August 30: This Day in TV History

[Stanislav]

Just a few random TV related events that happened on August 30. Discuss or comment as you please……

1898: Actress Shirley Booth (Hazel) is born (as Marjory Ford) in New York City.

1927: Actor Bill Daily (I Dream of Jeannie, The Bob Newhart Show) is born in Des Moines, Iowa.

1946: Actress Peggy Lipton (The Mod Squad, Twin Peaks) is born in New York City.

1949: WTVN-TV (channel 6) begins operations as Columbus, Ohio’s second TV station. Affiliated with DuMont (one of only three primary affiliates of that network at the time), the station would add a secondary affiliation with ABC in 1953, which would become primary upon DuMont’s demise in 1955.

1953: The first publicly announced experimental broadcast in compatible color of a network TV program is presented by NBC. It was an adaptation of "St. George and the Dragon" as performed by the human and puppet denizens of Kukla, Fran, and Ollie.

1953: KRBC-TV (channel 9) begins broadcasting in Abilene, Texas.

1963: Actor Michael Chiklis (The Commish, The Shield) is born is Lowell, Massachusetts. (Stooges fans also know him for portraying Curly Howard in the 2000 TV-movie bio of the boys.)

1968: Actor William Talman (Perry Mason) dies of lung cancer in Encino, California, aged 53. Prior to his death (and well aware that his condition was terminal), Talman filmed two anti-smoking PSAs for the American Cancer Society (the first Hollywood star to do so), asking only that they not be aired until after his death. He passed away 4 weeks after the second PSA was filmed.

1981: In Baltimore, WMAR-TV (channel 2) and WBAL-TV (channel 11) swap network affiliations, with WMAR going from NBC to CBS and vice-versa for WBAL.

1983: WKBS-TV (channel 48) goes dark, ending its 18-year history as a Philadelphia-area indie. On the day of its final broadcast, following a college football game, a video of the employees saying farewell airs. This is followed by an editorial by the general manager. The station’s sign-off film, usually played with the Star-Spangled Banner as soundtrack, is instead accompanied by Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence".

1993: The CBS incarnation of David Letterman’s late-night show debuts on CBS. On his new network, the show is known as Late Show with David Letterman (as opposed to his previous NBC show, Late Night with David Letterman).

1997: Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper ends its 5-year ABC run.

(Just a little featurette I hope to do as time permits…..don’t expect it every single day. It’s an entirely random selection based on a quick Net search, and is not meant to be comprehensive. So, don’t post nasty messages about “you forgot THIS” or “how could you not mention THAT?” Do so, and I’ll just take my keyboard and go home…..)

 

[landtuna]

I remember William Tallman's PSA and how shocked I was when I first saw it. Really brought reality home. A little less of an impact, but no less important, was when Yul Brenner did his some years later.

 

[KML0224]

15th anniversary for Dave? Yep! I have the show in my collection somewhere. Just wish I had recorded the coomercials in between now for some reason.

 

[LKellerIII]

I remember William Tallman's PSA and how shocked I was when I first saw it. Really brought reality home. A little less of an impact, but no less important, was when Yul Brenner did his some years later.

Then maybe you can confirm my memory of this controversy, landtuna. I did not personally see Talman's PSA, but heard about it from my father, who was an early anti-smoking zealot. He had quit smoking a few years before, and like many "converts," was particularly opposed to tobacco in all its forms. That particular anti-smoking ad was the first of its kind, and created a lot of controversy. By the time it aired, Talman was dead.

As my father told it, the networks were still making a lot of money from tobacco company advertising, and did not want to p**s them off. CBS was particularly cowardly, and refused to run Talman's PSA for a number of months. When pressured about this, they...well...lied, and stated that the reason they would not run it was CBS's policy against running any filmed material featuring people that were deceased.

However, shortly after that, some clever person pointed out publicly that CBS was still running Bea Benadaret episodes of Petticoat Junction at least a couple of months after she had passed away. According to imdb, Tallman died August 30, 1968; and Benadaret died October 13, 1968

I'm curious if this was true. It sounds lame - they must have run movies and shows with dead people frequently. I'm also curious if CBS ever gave in and ran Talman's PSA, or if it just appeared on other networks.

 

[Stanislav]

CBS was particularly cowardly, and refused to run Talman's PSA for a number of months. When pressured about this, they...well...lied, and stated that the reason they would not run it was CBS's policy against running any filmed material featuring people that were deceased.

However, shortly after that, some clever person pointed out publicly that CBS was still running Bea Benadaret episodes of Petticoat Junction at least a couple of months after she had passed away. According to imdb, Tallman died August 30, 1968; and Benadaret died October 13, 1968

I'm curious if this was true. It sounds lame - they must have run movies and shows with dead people frequently. I'm also curious if CBS ever gave in and ran Talman's PSA, or if it just appeared on other networks.

Don't forget that Perry Mason was a CBS show, so the connection was even more uncomfortable for them.

I think they did eventually air it.....I'm almost positive I first saw it on WCAX-TV during one of our Vermont summers.

 

[landtuna]

I remember William Tallman's PSA and how shocked I was when I first saw it. Really brought reality home. A little less of an impact, but no less important, was when Yul Brenner did his some years later.

Then maybe you can confirm my memory of this controversy, landtuna. I did not personally see Talman's PSA, but heard about it from my father, who was an early anti-smoking zealot. He had quit smoking a few years before, and like many "converts," was particularly opposed to tobacco in all its forms. That particular anti-smoking ad was the first of its kind, and created a lot of controversy. By the time it aired, Talman was dead.

As my father told it, the networks were still making a lot of money from tobacco company advertising, and did not want to p**s them off. CBS was particularly cowardly, and refused to run Talman's PSA for a number of months. When pressured about this, they...well...lied, and stated that the reason they would not run it was CBS's policy against running any filmed material featuring people that were deceased.

However, shortly after that, some clever person pointed out publicly that CBS was still running Bea Benadaret episodes of Petticoat Junction at least a couple of months after she had passed away. According to imdb, Tallman died August 30, 1968; and Benadaret died October 13, 1968

I'm curious if this was true. It sounds lame - they must have run movies and shows with dead people frequently. I'm also curious if CBS ever gave in and ran Talman's PSA, or if it just appeared on other networks.

I can't honestly say I remember what network/station I was watching when I first saw the Tallman PSA. I was a fan of Perry Mason and the shock of one of the principal characters, with no advance warning, was a big surprise. It was something that had not been done on radio or TV before (at least in my experience) and it had a profound impact.

I also can't comment with knowledge on the CBS excuse that they didn't show films with people already dead. Again, I can't remember what shows were on what networks/stations way back then with accuracy there certainly must have been films shown having deceased characters. I Love Lucy was still running then (although I'm not sure if on CBS) and William Frawley had died in '66 IIRC.

Looking back at TV shows in general then, there was almost always a lot of smoking shown. William Hopper, Perry's detective, was a chain smoker in the series and also died pretty young. There are many other examples. I'm sure the networks were not pleased to lose the lucrative tobacco advertising but fortunately [sarcasm on] they now have prescription medicines to make up for it. [/sarcasm off]

 

[Ultimajock]

I can't honestly say I remember what network/station I was watching when I first saw the Tallman PSA.

...I can. It was WBAY-TV/2 Green Bay, and it was during a commercial break in a Perry Mason rerun...

 

[Stanislav]

I'm sure the networks were not pleased to lose the lucrative tobacco advertising but fortunately [sarcasm on] they now have prescription medicines to make up for it. [/sarcasm off]

Boy, it's amazing to think of how back in the day we would have been highly offended at the notion of prescription drugs (especially for certain specifically male...er...dysfunctions) being advertised on TV. Or lawyers hawking their services on the tube -- I mean, that would have struck us as unthinkable and unprofessional. You just couldn't fathom august professionals like doctors and lawyers shilling their wares and services alongside ads for toilet paper and Pepto-Bismol.

Not to mention that if I had told my family that one day there would be "commercials" (infomercials) lasting a full 30 minutes or more, they would have locked me up in the Wacky Ward......

 

[LKellerIII]

I'm sure the networks were not pleased to lose the lucrative tobacco advertising but fortunately [sarcasm on] they now have prescription medicines to make up for it. [/sarcasm off]

Boy, it's amazing to think of how back in the day we would have been highly offended at the notion of prescription drugs (especially for certain specifically male...er...dysfunctions) being advertised on TV. Or lawyers hawking their services on the tube -- I mean, that would have struck us as unthinkable and unprofessional. You just couldn't fathom august professionals like doctors and lawyers shilling their wares and services alongside ads for toilet paper and Pepto-Bismol.

Not to mention that if I had told my family that one day there would be "commercials" (infomercials) lasting a full 30 minutes or more, they would have locked me up in the Wacky Ward......

I think we're all past being offended at prescription drugs for sexual dysfunction. What offends me is the commercial I saw last night for the herbal "male-enhancement" pill. It's "clinically proved" to make you larger. And this was on Comedy Central during the Daily Show - which supposedly has a sophisticated audience.

What's offensive is that a major broadcast corporation (CBS in this case) will accept advertising from unethical quacks. Of course, they run a tiny disclaimer at the bottom of the screen that the FDA has not tested or cleared the product. The disclaimer should say "This is a lie. Ignore this commercial unless you're really stupid."

 

[azumanga]

What offends me is the commercial I saw last night for the herbal "male-enhancement" pill. It's "clinically proved" to make you larger. And this was on Comedy Central during the Daily Show - which supposedly has a sophisticated audience.

What's offensive is that a major broadcast corporation (CBS in this case) will accept advertising from unethical quacks.

Actually, that's Viacom's problem -- after the split, Viacom got the non-premium cable channels (CBS got the Showtime family).

 

[landtuna]

What's offensive is that a major broadcast corporation (CBS in this case) will accept advertising from unethical quacks. Of course, they run a tiny disclaimer at the bottom of the screen that the FDA has not tested or cleared the product. The disclaimer should say "This is a lie. Ignore this commercial unless you're really stupid."

IIRC, I was reading just last week the "CEO" of the company that hawked Enzyte (you all remember "Smilin' Joe"?) was fined a substantial amount of money and will go to the slammer for 7-8 years for making unsubstantiated health claims (male enhancement category).

 

[LKellerIII]

What's offensive is that a major broadcast corporation (CBS in this case) will accept advertising from unethical quacks. Of course, they run a tiny disclaimer at the bottom of the screen that the FDA has not tested or cleared the product. The disclaimer should say "This is a lie. Ignore this commercial unless you're really stupid."

IIRC, I was reading just last week the "CEO" of the company that hawked Enzyte (you all remember "Smilin' Joe"?) was fined a substantial amount of money and will go to the slammer for 7-8 years for making unsubstantiated health claims (male enhancement category).

Can we hope that the guy becomes the b***h of his cell mate who is very large where it counts? :-\ I guess that's going a little overboard...

 

[mleach]

1983: WKBS-TV (channel 48) goes dark, ending its 18-year history as a Philadelphia-area indie. On the day of its final broadcast, following a college football game, a video of the employees saying farewell airs. This is followed by an editorial by the general manager. The station’s sign-off film, usually played with the Star-Spangled Banner as soundtrack, is instead accompanied by Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence".

Is there a video to this? WKBS went off the air in 1983. VCRs were very much around in 1983. Everyone in Philadelphia KNEW WKBS would be going dark. It was in the the local newspapers, KYW and WCAU radio reported this and I would imagine others did too. Come to think of it I think some of the BALTIMORE stations even reported about the "death" of WKBS.

And yet despite all of the thousands of TVs and VCRs in Philly at that time...did anyone bother to tape the last night of WKBS?

 

[Stanislav]

1983: WKBS-TV (channel 48) goes dark, ending its 18-year history as a Philadelphia-area indie. On the day of its final broadcast, following a college football game, a video of the employees saying farewell airs. This is followed by an editorial by the general manager. The station’s sign-off film, usually played with the Star-Spangled Banner as soundtrack, is instead accompanied by Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence".

Is there a video to this? WKBS went off the air in 1983. VCRs were very much around in 1983. Everyone in Philadelphia KNEW WKBS would be going dark. It was in the the local newspapers, KYW and WCAU radio reported this and I would imagine others did too. Come to think of it I think some of the BALTIMORE stations even reported about the "death" of WKBS.

And yet despite all of the thousands of TVs and VCRs in Philly at that time...did anyone bother to tape the last night of WKBS?

One would think so, especially since the station's demise was so lamented by its fans. I'm sure it's out there, and may have even been on YouTube at some point for all we know (but probably killed by the copyright gestapo). Right now, there are only 3 or 4 WKBS clips on YT, none from the final night.

 

[wbhist]

One would think so, especially since the station's demise was so lamented by its fans. I'm sure it's out there, and may have even been on YouTube at some point for all we know (but probably killed by the copyright gestapo). Right now, there are only 3 or 4 WKBS clips on YT, none from the final night.

There is a private collector who taped a huge stuff of WKBS material and sold selected excerpts (including a sign-off which was on and off YT and some other sites) in a DVD set to fellow fans. Though the person in question, in all likelihood, did not work for either Kaiser Broadcasting or Field Communications, and irrespective of any questions of whether the rights to any old WKBS-related material would be held by the current Channel 48, WGTW, this collector amazingly claims to hold copyright on such material (even some of the programs which were also included in this collection). Though technically he would be the copyright violator, for the reasons I mentioned.

This person's claim would be like if I taped the last days of WNYC-TV in New York in 1996 and claimed to hold the current rights to that station for that period of time. I'd likely be in the federal pen by now . . . :-\

 

[Ultimajock]

WKBS went off the air in 1983...Everyone in Philadelphia KNEW WKBS would be going dark. It was in the the local newspapers, KYW and WCAU radio reported this and I would imagine others did too. Come to think of it I think some of the BALTIMORE stations even reported about the "death" of WKBS.

...fairly similar to when KFIZ-TV/34 Fond du Lac WI went dark in November 1972. The three Green Bay commercial stations -- WBAY-TV/2. WFRV/5 and WLUK/11 -- all did feature items on their newscasts about the station's plug being pulled, with WFRV even getting KFIZ's Steve Peterson to do their package. Dunno if the Milwaukee or Madison stations also did pieces, although KFIZ covered about as much of those markets as it had the Green Bay market...

 

[mleach]

One would think so, especially since the station's demise was so lamented by its fans. I'm sure it's out there, and may have even been on YouTube at some point for all we know (but probably killed by the copyright gestapo). Right now, there are only 3 or 4 WKBS clips on YT, none from the final night.

There is a private collector who taped a huge stuff of WKBS material and sold selected excerpts (including a sign-off which was on and off YT and some other sites) in a DVD set to fellow fans. Though the person in question, in all likelihood, did not work for either Kaiser Broadcasting or Field Communications, and irrespective of any questions of whether the rights to any old WKBS-related material would be held by the current Channel 48, WGTW, this collector amazingly claims to hold copyright on such material (even some of the programs which were also included in this collection). Though technically he would be the copyright violator, for the reasons I mentioned.

This person's claim would be like if I taped the last days of WNYC-TV in New York in 1996 and claimed to hold the current rights to that station for that period of time. I'd likely be in the federal pen by now . . . :-\

Since its been 25 years when WKBS went off the air, if someone would upload a clip from WKBS to a site, who would have the power to get it taken down and claim the copyright? TBN or whoever runs channel 48 today? The other Philadelphia stations? Someone else?

 

[Ultimajock]

One would think so, especially since the station's demise was so lamented by its fans. I'm sure it's out there, and may have even been on YouTube at some point for all we know (but probably killed by the copyright gestapo). Right now, there are only 3 or 4 WKBS clips on YT, none from the final night.

There is a private collector who taped a huge stuff of WKBS material and sold selected excerpts (including a sign-off which was on and off YT and some other sites) in a DVD set to fellow fans. Though the person in question, in all likelihood, did not work for either Kaiser Broadcasting or Field Communications, and irrespective of any questions of whether the rights to any old WKBS-related material would be held by the current Channel 48, WGTW, this collector amazingly claims to hold copyright on such material (even some of the programs which were also included in this collection). Though technically he would be the copyright violator, for the reasons I mentioned.

This person's claim would be like if I taped the last days of WNYC-TV in New York in 1996 and claimed to hold the current rights to that station for that period of time. I'd likely be in the federal pen by now . . . :-\

Since its been 25 years when WKBS went off the air, if someone would upload a clip from WKBS to a site, who would have the power to get it taken down and claim the copyright? TBN or whoever runs channel 48 today? The other Philadelphia stations? Someone else?

...my guesses would be Tribune Broadcasting (ironic, since Field Communications grew out of the holding company for the Chicago Sun-Times) or the Belo Corporation. Just before WKBS' plug was pulled, The Providence Journal Company, then-owners of WPHL/17, bought WKBS' equipment and programming rights from Field Communications. ProJo eventually sold WPHL to Dudley Taft, who then sold it to Tribune in 1991. ProJo was then bought out by Belo in 1996...

...and as far as WNYC-TV goes, the owner of that station is still actively involved in broadcasting (WNYC-AM-FM), and even happens to be a municipal government. It's questionable, though, whether you'd be in a Federal pen or just Rikers or The Tombs ;-) ...

 

[stevezodiac]

I found Talman's PSA on guess where?? Seems like yesterday......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmjRkpge-jk

 

[perfidia08]

Just a few random TV related events that happened on August 30. Discuss or comment as you please……

1983: WKBS-TV (channel 48) goes dark, ending its 18-year history as a Philadelphia-area indie. On the day of its final broadcast, following a college football game, a video of the employees saying farewell airs. This is followed by an editorial by the general manager. The station’s sign-off film, usually played with the Star-Spangled Banner as soundtrack, is instead accompanied by Simon and Garfunkel's "The Sounds of Silence".

...and I was there watching it live. I had a numb feeling after that, since I had never seen a full-power major market TV station go dark before. I remember GM Vince Barresi's final editorial speech, the employee video (set to "Auld Lang Syne") and the "Sounds of Silence" SSB. There was also the simple final ad in that week's TV Guide: "To all of our friends, thanks for your support over the years! WKBS/48". (The listings show 17, 29 and 48 on 8/30 and just 17 and 29 the next day, with each posting full-page ads touting their indie supremacy)

I remember that for a few days after, I kept tuning to channel 48 hoping it would maybe come back on-air, but knowing there would only be lonely snow and static (for the next nine years).

I do recall someone posting audio of Barresi's farewell speech several months ago, but I haven't seen it lately. I would definitely love to see the full final sign-off video.

---perfidia08
_________________________________________________
WKBS/48, you are still missed 25 years later... *sigh*