The Grammy Awards were first televised nationally in 1971.
The 13th Annual Grammy Awards were broadcast on ABC on March 16, 1971. The ceremony took place at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles and was hosted by Andy Williams.
Earlier Grammy ceremonies had been held in hotels and other venues without a national television broadcast. National television transformed the event, allowing performances and award presentations to reach audiences beyond the recording industry.
The 1971 ceremony included major wins for artists such as Simon & Garfunkel, who won Album of the Year for Bridge over Troubled Water. The broadcast helped establish the Grammys as one of the major televised American entertainment awards shows.