- Jan 5 2 French TV newsmen arrested for trying to plant fake bombs on 3 airlines at JFK airport in security test
- Jan 5 Baseball signs $400M with ESPN, showing 175 games in 1990
- Jan 13 "Ryan's Hope" ends 13½ year run on ABC-TV
"A Bit of Fry and Laurie"
Jan 13 British comedy sketch show series "A Bit of Fry and Laurie" starring Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie debuts on BBC1
46th Golden Globes
Jan 28 46th Golden Globes: "Rain Man", Dustin Hoffman, & Jodie Foster win
Miami Vice's 100th
Feb 10 Miami Vice's 100th episode seen on TV
- Feb 10 To gain deregulation WWF admits pro wrestling is an exhibition & not a sport, in a NJ court
- Feb 22 1st Spanish commercial on network TV (Pepsi-Cola-CBS Grammy Award)
Strategic Defense Initiative
Feb 22 UK physicist Stephen Hawking calls the proposed missile defense system known as Star Wars a "deliberate fraud"
Film & TV History
Feb 24 Stalker Margaret Ray found in David Letterman's home, claims to be his wife
Music History
Feb 26 "Jerome Robbins' Broadway" opens at Imperial Theater, NYC; runs for 634 performances
- Feb 28 Gretchen Polhemus, 23, (Texas), crowned 38th Miss USA
People's Choice Awards
Mar 12 15th People's Choice Awards: Dustin Hoffman & Meryl Streep win (Dramatic Motion Picture) and Bill Cosby & Phylicia Rashad win (TV)
Film & TV History
Mar 24 NBC rebroadcasts Mary Martin and Cyril Ritchard's 1960 version of "Peter Pan" for the first time since 1973
- Mar 27 1st African American soap opera, "Generations" premieres on NBC-TV
- Mar 29 61st Academy Awards: "Rain Man" - Best Picture, Actor (Dustin Hoffman), Director (Barry Levinson) and Screenwriting; and Jodie Foster win
- Mar 29 9th Golden Raspberry Awards: "Cocktail" wins
WrestleMania
Apr 2 WrestleMania V, Historic Atlantic City Convention Hall, NJ: Hulk Hogan beats Randy "Macho Man" Savage for WWF Heavyweight title
- Apr 5 NBC's "Late Night With David Letterman" becomes 1st network TV show broadcast in Dolby Stereo
Film Premiere
Apr 21 World premiere of sports fantasy film "Field of Dreams", in Dubuque, Iowa; based on W. P. Kinsella's novel "Shoeless Joe", and starring Kevin Costner, James Earl Jones, Ray Liotta and Burt Lancaster
- Apr 23 CBS' premiere of fact based "The Littlest Victims", based on Newark, N.J. physician James Oleske as the first doctor to discover AIDS in children
- Apr 30 Chicago newspaper movie critics Gene Siskel & Roger Ebert film their 500th movie-review television show
- May 1 135 acre Disney's MGM studio theme park officially opens to public in Lake Buena Vista, Florida
- May 5 National release of "Field of Dreams", a sports fantasy drama film based on W. P. Kinsella's novel "Shoeless Joe", starring Kevin Costner, James Earl Jones, Ray Liotta and Burt Lancaster in his final film role
Television Finale
May 11 217th & final episode of TV soap opera "Dynasty" is aired
- May 12 "Entertainment Tonight" makes its 2,000th TV performance
- May 14 Final TV episode of "Family Ties" airs on NBC with a 36 million audience
- May 14 Moonlighting, TV Crime Drama last airs on ABC
- May 15 Maxwell House coffee runs ads during "Roe vs Wade" movie despite threat of boycott by right-to-lifers
TV Show Appearance
May 19 Sue Ellen's (Linda Gray) last appearance on TV show "Dallas"
Film & TV History
May 20 Toonces The Cat takes the wheel on "Saturday Night Live"
- May 23 3rd American Comedy Award: Paula Poundstone
Cannes Film Festival
May 23 42nd Cannes Film Festival: "Sex, Lies, and Videotape" directed by Steven Soderbergh wins the Palme d'Or
- May 23 Angela Visser, 22, of Holland, crowned 38th Miss Universe
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
May 24 "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade", directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Harrison Ford, and produced by George Lucas' Lucasfilms premieres
Music Recording
May 24 Weird Al Yankovic records three tracks for his UHF movie soundtrack
- May 25 Weird Al Yankovic records parody song "She Drives Like Crazy"
- May 30 Margaret Ray pleads guilty to breaking into David Letterman's house
Dead Poets Society
Jun 2 "Dead Poets Society" film starring Robin Williams premieres
- Jun 4 43rd Tony Awards: "The Heidi Chronicles" (play) and "Jerome Robbins' Broadway" (musical) win
- Jun 9 "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" premieres in USA
- Jun 10 "Tales From The Crypt" TV Anthology debuts on HBO
- Jun 12 "Doctor Doctor", TV Comedy starring Matt Frewer, debuts on CBS-TV
- Jun 13 "Licence to Kill", 16th James Bond film, last directed by John Glen and starring Timothy Dalton premieres in London
Music History
Jun 13 Piano playing rock singer Jerry Lee Lewis gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Music History
Jun 14 "You've Got A Friend" singer-songwriter Carole King gets a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame
Film & TV History
Jun 14 Zsa Zsa Gabor arrested for slapping Beverly Hills motorcycle patrolman
Ghostbusters II
Jun 16 "Ghostbusters II", American supernatural comedy film sequel, directed by Ivan Reitman, starring Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd premieres
- Jun 20 Warner Bros Records releases the eleventh studio album by singer Prince, the soundtrack to the film "Batman", it features the single “Batdance”
Film & TV History
Jun 21 Black comedy "Heathers" starring Winona Ryder, Christian Slater and Shannen Doherty premieres at the Sundance Film Festival
Batman Premieres
Jun 23 Movie "Batman" premieres directed by Tim Burton, starring Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson
- Jun 25 "Day By Day" last airs on NBC-TV
Daytime Emmy Awards
Jun 29 Emmy 16th Daytime Award presentation - Susan Lucci loses for 10th time
- Jun 30 "Great Balls of Fire!" a quasi-biographical drama film starring Dennis Quaid as rockabilly pioneer Jerry Lee Lewis premieres; Lewis hates the film and the book from which it is sourced, but praises Quaid's performance
- Jul 3 Movie "Batman" set record of quickest $100 million (10 days)
Film & TV History
Jul 4 14-year-old actress Drew Barrymore, attempts suicide
Seinfield
Jul 5 "Seinfield" (originally titled The Seinfeld Chronicles" screens its pilot episode starring Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Michael Richards on NBC
When Harry Met Sally
Jul 14 Romantic comedy film "When Harry Met Sally" starring Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan, directed by Rob Reiner, and written by Nora Ephron, is released
- Jul 23 FOX-TV tops ABC, NBC & CBS for 1st time (America's Most Wanted)
Music Concert
Jul 23 Ringo Starr's first All-Starr Band debuts in concert; members include Joe Walsh, Nils Lofgren, Rick Danko, Levon Helm, Clarence Clemons, Dr. John, Billy Preston, and Jim Keltner
Roger and Me
Sep 1 "Roger and Me", the first documentary directed by Michael Moore, premieres at the Telluride Film Festival
- Sep 4 46th Venice Film Festival: "A City of Sadness" directed by Hsiao-hsien Hou debuts and wins the Golden Lion
Telethon
Sep 4 Jerry Lewis' 24th Muscular Dystrophy telethon raises $42,737,219
The Joan Rivers Show
Sep 5 Daytime talk show "The Joan Rivers Show" hosted by Joan Rivers premieres on US TV
- Sep 16 14th Toronto International Film Festival: "Roger & Me" directed by Michael Moore wins the People's Choice Award
- Sep 16 Debbye Turner (Mont), 23, crowned 63rd Miss America 1990
- Sep 17 41st Emmy Awards: "LA Law", "Cheers", Dana Delany & Candice Bergen win
Doogie Howser, M.D.
Sep 19 "Doogie Howser, M.D.", starring Neil Patrick Harris as a teenage physician, debuts on ABC
Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814
Sep 19 "Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814" 4th studio album by Janet Jackson is released (Grammy Award Best Long Form Music Video 1990, Billboard Album of the Year 1990)
Miss Saigon
Sep 20 Musical "Miss Saigon" premieres in London, created by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil
Baywatch
Sep 22 TV drama "Baywatch" starring David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson debuts on NBC
- Sep 24 ABC's premiere of "The Preppie Murder", based on 1986 murder in New York City of Jennifer Levin by ex prep school student Robert Chambers
- Sep 29 Zsa Zsa Gabor convicted of slapping a police officer in Beverly Hills
- Oct 2 TV true life drama "A Cry for Help: The Tracey Thurman Story" premieres on NBC in the US
Sports History
Oct 7 Howard Stern's "US Open Sores" tennis match against his producer Gary Dell'Abate. at Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, New York
Radio Premiere
Oct 15 American radio and television evangelist Billy Graham is given the 1,900th star on Hollywood Boulevard, the first clergyman to be granted a star
Television Finale
Nov 2 "Blackadder Goes Forth" final episode "Goodbyeee" airs on BBC-TV starring Rowan Atkinson and Tony Robinson, written by Richard Curtis and Ben Elton
- Nov 8 "Byker Grove" begins broadcasting on the BBC
- Nov 11 Don Sebesky and Gloria Nissenson's musical "Prince of Central Park", starring Jo Anne Worley, closes at Belasco Theater, NYC, after 4 performances
- Nov 15 "Batman" film is released on video tape
- Nov 22 Aneta Kreglicka of Poland, 24, crowned 39th Miss World
All Hail the Queen
Nov 28 Queen Latifah releases her debut hip hop album "All Hail the Queen" featuring single "Ladies First"
Driving Miss Daisy
Dec 13 "Driving Miss Daisy" directed by Bruce Beresford and starring Morgan Freeman and Jessica Tandy is released (Best Picture 1990)
The Simpsons
Dec 17 "The Simpsons" created by Matt Groening, premieres on Fox TV as a full animated series with the episode, "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire"
- Dec 29 Jane Pauley says goodbye to NBC's "Today" show
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