Fifties Television

When baby boomers think of fifties television, we'd like to believe that television got started the same time we did---in the early fifties. Truth is, while television did "boom" in the early fifties right along with our birth rates, the real roots of fifties television were actually planted in the late 30s.

Roots of Fifties Television

On April 19, 1938, the New York Times ran an article announcing that "A regular television schedule of five hours a week, for at least a month, begins today under the auspices of the National Broadcasting Company." Programs could be received in the New York metro area within a 50-mile radius

of television aerials mounted on top of the Empire State Building. That five hour weekly schedule was actually one hour of live talent and films aired from 8 to 9 PM on both Tuesday and Thursday nights, while the other three hours were only still pictures and charts broadcast from 3 to 4 PM on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons so engineers could study the actual transmissions.

The next milestone for early television was the 1939 World's Fair, when RCA introduced 9" and 12 " sets together with sound, selling for about $600 each. Audiences grew slowly at first, with only about 2000 sets in use by April 1940. Production of all television sets and equipment came to a halt during the war years (1942-45), but resumed in 1946. By the late 40s, RCA and other manufacturers began mass production of TV sets, and by the end of 1950 there were over 8 million sets in the US alone.

Not everyone predicted the success of television the way that RCA and its president at the time, David Sarnoff, did. In 1946, the head of 20th Century Fox Movies, Darryl F. Zanuck,

was quoted as saying, "Television won't be able to hold on to any market it might capture after the first six months. People will soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night." Well, perhaps Mr. Zanuck underestimated what would ultimately develop inside that plywood box! Seventy years later, we're still staring!

Highlights for fifties television:

NBC broadcasts the first hour-long music variety show, "Hourglass", over three stations in New York City, Philadelphia, and Schenectady, on May 9, 1946.

140,000 people watch the first televised heavyweight fight between Joe Louis and Billy Conn on June 19, 1946.

The Dumont Network broadcast the first soap opera, aptly named "Faraway Hills", on October 2, 1946.

In 1947, radios (40 million) far outnumber TV sets (44,000) in the US.

First telecast of a World Series game---New York Yankees vs. the Brooklyn Dodgers---airs on September 30, 1947.

Harry Truman is the first American president to appear on television from the White House, discussing the international food crisis, on October 5, 1947.

Television's longest running show, "Meet the Press", premiers on a local NBC station in Washington, DC on November 6, 1947, and goes nationwide two weeks later.

"Howdy Dowdy Time" premiers

on December 29, 1947, and in 1949 its merchandise sales tops $11 million.

In 1948, only one in every ten Americans had ever seen a TV set.

"I Love Lucy" premiers on October 15, 1951, and is seen in a record 10.6 million households by April, 1952.

The FCC approves UHF channels 14 thru 83 on April 14, 1952.

While its technical standards were approved by the FCC in 1953, color television didn't become profitable until the early 60s.

The "Tournament of Roses Parade" from Pasadena on January 1, 1954, is the first presentation in the US televised in color nation-wide (21 network cities). Unfortunately, most sets at the time were black and white, with only about 200 color TV sets in use and able to receive it in color.

In April 1954, RCA begins selling its Model CT-100 color TV set for $1000 each; sales increase from just under 5000 in 1954 to 20,000 in 1955.

Gunsmoke premiers on September 10, 1955, beginning a twenty year run.

The "Mickey Mouse Club" (on ABC) and "Captain Kangaroo" (on CBS) each premier on October 3, 1955.

The soap opera "As the World Turns" premiers on April 2, 1956.

By 1957, over 40 million homes in the US have at least on television set.

"Perry Mason" (September 21) and "Leave It to Beaver" (October 4) each premier in 1957.

"Bonanza" is the first western to be televised in color, starting September 12, 1959.

"The Twilight Zone" on CBS premiers on October 2, 1959.

So, fifties television really began to flourish during the decade, transforming entertainment in American households from radio to that new "plywood box" that everyone would stare at! You remember fifties television---how old were you when you first started watching?