14-03-2016, 11:18 AM
(This post was last modified: 14-03-2016, 11:25 AM by Terry.
Edit Reason: Information added
)
Q: When did regular colo(u)r TV start in the USA?
A: Too soon!
The National Television Systems Committee submitted its system to the FCC for approval in July 1953. After one 'in house' demo broadcast, NBC made two further network transmissions before approval was granted on 17th December 1953. The first national broadcast after approval was on 1st January 1954 and, I think, most sources would quote 1954 as the answer to your question.
However, whether these were 'regular' transmissions is debatable.
Set prices were high. The first sets sold in New York cost $1,295, ($11,411 at 2016 prices) but the rush to get colo(u)r on-air and sets to market after approval had an impact on quality. It was said that it was not a case of being able to afford the TV that determined whether you owned a colo(u)r set but if you could afford to keep the engineer that came with it! Also, although sets from most major manufacturers were available at the beginning, most fell by the wayside towards the end of the 50s leaving RCA in pole position.
This was a problem for CBS and ABC because RCA owned NBC, and the other two networks were wary of promoting the competitors products by airing colo(u)r shows!
Colo(u)r production was expensive and, initially, there was no way of recording it in colo(u)r - a problem in a country that exists across several different time zones - and there were very few sets, so it is not surprising that the majority of programming remained firmly in black and white for at least ten years - as late as 1964, only 3.1% of TV sets in the US were colo(u)r sets - compare that with the first 10 years of UK colour!
So, it is not surprising that even high ranking shows such as the Ed Sullivan Show could still be in monochrome in 1964.
Even if the original broadcasts were in colo(u)r, is it possible that the DVDs came from a monochrome transcription?* Look at how many lost BBC programmes have surfaced from other countries as monochrome copies.
Don't forget that there was no demand for colo(u)r material, even in NTSC, outside the US before 1966, when Canada first started its own colo(u)r service.
* EDIT: I've just re-read the original post and note that I'd overlooked the bit about commercials being included. However, doesn't this point towards an off-air recording of some description? A studio recording wouldn't carry the commercials as they would be added later, surely - apart from the program sponsors material, of course.
Domestic recording facilities wouldn't have been around then, but is it possible that someone at an affiliate station recorded the programs on a mono machine?
A: Too soon!
The National Television Systems Committee submitted its system to the FCC for approval in July 1953. After one 'in house' demo broadcast, NBC made two further network transmissions before approval was granted on 17th December 1953. The first national broadcast after approval was on 1st January 1954 and, I think, most sources would quote 1954 as the answer to your question.
However, whether these were 'regular' transmissions is debatable.
Set prices were high. The first sets sold in New York cost $1,295, ($11,411 at 2016 prices) but the rush to get colo(u)r on-air and sets to market after approval had an impact on quality. It was said that it was not a case of being able to afford the TV that determined whether you owned a colo(u)r set but if you could afford to keep the engineer that came with it! Also, although sets from most major manufacturers were available at the beginning, most fell by the wayside towards the end of the 50s leaving RCA in pole position.
This was a problem for CBS and ABC because RCA owned NBC, and the other two networks were wary of promoting the competitors products by airing colo(u)r shows!
Colo(u)r production was expensive and, initially, there was no way of recording it in colo(u)r - a problem in a country that exists across several different time zones - and there were very few sets, so it is not surprising that the majority of programming remained firmly in black and white for at least ten years - as late as 1964, only 3.1% of TV sets in the US were colo(u)r sets - compare that with the first 10 years of UK colour!
So, it is not surprising that even high ranking shows such as the Ed Sullivan Show could still be in monochrome in 1964.
Even if the original broadcasts were in colo(u)r, is it possible that the DVDs came from a monochrome transcription?* Look at how many lost BBC programmes have surfaced from other countries as monochrome copies.
Don't forget that there was no demand for colo(u)r material, even in NTSC, outside the US before 1966, when Canada first started its own colo(u)r service.
* EDIT: I've just re-read the original post and note that I'd overlooked the bit about commercials being included. However, doesn't this point towards an off-air recording of some description? A studio recording wouldn't carry the commercials as they would be added later, surely - apart from the program sponsors material, of course.
Domestic recording facilities wouldn't have been around then, but is it possible that someone at an affiliate station recorded the programs on a mono machine?
