Television on Christmas, 1931

Television resembled a picked-over turkey on Christmas Day 1931. There wasn’t much of it. But there was something.

Judging by the New York City newspapers for the day that are available on-line, only one of the city’s TV stations was on the air. Exactly when it was broadcasting depends on the source.

The Herald-Tribune’s schedule reads:

W2XCR—New York—2035k
(Sound on WGBS)
2:00 p.m.—Film programs.
4:00-5:00—Same as WGBS.
6:00-7:00—Same as WGBS.

But the Times reported:

254 M—WGBS—1,180 Kc
Television Synchronization on W2XCR—147.5 M.—2,035 Kc—4:00-7:00 P. M.
4:00—Gala Christmas Party; American Music Ensemble, Jean Stor’s Syncopated Choir, Marchia Stewart, Organ; Doug MacTague, Edith Burley, Dorothy Biese, Songs; Erin’s Isle Orchestra and others
6:00—[Jack] Lait Gaities
6:15—American Music Trio [followed by signoff]

It could be possible neither of these is correct. While the Sun didn’t publish on Christmas Day and didn’t publish a Christmas Day TV schedule with its radio listings the previous day, the paper’s weekly television roundup printed on December 19th:

On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day between the hours of 2 and 4 P. M. W2XCR will stage a gala Christmas revue, with Don Trent acting as master of ceremonies.

You can take your pick which one is correct.

There was a bit of a mild controversy. “Internationally known cabaret and theatre man” Joe Zelli was in Wilmington, Delaware for a Christmas night show. But the city’s evening paper of Dec. 24th noted he couldn’t stay in the town as he “must be in New York Friday afternoon for a contracted television broadcast over WGBS.”

The only other station I can find that might have been broadcasting on Christmas Day was in the Associated Press radio listings sent to papers in the U.S. Midwest. Next to W9XAO in Chicago, it reads: “5:30—Audiovision (15m). 6:30—Audiovision (15m).” The Chicago Daily News archives aren’t on-line to confirm any programmes.

The CBS station, W2XAB, was back on the air on Boxing Day, though it broadcast a couple of Christmas themed shows.

Television News magazine published the list of stations you see to the right in its final edition for 1931. Don Lee Broadcasting in Los Angeles used the call letters W6XAO in Los Angeles; the station signed on a few days before Christmas. (Industry publications of the day said it was not on the air on holidays). W6XS simulcast on a different frequency, but didn’t begin broadcasting until the end of 1932).

You’ll also note CBS was on the air with actual television programmes before NBC. The Sarnoff station was transmitting cards with call-letters and the famous Felix the Cat figurine. It never had actual live programmes in the mechanical-TV era.

The Associated Press’ radio writer put together a year-end column that led off with television. He mentions W2XCR. The Jenkins station wasn’t really new. It simply moved from 346 Claremont Avenue in Jersey City to New York City. We’ve only transcribed the portion involving television.

YEAR MARKED BY PROGRESS IN TELEVISION
———
Two New Stations Established—Program Improvement
By C. E. BUTTERFIELD
Associated Press Radio Editor
New York, Dec. 25—(AP)—Television, striding ever forward, is lifting its head aggressively.
Radio’s new extension, in a year marked by continued growth of broadcasting, laid the basis for further advancement expected in 1932. In the experimental field, television drew great attention, with New York joining Chicago in transmitting sound and sight programs on regular schedules.
Two stations were established, W2XCR, affiliated with the sound broadcaster, WGBS, and W2XAB, of the Columbia network, sending sound on W2XAB, 49.2 meters. Experiments were continued by other stations, including W2XBS of the National chain.
As the year waned NBC put into effect plans for the establishment of an experimental sight station on the Empire State Building, New York, tallest in the world, with which to conduct tests on high frequencies below ten meters.
Preliminary to this announcement came word from Camden, N. J., and Philadelphia, where Dr. Vladimar Zworykin [sic] and Philo T. Farnsworth are at work in separate laboratories on the development of cathode ray tubes for television, that progress had been made toward perfecting this non-mechanical scanning device.

More television was on the way. Or, at least, that was the plan. On December 11, it was recommended that the State University of Iowa and the Philadelphia Storage Battery Company be granted experimental licenses. The Iowa one was for a TV station operating three hours a day, the other was the employer of Philo T. Farnsworth. Another “visual broadcasting service” application was received on December 19 from a company in Kansas City. Others were rejected the previous day for proposed stations in Lawrence, Kansas and Hartford City, Indiana.

The new year didn’t get off to the best start. A storm on January 12, 1932 damaged the 137-high aerial tower of the brand-new station in Bakersfield, California. It had to be replaced. By the end of 1932, trying to find TV schedules in the papers, let alone at Christmas, was a challenge. By the end of 1933, except for Los Angeles, the industry pretty much went to sleep, as far as home viewers were concerned.