Youtube Fred Astaire 58' clip.

[polaraman]

I would not say who posted that video. Fred's widow wants her cut from all of Fred's stuff. Lawyers could come a knockin!!!! seriously!!!

It is a great clip. The TV looks like a CTC9. That man had some kind of class. The music is just awesome.

polaraman

[3Guncolor]

I'm not aware of any changes the FCC forced on RCA and Ampex when they built color quad recorders. In fact a later Ampex AVR1 super highband deck would have a much better picture then a low band early color tube based VTR. It would be interesting if there were changes made to the NTSC standards after 1954. If someone has information please share it.
The color would have to do with the cameras etc.. not the VTR. Everyone worked very had to make the tape version look the same as the live version.
I think this show was the first recorded on tape for later broadcast color production. At least the first major color production to be produced that way

[Joel Cairo]

No, it's actually a standardization that was forced on NBC/RCA after they'd been using color tape for about 2 years.... as is their wont, NBC's engineers had been making tweaks to the color system, and eventually the FCC put a stop to it, saying they had to use exactly the same specs as everyone else.

That's why NBC tapes from that era require a specially-modified color module to really decode properly. I saw one of the modules, just last week. And I might add, when you see one of those tapes properly decoded, it's amazing!

The Astaire tapes (and the rights surrounding them) are a story unto themselves, from what I've been told...

-Kevin