Black TV Honorable Mention: “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “Roc,” “A Different World,” “City of Angels,” “Julia,” “Cosby,” “What’s Happening!!,” “Everybody Hates Chris,” “Girlfriends,” “Bernie Mac,” “The Steve Harvey Show,” “South Central,” “Martin.”
Queen of All Media: Oprah Winfrey. She’s No. 1 as TV’s most influential and successful personality, daytime or prime time. Isn’t that right, James Frey?
Cool Cartoons: “Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids,” “The P.J.s,” “Boondocks.”
Pioneer Spirit: When “I Spy” premiered on NBC in 1965, Bill Cosby became the first African American to have a starring role in a weekly dramatic series. Three years later on the same network, “Julia” debuted and Diahann Carroll became the first African-American female to star in her own comedy series.
The Kiss: TV’s first interracial smooch? When Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) locked lips with Capt. James T. Kirk (William Shatner) in a 1968 episode of “Star Trek.”
Police Woman of Substance: CCH Pounder as Det. Claudette Wyms, “The Shield.”
Coolest Cop: Philip Michael Thomas as Det. Ricardo Tubbs, “Miami Vice.”
Most Intensely Dedicated and Honorable Cop: Andre Braugher as Det. Frank Pembleton, “Homicide: Life on the Street.”
Guilty Action Show Pleasure: Mr. T as Sgt. B.A. Baracus on “The A-Team.” Pity the fool!
Favorite High School Basketball Player: Warren Coolidge (Byron Stewart), L.A. Carver High School center, “The White Shadow.”
Amazing Grace: Cicely Tyson in “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman,” an unforgettable 1974 TV movie adaptation of the Ernest J. Gaines novel. The film traced the black experience from the Civil War to the civil rights era through the vivid memories of a 110-year-old slave played with fierce, heart-wrenching dignity by Tyson.
Cosmic Dancing Machine Moment: Michael Jackson doing the moonwalk while performing “Billie Jean” in 1983 on “Motown 25: Yesterday, Today and Forever.” Absolutely astonishing.
Ensemble Drama Opportunities: Starting with “Hill Street Blues” in 1981 and continuing with such series as “St. Elsewhere,” “L.A. Law,” “I’ll Fly Away,” “ER” and “Homicide: Life on the Street,” NBC dramas afforded numerous African-American performers the chance to portray more complex, emotionally layered, non-stereotypical characters within multicultural casts.
Hospital Diversity Gold Star: “Grey’s Anatomy,” ABC’s breakout hit, created by African-American writer-producer Shonda Rimes. Yes, the young intern lead character is a pretty white girl. But key positions of Seattle Grace Hospital authority are impressively filled by black physicians played by James Pickens Jr., Isaiah Washington and Chandra Wilson.
Movie Superstar Who Used to Be a Cool TV Doctor: Denzel Washington, who got his first big break in the 1980s as Dr. Phillip Chandler on “St. Elsewhere.” Alfre Woodard had her first major exposure on “St. Elsewhere” as Washington’s St. Eligius colleague and love interest, Dr. Roxanne Turner.
Biggest Drama Disappointment: That CBS pulled the plug after one month on “Under One Roof,” a wonderful 1995 series that starred James Earl Jones as the patriarch of a middle-class, multigenerational African-American family living together in suburban Seattle.
Still Bitterly Controversial (and Hilarious) After All These Years: “Amos “n’ Andy.” The first TV series to feature an all-black cast also created a firestorm of protest by the NAACP and others during the 1960s, when CBS finally withdrew the early 1950s hit from syndicated reruns. But working within the rigid stereotypical confines of their comical universe, the cast, particularly Tim Moore as the Kingfish, delivered sharp, funny and charming performances. Politically incorrect or not, it’s a classic.
White Guy Who Got It: Legendary producer Norman Lear, who cleverly merged social issues and comedy during his influential 1970s run of culturally edgy hits like “All in the Family,” “Maude,” “Sanford and Son,” “The Jeffersons” and “Good Times.”
Shakin’ All Over: Don Cornelius was the boss with the musical hot sauce on “Soul Train.” He helped young America get its groove on while giving valuable exposure to African-Americana recording artists during the show’s hip-shaking heyday in the 1970s and early ” 80s.
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