Yo teens of the 80s-(80-84)

I am a 14 year old boy who is just curious(and i'd be really thankful if you could help me) of how many channels you had on tv back then(now it seems as if we have around 72) but i was just wanderin of how many channels you had to choose from. Could u please tell me?! Thanks also, were the golden girls popular back then and did teens watcx it?

Ray

: Yo teens of the 80s-(80-84)

: I am a 14 year old boy who is just curious(and
: i'd be really thankful if you could help me)
: of how many channels you had on tv back
: then(now it seems as if we have around 72)
: but i was just wanderin of how many channels
: you had to choose from. Could u please tell
: me?! Thanks also, were the golden girls
: popular back then and did teens watcx it?

: Ray

At the beginning of the 1980's we had four broadcast channels where I lived—NBC, CBS, ABC, and PBS. On cable there were only 12: we had two ABC channels and two PBS channels, plus an NBC channel, a CBS channel, two independent stations (what is now WTBS Atlanta and a Cincinnati station that is now a Fox affiliate), HBO, and part-time coverage of CBN (now Fox Family), USA, and C-SPAN, and local cable channels. In 1982 another broadcast channel, a local one, which later affiliated with Fox, went on the air. The next year the cable expanded and CBN, USA, and C-SPAN got full-time channels, and Nickelodeon (which at the time went off the air at 9 pm and a channel called ARTS [later Arts & Entertainment] came on), CNN, ESPN, Cinemax, MTV (when it was almost all videos all the time) and Cable Health Network (now Lifetime) along with ACSN (now the Learning Channel) were added. In 1984 the Nashville (now National) Network replaced the Learning Channel, and the Disney Channel replaced the Cincinnati station. In 1986, the local ABC and CBS channels switched affiliations and the more distant ABC channel was dropped, and Nickelodeon (which by that time had the Nick at Nite programming on) became full time, and Home Shopping Network took its place, being shown until 8 pm when the A&E programming came on. Also, when the two public stations left the air, they were replaced by CVN (which was taken over by QVC) and VH-1 (when it still had the hyphen in their name) until those stations came back on the air the next day. In 1988 BET was added to the cable because it took over another cable system that had it. In 1989 the local cable system underwent a rebuild and the channels increased to 43, but it did not come my way until 1990. With the rebuild, HSN, QVC, Arts & Entertainment, and VH-1 (still with the hyphen) became full-time, and the following channels were added: The Comedy Channel (which merged with Ha! in 1991 and became CTV The Comedy Network, which was forced to change its name to Comedy Central, probably under pressure from Canada, whose major commercial network is called CTV), TNT, Headline News, the Weather Channel, FNN (which was taken over by CNBC in 1991), AMC, Nostalgia Television (now called GoodLife TV Network or Good TV for short), Bravo, Discovery Channel, Country Music Television, TBN, and FamilyNet. (Nostalgia and FamilyNet were dropped by my cable system in the 1990's.) I never watched "The Golden Girls" myself, but my mom and dad did. I really never watched any primetime shows myself in the 1980's.

I don't think any sane teen of the 80s watched Golden Girls.

Living in Canada, we had about 13 channels to choose from. We had all the American channels like NBC, CBS, PBS, & ABC, PLUs all the Canadian ones: CTV, CBC-E, CBC-F, KNOW (a PBS-style channel) and several independent channels. The major one in the Pacific Northwest is/was KVOS it's kind of become a conglomerate of Fox/CBS/UPN & WB now, but showed a ton of cool shows back in the 80s too.

Best 2 (early) 80s shows on Canadian TV: The Littlest Hobo (starred a dog) and The King of Kensington (with Al Waxman --who most Americans identify from Cagney & Lacey-- who died yesterday after heart surgery.)

: Yo teens of the 80s-(80-84)

: I am a 14 year old boy who is just curious(and
: i'd be really thankful if you could help me)
: of how many channels you had on tv back
: then(now it seems as if we have around 72)
: but i was just wanderin of how many channels
: you had to choose from. Could u please tell
: me?! Thanks also, were the golden girls
: popular back then and did teens watcx it?

: Ray

Not sure what year we first got cable. Maybe 79-81. I think there was about 30 channels (that had programs.) I do remember how many channels there were before cable, ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, FOX and what is now the WB. That is 6, man what a choice.

: Yo teens of the 80s-(80-84)

: I am a 14 year old boy who is just curious(and
: i'd be really thankful if you could help me)
: of how many channels you had on tv back
: then(now it seems as if we have around 72)
: but i was just wanderin of how many channels
: you had to choose from. Could u please tell
: me?! Thanks also, were the golden girls
: popular back then and did teens watcx it?

: Ray

First of all, enjoy being a teenager!! You'll be in college before you know it...

Now, what was that question? Oh yeah, TV channels... hhhmmmmm. We got cable when I was 13 (for those counting, that would be 1978) and there were probably around 20 channels available in my area back then. WGN, TBS, WOR, probably HBO (although I wasn't allowed to watch), but beyond that I really don't remember. I didn't watch a lot of television (except for M*A*S*H, Barney Miller and Dark Shadows) until ESPN and MTV came onto the scene.

Golden Girls? Nah, I was more of a Night Court and Cheers person.

: Yo teens of the 80s-(80-84)

: I am a 14 year old boy who is just curious(and
: i'd be really thankful if you could help me)
: of how many channels you had on tv back
: then(now it seems as if we have around 72)
: but i was just wanderin of how many channels
: you had to choose from. Could u please tell
: me?! Thanks also, were the golden girls
: popular back then and did teens watcx it?

: Ray

I was lucky enough in 1982 to get cable tv as our city first began to provide this service. (My parents paid $8 per month for cable back then! Now it's nearing $45 per month! HORRIBLE!
I believe we had about 160 channels, but we watched only about 15 of them on a regular basis. As far as the golden girls it was a very popular show back then. I'm sure there were alot of teens that watched that show, but no teens would admit watching that show on a regular basis. I watched it when there were nothing else on. Very funny show.

: Yo teens of the 80s-(80-84)

: I am a 14 year old boy who is just curious(and
: i'd be really thankful if you could help me)
: of how many channels you had on tv back
: then(now it seems as if we have around 72)
: but i was just wanderin of how many channels
: you had to choose from. Could u please tell
: me?! Thanks also, were the golden girls
: popular back then and did teens watcx it?

: Ray

Well, around the time I started high school (1984) cable TV was still rather new. MTV had only been on for 3 years (when they actually played music videos with no Road Rules or Real World crap, but i digress...), and I know CNN had been on for 4 or 5 years I think. I believe other channels that were out included Nickelodeon, HBO, TBS, and a few others that have escaped me now.

And to answer the second part of your question, I used to watch the Golden Girls all the time. It was originally shown I believe on Saturday nights on NBC.

---BoyOfCorn

Cable was not available in my area (and still is not, for that matter). We only got the major network channels...NBC, CBS, ABC...and of course the public television channels. So, I guess you'd say there wasn't a lot to choose from here where I am. We now have a satellite to solve that problem I don't remember watching the Golden Girls, but I know my Grandmother did.

April

: Well, around the time I started high school
: (1984) cable TV was still rather new. MTV
: had only been on for 3 years (when they
: actually played music videos with no Road
: Rules or Real World crap, but i digress...),
: and I know CNN had been on for 4 or 5 years
: I think. I believe other channels that were
: out included Nickelodeon, HBO, TBS, and a
: few others that have escaped me now.

: And to answer the second part of your question,
: I used to watch the Golden Girls all the
: time. It was originally shown I believe on
: Saturday nights on NBC.

: ---BoyOfCorn