Retro: North Carolina Wednesday, August 14, 1963

[bpatrick]

From TV Guide, North Carolina Edition:

NOTE: Greenville/New Bern/Washington and
Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Point would
get ABC affiliates in a few weeks: WCTI/12
(Sept. 7) and WGHP/8 (Oct. 14), respectively.

WFMY Ch. 2 Greensboro (CBS/ABC)

6:30 Social Security In Action
6:45 RFD Piedmont
7 AM Good Morning Show (this is now
three hours, 5-8 AM)
7:55 News
8 AM Captain Kangaroo
9 AM Devotions
9:15 Second Breakfast (I had a longtime crush
on hostess Carroll Stoker)
9:30 What's Cooking Today?
9:55 News
10 AM Calendar (Harry Reasoner)
10:30 I Love Lucy
11 AM Real McCoys
11:30 Pete And Gladys
12 N Love Of Life
12:25 CBS News (Richard Hottelet)
12:30 Search For Tomorrow
12:45 Guiding Light
1 PM Best Of Groucho
1:30 As The World Turns
2 PM Password
2:30 Art Linkletter's House Party
3 PM To Tell The Truth
3:25 CBS News (Douglas Edwards)
3:30 Edge Of Night
4 PM Secret Storm
4:30 Millionaire (today's millionaire
wants a divorce)
5 PM Old Rebel, Pecos Pete
5:30 Yogi Bear
6 PM Hennesey
6:30 News
6:45 CBS News (Walter Cronkite)
7 PM Ripcord
7:30 CBS Reports
8 PM Seven Wonderful Nights (I assume this
is a CBS fall preview)
8:30 Dobie Gillis
9 PM Beverly Hillbillies
9:30 Dick Van ----
10 PM Armstrong Circle Theater
11 PM News
11:30 Surfside 6

WBTV Ch. 3 Charlotte (CBS/ABC)

6:25 Daily Word
6:30 Fun House
6:50 Farm Journal
7 AM Carolina Calling
7:55 News
8 AM Captain Kangaroo
9 AM Romper Room
9:30 Who Do You Trust?
10 AM Calendar
10:30 Tennessee Ernie Ford Show
11 AM Real McCoys
11:30 Pete And Gladys
12 N Noon Report
12:25 CBS News
12:30 Search For Tomorrow
12:45 Guiding Light
1 PM Betty Feezor
1:30 As The World Turns
2 PM Password
2:30 Art Linkletter's House Party
3 PM To Tell The Truth
3:25 CBS News
3:30 Edge Of Night
4 PM Secret Storm
4:30 Millionaire
5 PM Three Ring Circus
6 PM Sea Hunt
6:30 News
6:45 CBS News
7 PM Mister Ed
7:30 CBS Reports
8 PM TBA
8:30 Dobie Gillis
9 PM Beverly Hillbillies
9:30 Dick Van ----
10 PM Armstrong Circle Theater
11 PM News
11:15 Movie: "And Baby Makes Three"

WUNC Ch. 4 Chapel Hill (NET)

12 N What's New
12:30 Aspect
off air 1-7 PM
7 PM What's New
7:30 Big Picture
8 PM Survival In The Sea
8:30 Writers Of Today
9 PM Pop Culture
sign off 9:30 PM

WRAL Ch. 5 Raleigh (ABC/NBC)

6:30 Aspect
7 AM Today
9 AM Bozo The Clown
9:55 News
10 AM Time Out
10:30 Play Your Hunch (COLOR)
11 AM Queen For A Day
11:30 Seven Keys
12 N Tennessee Ernie Ford Show
12:30 Father Knows Best
1 PM General Hospital
1:30 Who Do You Trust?
2 PM Day In Court
2:25 ABC News (Alex Dreier)
2:30 Jane Wyman
3 PM Loretta Young
3:30 You Don't Say! (COLOR)
4 PM American Bandstand
4:30 Discovery '63
4:55 American Newsstand
5 PM Space Harbor, Cap'n 5
5:30 Pony Express
6 PM Sports
6:10 Greatest Headlines Of The
Century
6:20 Viewpoint (Jesse Helms)
6:25 News
6:45 Huntley-Brinkley Report (I guess
Ch. 5 figured, probably rightly,
that they'd get better ratings than
with ABC's Ron Cochran, although we
ultimately did get Cochran)
7 PM Death Valley Days
7:30 Wagon Train
8:30 Going My Way
9:30 Our Man Higgins
10 PM Naked City
11 PM ABC News (Murphy Martin--and I thought
he got the job after his handling of WFAA's
coverage of JFK's assassination)
11:10 News
11:25 Movie: "Doctor At Sea"

WECT Ch. 6 Wilmington (NBC/CBS/ABC)

6:25 Daily Word
6:30 Carolina Farm News
7 AM Today
9 AM Jane Wyman
9:30 Tennessee Ernie Ford Show
10 AM Say When!
10:25 NBC News (no anchor given)
10:30 Play Your Hunch (COLOR)
11 AM Price Is Right (COLOR) (Jack Clark
subs for Bill Cullen this week)
11:30 Concentration
12 N Your First Impression (COLOR)
12:30 Truth Or Consequences
12:55 NBC News (Ray Scherer)
1 PM Showcase
1:30 As The World Turns
2 PM People Will Talk (COLOR)
2:25 NBC News (Floyd Kalber)
2:30 The Doctors
3 PM Queen For A Day
3:30 Edge Of Night
4 PM Match Game
4:25 NBC News (Sander Vanocur)
4:30 Make Room For Daddy
5 PM Discovery '63
(no listing for 5:25)
5:30 Huckleberry Hound
6 PM News
6:30 Homer Briarhopper (country music)
6:45 Tobacco Market
6:55 News
7:15 Huntley-Brinkley Report
7:30 The Virginian (COLOR)
9 PM Kraft Mystery Theater
10 PM Bing Crosby Special
11 PM News
11:15 Tonight Show (COLOR)

WITN Ch. 7 Washington, NC (NBC)

6:25 Aspect
6:55 Weather
7 AM Today
9 AM Jane Wyman
9:30 Tennessee Ernie Ford Show
10 AM Say When!
10:25 NBC News
10:30 Play Your Hunch (COLOR)
11 AM Price Is Right (COLOR)
11:30 Concentration
12 N Your First Impression (COLOR)
12:30 Truth Or Consequences
12:55 NBC News
1 PM General Hospital
1:30 Queen For A Day
2 PM People Will Talk (COLOR)
2:25 NBC News
2:30 The Doctors
3 PM Loretta Young
3:30 You Don't Say! (COLOR)
4 PM Match Game
4:25 NBC News
4:30 Make Room For Daddy
5 PM The Funny Page
6 PM News
6:15 Dragnet (Webb/Alexander)
6:45 Huntley-Brinkley Report
7 PM Award Theatre
7:30 The Virginian (COLOR)
9 PM Kraft Mystery Theater
10 PM Bing Crosby Special
11 PM News
11:15 Tonight Show (COLOR)

WNCT Ch. 9 Greenville, NC (CBS/ABC)

6:30 Carolina Farm News (this is more
than likely Carolina Today)
8 AM Captain Kangaroo
9 AM Best Of Groucho
9:30 R.C.M.P.
10 AM Calendar
10:30 I Love Lucy
11 AM Real McCoys
11:30 Pete And Gladys
12 N News
12:30 Search For Tomorrow
12:45 Guiding Light
1 PM Love Of Life
1:25 Timely Tips
1:30 As The World Turns
2 PM Password
2:30 Art Linkletter's House Party
3 PM To Tell The Truth
3:25 CBS News
3:30 Edge Of Night
4 PM Secret Storm
4:30 Millionaire
5 PM Bozo And Slim
6 PM Quick Draw McGraw
6:30 News
6:45 CBS News
7 PM Arthur Smith
7:30 Wagon Train
8:30 Dobie Gillis
9 PM Beverly Hillbillies
9:30 Dick Van ----
10 PM Armstrong Circle Theater
11 PM News
11:15 Movie: "A Face In The Crowd"
(with North Carolina's own Andy
Griffith)

WSOC Ch. 9 Charlotte (NBC/ABC)

6:45 Farm And Home
7 AM Today
9 AM Cartoons
9:15 Debbie Drake
9:30 On The Mall (an interview show but not
an infomercial like Atlanta & Company)
10 AM Say When!
10:25 NBC News
10:30 Play Your Hunch (COLOR)
11 AM Price Is Right (COLOR)
11:30 Concentration
12 N Love Of Life (pre-empted on Ch. 3)
12:25 Midday
12:55 NBC News
1 PM General Hospital
1:30 Father Knows Best
2 PM People Will Talk (COLOR)
2:25 NBC News
2:30 The Doctors
3 PM Loretta Young
3:30 You Don't Say! (COLOR)
4 PM Deputy Dawg
4:15 Rocky And His Friends
4:30 Clown Carnival
5:30 Quick Draw McGraw
6 PM Amos 'n' Andy
6:30 News
6:45 Huntley-Brinkley Report
7 PM Ripcord
7:30 Wagon Train
8:30 Our Man Higgins
9 PM Kraft Mystery Theater
10 PM Naked City
11 PM News
11:30 Tonight Show (COLOR)

WTVD Ch. 11 Durham (CBS/NBC)

6:30 TV Reader's Digest
7 AM Morning Jamboree
7:55 News
8 AM Captain Kangaroo
9 AM Cartoons
10 AM Say When!
10:25 NBC News
10:30 I Love Lucy
11 AM Price Is Right (COLOR)
11:30 Concentration
12 N Love Of Life
12:25 CBS News
12:30 Truth Or Consequences
12:55 NBC News
1 PM Peggy Mann
1:30 As The World Turns
2 PM Password
2:30 Art Linkletter's House Party
3 PM To Tell The Truth
3:25 CBS News
3:30 Edge Of Night
4 PM Secret Storm
4:30 Millionaire
5 PM Fun Hour
5:30 Quick Draw McGraw
6 PM Art Linkletter (a variation on People
Are Funny, with a celebrity panel
guessing the outcome of the setups)
6:30 News
6:45 CBS News
7 PM Password
7:30 The Virginian (COLOR)
9 PM Kraft Mystery Theater
10 PM Bing Crosby Special
11 PM News
11:15 Tonight Show (COLOR)

WSJS (WXII) Ch. 12 Winston-Salem (NBC)

6:30 Aspect
7 AM Today
9 AM Yesterday's Newsreel
9:15 Debbie Drake
9:30 People Are Funny
10 AM Say When!
10:25 NBC News
10:30 Play Your Hunch (COLOR)
11 AM Price Is Right (COLOR)
11:30 Concentration
12 N Your First Impression (COLOR)
12:30 Truth Or Consequences
12:55 NBC News
1 PM This Afternoon
1:30 Tennessee Ernie Ford Show
2 PM People Will Talk (COLOR)
2:25 NBC News
2:30 The Doctors
3 PM Loretta Young
3:30 You Don't Say! (COLOR)
4 PM Match Game
4:25 NBC News
4:30 Make Room For Daddy
5 PM Bob Gordon
5:30 Adventures In Paradise
6:30 News
6:45 Huntley-Brinkley Report
7 PM M Squad
7:30 The Virginian (COLOR)
9 PM Kraft Mystery Theater
10 PM Bing Crosby Special
11 PM News
11:15 Tonight Show (COLOR)

 

[Tim L]

bpatrick:
I notice that 5 of the 9 commercial stations in these North Carolina listings carried the "Tennessee Ernie Ford Show." From what I've read of this show it was a decent peformer ratings wise but not a blockbuster hit nationally like his nighttime show had been. Ford had a 5 year contract (1962-67) that ABC bought out in 1965.

I was curious, was this show a noticeably bigger hit in the South than in other parts of the country?

Side Note:I'd like to see a couple of these shows at some point, if they are available anywhere..

 

[bpatrick]

I would tend to believe that Tennessee Ernie's
show was more popular in the South than elsewhere;
in fact, before WRAL switched to ABC, WTVD was
carrying it in Raleigh/Durham.

If you can find any episodes of the ABC show, watch
for Ernie's announcer; you may have heard of him:
Jim Lange, who got the emceeing job on "The Dating
Game" because his work with Ernie impressed Chucky
Baby (Barris).

 

[fortmill]

So, Tennessee Ernie Ford was an ABC show in 1963? If so, I'm surprised it turned up on WSJS since I'd always thought WSJS (today's WXII) was the one NC station that carried one network, NBC. Otherwise, any network show was apt to turn up on any station. Regarding New Bern's channel 12 that debuted in 1963---it's first calls was WNBE-TV.

 

[Stanislav]

Side Note:I'd like to see a couple of these shows at some point, if they are available anywhere..

A few years ago, some of his shows turned up on PBS stations -- they may still be floating around. Some of them were pretty early shows -- a couple I remember would have been from late 1960, as Ernie made reference to JFK having just been elected. And these were in color, so they would be quite early color videotapes. In fact, they apparently were restored by the same team of guys that did the late 50's Fred Astaire specials, the WRC-TV Eisenhower tape, etc. A connection that I once e-mailed the main guy of that team about, and got back a very suspicious, paranoid response, wanting to know who the hell I was, and was I in the industry, and what's my real name, etc., and that he was not going to chat with "just anyone" about it. Very odd.

Also odd were some of Ernie's guests. One show guest-starred Ernie Kovacs (no truth to the rumor that they were planning to go on the road as "The Two Ernies"); another had Liberace as guest, and Ernie for one sequence in which thye both played piano donned a Liberace-esque sequined jacket!

 

[bpatrick]

I suspect that those Ernie Ford shows on PBS
were from his 1956-61 primetime show, titled
"The Ford Show" not after him, but after his
sponsor, Ford Motor Company. Ernie Kovacs,
after all, was dead by 1963.

WSJS (WXII) carried both NBC and ABC. "The
Flintstones," "Leave It To Beaver," "Ben Casey,"
and Lawrence Welk were among the ABC shows
seen on Ch. 12. But in the fall of '63, ABC
shows would move to Ch. 8; Ch. 2 would become
CBS exclusively, and Ch. 12 would be fulltime NBC.
(BTW, I started to say "all ABC shows" on Ch. 8,
but the station didn't carry ABC's evening newscast
until the fall of 1970.)

WNBE (WCTI) would pick up the ABC shows carried
on WITN and WNCT that fall as well. Greenville/New
Bern/Washington has not had an affiliation switch
involving ABC, CBS, and/or NBC: WITN/7 is still NBC,
WNCT/9 is CBS, WCTI/12 is ABC.

Charlotte, BTW, was a weird one. WCCB/36 (later 18)
signed on in the fall of 1964, but for three years it,
WBTV, and WSOC each cherry-picked ABC, CBS, and
NBC. Not until the fall of 1967 did each settle down with
one network. WBTV/3 is still CBS, WSOC/9 went from NBC
to ABC in 1978, and WCCB went from ABC to independent
in 1978, and to Fox in 1986.

 

[Tim L]

Side Note:I'd like to see a couple of these shows at some point, if they are available anywhere..

A few years ago, some of his shows turned up on PBS stations -- they may still be floating around. Some of them were pretty early shows -- a couple I remember would have been from late 1960, as Ernie made reference to JFK having just been elected. And these were in color, so they would be quite early color videotapes. In fact, they apparently were restored by the same team of guys that did the late 50's Fred Astaire specials, the WRC-TV Eisenhower tape, etc. A connection that I once e-mailed the main guy of that team about, and got back a very suspicious, paranoid response, wanting to know who the hell I was, and was I in the industry, and what's my real name, etc., and that he was not going to chat with "just anyone" about it. Very odd.

Also odd were some of Ernie's guests. One show guest-starred Ernie Kovacs (no truth to the rumor that they were planning to go on the road as "The Two Ernies"); another had Liberace as guest, and Ernie for one sequence in which thye both played piano donned a Liberace-esque sequined jacket!

The PBS shows in fact, were Ernie's nighttime show..ernieford.com sells DVD sets of 2-3 shows apiece (21 total shows) and VHS sets (26 shows). These I believe were shown on PBS..The nearest PBS station to me that aired them was WOUC-TV 44 Cambridge, Ohio..I begged the Northeast Ohio PBS stations to air the show but to no avail..

I bought 4 of the VHS tapes in the early 1990's..Some are Color some [email protected]ica One TV showed a couple of Ernie Ford Afternoon Shows they came up with, so I know some are around somewhere..

 

[bpatrick]

So, Tennessee Ernie Ford was an ABC show in 1963? If so, I'm surprised it turned up on WSJS since I'd always thought WSJS (today's WXII) was the one NC station that carried one network, NBC. Otherwise, any network show was apt to turn up on any station. Regarding New Bern's channel 12 that debuted in 1963---it's first calls was WNBE-TV.

Correct about New Bern's Ch. 12, and I should have said WNBE (WCTI).
It was still WNBE when I lived in Kinston (1965-66); I remember it had
a terrible signal, even being 35 miles away. I think the call-letter
change was in either 1969 or 1970; I'll let you clear that one up, since
I was living in Birmingham by then.

 

[fortmill]

So, Tennessee Ernie Ford was an ABC show in 1963? If so, I'm surprised it turned up on WSJS since I'd always thought WSJS (today's WXII) was the one NC station that carried one network, NBC. Otherwise, any network show was apt to turn up on any station. Regarding New Bern's channel 12 that debuted in 1963---it's first calls was WNBE-TV.

Correct about New Bern's Ch. 12, and I should have said WNBE (WCTI).
It was still WNBE when I lived in Kinston (1965-66); I remember it had
a terrible signal, even being 35 miles away. I think the call-letter
change was in either 1969 or 1970; I'll let you clear that one up, since
I was living in Birmingham by then.

I think you're right about WNBE changing to WCTI in 1970. It happened after I graduated from ECU in '70 but before I returned for grad school in 1971. Yes, they had a terrible signal in Greenville at that time---they had only a 700 foot tower and 180,000 watts of power. When Continential Broadcasting bought them in the late 60s (thus the change of calls to WCTI) they upgraded to a 900 ft plus tower and full power in Jones County in the early 70s, then a few years later went to their big 2000 ft tower. I think the Jacksonville (NC) UNC-TV channel now uses the 900 footer. Regarding a comment I made in another thread about NC stations having live local color in the 60s, I remember WNBE's local newscasts being color in the late 60s but the "on the scene" taped reports were still in b&w---very strange. But no worse than WITN's live weather radar being in b&w for years after live color was introduced. Of course, a station having their own weather radar was quite a plum in those days (neither WRAL or WTVD had it, I don't think) so no one was complaining.

 

[bpatrick]

I can remember back in the mid-'60s or so,
when WITN got that radar, they exploited it
by calling its weathercast "Weather In Motion."