April 14, 1956…The Videotape Revolution Begins; VR-1000 Debuts

This prototype Ampex VTR called “Mark IV” started a whole new era in television. Taken at the National Association of Radio & Television Broadcasters show in Chicago, the crowd photo shows the first demonstration. When this group of CBS television affiliates saw remarks by CBS’s Bill Lodge miraculously replayed moments later, everything changed! This day, a STAR was born!

Even at $50,000 per machine, the week of the demonstration, Ampex took almost 100 orders for the VR-1000 and all that got you was a space on the waiting list. Fred Pfost, one of the Ampex video tape development team members describes the scene that day.

“On the Saturday, April 14, two days before the convention started, we demonstrated the recorder for about 300 CBS affiliates meeting at the Conrad Hilton Hotel. I recorded (from behind a curtain) the opening speech of Bill Lodge, V.P. of CBS, who described all the activities that CBS had been involved in during the past year, and his announcement of a big surprise, that was about to happen. After I rewound the tape and pushed the play button for this group of executives, they saw the instantaneous replay of the speech.”

“There were about ten seconds of total silence, until they suddenly realized just what they were seeing on the twenty video monitors located around the room. Pandemonium broke out with wild clapping and cheering for five full minutes. This was the first time in history that a large group (outside of Ampex) had ever seen a high quality, instantaneous replay of any event. The experience still brings tears to my eyes when I recall this event.”

“During the week of the convention, the Ampex display area was packed, all day, every day. Orders came so fast and furious, that the Ampex sales staff was writing orders on cocktail napkins.”

It took Ampex a year to fill just the orders taken at the convention. If memory serves me right, CBS got the first 5, NBC got the second 5 and ABC, the third 5, with more on order for all 3 networks. I think CBS put 3 at TVC, and had 2 in NYC. NBC put 3 at Burbank, 1 in NYC and 1 went to RCA Labs in Princeton, with RCA and Ampex starting to share RCA’s color tape ability. I think ABC put 3 at Prospect and 2 in NYC.

Happy Anniversary Videotape! – Bobby Ellerbee

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