Lifetime began its life on February 1, 1984 with the merging of Daytime and the Cable Health Network. Daytime, originally a
Hearst/
ABC operation, started in 1982 and provided
alternative programming for women four hours each weekday. The Cable Health Network was a
Viacom effort also begun in 1982, showing programs on
health,
fitness,
science, and
medicine 24 hours a day. Ten years later, in 1994, Viacom sold its
share of the channel to Hearst/ABC (now
The Walt Disney Company); that same year the nickname "
Television for
Women" was added and the channel began to generate its own
programming. In July 1998, the
Lifetime Movie Network was launched to provide 24-hour movies (most
made for TV); a Lifetime Real Women channel airs stories of
real women, typically the
courageous or
suffering sort. Lifetime has also been known to partner with and support
non-profit organizations, including the
Susan G. Komen Foundation,
National Women's Political Caucus, and
Women in Cable and Telecommunications. In 1996, the network received a Golden
Cable ACE Award for its efforts in the fight against
breast cancer. The company's
corporate headquarters are in New York City, and the studios, located in
Queens, are one of that city's largest
television production facilities.
Source: http://www.lifetimetv.com/about/index.html