1978 in television

See also:

Events

• January 28 - The Doobie Brothers make a guest appearance on the television show What's Happening!!.
• February 22 - The Police appear in a television commercial for Wrigley's chewing gum.
• March 7–April 11 - Dennis Potter's groundbreaking drama serial Pennies From Heaven airs on BBC1.
• April 16–April 19 - Holocaust (miniseries), starring James Woods and Meryl Streep first aired on NBC.
• April 22 - The Blues Brothers make their first appearance on Saturday Night Live. The duo of Jake & Elwood Blues (John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd) was introduced by Paul Shaffer (as Don Kirschner) and performed "Hey Bartender".
• April 26 - Ringo Starr's, Ringo, a musical version of The Prince and the Pauper airs on American television. Starr's fellow former Beatle George Harrison provides the narration.
• September - The soap opera As the World Turns is #1 in the daytime Nielsen ratings for the 20th and final consecutive year; no other serial has been at the top of the ratings for such an unbeaten yearly streak.
• November 17 - The Star Wars Holiday Special airs on CBS. The special gives fans their first glimpse of Boba Fett, a character from the upcoming Star Wars sequel.
• The Beatles spoof, The Rutles - All You Need Is Cash airs on television.
• Steve Martin performs the original "King Tut" on Saturday Night Live. The song is later released as a single and becomes a hit for the comedian.
• Abarembo Shogun premieres on the Asahi television network in Japan (1978-2003).