October 23, 1956…Videotape Makes Its Network Debut On NBC

58 years ago today, a two and a half minute video taped song from ‘Your Hit Parade’ star Dorothy Collins was inserted into ‘The Jonathan Winters Show’. NBC engineers in New York wanted to see if the viewing public could tell the difference from the live portion of the show. When no one noticed the transition, the age of video tape was born.

Details are a bit murky here, but I think this was all black and white and remember, this is only six months after Ampex introduced videotape at the 1956 NAB in April. Part of the confusion comes from the fact that Winters himself tells us that his 15 minute show was the first regular color series on television, but I think that may have happened in 1957. The first color videotaped specials were from ’57 as well and I think it took a year for RCA who had a color recording technology to work out the share with Ampex who had the quad head technology.

As for what the west coast saw, well…that would have been a kinescope of this show as the first ever tape delayed broadcast was November 30, 1956 at CBS with a broadcast of ‘Douglas Edwards With The News’. Unfortunately, there is no kinescope or tape of this historic event and all that’s available from Jonathan’s 1956 show is this :30 second intro. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2nkN9HklrY

His first of two variety series. This one sponsored by TUMS. In the late 60s he tried again on CBS.

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