Evening star., 1949-08-28
News of Video and Radio
Will Color Television Be as Colorful
as the Arguments About It?
By Wallace {. Clayton

Things have been booming on
the color television front this
week, but whether practical color
telecasts are Just around the
corner or still far in the future
is still a greatly debated question.
Public interest and excitement
over the possibility of color tele-
vision in the near future has been
greatly whetted during the last
few days by the almost simultane-
GUS announcements by the Radio
Corp. of America and the Co
lumbia Broadcasting System that
they have perfected adapt
ers" or "converters" which Will
bring color telecasts into the home
on present sets.
Adding to the furor was the
well-publicized statement by Sen
ator johnson. chairman OF the
Senate Interstate and Foreign
Commerce Committee, that prac-
tical color television had arrived.
All the announcements were
motivated by the upcoming public
hearings by the Federal Communi-
cations Commission on the SUD-
ject of color teleyiSion.
The hearings. which start Sep
tember 26. have been called TO
decide which of some six methods
of color transmission is best. The
FEC may decide all of them need
more experimentation.
Let's examine the optimistic.
or excitement provoking side 'oi
the picture. .-.-.
i. RcA has announced perfec-
tion of an adapter which would
enable present sets to PICK up
electronic color signals. Sets WITH
out the adapter still would receive
black and white pictures from
stations transmitting color.
2. The CHS method would re-
ouire present set owners to buy
an additional adapter whether
the picture was to be seen In color
or black and white.
8. Commissioner Robert r.
Jones, Of the FEC. predicts there
won't be "any great lapse OF time"
before an adapter can be put into
mass production.
4. Congressional interest in the
subject, as evidenced by Senator
johnson and others, certainly
won't delay things.
Now, on the other side, those
people who have been arguing
that practical color television Is
still far in the future haven't
changed their minds.
Here's the consensus:
l. It's highly possible the FEC
will, even if it rules one particular
method is best, order period Of
grace" for further experimental
ton.
2. None of the industry an
nouncements mentioned the time
necessary to get into mass pro-
duction of adapters, or. more i'm
portapt, the cost of the additional
equipment.
8. Many Of the coaxial cables
now carrying black and white sig
mails are unable to carry color
telecasts. The American Tele-
phone g. Telegraph Co. is build
ing radio relay stations to trans
NIT the color signals from city to
city-but this will take time and
be expensive.
A. Some of the experimental
color television demonstrations
have been stacked" it is charged,
so officials have received the off,
hand impression that color tele-
vision is further advanced than it
really Is.
5. If the FEC should authorize
q color transmission which proved
ineffective, the industry would
suffer needlessly.
Meanwhile, the announcements
about impending color television
have been causing concern among
retail dealers who fear prospective,
customers will decide to wait a
little longer and get a set which
receives color.
It might, they fear, be quite a
wait.
y
SPORTS NOTES The first
Washington Redskins game to be
broadcast this year will be heard
over WMAL at 4:10 pm. Sunday,
September 4. The Skins will meet
the Chicago Bears in an exhibition
game at Memphis, Tenn. AS
usual, Harry Wismer and Jim
Gibbons, WMAL's early-rising disc
jockey and sports director. will
call the plays and give local color.
yuk6AT. uiI1 broadcast three eX-