I'm posting this here because I assume it was sometime during the early 80's since that was when the home computing boom really started to take off. I do know that the internet was featured for the first time on television on this episode of Silver Spoons from 1984, but was that show truly the first? Even if it served as little more than background scenery, can anybody recall any other shows from the early 80's that featured characters that owned a computer?

I've been really scratching my head on this one, but even being the classic TV geek that I am, I'm drawing a blank.

I remember the TV show 'Whiz Kids" had PC's, that was in 1983-84. Trying to think if any TV had 1 before that.

I could be wrong but I think they had one in an ep of silver spoons.

I could be wrong but I think they had one in an ep of silver spoons.

Maybe. I'm thinking of early 80 TV shows that had older kids in them. I don't think Family Ties did, but there was on episode where Alex invests his dad's money and he went to a stockbroker's office and they had a PC. That was in year 1 (1982-83)

Maybe TV shows like Square Pegs, Facts of Life, Silver Spoons, Different Strokes had them. Don't recall.

Maybe. I'm thinking of early 80 TV shows that had older kids in them. I don't think Family Ties did, but there was on episode where Alex invests his dad's money and he went to a stockbroker's office and they had a PC. That was in year 1 (1982-83)

Maybe TV shows like Square Pegs, Facts of Life, Silver Spoons, Different Strokes had them. Don't recall.


I'm trying to remember the ep where Alex gets hooked on pills. I can't remember if there was a pC on his desk or not.

You have to think of shows with rich kids or needs cuz their the only ones with the resources to have em.  :D

I'm trying to remember the ep where Alex gets hooked on pills. I can't remember if there was a pC on his desk or not.

Typewriter.



You have to think of shows with rich kids or needs cuz their the only ones with the resources to have em.  :D


Silver spoons qualifies, and I know Whiz Kids had them. I didn't watch Square pegs much.

Typewriter.

Silver spoons qualifies, and I know Whiz Kids had them. I didn't watch Square pegs much.


I own square Pegs. I'll check it out when I find time to rewatch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNR8pBLLWHk

Skip ahead to around 2:15.  :P

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNR8pBLLWHk

Skip ahead to around 2:15.  :P



I think we're talking. Desk tops not W.O.P.R. Whopper sized computers lol

I could be wrong but I think they had one in an ep of silver spoons.


Which episode was it?  ???

I think we're talking. Desk tops not W.O.P.R. Whopper sized computers lol


Star Trek, late 1960s
Computer looks like PC

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3091/3135200537_96233c540b.jpg

Ricky was seen messing with his home PC in the first season when he hacked the military!! Season 1 Episode 7 The Great Computer Caper
This would have been 1982....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOGhUab23sA

Which episode was it?  ???


I wouldn't know howard I haven't seen silver spoons since 1985 or something... I just kind of remember an episode with Ricky and Alfonso using a computer in Ricky's room... 


this one...  guess they weren't in Ricky's room.. still.... damn I have a good memory!  :D



Ricky was seen messing with his home PC in the first season when he hacked the military!! Season 1 Episode 7 The Great Computer Caper
This would have been 1982....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOGhUab23sA

Ricky was seen messing with his home PC in the first season when he hacked the military!! Season 1 Episode 7 The Great Computer Caper
This would have been 1982....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOGhUab23sA



Thank you!!! I knew I wasn't completely losing my mind.... yet...  :D

Ok guys, I got an earlier example....

Simon and Simon - Season 1, Episode 3, "Trapdoors" (1981)
Computer = Apple II
Terry uses his Apple II to hack the bank's computer system. There is another II in the computer shop he visits

Found it on this site...

http://www.starringthecomputer.com/feature.html?f=179

It lists earlier examples of legit computers in TV shows, but like that Bat Computer (Not a real computer!!) I posted earlier as a joke, they still took up a whole room! Not exactly home friendly!

In a Season 3 episode of St, Elsewhere, Dr. Axelrod (Stephen Furst) becomes the executor of the estate of Mrs. Huffnagel (Florence Halop) and inside of her apartment, she had a personal computer that she used for tax purposes.

This would have been about 1984 this episode aired.

Ricky was seen messing with his home PC in the first season when he hacked the military!! Season 1 Episode 7 The Great Computer Caper
This would have been 1982....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOGhUab23sA


Ricky was right in 1982, computers are the new wave of the future, Who would've thought he was gonna say that?  ;D

Even though ALF was a bit later, I always think that the technology used by the 'Tanners' is a bit ahead of its time. They even use the internet in one episode in the late 80s (1989) to buy and sell on the stock market.

Ok guys, I got an earlier example....

Simon and Simon - Season 1, Episode 3, "Trapdoors" (1981)
Computer = Apple II
Terry uses his Apple II to hack the bank's computer system. There is another II in the computer shop he visits

Found it on this site...

http://www.starringthecomputer.com/feature.html?f=179

It lists earlier examples of legit computers in TV shows, but like that Bat Computer (Not a real computer!!) I posted earlier as a joke, they still took up a whole room! Not exactly home friendly!


Great site! Seems like it was tailor made for my interests, but somehow I managed to never find it until now.

Perusing through it, one thing that's really interesting is how many TV shows from the 70's (and even more shockingly the 60's) had computers featured in them. According to the site, the first television show to feature a computer proper was the Perry Mason episode "The Case of the Meddling Medium", which aired on October 21, 1961. The computer in question was a Clary DE-60, and it, well, looks pretty much like you'd expect a computer from 1961 to look like.

Even though ALF was a bit later, I always think that the technology used by the 'Tanners' is a bit ahead of its time. They even use the internet in one episode in the late 80s (1989) to buy and sell on the stock market.


Yeah, I've noticed that a much larger number of 80's shows than I would have thought had scenes involving the internet. I wonder why it is then that, despite the increasing number of shows featuring people going online in the late 80's and early 90's, most people didn't become aware of the internet until at least the mid 90's? I don't remember even being aware of it myself until about 1996, but I was fairly young back then so that could have something to do with it.

Even though ALF was a bit later, I always think that the technology used by the 'Tanners' is a bit ahead of its time. They even use the internet in one episode in the late 80s (1989) to buy and sell on the stock market.


I remember that.

I think there was an episode of Saved By the Bell in 1989 where Zack and his buddies were trying to look at the Stock Market via computer.

I don't remember even being aware of it myself until about 1996, but I was fairly young back then so that could have something to do with it.


Same to me. I was probably around 10/11 when I heard about it for the first time - still unaware of what you can really do there. Around 1997 I was still writing normal paper letters and one day my sister came to me and told me about E-Mail.

I know in Full House DJ got one around 1991.

I know in Full House DJ got one around 1991.


'91 is nothing special. That was not too unusual even in my environment.

'91 is nothing special. That was not too unusual even in my environment.


I think I read in 1989 something like 15% of American households had computers. When you are only counting households with children, the figure is probably even higher and would have gone up quite a bit even just two years later. I'd fancy a guess 1 in 3 American children had computers in 1991 ... not sure what it was like in Germany.

I know in Full House DJ got one around 1991.


people had computers back then but not the internet.

people had computers back then but not the internet.


Most people didn't yeah and even if you did, it was probably BBS or other pre-WWW services. The World Wide Web was invented in '89 and released in '91 but I believe it wasn't the main protocol used until 1993 for the global Internet network.

Most people didn't yeah and even if you did, it was probably BBS or other pre-WWW services. The World Wide Web was invented in '89 and released in '91 but I believe it wasn't the main protocol used until 1993 for the global Internet network.


and after that AOL was born.