Retro: Indianapolis, Indiana: Tuesday, May 29, 1973 4:00 PM - 11:30 PM

[Braves2005]

Source: The Indianapolis News


WTTV: Channel 4 (Ind.)

4:00 PM Sally Jo and Friends
5:00 PM Green Acres
5:30 PM Beverly Hillbillies
6:00 PM Hogan's Heroes
6:30 PM Gomer Pyle
7:00 PM News
7:30 PM Truth or Consequences
8:00 PM What's My Line
8:30 PM Merv Griffin
10:00 PM Big Valley
11:00 PM Perry Mason


WRTV: Channel 6 (NBC)

4:00 PM Mike Douglas
5:30 PM NBC News
6:00 PM News
7:00 PM Indianapolis 500 Festival Parade (pre-empts NBC programming)
8:00 PM Indianapolis 500 Victory Dinner (same)
10:00 PM News
10:30 PM Wild, Wild West
11:30 PM Tonight Show


WISH: Channel 8 (CBS)

4:00 PM It Takes a Thief
5:00 PM To Tell the Truth
5:30 PM CBS News
6:00 PM News
7:00 PM Maude
7:30 PM Hawaii Five-O
8:30 PM Police Surgeon
9:00 PM Kreskin
9:30 PM Janet Langhart Special
10:00 PM News
10:30 PM Name of the Game

WLWI: Channel 13 (ABC)

4:00 PM Beat the Clock
4:30 PM Bonanza
5:30 PM ABC News
6:00 PM News
6:30 PM New Price Is Right (syndicated)
7:00 PM Tempatures Rising
7:30 PM Tuesday Movie of the Week: "Five Desperate Women"
9:00 PM Marcus Welby M.D.
10:00 PM News
10:30 PM Star Trek
11:30 PM Wide World of Entertainment

 

[youngtvguy]

It seems that Indianapolis, was on Central Time, when did that change? As of now they show all their shows on Eastern Time, while all the others stations in the state show their newscast on Central Time. It so weird how they were on a time change v. today.

 

[WorldFamous]

Not on Central time, but Eastern Standard year round. By not observing Daylight Savings time, Indpls clocks matched NYC during the winter and Chicago during the summer. Caused quite a bit of confusion but the farmers and drive in theater owners of the Hoosier state loved it.

Sidebars: this would have been the first May that channel 6 operated under the WRTV call letters. Note the Janet Langhart special on channel 8. This was just prior to Ms. Langhart moving to a long career in Boston. And note Star Trek airing ahead of Tonight on channel 13. Noteworthy because the techs at 13 developed a way to give the appearance that each night the Eyewitness News team beamed up to the Enterprise. Cool stuff for a Trekker in 1970s Indianapolis.

 

[gr8oldies]

Starting in the mid 80s, Indianapolis and Lafayette stations began delaying their programming during the months the other states were on DST. WTHR was first when they were able to latch onto a Mountain Daylight Time feed which matched up to an 8-11 CDT/EST prime time. The others followed. I was involved in the tape delaying in Lafayette. Eventually Indiana joined most other states in observing DST.

 

[johnothy]

Starting in the mid 80s, Indianapolis and Lafayette stations began delaying their programming during the months the other states were on DST. WTHR was first when they were able to latch onto a Mountain Daylight Time feed which matched up to an 8-11 CDT/EST prime time. The others followed. I was involved in the tape delaying in Lafayette. Eventually Indiana joined most other states in observing DST.

I received channels in the Terre Haute market and they finally adopted the 8-11pm primetime in the mid to late 90s. The Illinois viewers (like me) were affected by having programming now delayed half the year.

 

[Tim from Springfield IL]

I received channels in the Terre Haute market and they finally adopted the 8-11pm primetime in the mid to late 90s. The Illinois viewers (like me) were affected by having programming now delayed half the year.

Although most of the north half of the Terre Haute market on the Illinois side of the border is still within close range of Champaign/Decatur stations. Particularly WCIA-3 (CBS) Champaign plus WAND-17 Decatur (formerly ABC, has been NBC since Sept. 2005) and WICD-15 Champaign (switched networks with WAND Sept. 2005 as well). So I wonder if the TH stations lost viewers in Illinois when they made the 8-11 primetime switch in favor of Champaign/Decatur affiliates.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

I doubt the TH stations were dependent on their Northwest Illinois counties for much viewership or revenue. Not many folks live that way, except for Eastern Illinois college in Mattoon. Which is closer to Champaign/Decatur than Terre Haute/Farmersburg.

I figure that's the towers ended up being built 10 miles south of Terre Haute in Farmersburg - to be closer to the second largest city in that market, Vincennes (IN).

 

[gr8oldies]

Same woth Fort Wayne and South Bend and their Ohio and Michigan counties (it's the midnight news!). I'm sure like Terre Haute's Illinois counties, if you got more than one market's signals, you could do some interesting time shifting.

 

[KeithE4]

Same woth Fort Wayne and South Bend and their Ohio and Michigan counties (it's the midnight news!). I'm sure like Terre Haute's Illinois counties, if you got more than one market's signals, you could do some interesting time shifting.

Take a trip to Laughlin NV/Bullhead City AZ during the winter. This time of year, Nevada is on PST, while Arizona is on MST. Every time you cross the Colorado River, the time changes. And with Phoenix and Las Vegas translators available, prime time is really messed up. It really is like the old "fast time/slow time" situation that Indiana had years ago.

 

[johnothy]

Although most of the north half of the Terre Haute market on the Illinois side of the border is still within close range of Champaign/Decatur stations. Particularly WCIA-3 (CBS) Champaign plus WAND-17 Decatur (formerly ABC, has been NBC since Sept. 2005) and WICD-15 Champaign (switched networks with WAND Sept. 2005 as well). So I wonder if the TH stations lost viewers in Illinois when they made the 8-11 primetime switch in favor of Champaign/Decatur affiliates.

We had WCIA on cable in the area I remember so that gave viewers that option. Back at this time, we were lucky enough to have distant networks from New York and LA on Directv, so we had the normal 7-10pm primetime on those channels and weren't affected.

 

[johnothy]

I doubt the TH stations were dependent on their Northwest Illinois counties for much viewership or revenue. Not many folks live that way, except for Eastern Illinois college in Mattoon. Which is closer to Champaign/Decatur than Terre Haute/Farmersburg.

I figure that's the towers ended up being built 10 miles south of Terre Haute in Farmersburg - to be closer to the second largest city in that market, Vincennes (IN).

I thought at one time several years back that Vincennes, IN (Knox County) was actually part of the Evansville, IN market. Does anyone know if Effingham was in the Terre Haute Market at one time? I know today they are Champaign, but Terre Haute stations always cover Effingham too.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

The Terre Haute market's counties have been the same for 20 years, at least. It's a long haul from the Evansville TV market's transmission sites in Henderson, KY, to Vincennes - roughly 60 miles, compared to 40 for the Terre Haute stations. Both markets' stations were carried on Charter Cable in Knox County before syndex rules.

But in the 70s, before WTHI-TV built it's transmission site in Farmersburg, and before WBAK/38 signed on, I don't know how the market was defined. It's pretty likely that WTVW/7 out of Evansville was the de-facto ABC station for Knox county, being much too far for reliable coverage from WLWI/13 (and later WRTV/6) Indianapolis and Champaign.

 

[gr8oldies]

Seems to me the one time I spent a night in Terre Haute the hotel cable system carried WXIN and WRTV. There are ways to get signals to head-ends other than OTA; microwave relays or fiberoptics. I could be remembering incorrectly.

 

[ftballfan]

The Terre Haute market's counties have been the same for 20 years, at least. It's a long haul from the Evansville TV market's transmission sites in Henderson, KY, to Vincennes - roughly 60 miles, compared to 40 for the Terre Haute stations. Both markets' stations were carried on Charter Cable in Knox County before syndex rules.

But in the 70s, before WTHI-TV built it's transmission site in Farmersburg, and before WBAK/38 signed on, I don't know how the market was defined. It's pretty likely that WTVW/7 out of Evansville was the de-facto ABC station for Knox county, being much too far for reliable coverage from WLWI/13 (and later WRTV/6) Indianapolis and Champaign.

WTVW and WNIN (also the two Evansville stations that were analog VHF) are still on cable in Vincennes

 

[WorldFamous]

Same woth Fort Wayne and South Bend and their Ohio and Michigan counties (it's the midnight news!).

It's been a few years since I was there and perhaps this has since changed but "the opposite" of that is Mountain Time Zone Rapid City SD. Most stations are state wide and fed from Central Time Zone Sioux Falls. End result, the late news in Rapid City airs at 9pm, with the late night talkers airing at 9:35pm.

 

[WorldFamous]

But in the 70s, before WTHI-TV built it's transmission site in Farmersburg, and before WBAK/38 signed on, I don't know how the market was defined. It's pretty likely that WTVW/7 out of Evansville was the de-facto ABC station for Knox county, being much too far for reliable coverage from WLWI/13 (and later WRTV/6) Indianapolis and Champaign.

But remember that prior to 38, both 2 and 10 were secondary affiliates to ABC airing what little might have been the best of that network in place of weaker programming on their primary affiliations.

 

[Mr Tony]

It's been a few years since I was there and perhaps this has since changed but "the opposite" of that is Mountain Time Zone Rapid City SD. Most stations are state wide and fed from Central Time Zone Sioux Falls. End result, the late news in Rapid City airs at 9pm, with the late night talkers airing at 9:35pm.

The only station that does is CBS as KCLO is a satellite of KELO Sioux Falls. The other nets are owned by different companies than what is in Sioux Falls

Dickinson, ND is the one that has this happen on all the stations due to the "mothership" stations being in Bismarck which is in Central Time Zone. Most of the Dickinson stations are just semi-satellites (different ads and some different news stories) so for the Big 4 & PBS prime time starts at 6pm (PBS is state wide in NoDak)

 

[ftballfan]

The only station that does is CBS as KCLO is a satellite of KELO Sioux Falls. The other nets are owned by different companies than what is in Sioux Falls

Dickinson, ND is the one that has this happen on all the stations due to the "mothership" stations being in Bismarck which is in Central Time Zone. Most of the Dickinson stations are just semi-satellites (different ads and some different news stories) so for the Big 4 & PBS prime time starts at 6pm (PBS is state wide in NoDak)

Same in NE Montana (which is in the Bismarck-Minot et al market but also is MTZ). Didn't KXGN (Glendive MT) run primetime from 6 to 9 at one point?

 

[WorldFamous]

The only station that does is CBS as KCLO is a satellite of KELO Sioux Falls.

Again, it was 2005 when we were through there. Weren't all the big 4 that way at one time? Or perhaps I am thinking of Dickinson.

 

[Mr Tony]

Didn't KXGN (Glendive MT) run primetime from 6 to 9 at one point?

Glendive still runs primetime from 6-9. Before 2009 they ran CBS from 6-9 then "the best of NBC" from 9-10 as a dual affiliation. After 2009 when they went digital they added a NBC subchannel (basically KULR Billings but local ads) but still kept 6-9 primetime on CBS. They also run TPIR at 9, Deal at 10 (usually its flipped with Deal first)

Ironic twist is cable still has KUMV from Williston as a 2nd NBC (KUMV had a translator in Glendive til 2009) and due to Glendive being Mountain time you can see Fallon at 9:35 on KUMV or 10:35 on KXGN-DT2