CBS Color programming

[oldtvman]

When most of the world was black and white except for NBC, I remember occassional color programming from CBS, two of them that I remember were the Wizard of Oz and Rudolph, I think they also threw in a live version of Cinderella about 1962

[Steve Hoffman]

I remember one episode of LASSIE that was in color and one episode of PERRY MASON that was in color... Not much else before 1966 I guess..

[David Roper]

Rudolph started out on NBC. I seem to recall 1971 as either the last NBC year or the switch to CBS year. Trivia: in 1964, viewer feedback of disappointment that Rudolph did not tell Santa about the Island Of Misfit Toys was such that new footage was shot for the second telecast's ending which remains to this day. Unfortunately, as a result it is now virtually forgotten that Ukon Cornelius threw his pick into the air one last time just as the sleigh was taking off...sniff, taste...and struck peppermint!

[Sandy G]

I NEVER got to watch Rudolph start to finish when I was a kid. It was INVARIABLY on the Sunday nite of our Sunday School's big pageant, & I got "invited" every time. "Hog-tied, kicking & Screaming" might be a bit more accurate. You HAD to wear a hot, scratchy suit to church, even if it was for a "fun" thing like this was supposed to be. Yr only consolation was that all the rest of the kiddies were as miserable as you were... I was a big, ugly kid, & in the plays & stuff I always got to be a Philistine or a Roman guard, never Jesus or Noah or anybody like that...-Sandy G.

Here's a website that's all about the Rankin-Bass productions (Rudolph, Monster Island etc) http://www.rankinbass.com/

There's mention of the various plot discrepancies, different versions (from the original airing to the later edited versions etc.) Pretty interesting stuff for us Baby Boomers.

Anthony

[Pete Deksnis]

Occasionally, the first CBS network show of a new season would be in NTSC color. I watched those shows on my RCA CTC-10, then by 1963, on the CT-100. I particularly remember "Lassie" and "Dr. Kildare" in color for one show only. But, to listen to the network hype, a monochrome TV owner would think the entire series was in color. It was back then, '63 to maybe '65, that I saw the CBS bloodshot eye in color.

[Steve Hoffman]

I remember Dr. Kildare being on NBC...It started broadcasting all episodes in color in 1965..

[frenchy]

Originally Posted by oldtvman

When most of the world was black and white except for NBC, I remember occassional color programming from CBS, two of them that I remember were the Wizard of Oz and Rudolph, I think they also threw in a live version of Cinderella about 1962

I always thought NBC had a lock on Wizard of Oz... but then I wasn't old enough to watch anything in '63.

[Joel Cairo]

CBS also broadcast encore performances of Fred Astaire's "Evening With..." specials (originally shown on NBC) prior to the Tiffany Network's full converson to color.

Red Skelton's Skelton Studios occasionally produced his weekly show in color from 1961 on, though it was broacast in B&W by CBS. At least one color tape survives from that era. It's my understanding that Danny Kaye did that, as well.

And of course, Ed Sullivan's shows were in color as of September 1965.

Unless that "Cinderella" was some kind of one-off presentation of another version of the story , the Lesley Anne Warren re-make of the R&H adaptation first was presented on CBS in 1965.

-Kevin

[Big Dave]

There was also a "Cinderella" telecast on CBS in 1956 with Ginger Rogers, Walter Pigeon and Celelste Holm. There was a promo for this one during the closing credits of an As the World Turns episode. I do not know if this was colorcast. ATWT was still BW at that time.

Here's the link for that clip.

www.wost.org

[oldtvman]

the original Rudolph on CBS was sponsered by generous electric (ge) for the first few years

[Joel Cairo]

Big Dave:

That promo is for the '65 Lesley Ann Warren R&H version that I mentioned earlier.

-Kevin

[David Roper]

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0129672/

Julie Andrews as Cinderella in 1957, originally broadcast in color on CBS!
(the surviving kinescope is black & white)

[Big Dave]

Joel, thanks for clearing that up. I was not alive then and have not seen anything from that presentation. We had a debate on that promo at that site's messageboard. Unfortunately, it's gone.