Comments on: Invented Earlier than You’d Think – Pt. 3 – Television

By: George

George — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 22:04:20 +0000

In the early 1960’s, Zenith had a trial pay TV system on channel 18 in Hartford, CT. I’m not sure what all they did to the picture, but if you weren’t a subscriber it was negative and blocky. The sound was probably frequency inverted and frequency shifted — it sounded like bells at times.

Sometimes they broadcast live sports so we could get the audio on the radio, and crank up the AGC which would normally make the picture negative, but of course it made the scrambled picture quite watchable.

By: Blurgle

Blurgle — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 04:10:39 +0000

Really? I understand that they did exist in places like the Situations Room of the White House, but you’d be looking at a high multiple of Elvis’s net worth in 1976 for one.

By: jayessell

jayessell — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 22:47:43 +0000

Blurgle, shenanigans.
I don’t remember seeing the 1960s equivalent of Bill Gates having a flat screen TV.
Elvis didn’t have one.
Do you mean rear projector TVs?
3 tube projectors were $5k to $15k in the late 1970s
***************

In the 1952 Science Fiction movie “The Red Planet”, Peter Graves’ character
had a sweet widescreen flatscreen which looks like a modern HDTV.
(As the film was in glorious Black and White, I can’t tell if it was color also.)

By: Blurgle

Blurgle — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 15:10:09 +0000

Actually, making a flat screen wasn’t impossible even then. Making an affordable flat screen, on the other hand…

By: Shannon

Shannon — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 11:46:38 +0000

I think it’s safe to assume that the flatscreen “tv of the future” is just a mockup… No more real than most of what’s in “…of the future” projections. Unlike flying cars though, this prediction came true.

By: Max

Max — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:33:17 +0000

Fascinating stuff, the history behind the development of television. Thanks to jayessell too for posting his scans.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:20:21 +0000

Ah, yeah, well I’ve had a LOT of practice The really hard part is actually making them come out straight.

By: jayessell

jayessell — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:15:54 +0000

C:
Scanning and posting articles from old magazines.
(But in reality, it’s hard to make them look good.)

By: Charlie

Charlie — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 16:09:16 +0000

j: What do I make look easy?

By: nlpnt

nlpnt — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 12:27:11 +0000

The technology is widely successful and advancing rapidly. The content is another matter entirely.

By: jayessell

jayessell — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 12:10:21 +0000

Charlie makes this look easy.
Here are scans from a 1938 magazine:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com.....58ff_b.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com.....6205_b.jpg

I’ll see if I have anything else from the past.

BTW,
It’s 2008.
Where does Television stand today?