My New Year’s Resolution…Carpe Diem! Will You Join Me?

Looking at these “after” photos of Times Square is a reminder of just how fast life can change. Thank you for being a part of the family here…one of the most generous and appreciative groups of people I have ever had the pleasure of being a part of. Happy New Day! -Bobby Ellerbee

“You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land; there is no other life but this.”
― Henry David Thoreau

“Dream as if you will live forever; Live as if you will die today.”
― James Dean

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

“Happiness, not in another place but this place…not for another hour, but this hour.”
― Walt Whitman

“Life is a helluva lot more fun if you say yes rather than no”
― Richard Branson

“They are not long, the days of wine and roses. Out of a misty dream, our path emerges for a while, then closes, within a dream.”
― Ernest Dowson,

“Oh, now, now, now, the only now, and above all now, and there is no other now but thou now and now is thy prophet.”
― Ernest Hemingway

“You look ridiculous if you dance. You look ridiculous if you don’t dance, so you might as well dance.”
― Gertrude Stein

“Forever is composed of nows.”
― Emily Dickinson

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Times Square…Preparing For NBC’s Carson Daly Countdown Show

It’s 33 degrees in Manhattan right now,and getting colder, but the action in Times Square is heating up as the afternoon wears on and show prep continues. Here are some great pictures just in from Dan and Rob Balton on the Carson Daly set.

If any of the CBS, CNN and ABC crews are with us, we’d like to see what you are up to. You can email me pix at edition4@comcast.net or message me with them via Facebook. Thanks to Dan and Rob for these…stay warm and Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

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For The Young At Heart And Strong Of Bladder…Times Square

The good news is, they have a front row seat for America’s biggest party. The bad news is, once you are there, you can’t leave and get back in. I’ll bet there are some mighty long restroom lines. Thanks to Geoffrey DeVoe, Eric Eisenstein, Craig Haper and Anthony Quintano for these Time Square pix. Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

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The First Rose Parade Color Cast…NBC, January 1, 1954

This was the first ever national west coast – to east coast colorcast using the newly approved National Television System Committee (NTSC) standards. Special permission for the colorcast was obtained from the FCC which, in its December 17, 1953 approval, allowed colorcasting to start 30 days later.

AT&T Long Lines had hurriedly configured a color capable network of 21 television stations across the United States (list included below). RCA Broadcast had rushed transmitter modification equipment to the affiliates on the Bell color network path.

RCA had also built a small pre-production run of 200 color receivers. This set was designated as the “Model 5”, the fifth in their series of experimental color sets. The Model 5 was provided to NBC affiliates and RCA Victor distributors for the Rose Parade and each location had a full house for the event.

The “Model 5” was the prototype for the first RCA production Color Receiver…the Model CT-100. Starting March 25, 1954, 5,000 CT-100’s were manufactured in RCA’s Bloomington, Indiana plant. The set was named, “The Merrill”.

Below is the story The New York Times wrote about the color cast a few days later….

“Color television’s most exacting test came with the National Broadcasting Company’s outdoor pickup of the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena California. The New Years Day Program was the first prolonged presentation of color video under circumstances where, unlike a studio show, neither lighting, nor movement could be controlled. All things considered, the results were exceedingly good.

The Tournament of Roses parade had the largest audience thus far, probably several thousand persons to see color TV at one time. The American Telephone and Telegraph Company, in a amazingly speedy engineering accomplishment, put together a color network of twenty-two cities to which the Radio Corporation of America had rushed equipment. A number of set manufacturers also held demonstrations of color receivers in different cities.

With so many sets in operation, each subject to relatively critical tuning controls and possible vagaries of electronics, the quality of the tinted images from Pasadena undoubtedly varied on some receivers. But, overall, there is no question that the essence of the parades panorama of color was projected successfully on home screens some 3000 miles away. In comparison the monochrome pictures seen on existing receivers seemed virtually meaningless.

As the two NBC color cameras scanned a succession of elaborate floats, assorted military units, and other parade features, the scene was a veritable bevy of hues and depth; at other times the close-up was better. Occasionally there were overcasts of one tint or another but these disappeared with movement of the camera.

To concentrate so much color information within the frame of a small screen would be difficult for even the most gifted artist doing a “still” painting. To do it with constantly moving pictures seemed pure wizardry. Especially interesting from a technical standpoint was the remarkable stability of the individual colors as the NBC camera moved quickly from left to right and back again. On one set at least there was no perceptible streaking.

The Tournament of Roses parade, received locally from 12:15 to 1:45 P.M., did emphasize several problems for the home viewer. In the broad daylight and sunshine, it was necessary to draw the shades and cut out all glare if the colors on the TV screen were not to be washed out. This frankly, was a nuisance.

Another difficulty related to the size of the picture. The disadvantage of a small color image – roughly 12 1/2 inches – was much more noticeable with the parade than with earlier studio programs. And, since it is necessary to sit much farther away than from a black and white set, one wonders how big a color tube will be practical. Finding a happy compromise between picture size and viewing distance could be tricky for the engineer and the viewer, particularly if the latter must start rearranging furniture again.”

Much of this information and the photos are thanks to our friend Ed Reitan and his great color site http://www.novia.net/. Enjoy, share and Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

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KCOP Los Angeles…Behind The Scenes Rose Parade 1979

Using what look like Norelco PC72 cameras and some very odd camera art, we see how KCOP covered the parade. There’s also at least one familiar face which belongs to David Crosthwait of DC Video. Enjoy and remember to visit the EOAG page to see all of today’s stories…just click on the blue lettering at the top of this post. Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

#t=15″ target=”_blank”>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jtd7yVKmJVs #t=15

KCOP coverage of the 1979 Tournament of Roses Parade. This is a short clip featuring the technical facilities used to get the show on the air. This excerpt w…

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KTLA…Covering The Rose Parade Since 1947

Covering the Rose Parade has been a great KTLA tradition that continues today. Bill Welsh and Dick Lane announced the first telecast in 1947.

In 1953, before videotape made such things easy, KTLA found a way to air the parade twice. They televised the parade once at the beginning and once as it neared the end. KTLA also did this with a twist starting in 1955 when they broadcast the parade in both black and white and color. The black and white unit was at the top of the parade and the color unit at the end. By the time the parade had passed the black and white cameras, it was in front of their color cameras.

Stations were extremely competitive in those years, each trying to find the best camera locations. KTLA scooped them all in 1959, having Tom Hatten ride a camera equipped station wagon (seen below) televising live pictures from the very front of the parade as it moved down Colorado Boulevard. New rules went into effect the following year-cameras were never allowed to precede again.

Also in 1959, KTLA was the first to cover the parade by helicopter. The “Telecopter” was the first ever flying television station featuring a minicam that gave viewers a remarkable overview of the festivities.

The Rose Parade came of age when color television became a reality. The first KTLA colorcast was in 1955, but NBC had done a nation wide colorcast of the parade the year before. KTLA’s colorcast was almost a washout. The skies were so gray and overcast that the temperamental new cameras had trouble reproducing the bright, vivid colors of the parade but Klaus Landbreg’s engineers were only partially successful that historic day.

There is more on the photos, so please click though them and there is more of how KTLA covers the parade for Los Angels at the link below. Enjoy, share and Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/79849/ktlas-rose-parade-heritage-keeps-growing

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Pasadena…Preparing For The Rose Parade

The good news is, today’s weather will be a lot dryer than yesterdays…tomorrow’s too. These were taken yesterday and in the first picture, we see ABC reporting in the rain from the grandstands. From the press area, we see covered cameras and behind the stands, the trucks for ABC, NBC, KTLA, HGTV, Univision and RFD TV.

Our friend Roger Crawford is the senior video man in the ESPN/ABC truck and writes that the rehearsals take place early Thursday morning at the start line at about 4 AM. These are mostly for the opening number. The ABC booth is next to HGTV and RFD-TV. KTLA is around the corner and NBC is across the street.

Later today we should be able to see some of the many cranes, jibs and other camera platforms as well as the talent areas and, who knows what else? Maybe a peek inside the truck too! Thank you Roger! We appreciate the effort! Enjoy, share and Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

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New York…Preparing For NBC’s Carson Daly Countdown Show

Thanks to Rob Balton, here are a couple of shots from yesterday’s rehearsal of Carson Daly’s New Year’s show from Times Square. I think that’s Rob’s jib there on the left. The truck is All Mobile Video’s “Resolution” with TD John Pretnar at the controls. The monitor shot is from John Roche. Thanks for the pix and we’ll be looking forward to seeing more later today! Enjoy, share and Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

By the way…if you are working today, send us some pix of where you are and what you are doing, especially those of you in Times Square, The Rose Parade and at bowl games.

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December 31, 1965…Johnny Carson & Ben Graurer Welcome 1966

As mentioned in the Guy Lombardo article just before this, NBC usually welcomed the new year with a live ‘Tonight’ show which started with Steve Allen and continued through the Paar years and into Johnny Carson’s tenure.

I think Ben Grauer was the Times Square reporter every year for ‘Tonight’ until Carson moved the show to Los Angeles in 1972. Here, as 1965 passes into history, Ben is at his best with a remarkable billboard of the biggest stories of the year and it was straight off the top of his head. Enjoy, share and Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

http://youtu.be/Tus0p8vkZUYAS IT SAIDS, 1966 NEW YEARS EVE IN NEW YORK CITY FROMT THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JOHNNY CARSON (GREAT MAN) P.S. YOU NOTICE THE BALL HE SAIDS IS ON TOP OF THE…

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The Final Guy Lombardo New Year With Ben Grauer Reporting Live

By the next new year, both Guy and Ben would have passed away, but this was the night of December 31, 1976. Below is some history on the Lombardo broadcast years and some things about Ben Grauer that you may never have known.

The band’s first New Year’s Eve radio broadcast was in 1928; within a few years, they were heard live on the CBS Radio Network before midnight Eastern Time, then on the NBC Radio Network after midnight.

On December 31, 1956, the Lombardo band did their first New Year’s TV special on CBS; the program (and Lombardo’s 20 subsequent New Year’s Eve TV shows) included a live segment from Times Square that during the early years were hosed by pioneer broadcast journalist Robert Trout . In later years, another longtime newsman, Ben Grauer, reported from Times Square, though Grauer worked for NBC.

Grauer’s greatest fame lies in his legendary 40-year career in radio. In 1930, the 22-year-old Benjamin Franklin Grauer joined the staff at NBC. He quickly rose through the ranks to become a senior commentator and reporter. He was the designated announcer for the popular 1940s ‘Walter Winchell’s Jergens Journal’. Perhaps, most importantly, he was selected by Arturo Toscanini to become the voice of the NBC Symphony Orchestra. Grauer took over as announcer in 1940 and remained until the orchestra was disbanded in June 1954. Toscanini said he was his favorite announcer.

Starting in 1932, Grauer covered the Olympic Games, presidential inaugurations and international events. During his radio career, Grauer covered nearly every major historic event, including the Morro Castle fire, the Paris Peace Conference and the US occupation of Japan.

Millions remember his NBC coverage of the New Year’s celebrations on both radio and TV. Between 1951 and 1969, Grauer covered these events 11 times live from New York’s Times Square. He continued covering New Year’s Eve for Guy Lombardo’s New Year’s Eve specials on CBS in the 1970s, with his last appearance on December 31, 1976, the year before both he and Lombardo died.

From the mid-1950s until the mid-1960s, Grauer’s reports were part of the ‘Tonight’ show, where he worked with Johnny Carson and prior to that, Jack Paar, and Steve Allen. Grauer was also one of NBC Radio’s Monitor “Communicators” from 1955 to 1960.

Grauer provided the commentary for NBC’s first television special, the opening in 1939 of the New York World’s Fair. In 1948, Grauer, working with anchor John Cameron Swayze, provided the first extensive live network TV coverage of the national political conventions.

In 1954, NBC began broadcasting some of their shows in living color, and in 1957, the animated Peacock logo made its debut. It was Grauer who first spoke the now famous words, “The following program is brought to you in living color on NBC,” behind the Peacock graphic. Enjoy, share and Happy New Year! -Bobby Ellerbee

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBD1yHHgaEk

From Dec. 31, 1976, here is the CBS coverage of New Years Eve at Times Square with Ben Grauer (who passed away a few months later) and Guy Lombardo, who also…

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The Rose Parade…A Uniquely American Tradition And Color Spectacular

First, if you are working Times Square, Bowl Games or other holiday shows, please remember to send us some pictures via a Facebook message to me or send them to edition4@comcast.net.

I just heard from our friend Roger Crawford, senior video for ESPN/ABC. He and the other network mobile units are at Orange Grove and Colorado in Pasadena. Roger is going to get us some pictures of one of the most amazing parades in the world and how it’s covered. Of course the parade itself is January 1 but we hope to see some rehearsal and set up pix tomorrow.

Below, we see two color shots from 1961 and 1959. The original NBC Color mobile units did their first ever broadcast from here January 1, 1954 and we see them here in a Los Angeles publicity shot. The final photo is a screen shot taken in 1940 when Don Lee’s W6XAO did the first ever television broadcast to some 200 set owners in LA. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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Picture Parade #4…Let’s Play This ‘Match Game’ Style OK?

The square behind Lucy’s right shoulder is a _________________.
Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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Picture Parade #3…The First Electronic Color Cameras, 1949

In the large picture, we see RCA’s lead color engineer Richard C. Webb with one of the cameras with the housing off. I think the center channel is green with red on the right and blue on the left. Notice the dichroic mirrors are in front of the lenses.

In the next photos, we see some of the constant early testing and a photo of the monitor. These two shots are from NBC Studio 3H where testing moved around 1950. The final photo is from the original color test facility in Washington DC at the Wardham Park Hotel studio. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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Picture Parade #2…Classic Jackie Gleason

This is early afternoon, Saturday February 5, 1955. Camera blocking is still going on and CBS veteran Pat McBride is just behind Jackie. This is Studio 50, or what we now call The Ed Sullivan Theater, although Gleason was the first big show from here.

This is the variety show in rehearsal for that night’s broadcast which would include a Honeymooners sketch called “Cupid”. In the sketch, Ralph tries to help out a lonely old friend by setting him up with a blind date, but the gossip grapevine leads Alice to believe that Ralph is trying to land dates for himself. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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Picture Parade #1…WCBW TV, New York, 1946

This is a rare picture of the RCA A500 Iconoscope cameras at CBS Grand Central Terminal, but this is not a network show and it may surprise you to know that there was no CBS Television Network till 1948. This looks like a game show, but what ever it is is local. Only Dumont and NBC had television networks at this point.

By the way, these early pedestals had electric motors in the base to raise and lower them and the cable went down inside the lift column to keep it out of the way. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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Just For Fun…Charlie Chaplin Blooper And Outtake Reel

Did you know that one of Chaplin’s first jobs for Max Sennett was as a Keystone Cop? I’ll have that story in today’s next post. Did you know that along with D W Griffith, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, that Chaplin was one of the founders of United Artists? Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

#t=80″ target=”_blank”>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A_xERLt-2U #t=80

Chaplin was a perfectionist, but he wasn’t always perfect. Check out these bloopers or outtakes from the sets of his films.

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Behind The Scenes Of The Morning Shows…ABC, CBS And NBC

Thanks to The New York Times, here is a rare and interesting 24 shot slide show of the early morning preparations for the casts of the three big network morning shows. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/29/business/media/behind-the-scenes-of-today-this-morning-and-good-morning-america.html#

The Early Shift: Behind the Scenes of ‘Today,’ ‘This Morning’ and ‘Good Morning America’

In the dark hours of the morning, some of television’s biggest celebrities are already rolling out into the streets of the city that never sleeps.

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December 30, 1963…’Let’s Make A Deal’ Debuts On NBC

Here is the pilot, complete with a TK41 in the foreground of the intro shot at NBC Burbank May 25, 1963. The original edition of the show was a daytime series that ran on NBC, but moved to ABC in 1968 where it ran until 1976. A weekly nighttime syndicated edition of the show was broadcast from 1971 to 1977. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvNXm_5kLmo

This 37 minute pilot, produced on May 25, 1963 with Monty Hall as host and Wendell Niles as announcer/sidekick, led to the premiere of Let’s Make a Deal on N…

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‘CBS Sunday Morning’ Cameraman Allen Brown Retires…

Yesterday was Allen’s last day as a CBS cameraman, but soon, he will return to ‘Sunday Morning’ which he has worked on from almost it’s first day on the air. Celebrating 40 years at The Tiffany network, Allen has seen more than a little television history in the making on shows like ‘The Guiding Light’ where he spent ten years and with Walter Cronkite in Studio 33. Congratulations Allen and thanks to Craig Wilson for the photos. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee

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