1951 in American television

This is a list of American television-related events in 1951.

Events

edit
Date Event Ref.
March 22 RCA introduces an eight-pound (3.6 kg) monochrome television camera with a 53-pound (24 kg) backpack transmitter, both operated by batteries. It is the first portable television camera.
May 28 The Federal Communications Commission's approval of the Columbia Broadcasting System's color television system is upheld by the United States Supreme Court.
June 25 CBS presents its first commercial color telecast, featuring Arthur Godfrey, Ed Sullivan, and Faye Emerson.
August 11 A double-header between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Boston Braves becomes the first baseball game to be televised in color.
September 4 The first live transcontinental television broadcast occurs in San Francisco, California from the Japanese Peace Treaty Conference.
September 29 CBS presents the first American football game to be presented in color, a college game between the University of California Bears and the University of Pennsylvania Quakers, taking place in Philadelphia
NBC broadcasts the first live sporting event coast-to-coast, in all time zones. It was a college football game between the Duke University Blue Devils and the University of Pittsburgh Panthers.
October 3 The first-ever color telecast of a World Series baseball game.
October 20 CBS debuts its trademark eye logo.
November 11 Bing Crosby Enterprises demonstrates black-and-white video recording through using a modified Ampex tape recorder.
December 6 The National Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters (NARTB) establishes the Television Code, a set of ethical standards for television broadcasting in the public interest. It would be abolished in January 1983. [1]
December 23 The 1951 NFL Championship Game becomes the first professional football game ever to be telecast on a live, coast-to-coast basis on the DuMont Television Network. DuMont purchased the rights to broadcast the championship game for the next five years. The game resulted in the Los Angeles Rams winning their second pre-Super Bowl era NFL championship by defeating the Cleveland Browns, 24-17. [2][3]

Television programs

edit

Debuts

edit
Date Debut Network Notes/Ref.
January 8 Say It with Acting NBC
January 21 With This Ring DuMont
February[4] Public Prosecutor NBC
February 3[5] The Victor Borge Show NBC
February 28 Ladies Before Gentlemen DuMont
March 3 [6][7] Watch Mr. Wizard NBC
March 6 Once Upon a Tune DuMont
March 12[8] Miss Susan NBC Later retitled as Martinsville, U.S.A.
March 23 Beat the Clock CBS
April 5 The Range Rider First-run syndication
April 7 Major Dell Conway of the Flying Tigers DuMont
April 12 DuMont Royal Theater DuMont
April 15[9] The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok First-run syndication
April 15 Music From Chicago DuMont
April 19 Casey, Crime Photographer CBS
April 29 Not for Publication DuMont
May 2 Stage Entrance DuMont
May 6 Pentagon DuMont
May 7 Jacqueline Susann's Open Door DuMont
Strike It Rich CBS
May 11 The Lawrence Welk Show KTLA
May 22 Washington Report DuMont
May 30 Down You Go DuMont
International Playhouse DuMont
June At Home With Billie Burke DuMont
June 2[10] A Date with Judy ABC
June 6 Shadow of the Cloak DuMont
June 7 Racket Squad CBS
June 15[11] Midwestern Hayride NBC
June 25 What's the Story? DuMont
June 28[12][13] The Amos 'n Andy Show CBS
July 3 Georgetown University Forum DuMont
July 6[14] Front Page Detective DuMont
July 13[15] Hollywood Opening Night CBS
August 3 The Ad-Libbers CBS
August 3 Tales of Tomorrow ABC
August 11[16] The Adventures of Kit Carson First-run syndication
August 27 The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong DuMont
September Boston Blackie First-run syndication
September 1 Kids and Company DuMont
September 3[17] Search for Tomorrow CBS
September 6 Crawford Mystery Theatre DuMont
News Gal DuMont
NFL on DuMont DuMont
Take the Break DuMont
September 16[18][19] Sky King NBC
September 24[20] Love of Life CBS
September 30[21][22][23][24] The Red Skelton Show NBC
October 2 Cosmopolitan Theatre DuMont
October 3[25] Celanese Theatre ABC
October 5 ABC Mystery Theater ABC
October 5 Schlitz Playhouse of Stars CBS
October 9 Keep Posted DuMont
October 11 Football This Week DuMont
October 13 The Talent Shop DuMont
October 14 Goodyear Television Playhouse NBC
October 15 I Love Lucy CBS
October 18 Foreign Intrigue First-run syndication
October 28[26] Out There CBS
November 3 City Hospital ABC
November 18 See It Now CBS
November 23[27][28] The RCA Victor Show NBC
November 27 The Dinah Shore Show NBC
November 29 This Is Music DuMont
December 1 The Pet Shop DuMont
December 5 The Name's the Same ABC
December 14 Dragnet NBC
December 24[29] Hallmark Hall of Fame NBC
December 30 The Roy Rogers Show NBC

Changes of network affiliation

edit
Show Moved from Moved to
Author Meets the Critics ABC NBC
Candid Camera NBC First-run syndication
Twenty Questions ABC Dumont
Pro Football Highlights ABC Dumont

Ending this year

edit
Date Show Network Debut Notes
January 7 Rhythm Rodeo DuMont August 6, 1950
January 16 The Alan Dale Show DuMont 1948
January 19 Time for Reflection DuMont June 27, 1949
January 22 Visit with the Armed Forces DuMont July 3, 1950
January 30 Buck Rogers ABC April 15, 1950
March 11 With This Ring DuMont January 21, 1951
March 15 The Nash Airflyte Theater CBS September 21, 1950
March 27 The Billy Rose Show ABC October 3, 1950
Prudential Family Playhouse CBS October 10, 1950
March 31 Saturday Night at the Garden DuMont October 7, 1950
April Eloise Salutes the Stars DuMont October 1950
April 3 Sure as Fate CBS July 4, 1950
April 7 Dick Tracy ABC September 11, 1950
April 17 Our Secret Weapon: The Truth DuMont October 22, 1950
April 20 Manhattan Spotlight DuMont January 17, 1949
May 2 Ladies Before Gentlemen DuMont February 28, 1951
May 15 Once Upon a Tune DuMont March 6, 1951
June 17 Music from Chicago DuMont April 15, 1951
June 23 Small Fry Club DuMont March 11, 1947 (with the title "Movies for Small Fry")
June 23 Foodini the Great CBS August 23, 1948
June 26 Court of Current Issues DuMont February 9, 1948
June 29 Jacqueline Susann's Open Door DuMont May 7, 1951
June 30 The Victor Borge Show NBC February 3, 1951
July 6 Okay, Mother DuMont November 6, 1948 (on WABD)
July 18 Four Star Revue unknown unknown [30]
August 9 The Al Morgan Show DuMont September 2, 1949
August 24 Broadway Open House NBC May 29, 1950
August 29 Stars Over Hollywood NBC September 6, 1950
August 31 The Ad-Libbers CBS August 3, 1951
September 25 Cavalcade of Bands DuMont January 17, 1950
September 27 Crawford Mystery Theatre DuMont September 6, 1951
September 28 Club Seven ABC August 12, 1948
November 1 Washington Exclusive DuMont June 21, 1953
November 14 International Playhouse DuMont May 30, 1951
November 21 The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong DuMont August 27, 1951
November 23 Mohawk Showroom NBC May 2, 1949
December 6 Football This Week DuMont October 11, 1951
December 11 Hands of Murder DuMont August 24, 1949
December 10 Somerset Maugham TV Theatre CBS
NBC
October 18, 1950
December 25 Cosmopolitan Theatre DuMont October 2, 1951
December 27 The Bigelow Theatre CBS
DuMont
December 10, 1950
December 28 Miss Susan NBC March 12, 1951 Also known as Martinsville, U.S.A.

Television stations

edit

Station launches

edit
Date City of License/Market Station Channel Affiliation Notes/Ref.
September 15 Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico
(Brownsville/McAllen, Texas, USA)
XELD-TV 7 CBS (primary)
ABC (secondary)
First Mexican-licensed television station meant to serve an American-based audience
September 30 Atlanta, Georgia WLTV 11 ABC now WXIA-TV, an NBC affiliate.

Network affiliation changes

edit
Date City of license/Market Station Channel Old affiliation New affiliation Notes/Ref.
January 1 Los Angeles, California KTSL 2 DuMont CBS Now CBS O&O station KCBS-TV.

Births

edit

Deaths

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ Television History – The First 75 Years: Code of Practices for Television Broadcasters
  2. ^ "DuMont buys rights to pro title contest". Milwaukee Journal. May 22, 1951. p. 6, part 2.
  3. ^ "Pro Football and DuMont Sign a $475,000 TV Pact" (PDF). The New York Times. May 22, 1951. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  4. ^ "Brewers Ogle TV As Spring Nears", Billboard, February 24, 1951, p. 6.
  5. ^ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 884. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
  6. ^ "Watch Mr. Wizard at Encyclopedia of Television". Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  7. ^ "Watch Mr. Wizard". Mr. Wizard Studios, Inc. 2004. Retrieved 2012-05-24.
  8. ^ Erickson, Hal (2009). Encyclopedia of Television Law Shows: Factual and Fictional Series About Judges, Lawyers, and the Courtroom, 1948-2008. McFarland. p. 189. ISBN 9780786438280.
  9. ^ Woolery, George W. (1985). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981, Part II: Live, Film, and Tape Series. The Scarecrow Press. pp. 34–37. ISBN 0-8108-1651-2.
  10. ^ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 199. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
  11. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (1992), The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows, Ballantine Books, ISBN 0-345-37792-3
  12. ^ "Amos And Andy Name Subs For Television Roles". St. Petersburg Times. 18 June 1951. Retrieved 11 October 2010.
  13. ^ "'Amos 'n' Andy' Characters Use Satire, Not Comedy". Baltimore Afro-American. 18 August 1951. Retrieved 17 March 2011.
  14. ^ Brooks, Tim & Marsh, Earle (1979). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows: 1946-Present. Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-345-25525-9. P. 213.
  15. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing Group. p. 623. ISBN 978-0-307-48320-1. Retrieved January 31, 2022.
  16. ^ "The Adventures of Kit Carson Season 1 Episodes". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 2021-05-06.
  17. ^ Schemering, Christopher (1987). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia (2nd ed.). Ballantine Books. pp. 200–212. ISBN 0-345-35344-7.
  18. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. New York: Ballantine Books. p. 932. ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  19. ^ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present. New York: Penguin Books. p. 763. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  20. ^ Schemering, Christopher (1987). The Soap Opera Encyclopedia (2nd ed.). Ballantine Books. pp. 151–156. ISBN 0-345-35344-7.
  21. ^ Skelton To Air Live as TVA Waives 60-Day Kine Limit. Billboard. 16 June 1951. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  22. ^ Rubber Face on TV. Life. 22 October 1951. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
  23. ^ Skelton, P& G Stew Boiling. Billboard. 22 November 1952. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  24. ^ Craig Resigns as B&B Veepee For Radio-TV/Skelton Plans Variety Format. Billboard. 30 May 1953. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
  25. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing Group. p. 228. ISBN 9780307483201. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  26. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (1999). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present (7th ed.). New York: The Ballentine Publishing Group. p. 770. ISBN 0-345-42923-0.
  27. ^ Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (June 24, 2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing Group. p. 1127. ISBN 978-0-307-48320-1. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  28. ^ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 267. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
  29. ^ "The Paley Center for Media - Hallmark Hall of Fame Amahl and the Night Visitors - Gian Carlo Minotti and Nicholas Magallanes on paleycenter.org". Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 2018-05-29.
  30. ^ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television. Penguin Books USA, Inc. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
edit