Television History - The First 75 Years
 
 

What Things Cost in 1954:
Car: $1,950
Gasoline: 29 cents/gal
House: $17,500
Bread: 17 cents/loaf
Milk: 92 cents/gal
Postage Stamp: 3 cents
Stock Market: 404
Average Annual Salary: $4,700
Minimum Wage: 75 cents per hour

(57K)
1954 Ford

•  JAN 1st:  The first national coast-to-coast colorcast takes place, with the broadcast of the "Tournament of Roses Parade" from Pasadena, California to 21 network stations.  There were only 200 RCA electronic color television sets (Model 5 - experimental) able to view the show.  This is acknowledged as the first day American television officially changed from black-and-white to color.  Read more details on Ed Reitan's web site.

  
   

•  MARCH:   370 TV Stations in operation, with another 202 about to come on-line

•  MARCH:   First color commercial by Pall Mall cigarettes

•  APRIL:  RCA Launches COLOR Television, with the sale of the CT-100, at $1,000 a copy.  Less than 5,000 sell the first year.

•  DECEMBER:   Sadly, the DuMont network folds unable to match the cash reserves of the other three networks

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