TV events that used to be big

[azumanga]

...most of the E/I programs won't even pass muster as educational materials at school.

A lot of the stuff in watched in school was educational programs taped off the PBS station

While PBS programming in schools are expected due to its educational nature, how many kids today watch shows like "New Zoo Revue", "Mustard Pancakes" and "Gina D Kid's Club" in school? Most of the E/I shows on commercial stations are either shows for pre-schoolers or nature shows that try too hard to be "pop". PBS has done E/I right long before the law existed.

 

[johnnya2k6]

CBS-TV definitely did carry Miss America in the late 1950's & early 1960's. At one time, they used Douglas Edwards - then doing the CBS Evening News - as the main announcer for the coverage.

OOPS!!! But the first Miss America telecasts were on ABC before heading briefly to CBS then NBC.

 

[BMR]

Echo the earlier remarks about movie premieres, especially before the mid 80s, when VCRs starting being popular over here. They were big deals.

The following also used to be massive in the UK....

The FA cup final. It's still popular, but nothing like what it used to be. Some years it was the only live soccer game shown on British television. Live coverage used to start around 3 hours before kick off, and it was screened on both BBC and ITV.

The Eurovision Song Contest- again still popular, but no longer a big deal in the UK. A modest revival in recent years

The Oxford v Cambridge Boat Race. I'm never sure why this became popular, because 99% of the population didn't really care who won, and rowing isn't normally popular on television.

The Queens Christmas Day speech- used to be the biggest rating show of the year, with 20 million plus viewers. I can't find very recent ratings, but in 2005 this was down to 6.2 million

 

[FreddyE1977]

Re: Miss America. No show has fallen quite like this one. It has been televised since 1954, reaching a peak in the first half of the 1960's. The show started sliding in the late 60's and 70's, fueled by feminism, and the ouster of Burt Parks in '79. As a kid, my family watched it every year. It was an event. Not so much anymore.

I remember waiting for these pageants back then because as a pubescent young lad it was probably your best
shot at seeing some very attractive, scantily clad young women on TV. Now you can get all the
naked ones you want at the click of a mouse.

 

[nomadcowatbk]

...most of the E/I programs won't even pass muster as educational materials at school.

A lot of the stuff in watched in school was educational programs taped off the PBS station

While PBS programming in schools are expected due to its educational nature, how many kids today watch shows like "New Zoo Revue", "Mustard Pancakes" and "Gina D Kid's Club" in school? Most of the E/I shows on commercial stations are either shows for pre-schoolers or nature shows that try too hard to be "pop". PBS has done E/I right long before the law existed.

I think Peggy Charren wanted to turn Saturday mornings into Sesame Street style programming

 

[firepoint525]

what kid watches E/I programming (except maybe in school)?

I don't think they even watch them at school -- most of the E/I programs won't even pass muster as educational materials at school.

Our local (otherwise) 24-hour weather channel www.nashvillewx.com carries Degrassi on Saturday mornings to satisfy the bogus E/I requirement. :

 

[crainbebo]

Actually nowdays quite a few schools still use VHS for educational videos. About 75% of the time it's a factory retail VHS, and 25% it was a blank T-120 of a program the teacher taped him or herself.

-crainbebo

 

[nomadcowatbk]

Actually nowdays quite a few schools still use VHS for educational videos. About 75% of the time it's a factory retail VHS, and 25% it was a blank T-120 of a program the teacher taped him or herself.

-crainbebo

But do they actually use any E/I programs (besides PBS)? They still produced educational stuff on film into the 80s because so many schools still had old projectors.

 

[mleach]

But do they actually use any E/I programs (besides PBS)?

For many children it really doesn't matter since they won't be able to see any of it since the parents have the right to tell their schools/teachers that their children aren't allowed access to televsion either at home and at school. In other words for these kids, once the set is turned on the student must leave class.

Maybe its always been this way with parents having the right to ban TV for their kids at school but looking back I just can't remember any child from my school days who was forced to leave class-per his/her parents because we watched TV. Guess times are-a-changin as one of my best friends is a teacher for the Denver Public School system and from what he has told me many of times in recent years..the "NO TV for my child at school" is becoming a trend. I'm not surprised, at least in Denver anyway.

 

[bpatrick]

CBS-TV definitely did carry Miss America in the late 1950's & early 1960's. At one time, they used Douglas Edwards - then doing the CBS Evening News - as the main announcer for the coverage.

OOPS!!! But the first Miss America telecasts were on ABC before heading briefly to CBS then NBC.

ABC carried the first televised Miss America Pageant in 1954, the year Lee Meriwether won. John Daly was host and (I think) Arlene Francis acted as a sort of commentator, leading into the commercial breaks. Bert Parks became host the next year, largely due to his huge popularity at the time and because of his relationship with producer Bob Russell, with whom he worked on several game shows including his last, "Yours For A Song" (1961-63).

CBS was carrying the pageant by 1958 or '59; Douglas Edwards and a woman (I don't recall who, it may have been a different one each year) would handle the introduction to the telecast, the commercial breaks, and get the show off after Parks sang "There She Is, Miss America".

It is amazing that Parks emceed the pageant for nearly 25 years, before his unceremonious ousting in 1980 because of his age (65), yet no one who has emceed it since has lasted more than a couple of years or so.

 

[Tim from Springfield IL]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned award shows, particularly the Academy Awards (where IMO it seems like the stories about the show's ratings are of more interest to me than the award results).

Also IMO sporting events particularly the World Series (thank the 1994 strike as well as Fox's coverage for that IMO) and the NBA Finals (thank you ABC/ESPN).

In addition, despite all the hype on Entertainment Tonight and the media, is it just me or does anyone else think tomorrow's Royal Wedding won't be as "big" ratings-wise (at least here in the US--due to the early morning start) compared to the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana (July 29, 1981)?

 

[nomadcowatbk]

But do they actually use any E/I programs (besides PBS)?

For many children it really doesn't matter since they won't be able to see any of it since the parents have the right to tell their schools/teachers that their children aren't allowed access to televsion either at home and at school. In other words for these kids, once the set is turned on the student must leave class.

Maybe its always been this way with parents having the right to ban TV for their kids at school but looking back I just can't remember any child from my school days who was forced to leave class-per his/her parents because we watched TV. Guess times are-a-changin as one of my best friends is a teacher for the Denver Public School system and from what he has told me many of times in recent years..the "NO TV for my child at school" is becoming a trend. I'm not surprised, at least in Denver anyway.

I'm guessing these are kids of "Kill your type" type parents

 

[nomadcowatbk]

The only really big TV event anymore seems to be the Super Bowl, and usually it's the commercials and half time show instead of the actual game

 

[nomadcowatbk]

The Macy's Thanksgiving Parade use to be a big event for kids. It used to full of toy ads. Haven't seen a single toy ad on during the parade in years.

http://www.x-entertainment.com/thanksgiving/macyparade/1984/commercials/index.html

 

[firepoint525]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned award shows, particularly the Academy Awards (where IMO it seems like the stories about the show's ratings are of more interest to me than the award results).

Seems like, to me, shows like Entertainment Tonight and Inside Edition are more interested in the red carpet treatment, and who was wearing what designer. I suppose we have Joan and Melissa Rivers to thank for that, as well. :

In addition, despite all the hype on Entertainment Tonight and the media, is it just me or does anyone else think tomorrow's Royal Wedding won't be as "big" ratings-wise (at least here in the US--due to the early morning start) compared to the wedding of Prince Charles and Diana (July 29, 1981)?

Didn't the Charles and Di wedding also have an early start, at least from the point of view of us Americans? The Fergie/Prince Andrew wedding also had an early (to Americans) start, but I was working second-and-a-half shift at the time, so I got home late at night, and turned it on around 3:00 a.m. Otherwise, I wouldn't have seen it.

 

[mleach]

The Macy's Thanksgiving Parade use to be a big event for kids. It used to full of toy ads. Haven't seen a single toy ad on during the parade in years.

http://www.x-entertainment.com/thanksgiving/macyparade/1984/commercials/index.html

Could be a Macys decision since the chain for the most part no longer sells toys. Cant speak for their flagship store but of all the Macys at the various malls that I have been too for the most part are toy-less. Even at Christmas time.

 

[mleach]

But do they actually use any E/I programs (besides PBS)?

For many children it really doesn't matter since they won't be able to see any of it since the parents have the right to tell their schools/teachers that their children aren't allowed access to televsion either at home and at school. In other words for these kids, once the set is turned on the student must leave class.

Maybe its always been this way with parents having the right to ban TV for their kids at school but looking back I just can't remember any child from my school days who was forced to leave class-per his/her parents because we watched TV. Guess times are-a-changin as one of my best friends is a teacher for the Denver Public School system and from what he has told me many of times in recent years..the "NO TV for my child at school" is becoming a trend. I'm not surprised, at least in Denver anyway.

I'm guessing these are kids of "Kill your type" type parents

Which reminds me, remembering the news at the time of Columbine, I believe the parents of Eric Harris & Dylan Klebold had in place that "NO TV..NO RADIO" rule in effect for their kids instead the parents of Harris & Klebold gave them computers and encouraged them to spend more time on the internet so they wouldn't be exposed to "trash"..meaning local Denver radio and television.

Of course we all know how THAT had turned out.

 

[nomadcowatbk]

The Macy's Thanksgiving Parade use to be a big event for kids. It used to full of toy ads. Haven't seen a single toy ad on during the parade in years.

http://www.x-entertainment.com/thanksgiving/macyparade/1984/commercials/index.html

Could be a Macys decision since the chain for the most part no longer sells toys. Cant speak for their flagship store but of all the Macys at the various malls that I have been too for the most part are toy-less. Even at Christmas time.

Probably has more to with kids watching Nickelodeon or CN during the parade. Macy's wasn't even a national chain in 1984. I think the networks have abandoned programming to families and children beyond E/I requirements. They don't even have contacts with the toymakers anymore like they did when they actually programmed Saturday mornings.

 

[nomadcowatbk]

But do they actually use any E/I programs (besides PBS)?

For many children it really doesn't matter since they won't be able to see any of it since the parents have the right to tell their schools/teachers that their children aren't allowed access to televsion either at home and at school. In other words for these kids, once the set is turned on the student must leave class.

Maybe its always been this way with parents having the right to ban TV for their kids at school but looking back I just can't remember any child from my school days who was forced to leave class-per his/her parents because we watched TV. Guess times are-a-changin as one of my best friends is a teacher for the Denver Public School system and from what he has told me many of times in recent years..the "NO TV for my child at school" is becoming a trend. I'm not surprised, at least in Denver anyway.

I'm guessing these are kids of "Kill your type" type parents

Should be "Kill your TV" type parents,

 

[azumanga]

The Macy's Thanksgiving Parade use to be a big event for kids. It used to full of toy ads. Haven't seen a single toy ad on during the parade in years.

I also remember in the past that it was more parade and less spectacle -- these days, the first hour are nothing more than performances that shouldn't be on Broadway -- literally.