Years of appearance |
Title |
Network |
Character name |
Actor |
Notes |
1985 |
An Early Frost |
NBC |
Michael Pierson |
Aidan Quinn |
The first made-for-television film to address people with AIDS. |
1986 |
St. Elsewhere |
NBC |
Dr. Robert Caldwell |
Mark Harmon |
In "Family Feud" aired Jan. 29, 1986, Dr. Caldwell was diagnosed with HIV after leaving the hospital his former colleagues are informed of his death in season six. |
1987 |
Designing Women |
CBS |
Kendall Dobbs |
Tony Goldwyn |
In "Killing All the Right People", Kendall is a young gay man with AIDS who asks the women to design his funeral. |
1987 |
The Equalizer |
CBS |
Mickey Robertson |
Corey Carrier |
Six year old boy with AIDS is protected from harassment from his neighbors by the titular character. |
1988 |
Go Toward the Light |
CBS |
Ben Madison |
Joshua Harris |
A young couple face the realities of life with their child who is diagnosed with AIDS. The young couple (Linda Hamilton, Richard Thomas) try to save their young son from the virus. |
1988 |
Midnight Caller |
NBC |
Mike Barnes
Tina Cassidy
Kelly West
Ross Parker |
Richard Cox
Kay Lenz
Julia Montgomery
J. D. Lewis |
In "After It Happened", Mike is a bisexual man who deliberately infects men and women, including Tina and Kelly, with HIV. Ross is Mike's former partner, who Mike abandons when Ross gets sick. The episode was controversial, drawing protests from San Francisco AIDS groups who believed the episode would encourage violence against gay people and people with AIDS.[1] Kay Lenz won an Emmy Award for her portrayal. She reprised her role in 1989's "Someone to Love".[2] |
1989–1991 |
Degrassi High |
CBC Television |
Dwayne Meyers |
Darrin Brown |
Heterosexual white male teenager, infected by a summer girlfriend. |
1989 |
The Ryan White Story |
ABC |
Ryan White |
Lukas Haas |
13-year-old haemophiliac who contracted AIDS from factor VIII |
1990–2003 |
EastEnders |
BBC |
Mark Fowler |
Todd Carty |
Heterosexual male; former runaway who returned to his family after contracting HIV; died of an AIDS-related illness. He is the world's first soap opera character to contract the disease, and also the first to portray an HIV/AIDS character on a major television show outside North America. |
1991–1993 |
Life Goes On |
ABC |
Jessie |
Chad Lowe |
white male teenager, infected by girlfriend. |
1991 |
thirtysomething |
ABC |
Peter Montefiore |
Peter Frechette |
gay male, infected by his one of his partners |
1992 |
Something to Live for: The Alison Gertz Story |
ABC |
Alison Gertz |
Molly Ringwald |
female, infected during a one night affair |
1993 |
And the Band Played On |
HBO |
Various |
Various |
The shows details the original discovery of AIDS and early problems in dealing with the disease |
1993 |
NYPD Blue |
ABC |
Ferdinand Holley |
Giancarlo Esposito |
Appears on episode titled "Holley and the Blowfish", character is a police informant who robs drug dealers. Was infected by drug usage. |
1993–1995 |
General Hospital |
ABC |
Stone Cates |
Michael Sutton |
white male teenager |
1994 |
The Real World |
MTV |
Pedro Zamora |
|
openly gay, infected by one of his partners, famous AIDS educator |
1994- |
General Hospital |
ABC |
Robin Scorpio |
Kimberly McCullough |
white female teenager, infected by her boyfriend Stone Cates. |
1996 |
Murder One |
ABC |
Richard Cross |
Stanley Tucci |
Cross is an unscrupulous businessman whose imminent death from AIDS leads to an ethical awakening. |
1997 |
Oz |
HBO |
Various including Antonio Nappa, James Robson, Nat Ginzburg and Clarence Seroy |
Various |
Men, infected while in prison, HIV positive inmates are isolated in Unit E, a cell block exclusively for HIV positive inmates not allowed to be amongst general inmate population. |
1998 |
Law & Order |
NBC |
Kenneth "Twist" Stark |
Jason Hayes |
In the 1998 episode "Carrier", Stark was charged with murder and attempted murder for deliberately infecting women with HIV. |
1999 |
ER |
NBC |
Jeanie Boulet |
Gloria Reuben |
African-American female adult, infected by husband. |
2001–2005 |
Queer as Folk |
Showtime |
Vic Grassi
Ben Bruckner
James "Hunter" Montgomery |
Jack Wetherall
Robert Gant
Harris Allan |
Vic was Michael Novotney's uncle. Ben was Michael's boyfriend and a college professor. Hunter was a former hustler who became Ben and Michael's foster son. |
2002 |
Takalani Sesame |
SABC |
Kami |
puppet |
Five-year-old female puppet. Contracted HIV via tainted blood transfusion. World's first HIV-positive Sesame Street Muppet. |
2005 |
Nip/Tuck |
FX |
Gina Russo |
Jessalyn Gilsig |
Sex addict. Had a child before she knew she was infected with the virus but the baby did not contract it. Re-appeared briefly to work as a receptionist at McNamara/Troy but died soon after when she fell off a building. |
2005–2008 |
Home and Away |
Seven Network |
Cassie Turner |
Sharni Vinson |
Cassie contracted HIV after sleeping with her older boyfriend Henk, who had contracted the disease from a drug addicted former girlfriend. |
2007 - |
The Best Years |
The N (U.S.) |
Lee Campbell |
Alan Van Sprang |
Bisexual Lee owns local hot spot nightclub Colony. |
2008 |
Hollyoaks |
Channel 4 |
Malachy Fisher |
Glen Wallace |
Heterosexual male; contracted the disease and kept it a secret from girlfriend Mercedes. He told his brother Kris as he may have contracted it from a one night stand with Merdedes Mercedes & Malachy were to marry but ended their relationship, a row in the pub had Mercedes revealing his disease to his friends & Mum, They couple later married, Mercedes is awiting her results. |
2008 |
South Park |
Comedy Central |
Eric Cartman
Kyle Broflovski |
Trey Parker
Matt Stone |
In the episode 'Tonsil Trouble' Cartman is infected with HIV during a tonsillectomy When Broflovski mocks him, Cartman secretly injects him with infected blood to pass on the virus. Both are subsequently cured through injections of money into the bloodstream. |