WPTV and WSM to become ABC affiliation in the 80s

[DucNguyen0131]

February 21, 1986

KCRA and KOVR officially swapped owners and network affiliations. Scripps-Howard Broadcasting took control of KOVR, while KCRA was sold to Outlet, and KCRA and KOVR reverted back to being NBC and ABC affiliates.

At the same time, KCRA began using the "NewsCenter 3 Reports" branding.

KCRA's news presentation put an increase to viewership as well with their family leadership.

KCRA-TV was built by Kelly Broadcasting in the mid-1950s after the freeze ended, originally as a NBC affiliate and switched to ABC in 1982.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 23, 1986

The CBS affiliate WPXI is changing its news title to "NewsWatch 11", in order to signify the viewers with the strength of the "NewsWatch" name.

WPXI was formerly a NBC affiliate until 1983, when it swapped affiliations with KDKA and changed into a CBS affiliate.

It is also reported at that same time that WKEF is using the "Eyewitness News" brand, rebranding it to "22 Eyewitness News", cloning Westinghouse's Eyewitness News format.

WTVJ is now currently using the "Action News" moniker, along with the "Action News is Everywhere" slogan used by Hearst slogans. Hearst was in the process of buying WZZM, WLOS and WTVJ.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 2, 1986

WDVM-TV, the CBS-affiliated station owned by Cox Broadcasting in Washington, D.C., was unveiling a new graphics package that was mostly based on WSB's then-current news package, along with news music package "Turn to News" by Gari Media Group, replacing "And You" by Telesound.

Scott Chapin continues to serve as the station's voiceover. He went on to do voiceover work for WTVJ when Hearst took over the station (IOTL he started at WSVN in 1988).

Cox Enterprises bought out the station as part of the assets that were in held by the Evening News Association in 1984, and granted a permanent waiver to retain both the Detroit News newspaper and indie WKBD-TV in Detroit.

WKBD-TV would add editorials from The Detroit News, in order for plans to add morning newscast, WKBD 50 Morning News, to compete against network programs in Detroit.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 6, 1986

Fox had officially took control of the Metromedia independent stations. WNEW-TV would be rebranded to WFXT (which is short for "Fox Television", IOTL this was used as a callsign for the channel 25 Boston station), while KRLD would be branded as KDAF and KTTV would be rebranded to "KFXT".

It is reported that WCIX would change its call letters to "WFOX" (this call sign was used for a Jacksonville station IOTL starting in 2014).

WFOX has improved its transmitter facility so it was able to reach Broward County.

It is reported and confirmed to TVX that WLVI in Boston would became a charter affiliate of the Fox network since 1986 due to a group deal with TVX Broadcast Group. The Field-era "56" logo was changed on WLVI to the one that was influenced by WNOL-TV, which TVX had just acquired.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 10, 1986

WXXA is planning on to launch a primetime newscast on behalf of its owner TVX Broadcast Group, which the owner said they wanted to do newscasts to follow the success of the Boston television station WLVI.

WXXA had to brand the newscasts under the name "NewsWatch 23".

Competitors WRGB is using the "NewsCenter 6" name, and WTEN is using the "Eyewitness News" name, while WAST used the "Channel 13 News" brand.

Many other TVX stations tend to follow WLVI's format by launching their own television newscasts in order to emphasize its success.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 15, 1986

WCPX-TV, the CBS affiliate in Orlando (formerly a NBC affiliate when the network had a group deal with Outlet in 1982) is adapting the branding, "Action 6 News". The music package "Palmer News Package" is also introduced to the station.

It was a direct hybrid between the "Action News" format that was used by Hearst stations and the "Action News" format that was used by Capital Cities stations.

At that time, Action 6 News approached the more higher ratings it received in the programming newscasts.

WCPX-TV was briefly a NBC affiliate from 1982 to 1985, when the swap with WESH was reversed, citing NBC's stronger programing.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 17, 1986

KMYG-TV, the CBS affiliate in St. Louis (formerly KMOX) is getting hit big with strong ratings posting for the "Action News" newscast, in order to be the number one newscast for St. Louis.

The news open was slightly modified to include the slogan "St. Louis' News Leader".

The KMYG calls stood for a Post-Newsweek employee Katherine Meyer Graham.

Post-Newsweek also owns stations in Jacksonville (WJXT), New Haven/Hartford (WFSB) and Miami/Fort Lauderdale (WPLG).

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 21, 1986

KOMO-TV, ABC's Fisher/Allbritton-owned station in the Seattle market is giving them the "Action News" branding, rebranding the news title to "Action 4 News". Seattle is one of the largest TV markets without the "Action News" title.

The exact format, which was used on KOMO-TV was a clone of WJLA-TV's "Action News" format.

Fisher Communications and Allbritton Communications merged their companies together in 1985.

This would join KIRO-TV, which would use the "Eyewitness News" branding that was currently in use today.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 25, 1986

The Federal Communications Commission had approved the merger between Multimedia Inc., a Greenville-based company and King Broadcasting Company, a Seattle-based broadcaster and organization. The merger was funded by GE Capital, soon-to-be owners of NBC and RCA.

Multimedia's stations include WYFF in Greenville, WXII in Winston-Salem, WHBQ in Memphis, WOTV in Grand Rapids, WLWT in Cincinnati, WBIR-TV in Knoxville, KING-TV in Seattle, KREM-TV in Spokane, KTVB in Boise and KGW-TV in Portland.

This made the combined company a total of 12 television stations.

King Broadcasting runs on stations east of the Mississippi River, and Multimedia had to ran the stations west of the Mississippi River.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 31, 1986

Atari Games announced, while in the process that Ed Logg is developing the Famicom versions of Centipede and Millipede, would hire Norm Avellar and Greg Rivera, who was currently programming and finishing Road Runner would do the Famicom version of Peter Pack-Rat.

It was slated to be released by Namcot, a division of Namco, the Japanese distributor of Atari Games in late 1986.

The original version of Peter Pack-Rat is designed and developed by Peter Thompson and Debbie Hayes, who was respectively the programmer and graphic artist.

It is reported that Atari Games would launch a home subsidiary to localize Namcot's games for the NES, being one of the first companies with a Nintendo license.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

April 4, 1986

KTXL-TV, channel 40, one of the strongest affiliates in Sacramento, owned by the TVX Broadcast Group is launching a prime-time 10pm newscast that directly cloned WLVI's news format, which is also TVX's fellow stations.

TVX also has news department setups for a national morning program, The National Desk, which is set for debut in the fall of 1986 on TVX stations.

One of TVX's largest television stations by market size was WLVI, which was ranked #6 by the designated market area.

KTXL-TV was one of TVX's most prolific television stations on the West Coast, the East Coast flagship stations were WTVZ in Norfolk and WLVI in Boston.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

April 10, 1986

Nintendo of America, Inc. announced that they would localize the Famicom Disk System for the US market ahead of the Summer CES 1986. It will be the "NES Disk System" and it took the advantage of playing disk-based games.

Rare Ltd., who was in the process of developing Slalom, was signed on as first major client of the Disk System, producing a launch game.

The NES Disk System's launch price would be US$49.99, and it will took the advantage of the disk games.

One of the NES Disk System's launch titles proposed were ports of the cartridge video games Super Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

April 14, 1986

Hasbro, Inc. is making a demonstration for the Control-Vision VHS game system, which is slated for the winter of 1988, and it will consist of three full motion video games, which is set for Summer CES 1986.

Epyx also secured to produce a competing VHS game system, with a version of Impossible Mission that was on film, rather than on pixels. It is reported that Albert Pyun would direct the film for VHS.

Sega had to demonstrate, in a partnership with Coleco, the MasterVision (the TTL version of the Sega Master System), which was using a modified ColecoVision console with SG-1000 and Sega Mark III games, and include backward compatibility for the ColecoVision.

It is reported that at the same time, Bally Sente bought the rights of Name That Tune, Atari Games took matters to produce an arcade game based on the ABC game show Finders Keepers, which is set to debut at the Summer CES 1986. Peter Lipson is the project leader behind Finders Keepers, and other members of the design team include Sam Comstock, and Brad Fuller.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

April 21, 1986

It is announced that The Cannon Group is delaying the upcoming Spider-Man feature film project to 1987, as they wanted Cannon to do a summer blockbuster. Additionally, Superman IV has been butterflied away, so Spider-Man was made instead.

It is reported that Atari is announcing a Mad Max game (sort of like OTL's RoadBlasters).

It is said to Atari employees and told to programmer Robert Weatherby that the game's events take place between The Road Warrior and Beyond Thunderdome.

The game was intended to run on Atari's System I hardware.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

April 25, 1986

Atari Games Corporation was in talks with Nintendo of America for a licensing agreement. Konami and Data East USA, Inc. are in the process of a licensing agreement with Nintendo of America to develop Nintendo titles.

One of the expected titles assigned for Atari Games Corporation was Galaga, Pac-Man, Mappy, Galaxian and Dig Dug, which are the initial five Atari Games titles.

All unlicensed NES Tengen cartridges are however butterflied away. It is reported to avoid confusion with the actual Atari Corporation that they would brand it as "Tengen".

It is expected that Atari could produce original content for the NES Disk System, which is scheduled to launch in late 1986.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

May 2, 1986

ABC Video Enterprises, Inc., who was a subsidiary of American Broadcasting Companies, announces plans to establish a video game company, whose main accomplishment was to acquire software from Japanese video game developers.

ABC had struck an agreement with Japanese developer Square to localize the Famicom game Thexder to the United States for play on the Nintendo Entertainment System.

ABC also has talks with Nintendo of America to became an official Nintendo licensee allowing it to license five games exclusively on the Nintendo Entertainment System.

The new video game company would have in hopes of joining Konami, Data East USA and Atari Games as the fourth Nintendo license. Ken Lobb was hired by ABC to join the company as president of video game operations.

 

[stratonapba]

Meanwhile: ABC has cancelled "Catch Phrase" with Joe Farago after 2 Seasons however Marty Pasetta Productions has planned to work on a Replacement Show for Catchphrase but with a Twist which will be debuting in 1987, However Catchphrase will be Replaced with Double Talk hosted by Henry Polic II and will debut on August 18th.

In Addition: Finders Keepers, Let's Make a Deal and The Newlywed Game have renewed for 3 More Years on ABC Daytime until September of 1988.

WEEKDAY SCHEDULE FOR THE FALL OF '86

6:00 AM: ABC World News This Morning
7:00 AM: Good Morning America
9:00 AM: LOCAL
10:00 AM: The New Newlywed Game (Bob Eubanks)
10:30 AM: The All-New Let's Make a Deal (Monty Hall)
11:00 AM: Finders Keepers (Mark "Ni-Fi" Pitta)
11:30 AM: Double Talk (Henry Polic II)
Noon: LOCAL
12:30 PM: Loving
1:00 PM: All My Children
2:00 PM: One Life To Live
3:00 PM: General Hospital
4:00 PM: LOCAL PROGRAMMING
6:30 PM: ABC World News Tonight with Peter Jennings

Game Show Board Game News Alert: Following the Success of The New Wheel of Fortune Board Game which is released last year, Pressman Toys has announced that they will have a new board game version of The All-New Let's Make A Deal which will be released to stores in September 1986.

OTL Note: Pressman Toys issued a Board Game on The All-New Let's Make a Deal based on the 2009 CBS Revival hosted by Wayne Brady in 2010.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

Puzzle Roulette

 

[stratonapba]

Puzzle Roulette

Marty Pasetta will have to work for a reworked version of Catchphrase called Puzzle Roulette which is set to debut in 1987 or 1988, so here's the pilot.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

May 8, 1986

It is dictated that the NES was indeed a big hit, so Nintendo licenses were signed to obtain the Seal of Approval, such as Atari Games, Konami, Data East USA and ABC Video Enterprises, so we have to wait until the July to get the licenses.

Nintendo of America dictated that several of the games like Super Mario Bros. was a big hit, so ABC Video Enterprises had to preview Thexder at the Summer CES 1986, and it will release it by Christmas, under license from Game Arts (Sierra also has a computer version that come out this Christmas).

ABC announced the acquisition of the U.S. rights of the Hudson Soft game Nuts & Milk to become the company's second title, that ABC is meeting up to Nintendo's five games a year policy.

It is reported that Atari Games Corporation would obtain permission from Atari Corporation to obtain the console rights to the pre-1984 Atari library. Atari was set to preview Mad Max at the Summer CES 1986.