1949–50 United States network television schedule
The 1949–50 United States network television schedule began in September of 1949 and ended in the spring of 1950. This was the first season in which all four networks offered at least some prime time programming all seven nights of the week.
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The schedule below reflects the fall lineup as it all settled into place throughout October 1949, before any subsequent time changes were made and additional new series appeared in November.
New fall series are highlighted in bold.
Notable debuts during the season included The Plainclothesman with its unusual camera work, the popular The Lone Ranger (which is one of the few 1940s television series to be given a DVD release), The Ed Wynn Show (a short-lived series featuring popular performers as guests and the first variety show from the West Coast), and the unsuccessful series The Life of Riley, one of the first sitcoms to be produced on film as opposed to live transmission. Continuing from the prior season were the highly popular variety series Toast of the Town, the critically well-received and popular anthology series Studio One, the critically panned but popular Captain Video and His Video Rangers which was one of the earliest sci-fi TV series, the well received by critics and viewers anthology series Kraft Television Theater, the popular Kukla, Fran and Ollie, and the popular in some regions drama/comedy The Goldbergs (which is also one of the few 1940s television series to be given a DVD release).
Fall Schedule
- Light blue indicates local programming.
- Blue-gray indicates news programming.
- Light green indicates sporting events.
- Light purple indicates movies.
Sunday
| Network | 7:00 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 8:00 p.m. | 8:30 p.m. | 9:00 p.m. | 9:30 p.m. | 10:00 p.m. | 10:30 p.m. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Stained Glass Windows | ABC Penthouse Players | Think Fast | The Little Revue | Let There Be Stars | Celebrity Time | Youth on the March | ||
| CBS | Fall | Tonight on Broadway | This Is Show Business | Toast of the Town | The Fred Waring Show | (10:00) The Week in Review (10:15) Local Programming |
Local Programming | ||
| Mid-season | Starlight Theatre | ||||||||
| DMN | Front Row Center | Chicagoland Mystery Players | Cinema Varieties | Cross Question | Local Programming | ||||
| NBC | Leave It to the Girls | The Aldrich Family | The Chesterfield Supper Club | Colgate Theatre | The Philco Television Playhouse | Garroway at Large | Local Programming | ||
Monday
| Network | 7:00 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 8:00 p.m. | 8:30 p.m. | 9:00 p.m. | 9:30 p.m. | 10:00 p.m. | 10:30 p.m. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | (7:00) News and Views (7:15) Club Seven |
Author Meets the Critics | Your Witness | Photoplay Time | ABC Barn Dance | Mr. Black | Roller Derby | |
| CBS | (7:00) The Roar of the Rails (7:15) The Paul Arnold Show |
(7:30) CBS Television News (7:45) The Sonny Kendis Show (7:55) Ruthie on the Telephone |
The Silver Theater | Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts | The Black Robe | The Goldbergs | Studio One | |
| DMN | Captain Video and His Video Rangers | (7:30) The Vincent Lopez Show (7:45) Manhattan Spotlight |
Newsweek Views the News | The Al Morgan Show | And Everything Nice | Wrestling From Sunnyside Gardens | ||
| NBC | Kukla, Fran and Ollie | (7:30) Mohawk Showroom (7:45) Camel News Caravan |
Chevrolet Tele-Theater | The Voice of Firestone | Candid Camera | Cities Service Band of America | Quiz Kids | Local Programming |
Notes: Beginning July 18, 1949, The Magic Cottage aired on DuMont Monday through Friday from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
On NBC, The Black Robe aired at various times on Mondays from August through October 1949.
Tuesday
| Network | 7:00 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 8:00 p.m. | 8:30 p.m. | 9:00 p.m. | 9:30 p.m. | 10:00 p.m. | 10:30 p.m. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | (7:00) News and Views (7:15) Club Seven |
On Trial | Local Programming | Oboler Comedy Theater | Local Programming | Tomorrow's Boxing Champions | ||
| CBS | (7:00) Your Sports Special (7:15) Local Programming |
(7:30) CBS Television News (7:45) The Sonny Kendis Show (7:55) Ruthie on the Telephone |
Uptown Jubilee | Actors Studio (from November) | Suspense | (10:00) The Week in Sports (10:15) Local Programming |
Local Programming | |
| DMN | Captain Video and His Video Rangers | (7:30) The Vincent Lopez Show (7:45) Manhattan Spotlight |
Court of Current Issues | The O'Neills | Feature Theater | Local Programming | ||
| NBC | Kukla, Fran and Ollie | 7:30 Mohawk Showroom (7:45) Camel News Caravan |
Texaco Star Theater | Fireside Theater | The Life of Riley | The Original Amateur Hour | ||
Notes: Beginning July 18, 1949, The Magic Cottage aired on DuMont Monday through Friday from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Wednesday
| Network | 7:00 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 8:00 p.m. | 8:30 p.m. | 9:00 p.m. | 9:30 p.m. | 10:00 p.m. | 10:30 p.m. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | (7:00) News and Views (7:15) Club Seven |
Local Programming | Actors Studio (through October) | Photocrime | Local Programming | Wrestling from the Rainbo in Chicago | ||
| CBS | (7:00) Your Sports Special (7:15) The Paul Arnold Show |
(7:30) CBS Television News (7:45) Earl Wrightson at Home |
Arthur Godfrey and His Friends | The Bigelow Show | International Boxing Club Bouts | |||
| DMN | Captain Video and His Video Rangers | (7:30) The Vincent Lopez Show (7:45) Manhattan Spotlight* |
Local Programming | The Plainclothesman | Famous Jury Trials | Local Programming | ||
| NBC | Kukla, Fran and Ollie | (7:30) Mohawk Showroom (7:45) Camel News Caravan |
The Crisis | The Clock | Kraft Television Theater | Break the Bank | Local Programming | |
- Manhattan Spotlight was replaced by Easy Aces from December 1949 to June 1950.
Notes: Beginning July 18, 1949, The Magic Cottage aired on DuMont Monday through Friday from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Thursday
| Network | 7:00 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 8:00 p.m. | 8:30 p.m. | 9:00 p.m. | 9:30 p.m. | 10:00 p.m. | 10:30 p.m. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | (7:00) News and Views (7:15) Club Seven |
The Lone Ranger | Stop the Music | Crusade in Europe | Starring Boris Karloff | Roller Derby | ||
| Spring | Blind Date | ||||||||
| Summer | Blind Date | ||||||||
| CBS | To the Queen's Taste | 7:30 CBS Television News (7:45) The Sonny Kendis Show (7:55) Ruthie on the Telephone |
The Front Page | Inside U.S.A. with Chevrolet | The Ed Wynn Show | Local Programming | |||
| DMN | Captain Video and His Video Rangers | (7:30) The Vincent Lopez Show (7:45) Manhattan Spotlight |
Mystery Theater | The Morey Amsterdam Show | Boxing From Sunnyside Gardens | ||||
| NBC | Fall | Kukla, Fran and Ollie | (7:30) Mohawk Showroom (7:45) Camel News Caravan |
Hollywood Premiere | Mary Kay and Johnny | Fireball Fun-For-All | Martin Kane, Private Eye | The Wayne King Show | |
| Winter | The Black Robe | ||||||||
Notes: Beginning July 18, 1949, The Magic Cottage aired on DuMont Monday through Friday from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
On NBC, The Black Robe aired from 8:00 to 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time from January to March 1950. The Wayne King Show was seen only on NBC's Midwest Network.
Friday
| Network | 7:00 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 8:00 p.m. | 8:30 p.m. | 9:00 p.m. | 9:30 p.m. | 10:00 p.m. | 10:30 p.m. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Fall | (7:00) News and Views (7:15) Club Seven |
Local Programming | Majority Rules | Blind Date | Auction-Aire | Fun for the Money | Roller Derby | |
| Spring | |||||||||
| CBS | (7:00) Your Sports Special (7:15) The Paul Arnold Show |
(7:30) CBS Television News (7:45) The Sonny Kendis Show (7:55) Ruthie on the Telephone |
Mama | Man Against Crime | Ford Theatre / 54th Street Revue | People's Platform | Capitol Cloak Room | ||
| DMN | Captain Video and His Video Rangers | (7:30) The Vincent Lopez Show (7:45) Manhattan Spotlight |
Hands of Murder | Broadway to Hollywood – Headline Clues | Fishing and Hunting Club | Local Programming | Amateur Boxing Fight Club | ||
| NBC | Kukla, Fran and Ollie | (7:30) Mohawk Showroom (7:45) Camel News Caravan |
Hopalong Cassidy | Bonny Maid Versatile Varieties | The Big Story | (10:00) Gillette Cavalcade of Sports (10:45) Greatest Fights of the Century | |||
Notes: Beginning July 18, 1949, The Magic Cottage aired on DuMont Monday through Friday from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Saturday
| Network | 7:00 p.m. | 7:30 p.m. | 8:00 p.m. | 8:30 p.m. | 9:00 p.m. | 9:30 p.m. | 10:00 p.m. | 10:30 p.m. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | (7:00) News and Views (7:15) Local Programmming |
Hollywood Screen Test | Paul Whiteman's TV Teen Club | Local Programming | |||||
| CBS | Fall | (6:45) Lucky Pup (7:15) Local Programming |
(7:30) In the First Person (7:45) Blues by Bargy (7:55) Ruthie on the Telephone |
Local Programming | Premiere Playhouse | Local Programming | |||
| Spring | (6:45) Lucky Pup (7:15) Blues by Bargy |
||||||||
| Summer | Big Top | ||||||||
| DMN | Fall | Captain Video and His Video Rangers | Local Programming | Spin the Picture | Cavalcade of Stars | Wrestling From Marigold | |||
| Winter | Dinner Date With Vincent Lopez | ||||||||
| NBC | Fall | Local Programming | (7:30) The Nature of Things (7:45) Leon Pearson and the News |
Meet Your Congress | Mixed Doubles | Who Said That? | Meet the Press | Local Programming | |
| Follow-up | The Black Robe | Local Programming | |||||||
Notes: In the half-hour preceding prime time, ABC aired one of the first television westerns, The Marshal of Gunsight Pass, with 22 live episodes between March 12 and September 30, 1950.
From January 28 to July 29, 1950, Dinner Date With Vincent Lopez aired Saturdays from 8 to 8:30pm ET on DuMont.
On NBC, The Black Robe aired from 10:00 to 10:30 p.m. on Saturday from November to December 1949 after airing at various times on Monday from August to October 1949. Your Show of Shows premiered at 9:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, February 25, 1950, .
References
- Bergmann, Ted; Skutch, Ira (2002). The DuMont Television Network: What Happened?. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-4270-X.
- Castleman, H. & Podrazik, W. (1982). Watching TV: Four Decades of American Television. New York: McGraw-Hill. 314 pp.
- McNeil, Alex. Total Television. Fourth edition. New York: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-024916-8.
- Brooks, Tim & Marsh, Earle (1964). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows (3rd ed.). New York: Ballantine. ISBN 0-345-31864-1.