TV Land Pays Tribute to Black History Month With 'Breakthroughs',an Original Vignette

[Brett Ferino]

NEW YORK, Jan. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Throughout the month of February, TV
Land salutes Black History Month with "Breakthroughs," an original vignette
series highlighting signature shows, celebrities and moments that have
contributed to African-Americans' roles in television. "Breakthroughs," which
debuts on TV Land on Thursday, February 1, includes narration by Diahann
Carroll, star of the ground-breaking series Julia and Barney Millers' Ron
Glass. The list of honorees were consulted on by Donald Bogle, author of the
forthcoming study "Prime Time Blues: African Americans on Network TV" (Farrar,
Strauss and Giroux, New York).
"TV Land will highlight some of the pivotal moments which furthered the
roles of African-Americans in televised entertainment," explains Larry W.
Jones, Executive Vice President and General Manager of TV Land. "Through this
interstitial series, we hope to remind and educate our viewers about the
ground-breaking steps taken to represent more diversity on television
throughout its history."
TV Land's "Breakthroughs" applauds significant moments that shattered
racial barriers and introduced viewers to some of the most talented
African-American performers and creators in television history. One of the
earliest examples is the 1949 series, "Uptown Jubilee," also known as "Harlem
Jubilee" and "Sugar Hill Times," which was the first network variety series
with an all black cast. The Nat King Cole Show debuted in 1956 and will
forever be remembered for being the first variety series hosted by a high
profile black entertainer. Star Trek broke a long standing network taboo in
1968 by showing the first prime time interracial kiss. In 1984, The Cosby
Show became the first sitcom to fully portray the life of an upper middle
class black family ... not to mention it was the number one show of the 1980s.
Fans can access all of their favorite TV Land show information, play games
and learn where their favorite classic TV stars are now by logging onto http://www.tvland.com.
Now seen in nearly 58 million U.S. homes, TV Land was created in April,
1996. The network's broad mix of sitcoms, dramas, westerns, variety shows and
classic commercials -- which TV Land refers to as Retromercials(TM) -- have
helped make TV Land the highest-rated network to have launched in the past
five years.
Viacom Inc. is one of the world's largest entertainment and media
companies, and a leader in the production, promotion, and distribution of
entertainment, news, sports, and music. Its properties include CBS
Television, MTV Networks, Showtime Networks, Infinity Broadcasting, TDI
Worldwide and Infinity Outdoor, Paramount Pictures, Paramount Television,
Paramount Parks, UPN, Blockbuster, Simon & Schuster, and theatrical exhibition
operations in North America and abroad. The company's Internet businesses
include the MTVi Group, the CBS Internet Group, and Nickelodeon Online.
Viacom also owns a half-interest in the Comedy Central cable channel.
National Amusements, Inc., a closely held corporation which operates
approximately 1,300 motion picture screens in the U.S., the U.K., and South
America, is the parent company of Viacom.