Special: Johnny Cash is joined for his traditional Christmas show by Mac Davis, Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers Band, June Carter Cash, Jeannie C. Riley, the Carter Family, and the Tom Tichenor Puppets. Johnny recites "The Christmas Guest" and "Little Grey Donkey." Taped at Nashville's Opryland. Musical Highlights include: "The Greatest Cowboy of Them All" by Johnny & Larry, and "Christmas is for Kids" by Mac.

(Part 1) Special: Yogi Bear is roused out of hibernation to find that Jellystone Lodge will be sold and destroyed unless its wealthy owner, Mrs. Trockmorton, enjoys the annual Christmas Carnival. Her miserable nephew Snively and crotchety Herman the Hermit, both of whom hate Christmas, try sabotage. This program is shown in two parts.             

(Part 2) Special: Yogi Bear is roused out of hibernation to find that Jellystone Lodge will be sold and destroyed unless its wealthy owner, Mrs. Trockmorton, enjoys the annual Christmas Carnival. Her miserable nephew Snively and crotchety Herman the Hermit, both of whom hate Christmas, try sabotage. This program is shown in two parts.             

Special: A tuneful yuletide in Nashville is celebrated by Lynn Anderson, Mickey Gilley, Dottie West, the Statler Brothers, George Jones, Grandpa Jones and Ramone, and host Robert Urich, who pays tribute to John Jacob Niles, an itinerant balladeer who helped preserve the South's folk-music heritage. Scheduled Highlights include: "Ding-a-Ling, the Christmas Bell" by Lynn, "How I Love Them Old Songs/Jingle Bell Rock" by Mickey, "Hollyridge Road" by Dottie, and "He Stopped Loving Her Today" by George.

Beatle John Lennon is remembered one day after his murder.            

Special: Jim Henson created new Muppets for this holiday musical about an otter named Emmet and his impoverished mother, who unwittingly enter the same talent contest on Christmas Eve in hopes of winning the money to buy presents. Emmet plays wash tub in a jug band and his mom sings, but both face stiff competition from a gang of woodland punk rockers, who stage an unimaginative production number.             

Dr. Martin Abend of the 10:00 news engages in a live debate.
More information will be provided upon request.    

Note: Dr. Martin Abend appeared on the local 10:00 channel 5 news in New York City where he offered commentary on various news topics of the day.         

Special: Linda Gray, Melissa Manchester and Mills Watson join Davis in a Yuletide special.

Special: The Muppets join host John Denver for holiday high jinks. But there are reverent moments, too, as the Muppets dramatize the Nativity story (backed by traditional carols); and Denver re-enacts the composition of "Silent Night." Additional Musical Highlights include: "A Christmas Wish" by John & Kermit, and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" by John & Rowlf.

Special on hostage crisis in Iran.                          

From Knott's Berry Farm Amusement Park in Buena Vista, California. Mel Tillis welcomes guests Tammy Wynette, Gloria Gaynor, comic Byron Allen, singer Bobby Arvon and football's Walt Garrison. Songs include "I Will Survive" (Gloria); "Remember Me" (Mel).

The inaugural gala for President-Elect Ronald Reagan, sworn into office today.

Guests include: Bob Hope, Jimmy Stewart, Rich Little, and Johnny Carson.              

President-Elect Ronald Reagan is administered the oath of office and gives his first address as President. Includes news report that American hostages in Tehran have been freed.  

Special Report: Freed hostages arrive in Algiers. Comments from Kurt Waldheim, Jimmy Carter, others.                  

Members of the winning Oakland Raiders are interviewed in their locker rooms by Bryant Gumbal following their 27-10 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1981 Super Bowl. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle presents the Super Bowl trophy to coach Al Davis.  
Losing Philadelphia coach Dick Vermeil is interviewed in the Eagles locker room.                                

Special: Hit numbers from the Great White Way are restaged in a follow-up to a program telecast in 1979. Once again, librettist Sylvia Fine (Mrs. Danny Kaye) sets up the plots and social contexts of four musicals: "Finian's Rainbow (1947); "South Pacific" (1949), which is also remembered by its director, Joshua Logan; "Sweet Charity" (1966); and the rarely revived "Lady in the Dark" (1941).

Dr. Martin Abend in a debate on the handling of American hostages in Tehran.          

WNEW-TV Channel 5, New York City.   

Guests are singer Lynn Anderson, Rich Little, George Segal, comic Dick Shawn and Conrad Janis and the Unlisted Beverly Hills Jazz Band. Cameo appearances by Carol Burnett, Steve Lawrence, and Bernie Kopell, Fred Grandy and Ted Lange from "The Love Boat." Music includes "The Rose," "Proud Mary."             

The 7th People's Choice Awards honoring the best in pop culture are presented.

Hosts: Army Archerd and Lee Remick. 

Winners include: Carol Burnett- favorite female entertainer
Pat Benatar: favorite female musical performer
Alan Alda: favorite male TV performer
Kenny Rogers: favorite male musical performer 
Dallas: favorite TV dramatic program
The Empire Strikes Back: favorite motion picture 
Mash: favorite TV comedy. 

                        

Special: On tour, the songwriter-troubadour performs "Still Crazy After All These Years," "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover," "Mrs. Robinson," "Late in the Evening," "Sounds of Silence," "Something So Right," "One-Trick Pony." Backing Simon are Steve Gadd, Eric Gale, Tony Levin, Richard Tee and Peter Levin. Taped in October 1980 at the Tower theater in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania.

This PBS musical special remembers and salutes the music of the early and mid 1950s which includes archival footage clips of this glorious era of song. Also includes clips of "New Faces Of 1952," a Broadway Revue starring Paul Lynde, Eartha Kitt, and Alice Ghostley, and a special sing-along with Mitch Miller. 

Hosted by Peter Marshall, Nick Clooney, Patti Page, and Wink Martindale. Announcer is Mike Frazer.

Directed by T.J. Lubinsky.

Newly elected United States President Ronald Reagan is shot and wounded in an assassination attempt by John Hinckley Jr. Reagan was returning to his limousine after a speaking engagement at the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. when he was shot. 

The 53rd annual Academy Awards presentation from the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles, California. The ceremonies, originally scheduled for March 30th, were delayed one day due to the assassination attempt on President Reagan on March 30th.

Host: Johnny Carson.      

Best Picture: Ordinary People
Best Actor: Robert De Niro
Best Actress: Sissy Spacek
Best Supporting Actor: Timothy Hutton
Best Supporting Actress: Mary Steenburgen         

Henry Fonda was awarded the Academy Honorary Award. He received an Oscar for best actor the following year.                             

Special: Nashville's Grand Ole Opry provides the appropriate setting for a country-music jamboree. Its highlights include a duet pairing Crystal Gayle and 81-year-old songwriter Hoagy Carmichael; a tribute to Bob Wills, performed by Chet Atkins; and a medley of Hank Williams tunes sung by Minnie Pearl, the Oak Ridge Boys, Bill Anderson, Tammy Wynette, Hank Williams Jr., the Statler Brothers, Bobby Bare, Faron Young and Jeannie C. Riley. Other performers include: Johnny Cash, Glen Campbell and Tanya Tucker, Ray Charles, Roy Clark, Statlers, Doug Kershaw, Larry Gatlin, Steve Gatlin, Rudy Gatlin, Loretta Lynn, the Carter Family, Roy Acuff, George Jones, and Alabama.

NASA launches the first space shuttle, Columbia. It was designed to orbit the earth, transport people and cargo to and from orbiting spacecraft, and glide to a runway landing on its return to earth. Astronauts aboard are John Young and Robert Crippen. 

A variety show presented as monthly specials on NBC.

Guest: Brooke Shields. 

                                                                                                                                                                     

Dennis Weaver is the host of this country-music program featuring the top 20 hits of April 1981 (according to a poll by Radio and Records magazine). Performers appearing include the group Alabama, Razzy Bailey, Johnny Lee, the Oak Ridge Boys and Hank Williams Jr.

Special: "100 Years of America's Popular Music" - from ragtime rhythms and St. Louis blues to big-band brassiness and Tin Pan Alley pop - is saluted by George Burns, Steve Lawrence, Eydie Gorme, Henry Mancini, Paul Simon, Gregory Hines, Sarah Vaughan and the New American Orchestra, conducted by Jack Elliott.

The program is slated to feature the orchestra's renditions of "Rhapsody in Blue," "Let's Dance," "Celebration" and a medley from "Oklahoma!" as well as ensemble performances of "Alexander's Ragtime Band," "Say It with Music," "God Bless America," "Sonny Boy," "Who" and tunes from "Showboat."

Special: It's ladies' night at the Grand Ole Opry as Johnny is joined by Emmylou Harris, Minnie Pearl, June Carter Cash, Rosanne Cash, Misty Rowe ("Hee Haw") and - in "I'm Going to Be a Country Girl Again" - a chorus of 28 female singers including Jeannie C. Riley, Wilma Lee Cooper, Helen Cornelius, Skeeter Davis.

Special: A salute to Duke Ellington includes songs by top jazz artists, a dance number by Harold Nicholas and some fond memories by Ella Fitzgerald. Taped at the Theater Lab in the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

"Ladies and Gentlemen... Bob Newhart, Part II" - A variety of sketches, monologues, and blackouts on contemporary American life. Bob Newhart, Don Rickles, Dean Martin, Dick Martin, Marian Mercer, and Robert Ridgely.

A night of spectacular stars and entertainment. Tonight, Grammy honors some of the greatest recordings of all time, and the performers who made them legend. Host: Andy Williams.  

Peter Cullen announcer. 
Commercials not recorded. 

This predominately musical hour is rounded out with a tribute to Bing Crosby by daughter Mary and Bob Hope. Other clips of Judy Garland ("Over the Rainbow") and Nat King Cloe ("Unforgettable"). 

HIGHLIGHTS:

"Straighten Up and Fly Right," 
"The Christmas Song"----------------------------------Natalie Cole

"White Christmas"------------------------------------Andy Gibb

"Quiet Please, There's a Lady on Stage" -------------Peter Allen 

"One O'clock Jump"--------Count Basie and his Orchestra

"Every Day (I Have the Blues)"----------------------Joe Williams

"Oh, What a Beautiful Morning"----------------------John Rait
"Oklahoma"

"I Can't Say No"------------------------------------Celeste Holm

Big Band Medley------------------------------------Andy Gibb

NOTE:

It is interesting that as late as the 1980's very well produced and important television SPEICALS are considered not extant to todays audiences...its original 2" Quad master tapes erased to be used for other programming. By 1981 this practiced had diminished greatly, especially those production broadcasts on CBS Television. But still there are "victims" of such practices as represented by this first and only tribute to THE GRAMMY HALL OF FAME which aired as a special one time presentation on CBS on May 18, 1981.

Archival Television Audio, Inc. has had this broadcasts in its inventory for many years, but never played back until a client requested it. Sadly, the audio tape had its own problem issues and at first it appeared that it could not be salvaged at all. 
This tape was a victim of a condition detailed below. it was in very severe condition with 30% of its oxide layer flake off.  However, by "baking" the tape for 13 hours I, Phil Gries, owner of ATA, was able to at least get a transcription discernable dub of this broadcast. It took a number of passes...stop and go...cleaning the tape recorder heads numerous times.  

The sound rendition of this baked tape has sections that are very good, sections that have issues with drop outs, some occasional drops in audio, occasional echo effects of audio, etc. I was able to also use Q tips with Isopropyl alcohol in addition to 
keep audible tonality  as much as possible, keeping content of  this broadcast as much possible, retaining 98% of this broadcast.

The end result is that one can listen to this "lost" broadcast in its entirety with enjoyment realizing its limitations.

STICKY-SHED  SYNDROME  is a condition created by the deterioration of the binders in a magnetic tape, which hold the ferric oxide magnetizable coating to its plastic carrier, or which hold the thinner back-coating on the outside of the tape. This deterioration renders the tape unusable. Some kinds of binder are known to break down over time, due to the absorption of moisture (hydrolysis).

The symptoms of this breakdown can be immediately obvious even when rewinding the tape: tearing sounds and sluggish behavior. If a tape with sticky-shed syndrome is played, the reels will make screeching or squeaking sounds, and the tape will leave dusty, rusty particles on the guides and heads. In some cases, the symptoms are more subtle, causing intermittent dropouts.

This television audio air check seems to be the only existing broadcast record, in this less than pristine playback condition, of this iconic broadcast, not existing in any known archive museum, CBS archives or in any private collection.                                                                                                                            

Special: An Atlanta concert by Larry, Steve and Rudy Gatlin, who reflect on their Texas roots and show-business start, but mostly just sing and strum their old and new hits.

A bevy of stars joins Bob Hope for his birthday from the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. 




                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Special: Robert Klein headlines a program of sketches, songs and blackouts with guests Judd Hirsch and the Charlie Daniels Band. Robert plays the lead in a roller-disco version of "Julius Caesar," the host of a radio call-in show and a taxi driver forcing unwanted advice on his celebrity passenger (Judd). The Charlie Daniels Band performs "In America" and Robert sings "They're Playing Our Song" and "Since I Fell for You."

Special: The 11th Annual Entertainer of the Year Awards, hosted by Mike Douglas. Taped in Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Categories include Entertainer of the Year, Male/Female Comedy Star of the Year, Song & Dance Star of the Year, Vocal Group of the Year and Animal Act of the Year. Presenters include Mickey Rooney, Anthony Newley.

Special: Comedian Robert Klein's self-reflective monologues develop into sketches in which he plays a psychiatric patient who unwittingly reveals his Oedipal dream to a national TV-and-radio audience; and a corporate executive whose meeting with colleagues Jane Curtin and Rodney Dangerfield is sabotaged by swivel chairs. Also: a spoof of "trash sports."

Syndicated series saluting the big bands & their leaders.

A salute to big bands.

Special: Some 32 stars are on hand for a musical gala marking the Los Angeles Bicentennial. Among the highlights: a song-and-dance tribute to Busby Berkeley, headlined by Carol Lawrence; and a salute to the Hollywood canteen of the '40s with Toni Tennille and Peter Marshall. Hosts: Lorne Greene, Natalie Wood, Donald O'Connor, Greer Garson, Eve Arden, Twiggy and Dionne Warwick. Music: "Pennies from Heaven" (Rosemary Clooney), "Don't Leave Me This Way (Thelma Houston), "Never Never Land" (Leslie Uggams) and "Together" (Peggy Lee).

Pressure groups complain about the current State of television
involving sex, violence, profanity, etc. Comments by Rev. Jerry Falwell and TV producers pro and con.
          

Egyptian President Anwar Sadat is shot. Early reports of assassination attempt. Sadat is reported dead in later reports. President Reagan comments on Sadat's death. Hosni Mubarak will assume the presidency.      

Special report on assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and it's consequences. 

Dan Rather reports.           

Special: Telecast live. Mac Davis and Barbara Mandrell are the hosts. Presenters include Rosanne Cash, Jerry Clower, the Charlie Daniels Band, Ronnie Milsap, T.G. Sheppard, the Statler Brothers, Kitty Wells & Dottie West.

Larry Holmes stops Renaldo Snipes via 11th round TKO. After the fight, comments by a visibly upset Snipes and Holmes. Howard Cosell comments on the current sad state of professional boxing, including boxing deaths and unruly fans. Cosell calls the fight from ringside.
         

STS-2 was the second Space Shuttle mission conducted by NASA and the second flight of the orbiter Columbia. Astronauts Joe H. Engle and Richard H. Truly aboard. Launched on November 12th, 1981, and landed two days later on November 14th, 1981.