Major blast from the past - Bilge

TG The Gnomon Member MD-DC-VA Joined: May 01, 2007 Posts: 1293	TG The Gnomon Posted posted on Mon, Sep 24, 2007 1:41 PM The following program is brought to you in living color on NBC I was fortunate to have experienced the transition from all B&W TV broadcasts to all color TV broadcasts. My family got a color TV fairly early on. I think we got it in 1958. Definitely had it by 1959. Very interesting times. During the B&W days, first off, TV didn't last around the clock. I forget what time the last show was on, but at some point late at night when the networks didn't have any more stuff to put on, they'd play the Star Spangled Banner and immediately after that you'd either get snow (signal cut off) or a test pattern (camera pointed at a calibration design). It would stay that way until the next moring when regular broadcasting would pick up again. This effect continued well into the color days. I can't recall when round the clock broadcasting started being in effect. Definitely a network competition. Wheatever one network would do, the others would have to match it. I do recall in the 70's (maybe 80's) though when at some point around 2 am there'd be an inspirational word with a scene of waves breaking on the shore, then (for a long time) there was a military inspirational poem (High Flight) with scenes of an Air Force jet climbing into the upper atmposhpere, that was followed by the National Anthem, and then you got the color test pattern (by then all networks were all-color). I remember watching Disney's Mickey Mouse Club (got to meet Annette—woo hoo!) and later the Wonderful World of Disney in B&W. Then Disney's "Wonderful World" went color, becoming Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color. When the Flintstones first came on, they were in B&W. I got to see it change to color. Same with a lots of shows, like the Ed Sullivan Show. When the Beatles first came on the scene it was in B&W. The following year (I think), Ed Sullivan was in color. The Beverly Hillbillies started out in B&W and a couple of years later changed to color. Same with Gilligan's Island, but it went color by its second season (I think). TV offerings were mixture of B&W and color for a long time. But, the more shows that went color on one network meant that the other networks would follow suit. More and more color sets were being bought. News coverage took a longer time than you might expect to go color. While there were lots and lots of color shows popping up (Bonanza started in color), news braodcasts were in B&W. Kennedy's funeral procession was in B&W. I just looked this up. On November 7, 1966 NBC became the first 100% color network. That's weird how the pilot that would become Happy Days first instead became an episode on Love, American Style, and then later became the Happy Days series. I know George Lucas cast Ron Howard in American Graffiti based on his work as Richie in the pilot, but I'm not sure that American Graffiti was exactly spun off the Happy Days pilot. Anybody know?

The following program is brought to you in living color on NBC

I was fortunate to have experienced the transition from all B&W TV broadcasts to all color TV broadcasts. My family got a color TV fairly early on. I think we got it in 1958. Definitely had it by 1959. Very interesting times.

During the B&W days, first off, TV didn't last around the clock. I forget what time the last show was on, but at some point late at night when the networks didn't have any more stuff to put on, they'd play the Star Spangled Banner and immediately after that you'd either get snow (signal cut off) or a test pattern (camera pointed at a calibration design). It would stay that way until the next moring when regular broadcasting would pick up again. This effect continued well into the color days.

I can't recall when round the clock broadcasting started being in effect. Definitely a network competition. Wheatever one network would do, the others would have to match it. I do recall in the 70's (maybe 80's) though when at some point around 2 am there'd be an inspirational word with a scene of waves breaking on the shore, then (for a long time) there was a military inspirational poem (High Flight) with scenes of an Air Force jet climbing into the upper atmposhpere, that was followed by the National Anthem, and then you got the color test pattern (by then all networks were all-color).

I remember watching Disney's Mickey Mouse Club (got to meet Annette—woo hoo!) and later the Wonderful World of Disney in B&W. Then Disney's "Wonderful World" went color, becoming Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color. When the Flintstones first came on, they were in B&W. I got to see it change to color. Same with a lots of shows, like the Ed Sullivan Show. When the Beatles first came on the scene it was in B&W. The following year (I think), Ed Sullivan was in color. The Beverly Hillbillies started out in B&W and a couple of years later changed to color. Same with Gilligan's Island, but it went color by its second season (I think).

TV offerings were mixture of B&W and color for a long time. But, the more shows that went color on one network meant that the other networks would follow suit. More and more color sets were being bought. News coverage took a longer time than you might expect to go color. While there were lots and lots of color shows popping up (Bonanza started in color), news braodcasts were in B&W. Kennedy's funeral procession was in B&W.

I just looked this up. On November 7, 1966 NBC became the first 100% color network.

That's weird how the pilot that would become Happy Days first instead became an episode on Love, American Style, and then later became the Happy Days series. I know George Lucas cast Ron Howard in American Graffiti based on his work as Richie in the pilot, but I'm not sure that American Graffiti was exactly spun off the Happy Days pilot. Anybody know?

Post #334616 by The Gnomon on Mon, Sep 24, 2007 1:41 PM