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The Television Portal

Flat-screen televisions for sale at a consumer electronics store in 2008

Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, entertainment, news, and sports.

Television became available in crude experimental forms in the 1920s, but only after several years of further development was the new technology marketed to consumers. After World War II, an improved form of black-and-white television broadcasting became popular in the United Kingdom and the United States, and television sets became commonplace in homes, businesses, and institutions. During the 1950s, television was the primary medium for influencing public opinion. In the mid-1960s, color broadcasting was introduced in the U.S. and most other developed countries.

In 2013, 79% of the world's households owned a television set. The replacement of earlier cathode-ray tube (CRT) screen displays with compact, energy-efficient, flat-panel alternative technologies such as LCDs (both fluorescent-backlit and LED), OLED displays, and plasma displays was a hardware revolution that began with computer monitors in the late 1990s. Most television sets sold in the 2000s were flat-panel, mainly LEDs. Major manufacturers announced the discontinuation of CRT, Digital Light Processing (DLP), plasma, and even fluorescent-backlit LCDs by the mid-2010s. LEDs are being gradually replaced by OLEDs. Also, major manufacturers have started increasingly producing smart TVs in the mid-2010s. Smart TVs with integrated Internet and Web 2.0 functions became the dominant form of television by the late 2010s. (Full article...)

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Pride and Prejudice is a six-episode 1995 British television drama, adapted by Andrew Davies from Jane Austen's 1813 novel of the same name. Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth starred as Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy, respectively. Produced by Sue Birtwistle and directed by Simon Langton, the serial was a BBC production with additional funding from the American A&E Network. BBC1 originally broadcast the 55-minute episodes from 24 September to 29 October 1995. The A&E Network aired the series in double episodes on three consecutive nights beginning 14 January 1996.

Critically acclaimed and a popular success, Pride and Prejudice was honoured with several awards, including a BAFTA Television Award for Jennifer Ehle for "Best Actress" and an Emmy for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Costume Design for a Miniseries or a Special". The role of Mr Darcy elevated Colin Firth to stardom. A scene showing Firth in a wet shirt was recognised as "one of the most unforgettable moments in British TV history". The New York Times called the adaptation "a witty mix of love stories and social conniving, cleverly wrapped in the ambitions and illusions of a provincial gentry". The series inspired author Helen Fielding to write the popular Bridget Jones novels, and their screen adaptations subsequently featured Firth as Bridget's love interest, Mark Darcy.

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Credit: Nobody of Consequence

Phonevision, also known as station KS2XBS, was an experimental television station in Chicago, Illinois, owned and operated by Zenith. It was the world's first pay television station. Zenith originally occupied the VHF Channel 2 frequencies since 1939, using this as an experimental station while they tried to perfect "PhoneVision".

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... that a scene from the television adaptation of the manga It's All About the Looks was filmed at the Tokyo Girls Collection fashion show?
... that actor Jonathan Roumie, who plays the character of Jesus Christ in American television series The Chosen, is also an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion in the Catholic Church?
... that New Zealand singer Fanny Howie composed the song "Hine E Hine", which aired on New Zealand television every night from 1981 to 1994?
... that Filipina actress Angel Aquino has been described as a "perennial villainess" for portraying several antagonistic roles on television?
... that before being restored as a Broadway theater, the Ritz Theatre was used as a television studio, pornographic theater, vaudeville house, children's theater, and poster warehouse?
... that Ukrainian actress Oksana Shvets, who was killed in the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, starred in the 2013 joint Ukrainian–Russian television family saga House with Lilies alongside Russian actors?

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If there's anything unsettling to the stomach, it's watching actors on television talk about their personal lives.

— Marlon Brando

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...that The Simpsons and Philosophy: The D'oh! of Homer, a book that analyzes the The Simpsons using philosophical concepts, is the main textbook in philosophy courses offered at some universities?

...that one of the television advertisements from the Good things come to those who wait Guinness advertising campaign was voted the "Best ad of all time" by the British public?

...that model Albert Reed, selected to appear in September 2007 on the United States television show Dancing with the Stars, admits that he cannot dance?

...that Tomorrow's Pioneers, a television program for children produced by Hamas, features a mascot similar to Mickey Mouse?

...that a Spokane, Washington, television station devoted the first 11 minutes of its Saturday evening newscast to the February 2007 arrests of Gonzaga University basketball player Josh Heytvelt and his teammate?

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Strickland in April 2005

Katherine Dee Strickland (born December 14, 1975) is an American actress. From 2007 to 2013, she played Charlotte King on the ABC drama Private Practice (2007–2013).

Strickland began acting during high school. She studied acting in Philadelphia and New York City, where she obtained mostly small roles in film, television, and stage projects, among them The Sixth Sense (1999). Her participation in the 2003 Hollywood films Anything Else and Something's Gotta Give led to her receiving significant parts in the 2004 horror films Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid and The Grudge. She was then referred to as "the pride of Patterson" and the horror genre's "newest scream queen", though her performances in both films received mixed critical reviews. In 2005, she garnered positive critical reviews for the romantic comedy Fever Pitch, and she was a regular on the television show The Wedding Bells in 2007. She was subsequently added to the cast of Private Practice. (Full article...)

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James T. Aubrey Kroger Babb Rudolph Cartier Sydney Newman Eric Bana Kylie Minogue Peter Jennings Austin Nichols Aaron Sorkin Jake Gyllenhaal Dan Rather Brad Pitt Walter Cronkite Tom Brokaw John Le Mesurier George Formby Dan Castellaneta Perry Como Red Skelton Rose Catherine Pinkney

General images

The following are images from various television-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Comparison of image quality between ISDB-T (1080i broadcast, top) and NTSC (480i transmission, bottom) (from Digital television)
Image 2RCA 630-TS, the first mass-produced television set, which sold in 1946–1947 (from History of television)
Image 3LG Smart TV using the Web browser (from Smart TV)
Image 4The Nipkow disk. This schematic shows the circular paths traced by the holes, which may also be square for greater precision. The area of the disk outlined in black shows the region scanned. (from History of television)
Image 5This live image of actress Paddy Naismith was used to demonstrate Telechrome, John Logie Baird's first all-electronic color television system, which used two projection CRTs. The two-color image would be similar to the basic Telechrome system. (from Color television)
Image 6Public television in France uses 819 line b&w high definition, from 1959 until 1983 (TF1). (from History of television)
Image 7A color television test at the Mount Kaukau transmitter site, New Zealand in 1970.
A test pattern with color bars is used to calibrate the signal. (from Color television)
Image 8Ferdinand Braun (from History of television)
Image 9A map depicting digital terrestrial television standards (from Digital television)
Image 10The Philco Predicta, 1958. In the collection of The Children's Museum of Indianapolis (from History of television)
Image 11Philo Farnsworth in 1924 (from History of television)
Image 12Hovannes Adamian c. 1900s (from Color television)
Image 13RCA CT-100 at the SPARK Museum of Electrical Invention playing Superman. The RCA CT-100 was the first mass-produced color TV set. (from Color television)
Image 14LG Electronics smart TV from 2011 (from Smart TV)
Image 15DBS satellite dishes. (from History of television)
Image 16Baird in 1925 with his televisor equipment and dummies "James" and "Stooky Bill" (right). (from History of television)
Image 17Ad for the beginning of experimental television broadcasting in New York City by RCA in 1939 (from History of television)
Image 18An early Smart TV from 2012 running the discontinued Orsay platform (from History of television)
Image 19Family watching TV, 1958 (from History of television)
Image 20First television test broadcast transmitted by the NHK Broadcasting Technology Research Institute in May 1939 (from History of television)
Image 21Samsung's discontinued Orsay platform (from Smart TV)
Image 22Manfred von Ardenne in 1933 (from History of television)
Image 23Smart TVs on display (from Smart TV)
Image 24Color bars used in a test pattern, sometimes used when no program material is available. (from History of television)
Image 25The first mass-produced Czechoslovak TV-set Tesla 4001A (1953–57) (from History of television)

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Featured lists have been determined by the Wikipedia community to be the best lists on English Wikipedia.

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Naruto: Shippuden is an anime television series mainly adapted from Part II of Masashi Kishimoto's original Naruto manga series, with exactly 500 episodes. It is set two and a half years after the original series in the Naruto universe, following the teenage ninja Naruto Uzumaki and his allies. The series is directed by Hayato Date, and produced by Pierrot and TV Tokyo. It began broadcasting on February 15, 2007, on TV Tokyo, and concluded on March 23, 2017.

On January 2, 2009, Viz Media and Crunchyroll provided eight English subtitled Naruto: Shippuden episodes on the official Naruto website. Later the following 2 weeks, Viz began providing subtitled versions of the latest Naruto: Shippuden episodes a week after they first aired in Japan, with a new episode being added to the Naruto website each subsequent Thursday. On July 24, 2009, Viz Media announced that the series would be released on the iTunes Store. The first DVD release of the series in North America was released on September 29, 2009. The English dub of Naruto: Shippuden made its US premiere on Disney XD on October 28, 2009. (Full article...)

Series	Episodes	Originally aired		Ave. UK viewers (millions)
Series	Episodes	First aired	Last aired	Ave. UK viewers (millions)
1	6	15 January 2012 (2012-01-15)	19 February 2012 (2012-02-19)	10.61
2	Special	25 December 2012 (2012-12-25)		10.47
2	8	20 January 2013 (2013-01-20)	10 March 2013 (2013-03-10)	10.47
3	Special	25 December 2013 (2013-12-25)		10.54
3	8	19 January 2014 (2014-01-19)	9 March 2014 (2014-03-09)	10.54
4	Special	25 December 2014 (2014-12-25)		10.41
4	8	18 January 2015 (2015-01-18)	8 March 2015 (2015-03-08)	10.41
5	Special	25 December 2015 (2015-12-25)		9.95
5	8	17 January 2016 (2016-01-17)	6 March 2016 (2016-03-06)	9.95
6	Special	25 December 2016 (2016-12-25)		10.33
6	8	22 January 2017 (2017-01-22)	12 March 2017 (2017-03-12)	10.33
7	Special	25 December 2017 (2017-12-25)		9.26
7	8	21 January 2018 (2018-01-21)	11 March 2018 (2018-03-11)	9.26
8	Special	25 December 2018 (2018-12-25)		9.04
8	8	13 January 2019 (2019-01-13)	3 March 2019 (2019-03-03)	9.04
9	Special	25 December 2019 (2019-12-25)		8.34
9	8	5 January 2020 (2020-01-05)	23 February 2020 (2020-02-23)	8.34
10	Special	25 December 2020 (2020-12-25)		8.14
10	7	18 April 2021 (2021-04-18)	30 May 2021 (2021-05-30)	8.14
11	Special	25 December 2021 (2021-12-25)		7.64
11	8	2 January 2022 (2022-01-02)	20 February 2022 (2022-02-20)	7.64
12	Special	25 December 2022 (2022-12-25)		6.96
12	8	1 January 2023 (2023-01-01)	26 February 2023 (2023-02-26)	6.96
13	Special	25 December 2023 (2023-12-25)		6.86
13	8	7 January 2024 (2024-01-07)	3 March 2024 (2024-03-03)	6.86

(Full article...)

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Doherty attending the premiere of 90210 in 2008

American actress Shannen Doherty has appeared in numerous television programs and motion pictures. After her television debut in Father Murphy in 1981, she landed her first major role in the dramatic western television series Little House on the Prairie (1982–1983), and reprised her role in its three television specials. Doherty received two Young Artist Award nominations for playing the oldest Witherspoon sibling Kris in the family drama Our House (1986–1988). She appeared in four films during the 1980s, including the positively-received, animated film The Secret of NIMH (1982) and the cult classic Heathers (1988). Her breakthrough role was as Brenda Walsh in the teen drama Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990–1994), but she was later dropped from the series because of backstage issues and her negative image as a "bad girl". She starred in television films in the early and mid-1990s, and played Rene Mosier in the romantic comedy Mallrats (1995) in an attempt to rebuild her career.

Doherty enjoyed a resurgence in popularity after being cast by producer Aaron Spelling to play Prue Halliwell on the supernatural drama Charmed (1998–2001). The series was their second collaboration following Beverly Hills, 90210. The character was praised by critics and fans, earning a spot as one of the best witches in television history according to a TVLine article, and Doherty took an active role in the show's production, directing three of its episodes. Following disagreements with Spelling and co-star Alyssa Milano, Doherty left the series in its third season. Doherty starred in a string of television films and had a recurring role on the prime-time soap opera North Shore (2004–2005). The following year, she was cast as Denise Johnson in the unaired pilot of the sitcom Love, Inc., but was dropped from the show by producers from United Paramount Network (UPN). She reprised her role as Brenda Walsh in the reboot of 90210 (2008–2009), appearing as a special guest star in seven episodes in its first season. (Full article...)
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Millennium is a crime-thriller television series which was broadcast from 1996 to 1999. Created by Chris Carter, the series aired on Fox for three seasons with a total of sixty-seven episodes. It starred Lance Henriksen, Megan Gallagher, Klea Scott and Brittany Tiplady. Henriksen played Frank Black, an offender profiler for the Millennium Group (a private investigative organisation). Black retires from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and moves his wife Catherine (Gallagher) and daughter Jordan (Tiplady) to Seattle, where he begins consulting on criminal cases for the group. After the group's attempt to cause an apocalyptic viral outbreak kills his wife, Black returns to the FBI to work with new partner Emma Hollis (Scott) to discredit the group.

Black was one of the first elements conceived for the series, the remainder of which were fleshed out by Carter around his character. Black has been described by a producer as Millennium's constant, as the series' tone and direction changed around him with each successive season. Except for Frank Black, the series' characters have been criticized as one-dimensional, "generic" and little more than "symbol[s]". Television critic Robert Shearman said that the series featured "half a dozen actors who could be termed regulars [...] but without exception they remain functional ciphers". (Full article...)
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The Masked Singer is an American reality singing competition television series based on the South Korean television program King of Mask Singer. The show, which involves celebrities singing anonymously in elaborate full-body costumes, was developed by Craig Plestis and is hosted by Nick Cannon. During most episodes, three to six celebrities each perform covers of famous songs in costume in front of a studio audience and panelists Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg, Nicole Scherzinger, and Robin Thicke. After the audience and panelists vote for their favorite performance, the celebrity with the fewest votes is eliminated from the competition and takes off their mask, revealing their identity.

The series has been broadcast on Fox since January 2, 2019, and has aired ten seasons thus far. Plestis and Izzie Pick Ibarra have served as executive producers since the first season; Rosie Seitchik and Cannon have also done so since the second and third, respectively. As the highest-rated entertainment series in the adults 18–49 key demographic both television seasons it has aired, the program's ratings have remained consistently high. Owing to its success, an aftershow, The Masked Singer: After the Mask, was formed as a spin-off. The series's costume designer has won a Costume Designers Guild Award in the Excellence in Variety, Reality-Competition, Live Television category, and has received two Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Costumes for a Variety, Nonfiction, or Reality Programming nominations. Aside from double-length episodes, most run for about 43 minutes. (Full article...)
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The Best MLS Player ESPY Award is an annual award honoring the achievements of an individual from the world of Major League Soccer (MLS). It was first awarded as part of the ESPY Awards in 2006. The Best MLS Player ESPY Award trophy, designed by sculptor Lawrence Nowlan, is presented to the MLS player adjudged to be the best in a given calendar year at the annual ESPY Awards ceremony in Los Angeles. Balloting for the award is undertaken by fans over the Internet from between three and five nominees selected by the ESPN Select Nominating Committee, which is composed by a panel of experts. It is conferred in July to reflect performance and achievement over the preceding twelve months, which generally includes a portion of each of two MLS seasons.

The inaugural winner of the Best MLS Player ESPY Award was LA Galaxy forward Landon Donovan in 2006. He is one of two people to have been presented with the award more than once in its history, winning it a further four times in 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011; he also earned a nomination in 2008. English right midfielder David Beckham, also for LA Galaxy, has been the second most successful player, winning twice in 2008 and 2012. American players have been the most successful with five wins and twenty-eight nominations, while those who play in the position of a forward have been recognized on fourteen occasions, and those who have played for LA Galaxy have won a total of nine awards. It was not awarded in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The most recent winner of the award was Carlos Vela of Los Angeles FC in 2022. (Full article...)
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The Bellflower Bunnies (French: La Famille Passiflore) is a children's animated series based on the Beechwood Bunny Tales books by Geneviève Huriet, Amélie Sarn and Loïc Jouannigot. It debuted on TF1, a French television network, on 24 December 2001. Many French and Canadian companies have participated in the show's production over the years; TF1 has always been involved. The series is written by Valérie Baranski, and produced by Patricia Robert. Moran Caouissin directed the first season, and Eric Berthier did the last two.

The show centres on the adventures and exploits of the Bellflower family, a clan of seven rabbits who live in Beechwood Grove. The two adults in the family, Papa Bramble and Aunt Zinnia, take care of their five children: Periwinkle, Poppy, Mistletoe, Dandelion and Violette. (Full article...)
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Series Episodes Originally aired
First aired Last aired
1 12 16 January 1989 10 April 1989
2 13 18 January 1990 12 April 1990
3 6 7 May 1991 11 June 1991
4 6 7 January 1992 11 February 1992
5 6 16 April 1993 21 May 1993
(Full article...)
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Hoffman in 2010

Philip Seymour Hoffman (1967–2014) was an American actor, director, and producer who made his screen debut on the police procedural Law & Order in 1991. He made his film debut later in the same year by appearing in a minor role in Triple Bogey on a Par Five Hole. Hoffman followed this with supporting roles as a student in Scent of a Woman (1992), and a storm chaser in Twister (1996) before his breakthrough role as a gay boom operator in Paul Thomas Anderson's drama Boogie Nights (1997), for which he received critical acclaim. In the same year, he appeared in the Revolutionary War documentary series Liberty! (1997). Two years later, he played a kind nurse in Anderson's Magnolia and an arrogant playboy in The Talented Mr. Ripley, for which he received the National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor. Hoffman made his Broadway debut the following year with his lead role in True West which garnered him a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play.

Hoffman received the Academy Award for Best Actor, BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama for his portrayal of writer Truman Capote in the 2005 biographical film Capote. He followed this by playing a ruthless arms dealer in the action spy film Mission: Impossible III (2006) and CIA agent Gust Avrakotos in the Mike Nichols-directed Charlie Wilson's War (2007). Hoffman's performance as a priest suspected of child abuse in the period drama Doubt (2008) with Meryl Streep and Amy Adams received critical acclaim and multiple award nominations in the Best Supporting Actor category. In the same year, he played a troubled theatre director in Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York. (Full article...)

Series	Episodes	Originally released
Series	Episodes	First released	Last released	Network
1	3	4 December 2011 (2011-12-04)	18 December 2011 (2011-12-18)	Channel 4
2	3	11 February 2013 (2013-02-11)	25 February 2013 (2013-02-25)
Special		16 December 2014 (2014-12-16)
3	6	21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)		Netflix
4	6	29 December 2017 (2017-12-29)
Interactive film		28 December 2018 (2018-12-28)
5	3	5 June 2019 (2019-06-05)
6	5	15 June 2023 (2023-06-15)

(Full article...)

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30 Rockefeller Plaza, the titular setting of 30 Rock

30 Rock is an American satirical situation comedy that premiered on NBC on October 11, 2006. Created by Tina Fey, the television series has won and been nominated for a variety of different awards during its seven season run. It received 103 Emmy Awards nominations, with 10 Emmy Award nominations for its first season alone, and a further 17 Emmy Award nominations in its second season. The show won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series for its first three seasons and was nominated every year it was eligible.

Lead actress Tina Fey has been nominated for awards 27 times for her role as Liz Lemon, the head writer of the fictional television show TGS with Tracy Jordan. Fey has also been nominated eight times for her writing skills. Lead actor Alec Baldwin has been nominated 27 times for his portrayal of NBC television executive Jack Donaghy. Through its run, 30 Rock was nominated for 189 different awards, winning 47. A webisode series called Kenneth the Web Page has been nominated for one award. In this list, "year" refers to the year the award was presented to the winner. (Full article...)

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