August 26, 2014

The day in TV: Monday, August 25, 1958

We haven't done this for awhile, looked at a specific broadcasting day from this week's TV Guide, and since I'm actually on vacation as you read this, it seems like a sensible time to revisit the practice.

Actually, this week is a special week; most of the time, I just give you the Twin Cities listings for a given day.  However, this being 1958, there are few enough stations in the listing, and some of them only broadcasting a half-day, that I'm going to give you everything in the guide, with assorted notes to follow!



KTCA, Channel 2 (Educ.)
Afternoon
02:30p    Frontiers to Health
03:00p    Tea at Three
03:30p    Tempest in a Test Tube
Evening  
06:45p    Sing Hi, Sing Lo
07:00p    Open Door
07:30p    UN Review
07:45p    Transatlantic Televiews
08:00p    Great Plains Trilogy
08:30p    Heritage XI
09:00p    Making Music
09:30p    Athletic Department
10:00p    Great Ideas
10:30p    Graphic Arts

There is no NET yet, or if there is, KTCA isn't part of it yet.  I've said this before, but this is a perfect example of the educational concept that Channel 2 always strove to fill, and why they were one of the last big-market public stations to resist becoming fully a part of PBS.

KGLO, Channel 3 (Mason City IA) (CBS)
Morning  
09:00a    For Love or Money
09:30a    Play Your Hunch
10:00a    Arthur Godfrey (guest host Tony Randall)
10:30a    Dotto
11:00a    Love of Life
11:30a    Search For Tomorrow
11:45a    The Guiding Light
Afternoon             
12:00p    News (local)
12:30p    As the World Turns
01:00p    Beat The Clock
01:30p    House Party (artist Gordon Currie)
02:00p    The Big Payoff
02:30p    The Verdict is Yours
03:00p    A Brighter Day
03:15p    The Secret Storm
03:30p    The Edge of Night
04:00p    Bob Cavanaugh
05:00p    Little Rascals
05:30p    Time Out for Tots
05:45p    CBS Evening News with Douglas Edwards
Evening  
06:00p    Farm Reporter
06:05p    Sports, News, Weather
06:30p    Robin Hood
07:00p    Whirlybirds
07:30p    Masquerade Party
08:00p    I Love Lucy
08:30p    Frontier Justice
09:00p    Highway Patrol
09:30p    Sheriff of Cochise
10:00p    News, Sports (local)
10:30p    Science Fiction Theater

Channel 3, along with Channel 8, does not carry Studio One at 9pm, preferring the (presumably) more profitable syndicated shows.  This was common practice back then; nonetheless, as I remark later about Jack Paar, one wonders if they thought their viewers would be uncomfortable with the New York-style dramas that often aired on Studio One.

WCCO, Channel 4 (CBS)
Morning
07:00a    Movie – “Southward Ho”
08:00a    Siegfried and His Flying Saucer
08:55a    News (local)
09:00a    For Love or Money
09:30a    Play Your Hunch
10:00a    Arthur Godfrey (guest host Tony Randall)
10:30a    Dotto
11:00a    Love of Life
11:30a    Search For Tomorrow
11:45a    The Guiding Light
Afternoon             
12:00p    News (local)
12:15p    Take Five
12:20p    Weather (local)
12:30p    As the World Turns
01:00p    Beat The Clock
01:30p    House Party (artist Gordon Currie)
02:00p    The Big Payoff
02:30p    The Verdict is Yours
03:00p    A Brighter Day
03:15p    The Secret Storm
03:30p    The Edge of Night
04:00p    Around the Town
04:30p    Bugs Bunny
05:00p    Axel and His Dog
05:30p    Popeye Clubhouse
05:55p    Weather, News, Sports (local)
Evening  
06:15p    CBS Evening News with Douglas Edwards
06:30p    Robin Hood
07:00p    Burns and Allen
07:30p    Masquerade Party
08:00p    I Love Lucy
08:30p    Frontier Justice
09:00p    Studio One
10:00p    News, Sports (local)
10:30p    The Lone Wolf
11:00p    Movie  “Quiet Please, Murder”

Nowadays, it's hard to imagine one of the over-the-air stations showing a movie at 7:00 in the morning - they're already on their third hour of local news at that point.  As you can see further down, CBS is still a big believer in 15-minute soap operas, their original form when they came over from radio.

KSTP, Channel 5 (NBC)
Morning  
06:30a    David Stone
07:00a    Today (guest host Charles Van Doren)
09:00a    Dough Re Mi
09:30a    Treasure Hunt
10:00a    The Price is Right
10:30a    Concentration (debut)
11:00a    Tic Tac Dough
11:30a    It Could Be You (color)
Afternoon             
12:00p    News (local) 
12:20p    Treasure Chest
01:00p    Truth or Consequences
01:30p    Haggis Baggis (color)
02:00p    Today is Ours
02:30p    From These Roots
03:00p    Queen for a Day
03:45p    Modern Romances
04:00p    My Little Margie
04:30p    Side Show
04:45p    Captain Daryl
05:00p    Hi Fi-Ve Time
05:45p    Huntley-Brinkley Report
Evening  
06:00p    News, Weather (local)
06:20p    You Should Know
06:30p    Haggis Baggis (color)
07:00p    The Restless Gun
07:30p    Tales of Wells Fargo
08:00p    Twenty-One
08:30p    Alcoa Theatre
09:00p    Suspicion
10:00p    News, Sports (local)
10:30p    Federal Men
11:00p    Jack Paar (Richard Hayes, Genevieve)
12:00a    News, Weather, Sports (local)

Look at 10:30am - the debut of Concentration! Channel 5 was one of the oldest NBC affiliates at the time that they switched to ABC in the late '70s.  For Minnesotans of a certain age (namely, mine), Channel 5 will always feel like an NBC affiliate, just as Channel 9 is the ABC affiliate, and Channel 11 is the independent.  And never the twain shall meet.  

KMMT, Channel 6 (Austin) (ABC)
Afternoon              
03:00p    American Bandstand (Tommy Edwards, Jim Gallant)
03:30p    Who Do You Trust?
04:00p    American Bandstand
05:00p    Matinee with Marge
05:30p    Mickey Mouse Club
Evening  
06:00p    News, Weather (local)
06:15p    John Daly and the News
06:30p    Woody Woodpecker
07:00p    Cowtown Rodeo
07:30p    Bold Journey
08:00p    Stars of Jazz (Oscar Peterson Trio, Buddy Rich, Pat Healy)
08:30p    To Be Announced
09:30p    Dick Powell
10:00p    News, Sports (local)
10:30p    Dateline Europe

I'm surprised that an affiliated station would come on this late in the afternoon.  I just checked; they don't come on any earlier on the weekends, either.  Note that John Daly is still the anchor of ABC's evening news.  He's currently the man in charge of ABC News - at the same time that he's hosting What's My Line? on CBS.  Classic television fans know this, but I'm still amused by it.

KWWL, Channel 7 (Waterloo, IA) (NBC)
Morning  
07:00a    Today (guest host Charles Van Doren)
09:00a    Dough Re Mi
09:30a    Treasure Hunt
10:00a    The Price is Right
10:30a    Concentration (debut)
11:00a    Tic Tac Dough
11:30a    It Could Be You (color)
Afternoon             
12:00p    Movie – “They Were So Young”
01:00p    Truth or Consequences
01:30p    Haggis Baggis (color)
02:00p    Today is Ours
02:30p    From These Roots
03:00p    Queen for a Day
03:45p    Modern Romances
04:00p    Movie – “A Race for Life”
05:45p    News, Weather, Sports (local)
Evening  
06:15p    Huntley-Brinkley Report
06:30p    Haggis Baggis (color)
07:00p    The Restless Gun
07:30p    Tales of Wells Fargo
08:00p    Twenty-One
08:30p    Alcoa Theatre
09:00p    Suspicion
10:00p    News, Sports (local)
10:30p    Jack Paar (Richard Hayes, Genevieve)
12:00a    News, Weather, Sports (local)

Pretty good lineup, standard NBC.  Unlike so many stations in these old TV Guides, Channel 7 is still called KWWL, and it's still an NBC affiliate.  And did you see who was hosting Today?  And that Twenty One is still on the air?  Most of the big-money prime-time game shows are; the other shoe just hasn't fallen yet.

WKBT, Channel 8 (LaCrosse) (CBS)
Morning  
10:00a    Arthur Godfrey (guest host Tony Randall)
10:30a    Dotto
11:00a    Love of Life
11:30a    Search For Tomorrow
11:45a    The Guiding Light
Afternoon             
12:00p    News (local)
12:30p    Top Plays
01:00p    Beat The Clock
01:30p    House Party (artist Gordon Currie)
02:00p    The Big Payoff
02:30p    The Verdict is Yours
03:00p    A Brighter Day
03:15p    The Secret Storm
03:30p    The Edge of Night
04:00p    Frontier
04:30p    Film Feature
04:55p    Crusader Rabbit
05:00p    Superman
05:30p    Living Storybook
Evening  
06:00p    Farm Digest
06:05p    Sports, News, Weather
06:30p    Robin Hood
07:00p    Broken Arrow
07:30p    All-Star Theater
08:00p    I Love Lucy
08:30p    Frontier Justice
09:00p    Buckskin
09:30p    The People’s Choice
10:00p    News, Sports (local)
10:20p    San Francisco Beat
10:50p    Pendulum

Another derivation from the CBS prime-time schedule, as Channel 8 skips Burns and Allen and Masquerade Party in favor of Broken Arrow and All-Star Theater.  Some classic TV fans might consider me a heretic, but I don't think that trade is all bad; try as I might, I never could get into Burns and Allen.

KMSP, Channel 9 (Ind.)
Afternoon              
02:25p    Chapel of the Air
02:30p    Mr. and Mrs. North
03:00p    Play of the Week
03:30p    Movie – “Front Page Story”
05:30p    Our Miss Brooks
Evening  
06:00p    Looney Tunes
06:30p    Joe Palooka
07:00p    Movie – “Boston Blackie Goes Hollywood”
08:00p    Man Behind the Badge
08:30p    San Francisco Beat
09:00p    Movie – “Bachelor Mother”
10:30p    News (local)
10:45p    Sports (local)
10:50p    Movie – “Small Town Deb”
11:55p    News (local)

Granted that Channel 9 is the independent station in the Twin Cities; still, signing on for the day at 2:25pm?  I suppose if you haven't got anything to say, better to just keep quiet.  

KTTC, Channel 10 (Rochester) (NBC)
Morning  
07:00a    Today (guest host Charles Van Doren)
09:00a    Dough Re Mi
09:30a    Treasure Hunt
10:00a    The Price is Right
10:30a    Concentration (debut)
11:00a    Tic Tac Dough
11:30a    It Could Be You (color)
Afternoon             
12:00p    News (local)
12:30p    Film Feature
01:00p    Truth or Consequences
01:30p    Haggis Baggis (color)
02:00p    Today is Ours
02:30p    From These Roots
03:00p    Queen for a Day
03:45p    Modern Romances
04:00p    What’s New?
04:30p    Compass
05:00p    Movie – “Homicide Bureau”
Evening  
06:00p    News, Weather (local)
06:15p    Huntley-Brinkley Report
06:30p    Superman
07:00p    Mr. and Mrs. North
07:30p    Tales of Wells Fargo
08:00p    Twenty-One
08:30p    Alcoa Theatre
09:00p    Suspicion
10:00p    News, Sports (local)
10:30p    Movie – “The Secret of the Blue Room”

Channel 10 does a very good job of sticking to the NBC national schedule, except when it comes to late-night.  Did they think Jack Paar was too sophisticated for their audience?  Or was it simply a case of preferring that the advertising revenue stay in-house by running a local movie?

WTCN, Channel 11 (ABC)
Morning  
11:30a    Film Short
11:45a    Farm News
Afternoon             
12:00p    Lunch Club
01:00p    Movie – “Family Affair”
02:30p    Playhouse
03:30p    Who Do You Trust?
04:00p    American Bandstand
05:00p    Superman
05:30p    Mickey Mouse Club
Evening  
06:00p    News, Weather
06:30p    Jeff’s Collie
07:00p    Cowtown Rodeo
07:30p    Bold Journey
08:00p    Stars of Jazz (Oscar Peterson Trio, Buddy Rich, Pat Healy)
08:30p    To Be Announced
09:30p    News (local)
09:45p    Movie – “High Sierra”
11:15p    Top Plays

As with Channel 6, Channel 11 has a very late start time.  When they became an independent station in 1961, they started somewhat earlier in the morning - maybe an hour or so. Stars of Jazz was hosted by Bobby Troup, future star of Emergency, and lucky husband of Julie London.  

WEAU, Channel 13 (Eau Claire) (NBC)
Morning  
07:00a    Today (guest host Charles Van Doren)
09:00a    Dough Re Mi
09:30a    Treasure Hunt
10:00a    The Price is Right
10:30a    Concentration (debut)
11:00a    Tic Tac Dough
11:30a    It Could Be You (color)
Afternoon             
12:00p    Film Short
12:20p    News, Markets (local)
12:30p    Tombstone Territory
01:00p    Truth or Consequences
01:30p    Haggis Baggis (color)
02:00p    Today is Ours
02:30p    From These Roots
03:00p    Queen for a Day
03:45p    Modern Romances
04:00p    Film Feature
04:30p    Movie – “Idaho”
05:30p    Film Feature
05:55p    Crusader Rabbit
Evening  
06:00p    Florian Zabach
06:30p    Cartoons
06:40p    Weather, News (local)
07:00p    Navy Log
07:30p    Tales of Wells Fargo
08:00p    Twenty-One
08:30p    Alcoa Theatre
09:00p    Suspicion
10:00p    News, Sports (local)
10:30p    Movie – “Blind Date”
11:30p    Times Square Playhouse

I've always found it interesting when local stations skip the national news.  Perhaps they presented some of the news headlines in their local program at 6:40.  Or maybe they figured if you really want to hear what's going on in the rest of the world, you can read a newspaper.  Notice also that they carry Navy Log at 7pm instead of John Payne's Western The Restless Gun.  I haven't checked to see if they aired that program later in the week; otherwise, they already have so many Westerns, what's wrong with showing one more? TV  

3 comments:

  1. From the Chicago edition, 25 August 1958:

    - In Rockford, Channel 13 had CBS's whole daytime schedule, right up to 4pm, when it switched to ABC and American Bandstand and Superman - but did not carry Mickey Mouse Club (don't ask - I just report here).
    For the record, at this point ABC didn't have a network daytime schedule, apart from Who Do You Trust? and Bandstand.
    Chicago's Channel 7 filled the mornings with local kid shows, syndicated reruns, and Beat The Buccs, a phone-in musical quiz featuring Captain Stubby and the Buccaneers, a popular club act which was serving as ch7's house band. This was "Stump The Band": if the Buccs knew the song, they played it; if they didn't, they'd improvise a comedy bit, and the caller would win a prize.
    We're looking here at the last gasp of local TV, and on a network-owned station yet.

    - The "To Be Announced" hour on ABC may well have been Polka-Go-Round, a Chicago origination that the ABC network sometimes used as a summer fill-in.
    The host was Bob Lewandowski, a popular personality in Chicago's large Polish community.
    The guests were polka stars from all over; the regulars were singer Carolyn DeZurik, the Polka Rounders Band, the Chaine Dancers, and Tom Fouts and the Singing Waiters (aka Captain Stubby and the Buccaneers, op cit.)
    (I love to slip in things like 'op cit.' Makes this look sort of classy.)

    - Stars Of Jazz was another local pickup by the ABC network, this one from their Los Angeles affiliate. I have a couple of segments of this on a stray VHS somewhere here; I'm hoping someone stole enough kinescopes to put out a c2c DVD some time. Bobby Troup is an engaging host, and one of the tapes features my all-time favorite musical group: the Firehouse Five Plus Two.

    - Channel 9, the independent station in Chicago, was one of only two stations in Chicago that could broadcast in color in '58 (ch5-NBC was the other).
    But the only regular color show ch9 had was The Blue Fairy, a nightly 15-minute kid show featuring a pretty girl in fairy garb flying around the studio on a harness, and puppets acting out fairy tales.
    Ch9 didn't even start showing ball games in color until a couple of years later.

    - In the '57-'58 season, Alcoa Theater rotated three stars - Jack Lemmon, Jane Powell, and Robert Ryan - in half-hour plays.
    Lemmon usually did the comedies, Powell the romantics, and Ryan the thrillers (although the producers weren't all that strict about this).

    It's late, and I'm kinda shagged out here.
    I might have more tomorrow.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I enjoy It's About TV; keep up the excellent work! You're correct that no over-the-air station will ever show a movie at 7:00 AM again. Considering the second word of the title of this particular film, it's likely they wouldn't show it these days at any other time either!

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    Replies
    1. No kidding, Alex. Thanks for the kind comments - glad you enjoy the site! Let me know if there's anything in future you'd like to read about!

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Thanks for writing! Drive safely!