Hi Rod:

Interesting history indeed.

I don't pretent to be an expert in TV history, just an occasional viewer. I'm an ears guy mainly.

Early 100% videotape shows were terrible quality, but most sets were terrible back then and over-air
broadcasts were fuzzy in many areas. And shot-on-film was still better picture quality until very
recent times (some would aruge it STILL is, but they lose so badly in economic terms that it's
game-set-match for digi-video).

It's 3:15 PM here and we're due for a blast of snow tonight into tomorrow. Flurries just starting to
fly now.

-- Tom Fine

----- Original Message -----
From: "Rod Stephens" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, February 11, 2006 2:20 PM
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] "Aircheck" history


>I was working in the Film Department at ABC television in Hollywood ('57 or '58) when they had
>their first delivery of Ampex machines. Up until then, ABC was called the "film network", because
>the bulk of it's programming was coming from the film studios (Warners, Desilu, Disney), and they
>could feed ("bicycle")16mm film prints to all of their stations throughout the U.S. Also, they
>were making "quick kines" (Kinescopes) of the Lawrence Welk show for delayed playback with its loss
>in quality, so this was a revolutionary change. So, gradually the Film Department was phased way
>down in subsequent years.
>
> In 1959, I went to work at Desilu (it you can't beat 'em, join 'em), and then, I heard about the
> Hollywood studios' fear that once they learned how to edit (my trade) tape, they'd put the film
> industry out of business. Of course, that has finally happened, but there has been a digital
> convergence of the two technologies, so that they are movie (and money) making tools to be applied
> to the particular need (digital nonlinear editing, film to tape syndication, high definition
> "filming", etc.).
>
> So Tom, the desire for a better recording medium for network delayed broadcasts that initially was
> considered a Pandora's box by Hollywood studios has matured. After all, they are all just "motion
> pictures", pictures that move.
>
> Rod Stephens
> Family Theater Productions
>
> Tom Fine wrote:
>
>> Hi Steven:
>>
>> Videotape, first commercialized by Ampex, 1956. It did revolutionize television production.
>>
>> -- Tom Fine
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "steven c" <[log in to unmask]>
>> To: <[log in to unmask]>
>> Sent: Friday, February 10, 2006 10:53 PM
>> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] "Aircheck" history
>>
>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Tom Fine" <[log in to unmask]>
>>>
>>>> The tape era solved many problems.
>>>>
>>> As did, I would guess, the video-tape era when that first appeared...
>>> (when?)
>>> Steven C. Barr
>>
>>