Bakker, Jim 1940- and Bakker, Tammy 1942-

TELEVAGELIST TEAM; FOUNDERS OF THE PTL NETWORK

Beginnings.

In 1965 Jim and Tammy Bakker, two young, itinerant evangelists, joined station WYAH in Virginia, Beach, Virginia with a Christian puppet show. It quickly attracted a devoted local audience and also became one of the most successful syndicated programs for Pat Robertson's developing Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN). A year later Jim Bakker was allowed to broadcast the Christian talk show of which he had always dreamed, with a format based on the popular The Tonight Show. The 700 Club, as Bakker called it, became the prototype of the developing television ministry. Both the puppet show and The 700 Club were crucial in bringing new stations into the CBN system. It was also on The 700 Club that Bakker learned how effective his pleas for funds could be. When he weepingly asked his viewers to send in money to keep CBN on the air during an early...

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