OETA

(PBS) (Oklahoma Educational Television Authority)

Variety, 16 August 1978

OETA was one of the first stations to purchase the Tom Baker stories

The Ribos Operation, part 1, 30 May 1981

ID, 1985

• 7 October 1978: The standard package of 23 Tom Baker stories begins screening, in a 9.00pm timeslot, with two episodes airing back to back. Stories were aired out of order, with Robot followed by Terror of the Zygons.
• 30 May 1981: The Ribos Operation part 1 airs, Saturday, 10.00pm. OETA is one of the first US stations to screen Tom Baker stories other than the original package of his first 23 stories (98 episodes) that had been on offer since 1978. This new package comprised seasons 16 to 18 (The Ribos Operation to Logopolis; 18 stories, 74 episodes) which had been released by the BBC in early-1981, just prior to Time Life's contract expiring and Lionheart taking over the distribution in the States.
• 14-16 August 1981: John Nathan-Turner and Peter Davison make their first-ever US convention appearances, in Tulsa. (Davison had just finished recording Kinda.) And thus the rot set in...
• 6 February 1982: The final Tom Baker series draws to an end; The Keeper of Traken part three and four both play on this day.
• 23 November 1983: The Five Doctors airs.
• 3 February 1986: Weekday airings move from 10pm to 5:30pm - see promotional CLIP below.
• In early 1987, airings shift from daily to Saturdays. The 24 repackaged Jon Pertwee stories were airing around this time.
• Fall 1987: The Caves of Androzani is the last episode aired by OETA. The network never purchased the McCoy, Hartnell or Troughton packages, opting instead only to run Baker and Pertwees.

OETA promo, January 1986

OETA ID and Cosmic Quest ad, December 1986