“Jeopardy!” Features the Final Appearance of Alex Trebek; CBS and NBC Announce New Shows in Development

Television and Radio
CBS western “Rawhide,” starring Clint Eastwood, opened its seven season run in 1959…Jacques Cousteau’s first undersea special aired on NBC in 1968…Fox sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle” launched in 2000. Linwood Boomer (Adam from “Little House on the Prairie”) was the creator…In 1989, “Wheel of Fortune” host Pat Sajak began a 15-month stint as host of late night CBS talker “The Pat Sajak Show.” It could not compete with “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” on NBC…Also in late night: CBS franchise “The Late, Late Show” debuted in 1995 with Tom Snyder as host. Snyder was replaced by Craig Kilborn in 1999, who remained through 2004. Following four months of guest hosts, Craig Ferguson took over in 2005 and was replaced by James Corden on March 23, 2015…NBC sitcom “3^rd Rock From the Sun” began its six season run in 1996. A tie-in book, “3rd Rock from the Sun: The Official Report On Earth”, was released in 1997…ABC reality/ competition  “The Mole,” hosted by Anderson Cooper, opened in 2001. By the fourth season it morphed into “The Celebrity Mole” with Ahmad Rashad taking over as host.

Music:
Elvis Presley singles “Don’t Be Cruel” and “Hound Dog” went No. 1 on the Billboard Music charts and stayed No. 1 for a record 11 weeks in 1956…The Beatles’ single “We Can Work It Out” hit No. 1 in 1966.

Sports:
Then 21-year-old future Hall of Fame golfer Jack Nicklaus  made his first professional appearance in the Los Angeles Open in 1962.
 
Celebrity Birthdays:
Jazz singer Shirley Bassey is 83. Elvis Presley was born on this day in 1935. He passed away in 1977.

TV AND DIGITAL UPDATES

Farewell, Alex Trebek
Today the world says a final goodbye to “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek, who died of pancreatic cancer two months ago. By publicly sharing his cancer fight, he became a powerful voice in raising awareness of pancreatic cancer and providing hope for the more than 57,600 Americans diagnosed with the devastating disease each year.

Because pancreatic cancer has few warning signs, the disease often goes undetected until it has spread and treatment options are limited. Each year, more than 45,000 American lives are lost to pancreatic cancer–now the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths with a shockingly low  five-year relative survival rate of nearly 10 percent. In addition to Alex Trebek, pancreatic cancer also claimed the lives of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Georgia Representative John Lewis.

100% of every donation to the Lustgarten Foundation funds live-saving research with the goal of creating tests able to diagnose the disease in its earliest stage, discovering better, more effective treatments, and, eventually, a cure. The Lustgarten Foundation is the largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research in the world. For more information, click here

NBCU Chairman Mark Lazarus to Kick-Off NATPE Virtual Miami 2021
The National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE), has announced that the conference portion of the first international television event of the year will kick-off with NBCUniversal Television and Streaming Chairman Mark Lazarus as opening keynote. Lazarus will be joined on stage by Hoda Kotb, co-anchor of NBC News’ “Today”, who will moderate the fireside conversation. Due to circumstances surrounding the ongoing pandemic NATPE Virtual Miami 2021 will be held entirely online as part of the organization’s NATPE Virtual slate.

The conference portion of NATPE Virtual Miami will take place January 19-22, with the Marketplace open from January 19-29.  Attendees to the conference can expect four days of programming channels each with a different theme (Business, Audience, Content, Production). On each of those days, there will be programming blocks with different tracks. Every day will commence with The Big Opening, which includes the conversation with Mark Lazarus, followed by Station Groups, Streaming, and Series. NATPE Miami viewers will be able to easily tune into conference programming that meets their interests on a daily basis as if it were a TV network. For more details. click here

“Jeopardy!” Fond Farewell to Alex Trebek Followed by Ken Jennings’ Hosting – For more click here

PI Podcast With Douglas Pucci and Scott Nolte
Discussion about game shows in early January 2021: “The Masked Dancer” (Fox), “Name That Tune” (Fox), “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune” (ABC), “The Chase” (ABC), “The Hustler” (ABC), and the final “Jeopardy!” episode hosted by Alex Trebek followed by the first “Jeopardy!” episode hosted by Ken Jennings. To listen, click here

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

Season three of “ATL Homicide”, featuring homicide detectives David Quinn and Vince Velazquez of the Atlanta Police Department as they disclose first-hand accounts of real-life murder investigations, will open on TV One on Monday, January 25 at 9 p.m. ET. Each episode follows the thirty-year Atlanta PD veterans as they reveal how they solved tragic crimes committed in the Atlanta metro area while working side by side as partners in the homicide division.

ON THE AIR TONIGHT

Syndicated “Jeopardy!” features the final appearance as beloved Alex Trebek as host…Series premieres: “Marvel Studios: Legends” on Disney+; “Lupin”, “Mighty Little Bheem”  and “Pretend it’s a City” on Netflix; “Squish” on HBO Max; “Self-Made Mansions” on HGTV…Season premieres: “Dickinson” on Amazon; “The Idun Chronicles” on Netflix…For the complete schedule for Friday, January 8, 2021, click here