100 Most Memorable TV Moments!

[thomas7g]

Nick TVLAND and TV Guide has created a list of the 100 most memorable moments of TV History.

Its quite an enjoyable trip. THey are reairing those scenes on Nick right now. But for you people, I've got the quick version.



Below is the complete list of The 100 Most Memorable Moments:

100 - Miami Vice Debuts (9/16/84)
99 - Brenda & Dylan Do It (Beverley Hills 90210) (5/2/91)
98 - Marcia Brady's Broken Nose (Brady Bunch) (2/9/73)
97 - Puck Gets the Boot (MTV Real World) (8/25/94)
96 - Sam Gets Fired (Cheers) (1/21/04)
95 - Clarabell Speaks Howdy Doody show finale) (9/24/60)
94 - Peter Pan Flies (Mary Martin play broadcast) (3/7/55)
93 - Sinead Rips the Pope's picture (10/3/92)
92 - Laettner's Buzzer Beater (3/28/92)
91 - Kramden's $99,000 Answer (The Honeymooners) (1/28/56)
90 - That's My Boy? (9/25/63)
89 - Rather Gets Roughed Up (1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago) (8/27/68)
88 - The Saving Heart (11/16/83)
87 - Hugh Grant and Jay Leno (post prostitute interview)(7/10/95)
86 - John Dean Testifies (6/25/73)
85 - Gary's Sudden Death (2/12/91)
84 - The Day After (11/20/83)
83 - Andy Kaufman's Wrestling Smackdown (7/28/82)
82 - Florida's Husband Dies (Good Times) (9/29/76)
81 - Rosalind Gets the Shaft (3/21/91)
80 - Idol Final: Clay vs. Ruben (5/21/03)
79 - Kerri Strug's Golden Vault (OLympic Gymnast with damaged leg tendon)(7/23/96)
78 - Nixon Asks, "Sock it to me?" (Laugh-In) (9/16/68)
77 - Schweddy Balls (12/12/98)
76 - Alexis & Krystle: Wet & Wild (Dynasty) (4/13/83)
75 - NYPD Nude (NYPD Blues) 9/21/93)
74 - Al Capone's Vault (4/21/86)
73 - The First Millionaire (11/19/99)
72 - Hill and Renko Gunned Down (Hill Street Blues) (1/15/81)
71 - An American Family: the Louds (3/8/73)
70 - The Cosby Show Debuts (9/20/84)
69 - Belushi's Samurai Deli (Saturday Night Live) (1/17/76)
68 - Tim Russert Tallies the Vote(11/7/00)
67 - Letterman's Velcro Suit (Late Night with David Letterman) (2/28/84)
66 - Ross & Rachel's First Kiss (Friends) (11/9/95)
65 - Kirk Kisses Uhura (1st interacial kiss, Star Trek) (11/22/68)
64 - The Rumble in the Jungle (10/30/74)
63 - Elvis' '68 Comeback Special (12/3/68)
62 - America Held Hostage (US Embassy in Iran) (11/29/79)
61 - Jordan's Last Championship Shot (6/14/98)
60 - Death of Chuckles the Clown (Finale of Mary Tyler Moore Series) (10/25/75)
59 - Lucy Goes to the Hospital (I Love Lucy) (1/19/53)
58 - Oliver North Gets Sworn In (7/7/87)
57 - Bill Buckner's Error (10/25/86)
56 - A Charlie Brown Christmas (12/9/65)
55 - Gold Medals: Black Power (10/16/68)
54 - The Battle of the Sexes (9/20/73)
53 - Susan Hawk: Snakes and Rats (8/23/00)
52 - Sullivan Censors Elvis (1/6/57)
51 - The Oscar Streaker (4/2/74)
50 - Brody Kisses Berry (3/23/03)
49 - Brandi's World Cup Strip (US wins women soccer) (7/10/99)
48 - Sam & Diane's First Kiss (Cheers) (3/31/83)
47 - Curtains for Carol Burnett Carol Burnett's spoof on Gone with the Wind(11/13/76)
46 - Mark McGwire Hits #62 (baseball homerun record) (9/8/98)
45 - Picard Goes Borg (6/18/90)
44 - The Kennedy-Nixon Debate (9/26/60)
43 - Ellen Degeneres Comes Out of the closet (4/30/97)
42 - The Fall of Saigon, Vietnam (4/29/75)
41 - Bette's Farewell to Johnny (Johnny Carson retires) (5/21/92)
40 - The Death of Henry Blake (MASH) (3/18/75)
39 - Have You No Decency? (6/9/54)
38 - Janet Jackson's Wardrobe Malfunction (2/1/04)
37 - Clinton Plays the Sax (6/3/92)
36 - Tony's College Killing (2/7/99)
35 - Luke & Laura's Wedding (General Hospital) (11/17/81)
34 - Hank Aaron Breaks Ruth's Record (4/8/74)
33 - Nadia Comaneci's Perfect 10 (olympic gymnastics) (7/18/76)
32 - Saving Baby Jessica (10/16/87)
31 - 60 Minutes with Ayatollah Khomeini (11/18/79)
30 - Eddie Murphy Does James Brown (SAturday Night Live) (11/5/83)
29 - Nixon Waves Farewell (8/9/74)
28 - Olympic Tragedy in Munich (9/5/72)
27 - Michael Jackson's moonwalk (5/16/83)
26 - Edith Talks Back (All in the Family show) (01/08/72)
25 - Bookworm in The Twilight Zone (11/20/59)
24 - Newhart's Final Surprise (Bob Newhart show finale) (5/21/90)
23 - Princess Diana's Funeral (9/6/97)
22 - The Fugitive Finale (8/29/67)
21 - The Miracle on Ice (USA beats USSR in Olympic Hockey) (2/22/80)
20 - The Contest (11/18/92)
19 - The President Clinton Denies an Affair (1/26/98)
18 - Sammy Davis Jr Kisses Archie Bunker (2/19/72)
17 - The Death of Dale Earnhardt (2/18/01)
16 - The Royal Wedding (Princess Di) (7/29/81)
15 - The Bombing of Baghdad (1/16/1991)
14 - Ruby Shoots Oswald (JFK assassin) (11/24/63)
13 - Tiananmen Square: Man vs. Tank (6/5/89)
12 - The O.J. Simpson Chase (6/17/94)
11 - The O.J. Simpson Verdict (10/3/95)
10 - Who Shot J.R.? (Dallas TV series) (3/21/80)
9 - Lucy at the Candy Factory (I Love Lucy) (9/15/52)
8 - The M*A*S*H Finale (2/28/83)
7 - The Whipping of Kunte Kinte (Roots miniseries) (1/24/77)
6 - John-John's Salute (JFK's funeral) (11/25/63)
5 - The Beatles Debut in America (2/9/64)
4 - Martin Luther King's I Have a Dream (8/28/63)
3 - The Challenger Shuttle Disaster (1/28/86)
2 - One Small Step for Man (1st man on moon) (7/20/69)
1 - World Trade Center Falls, 9/11/01

[julix]

I saw the end of this last night....it was interesting but of course two out of the three i saw were terrible disasters.....the columbia exploding and in that cliip it should parent's faces as well as people in the crowd(very hard!) then of course 9-11 and they didn't show as much of the horrendous footage but seeing the towers fall is horrendous enough.

[thomas7g]

Yeah, seeing so many tragedies was sad. But I like how the top 4 were real life events.

I also thought it was bit of television magic to see Walter Cronkite again discussing how he believes that the Moon landing was a much more important event than 9-11. That also give a nice perspective on this. And I think 9-11 was more powerfull mostly because it was more recent. If 911 happened 10 years ago, and we were covering the first landing on the moon just now, as if this was the first time, then the list could be different.

[kingfish]

One of the best tv moments is from BG. Baltar with a WTF look when he sees the Pegasus for the first time.

[julix]

Originally Posted by kingfish

One of the best tv moments is from BG. Baltar with a WTF look when he sees the Pegasus for the first time.

good one....

[julix]

or anytime the guys wore Triad outfits,,,,,

[BRG]

As a Brit looking at the list, a few things suprise me.

First off, I would have thought the moon landing would easily be 1st. Yes, 9/11 was shocking and vivid TV, and I will always remember sitting in stunned silence that afternoon in September. But the moon landing was probably the greatest achieviment of mankind(IMO) and a proud moment in American history, so I'm suprised you never made it number 1. And one piece of TV footage that is known around the world is the anouncement of President Kennedy's death, with the newsreader removing those thick black glasses and fighting back tears. I thought that would be a top 5 moment.

Anouther thing that suprises me is that sport does not feature as high is I thought it would. If this was a British list, sport would feature heavily in the top 20, with England's world cup triumphs in football in 1966, and rugby in 2003 in the top 10. But you highest sport entry looks like Hank Aaron at 34! Where are the Superbowls? Ali vs Foreman? US vs USSR Olympic ice hockey and basketball showdowns? Indy 500's? For a nation obsessed with sport, I thought you would place more importance on your best moments.

Finally, two things that pleased me. As a Beatles fan, I was delighted to see that they made the top 5, and that they are the top British and non American moment on the list, but also that they placed higher than any Royal moment! SWEET! Also pleases to see Star Trek made the top 50, and the top sci-fi moment, "I am Locutus of Borg.....Resistance is futile "
BRG

PS I must admit, I have no idea what at least a quarter of that list is refering too!

[thomas7g]

BRG- President Kennedy was number 6.

I think sports tend to be not as important cause although people enjoy them immensley, most people can't really see a difference from one superbowl to the next. Or one World Series to another.



I think though you are right about the list. I'll go in and add some comments.

[skippercollecto]

#98 I would have thought the trips to Hawaii or the Grand Canyon were bigger TV
#97 should have been MTV's debut
#91 is The Honeymooners
#89 is the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago
#82 is Good Times (not sure why this is on the list--no one's mentioned it for years)
#78 is Laugh-in
#60 should have been the finale of the series
#35 is General Hospital
#26 should have been Maude’s abortion, or the episode where Edith fights off her assailant
#25 scared the daylights out of me when I was in fourth grade

Where were:
Brian’s Song?
Suellen sees Bobby in the shower (Dallas)?
Laura’s toe in the faucet (my mother’s all-time favorite episode of any TV show--it’s the Dick Van Dyke Show)?
Adam Walsh and/or Elizabeth Smart?

[BRG]

Thanks for adding the comments Tomas. It really helped out.

I stand corrected, and emmbarrised! your top sporting moment. The 1980 Olympic ice hockey final was in at 21. When I read Miricle On Ice I honestly thought it was one of those Disney ice shows, like 'Snow White on Ice' live from Madison Square Garden on CBS. BTW, I don't count Dale Ernhadrt's fatal crash as a sporting moment, I regard it as a news story.

Can you tell me why the Miami Vice debue is in the list? Why not The A Team, Battlestar Galactica, The West Wing or countless other TV shows? Was Miami Vice such a big deal in the early 80's?

But it's interesting to see what Americans regard as the most memorable TV moments. As I said, these polls have become popular on TV over here(An easy way to fill 3 hours on a bank holiday) And us Brits tend to fill our top moments up with news & sport, with the odd bit of entertainment in the top 20.
BRG

PS-Skippercollecto. I agree 100%! Bobby coming out of the shower should have been on the list. There is not a man, woman or child in any part of the civilized world who doesn't know that moment off by heart!

[thomas7g]

Skip- Thanks for those answers!

I agree The Boby shower scene shoulda been in there.

I think though that Miami vice got in cause it was such a big hit and it really changed the way tv shows are shot. It really changed how they edit scenes together and the pacing. Alot of it due to MTV videos. Though MTV's debute didn't make an impact. Probably cause that first night there were very few of us watching it.

[skippercollecto]

Tom, I'm afraid I might have confused you regarding #60 and the Mary Tyler Moore Show. The death of Chuckles occurred during the series' run; however, it was not the finale. The final episode was when everyone but Ted was fired.

Mary

[bsg1fan1975]

I think the reason Dale Earnhardt's death made the list as it happened during the closing of a major sports event. I remember seeing it happen and thinking along with my parents that he was going to be okay and then hearing the news a short while later that he had died brought me to tears.

[BRG]

Originally Posted by bsg1fan1975

I think the reason Dale Earnhardt's death made the list as it happened during the closing of a major sports event. I remember seeing it happen and thinking along with my parents that he was going to be okay and then hearing the news a short while later that he had died brought me to tears.

I had the same experiance 10 years ago.
It was the Formula 1 San Marino GP. Ayrton Senna, a hero of mine since I was a boy, crashed out from the lead on a high speed curve and smashed into a wall. Like Dale Earnhardt's crash, it was a heavy one, but I had seen drivers walk away from much worse, so I expected Senna just too get out of his car and walk back to the pits. But he was dying in front of our eyes, live on Sunday afternoon TV.

It was the first, and thank God, the only fatal accident I have witnessed on a live broadcast. It really is a sickening feeling, and at the time of the accident, I am ashamed to admit that I was more annoyed about Senna falling further behind Schumacher in the Championship than I was about his safty. Since that day I have the same uneasy feeling with any big crash, and I always have a sense of relief when they walk away.

Death on the track is, and always will be a part of motorsport. Thankfully it is a rare occurrence these days, but fans know it can strike at any time on any circut. But it does make you respect any man or woman who put there lives on the line in this sport.
BRG

[thomas7g]

There was also the fact that his son won at that racetrack for the first time. Bitter Irony.

[kingfish]

Another one that didn't make it was NY Yankees manager, Billy Martin's death. He died on Christmas in an auto accident. Billy was one of the most colorful managers in Yankees history.