One thing is certain. TV belongs to us. It was a gift proudly and lovingly given to the children of The Greatest Generation. Those of you who know television as hundreds of channels with movies, sports, and a wide variety of just-about-everything are getting a souped up version that is almost unbelievable to us. We, the inventors of more-is-better, are glad that you have TIVO, multiple remote controls and 3D-HD. But let me tell you about how it all came your way. The journey was magnificent.
It had been a long time comin’ for most of us who lived in the vast Midwestern USA dotted with few large cities. The FCC had frozen us out from 1948 to 1953 so that none of the visions of Ed Sullivan, The Original Amateur Hour, Howdy Doody or Uncle Milty could miraculously travel trough the air, find our antenna towers, boosters and rabbit ears to the awaiting Television Set. No sir. Not in places like Danville, Illinois. We got to see the new magic when we went up to Chicago. Man Oh Man. Even at three years of age I could appreciate the excitement about this thing. Everyone wanted one. Our next-door-neighbor, John Bookwalter couldn’t wait and got a set in 1952 at Christmas. By Spring of 1953 they had constructed a huge tower at the side of the house. Lots of fancy boosters and amplifiers according to John. The set was big with a little green screen. The closest stations were in Indianapolis and Chicago so my Dad was more than skeptical. Most of the neighborhood gathered at their house when the set got turned on for the first time. All you could really see was snow. There was an electric rotator on the antenna that kept moving it a degree or two at a time. Then, all of a sudden you could make it out…A TEST PATTERN! Everyone seemed really impressed. Then there was some more snow and what appeared to be a boxing ring. Sure enough! There was sound. It was snow. No. Fights. A little more adjustment. People gasped and cheered. It was The Friday Night Fights…Look Sharp To Be Sharp. Wow. Not much was really seen but snow. Aunt Wilma Bookwalter made her famous fudge. People drank a lot of cocktails. Dad vowed not to get a TV until you could actually see a picture. Listen…I can remember all of that and I was only two and a half. Anyway…it was 1953 and the dye was cast.
Life Before TV...I was already saddled up
Mr. Magin at WDAN Channel 24 made it all possible..,
Little did I know that his kid would be my best friend five years later
(and for the rest of my life)
We got our first TV from Santa on the next Christmas in 1953. It was a Magnavox Embassy. All appliance name brands were VERY important in those days. People often referred to their new shiny electronic wonder with special emphasis on its’ name…”The electric range has a double oven…It’s Fridgidaire by the way” might elicit a response such as “Oh my, I hear they have an automatic clock that turns the oven on. We have a Philco…It has the biggest widest oven you know.” Anyway, The Embassy came to us with thrilling chromatic realism. It had the television, a phonograph that played LP, Standard or even 45 RPM records, AND a genuine AM FM and short wave radio…all with three speakers for perfect sound reproduction. The Magnavox had a sleek mahogany console with doors that closed to hide the huge 24” screen, radio and dials. Those doors were rarely closed let me tell you. The people at Thomas Music sold us ours and came over to install it. Dad had an even bigger TV tower with boosters and automatic rotor with rotator controller. The tower was at least 5000 feet high. It was sunk in concrete at the side of the house near the window. You could easily climb the thing without fear and get right out on the roof. Unfortunately, a major ice storm took out much of the tower and antenna. It was replaced by the VEERRY MODERN rooftop antenna that was capable of UHF and VHF reception. Safer too...considering the habitation of future adventurers and renegades that inhabited the area.
1954 ~ In front of The Magnavox
Test Pattern…We saw a LOT of these
For me…it all started in December 1954 with Davy Crockett (Fess Parker) , King of The Wild Frontier and best friend Georgie Russell (Buddy Ebsen) search for Indians that had assaulted a military outpost. They fought skirmishes under the command of Andy Jackson. Along the way Davy kills a bear using just his knife. Davy has to fight the Indian chief to save the life of his friend and to keep the frontier safe. My first record (played on the phonograph located conveniently above the radio in the TV console) was the Davy Crockett theme song. But Davy was leading up to something even bigger.
July 17, 1955 was the grand opening of Disneyland. The pre-opening show was on July 13. It was a regular TV extravaganza. All of us in kiddom had been prepped for NINE MONTHS. We had been watching the Disneyland TV show since October 1954. There was a lot of Mickey Mouse stuff, Treasure Island and cartoons to start out with on the show but mostly the whole thing was a promotion for the BIG DAY. Nothing and nobody prepped it better than Davy Crockett. It was the most important event in the world. We met Annette Funicello and Bobby Burgess for the first time. The Mousekateers were in perfect form along with Fess Parker himself, Buddy Espsen, Ronald Reagan, Art Linkletter and everybody-who-was-anybody including our host and creator extraordinaire, Walt Disney. They even had Frank Sinatra and people like that for the adults who were watching. After all…they were the ones who might actually TAKE us to Disneyland.
July 13, 1955
Davy Crockett and Disneyland Come To Life
I Become A Frontier Indian Fighter
Nothing would ever be the same. Pandora's Box was open compliments of good ole Walt Disney...and we were hooked. The world was being delivered to our living rooms in glorious, fuzzy black and white.
Stay tuned...there's more to come...and now for a word from our sponsors!
Stay tuned...there's more to come...and now for a word from our sponsors!
