Golden Age of Television

• 1. The Live Wire And The Single Take

  ›

  On the 9th of September 1957, the studio lights of Studio One burned bright for a recreation of Orson Welles's famous radio broadcast. Alexander Scourby stood in the foreground while Warren Beatty played a card-playing college student in one of his earliest roles. This production marked the end of an era where live television was the only option for drama. Before 1947, mechanical television processes limited shows to primitive monologues with single camera shots. CBS aired The Television Ghost from 1931 to 1933 as one of the first sustained series. That show consisted entirely of a fifteen-minute monologue by a single actor. Electronic technology matured in the late 1930s but World War II suspended most service until 1942. Postwar prosperity allowed consumers to buy sets and networks to expand broadcasting. By 1957, Ampex introduced its Quadruplex videotape system to the market. A live ninety-minute drama might require a dozen sets and at least that many cameras. Major set changes had to occur during commercial breaks without any second takes. Performers knew up to ten million people watched their telecast live. Any error appeared on screen immediately for everyone to see.

• 2. High Culture And The Anthology Hour

  ›

  Kraft Television Theatre debuted on the 7th of May 1947, launching the first hour-long anthology drama series. The Chevrolet Tele-Theatre followed on the 27th of September 1948, and Westinghouse Studio One arrived on the 7th of November 1948. These programs brought high culture to commercial network television throughout the 1950s. Leonard Bernstein appeared on Omnibus while Arturo Toscanini gave his first telecasts from Carnegie Hall. Networks employed art critics like Aline Saarinen and Brian O'Doherty to guide cultural uplift. Omnibus debuted on the 9th of November 1952, and won sixty-five awards before ending on the 16th of April 1961. Playhouse 90 became one of the last shows of this kind by the late 1950s. Live abridged versions of plays like Cyrano de Bergerac featured Broadway cast members recreating their roles. Critics and viewers looked forward to new teleplays by Paddy Chayefsky, Horton Foote, and Rod Serling. Twelve Angry Men and Marty were adapted for film after their television runs. Camera Three served as the final survivor of this highbrow programming until CBS took over its time slot in 1979.

• 3. Wrestlers And Westerns Take Over

  ›

  Gorgeous George Wagner made his first television appearance on the 11th of November 1947, changing the course of the industry forever. His in-ring character became the biggest drawing card the sport had ever known. Pro wrestling was the first program of any kind to draw a real profit for networks. Wagner's histrionics and melodramatic behavior made him a larger-than-life figure in American pop culture. He personally received hundreds of chic robes from Bob Hope while changing how audiences viewed the medium. Milton Berle sold as many television receivers as Gorgeous George did. The Hopalong Cassidy show aired on the 24th of June 1949, becoming the first Western series. Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and Tex Ritter starred in B-movie Westerns that filled time slots. Gunsmoke and The Lone Ranger became classics in their own right. Bonanza, The Virginian, and Wagon Train ran for years during the mid-1950s. Quiz shows experienced rapid growth in popularity before scandals beset the format. Lower-budget game shows continued as daytime fare for several decades after. Edward R. Murrow hosted See It Now and Person to Person to showcase important news events.

• 4. The Film Shift And Rural Appeal

  ›

  I Love Lucy took extensive steps toward matching radio writing quality with cinematic looks worthy of feature films. Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball established a multi-camera setup to allow for a live studio audience. They hired cinematographer Karl Freund to oversee filming and recorded the series on movie-quality thirty-five millimeter film. The relatively high cost prevented the show from being filmed in color as originally hoped. Sylvester Pat Weaver was fired in 1956 after his strategy of programming spectacular productions proved to be ratings failures. Rural sitcoms and Westerns boomed while perplexing even the writers of the shows. James Aubrey served as president of CBS Network from 1960 to 1965. He introduced Mister Ed, The Dick Van Dyke Show, and The Beverly Hillbillies to television. Americans' fondness for rural formats lasted well into the 1960s. By the late 1950s, network era television began reaching larger portions of rural America. Their viewing habits were reflected in overall television ratings. Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Twilight Zone dominated during the mid-1950s to early 1960s.

• 5. Scandals And The Vast Wasteland

  ›

  The quiz show scandals of 1958 hastened the end of the golden age alongside a writer's strike in March 1960. Playhouse 90 aired its final episode in May 1960, marking the conclusion of live drama anthologies. Leading director John Frankenheimer departed shortly after these events. Time magazine noted the 1960, 61 television season was the worst up to that point. Newton Minow, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, lambasted networks for creating a vast wasteland of inferior programming. Dennis James hosted game shows into the early 1970s while defending his upcoming series The New Price Is Right. Sylvester Weaver commented on the end of the Golden Age in The Denver Post in November 1960. He stated management did not give people what they deserved. A general decline in quality had been noticed as early as 1958 by the Peabody Award committee. They lamented that television was conspicuously lacking genuine humor and frank experiments. By the 1980s, public television began resorting to more popular fare to maintain donations.

• 6. Global Echoes In Canada And Britain

  ›

  CBC Television launched in 1952 with CTV Television Network following in 1962. Most Golden Age shows were imported from the United States until Can-Con requirements took effect around 1970. Actor Lorne Greene operated a prestigious training academy across from CBC studios from 1945 to 1952. The school developed much of Canada's early homegrown television talent despite never being profitable. BBC Television Service began regular broadcasts in 1936 before ceasing production during World War II. John Reith wanted to use radio waves to part the clouds of ignorance through classic serials. The Prisoner of Zenda adapted for radio broadcast in 1939 served as a prototype for dramatic productions. British television drama borrowed heavily from dramatic radio productions between the wars. Interior scenes for television drama and comedy shows were shot with electronic cameras while exterior scenes used film cameras. This arrangement conditioned British viewers to identify live looks with interior scenes and film looks with exteriors. The golden age of British television has been used to describe the period until the mid-1970s.

• 7. State Control And Soviet Thaws

  ›

  The Central Television Studio broadcast three to six plays a week from 1951 to 1954 on Soviet television. Staging new productions every other day was expensive due to technical, social, and economic reasons. Shortages of mobile cameras often precluded broadcasting live performances from theaters. Theaters became increasingly reluctant to offer their shows claiming television drew public away. Sergey Lapin increased political oversight over television after becoming chairman in 1970. He banned shows that were critical of the system and recorded most programs beforehand. The Thaw ended with the crackdown of the Prague Spring in Czechoslovakia. The second Golden Age of television in Russia is associated with perestroika and glasnost of the late 1980s. Political and economic news became standard fare of the 1990s alongside edgy talk shows. Gazprom took ownership of NTV in 2001 which aired several gritty programs. TV Rain faced heavy criticism for asking viewers about Leningrad's surrender options in 2014. Russian authorities blocked access to TV Rain in March 2022 following its coverage of the invasion of Ukraine.