WPTV and WSM to become ABC affiliation in the 80s

[DucNguyen0131]

February 1, 1989

Fox said they wanted to schedule Hockey Night in Canada for a Friday night lineup under the new moniker Friday Night Hockey, in an effort to compete with the comedy block, which aired on ABC.

ABC already had sporting on primetime, when it had Monday Night Football, which was set to go next fall.

The reason why Fox had built a momentum on Friday nights, while Saturday nights had built down on unscripted programming.

Fox would now have four days in a row on a night. It would soon gradually expanded to seven days.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 6, 1989

A group of former North American Soccer League employees joined Major Indoor Soccer League, as a group that was used for the 1994 World Cup, and eventually expanded to include new teams.

FOX signed up for the Major Indoor Soccer League, thanks to the pending launch of the British channel Eurosport.

FOX already signed up the National Hockey League for the new Hockey Night in Canada game.

It is reported that the newly minted Cox-Taft joint is looking for several television stations in a much larger market.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 8, 1989

A new major product was in the works from Sega of Japan, a videocassette adapter, called Mega Cassette, which allows the ability and function to play full-motion video games, once at a time.

It is expected to be completed in the June of 1989, as they helped 16-bit VHS technology.

It included backward compatibility with pre-existing Mark III/Master System video cassettes from its own adapter.

Odyssey Video, a company that helped reverse-engineering the Mark III to develop VHS cassettes said it was happy to get its adapter.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 10, 1989

The new Game Boy portable handheld, and its add-on counterpart for the Famicom, the full-color Game Boy TV Adapter is shy two months away as Nintendo prepares to get Tetris on the way for the new Game Boy, by licensee on behalf of other companies.

Among the companies on behalf of Nintendo were Academysoft-Elorg, Andromeda Software Ltd., Mirrorsoft Ltd., Sphere Inc., Tengen Inc. and Bullet-Proof Software Inc.

These companies obtained the rights to Tetris, who offered the licensee, and Nintendo offered the console rights.

The Sega Mega Drive rendition of the famous puzzle game Tetris was also two months away, but eight companies offered the Tetris licensee.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 13, 1989

A new construction permit for a television station on channel 43 in Laredo, Texas was built, possibly as a joint ABC/Fox affiliate, donated by a new broadcasting group KLFT (for Laredo Forty-Three).

The station was owned and managed by Channel 43, Inc., a consortium that was made of former KGBT staff.

KLFT was operating on channel 43, so they would not want to interfere with other Texas stations that was forced to go on channel 43, with a directional antenna attached.

KLFT was in negotiations to acquire barter syndicated programming, in cash or in prizes.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 16, 1989

Bandai America, who worked on the upcoming Star Trek V game for the NES, is helping with FMV game ideas in collaboration with Silicon Video Software, following the success of Charlotte, a title SVS developed in collaboration with employee Frank Ward.

Bandai America is developing tool kits for the Nintendo Compact Disk System, the US version of the Famicom Compact Disk System.

Meanwhile, at Sony Interactive Entertainment, the company developed the sound chip for the new Super Famicom, set to come out later this year.

Marlene Sharp, another Bandai employee is helping with game development concepts for the Nintendo Cassette System, in collaboration with Silicon Video Software.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 20, 1989

Cinemaware Corporation is scoring a major expansion, which included the highly successful movie genre, and they wanted to obtain a licensee from Viacom International for the Terrytoons characters, which was made into an interactive video game.

One of Cinemaware's options included a Mighty Mouse video game, of which Cinemaware has been acquiring the video game licensee from Viacom.

Cinemaware is currently in the works on various TV Sports video games after the success of its Football title.

The next Cinemaware project, would be a throwback to classic cartoons, which is a classic film genre, that Cinemaware obtained.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 22, 1989

Nintendo and Sony said they promised that they would help them releasing the Nintendo Compact Disk System in the Western market as late as 1989, as to honor the anniversary of Nintendo's founding.

Sony Interactive Entertainment's upcoming project would be Quinty, a title Game Freak developed (IOTL Namco released it).

Sony also released several titles under the Epic/Sony Records label, as well as its American imprint Sony Interactive Entertainment America.

Nintendo and Sony had good relations, developing their own technology for the Nintendo Famicom, who reverse-engineered the console.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 24, 1989

A new project, the Game Boy TV Adapter, for the Nintendo Famicom is almost finished, which was prepared by Ken Kutaragi of Sony Interactive Entertainment of Japan (eventual developer of the PlayStation/SNES-CD).

Kutaragi and Sony CEO Norio Ohga said that Game Boy would work full color on a television set, better than playing it in monochrome.

Although Gunpei Yokoi of Nintendo R&D1 developed the original monochrome Game Boy, Sony Interactive Entertainment took care of the development of the adapter.

The Game Boy TV Adapter on the Famicom lets us play Nintendo Game Boy games in full color on a TV set, using 56 colors (unlike OTL's Super Game Boy, which used 4 colors).

 

[DucNguyen0131]

February 27, 1989

The software publisher Broderbund Software, who published a few computer and NES games made a major move in the industry. Broderbund has a strong promotion for the NES version of The King of Chicago, a title licensed from Cinemaware Corporation, which was expected to be out later this year.

Alan Weiss cited that Broderbund would make a major impact to the industry.

Among the licensees who had obtained to Broderbund are Irem Corporation, a Japanese developer, and Cinemaware, a video game publisher.

Cinemaware always hired Australian developer Beam Software to develop their NES conversions of their own computer games.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 1, 1989

Taito showed more performance this time around, on computers and the NES, thanks to a large group of Japanese developers, who helped them making the game so right to appeal all audiences.

More performance is displayed at Sony, showing Quinty, which is scheduled to be out in the next few months.

Sony is also a developer of these Nintendo toolkits for the Famicom video game console.

Over at Japanese game developers, both Namco, Sony and Konami made use of by developing their own Nintendo toolkits.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 3, 1989

KLFT, a joint ABC/Fox affiliate that covered Laredo, TX is building a news team, along with an extensive amount of syndicated programming, which was operated by Channel 43, Inc., is about to be built.

KLFT expects to carry the best programming on the ABC and Fox television networks.

Channel 43, Inc. was operated by some former employees of Brownsville stations which are KRGV and KGBT.

KLFT has hopes in order to acquire syndicated programming, and the construction permit for a new channel 43 is in a work of progress.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 6, 1989

Cinemaware Corporation is heading up for video game adaptations of two Terrytoons classic characters, under license from Viacom International, Mighty Mouse and Heckle and Jeckle. Both are based on cartoon characters originated in the 1940s.

Like with the highly successful The Three Stooges, both games are truly faithful to the source material, particularly the shorts.

Cinemaware wanted to do a video game about classic cartoon shorts, and the Terrytoon games were the ones that obtained the license.

Cinemaware is currently in the works on a Disney game on a View-Master Interactive Vision. Cinemaware has a development contract with Australian-based Beam Software for Nintendo licenses.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 9, 1989

Electronic Gaming Monthly: The Show, a new Warner Bros. Television Distribution syndicated weekly program was cleared to 75% in all markets like WPIX-TV in New York and KCOP in Los Angeles, as well as WGN in Chicago.

EGM would be endorsed by the U.S. National Video Game Team, and centered on video game topics.

The first issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly was issued on the May of 1989 and decided that EGM writers would help with the series.

Scott A. Stone, producers of the highly successful Fun House television series, served as producer, and would air as part of a 90-minute block with two other shows.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 14, 1989

Nintendo of America is previewing two new NES accessories, which are the Nintendo Compact Disk System, a CD-ROM adapter, and the Game Boy TV Adapter, which allows you to play the handheld Game Boy on a TV screen in full color.

The Game Boy was about to be released next month in Japan, with the link cable.

In the NES Game Boy TV Adapter, we have two NES controllers, playing two-player games, rather than with a Link Cable.

The Game Boy was in monochrome, and the Game Boy TV Adapter will going to be in full-color.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 16, 1989

As part of a 90-minute block with Fun House and College Fun House, more stations had joined the Electronic Gaming Monthly: The Show roster. These include KMSP in Minneapolis/St. Paul, KPDX in Portland and WLKT in Lexington.

It is reported that Chicago-based Tribune Broadcasting would be in negotiations to purchase the Lexington TV station WLKT.

Like with Saban/MGM/UA's Computer Entertainer: The Television Show, Lorimar/WB/Stone's EGM: The Show would be centered on video game topics.

EGM would be produced by Scott A. Stone, who also produced Fun House and another fellow upcoming syndicated show College Fun House.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 20, 1989

After Mattel failed to enter the TV business, toy company Bandai America is entering the television syndication marketplace following on the success of its video games with its launch of a television syndication unit, to be headed by Frank Ward and Marlene Sharp, under the brand Pacific Syndication Group.

The first project set up at Bandai's newly-created television unit will be Emergency Control, an unscripted television show produced by Malcolm Barbour and John Langley, producers of the highest-rated Geraldo Rivera television specials for Saban Productions, a show about medical emergencies who lived in an ambulance.

The duo is currently producing Cops for Fox, and the upcoming fall 1989 strip Reward, for MCA TV, as well as a special Target USA for Orbis Communications.

It is reported that Emergency Control would be sold to the Fox O&Os, such as WNYW-TV in New York and KTTV in Los Angeles, who gained special clearance of the show, and it was designed for a January 1990 start. Saban International would handle international sales of the show, and Bandai gave them US distribution rights to launch a toyline.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 22, 1989

WTTV, the Fox television station in Indianapolis owned by Atlanta-based Cox Broadcasting, a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises is planning on to add news at noon, in order to turn WTTV into a KTVU-like news intensive format.

The previous channel 59, now a religious station was used to be a Fox affiliate with a functioning news operation that shuttered in 1985.

WTTV's newscasts greatly emphasized on all of the broader audience.

WTTV became the one and only independent station with the rest of Indianapolis' stations were mostly religious television stations.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 24, 1989

The local Indianapolis independent television station dedicated to a news-heavy format, WTTV is picking up Electronic Gaming Monthly: The Show as a weekly television series dedicated to video games.

WTTV had high hopes for the show, which was dedicated solely on video games.

The videogame-heavy magazine format first came to the airwaves last year when MGM/UA distributed Computer Entertainer: The Television Show.

Warner Bros.' EGM gained additional clearance, as a Saturday morning television show based solely on gaming.

 

[DucNguyen0131]

March 28, 1989

Nintendo is previewing the Japanese release of the Game Boy and the SIE-developed Game Boy TV Adapter, which was designed for the Nintendo Family Computer. The Game Boy portable console will be in monochrome, while the Game Boy TV Adapter displays up to 56 colors.

It is expected that the title was due out on April 21, 1989, as a standalone Game Boy, or as a TV adapter for the Family Computer.

The Game Boy TV Adapter's experience was to design, either as a one-player or a two-player video game with two Famicom controllers.

The four Game Boy launch titles were Alleyway, Baseball, Super Mario Land and Yakuman, with another big title Tetris due out in the June of 1989, under license from six different companies who organized it, which are Academysoft-Elorg, Andromeda Software Ltd., Mirrosoft Ltd., Sphere, Inc., Tengen, Inc. and Bullet-Proof Software, Inc.