Remembering the "Ford 50th Anniversary Show", Sixty Years Later

On Program 113, we recall the Ford 50th Anniversary Show, a two-hour live television special broadcast on June 15, 1953.  The program was seen on NBC and CBS at the same time.  This was the only way Ford could assure the maximum number of people would be able to see the show, since this was still the early days of television, and each network by itself did not cover the whole United States.  The program was hosted By Edward R. Murrow and Oscar Hammerstein, and featured a history of the U.S. and the world from 1903-1953.  Appearing on the show were Mary Martin and Ethel Merman, as seen above, along with Wally Cox, Lowell Thomas, Marian Anderson, Rudy Vallee, Burr Tilstrom's Puppets Kukla and Ollie, and appearing on film, Bing Crosby, Eddie Fisher, and Frank Sinatra.  The program was produced by Leland Hayward, and featured an appearance by Henry Ford II at the conclusion.  A well-remembered special from the early days of television!

Early Color Television (Program 91)

In program 91, we talk about the history of Early Color Television.  The many technical developments along the way to creating a viable color system as well as the programming that was featured in those early days.  On the program we mention RCA's first production color TV set.  Here it is pictured above, the RCA Victor CT-100.  It made it's appearance in 1954, and featured a 15" screen.  The color on this set was very vivid, and almost had a Technicolor likeness to it.  This set originally cost around $1,000, several times the price of a conventional Black and White set.  Today it is a very desirable collector's item.  To see more early color sets, please go to our Facebook page and look at the Early TV Set Gallery.

Meet Cyd Charisse (Podcast 37)

Smitty shares news with us of a recently discovered early color video tape. The tape is a recording of "Meet Cyd Charisse" from 1959. Unplayed since that time and in pristine condition, the tape is in beautiful NBC "Living Color". Listen to Podcast 37 for details. And here is the opening number from this program.

Watch the full episode. See more Michael Feinsteins American Songbook.

Remembering The Big Show (Podcast 29)

Smitty recalls "The Big Show", radio's last, big, lavish program. It debuted in 1950 as radio audiences were declining with the impact of television. An NBC program, the network was still smarting from the Talent Raids, in which many of their top-flight stars moved to CBS. Can you name the stars in this picture? Hear all about it on Podcast 29!

Remembering the Maestro of the Singalong (Podcast 26)

In Podcast 26, Ian Rose recalls Mitch Miller, who passed away in August 2010. Ian recalls his famous and well-remembered TV program "Sing Along with Mitch".

Found: World Series History in Bing Crosby's Basement (Podcast 27)

Listen to Podcast 27 to learn about the long-lost World Series taping from 1960