Original 1957 NBC Peacock

The NBC Peacock was introduced in 1954, and this Peacock first aired in 1957.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• nbc
• original
• 1957
• peacock

[yonezawa1965]

Your NBC peacock has by far the truest color of any of the videos posted. Great job.

[MKIVWWI]

This peacock is TOO COOL! I came along too late to ever see this one, but loved the later 1960's peacocks. Great posting!!!! Thanks for sharing it with us!!!

[bogercs]

NBC stands for "new beautiful color"

[robertgift]

Music sounds Chinese-like.

Why no GREENS? Or has green faded/changed on this?

Or were green phophors not as good back in thearly days of color TV?

[RayPointer]

Also, the problem was in the reproduction of the color on television, not the color response on film. Color appears vibrant against black. But the challenge was in creating the illusion of brilliant color in a medium that had limited color reproduction range. The filmed shows looked better than the electronic color shows, which were a bit muted then.

[RayPointer]

@Vincek88 There was another advantage in doing this bottom lit. No cel dust against the black background.

[Allis1942]

Very cool. My grandparents had the same kind of TV that you see in this video. Wood cabinet, huge tube, back when things were made to last.

[Vincek88]

I just read about the making of this spot from a blog by Gene Deitch - long-time animator and a major figure in the mid-century modern cartoon style. He couldn't find paints vivid enough to read well on film (not even fluorescent paint), so he ended up using clear colored gels and cut-out black cardboard lit from behind. Pretty clever work in a very pre-digital age!

[MrChristhetrucker]

That is so cool. Is that a real tv from way back?

[Juliaflo]

@saml760 I remember this jingle, and it is stuck in my mind after all those years.

(No, I won't tell my age, though this gives it away--21-plus).

[saml760]

the NBC Peacock first appeared in 1956,it was a still picture. the 1st animated peacock ,the"clashing cymbals" peacock appeared from 1957-1962,followed by the 'Laramie' or Kaleidoscope peacock which existed from 1962-1975.

[joesphx19]

I saw this on my uncle's new color tv, the first in the neighborhood. Many Saturday mornings I was glued to his tv to see the color cartoons. Man I was in heaven. Later, the color shows of the early to mid 60s seemed so rich in color. I don't know if it was just that I was used to bw but the color tv broadcasts then just seem almost saturated.