Retro; New York City, Thursday, September 4, 1941

[Bob1370]

Source; New York Times

Channels;
1-WNBT (NBC, now WNBC ch. 4)
2-WCBW (CBS, now WCBS-TV)
4-W2XWV (DuMont experimental, now WNYW ch.5-Fox)

No morning programs on any station

Afternoon
12:00
4-Sign-on; tests and selected films (to 6 PM)
1:00
1-Sign-on; test pattern
2:00
2-Sign-on; test pattern
2:30
1-Film; Eve of the Revolution (historical, 1924, silent); J. Moy Bennett, Warner Richmond, Brian Donlevy
2-News
2:45
2-Metropolitan Museum of Art
3:15
1-Film; Children of Africa
2-Children's Story
3:30
1-Test pattern to sign-off at 5
2-Test pattern to sign-off at 4:30
7:30
2-Sign-on; test pattern
8:00
1-Sign-on; test pattern
2-News
8:15
2-Sports with Bob Edge
8:30
2-Country Dance (to sign-off at 9:30)
9:00
1-Film-Archery
9:30
1-Mary Sutherland, comedienne
9:40
1-Current Events in Art with Helen Appleton Reid
9:55
1-Ray Forrest with the News (to sign-off at 10)

Early commercial television programs were simply staged, and the stations were experimenting with programs of varying length from 5 minutes to 1 hour. Only a handful of stations were licensed and operating with anything approaching a regular schedule; two fully licensed commercial stations in New York and one (WPTZ channel 3) in Philadelphia, and experimental stations in New York (DuMont's W2XWV on Channel 4), the Capital District (GE's WRGB channel 3), Chicago, and Los Angeles.

 

[OldNumber7]

This day in history Sept. 4, 1941. For the first time, a New York City television owner complains to his wife: "We get THREE channels and there's nothing on."

 

[gregg75]

I see why it took TV awhile to take off.............with shows like that to choose from I'D RATHER LISTEN TO RADIO.

 

[FreddyE1977]

looks like test patterns drew a 73 share in the pre-war era

 

[wbhist]

looks like test patterns drew a 73 share in the pre-war era

Are you possibly referring to this early version of the famous NBC test pattern whose wedge calibration dot positions would be modified in 1947:
http://uv201.com/TV_Pages/Tv_Images/atc/wnbt_test_pattern.jpg
or what was then called WCBW was using as of '41:
http://www.ggninfo.com/PIX/TP-CBS.JPG

 

[bpatrick]

I see why it took TV awhile to take off.............with shows like that to choose from I'D RATHER LISTEN TO RADIO.

I suspect the appliance stores weren't selling many TV sets.

 

[radiorob2.0]

I see why it took TV awhile to take off.............with shows like that to choose from I'D RATHER LISTEN TO RADIO.

I suspect the appliance stores weren't selling many TV sets.

Sales increased after newsman Mordecai Anastos told a weather bureau forecaster to, "...keep fornicating the poultry!"

;D