- Jan 1 NBC radio begins on the hour news 24 hours a day (following CBS lead)
Raul Julia on Bob Newhart Show
Jan 5 Raul Julia appears on "The Bob Newhart Show" in the episode "Oh, Brother"
"Happy Days"
Jan 15 TV sitcom "Happy Days" created by Garry Marshall and starring Ron Howard, Henry Winkler, Marion Ross, and Tom Bosley, begins an 11 year run on ABC
- Jan 18 "$6 Million Man" starring Lee Majors premieres on ABC TV
31st Golden Globes
Jan 26 31st Golden Globes: "The Exorcist", Al Pacino, & Marsha Mason win
"The Way We Were"
Feb 2 Barbra Streisand's 1st #1 hit, "The Way We Were"
Blazing Saddles
Feb 7 Mel Brooks' western spoof film "Blazing Saddles", starring Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder premieres at the Pickwick Drive-In in Burbank, California; patrons watched from horseback rather than cars
- Feb 8 American television soap opera "The Secret Storm" ends a 20 year run on CBS
You're Sixteen
Feb 8 Ringo Starr releases a cover of "You're Sixteen" as a single in UK; originally released by Johnny Burnette in 1960
- Feb 8 TV sitcom "Good Times", spin-off from "Maude", starring Esther Rolle, John Amos, and J.J. Walker, premieres on CBS TV
Pretzel Logic
Feb 20 ABC records releases "Pretzel Logic", the third studio album by rock band Steely Dan; it features hit single "Rikki Don't Lose That Number"
- Feb 23 Teri Garr appears on "The Bob Newhart Show" in the episode "Confessions of an Orthodontist"
- Mar 25 Barbra Streisand records the album "Butterfly"
The Great Gatsby
Mar 29 Film adaption of "The Great Gatsby" starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow with costumes by Ralph Lauren first released
- Apr 1 Pioneer Hall opens at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground, Florida
Academy Awards
Apr 2 46th Academy Awards: "The Sting", Glenda Jackson & Jack Lemmon win
- Apr 8 Discovery Island opens at Walt Disney World, Florida
Film & TV History
Apr 10 Magicians Penn Jillette and Teller first meet
Julie and Dick In Covent Garden
Apr 21 "Julie and Dick In Covent Garden", music and comedy special starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, with Carl Reiner, premieres on ABC-TV
Theatrical Finale
Apr 21 Neil Simon's play "The Sunshine Boys" directed by Alan Arkin, closes at Lunt-Fontanne Theater, NYC, after for 538 performances and 2 Tony Award wins
- May 22 "Julie and Jackie: How Sweet It Is" music and comedy variety special starring Julie Andrews and Jackie Gleason airs on ABC-TV
Television Finale
May 24 "The Dean Martin Show" last airs on NBC-TV
Cannes Film Festival
May 24 27th Cannes Film Festival: "The Conversation" directed by Francis Ford Coppola wins the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film
Emmy Awards
May 28 26th Emmy Awards: M*A*S*H, Alan Alda & Mary Tyler Moore win, 1st Daytime Award presentation and "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman" wins 5 awards, including Cicely Tyson for Dramatic Performance
Chinatown
Jun 20 "Chinatown", directed by Roman Polanski starring Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway, is released
- Jun 21 24th Berlin International Film Festival: "The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz" wins the Golden Bear
- Jun 27 American TV variety program "The Flip Wilson Show" last airs on NBC-TV, after 4 seasons, winning 2 Emmy Awards
- Jul 15 TV news reporter Christine Chubbuck shoots herself live on WXLT-TV, Florida, first person to commit suicide in a live broadcast
Death Wish
Jul 24 "Death Wish", based on the novel by Brian Garfield, directed by Michael Winner and starring Charles Bronson is released in the US
- Jul 24 American newscaster Christine Chubbuck is the first person to commit suicide during a live TV broadcast at WXLT-TV
- Jul 31 6th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at El Cortez Hotel
Telethon
Sep 2 Jerry Lewis' 9th Muscular Dystrophy telethon
Irene
Sep 7 Revival of Harry Tierney and Joseph McCarthy's 1919 musical "Irene", starring Debbie Reynolds, closes at Minskoff Theater, NYC, after 605 performances
- Sep 7 Shirley Cothran (Texas), 21, crowned 47th Miss America 1975
- Sep 10 Controversial TV drama "Born Innocent" premieres on NBC TV, starring Linda Blair as an abused teen in a juvenile detention home
- Sep 13 1st broadcast of "The Rockford Files" on NBC-TV
- Sep 23 BBC Ceefax begins 1st teletext service
Gypsy
Sep 23 Revival of Jules Styne and Stephen Sondheim's musical "Gypsy" opens at Winter Garden Theater, NYC; runs for 120 performances, Angela Lansbury wins Tony Award for her role as Mama Rose
- Oct 1 "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" horror film premieres in director Tobe Hooper's hometown, Austin, Texas in the US
Music History
Oct 6 Jerry Herman's musical "Mack & Mabel", about the romance between silent film figures Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand, starring Robert Preston and Bernadette Peters, opens at Majestic Theater, NYC; runs for 66 performances
- Oct 30 "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" horror film premieres in Los Angeles
- Nov 15 Ringo Starr releases singles "Goodnight Vienna" and "Only You" in the UK
The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
Nov 18 "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" album by English progressive rock band Genesis is released, their last to feature original frontman Peter Gabriel
Coco the Clown
Nov 29 Coco the Clown's [Nicolai Poliakoff] special memorial service held at St. Paul's Cathedral, London, England
Mack & Mabel
Nov 30 Jerry Herman's musical "Mack & Mabel", about the romance between silent film figures Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand, starring Robert Preston and Bernadette Peters, closes at Majestic Theater, NYC, after 66 performances
Baba vs. Brisco
Dec 2 Giant Baba beats Jack Brisco in Kagoshimi, to become NWA champ
Monty Python's Flying Circus
Dec 5 Final episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus airs on BBC TV
- Dec 9 Jack Brisco beats Giant Baba in Tokyo, to become NWA wrestling champ
The Towering Inferno
Dec 14 Disaster film "The Towering Inferno" is released, starring Steve McQueen and Paul Newman
"The Man with the Golden Gun"
Dec 19 "The Man with the Golden Gun", 9th James Bond film, starring Roger Moore, Britt Ekland and Christopher Lee, premieres in London
- Dec 20 "The Godfather Part II", directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, is released (Academy Awards Best Picture 1975)
- Dec 27 Dear Abby show ends run on CBS radio after 11 years
Film & TV History
Dec 29 Murray Schisgal's stage comedy "All Over Town", directed by Dustin Hoffman, opens at the Booth Theatre, NYC; runs for 233 performances
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