When did the networks start and eventually stop the practice of telling you that the show you wanted to watch wasn’t on that week?

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https://youtu.be/oei2qaewkYA?si=DlEom9KLABnlspoY

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https://youtu.be/B5nZZ50VmVE?si=-S3oDmE1H65rLGd2

It seems like they started in the 1950s. They were mostly phased out by the late 1980s or early 1990s when more people had VCRs. There aren't as many last minute schedule changes like there used to be.

Short answer: it crept in during early network TV (late 1940s–1950s), peaked in the classic network era (1950s–1970s), and faded out by the late 1980s–1990s as TV technology and habits changed.

Here's the longer, more satisfying version by ChatGPT.

https://chatgpt.com/share/699fc0c9-d1d0-800c-b795-45641fcb7ef9