Television History - The First 75 Years
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1954 Television Advertising

1954 Admiral Dealer Brochure (USA)

1954 Admiral Dealer Brochure (168K bytes) (168K) - All sets shown are B&W

1954 Crosley Sales Brochure (USA)

1954 Crosley Brochure (192K bytes) (192K) - All sets shown are B&W

1954 - 1956  General Electric Television Sets (USA)

1954-1956 GE TVs (USA) - Pg1 (133K bytes) (133K) - All sets shown are B&W (Partial List)

1954 Motorola Dealer Brochure (USA)

1954 Motorola Brochure1 (164K bytes) (164K) - All sets are B&W

1954 Magnavox Dealer Brochure (USA)

1954 Magnavox Brochure -USA- (224K bytes) (224K) - 12" x 20", All sets are B&W

1954 Philco Dealer Brochure (USA)

1954 Philco Brochure1 USA (224K bytes) (224K)  1954 Philco Brochure2 USA (108K bytes) (108K) - All sets are B&W

 

1954 Capehart Ad (128K bytes) (128K)
1954 Capehart (Farnsworth) - 24" tabletop is $299.95 (Base extra cost)

1954-Oct-LIFE CBS-Columbia-360 Color TV (72K bytes) (72K)    1954-Oct-LIFE CBS-Columbia-360 Color TV (55K bytes) (55K)
1954 CBS-Columbia, Model 205C2 Color Television -- Full Door Console $1100, Open-Face Console $1000, and table model $950, including Federal Tax and warranty.

 

1954 CBS-Columbia RX90 Color USA (44K bytes) (44K)
1954 CBS-Columbia, Model RX-90, 15 inch Color Television
(Courtesy Steve McVoy)

 

1954 Philco 21 inch B&W Television (100K bytes) (100K)
1954 Philco Black & White Television - 21 inch

1954 RCA Ad (164K bytes) (164K)
1954 RCA - 17" B&W is $189.95, and the 21" B&W tabletop is $239.95

1954 Sylvania Ad (176K bytes) (176K)
1954 Sylvania - 40 new models, starting at $189.95 for 17" B&W

1954 Admiral Color TV Shown in Littlefuse Ad -- (43K bytes)  (43K) - Littlefuse Advertisement showing the "First Admiral Color TV set" - (Courtesy Robert W. Stephens)

1954 Admiral Model C1617A Tech Info (300K bytes) (300K) -- Admiral Model C1617A Color TV -- 15" Screen -- Tech Info  (Courtesy Pete Deksnis)

1954-May RCA Ad for 15GP22 Color CRT (132K bytes) (132K) - RCA Advertising for 15GP22 Color Picture Tube -- (Courtesy Robert W. Stephens)

RCA Developmental Color CRT No. c73599 (182K bytes) (182K)    Label on Rob Stephens' Westinghouse CRT (40K bytes) (40K)
RCA Developmental Color CRT No. C-73599 --  (Courtesy Robert W. Stephens - CRT in his '54 Westinghouse set)

1960 GE Tube Price List (432K bytes) (432K) - 1960 General Electric Tube Price list shows the 15GP22 color picture tube for a whopping $265.00 -- The only other color CRT listed was the 21AXP22A for $160.00.  Most other B&W CRTs were around $50.00. 

Here are links to a suppliers of old tubes and manuals:   A. G. Tannenbaum Website (Pa)
Vacuum Tubes, Inc (Ohio)    ESRC Vacuum Tubes (Florida)    Electron Tube Enterprises (Maine)
Antique Electronic Supply (Arizona)
 

Vacuum tube sets had about a 25-year post-war manufacturing run (1947 to 1972), before transistorized sets began to make their way into the American marketplace.  1960 was the 'heyday' of tube sales.  Tube-testers were in most drug stores, and the public tried 'tube-testing' and replacement as a way to cut-down on expensive house calls by TV technicians.  By the way, for those who may not be familiar, the European word for a vacuum tube is "valve".

Interesting sites:   How a Vacuum Tube Works     Vacuum Tube Q&A    History & Development of Computers

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