As near as I can remember, we had our first TV around 1949. I was four or five years old and yes it was in black and white. The first station in our area was WOI-in Ames and it seemed, without research, all three networks were on that one station. Or, maybe that was the only one we watched?
At first, one thing I know, TV shows came on at first in the afternoon around 4 o'clock. Then actually signed off at midnight with the national anthem playing while you viewed patriotic images!
Some of the first shows were Howdy Dowdy, Kate Smith Hour, Captain Video, Winky Dink,( I bet you don't remember that one) Fury, Milton Berle, and Ed Sullivan, to just name a few.
Also, in those first years, the news carried stories about the Korean War. As a little kid I thought that war was just a regular and ongoing thing.
Until I left for college in the early 1960's, our family didn't have color TV. Seeing color TV for the first time was a really big deal. As mentioned in another story about the event, color was seen for the first time at my uncle Paul Laverty's home. That would have been with the first episode or so of Bonanza which originated in 1959. Again, to see the Peacock's feathers spreading out from black and white and then into color was a mind blower! (The Peacock was the NBC network's symbol at the time.)
Lastly, in those early days, you either got decent reception with rabbit ears or if you were fortunate, you had an antennae on your roof or sitting safely in your attic like we did. Where we lived, south of Laurel and being up somewhat high, we got great reception and not only Des Moines and Ames, but, also Cedar Rapids and Waterloo stations.
And no, we did not have remote control! we actually had to get up and off our behinds and change the channel. We had it rough!
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