WBZ-TV Boston Interior Tour Sometime in the 1950s

[stevec8796]

I lived on Western Ave across from WBZ and the harness racing stables at that time. I was watching the WBZ tower swaying, but got got called away from the window by a telephone call. When I got back, the tower was down. It fell across the studio and Soldier's Field Rd. I have pictures of me sitting on the downed tower, but I cannot find anything on the Internet. I thought this video might show something about the downed tower.

[manidig]

I worked at WBZ from 1989 to 1992, and the only part of this I recognize is the studio. There was a "gallery" for clients to observe shows from the second floor, and that's where the overhead shot was taken. It was a store room in my day, but the window was still there (that was the same studio People Are Talking came from). In the early 70s they added an addition.

[PKingman]

@manidig The last time I was in that building, aside from a time I donated some clothing in the lobby in the 70s, was in the late 1950s. There was an auditorium type studio to the left as one walked thru the front door. Employees and their families had the Christmas parties in there. I think Sue Bennett's show was done there too. The stub of the old tower was still out back. The place, if my memory serves me, smelled of ozone or hot radio tubes.

[PKingman]

@manidig The day my father gave a tour to my Boy Scout troop their was a guy up on the old tower remnant threatening suicide. My father wouldn't let us see. The guy didn't do it.

[manidig]

@PKingman By "Tower remnant" you must mean the Radio tower just West of the building. The big TV tower that fell in the '55 hurricane was destroyed, and the only remnant of it was (still is) a two foot high corner of it in the South parking lot. That tower can be used by BZ Radio in an emergency. We had just put in a new digital 10,000 watt transmitter to use on that tower when a I started there. The only times we used it was during maintenance in Hull.

[PKingman]

@manidig No, the TV tower broke off about a 3rd of the way up during Hurricane Carol in 1954. That bottom third stayed there for years after. The top of the tower made an indentation, kind of a tatoo, in the asphalt of Soldiers Field Road. The tower crumpled when it came down on the building, cars, lawn and road. I have a sheared off bolt from the thing. I think they got the smaller tower from the Army, but I'm not sure.

[PKingman]

@PKingman There used to be a stable out in back. It had to do with the big raceway across the road. There also had been a stable, so that I heard, right where the WBZ building ended up. A bunch of horses died there in a fire way back.

[russphilly]

interesting footage...!!yeP!

[kimberlyKfnOphiEAGLE]

Before electronic editing, they used mechanical editing, aka tape splicing via a 'Smith Splicer', the VTR operator located the edit point, put the tape on the splicing block, then applied a fluid called 'edivue' on the tape and looked through a microscope so he could see the control track pulses that marked the end of one picture frame and the beginning of the other. He then joined the ends of the tape using splicing tape. If the edit was crappy, it came apart as the tape passed the video head!

[rd2mms]

"At the same time it was kind of a relaxed friendly place. Probably not so now." - yeah that's true, because their current facility at soldier's field road is so small & messed-up, maybe we could ask CBS for WBZ to relocate to a new place if renovation will be impossible.

[kimberlyKfnOphiEAGLE]

Hi, was that VTR an Ampex VR-1000?

[PKingman]

No idea.  It was my father who worked there and filmed this. He has passed on.

[kimberlyKfnOphiEAGLE]

Yeah, that VTR is an Ampex VR-1000, the white cabinet that holds the tape mechanism is a giveaway. There are 2 additional racks for the electronics and a small monochrome monitor.

[PKingman]

Was this one of the very first video tape machines? Must have been close. Obviously you must have worked in the business. I was just a kid that got to visit WBZ on occasion. Quite a thrill at the time.

[kimberlyKfnOphiEAGLE]

I just love old TV stuff, especially old broadcast equipment. I got interested in that stuff when I was in high school.

[hkfreak]

Send this to the station, and see what they think?

[bbxx44]

Brings back memories. I was on Boomtown as a kid. Lived nearby. Thanks.