For us Baby Boomers, the appearance of HDTV a few years ago brought back memories of the last big jump in TV technology.
When homes first started sprouting TV antennas in the 50's, black and white sets were the norm. They weren't cheap, either. A new one was an investment of hundreds of dollars. Most stations outside of big cities didn't broadcast in color at first when it became possible in 1954. So spending over $1000 for the pictured 1954 CBS-Columbia color TV was simply out of the question.
But color was catching on fast. By 1965, most US TV stations were broadcasting in color, even though many network shows were still black and white. In fact, it was interesting that some TV shows "jumped the shark" when they went color, the Andy Griffith Show being the prime example.
The prices had dropped by then, as well. You could get a living-room sized color TV for around 500 bucks. So many, including my father, took the color TV plunge about that time.
I saw my first color TV at Mickey Mantle's restaurant in Joplin, Missouri in 1964. They had one set up in the lobby. I remember standing there stunned at the incredible sight of seeing moving images in gorgeous color.
One of the first things a new color TV owner discovered was that the blasted colors wouldn't stay the same! It would go in and out of tune during a single show. A nice flesh-colored face might end up with a greenish tint before a show ended. And passing airplanes would also wreak havoc with the picture.
Many homeowners, my father included, decided to spring for a rotor that would turn the antenna around to directly face the transmission tower. In our small northeast Oklahoma town, we had signals originating from places as diverse as Tulsa, Joplin, and Pittsburgh, Kansas. Being able to point the antenna perfectly greatly improved color reception.
Channel 7 in Pittsburgh would begin the broadcast day with color bars that you could use to perfectly adjust the tint and hue. An announcer would describe each color, and you would try to match it. The picture would then be perfect, until it started getting off track again within minutes. Automatic fine tuning appeared in the 70's and ended this daily ritual.
I waited five years until I took the HDTV plunge. By then, the local networks were broadcasting in it, Dish Network offered a hi-def DVR at a reasonable fee, and the sets themselves had finally gotten reliable and cheaper. And as I installed it, it brought back fond memories of dad proudly hooking up our very first color set, circa 1965.
A big thanks to Plan59 for the great graphic of the old color set.
Comments (6)
Does anyone remember what was on TV the morning JFK was killed? I know it was a half hour show and some kind of sitcom. I was home recovering from a surgrey when the news broke thru and gave the news. I lived in South Gate in Los Angeles County. Any info would ease my brain from trying to remember! Thank You.
Posted by Laura | March 27, 2007 11:35 PM
Posted on March 27, 2007 23:35
I would say that the old shows simply looked better in black and white....there is a certain beauty to old Dick van dyke and andy
griffith episodes lost in the translation in the switch to color...the cheesy "Jeannie-Bewitched" shows looked better though....because
effects and design were the star of the show, along with the cheesy interior decorating inside the living rooms and kitchens of the characters.......
Posted by scott | July 20, 2007 6:59 AM
Posted on July 20, 2007 06:59
I guess we got our first portable color TV in the mid seventies. I got my own first color TV as a graduation gift. We watched black and white TV for so long! Even if we didn't have color today, black and white is ok by me. Some of those early color tv's had their problems with getting the colors just right!
Posted by Rivers End | May 29, 2009 9:06 PM
Posted on May 29, 2009 21:06
Hey Scott, Jeannie looks great in anything or . . . never mind. Barbara Eden was a fox by any measure of time. Now there's a subject for HD!
But I imagine it will be come time before I bother with HD. Call me a tight wad Scotsman.
Posted by Scott Irv | June 1, 2009 2:05 AM
Posted on June 1, 2009 02:05
Color Bars
"The first bar is white, followed by yellow, then cyan (or medium blue), the next is green, then magenta, followed by red and darker blue."
Before each episode of The Flintstones, the color bars would appear and the announcer would say the above. Why can't I remember to get a gallon of milk on the way home from work, but that stupid monolog is burned into my brain?
Posted by Mr. Curtains | September 23, 2009 8:58 AM
Posted on September 23, 2009 08:58
my first color tv was a plastic strip placed over the television screen. lol.
Posted by vera | February 1, 2010 8:52 AM
Posted on February 1, 2010 08:52