Without The Cameras, It Would’ve Been A Radio Show…
Without The Cameras, It Would’ve Been A Radio Show…
Below are a couple of shots of my Marconi Mark IV camera. It is one of only four known to exist in the US. Less than a dozen exist world wide. The night The Beatles performed for the first time in the US, six of these were in use at CBS Studio 50. In 1950, Studio 50 was transformed from a CBS radio studio to a television studio and was equipped with RCA TK30 cameras. ‘The Jackie Gleason Show’ moved from DuMont to CBS and Studio 50 in Sept 1952…Ed Sullivan moved from The Maxine Elliot Theater (CBS Studio 51) in fall 1953 and soon after, RCA TK31s were installed. Around 1962, CBS began using the new Marconi Mark IV cameras at Television City and Studio 50 was the first installation of these fine cameras in New York. My camera is an exact replica of those used fifty years ago tonight to make television history. To see where the Sullivan cameras wound up, see the next post on this page.
These cameras were all class with definition. Today’s cameras aren’t a patch on these babies
I think Chuck Pharis has a working one of these cameras! He fixes them…
In the mid-70’s, WBGU (Bowling Green) and the PBS station in Toledo had new Marconi cameras. Easy to break down for remotes. Bowling Green (PBS) had 3 and I don’t know how many Toledo had but all could be combined for larger productions.
such cool history. I bet the average American does not even know why the channels are called ABC, CBS, or NBC.
For more pix of this, and some of my other camras, go to this link. http://www.eyesofageneration.com/Bobby_Collections_MarkIV.php
Such a gorgeous piece of equipment. It’s a a shame there are few remaining in the world. I wish I could own a working camera and CCU from televisions past.