The GE PE250 Early Color Television Camera

[J Ballard]

Hi All-

ABTO's idea was to save money on remote color film acquisition for newsgathering using B&W negative film. This was in the days of 2-1/2 U.S. television networks, and ABC was struggling to convert to color origination. They even engaged their Boston affiliate, WNAC, as a testing partner.

The idea was not successful, and ABTO folded quickly.

When the ABC Lab closed in 2010, they gave me the ABTO collection of press clippings in a large binder. It's at the Museum of Broadcast Technology in Woonsocket, RI.

James, you must have known Ed Messina?

John, there is a picture of RCA TK-21s in NY coupled to TP-35 projectors that appeared in RCA Broadcast News.

Re: TK-27. This camera was not popular at the networks, even at RCA owned NBC. The TK-26 was the mainstay at NBC, and other places, for network origination. In the late 1970s, the TK-27s in Burbank were assigned to KNBC news and not used by the network. The 26s had FET preamps built by Technical Maintenance and were fitted with Dynasciences image enhancers, but still used TX-1 encoders. These chains were retired around 1980.

The TK-27 relied on auto target mode in unmanned operation, but obtaining good tracking was difficult in my experience. Later, Beston Electronics introduced a neutral density wheel kit for use with the 27, and it seemed to do the job. An RCA field engineer once told me that the ND wheel on those kits wasn't really "neutral."

Some felt that the lag on the 27 was very good, as the tubes were hit with a high level of illumination (no ND wheel). Some added Grass Valley, CBS, or RCA aperture compensators (2H) and these made a big difference in the look of the camera. Registration on this camera was never very good, but it was a reliable film camera.

There are a couple of ABC veterans still alive who might know about the GE film chains. I'll see if I can hunt them down.

Regards,

JB

[John Hafer]

J Ballard, it would be great if you could tack down some ABC veterans and ask them about the early days of color broadcasting.

It was interesting in that when ABC started color broadcasts in September of 1962, they only showed a couple of shows in color, (The Flintstones and The Jetsons). Then for the 1963 season, they added Wagon Train and The Greatest Show on Earth and some movies. But the following year, Wagon Train went back to B&W and ABC reduced their color broadcast schedule.

It was not until the 1965 season that ABC (and finally CBS) went with many color programs.

See this link: http://www.novia.net/~ereitan/studios.html

for some interesting information on early color history. Be sure to scroll down to ABC color studios.

[J Ballard]

Hi all-

Today, I received word from a former ABC colleague who confirms that ABC did indeed have 3 GE color film cameras at the Union City, NJ site. These were located in NJ to avoid the 35mm exhibition tax in NYC (NBC had a similar arrangement in Englewood Cliffs), and the signals were microwaved back to the NY TOC. Being in NJ is probably the reason why photos don't exist (I've been through the ABC Technical Photo archive, and don't recall seeing any GEs).

However, in NY, ABC had 10 TK-27s and 4 TK-28s. These telecines also supported WABC-TV's newsgathering efforts.

A former ABC Hollywood manager confirms that ABC's first color programming originated in Hollywood in September 1963 on an RCA TK-26. Two years later, a second TK-26 was added, followed by seven TK-27s and later, a TK-29.

The only GE cameras of any type in Hollywood were 250s used for the "Joey Bishop Show."

An interesting discussion-thanks to all.

Regards,

J Ballard

[W.B.]

Originally Posted by J Ballard

I received word from a former ABC colleague who confirms that ABC did indeed have 3 GE color film cameras at the Union City, NJ site. These were located in NJ to avoid the 35mm exhibition tax in NYC (NBC had a similar arrangement in Englewood Cliffs), and the signals were microwaved back to the NY TOC. Being in NJ is probably the reason why photos don't exist (I've been through the ABC Technical Photo archive, and don't recall seeing any GEs).

However, in NY, ABC had 10 TK-27s and 4 TK-28s. These telecines also supported WABC-TV's newsgathering efforts.

A former ABC Hollywood manager confirms that ABC's first color programming originated in Hollywood in September 1963 [NOTE: actually 1962] on an RCA TK-26. Two years later, a second TK-26 was added, followed by seven TK-27s and later, a TK-29.

I figured that origination of filmed TV shows and presumably The ABC ___________ Night Movie would have been in Union City, and thus via PE-24's. I presume that local film and slide capacity for WABC-TV would have come from the TV Center on 66th Street, and thus projected through TK-27's and later -28's (not just for WABC's newscasts). However, my question has to do with from which outpost would WABC's local movie shows (including and notably The 4:30 Movie) have originated.

[John Hafer]

Many thanks J Ballard for the info. I was not aware of the 35mm exhibition tax in NYC.

At any rate, a couple of questions and remarks:

You stated that ABC's first color programming started in September 1963. I assume you meant September 1962 as it is well documented ABC started color broadcasts in September 1962 and I even have some old TV Guides showing color this.

The fact that ABC NY had 10 TK-27s was interesting so I guess they did not stay with GE cameras. However, I think TK-27s started shipping in the late spring of 1965 so until then, ABC NY must have still been using the GE cameras. It is also interesting in that around that same time, (late spring 1965) I started to notice a change in the quality of ABC color film shows, looking pale, low contrast, and muddy (as if the lens on the camera was dirty) that was so similiar with TK-27s, so this may have explained why I was seeing the change. As I said, to this day, I have a vivid memory of the differences between TK-27s and GE PE24/240 cameras. There was no comparison in my mind. Why ABC went with TK-27s was (IMHO) a big mistake.

Finally, you mention the ABC Technical Photo Archive. Do you have old pictures showing the ABC Broadcast Center? If so can you share any of them for I would love to see them for I collect old broadcast equipment pictures.

[W.B.]

Very interesting, all. But I remember the exhibition tax issue and the setups of NBC and ABC. I think this even affected independent station WNEW-TV, which had much of its telecine equipment (involving the showing of movies on their various umbrellas, i.e. Five Star Movie, Metromedia Movie, Movie Greats, Hollywood's Finest) in its final years of Metromedia ownership around the area of that company's corporate HQ in Secaucus, NJ.

But in a sense, it makes sense ABC in NY would have used TK-27's. I once saw a clip someone taped off of WABC-TV in New York in 1983 where the color test pattern's white balance appeared turquoise green/bluish, not unlike what people waking up in Washington, DC to WRC-TV's test pattern saw on their color sets. So, that would mean that the following NY stations would have used the TK-27 (that I know of):
- WNBC-TV
- WNEW-TV
- WABC-TV
- WOR-TV
- WPIX
- WNDT / WNET (?)
with WCBS-TV the odd one out, the only one to use the GE PE-240's (but then, they were housed on the grounds of the Broadcast Center, so . . . ). Don't know about what the old WNYC-TV used at the point they converted to color in 1968 . . .

It would also likely mean that sometimes when they had on the color test pattern in the morning, the blacks were sort of dark green-bluish, the greys were about greenish, and the whites orange/pinkish. I've seen quite a few video clips of test patterns on local stations known to have TK-27's in their telecine setups to notice.

And then the auto-iris which was part of the TK-27. Many a video clip on various sites besides YouTube show the characteristics thereof, where a scene goes from dark to light and the first second or so is too light before the exposure adjusts.

Now, can any member of this forum from Chicago apprise us of the telecine setups of the local stations there? (I seem to remember WBBM and WFLD definitely used TK-27's, probably WCIU via hand-me-downs, maybe even WSNS).

[old_tv_nut]

I have no direct knowledge of equipment used in Chicago (or anywhere else), but as a viewer I can recall a time when WGN obviously installed some new automatic color correction gear, because the film material got a new look and you could see the color wandering around during individual scenes (IIRC, sensitive to actor movements or other scene changes, but also wandering even in mostly static scenes).

[John Hafer]

W.B. thanks for your reply and info. I thought that WOR-TV went with GE color cameras. I know that WNAC-TV in Boston did and it was a RKO General station. I also thought that WOR-TV was a RKO General station so I would think both would purchase the same equipment.

I remember having a tour of WNAC-TV back around 1967 and they had GE PE-250 live color cameras and a slug of GE PE-240 color film cameras. I think they had something like 5 color film islands. They had also replaced their RCA TP-16 projectors with Eastman 285 16mm projectors.

[W.B.]

To be sure, WOR-TV did use GE PE-250's for their live studio camera setup, beginning in 1967 . . . it was with their film chains that they were RCA. Same thing with WPIX.

[John Hafer]

Originally Posted by W.B.

To be sure, WOR-TV did use GE PE-250's for their live studio camera setup, beginning in 1967 . . . it was with their film chains that they were RCA. Same thing with WPIX.

W.B: Actually, here is an ad for GE from August 1965 stating that WOR-TV did purchase GE PE-24 4 Tube color cameras. If they did use RCA film chains, they must have been later on.

[Telecruiser]

I know that WNAC-TV in Boston (An RKO station) had GE PE-24 cameras on their film chains around 1968 or so. As I recall there were three film chains that used RCA projectors and one that used Eastman 285's. The RCA chains also had a black and white RCA vidicon camera, so you could select either color or B&W to put on the air, depending on program content.

[W.B.]

Originally Posted by John Hafer

W.B: Actually, here is an ad for GE from August 1965 stating that WOR-TV did purchase GE PE-24 4 Tube color cameras. If they did use RCA film chains, they must have been later on.

The ad did not explicitly mention that WOR used PE-24's, just that they first used "the 4-V type" starting in late 1964 (apparently an RCA TK-27; kind of like RCA's Broadcast News, whenever they spoke of a TV station's equipment, occasionally failing to bring up videotape recorders which is a tipoff that the VTR's were Ampex). I did read in one of the trade papers (Broadcasting? - no, on second thought, it was an earlier 1965 Broadcast News) that WOR had placed an order for RCA TK-27's in 1965 (those were definitely fully operational by the time the station moved their entire kit 'n' kaboodle - studios, VT, telecine and master control - to 1481 Broadway in 1968). That GE ad mentioned only two RKO stations ordering PE-24's - WNAC and WHBQ. KHJ in Los Angeles, from what I read in another forum, used vintage RCA TK-26's (the 3-V variety) well into the 1980's (and from what I saw of one of the slide replications, apparently a TK-27 or two). As did WOR - at first; besides what they first got in 1960, they also got at least one, possibly two, TK-26's from RCA's 1964-65 World's Fair exhibit after the fair ended. Then CKLW-TV (now CBET) may have also had RCA 4-V's.

RKO's other major GE order, in 1966, was for a huge bank of PE-250 color cameras, the lion's share of which went to WOR-TV (six for use at Shea Stadium for Mets broadcasts, three for their studios), others went to WNAC (five, I.I.N.M.) and WHBQ (two).

No, in terms of film chains, apart from WCBS and the GE PE-240's that were shared with CBS network at the vast Broadcast Center, New York was otherwise generally RCA territory from the mid-'60's and into the '80's.

[J Ballard]

Hi all-

John, the September 1963 date as the commencement of ABC color film was obtained from a retired ABC engineering manager on the WC. I did no research to confirm that date, so my apologies.

Color film origination had its pitfalls in the early days. Somewhere, I have an NBC memo about the colorimetry on "Bonanaza" and its overall red cast. It turns out that the film stock was passing a large amount of near IR light, so a correction filter was added on TK-26s for that show.

It was generally regarded at NBC and ABC that the TK-26 was a superior camera than the TK-27 in most respects, and they were assigned prime time network programming. Considerable work went into improving both designs in the field. In the case of the 26, new SS preamps were installed (reports at both the network level and at ambitious affiliates), adding 2H enhancers, and replacing the encoder. NBC even designed a polarity reversing amplifier for color negative film for a few 26s.

The TK-27 could operate in automatic mode using "auto target." Many users were not pleased with results, as tracking among channels was not uniform. A small company, Beston Electronics, developed an ND wheel and servo kit for cameras using auto target such as the TK-27. This was a big improvement in color tracking, I thought, but a former RCA field engineer said that the ND wheel was not neutral throughout its range. Many customers added 2H image enhancers, and you could replace the proc modules in the color channel with Proc D modules designed for the TK-42. This gave you variable gamma control in the color channels. Color trim filters were also modified.

The TK-27 never registered very well, and the tubes made in Lancaster suffered badly in quality after a strike in the late 1970s. I know some NYC stations were buying their vidicons from EEV, and even as late as the TK-29, EEV tubes were sold by RCA if the customer so requested.

Some users felt that lag on the 27 was far better than on the 26 and 28/29s, since there was no ND wheel, and the vidicons were being hit with higher light levels.

RCA sold over 1100 TK-28/29/290 telecine cameras by the time the company closed its doors in October 1985.

Regarding the ABC archive, I can ask about it. It was mostly Kodachrome slides of TK-41s on remotes, but also some B&W prints about the early days of color.

Regards,
JB

[Steve D.]

J. Ballard,

I'm old enough to remember when NBC color film series aired in the early 60's. Shows like Bonanza, Tales of Wells Fargo, Laramie ect. did have a red/brownish cast. I mainly point out western series as they tended to have more red/brown in scenes. Wooden structures, saloon & cabin interiors, barren ground and such. This seem to improve during the later 60's & on:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bizY20UIDg



-Steve D.

[J Ballard]

Steve,

I'll have to drag out that memo concerning "Bonanza." This was a highly rated program for NBC and it generated a lot of concern.

Bonanza might have been shot on Technicolor, where the 26s might have been more sensitive to IR, as opposed to Eastman print stock.

I promise everyone an answer.

BTW, RCA made a low cost color film camera, the PK-610 , later rebranded the TK-610, that also used auto target for stand alone operation. The results and relaibility of this low cost camera were medocre, at best.

Regards,
JB

JB