1989 in American television
See also: 1988 in television, other events of 1989, 1990 in television and the list of 'years in television'.
Events
- Chris Farley's Saturday Night Live carrer begins
- Talk show host, Geraldo Rivera's nose is broken during a taping of his show, when a fight erupts on the set between guests.
- David Spade and Mike Myers joins Saturday Night Live
Popular Television Shows
- January 3 - The Arsenio Hall Show premieres on CBS.
- Cops premieres, which shows footage shot in real life situations with United States police officers (1989-present)
- The Seinfeld Chronicles premieres on NBC. The show would later be retitled Seinfeld and become one of the most popular sitcoms in television history. (1989-1998)
- The Simpsons premieres on FOX. The characters had first appeared two years earlier as a segment on the Tracey Ullman Show. (1989-present)
- The Cosby Show (1984-1992)
- Cheers (1982-1993)
- Dallas (1978-1991)
- Dr Who (1963-1989)
- Family Ties (1982-1989)
- Full House (1987-1995)
- Inspector Morse (1987-2000)
- Jeopardy! (1984-present)
- Late Night with David Letterman (1982-1993)
- Married with Children (1987-1997)
- Miami Vice (1984-1989)
- MTV (1981-present)
- Roseanne (1988-1997)
- Saturday Night Live (1975-present)
- Sesame Street (1969-present)
- The Tonight Show (1954-present)
- Wheel of Fortune (1975-present)
Births
- January 3 - Alex D. Linz, actor
- August 17 - Lil' Romeo, rapper
Deaths
- May 20 - Gilda Radner, actress, comedian
- July 10 - Mel Blanc, voice actor
- October 4 - Graham Chapman, comedian