Editing 1955 in television

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{{Year nav topic5|1955|television|radio|film|music}}

The year '''1955 in television''' involved some significant events.
Below is a list of [[television]]-related events during 1955.

==Events==
[[Image:Elvis in Louisiana Hayride.JPG|thumb|[[Elvis]] appears in ''[[Louisiana Hayride]]'']]
*January 10 – ''[[Minuto de Dios]]'' begins airing on [[television in Colombia]]; it will still be running more than 60 years later.
*March 5 – [[Elvis Presley]] appears on [[television]] for the first time. The program is ''[[Louisiana Hayride]]'', televised locally in [[Shreveport, Louisiana]].
*March 12 – The first Flemish children's TV show, ''[[Kom Toch Eens Kijken]]'', is broadcast, hosted by Bob Davidse (Nonkel Bob) and [[Terry Van Ginderen]] (Tante Terry).<ref name=Adriaens>{{cite book|last=Adriaens|first=Manu|title=Blijven kijken! 50 jaar televisie in Vlaanderen|publisher=Uitgeverij Lannoo|location=Tielt|year=2003}}</ref>
*March 15 – The play ''[[No Time for Sergeants (United States Steel Hour)|No Time for Sergeants]]'' is broadcast by the [[American Broadcasting Company]] in ''[[The United States Steel Hour]]'' series, starring [[Andy Griffith]] in his television debut.
*April 1 – The [[DuMont Television Network]] in the [[United States]] drastically decreases its programming; just eight series keep the network operating, in anticipation of its eventual shutdown [[1956 in television|sixteen months later]].
*May 9 – In the United States:
** [[Harpo Marx]] makes a memorable appearance on ''[[I Love Lucy]]''.
** [[Jim Henson]]'s puppet show ''[[Sam and Friends]]'' first airs on [[WRC-TV]] in [[Washington, D.C.]]
*May 10 – The first episode of the long-running and popular Flemish TV sitcom ''[[Schipper naast Mathilde]]'' is broadcast.<ref name=Adriaens/>  
*June 7 – The quiz show craze begins with the premiere of ''[[The 64,000 Dollar Question]]'' in the U.S. The series spawns many imitations, including ''[[Twenty-One (game show)|Twenty-One]]'' the next year, which will later be the focus of a [[Quiz show scandals|quiz show scandal]] that results in congressional hearings.
*June 24 – Channel 4 Bang Khum Phron is launched by Thai Thorathat (Thai Television, predecessor of [[MCOT HD]]), the first official [[television station]] in [[Thailand]].{{citation needed|date=November 2020}} 
*June 29 – ''[[Life with the Lyons]]'', one of the first successful British [[sitcom]]s (starring British-domiciled American couple [[Ben Lyon]] and [[Bebe Daniels]]), premieres on the [[BBC Television Service]], having previously been broadcast only on radio. It will later transfer to ITV.
*July 19 – [[Eesti Televisioon]] begins broadcasting from [[Tallinn]] in the [[Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rustrana.ru/print.php?nid=515|script-title=ru:История Телевидения|date=2007-10-11|work=www.rustrana.ru|language=ru|access-date=2009-09-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090110101628/http://www.rustrana.ru/print.php?nid=515|archive-date=2009-01-10|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*August 1 – [[Austria]]n [[ORF (broadcaster)|ORF Television]], predecessor of [[ORF eins]], an officially regular broadcasting service, starts in [[Vienna]].<ref>[[ORF (broadcaster)]] Retrieved January 13, 2017.</ref>
*September 22 – [[Commercial television]] starts in the [[United Kingdom]] with the [[Independent Television Authority]]'s first [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] franchise beginning broadcasting in [[London]] – [[Associated-Rediffusion]] on weekdays, [[Associated Television|ATV]] during weekends, ending the previous [[BBC]] monopoly. The rest of the UK receives its regional ITV franchises during the next seven years. The first advertisement shown is for Gibbs SR toothpaste.
*September 28 – [[World Series]] baseball is broadcast in color for the first time in the U.S. [[WITN-TV]] in [[Washington, North Carolina]], signs on the air with game 1 of the [[1955 World Series]] as their first telecast.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.witn.com/station/misc/27442154.html|title=WITN History: A Look At How We Began In 1955|date=Jul 2, 2015|accessdate=Oct 13, 2022|archive-date=July 2, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150702034347/http://www.witn.com/station/misc/27442154.html|url-status=bot: unknown}}</ref>
*December 10 – The first Saturday morning cartoon series debuts on U.S. television, ''[[Mighty Mouse|The Mighty Mouse Playhouse]]'' on [[CBS]].
*December 24 – The [[Lennon Sisters]] make their television debut on ''[[The Lawrence Welk Show]]'' on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] in the U.S.
*December 25 – After being broadcast by radio since 1932, the [[Royal Christmas Message]] is broadcast on British television for the first time, in sound only at 3.00pm on both television channels, live from [[Sandringham House]]. The first visual Christmas message is shown in 1957.

==Programs/programmes==
*''[[Adventures of Superman (TV series)|Adventures of Superman]]'' (1952–1958)
*''[[American Bandstand]]'' (1952–1989)
*''[[Annie Oakley (TV series)|Annie Oakley]]'' (1954–1957)
*''[[Aubrey and Gus]]'' (1955–1956)
*''[[Beau temps, mauvais temps]]'' (1955–1958)
*''[[Bim Bam Boom]]'' (1955–1956)
*''[[Bozo the Clown]]'' (1949–present)
*''[[Candid Camera]]'' (1948–present)
*''Cap-aux-sorciers'' (1955–1958)
*''[[Captain Kangaroo]]'' (1955–1984)
*''[[Cisco Kid]]'' (1950–1956)
*''[[Climax!]]'' (1954–1958)
*''[[Come Dancing]]'' (UK) (1949–1995)
*''[[CBC News: Country Canada|Country Canada]]'' (1955–2007)
*''[[Cross-Canada Hit Parade]]'' (1955–1960)
*''[[Death Valley Days]]'' (1952–1975)
*''[[Walt Disney anthology series|Disneyland]]'' (1954–1958)
*''[[Dragnet (drama)|Dragnet]]'' (1951–1959)
*''[[Face the Nation]]'' (1954–present)
*''[[Father Knows Best]]'' (1954-1960)
*''[[General Motors Theatre]]'' (Can) (1953–1956, 1958–1961)
*''[[Fury (American TV series)|Fury]]'' (1955-1960)
*''[[Gillette Cavalcade of Sports]]'' (1946–1960)
*''[[Hallmark Hall of Fame]]'' (1951–present)
*''[[Hockey Night in Canada]]'' (1952–present)
*''[[Howdy Doody]]'' (1947–1960)
*''[[I Love Lucy]]'' (1951–1960)
*''[[Junior Magazine]]'' (1955–1962)
*''[[Kraft Television Theater]]'' (1947–1958)
*''[[Kukla, Fran and Ollie]]'' (1947–1957)
*''[[Life is Worth Living]]'' (1952–1957)
*''[[Love of Life]]'' (1951–1980)
*''[[Maggie Muggins]]'' (1955–1962)
*''[[Meet the Press]]'' (1947–present)
*''[[Musical Chairs (1955 TV series)|Musical Chairs]]'' (1955) – game show hosted by [[Bill Leyden]]
*''[[Our Miss Brooks]]''  (1952-1956)
*''[[Panorama (TV series)|Panorama]]'' (UK) (1953–present)
*''[[Search for Tomorrow]]'' (1951–1986)
*''[[Sergeant Preston of the Yukon (TV series)|Sergeant Preston of the Yukon]]'' (1955-1958)
*''[[Talent Varieties]]'' (1955) – country music variety show
*''[[The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet]]'' (1952–1966)
*''[[The Brighter Day]]'' (1954–1962)
*''[[The Colgate Comedy Hour]]'' (1950-1955)
*''[[The Danny Thomas Show]]'' (1953-1964)
*''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]'' (1948–1971)
*''[[The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show]]'' (1950–1958)
*''[[The Goldbergs (broadcast series)|The Goldbergs]]'' (1949–1956)
*''[[The Good Old Days (UK TV series)|The Good Old Days]]'' (UK) (1953–1983)
*''[[The Grove Family]]'' (UK) (1954–1957)
*''[[Guiding Light|The Guiding Light]]'' (1952–present)
*''[[The Jack Benny Program]]'' (1950–1965)
*''[[Fireside Theatre|The Jane Wyman Show, Fireside Theatre]]'' (1949-1958)
*''The Jimmy Durante Show'' (1954–1956)
*''[[The Milton Berle Show]]'' (1954–1967)
*''[[The Roy Rogers Show]]'' (1951–1957)
*''[[The Secret Storm]]'' (1954–1974)
*''[[Today (NBC program)|The Today Show]]'' (1952–present)
*''[[The Tonight Show]]'' (1954–present)
*''[[The Voice of Firestone]]'' (1949–1963)
*''[[This Is Your Life (American franchise)|This Is Your Life]]'' (US) (1952–1961)
*''[[Truth or Consequences]]'' (1950–1988)
*''[[What's My Line (1950)|What's My Line]]'' (1950–1967)
*''[[Your Hit Parade]]'' (1950–1959)
*''[[Zoo Quest]]'' (UK) (1954–1964)

===Debuts===
*January 2 – ''[[The Bob Cummings Show]]'' (also known as ''Love That Bob'') on NBC (1955–1959)<ref name=tt>{{cite book|last1=McNeil|first1=Alex|title=Total Television|date=1996|publisher=Penguin Books USA, Inc.|location=New York, New York|isbn=0-14-02-4916-8|page= 497|edition=4th}}</ref>
*January 3 – ''[[Hollywood Today]]'' on NBC (1955)
*January 5 – ''[[Norby (TV series)|Norby]]'' on NBC (1955), first regular weekly series broadcast by NBC in its new all-electronic compatible color system
*January 15 – ''[[The Benny Hill Show]]'' (UK) on [[BBC Television]] (later moving to [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]; 1955–1989)
*January 22 – ''[[Ozark Jubilee]]'', the first popular country music series on American network television, on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] (1955–1960), featuring [[Red Foley]]
*April 9 – ''[[Science Fiction Theater]]'' also known as ''Beyond the Limits'' during syndication in the 1960s (1955–1957)
*May 9 – Jim Henson's First Muppet Series: ''Sam and Friends''  on WRC-TV (1955–1961)
*May 10 – ''[[Schipper naast Mathilde]]'' (Belgium) on [[VRT (broadcaster)|N.I.R.]] (1955–1963)
*June 25 – ''The Soldiers'', an 11-episode live military comedy, aired on NBC through September 3.
*June 28 – ''[[Talent Varieties]]'' on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] through November 1
*June 29 – ''[[Life With The Lyons]]'' (UK), one of the first successful British [[sitcom]]s (though starring an American, [[Ben Lyon]]), on [[BBC]] Television (1955–1960)
*July 2 – ''[[The Lawrence Welk Show]]'' on ABC (1955–1982)
*July 9 – ''[[Dixon of Dock Green]]'' (UK) on BBC Television (1955–1976)
*July 20 – ''[[Frankie Laine Time]]'' on CBS (1955–1956)
*July 29 – ''[[This Is Your Life (British TV series)|This Is Your Life]]'' (UK) on BBC Television (1955–2003)
*September 10 
** ''[[Gunsmoke]]'' on [[CBS]] (1955–1975)
** ''[[It's Always Jan]]'', starring [[Janis Paige]], on CBS (1955–1956)
*September 12 – ''[[Medical Horizons]]'' on ABC (1955–1956)
*September 20
** ''[[Cheyenne (TV western)|Cheyenne]]'' on ABC (1955–1962)
** ''[[Joe and Mabel#Television|Joe and Mabel]]'' on CBS (1955–1956)
*September 26 – ''[[Jungle Jim (TV series)|Jungle Jim]]'' in syndication (1955–1956)
*September 28 – ''[[Brave Eagle]]'' on CBS (1955–1956)
*September 29 – ''[[Sergeant Preston of the Yukon]]'' on CBS (1955-1958)
*October 1 – ''[[The Honeymooners]]'' on CBS, starring [[Jackie Gleason]] (1955–1956)
*October 2 –  ''[[Alfred Hitchcock Presents]]'' on CBS (1955–1962)
*October 3 
** ''[[Captain Kangaroo]]'' on CBS (1955–1984)
** ''[[Mickey Mouse Club]]'' on ABC, featuring "Mouseketeer" [[Annette Funicello]] (1955–1959)
*October 20 – ''[[Wanted (1955 TV series)|Wanted]]'', a crime documentary on CBS (only ran for three months) (1955–1956)
*October 22 – ''[[Quatermass II]]'' (UK), sequel to 1953's ''[[The Quatermass Experiment]]'', on BBC Television (ends on November 26)
*October 31 – ''[[Matinee Theatre]]'' on NBC, a five-days-a-week live dramatic anthology, with most of the plays in the series broadcast in color (lasted until 1958)

===Programs ending===
{| class="wikitable"
! Date || Show || Debut
|-
| January 27 
| ''[[So You Want to Lead a Band]]'' 
| rowspan="2"| 1954
|-
| March 11 
| ''[[The Jack Carson Show#Television|The Jack Carson Show]]''<br>''[[Stories of the Century]]'' 
|-
| April 6
| ''[[Norby (TV series)|Norby]]''
| 1955
|-
| April 8 
| ''[[Dear Phoebe]]''
| 1954
|-
| April 22 
| ''[[Where's Raymond?|The Ray Bolger Show]]'' 
| 1953
|-
| June 4 
| ''The Mickey Rooney Show: Hey, Mulligan''
| rowspan="4"| 1954
|-
| June 16 
| ''[[Willy (TV series)|Willy]]'' 
|-
| June 23 
| ''[[The Public Defender (TV series)|The Public Defender]]'' 
|-
| June 25 
| ''The Imogene Coca Show''
|-
| June 26
| ''[[The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse]]'' 
| 1953
|-
| July 1 
| ''[[Hawkins Falls]]'' 
| 1951
|-
| July 15 
| ''[[Flash Gordon (1954 TV series)|Flash Gordon]]'' 
| 1954
|-
| July 26 
| ''[[Who Said That?]]'' 
| 1948
|-
| August 24 
| ''[[My Little Margie]]'' 
| rowspan="2"| 1952
|-
| September 1 
| ''[[Life with Elizabeth]]'' 
|-
| September 13
| ''Place the Face''
| 1953
|-
| September 17 
| ''[[Musical Chairs (1955 TV series)|Musical Chairs]]'' 
| rowspan="2"| 1955
|-
| rowspan="4"| Unknown
| ''[[Frankie Laine Time]]''
|- 
| ''[[Muffin the Mule]]'' (UK) 
| 1946
|-
| ''[[The Jo Stafford Show (1954 TV series)|The Jo Stafford Show]]'' 
| rowspan="2"| 1954
|-
| ''[[That's My Boy (1954 TV series)|That's My Boy]]''
|}

==Births==
{| class="wikitable"
! Date || Name || Notability 
|-
| January 6 
| [[Rowan Atkinson]]
| English comic actor (''[[Mr. Bean]], [[Blackadder]]'')
|-
| January 9 
| [[J. K. Simmons]]
| Actor (''[[The Closer]]'', ''[[Oz (TV series)|Oz]]'', ''[[Law & Order]]'')
|-
| January 10
| [[Jimmy Vivino]]
| Band leader
|-
| January 14
| [[Bill Flanagan]]
| Radio host
|-
| January 18
| [[Kevin Costner]]
| Actor
|-
|rowspan="2"| January 20
| [[Wyatt Knight]]
| Actor (died 2011)
|-
| [[Lisa Zeno Churgin]]
| Film editor
|-
| January 21
| [[Jeff Franklin]]
| Producer
|-
| January 22
| [[John Wesley Shipp]]
| Actor (''[[The Flash (1990 TV series)|The Flash]]'', ''[[Dawson's Creek]]'')
|-
|rowspan="2"| February 2
| [[Michael Talbott]]
| Actor (''[[Miami Vice]]'')
|-
| [[Kim Zimmer]]
| Actress (''[[Guiding Light]]'', ''[[One Life to Live]]'')
|-
|rowspan="2"|February 7 
| [[Miguel Ferrer]]
| Actor (''[[Crossing Jordan]]'', ''[[NCIS: Los Angeles]]'') (d. 2017)
|-
| [[Rolf Benirschke]]
| American former professional football player 
|-
| February 8
| [[Ethan Phillips]]
| Actor (''[[Benson (TV series)|Benson]]'', ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'')
|-
| February 10
| [[Jim Cramer]]
| American television personality
|-
| February 11
| [[Bianca Ferguson]]
| Actress
|-
| February 14
| [[James Eckhouse]]
| Actor (''[[Beverly Hills, 90210]]'')
|-
| February 15 
| [[Christopher McDonald]]
| Actor (''[[Family Law (American TV series)|Family Law]]'')
|-
| February 19
| [[Jeff Daniels]]
| Actor
|-
| February 21
| [[Kelsey Grammer]]
| Actor, comedian (''[[Cheers]]'', ''[[Frasier]]'')
|-
|rowspan="2"|February 28
| [[Adrian Dantley]]
| [[NBA]] basketball player
|-
| [[Gilbert Gottfried]]
| Actor, comedian (''[[Saturday Night Live]]'', ''[[Aladdin (animated TV series)|Aladdin]]'', ''[[Cyberchase]]'') (died 2022)
|-
|rowspan="2"|March 3
| [[Darnell Williams]]
| British-born soap opera actor (''[[All My Children]]'')
|-
| [[Andy Breckman]]
| Writer
|-
| March 6
| [[James Saito]]
| Actor (''[[Eli Stone]]'')
|-
| March 7
| [[Anupam Kher]]
| Actor
|-
|rowspan="2"|March 17 
| [[Gary Sinise]]
| Actor, producer, director (''[[CSI: NY]]'')
|-
| [[Mark Boone Junior]]
| Actor
|-
| March 18
| [[Jeff Stelling]]
| TV presenter
|-
| March 19
| [[Bruce Willis]]
| Actor (''[[Moonlighting (TV series)|Moonlighting]]'')
|-
| March 23
| [[Moses Malone]]
| [[NBA]] basketball player (died 2015)
|-
| March 28
| [[Reba McEntire]]
| Singer, actress (''[[Reba (TV series)|Reba]]'')
|-
|rowspan="3"|March 29 
| [[Marina Sirtis]]
| Actress (''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'')
|-
| [[Christopher Lawford]]
| Actor (died 2018)
|-
| [[Brendan Gleeson]]
| Actor
|-
| April 5
| [[Akira Toriyama]]
| Manga artist (''[[Dragon Ball (TV series)|Dragon Ball]]'', ''[[Dragon Ball Z]]'', ''[[Dragon Ball GT]]'') (died 2024)<ref>{{Cite web |last=Colbert |first=Isaiah |date=2024-03-08 |title=Akira Toriyama, Creator of Dragon Ball and Manga Pioneer, Dies at 68 |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/akira-toriyama-creator-of-dragon-ball-and-manga-pioneer-dies-at-68 |access-date=2024-03-08 |website=IGN |language=en}}</ref>
|-
| April 7
| [[Alexandra Neil]]
| Soap opera actress
|-
| April 11
| [[Michele Scarabelli]]
| Actress (''[[Alien Nation (TV series)|Alien Nation]]'')
|-
| April 17
| [[Kristine Sutherland]]
| Actress (''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series)|Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'')
|-
| April 24
| [[John de Mol Jr.]]
| Dutch media tycoon television producer
|-
| April 28
| [[Todd Waring]]
| Actor
|-
| April 29 
| [[Kate Mulgrew]]
| Actress (''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'', ''[[Orange is the New Black]]'')
|-
| May 5
| [[Melinda Culea]]
| Actress (''[[The A-Team]]'')
|-
| May 6
| [[Tom Bergeron]]
| American game show host
|-
| May 7
| [[Peter Reckell]]
| Actor (''[[Days of Our Lives]]'')
|-
| rowspan="2"| May 10
| [[Larry "Flash" Jenkins]]
| Actor (''[[The White Shadow (TV series)|The White Shadow]]'') (d. 2019)
|-
| [[Rick Steves]]
| Television personality
|-
| May 11
| [[Shabba Doo]]
| Television actor (d. 2020)
|-
| May 12
| [[Scott Brazil]]
| Television producer (d. 2006)
|-
| May 15
| [[Lee Horsley]]
| Actor (''[[Matt Houston]]'', ''[[Paradise (American TV series)|Paradise]]'')
|-
| May 17
| [[Bill Paxton]]
| Actor (''[[Twister (1996 film)|Twister]]'', ''[[Big Love]]'') (d. 2017)
|-
| May 23
| [[Ken Michelman]]
| Actor (''[[The White Shadow (TV series)|The White Shadow]]'')
|-
| rowspan="2"|May 25 
| [[Connie Sellecca]]
| Actress (''[[Flying High (TV series)|Flying High]]'', ''[[The Greatest American Hero]]'', ''[[Hotel (U.S. TV series)|Hotel]]'')
|-
| [[Bobby Slayton]]
| Actor
|-
| rowspan="2" |May 27
|[[Eric Bischoff]]
|Television producer
|-
| [[Richard Schiff]]
| Actor (''[[The West Wing]]'')
|-
| May 31
| [[Susie Essman]]
| Actress
|-
| June 1
| [[Tony Snow]]
| American journalist (d. 2008)
|-
| June 2
| [[Dana Carvey]]
| Comic actor (''[[Saturday Night Live]]'')
|-
| June 6
| [[Sam Simon]]
| Writer and director (d. 2015)
|-
| June 8 
| [[Griffin Dunne]]
| Actor and director
|-
| June 10
| [[Andrew Stevens]]
| Actor (''[[Dallas (TV series)|Dallas]]''), producer, director
|-
| June 13
| [[Mara Liasson]]
| American journalist
|-
| rowspan="2"|June 15
| [[Polly Draper]]
| Actress (''[[thirtysomething]]'')
|-
| [[Ted Harbert]]
| American broadcasting and television executive
|-
| June 16 
| [[Laurie Metcalf]]
| Actress (''[[Roseanne]]'')
|-
| June 18
| [[Leon Herbert]]
| Actor
|-
| rowspan="2"|June 21 
| [[Leigh McCloskey]]
| Actor (''[[Dallas (TV series)|Dallas]]'')
|-
| [[David Marshall Grant]]
| Actor
|-
| June 24
| [[Betsy Randle]]
| Actress (''[[Boy Meets World]]'')
|-
| June 28
| [[Jim Nelford]]
| Golfer
|-
| rowspan="3"|July 3
| [[Bob Thiele Jr.]]
| Musician
|-
| [[Bruce Altman]]
| Actor
|-
| [[John Cramer (announcer)|John Cramer]]
| American television announcer
|-
| rowspan="2"|July 9 
| [[Jimmy Smits]]
| Actor (''[[L.A. Law]]'', ''[[NYPD Blue]]'', ''[[The West Wing]]'')
|-
| [[Yvonne Hudson]]
| Actress (''[[Saturday Night Live]]'')
|-
| July 17
| [[Bill Geddie]]
| American television producer (died 2023)
|-
| rowspan="2"|July 19
| Toborr Kristina Tomlinsen
| Actress (voice of Rinna Raccoon on the ''Rocky Raccoon'' cartoon series)
|-
| [[Tudi Roche]]
| Actress
|-
| July 22
| [[Willem Dafoe]]
| Actor
|-
| July 28
| [[Mike Merritt (musician)|Mike Merritt]]
| Musician
|-
| August 2
| [[Tim Dunigan]]
| Actor (''[[Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future]]'')
|-
| August 3
| [[Corey Burton]]
| Voice actor (''[[The Transformers (TV series)|The Transformers]]'', ''[[DuckTales (1987 TV series)|DuckTales]]'', ''[[Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (TV series)|Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers]]'', ''[[Superman: The Animated Series]]'')   
|-
| August 7 
| [[Wayne Knight]]
| Actor (''[[Seinfeld]]'', ''[[3rd Rock from the Sun]]'')
|-
| August 14 
| [[Gillian Taylforth]]
| English actress (''[[EastEnders]]'')
|-
| August 16
| [[Jeff Perry (American actor)|Jeff Perry]]
| Actor
|-
| August 19
| [[Peter Gallagher]]
| Actor (''[[The O.C.]]'', ''[[Covert Affairs]]'')
|-
|August 24
|[[Mike Huckabee]]
|Politician and commentator (''[[Huckabee]]'')
|-
| August 27 
| [[Diana Scarwid]]
| Actress (''[[Truman (1995 film)|Truman]]'', ''[[Wonderfalls]]'')
|-
| September 2
| [[Linda Purl]]
| Actress and singer (''[[Matlock (1986 TV series)|Matlock]]'')
|-
| rowspan="2"|September 3
| [[Steve Jones (musician)|Steve Jones]]
| Actor and singer
|-
| [[James Duff (writer)|James Duff]]
| Writer
|-
| September 7
| [[Mira Furlan]]
| Actress (''[[Babylon 5]]'', ''[[Lost (2004 TV series)|Lost]]'') (died 2021)
|-
| September 9
| [[Edward Hibbert]]
| English-American actor (''[[Frasier]]'', ''[[Earthworm Jim (TV series)|Earthworm Jim]]'')
|-
| September 12
| [[Peter Scolari]]
| Actor (''[[Bosom Buddies]]'', ''[[Newhart]]'') (died 2021)
|-
| September 16
| [[Jonathan Meath]]
| Producer
|-
| September 18
| [[David Mirkin]]
| Producer
|-
| September 20
| [[Betsy Brantley]]
| Actress
|-
| September 21
| [[Rebecca Balding]]
| Actress (''[[Soap (TV series)|Soap]]'', ''[[Charmed]]'')
|-
| September 29
| [[Gwen Ifill]]
| Journalist (died 2016)
|-
| October 8
| [[Darrell Hammond]]
| Actor (''[[Saturday Night Live]]'')
|-
| October 9
| [[Linwood Boomer]]
| Actor
|-
|October 14
|[[Arleen Sorkin]]
|Actress (''[[Days of Our Lives]]'', ''[[Batman: The Animated Series]]'') (died 2023)
|-
| October 16
| [[Ellen Dolan]]
| Actress (''[[Guiding Light]]'', ''[[As the World Turns]]'')
|-
| October 26
| [[Jonathan Murray]]
| American television producer
|-
| October 27
| [[Michael Shamus Wiles]]
| Actor
|-
| October 30
| [[Shanna Reed]]
| Actress (''[[Major Dad]]'')
|-
| November 13 
| [[Whoopi Goldberg]]
| Actress, comedian, talk-show host (''[[The View (U.S. TV series)|The View]]'')
|-
| rowspan="2"|November 17
| [[Bill Macatee]]
| Sportscaster
|-
| [[Yolanda King]]
| Activist (died 2007)
|-
| November 22
| [[George Alagiah]]
| News broadcaster
|-
| November 23
| [[Peter Douglas]]
| Actor
|-
| November 25
| [[Norman Buckley]]
| Director
|-
| November 27
| [[Bill Nye]]
| Educator (''[[Bill Nye the Science Guy]]'')
|-
| November 29
| [[Howie Mandel]]
| Actor, host (''[[St. Elsewhere]]'', ''[[Deal or No Deal (U.S. game show)|Deal or No Deal]]'')
|-
| November 30
| [[Kevin Conroy]]
| Voice actor (''[[Batman: The Animated Series]]'') (d. 2022)
|-
| December 2
| [[Dennis Christopher]]
| Actor
|-
| rowspan="2"| December 3 
| [[Melody Anderson]]
| Actress (''[[Manimal]]'')
|-
| [[Steven Culp]]
| Actor (''[[JAG (TV series)|JAG]]'', ''[[The West Wing]]'', ''[[Desperate Housewives]]'')
|-
| December 5
| [[Byron York]]
| American conservative correspondent
|-
| December 6
| [[Steven Wright]]
| Actor
|-
| December 16
| [[Xander Berkeley]]
| Actor (''[[24 (TV series)|24]]'', ''[[The Mentalist]]'', ''[[Nikita (TV series)|Nikita]]'')
|-
| December 18
| [[Joel Surnow]]
| American television writer
|-
| December 21
| [[Jane Kaczmarek]]
| Actress (''[[Malcolm in the Middle]]'')
|-
| December 23
| [[Stefan Arngrim]]
| Actor
|-
| December 24
| [[Clarence Gilyard]]
| Actor (died 2022)
|-
| December 27
| [[Barbara Olson]]
| Television commentator (died 2001)
|}

==Television debuts==
*[[Harry Belafonte]] – ''[[Front Row Center]]''
*[[Terry Burnham]] – ''[[Climax!]]''
*[[David Doyle (actor)|David Doyle]] – ''[[The Philco Television Playhouse]]''
*[[Zsa Zsa Gabor]] – ''Climax!''
*[[James Garner]] – ''[[Cheyenne (TV series)|Cheyenne]]''
*[[George Gaynes]] – ''[[NBC Opera Theatre]]''
*[[James Hong]] – ''[[TV Reader's Digest]]''
*[[Myrna Loy]] – ''[[General Electric Theater]]''
*[[Fred MacMurray]] – ''[[General Electric Theater]]''
*[[Tim McCoy]] – ''Indian Agent''
*[[Laurence Olivier]] – ''Richard III''
*[[Don Rickles]] – ''[[Stage 7]]''
*[[John Saxon]] – ''[[Medic (TV series)|Medic]]''
*[[Maggie Smith]] – ''[[Sunday Night Theatre]]''
*[[Rod Taylor]] – ''[[Studio 57]]''
*[[Rudy Vallée]] – ''[[Star Tonight]]''
*[[Robert Vaughn]] – ''[[Medic (TV series)|Medic]]''
*[[John Wayne]] – ''[[Gunsmoke]]''
*[[Johnny Weissmuller]] – ''[[Jungle Jim (TV series)|Jungle Jim]]''
*[[Jane Wyman]] – ''[[General Electric Theater]]''

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Years in TV by country|1955}}
{{Years in television}}

[[Category:1955 in television]]