Chapter 1
The year music shook the world
Chapter 2
Cinematic giants and silver screen magic
Chapter 3
The box in the living room
Chapter 4
Pages of change and literary legends
YOUR GOAL
Master of The year the world went modern
Ch 3 · The box in the living room
schopenhauer The Television Set
Just click the button from your chair (oh yeah!) / Send sound waves through the living room air (uh-huh!)
schopenhauer Ampex engineers invent the first practical magnetic videotape recorder.
BETA
schopenhauer Click on hidden 1956 icons to discover the year's biggest music, movie, and TV milestones.
Fun Fact
Clicker remote: The 1956 Zenith 'Space Command' remote didn't use batteries. It struck physical aluminum rods inside the remote, making a loud clicking sound that the TV's microphone detected.
Glossary
television (noun)
A system for transmitting visual images and sound that are reproduced on screens. In September 1956, sixty million Americans watched Elvis Presley perform on The Ed Sullivan Show.
A system for transmitting visual images and sound that are reproduced on screens. In September 1956, sixty million Americans watched Elvis Presley perform on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Quiz
In April 1956, which company demonstrated the first commercially successful videotape recorder, the VRX-1000?
Quiz
Which classic 1939 fantasy film was broadcast on television for the very first time in November 1956?
Quiz
How did the 1956 Zenith 'Space Command' remote control communicate with the television set?
Quiz
In 1956, what major US television network first began broadcasting in color on a regular basis?
Quiz
Which popular American variety program hosted by Lawrence Welk became a national TV hit in 1956?
Quiz
Which long-running daytime soap opera, famous for its 30-minute format, debuted on CBS in April 1956?
Quiz
What technology did Zenith introduce in 1956 called 'Space Command' to let viewers control TV from afar?
Quiz
Which iconic television game show hosted by Bob Barker debuted its original version in 1956?