1 TV MAKES ITS FIRST APPEARANCE IN 1939 Many Americans first watched television at the 1939 World’s Fair The fair displayed new technologies and innovations Viewers could see inside the RCA company’s new television machines They learned 2 Number of TV programs on NBC’s earliest schedule not including films Television had been in development for many years It was given a public showcase at the 1939 World’s Fair NBC began broadcasting at the World’s Fair TV did not become popular in the United States until after World War II 4 how the TVs worked and saw it was no trick The idea for television was not new The British had been watching TV since 1929 But before the World’s Fair TV was not widely available in the United States Many fairgoers were seeing television for the first time They could even view a living THE FIRST PRESIDENT ON TV President Franklin Roosevelt gave a speech to open the 1939 World’s Fair It was the first time a president appeared on television President Roosevelt’s speech was the first programming NBC broadcast Now NBC is one of TV’s major networks
room of the future Of course that living room had a TV Most Americans did not buy a TV right away The machines at the fair were expensive They cost between 200 and 600 Back then a gallon of milk cost 0 23 and cars approximately 750 A TV was out of reach for many Then World War II 1939 1945 slowed television’s growth Television companies created technology for the war instead After the war ended some of this technology was used in new TVs By the early 1950s TVs became less expensive More and more people were watching TV NBC cameras film fairgoers at the 1939 World’s Fair 5
2 EVERYONE TUNES IN TO I LOVE LUCY Television took shape in the period between the late 1940s and 1960 It was a time of innovation The period is often called the Golden Age of Television During this period many strong programs appeared on television I Love Lucy was one of these shows At first CBS executives worried Americans would not like Lucy and Ricky Ricardo The Ricardos were the main characters of I Love Lucy Desi Arnaz who played Ricky was Cuban The executives thought Americans would only want to watch other Americans on TV Watching television became a popular family pastime in the 1950s 6
3 Number of cameras used to film I Love Lucy I Love Lucy was one of the most post popular shows on TV It was a comedy but the characters had real problems The show was very popular and influenced how TV was made But they were wrong The show was an instant hit after it premiered on October 15 1951 Everyone loved Lucy and Ricky I Love Lucy was a zany comedy show Lucy and Ricky got into lots of funny situations with their neighbors Lucille Ball who played Lucy was Arnaz’s wife in real life She believed Americans wanted to see stories about people they could understand Despite their lightheartedness she made sure the characters had regular problems The show influenced future television programs Most television shows were filmed in New York But Lucille and Desi lived in California They wanted to film near home Many television shows followed them west The team pioneered a multi-camera filming technique They also filmed in front of a live studio audience Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz rehearse on the I Love Lucy set 7
