ABC – Garroway at Large

A new home for some old friends

I’ve written on here before about the importance of preserving television history. That’s not just in writing books about people like Dave Garroway, but also in preserving the things that remain. Some of those things are easy to preserve, like books and documents. Other pieces are a little more substantial, but still manageable. And then there’s some that require some effort. That’s what led to an adventure last week.

I’ve been friends with Bobby Ellerbee for several years, and on a few occasions I’ve visited him and his dogs at his home in Georgia. Over the years Bobby amassed a collection of television cameras that spanned a good half-century of the medium’s history. The first time I visited, two rooms were awash with just about every studio camera you could imagine, and his garage had just about enough surplus equipment to start a network.

Over the years, some of Bobby’s collection found new homes at museums or with film prop companies, but his camera room was still nicely populated. Recently, though, he bought a new house. It’s a nice house, but it doesn’t have the display area of the house he’s vacating. Bobby had to make some hard choices. To make a long story short, I got a phone call, and last week I rented a box truck and drove over to his house.

The more the truck filled up, the more I realized this was real, and I started to think about the two happiest days in the life of a boat owner.

In the space of about two and a half hours that Thursday, Bobby and three movers and I loaded four cameras and pedestals, a few boxes of equipment and books, and some other stuff we could put to work in our building. Bobby had told me to rent a truck with a lift gate, and it’s a very good thing I did. Camera pedestals are heavy. By 11 that morning the truck was loaded up and I was headed back home. I spent the afternoon and evening unloading the truck at the office, and that night I drove it back and reclaimed my car.¹

The brave rental truck at the end of its travels with me. This was a happy moment, likely for both of us.

So, let’s see what we have.

Longtime readers will be familiar with this: the RCA TK-47. I already had one, but I certainly was not going to pass up another. Unlike mine, the internals of this one are still intact, and as I was cleaning it up I was interested to look inside.² Bobby had installed vinyl lettering on either side to honor NBC’s flagship stations in New York and Los Angeles. Inside is a property tag from WISH-TV in Indianapolis. Part of me thinks it would be fitting to restore the WISH-TV livery, but I’m awfully fond of the genuine NBC stickers on there, especially since I associate the TK-47 with Saturday Night Live and David Letterman’s late-night NBC show.³ Fortunately, I’ve got a while to decide what to do.

A contemporary of the TK-47 is the Ikegami HK-312, which Bobby had decorated as an ABC camera of the 1980s. It’s appropriate, because ABC used Ikegamis a lot. The Ikegami doesn’t get recognized a lot but it was one of the workhorse cameras of its day, and you’ve watched a lot more television that was brought to you through these machines than you may realize. This particular one has some interesting labels inside about its history, and the box lens has an ABC property tag on it.

Now, here’s a rarity: a Marconi Mark VII. This one actually did belong to Tele-Tape Productions back in the day, which meant it spent a couple years at work in the early days of Sesame Street. What looks like sheet metal damage in the photo is really the reproduction logo, printed on vinyl, separating from the side of the camera. I’m going to replace that as soon as I can get the printing done (the design is pretty much done, but I just need to find someone who can print it to my specifications). In the meantime it’ll wear a rare and very interesting livery that a few Mark VIIs wore for a short period.

No, that’s not the pedestal they used under these when they were in service. Although, given their weight, you can sort of understand it.

And this stylish beast is the RCA TK-42. I’ve seen it described as RCA’s attempt to combine the color of the TK-41 with the sharpness of the monochrome TK-60. Unfortunately, ambition didn’t match execution and the TK-42 was not a hit. NBC itself really didn’t want anything to do with them, so TK-42s and TK-43s were often what brought local stations into the color era.⁴ The TK-42 was soon superseded by the great and durable TK-44. This one somehow made it to modern times, and even has the proper RCA pedestal and head most often seen beneath them. Unfortunately, it’s missing a few of its internals and has to be balanced with some weights inside, but from the outside you couldn’t tell. The black-and-gold RCA logo disappeared from the right side somewhere along the way, but a very helpful designer with a 3D printer was able to print up a replacement that looks just like it’s always been there, and I’m very happy.

We look much happier wearing the General’s lightning bolt. Now imagine how we’ll look once we’re back on our big ol’ pedestal and we can get a good all-over clean-up and shine.

There’s plenty left to do on these cameras. I’ve done some initial clean-up on them, but when I have time I want to give each one a good going-over to make them look as good as they can.⁵ There’s also a few things I may do as I find period-correct hardware for these machines. But all that’s down the road. Right now, what matters is that these old machines are safe in their new home, where young eyes will be able to see the equipment that helped make possible what they now take as a given.

Remembering Barbara Walters

A post I regret needing to make: Barbara Walters has died at age 93. I can’t say I’m surprised, as I knew she was not in the best of health, but it doesn’t make the news any less of a punch to the gut. There’s no way to calculate what women in journalism, and women in broadcasting, owe her. It’s better for others to cover that ground, as they will, and so I shall leave that to others better qualified than I am.¹

Instead, it’s worth remembering that someone who helped her get her career started was Dave Garroway. It was while he was host of Today that she was hired as a writer, and she spoke often of how important that was in helping her get her start.² As part of this hastily-assembled memorial post, here’s a clip in which she talks about Dave Garroway, what she remembered about him, and what made him special.

Remembering Hugh Downs

This post is long overdue. It’s partly out of my own reluctance, because I have grappled with how to contain this man’s career in the space of a post – because the man was so good at so many different things. But maybe some of it had to do with how familiar he was. I imagined we would always have a world with Hugh Downs in it. He had been around forever, starting out at a local radio station in Ohio in 1939, moving into television in 1950 with WMAQ in Chicago, and finally calling it a career in 1999. And back in July, we lost him at the age of 99.

With Kukla and Ollie in Chicago. (NBC photo)

In those 60 years in broadcasting, Hugh Downs did everything. He was an announcer, billboarding a show about a little clown and a dragon and their human friend. He was right-hand-man to Arlene Francis on the Home show. He was Jack Paar’s sidekick. He hosted Today. He hosted a game show, narrated documentaries, did a series about the challenges and opportunities that come with getting older. He even composed music and recorded albums.

Being Jack Paar’s right-hand man made you prepared for anything. (NBC photo)

Then came a second act, when ABC hired him to host 20/20, which had suffered a disastrous debut.¹ It was in that capacity I first really came to know of him, as the kindly man who introduced segments and talked with correspondents and informed us that they were in touch, so you be in touch. Downs’ steady presence as host helped the program feel (if you’ll pardon the expression) anchored. 20/20 would never have the hard edges of 60 Minutes, but Downs was perfect for 20/20‘s more populist mix of investigation and human interest.

Hugh Downs and Barbara Walters with Hugh Downs and Barbara Walters. (ABC photo)

I’m not going to go through the entire career of Hugh Downs here. It would take much too long, and you can read it elsewhere anyway.² Instead, this remembrance is more subjective, because I remember him so well from all the years I watched him.

If you watched Hugh Downs you noticed how easygoing he seemed, how low-pressure he was, sometimes to the point of seeming sleepy. A spoof of 20/20 that ran in MAD Magazine during the period had Downs asleep at the desk in the final panel as Barbara Walters closed the program.³ It may have been easy to mock, but that low-key nature had much to do with why Downs wore so well. I teach my students that to be on television is to be a guest in your audience’s homes, and the moment you rub them the wrong way, they’ll show you out. Too often people on television forget this and they wear out their welcomes in a hurry. Hugh Downs knew this. He had a terrific ability to ration his wattage, to know how to be the host who knew how to keep a program going without becoming bigger than the show or its purpose, and to do it without wearing out the viewer. He had the ability to be interesting without being dominant.

Although not everyone was impressed. (ABC photo)

It helped that Downs was a man who had a genuine curiosity about so much. He was a perpetual student, always finding something new to learn or to be interested in or to read about or to visit. He learned how to scuba dive, how to fly airplanes, how to drive a race car, sailed his own boat across the Pacific. And for a time he was a teacher, too. He lived many lifetimes within the time of his life.⁴

If only they’d let him fly on the real thing. (ABC photo)

In thinking about the life and career of Hugh Downs, I’m struck by the similarities between him and Dave Garroway: both versatile broadcasters with a cool presence that wore well, especially on longer-form programs like Today (and it’s worth noting that when Downs took over Today after the John Chancellor experiment didn’t work out, more than one reviewer favorably compared Downs’s style to that of Garroway). Both of them were fascinated by so many interests and knew so much about so many things, and their knowledge informed the shows they hosted. On occasion I have wondered if Dave Garroway, had he the benefit of modern treatments for depression and other issues, might have been like Hugh Downs and likewise been able to make his career as long-lasting.

This much I do know, and it’s that Hugh Downs never lost his high regard for his friend Dave Garroway. Many years ago a friend was hoping to produce a documentary about Garroway, and one of the people he called on during his initial investigation was Hugh Downs. Not only was Downs happy to learn of the project, he offered to narrate it. Alas, the documentary never happened, and with it went the chance to hear Downs tell the story of his friend and colleague. It’s my hope, however, that they’re now reunited in the hereafter, maybe hanging around with Studs Terkel and Burr Tillstrom telling stories about the good old days in Chicago.

If there are morning shows in heaven, you know that with Dave Garroway and Hugh Downs at the anchor desk, it’s got to be worth watching.

Late Night with Dave Garroway (Part 2)

When we left off, Dave Garroway had filled in on ABC’s Nightlife, one of a series of substitutes for Les Crane. Garroway had been a hit with the critics, who praised the wit and intelligence he brought to a show that had been known more for bombast and controversy, and urged ABC to make more permanent arrangements for Garroway on Nightlife.

ABC listened…to a point. In June ABC made an announcement about the future of Nightlife. Les Crane would get a four-week shot as host. Joining him in supporting roles would be comedian Nipsey Russell…and Dave Garroway, who would get a nightly feature in which he could talk about whatever was on his mind. “Garroway’s unique slant on life and his marvelous talent for spotting the unusually un-noticed wonders around us have been sorely missed in television,” producer Dwight Hemion said. It would mean a regular gig for Garroway, but to some it was still a disappointment. “I wish they’d give him the entire show,” columnist Dorothy Stanich wrote.

Dave Garroway, Les Crane and Nipsey Russell on ABC’s Nightlife. (ABC photo)

When Crane’s Nightlife came back, his supporting cast seemed to draw more favorable attention than Crane himself. Kay Gardella said Crane was fortunate to have the talents of Russell and Garroway “to boost him in his undeveloped areas – comedy and knowledge. Garroway’s concern over the tilting Empire State Building gave the program just the right slant.¹ Now all he and Nipsey have to do is make certain Crane stays upright until he’s back in the ABC saddle for good.” Nadine Subotnik believed neither Russell, “a good comedian and an intelligent gentleman,” and Garroway, “a long-time easy talker,” were being used too wisely. “Crane still doesn’t have the easy and low-key approach that wears best in the late and long hours.”

The one sour note about Garroway came from Gee Mitchell, who said the show “really wasn’t very good. Les Crane didn’t come on quite so strong, so that’s good.” Mitchell liked Nipsey Russell and found him genuinely funny², but found Garroway tedious. “We could have done without Dave Garroway’s inane bit about buildings falling down…move over Oscar Levant.”

As the weeks went on it appeared things were looking good. Three weeks in ABC granted an extension to Crane, as well as to Russell and Garroway. To columnist Cindy Adams, Garroway expressed happiness. “I worried about it a week before,” he said, “but I really needed it. Maybe I never knew there was that much ham in me. It’s just that when I’m facing a camera I relax. It’s the only time I can completely. I feel no more fears of any sort….I’m calm because that camera is my friend.”

And then – as happened so often in Garroway’s later years – the bottom fell out. Rumors had circulated that Nightlife would move to Los Angeles. In August, the rumors got confirmation. The move would make it easier to get guests from among the Hollywood set, and it would distinguish the show from the New York-based Johnny Carson show.

But it would make the move without Dave Garroway. “I’ve got too many kids in the fire here, so to speak,” he told the press. Garroway said he had proposed being an East Coast correspondent for the Los Angeles-based version, but had heard nothing back. Hemion floated an idea about flying Garroway in from New York on an occasional basis, “but there’s nothing firm yet.” And while Garroway would contribute a few pieces to Nightlife after the move, for the most part the program went on without him.

After the dust had settled, Garroway claimed he had been eased out of the gig. “The deal was that I was to be a regular guest for as many as one to five times a week,” he said. “I was on five times in one week, then three, then two, and finally once a week for the past two weeks. Now? I don’t know….I guess I came to network television in the morning, and I’m going out at night.” His interviewer asked if it was the end of the line. “It sort of appears that way, doesn’t it?” Garroway said. “I haven’t worked on network television for four years, and it doesn’t look like I have anything to look forward to.”

It would take time, but other opportunities would come his way.

Late Night with Dave Garroway (Part 1)

After Dave Garroway left Today in June 1961, he took some time to deal with personal matters. So much had happened so quickly – the sudden death of his wife, most notably – on top of a demanding work schedule. Now, suddenly, everything was quiet. And after a few months, Garroway was ready to get back into a television gig.

There were some complications, however. The first was that while Garroway was away, television had gotten along without him. Suddenly, in the new, cool era of 1961 and 1962, Garroway seemed like something out of yesterday. The man who had been indispensable was now disposable, and the medium was getting along without him just fine.¹ On a more personal level, the considerable clout Garroway had attained as host of Today was now gone.²

But one more thing was complicating Dave’s comeback. In his haste to get out of his obligations to Today (which lasted through 1961) and to NBC (which lasted through 1966), Dave hadn’t carefully considered the language of the agreement he signed. To his chagrin, he learned later that NBC retained a right of first refusal until 1966. If anyone offered Garroway a program, he was legally obligated to check with NBC to see if they had him in mind for a project. This meant Garroway wasn’t a sure thing for anyone who was proposing a program, and it gave NBC effective veto power over his doings. “I received nothing in return for it,” he lamented in 1965, “and managed to give up five years of a $100,000-a-year contract that would have paid me whether I worked or not.”³

Rumors of Garroway’s return to television began to circulate in late 1961. One item reported ABC was considering Garroway for a newscast to counter NBC’s Chet Huntley and David Brinkley. Instead, Garroway signed with the fledgling National Educational Television network to do a series of science programs called Exploring the Universe. Other odd jobs came up: filmed sporting events that Garroway hoped to parlay into a series; hosting gigs for the Miss Universe pageant, Talent Scouts and award shows. He signed a deal to narrate ads for the Ford Motor Company. He filled in for Arthur Godfrey and Jack Sterling on their radio programs, which prompted New York’s WCBS to offer him a twice-daily radio program. Garroway AM and Garroway PM began in April 1964, but in December Garroway announced he was leaving WCBS, claiming concerns about his son’s health and saying the preparation for each show had eaten up more time than he anticipated.

In 1965 ABC offered Garroway another guest-hosting gig. Always trying to find a way to compete, ABC was trying to counter Johnny Carson’s Tonight program. It started with a show hosted by radio personality Les Crane. Initially a local program called Nightline, it hit the network in November 1963 as The Les Crane Show. It became notorious for its confrontational tone and controversial discussions. Columnist Kay Gardella later summarized the young Crane as “the Peck’s Bad Boy of TV, who parlayed such nontalents as rudeness, arrogance and conceit into a short but explosive TV career.”⁴ By 1965 ABC wanted to try a format with less fire and a more relaxed pace. Crane was sent away for a while and several guest hosts took turns on a show that now bore the title Nightlife. The new format abandoned controversy in favor of something more like a traditional late-night show. Several guest hosts were called in, including Shelley Berman, Pat Boone, Allan Sherman and Jack Carter. And after them, one Dave Garroway was given the chair for a week. Dorothy Kilgallen wished Garroway well in her column, writing that “Dave’s presence always guarantees the viewers a grace of intellect and originality not to be found on every spot on the dial.”

Garroway’s guests for his week as host reflected his interests. The beloved Mr. Wizard, Don Herbert, gave a science demonstration. A locksmith demonstrated how to keep locks safe from lock pickers. Singer Carol Sloane, whom Garroway had featured on Talent Scouts and while substituting on Arthur Godfrey’s radio series, appeared on the show. Godfrey himself appeared as a guest on another show, as did Morey Amsterdam. Another program found Garroway interviewing Major Donald Keyhoe, who had written a book about unidentified flying objects, while panelists Dizzy Gillespie and Dina Merrill joined in the discussion.⁵

Columnists cheered Garroway’s return, a calming influence on a show known for choppy seas. Ben Gross of the New York Daily News said Garroway “has given a new aura, a polish and an air of distinction to ABC-TV’s dismal flop (until this week) of a late-hour show…a knowing man, a truly sophisticated fellow, a wise and witty gentleman, he does not mar the proceedings with the garish, pushy pseudo-sophistication, the cheapness and Broadway crassness which have all too often blotted this show. Garroway should be made the permanent emcee of this attraction.” Paul Molloy of the Chicago Sun Times called Garroway “refreshing…personable, erudite and gracious,” and urged ABC to “cease its search and sign him up for some sort of duration.” Donald Freeman called Garroway “wonderful” and wrote that “the program enjoyed an immediate improvement.”

And ABC listened – after a fashion. How? Tune in next week.