Celebrating Pride Month: Hot l Baltimore, first show to feature gay couple

Hot l Baltimore (a neon sign Hotel Baltimore with "e" burnt out) premiered January 24, 1975 on ABC.  It was produced by Norman Lear and became the first series to feature a gay couple in a recurring role.  It also included primary characters who were prostitutes, one of whom was an illegal immigrant.  

It starred Lee Bergere and Henry Calvert as a middled-aged gay couple.  James Cromwell was the desk clerk and Conchata Ferrell as a prostitute.  Charlotte Rae appeared as Mrs. Bellotti.

Unfortunately, the series never gained an audience and was canceled after just 13 episodes. 

"Deep Impact" released 1998

One of two comet/asteroid disaster movies to hit theaters, Deep Impact, opened May 8, 1998.  A seven-mile wide comet is on a collision course with Earth, and the world prepares for a mass extinction.

Steven Spielberg was executive producer.  It starred Robert Duvall, Tea Leoni, Elijah Wood, Maximillian Schell, Morgan Freeman, James Cromwell, Jon Favreau, Denise Crosby (of Star Trek: The Next Generation fame), and Blair Underwood.

The movie is based on the 1993 novel The Hammer of God by Arthur C. Clarke.