1950-1951 Neilsen ratings

1950-1951 Nielsen ratings Analysis: No plot involved here, just a strict live-and-die by the numbers situation. Some context first – the Nielsen ratings system had been around a while, using a variety of methods from logs to sensors in televisions to determine who was watching what in how many households over a set period. While this had been applied to radio research, the 1950-1951 television season was the first time television programming was measured. Seeing as this article kind of got away from me as I was writing it, I’m breaking it into thirds so there is not an immense wall of text for everyone to read. We’ll cover places 30 through 21 today, 20 through 11 tomorrow and cap it with 10 through 1 on Sunday. Now, a few things to keep in mind before we start on the list of the top 30 ranked shows. First, the number of televisions in American homes was at 8 million in October of 1950 about a month into the counting process. By the time it concluded sometime in the late spring of 1951, that number was approaching 13 million. So the numbers we’ll be using are not millions of households, but a percentage of the total available viewership that is tuned into the show over that period of time. So, from number 30 to number 1, here is a snapshot of what the United States was watching in 1950 and 1951. 30. Lux Video Theatre on CBS, Monday nights at 8 PM ET with 31.5 percent of the viewing audience. Lux was a spinoff of the long running and very successful Lux Radio Theatre. Ironically, the radio version of the show was broadcast about a half hour after the television version signed off for the night, running a half hour longer than the television show. Unfortunately, I am currently unable to locate any copies of surviving broadcasts on DVD, so I am unable to discuss any of the shows. If any exist and I can be pointed toward them, I’d be very grateful. 29. Your Hit Parade on NBC, Saturday nights at 10:30 PM ET with 32.0 percent of the viewing audience. Your Hit Parade was another importation from radio. In the days before disc jockeys had their personal top ten, this half hour show told you what was popular and selling in record stores over the period. Just as natural was the move to television to continue to perform and broadcast popular music. Again, if any surviving episodes are on DVD, I am unaware of them and if someone has any leads to any, please let me know. 28. The Ken Murray Show on CBS, Saturday nights at 8 PM ET with 32.1 percent of the viewing audience. Ken Murray as a performer came over from radio as a performer, turning out the first hour-long program on the list. Unfortunately, not only do I not have access to any surviving episodes, I have very little information on the show, so, unfortunately, this small mark will have to suffice unless someone out there know more than I do. Given a tie for 26th place, there is no 27th place. 26. (Tied) Blue Ribbon Bouts on CBS, Wednesday nights at 10 PM ET & The Original Amateur Hour on NBC, Tuesday nights at 10 PM ET, each with 33.4 percent of the viewing audience. It goes without saying that boxing was running at a peak in this time period, coming off the period of Joe Louis as Heavyweight Champion, so seeing a boxing show in the top 30 is no surprise. The surprise is just how little from the period survives, but given it was an hour and there were new fights every week, I suppose it made little sense to hold on or record any of the fights. Still, if any are out there, I would love to cover and discuss them seeing as what a staple to television boxing was in the 1950s. The Original Amateur Hour is basically the television grandfather of all the shows like American Idol, America’s Got Talent and the like today. Like most of the shows of the period, the show got its launch on radio before jumping over to television, first on the DuMont Network and then to NBC. I’m aware of a single 2 disc DVD release of the show, but since it appears to be an overarching look at the show rather than a specific period, I have not picked it up yet. Based on recommendations, I may take a look to see what I can make of the show. Also, it is worth noting that a virtually complete archive of the show has been donated to the Library of Congress, but obtaining copies are prohibitively expensive, to say the least. 25. The Big Story on NBC, alternating Friday nights at 9:30 PM ET with 33.7 percent of the viewing audience. This fits in the ripped-from-the-headline style of a Law and Order of today, taking crime stories from the front page of newspapers and telling them first through the radio, then the television screen. I’m not aware of any surviving episodes on DVD, but if anyone has any leads, I’d be interested in taking a look and adding them to the archive. 24. Westinghouse Studio One on CBS, Monday nights at 10 PM ET with 33.8 percent of the viewing audience. Finally, a familiar face! As we’re all aware by now, this was a one-hour presentation of dramas and comedies live on a weekly basis. Given the quality of the programming, I’m a bit surprised it is ranked so low. Of course, we will see more of Studio One as we go along as what I have in the archive is just getting started. 23. Stop the Music on ABC, Thursday nights at 8 PM ET with 34.0 percent of the viewing audience. This is a quiz show importation from the days of radio that, for a brief moment, drove a radio staple like Edgar Bergen from the air for a year and, in the case of Fred Allen, ended his radio career. But, much like game show phenomenon like Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? or Deal or No Deal, it burned out very quickly. I’m not aware of any surviving episodes (there rarely are from game shows of the period), but if anyone knows anything, I’d love to take a look. 22. The Alan Young Show on CBS, Thursday nights at 9 PM ET with 34.4 percent of the viewing audience. Yet another importation from radio, but for whatever reason, rather than take the situation comedy approach he had on radio, Young ended up with a variety/sketch comedy show for television. As with many others, I am not aware of surviving television episodes on DVD, but if anyone knows of any, please let me know. Oh, and if Alan Young’s name sounds familiar, trust me, we will be seeing more of him as we go along. Due to a three-way tie for 19th place, there is no 21st or 22nd place ranking, so we’ll pick up tomorrow with 19 through 11. Also, just as an aside, I will not be doing any blog updates between next Friday and next Monday, taking the 24th through the 26th off. So right now, we'll do one last post on Thursday, the 23rd and be back on Monday, the 27th.