The days of live television are long gone, with the exception of news programs such as Today and Good Morning America. Live television refers to shows that are shot in real time and then broadcast to the public. Back in the day, these were the only types of television shows broadcast to televisions across America. The history of live television is one of extreme interest and knowing its accomplishments it seems somewhat sad to think that it is for the most part nonexistent in today’s society.
Live television actually has its beginnings in Germany. In 1929, Germany began delivering regular broadcast on the television, a newly patented technology that, at the time, was rare and not widely owned. However, Germany was exceptionally innovative when they broadcast the 1936 Olympic Games to stations in Berlin and Leipzig so that the public could gather and watch the games.
It took a while for true TV broadcasting to become popular in the United States; however, it finally arrived in 1946. Regular TV broadcasting brought the emergence of live television, which last until about 1956. There were many great and memorable events featured live on television, including:
- The 1953 coronation of Her Majesty Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, the first coronation to be broadcast.
- John F. Kennedy’s funeral in 1963 was the highest watched live broadcast up until this point.
- Apollo 11’s 1969 first moon landing by humans.
- The 1986 Challenger explosion.
There are many shows that were live and extremely popular, including As the World Turns and Howdy Doody. As the World Turns is an influential soap area in the U.S. as it debuted as a 30 minute show when all shows prior were only 15 minutes in length. It premiered in 1956 and was shot live from then until about 1975, when it switched to one-hour length shows. It is noted as the most widely watched TV drama from 1958 to 1978.
With a Canadian circus and western theme, Howdy Doody, quickly became the poster-show for NBC. From 1947 to 1960, the show altered the style of childrens television programming and set the stage for similar shows to be created. The beloved freckled-marionette was so influential that NBC used the show to attract attention to color television sets in the hopes of increasing profit on this new technology.
The history of live television is one that is seldom known. In today’s society, the difficulty and skill necessary to put on worthwhile live entertainment is greatly unappreciated and undervalued. The intricacy of orchestrating a live television program is beyond the scope of what many people can imagine. This period in television history should be greatly appreciated for it led the way for society to create better and more flawless entertainment shows.