THIRTY YEARS AGO TUESDAY

[Kevin Vahey <kvahey@yahoo.com>]

It seems not possible that 30 years have passed since
that Saturday night in 1972 when WHDH-TV Channel 5
signed off with a wimper and WCVB signed on at 3:01 AM


The end had come for Channel 5 a day earlier when the
Supreme Court said enough and would not let the
longest court proceding in US history at the time
continue. The Ch 5 president spoke on WHDH's last
newscast at 11 that Saturday night ( Harold Clancy?)
and other than that the station simply signed off with
no fanfare ( the last movie was "Fixed Bayonettes")

It was an incredible time as many WHDH staffers made
the switch but it became complex as WHDH refused to
sell WCVB the studio and transmitter location ( a
short sighted move) forcing BBI to set up shop in
Needham and renting space on the Ch 4 stick.

WCVB signed on with a special at 3 AM touting how
great they would be hosted by Arnold Zenker who made
his name by subbing for Walter Cronkite during an
AFTRA strike at CBS. The first day was a horror show
for WCVB as the first newscast NOTHING went right.
Viewers were confused as CBS moved to Channel 7 as
Black Rock decided they didn't want anything to do
with the upstart, forcing 5 to become an ABC station
just in time for ABC's rise to the top in the mid 70's

In retrospect the Herald Traveler losing the license
was ill advised as the city lost a newspaper and the
so called local ownership of BBI proved to be a sham
because as feared they did sell out to Metromedia a
few years later ... ( it was always rumored that
Metromedia fronted BBI the money to set up shop) and
in fact top management was imported from Metromedia.

Still WCVB DID for many years produce an unheard of
amount of local programming ( yes kiddies once upon a
time TV did have local shows besides news) and Boston
viewers were not shortchanged.

WHDH-TV deserved a better fate, as they were a far
better operation that RKO Generals WNAC-TV which was a joke.

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