Broadcast technology

Fritz Pfleumer, an Austrian-German engineer, invented magnetic tape in the late-1920's.

Magnetic tape, which was the best-known innovation by Fritz Pfleumer, later became the basis for the equally-innovative Magnetophon, developed in the 1930's by AEG.

During the Second World War, magnetic tape was kept secret, but when the Allied forces, including the United States, emerged victorious, they acquired recording equipment from Germany.

After the Allies emerged victorious in WWII, Americans, such as John T. Mullin, John Herbert Orr and Richard H. Ranger, took magnetic tape out of Germany and made it commercially viable formats.

The Ampex Model 200A, an improved American version of the innovative Magnetophon, which was based on Fritz Pfleumer's magnetic tape invention, was introduced in 1948.

For the Ampex Model 200A, it revolutionized both the broadcasting and the recording industries.

With the Ampex Model 200A, prerecorded radio programs provide more schedule flexibility, but also attract established and emerging artists untied to live broadcasts.

Quadruplex videotape is the first practical and commercially successful videotape format, whereas the Ampex VRX-1000 is the first commercially successful videotape recorder.

Both quadruplex and the Ampex VRX-1000 are video responses to the Ampex Model 200A, based on Magnetophon from AEG, in turn based on magnetic tape invented by Fritz Pfleumer.

Kinescope is the process used to film the television screen, but it is cumbersome and expensive; both quadruplex and the Ampex VRX-1000 are solutions to these limitations.

With both quadruplex and the Ampex VRX-1000, television quality improved.

Like radio, prerecorded television programs, on film and videotape, offer more schedule flexibility and attract established and emerging artists celebrities untied to live broadcasts.

Norikazu Sawazaki, who hailed from Toshiba, demonstrated the first videotape recorder using the new helical scan method in the late-1950's.

Ampex introduced the first commercial helical scan video recorder called the VR-8000 in 1961.

Helical scan enabled features, like pause and variable speeds.

Responding to both the quadruplex format and the Ampex VRX-1000 recorder, JVC developed its own two-head video tape recorder in the late-1950's and, by 1960, a colour version.

JVC also created the DV220, once its standard video tape recorder, in the mid-1960's.

In 1969, JVC joined forces with Matsushita Electric (which formerly held a majority stake in JVC) and Sony to build a video recording standard for the Japanese consumer.

U-matic is the world's first videocassette format on a commercial level.

For U-matic, it is among the earliest video formats to use a cassette with the videotape being enclosed inside, replacing the bulky reel-to-reel/open-reel systems made earlier.

This innovative design made for U-matic made video recording more portable and easier to handle.

Key successes for this U-matic format came from industrial and educational markets and the electronic news gathering (ENG) process, as well as professional, non-broadcast video production.

Cartrivision is the first home video format to have prerecorded tapes, specifically feature-length motion pictures, for consumer rental.

Avco, which gained a foothold in the film industry in the late-1960's with Embassy Pictures, also ran its subsidiary Cartridge Television Inc. (CTI), which produced the innovative Cartrivision format.

The film catalog for this Cartrivision format came from its parent company Avco Embassy Pictures, but from major Hollywood studios as well, including 20th Century-Fox, Columbia and others.

Not confined to films, Cartrivision also offered other content, like sports, instructional films, etc.

Unlike later video cassette recorders, Cartrivision was initially integrated into colour television sets.

June 1972 to July 1973 was the period from which Cartivision was available for consumer rental.

Many factors caused Cartrivision's own demise, including high costs, inconvenient mailing and rental processes, large-sized machines and technical issues.

Despite its short lived-run and its demise caused by its problems, Cartrivision's innovative features still continue to live on, leading to the home video revolution.

Ampex also introduced the HS-100 and the HS-200

Soon after the U-matic release, all of its three developers began working on new consumer-grade video recording formats of their own.

For instance, Sony started working on Betamax, Matsushita on VX, JVC on the CR-6060.

Philips designed the Video Cassette Recording (VCR) concept, the first consumer-level home VCR.

Introduced in 1972, the Philips VCR format was used in the UK, mainland Europe, Australia and South Africa.

JVC's own VHS format was released in Japan, one year after Betamax's 1975 release, and in the United States in August 1977.

VHS won the videotape format war over Betamax, becoming the most popular media format for VCRs.

For Type C videotape, it is smaller, easier to operate and provides slightly higher video quality than the quadruplex videotape.

Plus, Type C videotape has functions that quadruplex has not, like still and slow-motion playback.

Whereas Type C videotape was successfully adopted on both sides of the Atlantic (making it the global leader), Type B videotape was successfully adopted in mainland Europe.

The RCA TK cameras are the first cameras being made for colour television on a practical, commercial and fully electronic basis.

Before the RCA TK cameras, colour television systems were attempted, but relied on semi-mechanical methods.

Also in RCA's innovation list is the image orthicon video camera tube, utilized during the post-WWII period until the 1960's.

Besides, the Iconoscope, the Emitron and Image Dissector are early television camera tubes.

Vidicons are video camera tubes which became a commercial success, due to its simplicity, smaller size and lower cost, making small-sized video cameras what they were.

Plumbicons are variants of the Vidicon, developed by the Dutch-based multinational company Philips.

In contrast to Vidicons, which caused problems, particularly in low-light conditions, producing noisy pictures and lag effects, Plumbicons have higher resolution, better image quality and others.

Solid-state sensor technology like CCD and CMOS replace Vidicons and Plumbicons in the 1990's.

Norelco cameras use advanced Plumbicon tubes, positioning them as an alternative to the RCA colour television cameras.

Responding to the success of the Norelco camera designs with Plumbicons, RCA abandoned its older television camera designs and incorporated Plumbicon tubes into its next-generation cameras.

Trinitron is the brand name for Sony's system of television sets.

Some of the notable innovations for Sony's Trinitron system of television sets include vertical bars, one electron gun, an aperture grille and a flatter screen surface in design.

With these innovations, Trinition is an advancement in colour television technology.

Before Sony's Trinitron system, early television sets featured dots, three electron guns, a curved screen surface in design and a shadow mask; these resulted in a dimmed and grainy picture quality.

However, with Sony's Trinitron system, television sets have found solutions to these issues.

FD Trinitron/WEGA is Sony's flat incarnation of this Trinitron system, which featured a flatter screen surface and further improvements to the electron gun, the aperture grille and the deflection yoke.

The Ikegami HL-33 is the first compact hand-held video camera made in colour for ENG and the first broadcast camera to use 1-inch Plumbicon tubes.

Introduced in 1972 (or 1973, sources vary), the Ikegami HL-33 gave birth to ENG.

Before ENG, film was the primary medium for recording and broadcasting news footage.

With ENG, news footage was done on a smooth and fast-paced basis, using portable, lightweight and mobile equipment like video cameras and microwave systems.

Sony's Portapak is an innovative video camera using a 1/2-inch reel-to-reel format.

Contrasting to bulky studio cameras requiring crews and transport, Sony's Portapak is the first portable system to allow one person to shoot and record video easily outside studios.

Furthermore, in contrast to film or telecine, the Portapak has video played back on location.

Having been introduced in the late-1960's, the Sony Portapak was the catalyst for ENG, doubling as a precursor to the Ikegami HL-33.

Whereas the Sony Portapak is a monochrome video camera being designed for non-broadcast use, the Ikegami HL-33 is a colour video camera being made for the ENG process.

Plus, Ikegami introduced both the TK-301 and the TK-301A colour cameras, both of which resulted in huge improvements over other cameras.

Ikegami also introduced the DNS-11, one of the first portable, tapeless and non-linear camcorders.

The CMX-6000 is the first non-linear video editing system.

Before the CMX-6000, videotape editing had linear constraints.

With the CMX-6000, videotape editing became non-linear.

C-band is used for TVRO systems, and Ku-band 

Primestar DirecTV, USSB and Dish Network.

Philco Radio Time, the first program on a major American broadcaster to be prerecorded, has endured innovations.

For its first season, Philco Radio Time used poor-quality, unedited and live transcription discs.

The second Philco Radio Time season pioneered prerecorded broadcasts using AEG's Magnetophon machine; its third and last season featured Ampex Model 200A recorders with 3M.

All in all, Philco Radio Time brought film technology to radio and set new broadcast standards.

Blackboard Jungle

Blackboard Jungle features Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley & His Comets, not just in its opening sequence, but four additional times.

For Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley & His Comets, its inclusion in Blackboard Jungle marked the first instance of a major Hollywood film featuring rock music.

Plus, having been used 5 times in Blackboard Jungle, notably in its opening sequence, Rock Around the Clock topped the pop charts around the world, introducing rock music to the mainstream.

Rock Around the Clock is also the name of a film, whose title track is used in its opening sequence.

Unlike Blackboard Jungle, which is a social commentary, Rock Around the Clock is a musical, the first musical film entirely dedicated to rock music.

For the film Rock Around the Clock, it capitalizes on Bill Haley's fame and the song's global success.

Meanwhile, Crazy Man, Crazy made the pop charts, marking the initial national breakthrough for Bill Haley & His Comets and proving that rock music could exist on the mainstream pop charts.

However, Rock Around the Clock was the true catalyst for rock music's global dominance.

Prior to Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley & His Comets, pop music had a conservative feel.

Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley & His Comets, however, opened the floodgates for rock music's dominance on a global, mainstream pop music level.

Glenn Ford suggested his younger son Peter (who was interested in both the rhythm & blues and rock music genres) to choose Rock Around the Clock as the theme tune for Blackboard Jungle.

Former Disney musician Charles Wolcott adapted the music for Blackboard Jungle, which introduced rhythm & blues-rooted rock music to mainstream pop music.

NBC Saturday Night at the Movies

NBC Saturday Night at the Movies was television's first anthology series to air relatively recent films coming from major Hollywood studios in colour.

During television's early stages, major Hollywood studios did not release their films on television.

Instead, films shown on television during its early stages were typically low-budget B movies or older monochrome academy ratio films that have already lost their value in theatres.

By the 1950's decade, movies were on local television stations or during non-primetime line-ups.

Famous Film Festival and Hollywood Film Theatre are movie series on ABC in the 1950's decade.

While Famous Film Festival presented British films made during and after WWII, Hollywood Film Theatre presented some pre-1948 films by RKO.

RKO sold some pre-1948 films to ABC, while others were syndicated to local television stations.

Together, Famous Film Festival and Hollywood Film Theatre, both on ABC in the 1950's, aired films lasting 90 minutes, which meant some have to be severely either edited or aired in 2 parts.

NBC Saturday Night at the Movies was the first network movie anthology series to run two hours (or occasionally longer), so that almost all films can be aired on one night.

From its September 1961 premiere to its October 1978 end, NBC Saturday Night at the Movies was a showcase for recently-released colour films from major Hollywood studios.

Before NBC Saturday Night at the Movies, films on television were low-budget and monochrome.

However, with NBC Saturday Night at the Movies, viewers at homes enjoyed recently-released colour films from major Hollywood studios unavailable at the time on television.

The September 1961 launch of NBC Saturday Night at the Movies, in particular with the rise of colour television, enhanced the cinematic experience at home.

In addition, the huge popularity of some network movie anthology series on television, including NBC Saturday Night at the Movies, offered a windfall to the film studios.

Even before it became widespread, NBC actively promoted colour programming and was a pioneer in bringing colour to television.

Colour television offers a more vibrant and visually appealing experience that mirrors the cinema.

Don Stanley was the main announcer of NBC Saturday Night at the Movies and recorded the opening credits and bumpers at NBC Colour City Studios.

The first three seasons of NBC Saturday Night at the Movies began with a Marilyn Monroe film being released in the 1950's decade.

How to Marry a Millionaire, the first movie being shot on CinemaScope, was also the first colour and CinemaScope film on primetime television, just before Marilyn Monroe's death.

In addition, How to Marry a Millionaire was the first film on NBC Saturday Night at the Movies.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes was the first film of the second NBC Saturday Night at the Movies season.

Plus, on television's NBC Saturday Night at the Movies, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes was a tribute to the recently-deceased Marilyn Monroe, whose pink dress and Diamonds number have been iconic.

The Seven Year Itch, noted for its sexy scene, where Marilyn Monroe's white dress is lifted by a breeze from a subway grate, was the first film in the third NBC Saturday Night at the Movies season.

In addition to the films that started the first three NBC Saturday Night at the Movies seasons, the other Marilyn Monroe films include Niagara, Point of No Return and Let's Make Love.

The ABC Sunday Night Movie, which started to air on a regular basis in the mid-1960's, was the new name for its short-lived and irregular Hollywood Special series.

CBS, meanwhile, jumped on the bandwagon of both NBC Saturday Night at the Movies and the ABC Sunday Night Movie with The CBS Thursday Night Movies.

Unlike both NBC and ABC, CBS delayed running feature-length films at the behest of its hierarchy.

James T. Aubrey was an opponent of the plan for CBS to launch a movie series.

With James T. Aubrey's departure, CBS was given the go-ahead to launch The CBS Thursday Night Movies in the mid-1960's or before 1966.

After 10 years, CBS decided to move its movie series to Friday nights in 1975.

Archie Comics

Archie Comics is a famous comic book publisher, named after its main character Archie Andrews.

Besides the eponymous Archie Andrews, the other members of his own core group (and Archie Comics overall) include Jughead Jones, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge and Reggie Mantle.

Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Josie and the Pussycats, Cheryl Blossom, Katy Keene, Ethel Muggs, Moose Mason, Midge Klump, Chuck Clayton and Nancy Woods are also Archie Comics characters.

John L. Goldwater and Bob Montana are artists who masterminded the iconic and world-famous Archie Comics franchise

Dan DeCarlo is an American cartoonist who modernized Archie Comics.

For Betty Cooper, she is the quintessential girl next door/tomboy in the Archie Comics stable.

Plus, Betty Cooper's clothes are casual and sporty, featuring outfits like t-shirts, jeans and cheerleading uniforms.

In addition, Betty Cooper has her distinctive ponytail hair.

Veronica Lodge, with her glossy jet-black hair, her blunt bangs and her sexy approach, is the primary Archie Comics fashionista, doubling as Betty Cooper's sexy foil.

Cheryl Blossom is a provocative and glamorous fashionista, with her long fiery red hair.

The real name for Sabrina the Teenage Witch is Sabrina Spellman.

Josie, Valerie and Melody are the core members of the fictional and eponymous Josie and the Pussycats rock music band.

Inspirations for female characters in Archie Comics include Veronica Lake.

During the era of both Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield, Dan DeCarlo modernizes many female Archie Comics characters to reflect their styles.

Before Dan DeCarlo's work, Archie Comics uses Bob Montana's caricatured and dated look.

With Dan DeCarlo's work, the Archie Comics look is modern and clean, with a subtle, sexy and flirty charm.

Like Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Walt Disney and Barbie, Archie Comics is a pop culture icon.