October 3, 1955…”Captain Kangaroo” & “Mickey Mouse Club” Debut

What a great day for kids! One new morning show and one new afternoon show!

Above is the whole story of “The Mickey Mouse Club”…a 50 minute video, full of history and the story of how it came to be for ABC and Disney.

At CBS, Bob Keeshan (who started as an NBC page, but later became the original Clarabell on “Howdy Doody”), kicked off a show that would run almost 29 years. By the way, the “Captain Kangaroo” theme song, which we all know by heart, was actually a stock music track from Chappell Music called “Puffin Billy”, which was used from ’55 till ’74.

Below, a shot in from the early years in CBS Studio 54 at Leiderkranz Hall. 53 and 54 were the two smaller upstairs studios there at 111 East 58th Street, and were equipped with Dumont cameras. 55 and 56 were the two larger studios downstairs where the soap operas were done with RCA cameras.

Seen with the Captain is the show’s puppeteer Cosmo Allegretti, who animated Mr. Moose, Bunny Rabbit, Grandfather Clock, Dancing Bear, and more. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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October 2, 1953…”Person To Person” Debuts With Technical Marvels

By 1953, television had been using it’s new, two year old ability to reach from coast-to-coast in a number of unique ways, but none were more unique than the challenges this show brought.

It took a lot of planning and a three camera crew at each remote location to do this show, and many times, there were two guests on each show, from different locations. All live!

In Los Angeles, our friend George Sunga, was the Television City production manager, and had the responsibility of working out all the west coast interviews. Needless to say, it was quite a task, but that is something the viewing audience never noticed, as newsmakers from all over the US appeared seamlessly on screen with Mr. Murrow…usually. It would be interesting to hear some of the stories from these crews about the times is wasn’t so “seamless”.

More on the photos! Enjoy! -Bobby Ellerbee

Top at home with Bing, then Jerry Lewis and below Mickey Rooney

Above, at Jane Mansfield’s home and below, the show featuring Jack Paar began in his limo as he “arrived” home in New York. Fortunately for the crew, the car didn’t have to move more than a few feet.

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October 1, 1955…”The Honeymooners” Debuts On CBS

Setting The Record Straight On “The Honeymooners”

Above is a great shot of the cast and writers going over a script at Jackie Gleason’s office.

Today is the anniversary of The Classic 39 “Honeymooners” episodes done on film for the 1955-56 season on CBS. but the younger generation may not know, those characters were not new.

Actually, “The Honeymooners” live sketches began October 5, 1951 on Dumont’s “Cavalcade Of Stars” which Gleason began hosting in June of that year. That first sketch was six minutes long, but often, on that one hour show, they went as long as 45 minutes. These sketches continued into the late 60s.

When Gleason moved to CBS in the fall of 1951, they called Studio 50 (Ed Sullivan Theater) home, and the sketches continued on the new “Jackie Gleason Show”. It was the top show for CBS, but after a few years, Jackie needed a break from the grind of a live one hour show every week, so they decided to do a season of Honeymooners on film, which was done at Dumont’s Adelphi Theater a few blocks away.

About a third of the way through the 39 episode, Gleason began to rethink this half hour film idea. To him, 30 minutes was often not enough time to develop the story, and Perry Como’s one hour show on NBC was tough competition for a half hour show. The last show aired on September 22, 1956, and one week later, the live one hour “Jackie Gleason Show” came back to blockbuster ratings for another year, with the Honeymooners sketches included. And Away We Go! -Bobby Ellerbee

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October 1, 1962…The Johnny Carson “Tonight” Theme Debuted

How Johnny Carson’s ‘Tonight’ Show Theme Song Came About…
Today, October 1, 1962, Carson took over as host and that night was the first time this song was played…at least on television. It was written by Paul Anka and here is the backstory on a song we all know now as “Johnny’s Theme”

First though, a note. In today’s earlier post that let you hear the first 3 minutes of Groucho Marx introducing Carson on his debut, the band did not play this at the 11:15 start, but at the 11:30 start (when most stations joined the network for the show), it was played.

In 1958, Anka wrote an instrumental for Salvatore “Tutti” Camarata’s band. The band’s name was Tutti’s Trumpets. Paul named the song “Toot Sweet”. Tutti was actually the head of Walt Disney Records and started the legendary Sunset Sound Recorders studio the same year this was released and this was one of the first sessions ever recorded there.

After a lyric was added in 1959 “Toot Sweet” was re-named “It’s Really Love”, and under that title was recorded by Annette Funicello on her LP, “Annette Sings”. There is a link to the recording below.

In 1962, when Johnny Carson took over the NBC “Tonight Show”,
he commissioned Anka for a new theme song, via his company
called Management Agency & Music Publishing, Inc.

Anka suggested re-using this old tune and the project was technically a deal under a “work for hire” contract. Carson knew all about royalties and wanted to be listed as an author so, being a drummer, he said he would think of something to put at the beginning of Anka’s tune to “help author it.” That something turned out to be a little drum break before the band joins in. So for 6 – 7 years there was that one-bar drum break at the beginning of the theme. Eventually that little break was shortened even further to just one and a half beats.

So, on September 12, 1962, less than a month before his debut Johnny became an “author” of his theme for copyright purposes, and got not only a piece of the publishing royalties, but a composer’s share of royalties as well.

The co authoring offer must have been worth it to Paul Anka who once said he got $200 in royalties every time the show aired. Over the course of Johnny’s 30 year run, that would give Carson and Anka about $1,664,000 apiece. Not bad for an old tune that was re-cycled twice. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

“Toot Sweet” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stvuxq5upKQ&ab_channel=the45prof

“It’s Really Love” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWgg8zvQTMg&ab_channel=MarcelloFelici

The Walt Disney company’s record label Buena Vista boasted both Mouseketeer singing star Annette Funicello and veteran composer-arranger Tutti Camarata, who …

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At the video clip above is the audio of the first 3 minutes of the debut show with Groucho Marx introducing Johnny. The video of those first three minutes has been lost but below, we have the next best thing…rare pictures from that night!

Groucho, among a long list of other comedians, had guest hosted the show in the few months between Paar’s retirement and the expiration of Carson’s “no compete” contract with ABC. The guests that night in NBC’s Studio 6B were Joan Crawford, Mel Brooks, Tony Bennett and Rudy Vallee.

NBC’s Rare Gift To Carson On The 10th Anniversay Show Here is a clip you have probably never seen. The video below is qued up to play NBC’s surprise gift, but this is the FULL 10th Anniversary show on October 1, 1972 with guests Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Joey Bishop, George Burns, Jack Benny and Dinah Shore. You will be surprised by the unique token of appreciation from NBC. -Bobby Ellerbee

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September 30, 1939…First Televised Football Game Broadcast By NBC

All the details are below in my previous post on this occasion. Hope your teams win this weekend! -Bobby Ellerbee

College Football Starts This Week…Here’s The First TV Game

The first ever telecast of a football game was done from Triborough Stadium in Randall’s Island NY, on Saturday, September 30, 1939 by NBC. This was the season opener between Fordham University and Waynseburg College.

Two cameras were used, the one shown above on the sidelines for closeups, and another in the press box for broader perspectives. Although there were probably less than 500 sets in the area then, viewers within 50 miles of NBC’s Manhattan transmitter could follow the action from home.

The telecast was relayed from the field by ultra short wave radio to the main transmitter of Station W2XBS via the world’s first mobile unit which we see below. This is a two bus unit with one fitted for transmission only and the other outfitted for camera and audio control.

Next Saturday is the Georgia-Clemson battle here in Athens. I’ll be there! Go Dawgs! Enjoy and share! – Bobby Ellerbee

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September 30, 1960…”The Flintstones” Debuts On ABC + Demo Video

There is much more in my original story below, with the very first animation demo of the show. The X marks and long black lines on the film are grease pencil marks for portions that were later used in on of the first episodes to air. Yabba Dabba Doo! -Bobby Ellerbee

Meet The Flintsones! Studio Shots & Original Demo Footage

Although it’s only 1:34 seconds long, this is the first ever animation of the show, and was done in the winter of 1959 as a demo. Originally, the series was going to be called ‘The Flagstones’, but there was some kind of copyright problem so the name was changed just before the show went to air on ABC on September 30, 1960.

Notice the voice of Betty isn’t Bea Benaderet, but rather June Foray (who was the voice of Rocky the Flying Squirrel, among her many works). The voice of Fred is not Alan Reed, but Daws Butler who was the voice of Yogi Bear as well as Huckleberry Hound. Daws also did the demo voice of Barney, who was voiced by Mel Blanc in the regular series.

The voice of Wilma is done by Jean Vander Pyl and she was the only actor from the pilot to continue in the series. In 1960, ABC did not have color telecine equipment in Los Angeles, so the show was broadcast in black and white, until ‘The Jetsons’ came along in 1962. Starting then, the film for both shows was taken to NBC Burbank and fed to ABC for broadcast, and these were the first color shows on ABC.

The show left the air April 1, 1966 and for 30+ years, was the most successful animated network show ever. When ‘The Simpsons’ came along, this series moved to second place.

There is more detail on the photos, so click through, enjoy and share! Yabba Dabba Doo! -Bobby Ellerbee

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September 30, 1951…First West To East Series Debuts On NBC

+ Rare Color Film…5 “Colgate Comedy Hour” Stars At El Capitan

65 years ago today, NBC’s “Colgate Comedy Hour” became the first regularly scheduled program to originate on the west coast, to be broadcast to the entire network. Only 26 days before this, the first ever coast to coast television broadcast had occurred, when President Truman addressed The Japanese Peace Conference in San Francisco.

This was the second hit season of this Sunday night blockbuster (opposite Ed Sullivan, on CBS) and the New York host, Eddie Cantor was flown out to host this occasion. Soon, Abbott & Costello and Martin & Lewis would become the regular Hollywood hosts.

At the link, you will see Eddie Cantor, Bud Abbott & Lou Costello and Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis arriving at NBC’s El Capitan Theater in Hollywood in 1953.

This is a short, but sweet color home movie shot on the south side of the theater, as they arrive for rehearsal. Because the hosts rotated on a weekly basis, it would be rare for all of them to be there at the same time, but I looks like that may have been the case, and this is most likely from the 100th episode celebration on March 22, 1953.

If the building looks familiar, in ’63, ABC took over the lease and called this, The Hollywood Palace. The El Capitan is at 1735 North Vine Street, just a couple of blocks north of where NBC’s Radio City West was located, and was NBC’s first “spill-over” location for television once AT&T linked the coast with the rest of the country in 1951.

On April 1, 1951 the El Capitan Theatre was leased to NBC for fifteen years at a cost of $30,500 per year. On Sunday, September 30, 1951, “The Colgate Comedy Hour” became NBC’s first regularly scheduled west-to-east television broadcast, and it came from The El Capitan, on a bi-weekly basis, with the other weeks done in New York. Thanks to our friend Rick Scheckman for sharing this clip. Enjoy! -Bobby Ellerbee

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September 29, 1951…Two College Football Television Firsts

Did you know CBS and NBC made television history the same day? On September 29, 1951 NBC gave us the first live sporting event broadcast coast-to-coast, a college football game between Duke University and the University of Pittsburgh.

Later the same day, CBS broadcast the first college football game in color, between the University of California and the University of Pennsylvania, at Philadelphia. CBS was using their Field Sequential System. There were only a precious few sets able to receive the color signal, and the game was broadcast only in a few test markets.

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September 27, 1954…”Tonight” Debuts On NBC

Below is a rare NBC operations log from October 4, 1954. This log is from one week after the debut, and reveals the origin of “the first 15 minutes”, which confounded both Jack Paar and Johnny Carson until January of 1967, when Carson demanded an 11:30 start time.

Notice at the bottom of the sheet, the show at 11:15, just before “Tonight” is…”The Steve Allen Show”!

Prior to the debut of “Tonight”, Allen’s local late show on WNBT, was very popular and it was thought best to ease the very large local audience into this new show with 15 minutes of monologue on local, NYC topics.

Now we know that this 15 minute lead in was actually designated “The Steve Allen Show” (just like the old WNBT show) and was not “officially” part of the “Tonight” broadcast, but this remnant was a pain to everyone but Allen, until 1967.

This very odd 15 minute opening window had allowed stations to join either at 11:15 or 11:30. Back in 1954, if there was local late news, it was a 15 minute cast at most. In the early sixties, many locals newscasts moved to 30 minutes, which was a problem for the hosts.

The problem Paar and Carson had with this “fu**ing 15 minutes” (as Carson called it) was that, when most stations joined at 11:30, the monologue was over and done! Only the guest part of the show was seen in the 11:30 markets.

Over the years, both Paar and Carson used different methods to fill the 15 minutes. Early on, both Paar and Carson started their monologues at 11:15, which may explain why there is so little video of the early Parr and Carson monologues. These 11:15 – 11:30 segments were most likely, again for the local NY audience,

Later, both opted to use their sidekicks and the band to fill that time, so they could begin the monologue at 11:30. But even then, both the studio and home audiences were left in limbo waiting for the star and his guests.

At this link is a rare 1965 “first 15 minutes” from 11:15 – 11:30 on New Year’s Eve from the Carson era, with Ed and Skitch doing the honors.

Also seen here are two debut ads from New York and Chicago. Notice that in Chicago, only the the last hour of the show as broadcast from 11-12 local time, which would have been the 12-1 hour of the NY show.

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September 26, 1960…America’s First Televised Presidential Debate

Tonight is the big night for us in 2016, but 56 years ago today, it was a big night for America and television as the presidential candidates met for a first ever debate on TV.

On this day in 1960, John Kennedy and Richard Nixon met at Chicago’s WBBM (CBS) for the first of four debates. Here is my story on those historic meetings, including the “new” technology…much of which was created by the producer of all four those debates, the great Don Hewitt. http://www.eyesofageneration.com/Gallery_Kennedy_Nixon.php

All four debates were simulcast live on all three networks’ radio and television networks.

On October 7, 1960, NBC Washington was the scene of the second debate as Senator Kennedy and Vice President Nixon met at NBC’s WRC-TV. The moderator was NBC’s Frank McGee, and panel of questioners included Edward Morgan from ABC, Paul Niven from CBS, Alvin Spivak from UPI, and Hal Levy from Newsday.

The third was hosted by ABC with Kennedy at WABC in New York and Nixon at KABC in Los Angeles on October 13. On October 21, the fourth and final debate was hosted by ABC in New York. -Bobby Ellerbee

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The Whole Story Of Disney On Television…

On September 24, 1961, “Walt Disney’s Wonderful World Of Color” debuted on NBC. To mark the occasion, of the anniversary, here is that first color broadcast, and the whole story of Disney on TV, which starts at ABC. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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Walt Disney was the first major Hollywood producer to venture into television. His anthology series has graced network TV for 50 years, save for a couple of extended hiatuses, under eight names.

Besides the consistency of quality through the years, one of its most memorable aspects have been the title sequences encompassing a memorable musical accompaniment, rapid-edit clips of all-things Disney and Tinker Bell flying around the screen.

CBS and NBC both rejected the idea of a weekly Disney program, in part because any network airing the show was asked to help finance Walt’s idea for a new kind of amusement park: a clean, family-friendly park consisting of different themed areas. ABC signed on to the idea with the hope Walt could deliver a major success for the struggling network, which could only boast of two moderate hits in the early 1950s: The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.

The cost to ABC was significant: a seven year contract valued at $35 million with licensing fees for each episode at $50,000. Additionally, the network would own a 34 percent interest in the park (Disney would buy out ABC’s stake in 1961).Tying in with the soon-to-open theme park in California, Disneyland premiered on Wednesday, October 27, 1954.

As Tinker Bell flew across the screen and the award-winning song “When You Wish Upon a Star” from Pinocchio as the theme, announcer Dick Wesson would briefly describe the four lands, leading up to the episode title: “Each week as you enter this timeless land, one of these many worlds will open to you. FRONTIERLAND– Tall tales and true from the legendary past. TOMMOROWLAND– Promise of things to come. ADVENTURELAND– The wonder world of nature’s own realm. FANTASYLAND– The happiest kingdom of them all.”

The first episode was called “The Disneyland Story” and in the first half-hour millions of viewers saw their first glimpse of the Disneyland theme park as well as previews of upcoming shows. The second half appropriately served as a tribute to Disney’s most famous cartoon character, Mickey Mouse. In fact, an often-used quote of Walt’s comes from this segment: “I only hope we never lose sight of one thing … that it was all started by a mouse.”

It was also in that first show that Fess Parker first performed a song that would soon climb to the top of the music charts and help make the unknown actor a star: The Ballad of Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier.

Those Davy Crockett shows were the most popular episodes of that first year, if not the entire anthology’s run. Considered to be the first television miniseries, the three-part shows were made at a total cost of around $700,000– a large amount for any television show at the time. All the episodes were filmed in color, although broadcast by ABC in black and white.

Their success led the Disney Studios to edit the three episodes into a feature film for theaters in the summer of 1955. Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier grossed a then-impressive $2.5 million. However, this was rather small compared to the estimated total sales of Davy Crockett merchandise: $300 million! Nobody anticipated its success, least of whom Walt himself.

At the end of the third installment, poor Davy was killed (off-screen, of course) at The Alamo. So for the following season, two additional Crockett episodes were filmed chronicling his early exploits. A second feature re-edited from these programs was released in 1956 as Davy Crockett and the River Pirates and was also a success.

Thanks to Davy Crockett, Disney had indeed delivered a hit: Disneyland was #6 in the 1954-55 Nielsen ratings and won the Emmy for Best Variety Series. In its second year, the series would achieve its highest seasonal rating as the #4 show.

By 1958 viewers had obviously become quite familiar with the different lands and a full description was no longer deemed necessary. Although the anthology was renamed Walt Disney Presents, the series itself should have changed its name to simply “Frontierland,” as these made up the bulk of episodes for the next three seasons.

Due almost entirely to the success of Davy Crockett, ABC executives insisted on the Western emphasis. Instead of Mickey and friends, viewers were often treated to the adventures of Texas John Slaughter, Elfego Baca (with Robert Loggia), and Leslie Nielsen as Francis Marion, The Swamp Fox. There was not much Walt could do as he was bind to a seven-year contract. Once that expired in 1961 he was free to change networks if he wished. That is exactly what he did. More importantly, Walt could now do what he could never convince ABC to go along with, and that was to broadcast in full color.

The majority of the ABC episodes had been filmed in color. This hindsight would pay off beginning in the first summer of reruns on NBC. It was that network’s commitment to colorcasting that Walt found most attractive, if not marketable. With sponsorship from RCA (then owner of NBC), Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color premiered at 7:30 PM on Sunday, September 24, 1961.

With an original song by Richard and Robert Sherman, viewers with color sets were mesmerized as flashes of animated red, yellow and blue fireworks burst behind Sleeping Beauty’s castle at Disneyland. Up flew Tinker Bell and with a few waves of her wand filled the screen with more colors blending into a kaleidoscope of Disney characters as a chorus thundered, “COLOR!” This sounded much better than “MONOCHROME!” which is how most viewers that first season saw Wonderful World of Color.

Still sales of color TV’s increased dramatically over the following months and many baby boomers have fond memories of watching Uncle Walt Sunday nights in living color. Like the first episode in 1954, “An Adventure in Color/Mathmagicland” consisted of two main segments. The first half introduced the new format and a new character: Professor Ludwig Von Drake, a relative of Donald Duck.

Disney’s top duck himself took center stage for the second half in a cartoon about mathematics, first released to theaters in 1959. The Von Drake episodes could be considered some of the funniest hours in the anthology series, due in part to Paul Frees’ often-improvised dialogue as the befuddled Professor.

By the mid-1960s Wonderful World of Color had firmly established itself as a top twenty series. Walt’s segments became as anticipated as the presentations themselves. Whether it be a simple introduction, interaction with animals or the cartoon characters or hosting a show from Disneyland, his warm and friendly manner made each episode something special to watch.

During this time a number of multi-part episodes made especially for the series were filmed in Europe and released theatrically there. One notable example is the three-part 1964 miniseries “The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh” which was released to U.S. theaters as Dr. Syn – Alias The Scarecrow twelve years after its initial television airing and European theatrical release. Appearing in the title role was Patrick McGoohan, whom would later star in the cult TV classic, The Prisoner.

Walt Disney died on December 15, 1966. The episode broadcast the following Sunday was “Disneyland Around the Seasons” in which Walt talked about new and upcoming attractions at his beloved park (in its original telecast, a portion of Walt’s narrative was substituted by a brief tribute from Dick Van Dyke and NBC newsman Chet Huntley).

After his final introduction aired on April 2, 1967 there would be no regular host for the remainder of the anthology’s original run. The series continued as Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color for another two years. To many it was still seen as Walt’s Show even though he only turned up in a brief clip during the opening titles and in reruns of course.

The name itself was fast becoming antiquated. In 1969 the anthology became The Wonderful World of Disney. For a new theme, Disney staff composer George Bruns arranged a medley of familiar tunes: “Someday My Prince Will Come” and “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, “When You Wish Upon a Star,” “Chim Chim Cher-ee” from Mary Poppins, “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” from Song of the South, “Davy Crockett,” and “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo” from Cinderella.

During the next decade the arrangement of songs in the opening medley as well as the film clips would change every few years or so to include more recent fare (even the familiar fireworks scene that started each show would change in 1972, shifting to Cinderella’s Castle at Walt Disney World in Florida).

The overall anthology product would also change during the ’70s, although not necessarily for the better. The number of original episodes would gradually dwindle, with an increasing reliance on feature films (generally less successful movies and none of the full-length animated features) and reruns from earlier seasons.

A common criticism of the anthology was that episodes originating from Disneyland or the Walt Disney World Resort were nothing more than glorified commercials. Essentially this was true, but ultimately they became something of historical time capsule pieces. They’re fun to watch now just to see how much things have changed at the Disney parks and resorts through the years.

For a while ratings remained strong, so consistent that NBC gave The Wonderful World of Disney an automatic renewal through 1978. But in 1975 a slow decline began. Moved back to 7 PM and facing new competition from CBS’s 60 Minutes, Disney fell out of the top twenty. Further erosion occurred in early 1977 as ABC successfully launched the teen-oriented drama The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries. It was also of no help that audiences were turning away from the Disney product in general, with the exception of the theme parks and merchandising.

Facing a threat of cancellation from NBC- itself having become ratings challenged following ABC’s rise to #1 in the mid 1970s- the anthology underwent a major makeover in 1979. For the first time since the 1960s, an original theme was developed. John Debney and John Klawitter composed a disco-flavored song that welcomed viewers to the new Disney’s Wonderful World.

Bridging the two parts of the theme was a program preview narrated by Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In announcer Gary Owens. Dazzling computer-generated graphics and an abundance of clips – but no fireworks or Tinker Bell – supported the feeling expressed in the lyrics that this was “the friendly old place” with “a happy new face.”

Appropriately, the closing music thanked viewers for watching. In a flashback to the original themed format, many episodes were divided into one of four categories: Fantasy Night, Adventure Night, Comedy Night and Animation Night. Beneath the flashy surface however was more of the same: few original shows, re-treads of theatrical movies, far too many repeats and even frequent preemptions. Ratings did increase slightly and that was enough to give Disney another two years on NBC before executives announced the end of the “world.”

Almost immediately, CBS came to the rescue promising a renewed commitment to original episodes and a move to Saturday nights. After a summer of extensive promotion, Walt Disney premiered on September 26, 1981 with part one of the 1969 hit The Love Bug. Ironically, this was actually a rerun having previously aired as a two-hour Disney’s Wonderful World presentation! Like the former series the opening graphics were computer-generated, this time featuring still photos and illustrations from the theme parks, films and characters. The sole theme once again was an instrumental version of “When You Wish Upon A Star.”

There was a substantial increase in original episodes that first CBS year as were the overall ratings. Some of the original shows served as pilots for proposed spin-offs; a few of which did make it to limited-run status, but no further. The second CBS year saw another increase in reruns and with that came rumors that the anthology had finally outlived its purpose and would be canceled. The series was even taken off the air for several months following a move to Tuesdays in a futile attempt to increase viewership.

On April 18, 1983 when Walt Disney Productions launched The Disney Channel, thereby focusing nearly all its television resources on the cable service. Shortly thereafter, CBS announced that Walt Disney would only be seen as an occasional special. On September 24, 1983, an important era in television history came to a quiet conclusion with “Walt Disney’s Mickey and Donald,” a compilation of classic cartoons. Or had it?

Following a management shakeup in September 1984, newly installed Chairman Michael Eisner expressed his desire to return Disney programming to network television on a regular basis. A number of individual programs came first, including The Golden Girls produced by the new Touchstone division.

The television flagship would ultimately be an anthology series. ABC had the most interest in reviving the format and amid much fanfare The Disney Sunday Movie premiered on February 2, 1986 hosted by Eisner himself. Again an instrumental version of “When You Wish Upon A Star” was used as the theme and even Tinker Bell came out of retirement to open each week’s show.

For most of its 2 1/2 year run, Sunday Movie aired in a two-hour format. To let viewers know this new series bore a direct kinship to the old, a few classic reruns were seen during the summer of 1986. Nostalgia and ratings were high initially, but both eventually wore down. The old nemesis 60 Minutes was as strong as ever and eventually pushed Sunday Movie back to one hour, then off ABC altogether.

As if history was repeating itself, NBC gladly picked up the series in 1988, re-christening it The Magical World of Disney. A “wheel” format of rotating miniseries was instituted including new Davy Crockett adventures (coincidentally, five episodes were produced– the same number as the original version), an action-adventure series called “Wild Jack” (three episodes made), a remake of “The Absent-Minded Professor” starring Harry Anderson of NBC’s hit sitcom Night Court (only two episodes made) and various special presentations.

This all soon faded back into the venerable (and vulnerable) anthology setting. In the 1989-90 season there was another attempt at miniseries programming in the form of a comedy series starring Barbara Eden called “Brand New Life” which was created by Chris Carter (yes, that Chris Carter of The X Files!). But after two lackluster years, the anthology series was again canceled with The Magical World of Disney name retained until 1996 for The Disney Channel’s weekly showcase of premiere movies and specials.

In 1996 The Walt Disney Company purchased Capital Cities/ABC Inc. for a record $19 billion, and shortly thereafter things seemed to come full-circle. In 1997, the anthology returned to Sundays as … The Wonderful World of Disney. Setting the tone for the weekly two-hour series, the opening show was the 1995 theatrical release Toy Story.

Other Disney animated and live-action blockbusters frequently turn up and there have been some outstanding original productions such as “Oliver Twist” with Richard Dryfuss, “Ruby Bridges,” the Whitney Houston-produced remake of “Cinderella,” “The Shirley Temple Story,” “Eloise at the Plaza,” “Eloise at Christmastime” (both based on the popular children’s books), remakes of “The Miracle Worker,” “Annie” and “The Music Man”; and in 2001 “The Man Behind the Myth,” a documentary about Walt’s life and work co-produced by his daughter Diane Disney Miller.

Until the fall of 2000 there was a mesmerizing (and Emmy-winning) title sequence as Tinker Bell flew across the screen to the music of “When You Wish Upon A Star” and “A Whole New World” from Aladdin. This was replaced by (in this author’s opinion) the worst opening sequence the anthology had ever produced as menacing images show people’s homes magically turning into castles.

Apparently someone or some people at ABC thought so too as a brief “Welcome to The Wonderful World of Disney” announcement is often used instead. In September of 2003, the series was moved from Sundays into yet another familiar time slot– Saturdays at 8 PM alternating with The ABC Saturday Movie of the Week. Classic episodes from the original 1954-83 run aired as part of The Disney Channel’s “Vault Disney” until that programming block was canceled in September 2002. Select episodes such as the original Davy Crockett and Disneyland-themed programs have been released in special DVD sets.

In an ever-changing and challenging environment both in fiction and in real-life, the Disney anthology series remains a haven for quality programming. It is something that has never wavered and reminds us that the world is still wonderful.To help commemorate 50 years of The Wonderful World of Disney, here is some general information of the show’s history, including some of the awards won over the decades.

Hosts
Walt Disney (October 27, 1954 to April 2, 1967)
Michael Eisner (February 2, 1986 to September 9, 1990– he continues to appear on an occasional basis in the current version)
Announcers*
Dick Wesson (1954-1979)
Dick Tufeld (Alternate Announcer, 1977-1979)
Gary Owens (1979-1981)
Mark Elliot (1981-1983)
Broadcast History
Disneyland (ABC)
October 27, 1954-September 3, 1958: Wednesday, 7:30 PM-8:30 PM
Walt Disney Presents (ABC)
September 12, 1958-September 25, 1959: Friday, 8:00 PM-9:00 PM
October 2, 1959-September 23, 1960: Friday, 7:30 PM-8:30 PM
September 25, 1960-September 17, 1961: Sunday, 6:30 PM-7:30 PM
Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color (NBC)
September 24, 1961-September 7, 1969: Sunday, 7:30 PM-8:30 PM
The Wonderful World of Disney (NBC)
September 14, 1969-August 31, 1975: Sunday, 7:30 PM-8:30 PM
September 14, 1975-October 19, 1975: Sunday, 7:00PM-8:00PM
October 26, 1975-December 7, 1975: Sunday, 7:00PM-9:00PM
December 21, 1975-September 4, 1977: Sunday, 7:00PM-8:00PM
September 11, 1977-October 23, 1977: Sunday, 7:00 PM-9:00 PM
October 30, 1977-September 2, 1979: Sunday, 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
Disney’s Wonderful World (NBC)
September 9, 1979-September 13, 1981: Sunday, 7:00PM-8:00PM
Walt Disney (CBS)
September 26, 1981-January 1, 1983: Saturday, 8:00 PM-9:00 PM
January 4, 1983-February 15, 1983: Tuesday, 8:00 PM-9:00 PM
July 9, 1983-September 24, 1983: Saturday, 8:00 PM-9:00 PM
(two irregularly scheduled airings on Tuesday, May 3, 1983 and Saturday, May 21, 1983)
The Disney Sunday Movie (ABC)
February 2, 1986-September 6, 1987: Sunday, 7:00 PM-9:00 PM
September 13, 1987-September 11, 1988: Sunday, 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
The Magical World of Disney (NBC)
October 9, 1988-July 2, 1989: Sunday, 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
July 9, 1989-July 23, 1989: Sunday, 8:00 PM-9:00 PM
August 6, 1989-February 25, 1990: Sunday, 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
March 4, 1990-April 15, 1990: Sunday, 7:00 PM-9:00 PM
April 22, 1990-May 6, 1990: Sunday, 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
May 27, 1990-July 22, 1990: Sunday, 7:00 PM-9:00 PM
August 5, 1990-September 9, 1990: Sunday, 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
The Wonderful World of Disney (ABC)
September 28, 1997- August 31, 2003: Sunday, 7:00PM-9:00PM
September 27, 2003-Present: Saturday, 8:00PM-10:00PM
Emmy Awards and Special Honors
1955:
-Best Variety Series: Disneyland
-Best Individual Show: “Operation Undersea,” Disneyland
-Best Television Film Editing: “Operation Undersea,” Disneyland
1956:
-Best Producer of Filmed Series: Walt Disney, Disneyland
-Best Action or Adventure Series: “Davy Crockett” on Disneyland
1962:
TV Guide Award for Best Dramatic Program of the Year:
“The Prince and the Pauper,” Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color
1964:
-Outstanding Program Achievements in the Field of Children’s Programming: Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color
-Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction or Set Design:Carroll Clark and Marvin Davis for Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color
1971:
Special Classification of Outstanding Program Achievement:
The Wonderful World of Disney
1981:
Special Certificate of Honor:
“Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life,” Disney’s Wonderful World
1990:
Outstanding Children’s Program:
“A Mother’s Courage: The Mary Thomas Story,” The Magical World of Disney
1998:
-Art Direction for a Variety or Music Program:
Randy Ser, Edward L. Rubin, Julie Kaye Fanton for
“Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella,” The Wonderful World of Disney
-Main Title Design: The Wonderful World of Disney
April 7, 2003:
The Wonderful World of Disney was inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame. This was a prestigious honor for television’s longest-running prime time series. Past recipients have included programs such as All in the Family and M*A*S*H, as well as individuals Carol Burnett, Ted Koppel and others.

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