Sightings
Encyclopedia
Sightings was an American paranormal documentary
and news television series that originally aired from April 17, 1992 to August 1, 1997 on Fox
. The program began as a special titled The UFO Report: Sightings on October 18, 1991. The original Concept Creator and Supervising Producer of that hour special produced by Paramount for Fox TV was Linda Moulton Howe
, an Emmy Award
-winning TV producer and documentary filmmaker of TV specials about science and the environment. One of her Emmy award-winning broadcasts was A Strange Harvest (KMGH-TV in May 1980), about the worldwide animal-mutilation
mystery linked by law enforcement to extraterrestrial
biological entities.
After the special broadcast to high ratings, it went forward into weekly TV production as the series Sightings. The show featured everything from UFOs to ghost
s to Bigfoot
in an investigative news format and was hosted by reporter Tim White
. The show was created by Ann Daniels Productions, Fair Dinkum Productions, and Paramount Domestic Television
. One of its executive producer
s was Henry Winkler
.
The series began on Fox
in 1992 (the first Paramount Television production ever to air on that network), in a 30 minute long format that aired on Friday nights. When the show was put into syndication
in 1994, it was extended to an hour long format and was on at various times. In 1996, it was picked up by Sci Fi Channel
. Sightings was cancelled in 1997 (although five special episodes aired in 1998), and reruns continued on the Sci Fi Channel
until April 2003.
In 2002, one of the stories featured on Sightings became the subject of a television movie, called Sightings: Heartland Ghost. The movie tells the story of a Sightings crew sent to investigate a poltergeist
haunting, eventually becoming victimized by the ghost themselves.
In 2003, a program called Unexplained Mysteries
debuted in syndication. Although it did not have the same hosted news format like Sightings, it was produced by many of the same individuals involved with Sightings, and sometimes reused footage and graphics from the earlier series.
releases of the Sightings television show: The UFO Report, The Ghost Report, and The Psychic Experience. The videos were repackaged segments from season one and two of the television show. All three videos were originally released in 1996, and were $14.95 each.
Documentary
A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...
and news television series that originally aired from April 17, 1992 to August 1, 1997 on Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
. The program began as a special titled The UFO Report: Sightings on October 18, 1991. The original Concept Creator and Supervising Producer of that hour special produced by Paramount for Fox TV was Linda Moulton Howe
Linda Moulton Howe
Linda Moulton Howe, born January 20, 1942, is an American investigative journalist and documentary producer-writer-director-editor who is currently based in Albuquerque, New Mexico.-Early life and education:She was born as Linda Moulton in Boise, Idaho...
, an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
-winning TV producer and documentary filmmaker of TV specials about science and the environment. One of her Emmy award-winning broadcasts was A Strange Harvest (KMGH-TV in May 1980), about the worldwide animal-mutilation
Cattle mutilation
Cattle mutilation is the apparent killing and mutilation of cattle under unusual or anomalous circumstances...
mystery linked by law enforcement to extraterrestrial
Extraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
biological entities.
After the special broadcast to high ratings, it went forward into weekly TV production as the series Sightings. The show featured everything from UFOs to ghost
Ghost
In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
s to Bigfoot
Bigfoot
Bigfoot, also known as sasquatch, is an ape-like cryptid that purportedly inhabits forests, mainly in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Bigfoot is usually described as a large, hairy, bipedal humanoid...
in an investigative news format and was hosted by reporter Tim White
Tim White (reporter)
Tim White is an American Emmy Award - winning news anchor and investigative reporter known for his role as host of the popular FOX-TV / Sci Fi Channel / syndicated paranormal documentary series "Sightings" from 1992 to 1997...
. The show was created by Ann Daniels Productions, Fair Dinkum Productions, and Paramount Domestic Television
Paramount Domestic Television
Paramount Domestic Television was the television distribution arm of American television production company Paramount Television, once the TV arm of Paramount Pictures...
. One of its executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
s was Henry Winkler
Henry Winkler
Henry Franklin Winkler, OBE is an American actor, director, producer, and author.Winkler is best known for his role as Fonzie on the 1970s American sitcom Happy Days...
.
The series began on Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
in 1992 (the first Paramount Television production ever to air on that network), in a 30 minute long format that aired on Friday nights. When the show was put into syndication
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
in 1994, it was extended to an hour long format and was on at various times. In 1996, it was picked up by Sci Fi Channel
Sci Fi Channel (United States)
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
. Sightings was cancelled in 1997 (although five special episodes aired in 1998), and reruns continued on the Sci Fi Channel
Sci Fi Channel
Syfy Universal is a family of television stations in countries around the world broadcasting science fiction, fantasy, horror, supernatural and paranormal programming, and owned or licensed by entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. The first such channel was launched in...
until April 2003.
In 2002, one of the stories featured on Sightings became the subject of a television movie, called Sightings: Heartland Ghost. The movie tells the story of a Sightings crew sent to investigate a poltergeist
Poltergeist
A poltergeist is a paranormal phenomenon which consists of events alluding to the manifestation of an imperceptible entity. Such manifestation typically includes inanimate objects moving or being thrown about, sentient noises and, on some occasions, physical attacks on those witnessing the...
haunting, eventually becoming victimized by the ghost themselves.
In 2003, a program called Unexplained Mysteries
Unexplained Mysteries
Unexplained Mysteries is an American documentary television show that originally aired in 2003-2004 for a single season and is currently in syndication. The show deals with eyewitness accounts of paranormal activity, especially aliens, UFOs, and ghosts; almost all of the them rehashed reports from...
debuted in syndication. Although it did not have the same hosted news format like Sightings, it was produced by many of the same individuals involved with Sightings, and sometimes reused footage and graphics from the earlier series.
Home video releases
There have been three home videoVHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
releases of the Sightings television show: The UFO Report, The Ghost Report, and The Psychic Experience. The videos were repackaged segments from season one and two of the television show. All three videos were originally released in 1996, and were $14.95 each.
Merchandise
- Two books were released in 1997 related to the Sightings television show - Sightings: Beyond Imagination Lies the Truth and Sightings: UFOs.
- One software product was released related to the Sightings television show called Sightings: UFOPedia. The software included pictures, reports, footage, and never before seen footage from the show in an encyclopedia format.
- A line of clothing was released related to the Sightings television show that included t-shirts. The shirts would have either a ghost, alien, or psychic on the front with the word Sightings.
External links
- Sightings at TV.comTV.comTV.com is a website owned by CBS Interactive. The site covers television and focuses on English-language shows made or broadcast in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Japan...
- Sightings Information Page - unofficial fan site