2006 in American television

In American television in 2006, notable events include television show debuts, finales, cancellations, and new channel initiations.

Date	Event
1	NBCUniversal ends the channel program Trio and in its place begins Sleuth, a 24-hour entertainment cable TV channel dedicated to the crime, mystery and suspense genres.
1	The final episode of the original NFL Primetime airs on ESPN, followed by the network's final Sunday Night Football game.
2	After several years as part of The WB's weekday programming sequence, The WB ends its weekday afternoon Kids' WB animation sequence. Kids' WB is relegated to Saturday mornings, and the weekday block is replaced by Daytime WB.
4	The Rose Bowl Game between the Texas Longhorns and USC Trojans is broadcast on ABC. Now considered by many to not only be the greatest college football national championship game of all time, but the greatest Division 1-A college football game ever played,^[1]^[2]^[3] this Rose Bowl also has the distinction of being the final game ever called by longtime broadcaster Keith Jackson. It was also the final Rose Bowl to be telecast under ABC Sports branding; the 2007 Rose Bowl would be an ESPN on ABC presentation.
12	Dari Alexander (anchor of afternoon portions of Fox News Live on weekends) and Rick Folbaum (anchor of Fox Report Weekend) are transferred from Fox News Channel to the Fox flagship station WNYW/New York City. They are replaced by Jamie Colby and Trace Gallagher, respectively (the latter effective on February 4, when the network introduced the weekend editions of Studio B). Folbaum, however, would return to the network in 2009.
12	The second live episode of the program Will & Grace is broadcast by NBC on both the East and West coasts of the United States.
14	The NHL on NBC returned for the first time since broadcasting the 1994 NHL All-Star Game, featuring a regional tripleheader. It marked NBC's first non-All-Star Game broadcast of the NHL since the 1975 Stanley Cup Finals.
24	CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. announce the initiation of The CW Television Network for the 2006–2007 season. This network is, in a sense, a merger of The WB and UPN and is designed to replace both of those networks.^[4]
24	NFL player Bob Griese donated a total of $114,310 (including the standard $100,000 grand prize) on his appearance in Wheel of Fortune to his charity for Judi's House (founded by his son Brian, also an NFL alumnus).^[5]^[6] The winning puzzle, "Brains and Brawn", would later be reprised on December 16, 2010, where another contestant, Hillary Light, solved the exact same puzzle with a similar result.^[7]
28	The Directors Guild of America name Tony Croll and J. Rupert Thompson as best reality television directors for the programs Three Wishes and Fear Factor, respectively. Best director of a dramatic series is Michael Apted for Rome. Television comedy series director is Marc Buckland for My Name Is Earl. Directors Joseph Sargent (Warm Springs) and George C. Wolfe (Lackawanna Blues) share best television movie awards. General Hospital's Owen Renfroe is named best daytime television serial director.
29	World News Tonight co-anchor Bob Woodruff and ABC News cameraman Doug Vogt are injured.

Date	Event
2	Mad Linx returns to host Rap City after a 4-month absence, while J-Nicks leaves the show to work as a radio DJ.
5	After 36 years, ABC broadcasts its final National Football League game when the Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Seattle Seahawks 21–10 in Super Bowl XL. NFL football will not be seen on the network for 9 years until January 9, 2016, and again on January 7, 2017.
22	Fox announces plans for a new network, named MyNetworkTV. The network was planned to be broadcast by UPN and WB affiliates which are not included in the initiation of The CW.
24	My Gym Partner's a Monkey officially premieres on Cartoon Network after its sneak peek aired on December 26, 2005.
28	The Bold and The Beautiful actor Jack Wagner along with contestant Christine Denos won $142,550 in Wheel of Fortune, setting a record for its one-episode winnings total in the show, and the second-largest winnings record since Peter Argyropolous and Deborah Cohen in 1996. Both of these records would later be first surpassed on October 14, 2008, when Michelle Lowenstein won $1,026,080.

Date	Event
8	Bravo's premiere of one of its most popular shows to date, Top Chef.
16	SportsNet New York is begun. It is home of the New York Mets and New York Jets.
17	United States premiere of the new series of Doctor Who on Sci-Fi's Friday-night sequence.
20	Meg Oliver is named the new anchor of CBS News' Up to the Minute, replacing Melissa McDermott.
26	The last first-run episodes to date of the long-running TV series Soul Train air in syndication. Reruns of the previous season are broadcast until October, when "The Best of Soul Train" reruns from the 1970s and 1980s begin being broadcast instead of new episodes.

Date	Event
1	The Kids' Choice Awards ceremony is broadcast by Nickelodeon, with host Jack Black and featuring Robin Williams as the unfortunate victim of the network's trademark slime.
4	Pepper Dennis starring Rebecca Romijn premieres. It has the distinction of being the final show to premiere on The WB before its transition to The CW network later that fall.^[8]
28	The 33rd Daytime Emmy Awards ceremony is broadcast by ABC.

Date	Event
5	The popular Disney Junior (then known as Playhouse Disney) show Mickey Mouse Clubhouse premiered on Disney Channel after the network's premiere of Finding Nemo.
21	A pair of finales: On CBS, Mike Wallace makes his last appearance on 60 Minutes, while the WB airs the series finale of Charmed, "Forever Charmed", ending the series after eight seasons.
24	On Fox, Taylor Hicks wins American Idol season five.
25	A press conference by President George W Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair, the broadcast aired live simultaneously on C-Span, as well as several local affiliates for FOX, ABC, NBC, CNN, MSNBC and Fox News. The combined ratings for these broadcasts coincidentally made the event one of the most-watched events in every single media market in Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota, Indiana, Idaho, Wisconsin, New Jersey and the Pennsylvania regions of Northwestern Pennsylvania, Greater Pittsburgh, Northeastern Pennsylvania and South Central Pennsylvania.^[9]^[10]
31	Katie Couric's final episode as co-host of the Today Show airs on NBC.

2006 in American television

Notable events

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Programs

Shows debuting in 2006

Shows returning in 2006

Shows changing networks

Shows ending in 2006

Entering syndication in 2006

Made-for-TV movies

Networks and services

Launches

Conversions and rebrandings

Closures

Television stations

Station launches

Network affiliation changes

Births

Deaths

See also

References

External links

Wikiwand - on

Date	Event
3	In anticipation of the launch of MyNetworkTV in September, Fox affiliate WUFX (now WLOO) and WB affiliate WDBD swap affiliations, returning Fox to WDBD after a 5-year absence and clearing the way for WUFX's impending switch to MyNetworkTV.
10	Terrence and Rocsi, winners from BET's "New Faces" talent search, become the new hosts of 106 & Park, replacing the temporary hosts Big Tigger and Julissa.
24	The program Aquaman, previously not broadcast, becomes available for download on the iTunes Music Store.

Date	Event
14	Rap City host Mad Linx quits the show and is replaced by Q45.
21	Stargate SG-1 is canceled officially by Sci Fi Channel after the premiere broadcast of the show's 200th episode after just five low-rated episodes. The tenth, and possibly final, season makes the show the longest broadcast science fiction series in American television history.
21	Fox gains two new affiliates: In the Delmarva Peninsula, Salisbury-based CBS affiliate WBOC-TV's DT2 subchannel switches from lame-duck UPN to Fox, giving the Delmarva Peninsula its first-ever Fox affiliate. Meanwhile, in Jackson, Tennessee, UPN affiliate WJKT reunites with Fox after 11 years with UPN.^[11]
25	The Cheetah Girls 2, a sequel to The Cheetah Girls premieres on the Disney Channel and becomes the highest-rated Disney Channel original movie at that time, with ratings more than 8.1 million, exceeding that of High School Musical.
27	The NBC comedy The Office wins Outstanding Comedy Series and the Fox drama 24 also wins for Outstanding Drama Series at the 58th Primetime Emmy Awards on NBC.
28	In Fort Smith, Arkansas, NBC affiliate KFTA-TV becomes a Fox affiliate, despite protests from Fox's outgoing affiliate KPBI-CA (which eventually joins MyNetworkTV). Nexstar Broadcasting Company, KFTA-TV's owners, also announces they are selling KFTA-TV to Mission Broadcasting (a company whose stations are operated by Nexstar), but that too is challenged by KPBI-CA. KFTA-TV's satellite in Rogers, KNWA-TV, remains with Nexstar and continues as the market's sole NBC affiliate.
31	Nine UPN affiliates, all of them owned by Fox, disaffiliate from UPN in preparation for the launch of MyNetworkTV.
31	After 1 year of the row, Bob Schieffer's final episode as an anchor of CBS Evening News.

Date	Event
1	In Lima, Ohio, lame-duck UPN affiliate WLQP-LP leaves the network to join ABC, giving the area its first full-time ABC affiliate. This in turn gives Lima in-market of all four major commercial broadcast networks.
2	ESPN takes over production of ABC Sports broadcasts, rebranding them as ESPN on ABC. Both networks are owned by The Walt Disney Company.
4	UPN affiliate WSWG in Valdosta, Georgia, having planned to be a MyNetworkTV affiliate with CBS on DT2, does an about-face and becomes a semi-satellite of sister station and Thomasville-based CBS affiliate WCTV, moving MyNetworkTV (when it debuts the following night) to DT2. This gives the Albany market its first full-time CBS affiliate.
4	MTV en Español is relaunched as MTV Tres.
5	The debut of the new News Corp-owned broadcast network MyNetworkTV occurs on this date with the premiere of two prime-time telenovelas, Desire and Fashion House.
5	On CBS, Katie Couric becomes the first female sole anchor of the CBS Evening News, replacing the temporary anchor Bob Schieffer.
6	The longest-broadcast television drama program, Guiding Light, broadcasts its 15,000th televised episode on CBS.
7	NBC broadcast its first NFL regular season or playoff game since Super Bowl XXXII in 1997, taking over the rights to the NFL Kickoff Game. Three days later, it broadcast its first regular season Sunday Night Football game.
9	Qubo debuts as a Saturday morning block on NBC as well as a Spanish-dubbed version on Telemundo and a Friday afternoon programming block on i: Independent Television. The block is broadcast on Saturdays and a Spanish block on Saturdays and Sundays on NBC and Telemundo. The block replaced two former weekend morning blocks on NBC and Telemundo - Discovery Kids on NBC and Telemundo Kids.
9	KOHD in Bend, Oregon signs on the air, giving the Bend market its first full-time ABC affiliate.
11	Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! become the first game shows to be broadcast in High Definition.
11	John O'Hurley replaces Richard Karn as the host of Family Feud.
12	On CBS, Mike Malin is named the winner of Big Brother: All-Stars and wins the $500,000 prize. Runner-Up Erika Landin wins $50,000.
12	Fox officially shuts down Foxnet, a cable service for television markets that did not have a local Fox affiliate. This prompts stations in the few markets that still carry Foxnet to launch Fox-affiliated subchannels: CBS affiliate WAGM-TV in Presque Isle, Maine moves its affiliation to DT2 on this day and joins Fox. Meanwhile, in Bowling Green, Kentucky, ABC affiliate WBKO-TV launches a Fox-affiliated DT2 subchannel at around the same time, returning Fox to Bowling Green for the first time since Fox left now-NBC affiliate WNKY in 2001 in a dispute.^[12]^[13]
13	Meredith Vieira begins co-hosting duties of the NBC program Today, replacing Katie Couric.
13	Two new Fox affiliates hit the air due to the shutdown of Foxnet. In the Beckley-Bluefield-Oak Hill area, Lewisburg-based CBS affiliate WVNS-TV adds a Fox affiliation on its DT2 subchannel, returning Fox to the market for the first time since WVNS-TV itself dropped the network in 2001 to join CBS (and giving the area in-market affiliates of all four major commercial broadcast networks). Meanwhile, in the Mississippi Delta, Greenville-based ABC affiliate WABG-TV also launches a Fox affiliation on its DT2 subchannel.
16	Following the Viacom/CBS split, the Nick Jr. on CBS block is replaced by KOL Secret Slumber Party, a female-oriented Saturday morning block produced by DiC Entertainment. Rebrandings took place a year later when it became KEWLopolis, and with the merge to Cookie Jar Entertainment in the fall of 2009, Cookie Jar TV.
18	The CW network debuts as the sixth broadcast network, merging with UPN (owned by CBS which split in the original Viacom, three days after UPN ceased operations) and The WB (owned by Warner Bros., a day after The WB ceased operations).
18	Vickyann Sadowski wins $147,517 worth of cash and prizes for her performance on the season 35 premiere of The Price Is Right on CBS. This not only made Sadowski (at the time) the biggest winner of the daytime show's history, it also surpassed Press Your Luck contestant Michael Larson, making her then-the biggest one day winner in the history of American network daytime game shows in general (Sadowski's record has since surpassed by five other contestants as of 2019, with the first being Sheree Heil on December 30, 2013, who won $170,345;^[14] the current record holder was Michael Stouber on October 14, 2019, who won $262,743^[15]).
20	Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond is seriously injured after crashing a jet-powered car at 280 mph.
25	Fox & Friends co-anchor E.D. Hill quits the show and is replaced by Gretchen Carlson.
25	Outdoor Life Network is relaunched as Versus.

Date	Event
3	Barney & Friends broadcasts its 200th episode.
19	NBC Universal announces a major restructuring is in order to save US$750 million after several years of decreasing ratings. Among the changes is the announcement that NBC will no longer broadcast scripted dramas or comedies during the first hour of prime time, emphasizing instead less-expensive reality and game shows during those hours. Its news division is also trimmed. The announcement is made despite the early success of several new NBC series such as Heroes.^[16]
26	Wheel of Fortune introduced a new gameplay element called Wild Card which allows contestants to play an extra letter on the same cash value it landed on (the card was not used until November 20 episode), or providing an extra, fourth consonant in the Bonus Round (this was first used on November 15 episode).
27	Game 5 of the World Series is broadcast on Fox. The St. Louis Cardinals defeat the Detroit Tigers, winning their first title since 1982.
31	Bob Barker announces that he will be retiring from his hosting duties for The Price Is Right after 35 years in June 2007.