A Television "First Night" In New York

Radio Record, Volume X, Issue 9, 11 September 1936, Page 12

A Television "First Night" In New York

Many Problems To Be Solved Before Television Becomes: Entertainment For Everyone

(From Our New York Correspondent.)

RADIO engineers, discussing the results of a "first night" for television, held privately in New York City recently, agreed that their technique would need improvements before television could turn the corner around which it has

been hiding and be presented to the public. But, regardless of imperfections in broadeasting and neception, they did not conceal .their pleasure at having put oh a "show" in which David Sarnoff, president. of the

Radio Corporation of America, and Major-General J, G. Harbord, chairman of the board of the same concern, appeared in stellar roles. Both were presented at the private demonstration, made under ideal atmospheric conditions,

Seated at 2 desk, the two men described the progress of television as the first act of the "show," which then shifted to Otto S. ‘Scairer, vicepresident, who revealed that the company had made no plans to design commercial television sets during 1936. Succeeding acts showed qn ensemble of dancing girls, the new streamlined train, "Mercury," of the New Ceutral lines, and a presentation of fashion models by a Fifth Avenue dress shop. The programme was designed to show various types of broadcasting possible for television and included acts presented by Ed. Wynn, showing opportunities for comedy, and broadcast by Graham McNamee that provided an illustration of what radio announcers would do when they were seen as well as heard. Concluding the programme was a motion picture showing United States Army manoeuvres, the film having beer

Radio president plays stellar role in "televised" show. proadecast from the television transmitter and picked up by the receiver at Radio City. Observers found the programme interesting, but held that it did not equal the perfection of motion picture projection, The consensus was that until the clarity and dimension of television images wis improved, the new broadcasts would be received in most homes only as a novelty. Installation of a 10-kilowatt trausmitter in the Empire State Building was announced by the Radio Corpvuration in July. ‘The instrument is devoted to experimental work, with 190 fiell receiving stations located in the metropolitan aréa to’ test results of transmission. No commercial broadeasts have been made. Signals of the powerful transmitter have been heard 90 miles away, which lead technicians to conclude that their proadeasts cover the entire area of metropolitan New York. When reproduced, the television images are seer on a screen of 5 by 7 inches, recording best in a semi-darkened room.