|
Replies: 18
| visibility 1
|
Hall of Famer [22127]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 5026
Joined: 2/25/13
|
The Birth of TV
May 28, 2021, 3:22 PM
|
|
Most of the posters on this board have been aware of TV all their lives but some of us in the older generations experienced life before TV. A few short years before WW2, TV was just a "Buck Rogers and the 21st. Century" pipe dream. Along came WW2 and most of the elementary TV work then in projct in the United States was shut down.
Following the war, TV was high on the priority list of something we needed and it began growing like kudzu. The only problem was that most of the stations were located in thickly populated areas and the cost of a TV was a high dollar item. In the early 1950's TV stations began broadcasting in the smaller markets. We were living in Belle Glade, FL. Appliance stores that sold TVs placed a TV in front of one of the windows tuned to the only TV station in the area and left it on. Very few people owned a TV and would go down to the store to watch the TV.
It was easy to know who had a TV because there was an antenna on the roof, usually attached to the chimney. The other alternative was to have "rabbit ears" which sat on top of the console. The "rabbit ears" could be rotated to find the best reception. And a little gimmick we learned ---- whap some aluminum foil around the rabbit ears for better reception. Soon after we moved to Clemson in July of 1955, we purchased our first TV. The picture tube was large so most TVs were consoles.
Those of us in this area were extremely lucky because we could receive three channels, Greenville, Spartanburg and Asheville. We adjusted our roof-top antenna to get a fairly good reception. Some of the more costly roof-top antennas had a remote control. I don't recall if the TV stations operating past eleven or twelve PM. They would sign off officially by playing the national anthem. Programing resumed in the mornings, mostly at 6:00 AM.
The remote feature was not yet available so someone had to get up to change channels or to turn the TV off. The tuner was the weak link in the TV and usually required replacement. The TV was capable of receiving a signal from 13 channels but for many years all we could get were the three area stations.
The main sports program was the Washington Redskins NFL team and by default, the Redskins became the favorite team of those living in the southeast.
That is just a smidgen of the early days of TV.
|
|
|
|
 |
All-In [26331]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 15326
Joined: 1/12/00
|
My Dad had a built in remote control for every TV we had
May 28, 2021, 3:29 PM
|
|
when I was a kid.
Me.
|
|
|
|
|
|
110%er [5024]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 3549
Joined: 7/7/12
|
Re: The Birth of TV
May 28, 2021, 3:40 PM
|
|
Those were the days, Joe.
We didn't have much money, so our first TV was a used one. You had to turn it on about 5 minutes before your program started so it would warm up and then you had to adjust the horizontal roll so the picture was stable. We did get a motorized Channel Master antenna for the chimney, so the antenna could be rotated to tune in the stations.
It wasn't until about 1970 that I remember my first TV with a remote control (Zenith) to change the station. It had a motor drive connected to the tuner and when you pushed the channel button (a clicker, actually), the drive would sound like "clunk...clunk...clunk as the tuner rotated to change stations.
Oh - and we only had Ch. 2-13 in the early days.... and much later, UHF channels were added.
Around 1985 or so, I read about Zenith putting a lot of effort into the development of HDTV and thought that would be great. I bought some Zenith stock, thinking I was smart for recognizing a good idea and would have a great investment, but Zenith soon went "boom" along with my money.... 
TV has come a long way.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Varsity [236]
TigerPulse: 38%
Posts: 613
Joined: 11/30/98
|
Re: The Birth of TV
May 28, 2021, 4:47 PM
|
|
CBS actually developed a prototype High-definition standard for black & white TV using UHF in the mid-late 1940s, immediately after WWII. The project was put on hold because the FCC had to put a freeze on new broadcasting licenses until they could standardize the system (both VHF & UHF). Ultimately when the freeze was lifted, the project was cancelled in favor of color TV.
There were several UHF stations broadcasting in the Greenville area in the 1950s: does anyone remember WGVL on channel 23, WISE from Asheville on channel 62, and WAIM in Anderson on channel 40?
And does anyone remember the old Dumont Broadcasting Network? They competed directly with CBS, ABC & NBC back in the day. One of their big-wigs was a guy from Greenville named Goldsmith who developed the cathode ray tube. Dumont's main station in Washington DC, which is still on the air and run by one of the current networks, still uses Goldsmith's initials as it's call letters.
|
|
|
|
|
|
CU Medallion [65420]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 33245
Joined: 12/3/03
|
I was so used to black and white TV's growing up that when
May 28, 2021, 5:23 PM
|
|
I got out on my own, my first used TV I bought was a 23" black and white set. I later bought one of the very first VCR's that came out, an RCA SelectaVision.
When I finally broke down and bought a used color TV to go with the VCR, I was AMAZED to find that any earlier tapes I had recorded were actually in COLOR!
I don't know about anybody else, but when I first started out on my own, being single, I frequented pawnshops a lot to buy electronics stuff. Back then, you could get some great deals on some relatively high end stereo equipment for cheap. Nowadays pawnshops seem to have almost new list prices on used stuff, not like the old days.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Varsity [236]
TigerPulse: 38%
Posts: 613
Joined: 11/30/98
|
Re: I was so used to black and white TV's growing up that when
May 28, 2021, 7:04 PM
|
|
I don't know about anybody else, but when I first started out on my own, being single, I frequented pawnshops a lot to buy electronics stuff. Back then, you could get some great deals on some relatively high end stereo equipment for cheap. Nowadays pawnshops seem to have almost new list prices on used stuff, not like the old days.
Back around 1984 or 85 or so, I bought a pair of Pioneer speakers from a pawn shop. They were one of Pioneer's top end speakers at the time - they were a 3-way system with a 16" woofer - and I paid $40 for the pair ($20 each). I drug them out of the basement last summer and replaced the foam surrounds on the woofers (a fun & cheap DIY job, btw) and they sounded like new. I sold them on craigslist for $50! Ten dollar profit! LOL!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Orange Blooded [3812]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 741
Joined: 2/3/03
|
Re: The Birth of TV
May 28, 2021, 5:52 PM
|
|
@Joe21 I'm a very young 75 and you described my childhood memories of TV well. Thanks for making me think of those days!
|
|
|
|
|
|
110%er [8273]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 3924
Joined: 9/11/08
|
Thankful for carpet and throw pillows
May 28, 2021, 5:59 PM
|
|
That made the floor close to the tv that much comfortable as I laid there watching and waiting for daddy to say change the channel
|
|
|
|
|
|
All-In [40929]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 42947
Joined: 11/30/98
|
in 1989 in Clemson I got 3 channels
May 28, 2021, 6:09 PM
|
|
but only one came in good enough to watch. I had a small black and white TV that sat on a large broken black and white tv and sat on a yuge color counsel tv, that was of course broken.
I lived in a dumpy single wide 3 miles from campus, no car, no phone rent electric tuition and books were my only bills well food and cheap beer too.
|
|
|
|
|
|
CU Medallion [65420]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 33245
Joined: 12/3/03
|
And, that new "Fox" Network was never going to make it.
May 28, 2021, 9:04 PM
|
|
Who needs more than three networks?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Orange Blooded [3516]
TigerPulse: 94%
Posts: 4246
Joined: 12/5/06
|
You didn’t live in those trailers over by old stone church/cemetery did you?
May 30, 2021, 12:58 PM
[ in reply to in 1989 in Clemson I got 3 channels ] |
|
I lived in a run down single wide over there for my last two years. Think I paid $100/month.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Scout Team [157]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 81
Joined: 11/30/98
|
Re: The Birth of TV
May 28, 2021, 6:30 PM
|
|
Thanks for the memories Joe. My parents decided what we would watch. I would change the channel to what they told me. My Dad was a huge baseball fan, so whenever a game was on that is what we watched.I remember watching quite a few western back in the day. Those were good days.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Orange Blooded [3514]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 2471
Joined: 11/16/09
|
Re: The Birth of TV
May 29, 2021, 9:55 AM
|
|
I'm 71 and the first TV I can remember my grand parents had early fifties ( I was about 5 or 6 years old ) __ a big brown looking tin type casing around the picture tube and with screw in wooden legs -- my grandma would watch wrestling on Saturday night and you had better sit and be quite or she would run you outside -- first one I can remember buying was B&W 19in. ( I was in high school ) -- we still listened to the radio a lot __ anyone remember radio and **Randy's Record Shop** ???
|
|
|
|
|
|
110%er [5024]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 3549
Joined: 7/7/12
|
Sure do......
May 30, 2021, 8:50 AM
|
|
When the sun went down in Orangeburg, I could tune in Randy's Record Mart on WLAC (Nashville) and also get WOWO (Ft. Wayne) and WLS (Chicago). Those were the days of Howlin' Wolf, John Lee Hooker, Jimmy Reed and so many other R&B legends. I miss those days of everybody gathering at the local drive-ins, standing outside the car with a cold brew and listening to the music while the pretty girls drove by and waved.....
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hall of Famer [22711]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 5884
Joined: 3/28/09
|
Re: The Birth of TV - channels 4, 7, and 13 in upstate SC
May 28, 2021, 6:31 PM
|
|
Greenville, Spartanburg, and Asheville were the big
3 forever. Fox 21 came along early 80s and started
showing a lot of old shows and a new one here and
there and was a welcome addition. Cable took off
soon after. Everybody under 40 doesn't remember
pre cable days. And our 1st TV was a 13" black and
white, then we got a 19" color and it was awesome.
Now I have a 40" flat screen and its like meh.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Orange Blooded [2533]
TigerPulse: 89%
Posts: 4161
Joined: 10/10/08
|
And a big thanks to Mr.
May 29, 2021, 9:30 AM
|
|
Philo Farnsworth, who grew up on a farm in Idaho (of all places) who presented the first schematic for "televised images" from his chemistry science project, then followed through (against great odds and many adversities) on its development all through the 30's-40's. You were how old?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hall of Famer [24764]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 42486
Joined: 7/31/10
|
...and along came Ted Turner.***
May 29, 2021, 11:21 PM
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
110%er [5640]
TigerPulse: 98%
Posts: 3324
Joined: 9/12/16
|
Re: The Birth of TV
May 30, 2021, 10:16 AM
|
|
We finally got our first TV in 1955 when I was 10 years old. Our viewing experiences before that were at other peoples houses. In the early fifties we would sometimes go into Bamberg to watch TV on Saturday night. The visit would be centered around a fish fry, chicken bog or some other type of supper. At this time the only channel to look at was WBT 3 out of Charlotte. We would always stay until sign off and the National Anthem played and the test pattern came on. By this time most of we smaller ones were asleep on the floor.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hall of Famer [22127]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 5026
Joined: 2/25/13
|
Re: The Birth of TV
May 30, 2021, 2:19 PM
|
|
This is a prank we pulled many years ago at our Lions Club Ladies Night. This was before women were invited to join civic clubs for men only and about the time color TV was becoming a common thing. We were expecting over 100 members and guests and we announced we would have a drawing for a color TV. However, the entire TV drawing was a complete sham. We had a planned winner. I went to a friends business who sold TVs. I told him what we had in mind and he agreed to help us. He gave us a huge console with every thing removed except for the glass front. He even delivered it to the Clemson House where we we to have the event. He placed a huge box over the console and wrote on the box, "Deliver to the Clemson House. This is the color TV that will be won by some lucky person".
I don't remember the original color of the console but we had several cans of spray paint, all of a different color, and we painted that console. Presto !!! We now had a color TV. One of our members was a photographer and had taken a picture of the intended winner. He blew the picture up so it would fill the entire surface of the glass on the TV. We then attached the picture with scotch tape.
As the people entered the banquet room they were presented a ticket and the stub went into a huge bowl. When the intended winner came through, the sub was "palmed" by one of the ticket handlers. During the drawing he pretended to mix up all the stubs and then drew out the winning ticket The winner was asked to come forward and claim the prize. He had help in removing the box placed over the TV and when the box was removed there was the color TV and a picture of the winner. The picture of the winner was in black and white but the color of the console was about six bright colors.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Replies: 18
| visibility 1
|
|
|
50
