August 11, 2009…72 Year Run Of “The Guiding Light” Ends

The Guiding Light is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running drama in television history, running from 1952 until 2009, preceded by a 15-year broadcast on the radio.

First broadcast five days after President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s second inauguration, the title “The Guiding Light”, refers to a lamp in the study of Reverend Dr. John Ruthledge (a major character when the show debuted) that family and residents could see as a sign for them to find help when needed.

June 30, 1952 is the day “The Guiding Light” came to television. It’s first TV home was in CBS Studio 56 at Liederkranz Hall on East 58th street, where two of the four studios there had Dumont cameras. After the consolidation of production into the CBS Broadcast Center and colorizing in the mid 60s, Liederkrantz was closed, but ‘TGL’ was a big show so CBS moved it to a facility of it’s own…Studio 65, The High Brown Theater on 26th Street, which had upstairs and downstairs studio floors.

The black and white photo is from September of ’52 in Studio 56. The two color photos are from Studio 65. The studio shot was taken in the basement, while the control room and bigger studio were on the first floor. Occasionally, actors would have to race from one floor to the other to make appearances in the same scene.

‘The Guiding Light’ was created by Irma Phillips, and began as an NBC Radio serial on January 25, 1937. On June 2, 1947, the series was moved to CBS Radio. Even after it’s television debut, the show would continue to be broadcast concomitantly on radio until June 29, 1956.

The series was expanded from 15 minutes to a half-hour in early 1968, which is probably when the move from 56 to 65 occurred. The show expanded to a full hour on November 7, 1977.

The series broadcast its 15,000th televised episode on September 6, 2006.On April 1, 2009, it was announced that CBS had cancelled the show due to low ratings.

The show taped its final scenes for CBS on August 11, 2009, and its final episode on the network aired on September 18, 2009. On October 5, 2009, CBS replaced “TGL” with an hour-long revival of “Let’s Make a Deal”, hosted by Wayne Brady.

With a 72 year run, TGL stands as the fourth longest-running program in all of broadcast history.

At the link is a full 15 minute episode from March 4, 1953 when the show as just 9 months old. The Duz commercial is live, and the pitch man is the show’s announcer Hal Simms. The Ivory commercial appears to be on film. Thanks to Gady Reinhold for the color photos. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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August 10, 1948…WJZ-TV (WABC) Signs On In New York

New York’s Channel 7 came to life 68 years ago today, so Happy Birthday! Below are articles from “Billboard” and “Broadcasting” that describe the gala night.

Since a lot of us are a bit rusty on ABC television’s owned & operated roots, here’s a short primer.

On April 19, 1948, the ABC Television Network began its broadcasts on its first primary affiliate, WFIL-TV in Philadelphia. Only the month before, ABC bought the Duland Riding Academy at 7 West 66 Street at their network’s new home, which would allow them to leave the space at 30 Rock, that they inherited in the NBC Blue Network deal.

In that it would be four months until WJZ came to the air in NYC,
some of those first ABC shows were shown on Dumont’s WABD. Finally, August 10, 1948, the network’s flagship owned-and-operated station, WJZ-TV in New York City, began its broadcasts. ABC’s other owned-and-operated stations launched over the course of the next 13 months.

WENR-TV in Chicago launched on September 17, 1948, while WXYZ-TV in Detroit went on the air October 9, 1948. KGO-TV in San Francisco went on the air May 5, 1949.

On May 7, 1949, Billboard revealed that ABC would spend $2.5 million to convert the old Vitagraph/Warner East Annex in Hollywood into The Prospect Studios, and construct a transmitter on Mount Wilson in anticipation of the launch of KECA-TV, which went on the air on September 16, 1949. The rest as they say, is history. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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August 9, 1936…Jesse Owens Won His 4th Gold Medal In Berlin

The first live television coverage of a sports event in world history occurred during the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. These games were televised by two German firms, Telefunken and Fernseh.

Telefunken’s two large stationary cameras were based on RCA technology and the single, smaller Fernseh “roving” camera was based on Philo Farnsworth’s system.

Above, the dark camera is the Fernseh camera and was a bit smaller than the big white Telefunken cameras. Both systems broadcast at 180 lines and 25 frames per second. Four different areas were telecast using three cameras. In total, 72 hours of live transmission went over the airwaves to special viewing booths, called “Public Television Offices” in Berlin and Potsdam.

The cameraman looking into the viewfinder on the Telefunken is Walter Bruch who later went on to develop the Phase Alternation Line System, or PAL that, was initially adopted by more than thirty countries and eventually, more than one hundred. When interviewed by German talk show host Hans Rosenthal on why he had named it the “PAL system”, Bruch replied that certainly no German would want to have a “Bruch-System” because Bruch in German is synonymous with “broken”.

By the way, the Telefunkens appear to have zoom lenses, but they’re not. There were several fixed focal length lens options that could be changed out (a 2 man job), and we can see an example of that in the telephoto lens shot. They have placed the focus mechanism on the outside of the camera instead of inside, and are already using cradle heads instead of friction heads. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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August 6, 1956…The DuMont Network Goes Dark

In furthering television on a technical basis, DuMont brought a lot to the game, but financially, it had always been an uphill battle. Their deal with Paramount was always a problem, and without radio properties, they had no leverage with AT&T. At the link is the story of the final years. http://www.dumontnetwork.com/7.html

In a nutshell, here is how DuMont began to dismantle its network operations. On April 1, 1955, many of the entertainment programs on the network (including “Captain Video”, DuMont’s longest-running show) were dropped. Bishop Fulton J. Sheen’s last program aired a few weeks later, on April 26 (he would soon move to ABC).

By May, only eight shows remained on the DuMont network, and the AT&T coaxial-cable interconnection to DuMont affiliates in other cities was cancelled. Inexpensive programs like “It’s Alec Templeton Time” sustained what was left of the network during the summer months. A panel show called “What’s the Story” was the last regularly scheduled non-sports program on DuMont, with its final airing on September 23, 1955.

After that date, DuMont reserved its “live” network feed for occasional sporting events. The last program of any kind on the DuMont Television Network was “Boxing from St. Nicholas Arena”, with Chris Schenkel on August 6, 1956, although this show continued locally on WABD in New York City. -Bobby Ellerbee

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On this date in 1957, American Bandstand debuted on the ABC Television Network. Many tell of Dick Clark going to ABC with the show, but…according to Leonard Goldenson, it didn’t happen that way. Mr. Goldenson is the titan that built the network into the one we know today, and this narrative is based on his book, “Beating The Odds”.

In a nutshell, Goldenson’s friend and ABC’s top researcher, Ollie Treyz was responsible for bringing the show to the network. With an insatiable appetite for information, Ollie was reading the Philadelphia rating books and noticed a WFIL show called “Bandstand” had a consistent 15 or 16 rating, which was huge. Treyz was curious and called the man who had brought him to ABC in 1948…that was Roger Clipp who now managed ABC affiliate WFIL for Walter Annenberg.

Clipp sent a kinescope to Treyz, who showed it to his teenage daughter and her friends, who loved it. Treyz played it cool and told Clipp that although they didn’t think it would work, they would like to try it out on the network. They made a deal for $1500 per week for WFIL to produce the show, and Clark got a few spots a week for himself to sell. ABC sold the national spots for $1500 per minute.

At the time, ABC had a fairly competitive prime time, but not much more, which made it hard for them to gain new affiliates. Their afternoons were mostly soap operas and some game shows, but nothing special, with “Afternoon Film Festival” airing daily from 3-5. In the fall of 1955, ratings got a boost with the addition of the “Mickey Mouse Club”. It debuted as a one hour daily show that aired from 5-6. After the first 13 weeks, the MMC went to the half hour format and ran from 5-5:30 from then on.

ABC needed a game changer, and that’s what they got! It only took a few weeks for word to spread, and by Thanksgiving, “American Bandstand” was a hit! In the beginning, the local show, was 2 hours, but when it went to ABC it went to 90 minutes and then 60. In the summer of ’57, when it debuted, ABC ran the show from 3:30-5, and it was followed by “The Mickey Mouse Club” from 5-5:30.

13 weeks later, ABC decided to take advantage of thier new audience, and sandwiched the Johnny Carson hosted “Do You Trust Your Wife” into AB, with AB starting at 3 and DYTYW inserted from 3:30-4, followed by another hour of AB from 4-5. From 5-5:30, ABC rotated daily, “The Buccaneers”, “Adventures of Sir Lancelot”, “Superman”, “Woody Woodpecker” and “The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok”, followed by “The Mickey Mouse Club” from 5:30 -6.

Of course, all these times are Eastern, which begs the question, how did they handle the west coast feed? Well, fortunately, by this time, ABC had a few of the new Ampex VR 1000 video tape machines in operation. The machines debuted in April of ’56, but it took a while to put them into production and get them delivered, and the networks got the first ones. I think CBS and NBC got 6, and ABC got 4 in the spring/summer of ’57.

Just two years earlier, the Dumont Network had gone dark making ABC the new third network, but NBC and CBS were light years ahead in programs and schedules. Bandstand and Mickey Mouse helped bridge some of that gap. The show ran for 30 years on ABC, first on weekday afternoons and later, on weekends. I would rate it a 10, how about you? Got a favorite Bandstand moment? Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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Happy 90th Birthday! Tony Bennett…Born August 3, 1926

Anthony Dominick Benedetto was born in Astoria, Queens, New York 90 years ago today.

In a nutshell, here’s how Mr. Bennett’s career began. In 1949, Pearl Bailey, who had seen him in a club, asked him to open for her in Greenwich Village. She had invited Bob Hope to the show. Hope liked him and decided to take Benedetto on the road with him, and simplified his name to Tony Bennett. In 1950, Bennett cut a demo of “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” and was signed to the major Columbia Records label by Mitch Miller.

In 1951, he had his first big hit…”Because of You”, a ballad produced by Mitch Miller with a lush orchestral arrangement from Percy Faith. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-4zvArJDGg

His first release started out gaining popularity on jukeboxes, then reached number one on the radio play charts in 1951, and stayed there for ten weeks, selling over a million copies. The rest, as they say, is history.

Above is a rare photo of Mr. Bennett on the “Tonight” show, October 1, 1962. That was the night Johnny Carson made his debut as host of the show, and Tony Bennett was the musical guest Johnny Carson invited to share that special the night with. Happy Birthday Tony! Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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August 3, 1944…One Of CBS Television’s First Game Show Debuts

Pictured here is John Reed King hosting “Missus Goes A Shopping”, which debuted on August 3, 1944, This is inside CBS Studio 42 at Grand Central Terminal. I will reveal the surprise of who the woman in the hat is a few paragraphs down.

The first CBS game show on television was actually the “CBS Television Quiz”, which aired on Wednesday nights on WCBW from July 2, 1941 to May 25, 1942. The host was Gil Fates, who went on to be executive producer of “What’s My Line”. Due to the war, the show left the air, as the broadcast schedules for both NBC and CBS flatlined.

With optimism on the war in Europe spreading, TV began to percolate and more time was added to broadcast schedules. “Missus Goes A Shopping”, began on radio in 1941 and ran there till 1951, which King hosted until the show moved to TV. With it’s radio success, CBS figured it would be a good bet to add to its TV line up, and it was. A daytime television version began on November 19, 1947 and ended on November 10, 1948.

So, who is the woman? Hint…she was the scorekeeper on “CBS Television Quiz”. Didn’t help? OK…she is none other than Francis Buss…television’s first ever female director!

In addition to his radio and television quiz shows, Mr. King was also notable as the voice of many Paramount newsreels, and for a time he was coordinating producer of the series. His voice can often be heard on the Turner Movie Classics cable network when the movie newsreels are replayed from time to time.

One of John’s best known roles in radio was as the star of “Sky King”. In television, he is celebrated as the producer of one of the most popular series of the late 1950’s, “Death Valley Days”, which featured, among other hosts, Ronald Reagan. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

Above, Francis Buss…television’s first ever female director

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August 2, 1942…”Here’s Looking At You Kid” Is Immortalized On Film

74 years ago today, the final scene of “Casablanca” was filmed on Stage 21 at Warner Brothers. They also shot on Stage 04, Stage 05, Stage 06, Stage 07, Stage 08, Stage 09, Stage 11, Stage 12, Stage 14, Stage 17, Stage 18, Stage 25 and French Street on the backlot. Some of the sets used in “Casablanca”, were leftovers from “The Desert Song”, and “Now Voyager” with Bette Davis.

The whole picture was shot at Warner’s except for the sequence showing Major Strasser’s arrival, which was filmed at Van Nuys Airport, and a few short clips of stock footage views of Paris were added for effect.

This scene on the “runway” was purposefully over fogged to hide the deficiencies in the cardboard mock up of a Lockheed Electra which had very short extras around it to help cheat the proportionality.

Speaking of cheating, Bogart was two inches shorter than Bergman, so…like in this scene, he wore wooden block lifts on his shoes, and sat on pillows to hide the difference.

This scene also gave us, “We’ll always have Paris” too. It is thought that the “Play it again Sam” line was delivered on Stage 11. -Bobby Ellerbee

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July 31, 1970…Huntley-Brinkley Say Goodnight For The Last Time

The final minutes of the last broadcast, and more, were captured on this work tape (link below) from my friend Bob Maher. Here, we see rare video of not only Chet’s NBC sign off, but also…Walter Cronkite’s tip of the hat, with A VERY SPECIAL SURPRISE ENDING. The tape should start at 11:44. Cronkite’s tribute is first, followed by the memorable NBC sign off.

In the summer of ’56, Chet Huntley and David Brinkley had been paired by NBC to anchor their political convention coverages. It was producer Ruven Frank’s idea to use them at the conventions, but when it was suggested the two men take over the nightly news reporting from John Cameron Swayze, Ruven “thought it was the dumbest idea ever”.

Bill McAndrew was the NBC News boss, and had seen a two man team reporting from different cities on NBC affiliate WSAZ in West Virginia, and liked it. While Ruven Frank was coming around to McAndrew’s way of thinking, Swayze was losing more of the audience to Douglas Edwards on CBS, so the change was made.

At first, the ratings went even lower, but after a year of seeing Huntley in New York, and Brinkley in Washington, the audience began to build and by 1958, the team had won a Peabody Award.

“The Huntley-Brinkley Report” aired from October 29, 1956, until July 31, 1970. Before it, “The Camel News Caravan” with John Cameron Swayze was NBC’s nightly news show, and after Huntley-Brinkley, it came The “NBC Nightly News” with David Brinkley, Frank McGee and John Chancellor. Only in September of ’63 did the show go to half an hour from fifteen minutes…a week after CBS gave Walter Cronkite a thirty minute show.

I remember watching every night and especially remember their famous sign off…”Goodnight Chet, Goodnight David” and at the link below, David Brinkley talks about their sign off. Enjoy! -Bobby Ellerbee

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THANK YOU…AGAIN From Eyes Of A Generation!

Yesterday, this page hit a new all-time-high weekly Post Reach of 420,277!

That is nearly double the number in Wednesday’s thank you post, for the new 225,061 threshold, achieved then. We’ve also had 361 page likes this week which gives us 9,077 members who have made “The Home of Television’s Living History”, their home too.

As I have said, I am not the one that makes it live…you do. I do my best to memorialize historic, or interesting moments in TV, but it is all of you who bring the life to it by adding your input, much of which is a rare first hand narrative from people that were there. Thanks also for the amazing images that you so generously share with us. Most of all, I thank you for your willingness to teach me, and all that come here, from the fullness of your experiences, which include every area of the broadcast industry. -Bobby Ellerbee

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