Do you remember when TV stations signed off and signed on?

Post Reply New Topic

Hi, all. Here's something I remember: TV and radio stations signed off and signed on the air (or, in those in Commonwealth countries, closed down and started up, respectively.)

I remember. One example of such, from my local CBS station, KIRO-TV in Seattle:
"This is KIRO-TV, channel 7 Seattle, CBS television for Seattle and western Washington, with studios at Broadcast House, 3rd and Broad Streets, Seattle, Washington, and transmitter located on Queen Anne Hill in Seattle. Channel 7 transmits with a power of 316,000 watts by authority of the Federal Communications Commission. We now conclude another day of telecasting. We trust we have fulfilled our purpose of making your day fuller with the entertainment, news, and public service you desire. Now, speaking for the staff and management of channel 7, we bid you a most pleasant good night."

Surely, I can't be the only one who remembers when TV stations didn't broadcast 24/7!

I remember when being allowed to stay up long enough to see this...

Yes. I remember getting up too early and seeing white snow when I turned the TV on.

In time they had the "Test card" and in the 80s they had Ceefax or Teletex rolling with Muzak.

The famous test card

Yes. They would show footage of an American flag on a flagpole, play the national anthem. Then sign off. Maybe test pattern with test tone, and then just static.