), the most of any cast member; Evangeline Lilly is second with 16 and Emerson is third with 13 (winning two). "Pilot" is the most nominated episode of the series, receiving nominations from fifteen different associations; the episode won eight awards, including four Primetime Emmy Awards. The third season finale, "Through the Looking Glass", is the second most nominated episode with nine while "The End" received the most Primetime Emmy Award nominations with eight, winning one. (Full article...)

Season	Episodes	Originally aired
Season	Episodes	First aired	Last aired
Day 1	24	November 6, 2001 (2001-11-06)	May 21, 2002 (2002-05-21)
Day 2	24	October 29, 2002 (2002-10-29)	May 20, 2003 (2003-05-20)
Day 3	24	October 28, 2003 (2003-10-28)	May 25, 2004 (2004-05-25)
Day 4	24	January 9, 2005 (2005-01-09)	May 23, 2005 (2005-05-23)
Day 5	24	January 15, 2006 (2006-01-15)	May 22, 2006 (2006-05-22)
Day 6	24	January 14, 2007 (2007-01-14)	May 21, 2007 (2007-05-21)
Redemption	1	November 23, 2008 (2008-11-23)
Day 7	24	January 11, 2009 (2009-01-11)	May 18, 2009 (2009-05-18)
Day 8	24	January 17, 2010 (2010-01-17)	May 24, 2010 (2010-05-24)
Live Another Day	12	May 5, 2014 (2014-05-05)	July 14, 2014 (2014-07-14)

(Full article...)

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Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl (かしまし〜ガール·ミーツ·ガール〜, Kashimashi ~Gāru Mītsu Gāru~) is a Japanese animated television series. The episodes were directed by Nobuaki Nakanishi, and animated by the Japanese animation studio Studio Hibari. The series was based on the manga version of the same name, and followed the original story from the first two manga volumes closely for the first nine episodes, though with many differences. In episode ten, the anime starts to deviate from the manga and after that, the storyline in the anime has no connection with the manga. The main plot in the anime is the drama that relates from the three female main characters of Hazumu Osaragi, Yasuna Kamiizumi, and Tomari Kurusu, and their romantic struggles in a love triangle. Yasuna and Tomari vie for Hazumu's affections while Hazumu is initially unable to choose between them.

The televised series aired on the TV Tokyo Japanese television network between January 11, 2006, and March 29, 2006, comprising twelve main episodes. Four pieces of theme music were used in the anime, one opening theme, two ending themes, and one insert song used in episode twelve. The opening theme is "Koisuru Kokoro" (恋するココロ, lit. "The Heart in Love") by Eufonius, the main ending theme is "Michishirube" (みちしるべ, lit. "Route Marker") by Yūmao, the second ending theme only used in the twelfth episode is "Kimi no Tame ni Dekiru Koto" (キミのためにできること, lit. "Something I Can Do For You"), also by Yūmao, and the insert song is "Hanbun" (半分, lit. "Half") by Yukari Tamura. The episodes were released on seven DVD compilations released between April 26, 2006, and October 27, 2006, each containing two episodes. The seventh DVD also contained an original video animation episode "A Girl Falls in Love with a Girl" (少女は少女に恋をした, Shōjo wa Shōjo ni Koi o Shita). The staff that produced the television series also produced the OVA. This episode is set four months after the events of the anime series during the Christmas season. (Full article...)
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Sacred Games is an Indian television thriller series based on Vikram Chandra's 2006 novel of the same name. Created by Vikramaditya Motwane, the first season was directed by Motwane and Anurag Kashyap, who produced it under their banner Phantom Films. The story follows a troubled police officer, Sartaj Singh (played by Saif Ali Khan), who receives a phone call from gangster Ganesh Gaitonde (played by Nawazuddin Siddiqui); Gaitonde tells him to save the city within 25 days. The series chronicles the events that follow while tracing Gaitonde's past.

Other cast members include Radhika Apte, Girish Kulkarni, Neeraj Kabi, Geetanjali Thapa, Jeetendra Joshi, Rajshri Deshpande, Karan Wahi, Aamir Bashir, Jatin Sarna, Elnaaz Norouzi Kubra Sait, Surveen Chawla, Pankaj Tripathi, Kalki Koechlin, and Ranvir Shorey. The series was conceived after Erik Barmack, the vice-president of Netflix, contacted Motwane in 2014 to create Indian content for the platform. They opted to adapt Chandra's English novel in the Hindi language, to which Motwane agreed. Varun Grover, Smita Singh, and Vasant Nath wrote the episodes of the first season; Grover, Dhruv Narang, Nihit Bhave, and Pooja Tolani wrote the second season. (Full article...)
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Glee cast members (clockwise from back left): Mark Salling, Kevin McHale, Lea Michele, Dianna Agron, Amber Riley, Jenna Ushkowitz, Chris Colfer and Cory Monteith

Glee is an American musical comedy-drama television series that aired on the Fox network in the United States. It focuses on the William McKinley High School glee club New Directions competing on the show choir competition circuit, while its members deal with relationships, sexuality and social issues. The show was created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan, and features many cover versions of songs performed on-screen by the characters. Murphy is responsible for selecting all of the songs used, and strives to maintain a balance between show tunes and chart hits, as he wants there to be "something for everybody in every episode". Once Murphy selects a song, rights are cleared with its publishers by music supervisor P.J. Bloom, and music producer Adam Anders rearranges it for the Glee cast. Numbers are pre-recorded by the cast, while choreographer Zach Woodlee constructs the accompanying dance moves, which are then taught to the cast and filmed. Studio recordings of tracks are then made. The process begins six to eight weeks before each episode is filmed, and can end as late as the day before filming begins.

At the beginning of the season, Murphy intended for the performances to remain reality-based, as opposed to having the characters spontaneously burst into song. As the season progressed, however, Glee began to utilize fantasy sequences, with paraplegic character Artie imagining himself dancing to "The Safety Dance", and six separate characters performing a fantasy version of "Like a Virgin". The first thirteen episodes of the season averaged five songs per episode. For the final nine episodes, the number of performances increased to eight. The list below contains all 132 musical performances of the first season, with each performance delivering an individual song or a mashup of two or more songs in a single performance. (Full article...)
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Gielgud in 1936

Sir John Gielgud, OM, CH (/ˈɡiːlɡʊd/; 1904–2000) was an English actor and theatre director. He appeared on stage, television and radio and in film in a career that spanned eight decades. Film historian Brian McFarlane, writing for the British Film Institute, wrote of Gielgud that "in terms of the performing arts, it is no exaggeration to say that he towered over the century".

Gielgud, a member of the theatrical dynasty the Terry family, began working on stage in 1921 before attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. After completing his studies he worked in repertory theatre and in the West End before establishing himself at the Old Vic in the 1930s. He continued working on the stage until 1990 both as a director and actor. Although he made some films early in his career, he did not start working regularly in the medium until he was in his sixties; in the course of just over thirty years between 1964 and 1998 he appeared in over sixty films. He was active on television and radio, appearing in numerous plays and interviews, and was also in demand as a narrator. (Full article...)
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Doherty attending the premiere of 90210 in 2008

American actress Shannen Doherty has appeared in numerous television programs and motion pictures. After her television debut in Father Murphy in 1981, she landed her first major role in the dramatic western television series Little House on the Prairie (1982–1983), and reprised her role in its three television specials. Doherty received two Young Artist Award nominations for playing the oldest Witherspoon sibling Kris in the family drama Our House (1986–1988). She appeared in four films during the 1980s, including the positively-received, animated film The Secret of NIMH (1982) and the cult classic Heathers (1988). Her breakthrough role was as Brenda Walsh in the teen drama Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990–1994), but she was later dropped from the series because of backstage issues and her negative image as a "bad girl". She starred in television films in the early and mid-1990s, and played Rene Mosier in the romantic comedy Mallrats (1995) in an attempt to rebuild her career.

Doherty enjoyed a resurgence in popularity after being cast by producer Aaron Spelling to play Prue Halliwell on the supernatural drama Charmed (1998–2001). The series was their second collaboration following Beverly Hills, 90210. The character was praised by critics and fans, earning a spot as one of the best witches in television history according to a TVLine article, and Doherty took an active role in the show's production, directing three of its episodes. Following disagreements with Spelling and co-star Alyssa Milano, Doherty left the series in its third season. Doherty starred in a string of television films and had a recurring role on the prime-time soap opera North Shore (2004–2005). The following year, she was cast as Denise Johnson in the unaired pilot of the sitcom Love, Inc., but was dropped from the show by producers from United Paramount Network (UPN). She reprised her role as Brenda Walsh in the reboot of 90210 (2008–2009), appearing as a special guest star in seven episodes in its first season. (Full article...)
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The 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards honored the best in American prime time television programming from June 1, 2020, until May 31, 2021, as chosen by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The award ceremony was held live on September 19, 2021, at the Event Deck at L.A. Live in Downtown Los Angeles, California, and was preceded by the 73rd Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards on September 11 and 12. During the ceremony, Emmy Awards were handed out in 27 different categories. The ceremony was produced by Reginald Hudlin and Ian Stewart, directed by Hamish Hamilton, and broadcast in the United States by CBS and Paramount+. Cedric the Entertainer served as host for the event.

At the main ceremony, The Crown became the first drama series to sweep all the major categories, winning all seven awards including Outstanding Drama Series. Ted Lasso led all comedies with four wins, including Outstanding Comedy Series, while Hacks won three awards. Mare of Easttown also won three awards, leading all limited series, but Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series went to The Queen's Gambit. Other winning programs include Halston, Hamilton, I May Destroy You, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, RuPaul's Drag Race, Saturday Night Live, and Stephen Colbert's Election Night 2020. Including Creative Arts Emmys, The Crown and The Queen's Gambit led all programs with 11 wins each; Netflix led all networks and platforms with 44 total wins. (Full article...)
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Myself ; Yourself is a Japanese animated television series, directed by Tetsuaki Matsuda, animated by the Japanese animation studio Dogakobo and produced by the Myself ; Yourself Production Committee, which is composed of Happinet Pictures, Marvelous Entertainment, The 5pb and Pony Canyon Enterprises. The series is based on the visual novel Myself ; Yourself by Yeti, adapting the source material over thirteen episodes. The episodes' plots follows Sana Hidaka and his return to the town of Sakuranomori after leaving the town and his friends five years earlier.

The series was broadcast from October 3 to December 26, 2007, on TV Kanagawa, and later on Chiba TV, TV Aichi, TV Saitama, TV Osaka and AT-X. The AT-X broadcast was notably late, starting on November 22, 2007. (Full article...)
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Sim as the Laird in Geordie, 1955

The Scottish actor Alastair Sim (1900–1976) performed in many media of light entertainment, including theatre, film and television. His career spanned from 1930 until his death. During that time he was a "memorable character player of faded Anglo-Scottish gentility, whimsically put-upon countenance, and sepulchral, sometimes minatory, laugh".

After studying chemistry at the University of Edinburgh, he was employed, between 1925 and 1930, as a lecturer in elocution at New College, Edinburgh, and also established his own school of drama and speech training. In 1930 he made his professional stage debut as a messenger in Othello at the Savoy Theatre, London—with Paul Robeson and Peggy Ashcroft in the lead roles. During the next five years he appeared on stage in New York and the UK, and spent two years at the Old Vic. (Full article...)
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The Flash is an American superhero television series developed for The CW by Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, and Geoff Johns, based on the DC Comics character Barry Allen / Flash. It is set in the Arrowverse, sharing continuity with the other television series of the franchise, and is a spin-off of Arrow. The series premiered on October 7, 2014, and has been renewed through its seventh season. Grant Gustin stars as Barry, a crime scene investigator who gains superhuman speed, which he uses to fight criminals, including others who have also gained superhuman abilities.

The series has been a candidate for television awards in a variety of categories recognizing its writing, acting, directing, production, score, and visual effects. The Flash has been nominated for many awards, including six BMI Film, TV & Visual Media Awards (won all), two Hollywood Post Alliance Awards, one Hugo Award, seventeen IGN Awards (winning four), eleven Kids' Choice Awards, eighteen Leo Awards (winning seven), two MTV Movie & TV Awards, five People's Choice Awards (winning one), one Primetime Emmy Award, twenty-three Saturn Awards (winning seven), one TCA Award, twenty-seven Teen Choice Awards (winning six), one TV Guide Award (won), and one Visual Effects Society Award. Gustin is the most decorated of the show's cast, with thirty nominations and seven wins. The show also holds the world records for "Most in-demand superhero TV show" and "Most in-demand action and adventure TV show" from the Guinness World Records. (Full article...)
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Bob's Burgers is an American animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Belcher family—parents Bob and Linda, and their children Tina, Gene, and Louise—who run a hamburger restaurant. A production between Bento Box Entertainment and 20th Television, the show has aired over 200 episodes and has been renewed for a twelfth and thirteenth season.

Throughout its run, the series has received fifteen Annie Award nominations, eleven Writers Guild of America Award nominations under the Television: Animation category, a total of six Critics' Choice Television Award nominations for Best Animated Series, and four Teen Choice Award nominations for Choice TV: Animated Show. (Full article...)

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