Editing 1985 in American television (section)

==Events==
{| class="wikitable"
|- "
! Date || Event
|-
|January 1
|[[VH1]] begins in the United States.
|-
|January 4
|''[[Sesame Street]]'' broadcasts its 2,000th episode.
|-
|January 7
|During an appearance on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s ''[[Good Morning America]]'', actor [[Yul Brynner]], who was suffering from terminal [[lung cancer]], mentioned his wish to make a [[American Cancer Society|public service announcement]] to be run after his death to tell others to not [[Tobacco smoking|smoke]]. 
|-
|January 20
|For the first time ever, the [[Super Bowl XIX|Super Bowl]] is televised by [[Monday Night Football|ABC]], who join the annual broadcast rotation of the game with [[NFL on CBS|CBS]] and [[NFL on NBC|NBC]]. This also marked the first time that a Super Bowl had [[closed captioning]] provided in real-time. In this game, the [[1984 San Francisco 49ers season|San Francisco 49ers]] would defeat the [[1984 Miami Dolphins season|Miami Dolphins]] 38-16.
|-
|January 24
|The first part of a two part ''[[Family Ties]]'' [[List of Family Ties episodes#Season 3 (1984–85)|episode]] airs on [[NBC]] concerning [[Family Ties#Main cast|Elyse Keaton]] going into labor while performing on-air at her husband, Steven's TV station.
|-
|February 4
|[[NBC]] becomes the first commercial television network to use [[satellite]] interconnection for its stations; as a result, it is the first network to discontinue use of chime intonations at the beginning of each telecast, to signal to its affiliates to start broadcasting the network feed.
|-
|February 8
|[[CBS]] airs the [[List of The Dukes of Hazzard episodes#Season 7 (1984–85)|final episode]] of ''[[The Dukes of Hazzard]]''. 
|-
|February 10
|[[CBS]] airs the first part of a two part [[The Atlanta Child Murders (miniseries)|miniseries]] that examines the so-called "[[Atlanta murders of 1979–1981|Atlanta child murders]]" of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Atlanta officials criticized<ref>{{cite news |last=Lohmann|first=Bill|date=February 12, 1985|title=Wayne Williams views film of Atlanta child murders|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1985/02/12/Wayne-Williams-views-film-of-Atlanta-child-murders/1688477032400/|work=UPI|location= |access-date=}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Kelley|first=Bill|date=February 10, 1985|title=ATLANTA MURDERS; MINISERIES CREATES A STORM OF PROTEST|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1985-02-10-8501050049-story.html|work=Sun Sentinel|location= |access-date=}}</ref> ''The Atlanta Child Murders'', claiming that it distorted<ref>{{cite news |last=Schmidt|first=William E.|date=February 1, 1985|title=TV MOVIE ON ATLANTA CHILD KILLINGS STIRS DEBATE AND CASTS DOUBT ON GUILT|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/02/01/us/tv-movie-on-atlanta-child-killings-stirs-debate-and-casts-doubt-on-guilt.html|work=The New York Times|location= |access-date=}}</ref> the facts<ref>{{cite news |last= |first= |date=August 19, 2019|title=Atlanta child murders: A chronology of the missing and murdered cases|url=https://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/atlanta-child-murders-chronology-the-missing-and-murdered-cases/NJ61ANzP7lxyrVqisqEzYK/|work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|location= |access-date=}}</ref> of the case.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://tvnews.vanderbilt.edu/broadcasts/541777|title=THE ATLANTA CHILD MURDERS CONTROVERSY #541777|last= |first= |date=February 13, 1985|website=Vanderbilt Television News Archive|publisher= |access-date= |quote=}}</ref> After a series of negotiations, CBS executives agreed<ref>{{cite news |last=Harris|first=Art|date=February 10, 1985|title=Reliving the Murders in Atlanta|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/style/1985/02/10/reliving-the-murders-in-atlanta/3cd9f360-46c9-4b9f-8378-2f6b03e27a3b/|newspaper=The Washington Post|location= |access-date=}}</ref> to insert a disclaimer<ref>{{cite news |last=Levine|first=Bob|date=March 11, 1985|title=Atlanta's long nightmare|url=https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1985/3/11/atlantas-long-nightmare|work=Maclean's|location= |access-date=}}</ref> alerting viewers that the film is based on fact but contains fictional elements.<ref>{{cite news
| author=Sally Bedell Smith
| title = TV Notes; CBS Turning Cameras on Its Decision-Makers
| url = https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B02E1DA1739F93AA35751C0A963948260
|work=The New York Times
| date = 1985-02-09
}}</ref>
|-
|March 2
|The [[NBC]] situation comedy ''[[Gimme a Break!]]'' broadcasts an episode live.
|-
|March 18
|[[Capital Cities Communications]], a station owner group based in [[Albany, New York]], stuns the broadcast industry by announcing that it is acquiring [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] for $3.5 billion. The move will prompt the company to sell off several of its television and radio stations to satisfy [[Federal Communications Commission|FCC]] ownership limits. The deal will be finalized on January 3, 1986.<ref>Kleinfield, N.R. [https://www.nytimes.com/1985/03/19/business/abc-is-being-sold-for-3.5-billion-1st-network-sale.html "ABC is being sold for $3.5 billion; 1st network sale."] ''The New York Times'', March 19, 1985.</ref><ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-IDX/85-OCR/BC-1985-03-25-Page-0031.pdf "Capcities + ABC."]{{dead link|date=June 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} ''Broadcasting'', March 25, 1985, pp. 31-[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC-IDX/85-OCR/BC-1985-03-25-Page-0032.pdf 32]{{dead link|date=June 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}.</ref>
|-
|March 20
|[[Norman Lear]] sells [[Tandem Productions]] and [[Embassy Television]] companies to [[The Coca-Cola Company]], which also owns [[Columbia Pictures]] company, for $485 million.
|-
|March 22
|[[KXXV]] signs on the air in [[Waco, Texas|Waco]] as an [[List of former NBC television affiliates|NBC affiliate]]. However, the NBC affiliate didn't last long, and it moved to [[List of ABC television affiliates (by U.S. state)|ABC]].
|-
|March 31
|The World Wrestling Federation (now [[WWE]]) telecasts ''[[WrestleMania I|WrestleMania]]'' to select [[pay-per-view]] areas (and to a greater extent, [[Closed-circuit television|closed-circuit]] locations across the country). The event is wildly successful (drawing over a million viewers on closed-circuit) and marks the beginning of the annual series of ''[[WrestleMania]]'' events which continue to air on pay-per-view to this day. There is, however, a near-riot in [[Pittsburgh]] when a technical glitch prematurely ends the feed at the [[Civic Arena (Pittsburgh)|Civic Arena]], prompting the WWF to appease angry fans by showing the event in its entirely on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] affiliate [[WTAE-TV]] two weeks later.<ref>{{cite web|author=Gregory Belanger |url=http://oi60.tinypic.com/2eob2bd.jpg |title=Wrestling and rock on a roll in N.O. -03.30.85 - The Times-Picayune - A-19 |date=1985-03-30}}</ref><ref name=slam>{{cite web|url=http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/Wrestlemania20/WrestleMania1.html|title=WrestleMania: The Dynasty Begins|publisher=[[Canoe.ca]]|work=Slam! Sports|last=Powel|first=John|accessdate=2017-03-26|archive-date=2013-01-01|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130101085033/http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/Wrestlemania20/WrestleMania1.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>''The Valley Independent''. Monday, April 1, 1985. This mishap is mistakenly attributed to WrestleMania 2 in the "True Story of WrestleMania" DVD and Blu-ray release.</ref>
|-
|April 1
|[[Financial News Network]] stopped airing on broadcast stations, and began a 24-hour cable feed, with the introduction of [[SCORE (television)|Score]].
|-
|April 6
|The first edition of ''[[WCW Saturday Night|World Championship Wrestling]]'' to be produced by [[Jim Crockett Promotions]] airs on [[TBS (American TV channel)|TBS]].
|-
|April 9
|The [[series finale]] of ''[[Three's a Crowd]]'' airs on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]], ending [[John Ritter]]'s run as [[Jack Tripper]] which begin with the debut of ''[[Three's Company]]'' back in [[List of Three's Company episodes#Season 1 (1977)|1977]].
|-
|April 11
|[[KMSS-TV|KMSS]] commences broadcasting in [[Shreveport, Louisiana]], making it the first station in the market to sign on the air since [[KTBS]] signed on in 1955 and the first independent station in the market. It would later become one of the few charter affiliates of [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] in Louisiana. 
|-
|April 27
|[[Frank Glieber]] makes what turns out to be his final play-by-play assignment for [[CBS Sports]], which is Game 1 of the [[1985 NBA Playoffs#Western Conference|NBA playoff]] series between the [[1984-85 Los Angeles Lakers season|Los Angeles Lakers]] and [[1984-85 Portland Trail Blazers season|Portland Trail Blazers]]. Glieber would die of a [[heart attack]] four days later. Glieber was also scheduled to call Game 4 of the Los Angeles-Portland series alongside [[James Brown (sportscaster)|James Brown]] for [[NBA on CBS|CBS]], but he would ultimately be replaced by [[Verne Lundquist]]. 
|-
|April 28
|WLIG commences broadcasting. (The call letters would change to [[WLNY-TV]] on September 1, 1996).
|-
|April 29
|The two-night adaptation of [[Ken Follett]]'s ''[[The Key to Rebecca#Film adaptation|The Key to Rebecca]]'', shown on [[WPIX]] Channel 11 in [[New York City]], has [[Nudity in American television|non-pixelated toplessness]] from both of its female stars, [[Season Hubley]] and Lina Raymond.
|-
|May 4
|[[News Corporation (1980–2013)|News Corporation]] and [[20th Century Fox Film Corporation]] announces their intent on purchasing [[Metromedia]]'s television stations and Metromedia Producers Corp. for $3.5 billion. This would soon lay the ground work for the [[Fox Broadcasting Company]], which would debut in October 1986.
|-
|May 9
|[[Nicholas Colasanto]] makes his final appearance as [[Coach Ernie Pantusso]] on ''[[Cheers]]''. While he technically last appeared in the [[cold opening]] of [[Cheers (season 3)#Episodes|"Rescue Me"]], Colasanto's last filmed appearance as Coach was in the episode "Cheerio, Cheers". Following Colasanto's death, [[Woody Harrelson]], would join the cast as his replacement, [[Woody Boyd]] beginning in the [[Cheers (season 4)|fourth season]].
|-
|rowspan="2"|May 11
|The first episode of ''[[Saturday Night's Main Event]]'' is broadcast by [[NBC]], the first time that professional wrestling had been broadcast by network television since the 1950s.
|-
|[[Dolph Sweet]] makes his final appearance as Chief Carl Kanisky on ''[[Gimme a Break!]]''. The [[List of Gimme a Break! episodes#Season 4 (1984–85)|Season 4 finale]] aired on [[NBC]] three days after his death.
|-
|May 12
|During halftime of the [[1984–85 Boston Celtics season|Boston Celtics]]&ndash;[[1984–85 Philadelphia 76ers season|Philadelphia 76ers]] [[1985 NBA Playoffs|NBA playoff game]], [[NBA on CBS|CBS]] televises the first ever [[NBA draft lottery]].
|-
|May 14
|On ''[[The Early Show#The CBS Morning News|The CBS Morning News]]'', co–anchor [[Phyllis George]] interviews false rape accuser [[Cathleen Mae Webb]] and the man whom she had falsely accused, [[Gary Dotson]]. In an effort to get the two to make amends to each other, George makes a simple suggestion: "How about a hug?" Both Webb and Dotson graciously refuse. That infamous interview alienates audiences and is blasted by critics, helping to put an unpleasant close to George's television career at this initial mark.
|-
|May 15
|The season finale of ''[[Dynasty (1981 TV series)|Dynasty]]'' on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] sees the entire wedding party of [[Amanda Carrington]] ([[Catherine Oxenberg]]) and [[List of Dynasty (1981 TV series) characters#Prince Michael of Moldavia|Prince Michael of Moldavia]] ([[Michael Praed]]) shot by revolutionaries in what is known as the [[Dynasty (1981 TV series)#"Moldavian Massacre"|Moldavian Massacre]].
|-
|May 17
|The season finale of ''[[Dallas (TV series)|Dallas]]'' on [[CBS]] finds character [[Bobby Ewing]] ([[Patrick Duffy]]) on his deathbed after his crazed ex-sister-in-law Katherine Wentworth ([[Morgan Brittany]]) runs him down with her car.
|-
|May 19
|[[WOIO-TV]] commences broadcasting in [[Cleveland]]. Initially an independent station, it will become a charter affiliate of [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] in 1986 and switch to [[CBS]] in 1994 as a result of the [[1994 United States broadcast TV realignment]].
|-
|May 25
|[[Soccer on CBS Sports|CBS]]<ref>{{cite news |last=Atkin|first=Ross|date=April 12, 1985|title=Indoor soccer quite up-to-date in Kansas City, home of Comets|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/1985/0412/pmisl-f.html|work=The Christian Science Monitor}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=May 25, 1985|title=Weekend TV Highlights|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1985/05/25/Weekend-TV-Highlights/2486485841600/|work=UPI}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Sarni|first=Jim|date=May 25, 1985|title=BLAST FOR SOCCER FANS: CBS AIRS MISL GAME|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1985-05-25-8501200962-story.html|work=South Florida Sun-Sentinel}}</ref> airs the fourth game of the [[Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992)|Major Indoor Soccer League]]'s championship series between the [[San Diego Sockers (1978–96)|San Diego Sockers]] and the [[Baltimore Blast]]. This would be the final year the MISL would have games aired on network television. CBS used [[Gary Bender]] and [[Kyle Rote Jr.]]<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.scacsports.com/sports/msoc/2009-10/releases/rote_elected_hof|title=Sewanee's Kyle Rote, Jr. Elected to National Soccer Hall of Fame|date=April 28, 2010|website=SOUTHERN COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE}}</ref> on commentary.
|-
|May 30
|The [[USA Network]] airs its final [[National Hockey League]] [[NHL on USA|telecast]], Game 5 of the [[1985 Stanley Cup Finals|Stanley Cup Finals]]. NHL contests wouldn't be seen in any shape or form on USA again until the [[2015 Stanley Cup playoffs]].
|-
|June 14
|[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] broadcasts its 2,311th and last daytime episode of ''[[Family Feud]]'' after 9 years. Richard Dawson gives an emotional speech at the end of the broadcast. Dawson would return to the series during 1994 for one more season. Meanwhile, on [[CBS]], ''Press Your Luck'' broadcasts the episode in which all three contestants would be invited back after a mistake on a question about the cartoon character [[Sylvester (Looney Tunes)|Sylvester]] was corrected by [[Mel Blanc]] telephoning [[Peter Tomarken]] at the end of the show.
|-
|June 24
|[[Kathie Lee Gifford|Kathie Lee Johnson]] (later Gifford) officially joins [[Regis Philbin]] as his co-host on [[WABC-TV|WABC]]'s ''[[Live with Kelly and Ryan|The Morning Show]]''. Their chemistry proves to be successful as ''The Morning Show'' soon becomes number 1 in the market<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dadtmedianet.com/web/showpage/showpage.aspx?program_id=3148174&type=lead|title=LIVE with Kelly and Michael|website=Disney-ABC Domestic Television|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130121054646/http://dadtmedianet.com/web/showpage/showpage.aspx?program_id=3148174&type=lead|archive-date=January 21, 2013|quote="LIVE" originated more than twenty years ago with former host Regis Philbin and WABC's "The Morning Show"; it soon became the number one show in the market. Kathie Lee Gifford joined Philbin in June 1985...}}</ref> and goes on to debut in [[Broadcast syndication|national syndication]] on September 5, 1988, when the title is changed to ''Live with Regis and Kathie Lee''.
|-
|July 1
|[[Nick at Nite]], a nighttime program service with an emphasis on classic television reruns, is launched in the United States, being broadcast on the same channel as [[Nickelodeon]].  At the same time, [[A&E Network|A&E]], which previously shared Nickelodeon's channel, begins broadcasting as its own 24-hour cable channel in January of that year on a separate satellite transponder.
|-
|July 2
|The [[List of The Jeffersons episodes#Season 11 (1984–85)|final episode]] of ''[[The Jeffersons]]'' airs on [[CBS]]. It is not without controversy though, as CBS abruptly canceled the series without allowing for a proper [[series finale]]. The cast was not informed until after the July 2, 1985, episode, "Red Robins"; actor [[Sherman Hemsley]], who portrayed George Jefferson, said he learned that the show was canceled by reading it in the newspaper.<ref name="youtube-bio">{{cite web| title=The Jeffersons and Happy Days and Valerie Bertinelli Bio| date=9 January 2016 | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2vjdHnnRWk&t=13m43s| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211107/e2vjdHnnRWk| archive-date=2021-11-07 | url-status=live| publisher=[[Biography (TV series)|Biography]]| via=YouTube| access-date=January 24, 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref> [[Isabel Sanford]] (Louise Jefferson), who heard about the cancellation through her cousin who read it in the tabloids, publicly stated that she found the cancellation with no proper finale to be disrespectful on the network's part.<ref name="emmy-isabel">{{cite web| url=http://www.emmytvlegends.org/interviews/people/isabel-sanford| title=Isabel Sanford interview| website=Archive of American Television| access-date=January 23, 2017}}</ref>  Per an article in the May 8, 1985, ''Los Angeles Times'', the series was cancelled by announcement at the CBS network "upfront" presentation the day before, nearly two months before the airing of the final episode. Actor [[Franklin Cover]], who played Tom Willis, also heard about the cancellation while watching ''[[Entertainment Tonight]]''.
|-
|July 4
|[[NBC]]'s [[Minneapolis]]/[[Saint Paul, Minnesota|St. Paul]] ([[Minneapolis–Saint Paul|Twin Cities]]) [[List of NBC television affiliates (by U.S. state)|affiliate]] WTCN-TV changes its name to WUSA-TV to reflect its co-ownership with ''[[USA Today]]''. This would be displaced a year after by [[KARE (TV)|KARE-TV]].
|-
|July 13
|The [[Live Aid]] concerts are broadcast from [[London, England|London]] and [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|Philadelphia]].  In the U.S., the concerts are broadcast by [[MTV]] and [[television syndication|over-the-air syndication]], with [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] joining in a 3-hour prime-time period.
|-
|rowspan="2"|July 16
|[[Major League Baseball on NBC|NBC's]] telecast of the [[1985 Major League Baseball All-Star Game|Major League Baseball All-Star Game]] out of the [[Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome|Metrodome]] in [[Minneapolis, Minnesota|Minnesota]] is the first program to be broadcast in [[stereophonic sound|stereo]]<ref>{{cite web |title=The Top 5 Broadcasting Tech Milestones During Vin Scully's Career |url=http://www.sporttechie.com/2014/05/29/the-top-5-broadcasting-tech-milestones-during-vin-scullys-career/ |author=Christian Romo |website=SportTechie |date=May 29, 2014}}</ref> by a television network.
|-
|[[Rock Hudson]] joined his old friend [[Doris Day]] for a Hollywood press conference announcing the launch of her new TV cable show ''Doris Day's Best Friends'' in which Hudson was videotaped visiting Day's ranch in [[Carmel, California]], a few days earlier. He appeared gaunt and his speech was nearly incoherent; during the segment, Hudson did very little speaking, with most of it consisting of Day and Hudson walking around as Day's recording of "[[My Buddy (song)|My Buddy]]" played in the background, with Hudson noting he had quickly tired out. His appearance was enough of a shock that the reunion was broadcast repeatedly over national news shows that night and for days to come.
|-
|July 22
|[[Douglas Marland]] starts his critically acclaimed eight-year run writing for the [[CBS]] soap opera ''[[As the World Turns]]''.
|-
|August 4
|[[Capital Cities Communications]] continues its acquisition of [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] when its [[CBS]] affiliate in [[Durham, North Carolina]], [[WTVD]], swaps affiliations with ABC affiliate [[WRAL-TV]] in [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]].<ref name=":0">{{cite magazine|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1985/BC-1985-07-15.pdf|title=In brief|magazine=Broadcasting|date=July 15, 1985|page=80}}</ref>
|-
|August 19
|A taping of an outdoor interview for NBC's ''[[Today (NBC program)|Today]]'' is interrupted by [[David Letterman]], who, while taping his own ''[[Late Night with David Letterman|Late Night]]'', leans out of an office window and announces, "My name is [[Lawrence K. Grossman|Larry Grossman]] (then-president of [[NBC News]]) and I'm not wearing any pants!"
|-
|September 2
|[[NBC]] becomes the first broadcast network in the U.S. to broadcast its prime time programs with stereo sound.
|-
|September 5
|[[Showtime (TV network)|Showtime]] begins airing weekly 10 p.m. showings of 52 hours worth of [[Lost television broadcast|"lost"]] [[List of The Honeymooners sketches|episodes]] of ''[[The Honeymooners]]''. 
|-
|September 8
|[[Capital Cities Communications]] continues its acquisition of [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] when [[KFSN-TV]], its [[CBS]] affiliate in [[Fresno, California]], swaps affiliations with the market's existing ABC affiliate, [[KGPE|KJEO]].
|-
| rowspan="2" |September 9
|[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] affiliate [[WSAV-TV]] swaps affiliations with [[NBC]] affiliate [[WJCL (TV)|WJCL]], thus reversing a swap that took place in 1982.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|date=1985-03-04|title=In Brief|work=[[Broadcasting & Cable|Broadcasting]]|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/85-OCR/BC-1985-03-04-OCR-Page-0113.pdf}}</ref>
|-
|''[[The Price Is Right (American game show)|The Price Is Right]]'' returns to daily syndication after a five-year hiatus, but with [[Tom Kennedy (television host)|Tom Kennedy]] hosting. After 170 episodes produced, the show went on hiatus until [[1994 in American television|1994]]. Besides [[Johnny Olson]], [[Gene Wood]] and [[Rod Roddy]] shared announcing duties.
|-
|September 14
|In part one of a three-part season premiere of ''[[The Facts of Life (TV series)|The Facts of Life]]'' on [[NBC]], Edna's Edibles, which had been the main locale of the long-running series since [[1983 in television|1983]], is burned to the ground.  Edna Garrett and the girls would rebuild and replace it with an ice cream and gift shop named Over Our Heads.
|-
|rowspan="2"|September 16
|After a 22-year hiatus, new [[List of The Jetsons episodes#Season 2 (1985) (Revival)|episodes]] of ''[[The Jetsons]]'' debut. The [[Broadcast syndication|syndicated]] revival would run for two seasons.
|-
|[[Cleveland]]'s [[List of former CBS television affiliates|CBS affiliate]] [[WJW (TV)|WJKW-TV]] changes its name back to WJW-TV.
|-
|September 18
|"Top Ten Things That Almost Rhyme With Peas" is the subject of the first [[Late Show Top Ten List|"Top 10 List"]] on [[NBC]]'s ''[[Late Night with David Letterman]]''.
|-
|September 22
|The first [[Farm Aid]] concert is telecast from [[Champaign, Illinois]], in [[television syndication|syndication]] and by [[The Nashville Network|TNN]].
|-
|rowspan="2"|September 23
|[[Jackie Gleason]] and [[Art Carney]] reunite in the [[CBS]] movie ''[[Izzy and Moe]]''.
|-
|Broadcast on [[NBC]] two nights before the start of ''[[Family Ties]]''{{'}} fourth season, the Keatons take a vacation to [[England]] in television film [[List of Family Ties episodes#Film (1985)|''Family Ties Vacation'']]. The movie was later split into four individual episodes when the series entered syndication.
|-
|September 27
|The [[Shatterday|pilot episode]] for a [[The Twilight Zone (1985 TV series)|revival]] of the [[Anthology series|anthology television series]], ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]'' airs on [[CBS]]. This particular iteration of ''The Twilight Zone'' would run for three seasons, the first two on CBS and the final one in [[Broadcast syndication|syndication]].
|-
|rowspan="2"|September 28
|[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] broadcasts an episode of ''[[The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians]]'' called [[List of Super Friends episodes#Season 9: 1985|"The Fear"]], in which [[Batman]]'s origin is depicted for the first time in media outside of the [[DC Comics|comic books]].
|-
|Three years after being canceled by [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] following its second season, the sitcom ''[[It's a Living]]'' is relaunched for the [[Broadcast syndication|first-run syndication]] market. It would continue for [[List of It's a Living episodes|four more seasons]] before its conclusion in 1989.
|-
|September 29
|[[Howard Cosell]] makes what turns out to be his final assignment for [[ESPN on ABC|ABC Sports]], a [[Major League Baseball]] game between the [[1985 Kansas City Royals season|Kansas City Royals]] and [[1985 Minnesota Twins season|Minnesota Twins]] from the [[Metrodome]] in [[Minneapolis]]. Cosell is later removed from his scheduled announcing duties for that year's [[1985 World Series|World Series]] due to the controversy surrounding his book ''[[I Never Played the Game]]''. Cosell is replaced on the [[Major League Baseball on ABC|ABC]] broadcasts by [[Tim McCarver]], who would work the 1985 World Series alongside [[Al Michaels]] and [[Jim Palmer]].
|-
|rowspan="2"|October 4
|The [[PBS]] program ''[[The Electric Company (1971 TV series)|Electric Company]]'' concludes after 8 straight years in reruns.
|-
|[[NBC]] officially wins the rights to [[NBC Olympic broadcasts|broadcast]] the [[1988 Summer Olympics]] from [[Seoul]], [[South Korea]].
|-
|rowspan="2"|October 6
|''[[Jem (TV series)|Jem and the Holograms]]'' [[Jem (season 1)|debuts]] as one of four six-minute matinée segments on ''[[Super Sunday (TV series)|Super Sunday]]''. [It becomes a regular half-hour program in 1986]. 
|-
|[[Spectrum (TV channel)|Spectrum]] is discontinued.
|-
|October 20
|The ''[[I Dream of Jeannie]]'' reunion movie, ''[[I Dream of Jeannie... Fifteen Years Later]]'' is broadcast on [[NBC]]. It's the first of two reunion movies, as [[I Still Dream of Jeannie|the next one]], would be broadcast six years later.
|-
|November 5
|[[CBS]] broadcasts the [[television film|made-for-television]] [[drama (film and television)|drama film]] ''[[Stone Pillow]]''. It stars [[Lucille Ball]], in an attempt to make a dramatic "breakout" from her years in comedy, as an older homeless woman with few resources and even fewer options.  The film received rather mixed reviews, but was a [[Nielsen ratings|ratings]] success. The telecast ranked 9th out of 68 programs airing that week, and brought in a 23.3 rating and a 33 share.<ref>{{cite journal |title=ABC leads sweeps with strong showing in seventh week |journal=Broadcasting |date=November 18, 1985 |volume=109 |issue=21 |page=88 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1985/BC-1985-11-18.pdf}}</ref> The success of the film led Ball to make one last attempt to return to her comedy roots with ''[[Life with Lucy]]'' the next year.
|-
|November 6
|[[KMYS|KRRT-TV]] goes on the air, giving the [[San Antonio]] [[Media in San Antonio|market]] its first [[Independent station (North America)|independent station]].
|-
|November 8
|The final episode of ''[[The Price Is Right (American game show)|The Price Is Right]]'' with [[Johnny Olson]] as announcer is broadcast by [[CBS]]. Olson had died on October 12; the show was broadcast as an "in memoriam" tribute to him on October 29.
|-
|November 9
|On [[NBC]], ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' begins its [[Saturday Night Live (season 11)|11th season]], with [[Lorne Michaels]] returning as executive producer and an all-new cast that includes [[Jon Lovitz]] and [[Dennis Miller]].
|-
|November 17
|''[[Kane and Abel (novel)|Kane & Abel]]'', a [[miniseries]] based on the bestselling [[Jeffrey Archer]] novel, debuts on [[CBS]].
|-
|November 18
|[[Elmo]], a new character for ''[[Sesame Street]]'', is introduced on [[PBS]]. In the same episode, the adult cast of ''Sesame Street'' come face-to-face with [[Mr. Snuffleupagus|Aloysius Snuffleupagus]] for the first time since the character's 1971 introduction.
|-
|November 28
|[[Jim Crockett Promotions]] and the [[National Wrestling Alliance]] hold the [[Starrcade '85: The Gathering|third annual]] [[Starrcade]] event. Transmitted via [[closed-circuit television]], this particular [[List of NWA/WCW closed-circuit events and pay-per-view events|event]] took place from the [[Greensboro Coliseum Complex]] in [[Greensboro, North Carolina]] and [[Omni Coliseum]] in [[Atlanta, Georgia]], with the event going back and forth from both arenas.
|-
|rowspan="2"|December 3
|''[[Copacabana (musical)|Copacabana]]'', an original musical featuring [[Barry Manilow]] (based on his 1978 song of the same name), [[Annette O'Toole]], and [[Estelle Getty]], is broadcast by [[CBS]].
|-
|[[Courteney Cox]] uses the word "[[menstruation|period]]" (referring to menstruation) on U.S. television for the first time, in a commercial for [[Tampax]] brand tampons.
|-
|December 5
|A ''[[Wheel of Fortune (American game show)|Wheel of Fortune]]'' contestant Terry Wharton missolves a puzzle "The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of Defeat" (a quote from [[Jim McKay]]), leaving $62,400 cash unclaimed. This was to date, the largest cash unclaimed for a round in the history of the show, which, at the time, would have set then the biggest winnings record during the maingame alone.<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/ZZhxHtM-12I Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20210719213334/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZhxHtM-12I Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web |title=Wheel of Fortune: Oh the Agony... |website = [[YouTube]]|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZhxHtM-12I |access-date=12 February 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
|-
|December 12
|[[General Electric]] announces plans to purchase [[RCA]], owner of [[NBC]] for $6.3 billion, and eventually wants to convert General Electric's TV station [[KCNC-TV|KCNC]] into an [[NBC Owned Television Stations|NBC owned and operated station]]. The deal would be finalized on June 9, 1986.
|-
|December 29
|In [[Waco, Texas|Waco]], [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] affiliate [[KCEN-TV|KCEN]] swaps affiliations with [[NBC]] affiliate [[KXXV]].
|}