LOOKING BACK 2

Being the only private station in South Western Ontario, we studied every bit of information that showed how our programs rated. In the years before microwave, the majority of our programs were local and live. In many cases we did not have much time between programs and commercials. During a two or three minute segment of 1 minuet film commercials, we had to strike one set and put up another - furniture and all. 

Commercials for local sponsors done within a show, were usually set up in one corner of the studio and one camera would breakaway from the program and trundle over to the commercial set which would normally be laid out on a roll-able table. Once into the commercial the second camera would move over for the close-up shots, then break-away again  to get ready for the main program. 

In 1957 we had two daily programs - AT HOME and MATINEE TELE-QIZ. We also had two news programs, PANORAMA and PM.

AT HOME was a ladies show, hosted by Mary Ashwell. It covered the spectrum of informative events, interviews and a largely popular cooking segment. Its popularity with our viewers was always forefront in providing the things the viewers wanted to see and hear about. So, we naturally kept an eye on how many viewers tuned in daily. The following sample, was shared with the staff, to show how it was rated.

"Taking an average of 11,000 homes per day tuned to this program means we reach 55,000 homes weekly. At an average of 12 viewers per home means, 110,000 people per week."

MATINEE TELE-QUIZ:  The audience was asked to identify what they thought a mystery object was.  The program ran during the afternoon movie. During the commercial breaks, the hosts would select a name from entries mailed-in and call that person. Wrong answers added a small amount of money to the jackpot. It was hosted by Mary Helen McPhillips and Pat Murray. (Later by Paul Soles and Norm Aldred.)

"An average of 17,000 per day, or 85,000 homes per week, or 117,000 per week."

PANORAMA was two programs under one heading. From 6 - 6:30 each weekday evening, Murray Brown or Pat Murray would host, throwing the half hour open to questions from viewers. They would also welcome special quests. It as an informative half hour.

"38,000 homes per day, 228,000 per week, 684,000 people."

The last half hour of Panorama was our major newscast of the day. It ran from 6:00 to 6:30 everyday. This was a heavily sponsored newscast, with at least one "live" commercial in each 2 minute break. Rehearsals for these live commercials were done during the 5:30 film show, a full hour before they were to be aired.

 We had one major sponsor at that time, Canada Bread who supplied us daily with fresh bread, cakes, buns etc. These were set up on tables next to the news desk to make it easier for the cameras to maneuver from newscaster to commercial. Being live, anything could and did happen.

One night we had a fine display of different cakes lined up on the table. The script called for the camera to dolly (zooms weren't invented yet) in for a tight shot of the wording on top of one of the cakes. Our cameras at that time had a turret  that contained 3 different lenses - close-up, medium and wide-angle. To get a certain lens the cameraman  had to rotate the turret to the lens he needed. During rehearsal, the medium lens was assigned the shot, but when it came time to air the commercial something happened and the cameraman hurrying to get the shot did not change from his telephoto to the medium. As the director took the shot of the cake, the cameraman, not realizing his error, kept dolling in on the cake, trying to get focused, all the while the director was yelling at him over the headphones to "focus, focus, FOCUS!"

That night our viewers saw that cake come closer to the camera until the close-up lens buried itself in the pretty pink icing.

Amid much muffled laughter, the crew and the newscaster, Bob Reinhart, had a hard time carrying on fro the rest of the news.

"52,000 homes per day, 312,000 homes per week, 936,000 people."

PM was just a half hour news show at 11:00 pm each night. 

"31,600 homes per night, 189,600 homes per week, 68,800 people per week."

Reading back through these newsletters, I find it amazing that management was so up-tight about the mistakes we made on the air. They were just to fixated on what the viewer might think, and that the negativity would turn them away from us. But it was just the opposite. Our viewers just loved to see us screw-up.

Incidentally - all of those cakes, bread etc. were never returned to the bakery. They gave them to us to take home.

LOOKING BACK

Busy looking back through various records and papers - mostly in-house newsletters and my own collection of stuff - to update and add more facts and events that happened during the history of CFPL-TV.  After reading the first half I had written back in November, I just wasn't happy with it, so I dug out all of the old stuff I have on record to add more to a new series of TV history.

I'm not quite done, but have run across some interesting things you might like to remember from back in the early 1950's.

Here's a reprint from the December 1956 of The Fourth Estate, (a monthly Free Press staff publication), by Mike Woodward who had interviewed Bob Reinhart, Station Manager.

"CFPL-TV quietly celebrated her third birthday on November 28. The party wasn't a formal affair - only friends and close relatives attended.

Not much by some standards, but in the Canadian telecasting field, that makes us veterans. The important thing is that the 85 staff members of the station represent three years of experience, not one year of experience learned three times.

We asked Bob Reinhart, the station manager to look back at our progress, and sum it up. It can't be expressed more simply than the way Bob put it: 

"We've learned that before saying "no" to anything new, to analyze it, and think the matter over. Almost anything that is worthwhile is a lot of trouble.

"Three years of experience have taught us not to be narrow minded about the future. Our path has so far been full of sudden changes. And most important of all, the public is interested in what we do. The good things and the mistakes. 

"Through the switchboard and the mailbox, the public of Western Ontario has proved that it has a right to help us make decisions. We are, above all, here to serve them."

WHERE DO WE STAND TODAY?

"We're still learning. So is the whole television profession. We're learning but the nucleus of keen men and women who form the backbone of the station are part of the business. They know what they're doing, and in that atmosphere, newcomers to the staff catch on quickly, and become part of the team. There's a realization that every part of the station and every member of the staff is important to the whole, and a realization that the station is  more than electronics and a pile of bricks....it is people.

"The emergency is now the daily crisis. We've had many emergencies, but today most of them are merely problems. That's a sure sign of growing up."

HOW ABOUT THE FUTURE?

Television, up until now, has been a lusty, energetic youngster. And like a child, it has grown rapidly, physically. Now we stand on the threshold of a new period of growth in which we will mature. It's some thing like the transition between a boy and a man. For want of a better word, it will be a period of consolidation ... weeding out the weak points in our operation, and strengthening the good ones. The good ones are the building blocks of the future."

Ignoring the insistent telephone calls and the stacks of problems on his desk, Bob put across the big point:

"Television will be a big success if we remember our obligations to the public. The biggest block to success could be a lack of human resources. If we have the men and women with the sincerity and the ability to face problems head-on that the future will surely demand, then television will be one of the biggest successes in history.

" Even now it is too big for any one person or only one station to be selfish. Think what it will be like in the years ahead."

SIXTY YEARS - Part 1

It's hard to believe that sixty years since CFPL-TV first signed on the air, have gone by so fast. For those of us who where there on that first day - November 28, 1953 - we've witnessed the rise of one of Canada's most respected TV stations, only to watch it's loss of respectability over the past twenty years.

On November 1 of that year, Tom Ashwell, Tom Trowell, Keven Knight, Dale Duffield, Jim Plan, Bill Nunn and Glen Robitaille and I, all moved from CFPL Radio to the television building which was still under construction. We cleaned, helped install equipment, hung lights, edited movies and made coffee. In the following weeks we would add sales, writers and other office staff, making a total of twenty people on opening night.

A week before our sign-on date, the two Toms and I finally had a chance to "play" with the new studio cameras and microphone boom - my task. Other than that brief introduction to the new equipment we basically had  no idea of what we were doing. We just followed the script.

If opening night was an omen in the professionalism of  our News Department, we can be thankful for a destructive fire that night, at a local laundry and dry cleaning establishment. We were nearing the end of our opening ceremony when we received a call that the Dutch Laundry was being destroyed by a huge fire. Our news cameramen, (News Director Ron Laidlaw, Jack Schenck and Ken Dougan both Free Press photographers) rushed to the scene, shot their film and returned to the station.. Twenty minutes later we had the story on the air. 

From that point on, News was our anchor. We provided local as well as national news through our "live" 6 pm and 11 pm newscasts. Eventually, we added News at Noon and made all newscast one hour long. We had our own film lab which allowed us to shoot local and district news events, process the stories and have them on air the same evening, or in some cases within an hour of their happenings.

From its early beginnings CFPL-TV was a community station, designing all of it's programming to the needs and entertainment of our viewers, many of whom only had U.S. programs received by cable or their own roof-top antennas. 

We had shows for women, At Home with Mary Ashwell and Hope Garber; The Roy Jewell Farm Show for our rural viewers, and Matinee Tele-quiz for our afternoon movie watchers.

Movies were a big item back then. We had a large variety of westerns, British comedies, (remember George Formby?) along with   mysteries, and musicals. All pretty old, but still entertaining.

With the advent of Microwave, we were able to add CBC programming including NHL and a variety of their drama and entertainment shows. 

As our popularity continued to grow, we kept adding newer programs all aimed to the interest of our viewers throughout Southwestern Ontario.  By the fall of 1954 our staff had grown from 20 to 50 .

Our first outside remote occurred in Nov. 1959.  Soapbox Rodeo was an instant success and continued for several years. We used out long quarter mile driveway as the race course. An elevated starting ramp at the top of the driveway provided a good start for the long ride to the finish line at Commissioners Rd. The winner at the end of the competition was awarded a handsome trophy. We had to discontinue the races when that large tact of land in front of the station was sold for a subdivision which eventually sprouted , surrounding the station.

In 1956 CFPL-TV was the first station in Canada to be given permission to experiment in color. We  had purchased a new Philco CineScanner film chain, but could only use it in house. However, that restriction was lifted in 1966 and we were able to broadcast color movies to our audience. 1970 brought color throughout Canada but without color studio cameras we were still limited to only airing film.  All three of our daily newscasts were now featuring color film stories.

By 1958 our staff had grown to 100. (not all shown here) We were now on the air for 13 hours a day.

A year later we were the first "private" station to install and use video tape, and in 1962 we began using our new 1000 foot tower and boosted our power to 325,000 watts.

For the next few years we seemed to spend as much time outside the studio as we did inside. We covered the Western Fair for the Farm Show, plus having our own static display inside one of the buildings, were we used one of the studio cameras to pan the Fair visitors s they walked by. A few years later  we moved into a theater in one of the buildings and did several shows as Act Fast and Romper Room, involving the adult and children audiences.

We changed venues several times with live studio shows featuring music, talent hunts, pet shows, and comedy. Mustn't forget the several quiz shows we did for the ladies. 

The YMAC Auction was a staple for years. We also produced several dramas featuring local talent. Our remotes covered golf, curling, and bowling  tournaments. 

In 1965, in co-operation with the University of Western Ontario, Producer Jim Plant along with Drs. Jack Thurlow and Peter Rechnitzer began producing a series of medical shows for London and district hospitals. They would eventually be seem world wide.

In 1971 we purchased Wingham's CKNX-TV and AM stations.

1983 without any network (CBC) assistance, we began our early morning (7:30 to 8:00 am) news program.

After a long and testy review by the CRTC, it was determined that ownership of the TV station by the Blackburns, who also owned the London Free Press, CFPL RADIO AM and FM, was not a conflict and that the coverage area for all media was well served by London Free Press Holdings. Perhaps as a peace offering for the lengthy and troublesome review, the CRTC renewed the licences for all of the CFPL media for five years.

Sadly, on December 16, 1983 Walter J. Blackburn died. 

In April 1984 we began microwaving originating  programs from CFPL-TV to Wingham-TV. 

Since it's inception in 1953, CFPL-TV was housed in a 30,000 sq. foot building. Within the next five years we had outgrown it, and a small addition was added on the east end for more offices, and storage. Eventually, this section was made into a second studio, then for an enlarged news room, but not before a large addition to the south-west was added to accommodate our ever increasing inventory of props in 1962.

This addition also included a roomy workshop for construction of all of those props, plus a hermetically enclosed VTR room for three VTR machines, and video tape inventory.

Leaping ahead to early 1984, the small News Dept. in the basement was bursting at the seams and with the advent of Beta cameras and tape fast approaching. Construction began on a large new area to the east end of the station. When finished, news would have 2500 sq. feet for reporters, editing suites, offices and a new news set, using the actual news room as a backdrop. With these new digs, we became the first Canadian TV news operation to computerize its news programming. 

Part 2 on the way

WINING AN AUCTION

Have you ever come across a relatively attractive, framed painting or photograph,  that was offered as an auction item?

Recently, my wife spotted a rather nicely framed landscaped "print" resting on an easel inside a Giant Tiger store. The print was an item to raise money for Ducks Unlimited. If you wanted to purchase it you had to make an offer - a bid - over the starting bid of $200. If your submitted bid was the highest, you  would get the print.

Although the print was very colorful and pleasing to the eye, the frame was not good quality or what you would expect for the price of the opening bid, simply because it was plastic and looked very cheap. But my wife made a bid anyway, well ahead of the closing March 6 deadline.

Whenever I've gone to an auction and had the highest bid, I paid the agreed price, collected the item and that was that. I was under the impression this auction by Ducks Unlimited wold be the same - we would either collect the print from the store or, at Ducks Unlimited, paying at either place, the amount we owed. No so.

This afternoon we received a call from Ducks Unlimited indicating we were the highest bidder.  To get our framed print we would have to wait four to six weeks for it to be mounted and framed. Plus, we were told there would be a charge of nearly fifty dollars for this service, plus the cost of shipping. How would we like to pay?

Two things came to mind right away. 1) Why wasn't this outlined on the display, and 2) if we pre-paid nearly $400 what guarantee did we have that it would be the same as the framed print on display?

Now, I have nothing against Ducks Unlimited. I've supported them in the past, and appreciate the work they do about protecting the marshlands. My first impression at seeing the $200 starting bid was a laugh. A great way of raising money, but certainly not for the print on display, especially when most of the prints they offer on their website are only in the $20-30 range. Mounting and adding a  moderate wooden frame at Michael's would be half the price and take only three days to complete. 

I think Ducks Unlimited should rethink their print and poster auctions.

We withdrew our bid.

Rest in Peace Dear Maggie

On March 27, I lost a very special friend and cousin.

    Margaret (Maggie) MacKinnon

   1947 - 2012

Don't Grieve For Me,  For Now I'm Free

Don't grieve for me, for now I'm free

I'm following a new path God has laid for me.

I took His hand when I heard Him call,

And turned my back and left it all.

I could not stay another day,

To laugh, to love, to work or play.

Tasks left undone must stay that way,

For I found peace at the close of day.

If my parting has left a void,

Then fill it with remembered joy.

A friendship shared, a laugh, a kiss;

Ah yes, these things, I too will miss.

Be not burdened with times of sorrow,

For I wish you the sunshine of tomorrow.

My life's been full, I savoured much,

Good friends, good times, a loved ones touch.

Perhaps my time seems all to brief,

Don't lengthen it now with undue grief.

Lift up your heart and share with me,

For now I am truly, truly  free.

LOOSING OLD FRIENDS

The sudden loss of an old friend not only leaves an empty hole in your life, but it also makes you realize that we are all getting older - much, much older, and we too will soon be going on to whatever there is after death. A lot of my friends and relatives have passed on, some much earlier than one would expect and their passing's were real shockers.

Looking at the newspaper obituaries every day has become a full-time job for anyone over fifty, it seems and then, when you retire, it magically becomes a new job. When I was much younger I used to smile as my mother read the daily list of the departed in the evening paper. I didn't understand the attraction then, but I do now.

We're looking, with dread, for names of people who we either knew quite well; friends whom we haven't talked to for many years; school mates who shared a happier, worry-free past; old boy or girl friends, once romantically involved, but their fates unknown through past decades. Then suddenly, when you least expect it, their name appears . Heart stopping.

I can remember when people died of old age, heart attacks and accidents. Now-a-days, if you live to a ripe old age, they say you've beaten the system and had a good life.

The number of cancer deaths in any given month is nearly unbelievable, yet if you visit the cancer clinic at London Health Center and see the throngs of cancer patients receiving treatments daily, you'd say we were in the middle of an epidemic.

Yes, it's hard to lose family members or friends, but it's not hard to phone, email or write to those loved ones or old chums just to touch base. If you put it off and keep putting it off, someday it'll be too late, and then you'll wish you had acted when you had the chance.

DAY OF THE DIG

Photo courtesy of Rick Arsenault

It was a bright sunny morning when I arrived at Fort Beausèjour, well before the rest of my digging colleagues. I had been accepted for the early morning archeology dig on Friday the 13th of August, the last weekend of the 2010 program.

There was a short introduction, by Archeologist Charles Burke, on the process used to map out areas selected for an archeological study; how we should scrape/sift through the earth; what we would be looking for, and what we would probably find - if we were lucky. Following this we drove the short distance to the actual dig site located in a wide farm field, just steps away from a large marsh which separated the former village from the distant Fort.

During the introduction at the Fort, we had been told that when Parks Canada had acquired the 137 acres of the village, they had no idea of how the village had been laid out. In order to find some clue as to where to excavate, they dug several test holes throughout the site. If the test hole produced artifacts then they stopped excavation and moved on to another spot. After several shallow holes, or plots, were dug they could then evaluate what they had found, and sketch a rough map, with the help of satellite photographs, of how the village may have been laid out.

To test their theory, squares between 8 and 10 feet apiece were marked out in staggered patterns. In the photo below, taken a few years ago, you can see some rocks along the left hand side of the forward square. They could possibly indicate a wall or remains of some building, and the other squares behind it are exploratory holes to try and find connecting walls.

There were ten of us that bright sunny morning, plus Mr. Burk’s four archeological assistants, and they quickly assigned us to several of the pre-worked plots and handed us our tools - a bucket to carry dirt in, a small trowel to scrape the earth with, a dust pan for lifting the dirt into the bucket, a kneeling pad (thank goodness for that) and a pair of gloves.

We were shown how big an area to work and how to use the trowel to gently scrape away the compacted dirt, keeping a close eye as we went along for any signs of something that didn’t look like it belonged there.

When he assigned a section for me work, Mr. Burk indicated that I would might find some interesting items. The previous two days had uncovered several small but interesting items, but by noon I had only found several chicken bones, one lambs tooth, and a handful of Daubs.
A Daub looks very much like a misshapen piece of clay that could be completely overlooked if you didn’t know what it actually was.

When the Acadians built their log and stone buildings, they filled the cracks between the main material width a mixture of straw and mud, insulating their homes against the harsh Maritime winters. When the village was razed in 1750, the heat of the fires cooked the hardened insulation, turning it into lumps of ash which are called Daubs.

They have no value except that Mr. Burk explained to me that he has us collect them because some day he hopes to find imbedded in a Daub, the fingerprint of one of the early Acadians.

Although I didn’t find anything of great historical value, the whole experience of actually being a part of a real archeology dig, in a place where my ancestor once resided, was a thrill of a lifetime.

If you are interested in more information on the Beaubassin site and seeing pictures of what artifacts has been found so far, go to: http://publicarchaeologyexperience.wordpress.com/