Absolutely fascinating. What a great little piece of electronic history. Watching vintage shows like that on a period set is rather enlightening as far as production techniques go. Directors on live TV shows tended to linger on those medium and tight shots. They had no choice! I assume there was a lot of fuzz and static for many early viewers, further obscuring the little picture. Must have been amazing though to have 'radio with pictures'.
It doesn't look like you're getting the whole picture. I think the round shaped screen is cutting off the corners. (Not your fault-it's the design). Great restoration, though.
Very cool. Although fairly young (30) the only things I recognise are Elvis and Bilko (aka The Phil Silvers Show). The BBC used to show the latter regularly on BBC2 here in the UK.
I have a related video on YouTube you might be interested in about how television sets were sold from the 1950s-1970s entitled, "TV MAN: THE SEARCH FOR THE LAST INDEPENDENT DEALER."
That is one of the most gorgeous pieces of yesteryear I have ever seen. And, the fact that it is playing old shows makes it seem even more amazing and surreal. Absolutely incredible.
The antenna may not be cut for today's digital signals but I think the local "low-power" stations still provide analog signals. I wish I had a tower a cajillion feet tall so I could get bunches of stations. Some have the best programming.
to sygo7g: when I was a kid you could only get 3 stations fairly well in the Boston suburbs....and very late at night you could get a couple others further away but a very fuzzy picture. Some people opted for an expensive, massive roof antenna.... like the brand "alliance-tenna-rotor" were designed so you could adjust the angle of the antenna from inside your home with a control box that had a big lighted knob on it.
Imagine being around back then, and people who had never seen nor heard of this new thing called television. Im willing to bet some "old Timers" of the day were probably scared of this strange radio showing pictures!
Before I was born, my Dad paid 300 bux for a 1953 Zenith 17 inch. He then had to lay out another 2 hundred for a 40 foot mast and antenna, he mounted on the top of our house. (Total 65 foot high) with guy wires. Only station was WBT-Channel 3 Charlotte. (100 miles away).Later 1953, got WIS-TV 10 Columbia. UHF 19 and 25 came online, he had to buy an external UHF tuner. Due to poor venting, tubes broke down alot. Every month, test 'em/buy more at drug store. Set lasted 11 years. Got color 1973
@sygo7g We were desperate for any kind of TV signal because all we had was radio. At first our nearest VHF station was 100 miles away, then there were three station put on the air only 60 miles away which we could receive much better but still not a great picture. . .how times have changed
I watched one of these when it was new. Underneath that gold-colored metal panel below the picture were about ten different knobs for adjusting the picture. It took at least 10 minutes to tune it in properly.
If you are extremely lucky (emphasis on the adjective extremely), you might find one that is being thrown away by a jackass. That is how I obtained my '40s console radio, which just needed a single tube.
That set looks great; I guess the round picture gives you more screen for a given size tube. Did any of these round sets have a switch to conveniently shrink the image so you could see the corners? It would have been useful for some programs. My friend's father got rid of a '64 Zenith color "roundie" just because he couldn't see the score during football games.
To answer my own question, just read a blog on angelfire about the restoration of similar TVs; models H2250R and G2350RZ1 had a switch on the front to go from full-round to 4:3, but the tips of the corners are obscured in either mode.
PS: TheGeek1028: I just re-played this video and noticed the Elvis segment at 1:00. This really doesn't sound bad; if you can hear any bass at all it's much better than average for this size. I could go into BestBuy today and easily find a set that sounds worse.
That might have been a factor, but the set obscured a fair amount of the picture it received. I assume that when sets like that were still common, stations avoided putting anything important near the corners. Ironically, my ATSC converters can shrink the picture on any channel, so they would make an old set like that a little more practical. It was sad to hear that the set was gone.
Could someone please explain to me why there seemed to be a period about the early 1960s when black&white TV was so much clearer & well-defined compared to what came before or after (with the poss. exception of today's HDTVs)? I'm no technician so I can't explain it precisely, but when I see older video of some shows from the early 60s, there seemed to be a time when some shows were so much more crisp & vivid, even though it was in B&W. Was this due to certain cameras, broadcast equip, what???
I don't think it was anything special about the early '60s, but color sets were much more vulnerable to distortion, since they displayed 3 images simultaneously. When I was a kid, neighbors with color TVs were always surprised at how much sharper our old B/W was. The condition of the set is also important; the best NTSC TV I've ever owned is a late '80s GE with a CTC136G chassis; not an expensive set, it just rolled off the line on a good day. I'm still stunned by how good it looks now.
I Love Lucy was filmed, while other shows of that era, were kinniscopes, A film copy of the image from a television monitor.
Keep in mind also, that many older shows have now been digitally remastered with sharper definition. Many television stations up until the 80's were airing shows that were printed on 16mm film, as opposed to video tape, which was more expensive in those days.
It's good that we have Youtube these days to see some of the older tv shows, that were once considered lost.
I have this set, completely restored. I even have this video (Jack Benny collection). Restoration took months, and involved resoldering a bad flyback and replacing the dud 12lp4 CRT with a rare NOS example from from the original 1951 box. Aligned using a B & K 415 (this set uses a 40mhz IF band). Took forever to get the buzz out of the audio. Works very well, although the focus could be better (mechanical focus control uses permanent magnet). What a miracle that I got this to work.
Very watchable. These American vintage sets are great. It takes only a few moments to get used to the small screen. If the programme is great you don't worry how small the picture is. I am watching Lucille Ball on my 19" monitor. The picture on your porthole is only about 2" across but is still of great entertainment value. Regards, John.
@chris061290 I am 57 years old and In the old days my family never had a TV last anywhere near 10 years. Picture tubes did not last that long in the old sets...and as proof look in any TV Guides from the 1950s and early 60s, they are "loaded" with advertisments for replacement picture tubes.
@chris061290 (PT1)...I dont know about the new flat screen sets but I have about 4 TVs built from 1980 to 1998 and they all still run fine. What killed the old sets was picture tubes went fast and even more important they had "mechanical channel selector dials" that clicked into place for each channel. Those dials got a lot of wear and broke. For example to get from channel 2 to 7 you had to click it through 4 in between channels to get there. You put wear on 4 positions to get to "one" channel
@chris061290 (PT2) In 1998 I bought a $600. 27 inch "Panasonic "SuperFlat" TV. This was right before the real thin modern flat screens came in. The set weighs a TON and has a real picture tube (but a flat tube surface). I have been running it about 8 hours a day, every day for 13 years and the picture is as good & bright as when it was new. If you want a good TV that will last I'll bet you could find one of these used for a hundred bucks or less....only draw back it that it is big and heavy
I wonder how one of those wide screen movies or TV shows of today (with the black bars on top & bottom of the picture) would look on this TV. Pretty tiny, I bet!
This reminds me when I was a kid and would have a cover over me at night on the couch with Jiffy Pop and a bottle of coke....my older sister watching with me
My impression is that less than top-of-the-line TVs have always had bad sound and still do. The biggest ones of that era (21" ??) sounded good, especially if the set was part of a "HiFi" console.
*How did you restore this old tv set,I have a 1960s tv that STILL works it needs an adapter do you know where I can find one????? I saw ELVIS. I LOVE THIS TV SET:)
It it's an NTSC TV, it should work with any HDTV converter box with an RF output, the same way a '90s TV would, though you'll probably need a 75 to 300 ohm transformer too.
The first TV we ever owned was this exact model in 1952, but our picture quality was barely watchable since the nearest station was 60 miles away in Chattanooga, tn.
Oh hey old men jk :)
gamerboyzful 6 days ago
Absolutely fascinating. What a great little piece of electronic history. Watching vintage shows like that on a period set is rather enlightening as far as production techniques go. Directors on live TV shows tended to linger on those medium and tight shots. They had no choice! I assume there was a lot of fuzz and static for many early viewers, further obscuring the little picture. Must have been amazing though to have 'radio with pictures'.
nakamichiguy 5 months ago
Very cool set, thanks.
toddcharry 6 months ago
fake
noah1970 7 months ago
I can produce the same result using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premier Elements......
Moronvideos1940 8 months ago
I wonder what the guys at the "This picture has been formatted to fit your screen" thing had to say about this...
TheLegoboy1997 8 months ago
What's the aspect ratio?
SuperKazmierski 9 months ago
lets hope this get 10 more thumbs up for 100 up, 0 down!
SpartanKitteh0659 10 months ago
where is the audio?
willdav713 10 months ago
I really enjoyed this!
Lockemeister 11 months ago
where do you find these great old programs???
suedebear 11 months ago
Im watching that using my mobile phone nokia 5800 xe. I have SBP tv application thats the reason I can watch different channel.
xenon817 1 year ago
The round screen is less annoying that I would've expected.
FritzOmnibus 1 year ago
It doesn't look like you're getting the whole picture. I think the round shaped screen is cutting off the corners. (Not your fault-it's the design). Great restoration, though.
louspintoo 1 year ago
i kinda think it would be awesome to play Bioshock on one of these televisions
NoOdL3z18 1 year ago
@NoOdL3z18 ur critizeing the shape these old tv sets.
chris061290 10 months ago
@chris061290 what does "critizeing" mean?
NoOdL3z18 10 months ago
@NoOdL3z18 criticizing means ur saying negative things about a person,place or thing.
chris061290 10 months ago
@chris061290 I didn't ask what "criticizing" meant i asked what "critizeing" meant.
NoOdL3z18 9 months ago
put round holed cover on your tv and you've got a zenith
warlockboyburns 1 year ago
Can this play HD Channels??
CoolConejo 1 year ago
Oh man can't wait to play my 360 on this :)
Kage999 1 year ago
@Kage999 u can
geekforlifevandc 1 year ago
I can see why the girls loved elvis
lambchopxoxo 1 year ago
Very cool. Although fairly young (30) the only things I recognise are Elvis and Bilko (aka The Phil Silvers Show). The BBC used to show the latter regularly on BBC2 here in the UK.
.
&eB
kinglonewolf104 1 year ago
That is beautiful!!!
Hevynly1 1 year ago
I wonder what the cost was on one of these sets in 1950.
gbwisconsin 1 year ago
I want to roll into school with that.
TrandomnesstwO 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
I have a related video on YouTube you might be interested in about how television sets were sold from the 1950s-1970s entitled, "TV MAN: THE SEARCH FOR THE LAST INDEPENDENT DEALER."
stevekosareff 1 year ago
lol I love how these old TVs always cut off a lot of the picture.
MidnightStormTornado 1 year ago
That is one of the most gorgeous pieces of yesteryear I have ever seen. And, the fact that it is playing old shows makes it seem even more amazing and surreal. Absolutely incredible.
jenzeppelin 1 year ago
Wow. A circular screen. Heh heh. We've sure come a looooooong way.
CDCB2 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@CDCB2 yea are u one of those greedy modern gadget people?
chris061290 10 months ago
I think they should make small tv's that look kinda like these with modern technology because they are just so good to look at...
robotmonkey73 1 year ago
The antenna may not be cut for today's digital signals but I think the local "low-power" stations still provide analog signals. I wish I had a tower a cajillion feet tall so I could get bunches of stations. Some have the best programming.
wkat950 2 years ago
who can fix the old tv sets, I cant get anyone around here to even look at mine.
ramblergarage 2 years ago
Well, there are plenty of internet guides that would let you do it yourself. If no one will look at it you might consider fixing it yourself.
Dms12444 2 years ago
@ramblergarage, just take a deep breath before you get a price on replacement vacuum tubes.
gbwisconsin 1 year ago
beautiful..
jigibao 2 years ago
cant put a tv right where you want it today. back then it was anywhere an outlet was, no cable.
weasel884 2 years ago
Sure you can... these days you just need two plugs. (a second for the DTV converter box)
Nokorola 1 year ago
to sygo7g: when I was a kid you could only get 3 stations fairly well in the Boston suburbs....and very late at night you could get a couple others further away but a very fuzzy picture. Some people opted for an expensive, massive roof antenna.... like the brand "alliance-tenna-rotor" were designed so you could adjust the angle of the antenna from inside your home with a control box that had a big lighted knob on it.
inkey2 2 years ago
inkey2: Growing up in the late 70s and early 80s we had an aerial and control box just like that. Ah...the memories.
TheManhattanThrush 1 year ago
Hook a Playstation 3 to that. I wanna see how it would display a game.
alexander4488 2 years ago 2
@alexander4488 ur critizing these old tv sets
chris061290 10 months ago
Imagine being around back then, and people who had never seen nor heard of this new thing called television. Im willing to bet some "old Timers" of the day were probably scared of this strange radio showing pictures!
ZX2ManDave 2 years ago
Very attractive set ... and easy to watch! Thanks for posting!
gibran53 2 years ago
Before I was born, my Dad paid 300 bux for a 1953 Zenith 17 inch. He then had to lay out another 2 hundred for a 40 foot mast and antenna, he mounted on the top of our house. (Total 65 foot high) with guy wires. Only station was WBT-Channel 3 Charlotte. (100 miles away).Later 1953, got WIS-TV 10 Columbia. UHF 19 and 25 came online, he had to buy an external UHF tuner. Due to poor venting, tubes broke down alot. Every month, test 'em/buy more at drug store. Set lasted 11 years. Got color 1973
PappyCaligula 2 years ago
@sygo7g We were desperate for any kind of TV signal because all we had was radio. At first our nearest VHF station was 100 miles away, then there were three station put on the air only 60 miles away which we could receive much better but still not a great picture. . .how times have changed
messabout1 2 years ago
I watched one of these when it was new. Underneath that gold-colored metal panel below the picture were about ten different knobs for adjusting the picture. It took at least 10 minutes to tune it in properly.
harveyardman 2 years ago
Looks like a radio with a picture on it.
at90percent 2 years ago 33
@at90percent Radio with a picture? It'll never catch on!
tiberianfiend 1 year ago 2
@at90percent oh, what a brilliant original comment, that has only been going on for about 60 years.
elmerhdga 6 months ago
@elmerhdga You show your 2 watts of brilliance by not getting that I was joking in stating the obvious.
at90percent 6 months ago
WHAT an interesting gem of history ! The pace of technological is amazing !
Chiparoo22 2 years ago 2
I want one of these. I have a working 40s console radio, and I love it. I would love one of these old round Tellys, too.
VaderNES 2 years ago
tv's sure have come a loooonng way.
auaiao9 2 years ago
where can i buy one of these
steve89z 2 years ago
eBay, or by pure chance, garage sale.
Kl4pp5tuhl 2 years ago
If you are extremely lucky (emphasis on the adjective extremely), you might find one that is being thrown away by a jackass. That is how I obtained my '40s console radio, which just needed a single tube.
VaderNES 2 years ago
Found one on eBay! A 1958 Philips TV, and the best part, is still works!!!
:D
Kl4pp5tuhl 2 years ago
That set looks great; I guess the round picture gives you more screen for a given size tube. Did any of these round sets have a switch to conveniently shrink the image so you could see the corners? It would have been useful for some programs. My friend's father got rid of a '64 Zenith color "roundie" just because he couldn't see the score during football games.
lrd9999 2 years ago
To answer my own question, just read a blog on angelfire about the restoration of similar TVs; models H2250R and G2350RZ1 had a switch on the front to go from full-round to 4:3, but the tips of the corners are obscured in either mode.
PS: TheGeek1028: I just re-played this video and noticed the Elvis segment at 1:00. This really doesn't sound bad; if you can hear any bass at all it's much better than average for this size. I could go into BestBuy today and easily find a set that sounds worse.
lrd9999 2 years ago
Darn! Maybe his father does have cable or satellite have digital conversion so it was stripped out beyond the line; or interlacing.
vikingscool 2 years ago
That might have been a factor, but the set obscured a fair amount of the picture it received. I assume that when sets like that were still common, stations avoided putting anything important near the corners. Ironically, my ATSC converters can shrink the picture on any channel, so they would make an old set like that a little more practical. It was sad to hear that the set was gone.
lrd9999 2 years ago
What about the black bars it would be better, but interlacing prevents his father from seeing the score on the football game on the TV?
I agree with you about his set was gone. :(
vikingscool 2 years ago
What a treat....oh someone...give me a timemachine back to then...pleeaseeeeee
EdenAlabama 2 years ago 2
Could someone please explain to me why there seemed to be a period about the early 1960s when black&white TV was so much clearer & well-defined compared to what came before or after (with the poss. exception of today's HDTVs)? I'm no technician so I can't explain it precisely, but when I see older video of some shows from the early 60s, there seemed to be a time when some shows were so much more crisp & vivid, even though it was in B&W. Was this due to certain cameras, broadcast equip, what???
IamaKinsey06 2 years ago
I don't think it was anything special about the early '60s, but color sets were much more vulnerable to distortion, since they displayed 3 images simultaneously. When I was a kid, neighbors with color TVs were always surprised at how much sharper our old B/W was. The condition of the set is also important; the best NTSC TV I've ever owned is a late '80s GE with a CTC136G chassis; not an expensive set, it just rolled off the line on a good day. I'm still stunned by how good it looks now.
lrd9999 2 years ago
Comment removed
bctvguy 2 years ago
I Love Lucy was filmed, while other shows of that era, were kinniscopes, A film copy of the image from a television monitor.
Keep in mind also, that many older shows have now been digitally remastered with sharper definition. Many television stations up until the 80's were airing shows that were printed on 16mm film, as opposed to video tape, which was more expensive in those days.
It's good that we have Youtube these days to see some of the older tv shows, that were once considered lost.
visaman 2 years ago 9
I have this set, completely restored. I even have this video (Jack Benny collection). Restoration took months, and involved resoldering a bad flyback and replacing the dud 12lp4 CRT with a rare NOS example from from the original 1951 box. Aligned using a B & K 415 (this set uses a 40mhz IF band). Took forever to get the buzz out of the audio. Works very well, although the focus could be better (mechanical focus control uses permanent magnet). What a miracle that I got this to work.
mstamper 2 years ago
Very watchable. These American vintage sets are great. It takes only a few moments to get used to the small screen. If the programme is great you don't worry how small the picture is. I am watching Lucille Ball on my 19" monitor. The picture on your porthole is only about 2" across but is still of great entertainment value. Regards, John.
vinylseat 2 years ago
Isn't the sound VERY bad of those old watchin' boxes
DaBassie1 2 years ago
@DaBassie1 no they wernt. tvs were actullay better back than cuz they last alot longer then todays flatscreens that hit the dumpsteer in 10 years
chris061290 10 months ago
@chris061290 I am 57 years old and In the old days my family never had a TV last anywhere near 10 years. Picture tubes did not last that long in the old sets...and as proof look in any TV Guides from the 1950s and early 60s, they are "loaded" with advertisments for replacement picture tubes.
inkey2 8 months ago
@inkey2 then what is better. todays or the old days?
chris061290 7 months ago
@chris061290 (PT1)...I dont know about the new flat screen sets but I have about 4 TVs built from 1980 to 1998 and they all still run fine. What killed the old sets was picture tubes went fast and even more important they had "mechanical channel selector dials" that clicked into place for each channel. Those dials got a lot of wear and broke. For example to get from channel 2 to 7 you had to click it through 4 in between channels to get there. You put wear on 4 positions to get to "one" channel
inkey2 7 months ago
@chris061290 (PT2) In 1998 I bought a $600. 27 inch "Panasonic "SuperFlat" TV. This was right before the real thin modern flat screens came in. The set weighs a TON and has a real picture tube (but a flat tube surface). I have been running it about 8 hours a day, every day for 13 years and the picture is as good & bright as when it was new. If you want a good TV that will last I'll bet you could find one of these used for a hundred bucks or less....only draw back it that it is big and heavy
inkey2 7 months ago
Sweet
Randreash 3 years ago
Not so much, except for sporting events. However we don't pay a TV tax.
LavianoTS386 3 years ago 2
I wonder how one of those wide screen movies or TV shows of today (with the black bars on top & bottom of the picture) would look on this TV. Pretty tiny, I bet!
tamspeci 3 years ago
Don't know how long I'll last watching a
round picture tube. If the show is not bad enough then the TV makes up for it. Good
to see one that still works.
shawnlalanne 3 years ago
This reminds me when I was a kid and would have a cover over me at night on the couch with Jiffy Pop and a bottle of coke....my older sister watching with me
inkey2 3 years ago
This TV is on display at the Vermilion County Museum in Danville, Illinois.
AaronApolloCamp 3 years ago
We've gone from center screen in the 50s to theatrical widescreen today. Interesting progression.
ekkostar 3 years ago
Plus, those speakers sucked back then. :)
TheGeek1028 3 years ago
My impression is that less than top-of-the-line TVs have always had bad sound and still do. The biggest ones of that era (21" ??) sounded good, especially if the set was part of a "HiFi" console.
lrd9999 2 years ago
-2? It's a fact, people! Come on!
TheGeek1028 2 years ago 2
I love these old porthole sets, they look completely out of this world, better then anything new thats for sure!
theretro22 3 years ago
Wow that thing still works great!! Nice set man!
MN12BIRD 3 years ago
You start thinking we've gotten somewhere and then you realize we had it just fine all along.
dolofonos 3 years ago
*How did you restore this old tv set,I have a 1960s tv that STILL works it needs an adapter do you know where I can find one????? I saw ELVIS. I LOVE THIS TV SET:)
moviedudeinc 3 years ago
It it's an NTSC TV, it should work with any HDTV converter box with an RF output, the same way a '90s TV would, though you'll probably need a 75 to 300 ohm transformer too.
lrd9999 2 years ago
Love this program and what a great television!
jspen2 3 years ago
wow thats cool lookin.
alexchrisccc 3 years ago
What a cute TV, I want one!
sapphiresanchez 3 years ago
The first TV we ever owned was this exact model in 1952, but our picture quality was barely watchable since the nearest station was 60 miles away in Chattanooga, tn.
messabout1 3 years ago
This tv is worth 500 to 600 dollars from what I read
peugteobike 3 years ago
are these your TV sets? I have a 1947 Pilot and 47 Motorola I need to fix but where do you take them these days ?
Atomicflash500 3 years ago
What would the value of something like this be?
Bigjohnnywad 4 years ago
Wow! How neat to see the old shows on an old set! Thanks for sharing the experience!
QuincyAnn2 4 years ago
Great clips on a beautiful old set. Remember ads for these 'porthole' sets in National Geographic magazines from back in I guess the early 1950's.
foxboy45 4 years ago
Excellent set. Looks great!
foxrivers 4 years ago
That's great!
Round TV!
I would like to see something relatively modern on it, like The Buggles' "Video killed the radio star!" video or a heavy metal video!
CaptainVideo40 4 years ago 4