Classic TV

[garyd]

Its pretty well documented that it aired in color from the start. 

LOL, lord yes.  "In Living Color" no less.  RCA owned NBC at the time.
My grandmother bought a color tv in 1959 meaning that we had to watch anything that was broadcast in color including:
"Bonanza", "Sing Along with Mitch",(god help us), and "Disney's Wonderful World of Color". 

[garyd]

Any one else love the Wild Wild West?

Yes, I liked it a lot.  "Steampunk" long before the term was coined.

[bentgyro]

It was interesting that the premise of Bonanza is that Ben lived on the ranch with
his three sons from three diffferent wives he'd had. Ladies beware! Was the original
title My Three Sons? ME-TV showed the leprechaun episode of Bonanza yesterday.

I remember that episode and Laughing a lot!!!

[Jeff Wrangler]

LOL, lord yes.  "In Living Color" no less.  RCA owned NBC at the time.
My grandmother bought a color tv in 1959 meaning that we had to watch anything that was broadcast in color including:
"Bonanza", "Sing Along with Mitch",(god help us), and "Disney's Wonderful World of Color". 

Really? Seriously, I had no idea color TV was available that early. Partly that's because nobody I knew, including my own parents and grandparents, had a color set before the middle Sixties at the earliest--in the case of my family I'm sure it was more like 1967 or so.

There is also the fact that some of the shows I remember most fondly had their first season in black and white as late as the middle of the Sixties (e.g., Daniel Boone, first season 1964-65).

Bewitched, The Beverly Hillbillies, and Petticoat Junction also began in black and white.

I remember Sing Along with Mitch (introduced the world to Leslie Uggams),  and we never missed Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color. 

[Jeff Wrangler]

Any one else love the Wild Wild West?

The Wild, Wild West is one of the shows where people react with shocked disbelief when I tell them I didn't watch it as a kid. I've assumed it aired opposite something else we watched in my family, but now I've begun to wonder whether it was on after my bedtime.  I can remember having to go to bed on Thursday nights after Daniel Boone was over, and lying in bed listening to Bewitched, which my parents had on the TV downstairs in the living room. 

I've enjoyed the few episodes I've seen of The Wild, Wild West on ME-TV, and I hope to see more of them. Robert Conrad is awfully hot in those black leather chaps, and I love watching Ross Martin do all those different characters. 

[Jeff Wrangler]

I remember my grandparents had a remote control for their TV. It was tethered to the set by a long cord, and you had to watch not to trip over it. 

[suelyblu]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig3GcDBjQN4

Remember this ??  I had the thrill of going on two different trains in the US which reminded me of this program.!!

[fritzkep]

Really? Seriously, I had no idea color TV was available that early. Partly that's because nobody I knew, including my own parents and grandparents, had a color set before the middle Sixties at the earliest--in the case of my family I'm sure it was more like 1967 or so.

There is also the fact that some of the shows I remember most fondly had their first season in black and white as late as the middle of the Sixties (e.g., Daniel Boone, first season 1964-65).

Bewitched, The Beverly Hillbillies, and Petticoat Junction also began in black and white.

I remember Sing Along with Mitch (introduced the world to Leslie Uggams),  and we never missed Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color. 

Actually color broadcasting and TV sales (basically RCA Victor only, and NBC) started in 1954, but it was a couple of years before they even had a single hour of color programming per night. CBS had an earlier color system, but it was incompatible with regular black and white TV's. Ed Sullivan was broadcast in this format for a while, but because non-color receivers couldn't show it, this system died without a trace.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Color_television

[fritzkep]

Back in high school we had a fund drive for the Holy Cross Missions, and one of the prizes was the opportunity to go to one of our classmates house, his family had a color TV (very early 60's). The show we watched was Sing Along with Mitch.

And when I was travelling with my parents to New York, we stopped at a motel in Petersburg, VA (The Roses of Picardy Motel), and they had a single color TV in the common room, which the guests were able to watch. It was The Price Is Right, that's the one I remembered seeing. This was in 1958. They had the color turned up so it was quite garish. I loved it!

[fritzkep]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig3GcDBjQN4

Remember this ??  I had the thrill of going on two different trains in the US which reminded me of this program.!!

Oh yes, remember this very well!

[garyd]

Really? Seriously, I had no idea color TV was available that early.

Yup, and here it is.  This is exactly the one she bought (and then got rid of few years later because she did not like the "modern" cabinet".

[kathy]

I remember when the color TVs were first promoted; what a big thing that was!  We never missed Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color.

And in the ad above, in the bottom right hand corner: remember when the RCA dog and  the "Victrola"? were always in the ads?  I thought it was so cute and always looked for the ad and the cute dog.  A few yrs. ago there was an RCA ad with this dog, the Victrola, and a smaller version of the older dog.  I loved it. 

The ads always read "...his master's voice".  I always looked for this but it has been gone for some time.  Sigh.

kathy   

[killersmom]

LOL, lord yes.  "In Living Color" no less.  RCA owned NBC at the time.
My grandmother bought a color tv in 1959 meaning that we had to watch anything that was broadcast in color including:
"Bonanza", "Sing Along with Mitch",(god help us), and "Disney's Wonderful World of Color". 

Oh I liked "Sing Along With Mitch"!

[Jeff Wrangler]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig3GcDBjQN4

Remember this ??  I had the thrill of going on two different trains in the US which reminded me of this program.!!

I've only heard of that show, never seen it. I'd like to see some episodes some day. That locomotive is the familiar Sierra Railroad #3.

It seems odd to see "the Skipper" without his "little buddy," Gilligan. 

[Ennis Del Mark]

The Wild, Wild West is one of the shows where people react with shocked disbelief when I tell them I didn't watch it as a kid. I've assumed it aired opposite something else we watched in my family, but now I've begun to wonder whether it was on after my bedtime.  I can remember having to go to bed on Thursday nights after Daniel Boone was over, and lying in bed listening to Bewitched, which my parents had on the TV downstairs in the living room. 

I've enjoyed the few episodes I've seen of The Wild, Wild West on ME-TV, and I hope to see more of them. Robert Conrad is awfully hot in those black leather chaps, and I love watching Ross Martin do all those different characters. 

You never saw The Wild Wild West, Jeff?!? The only reason you're not being drummed out of the club is that you were probably watching Tarzan on Friday nights instead.