February 25, 1950…”Your Show Of Shows” Debuts On NBC!<\/p>\n
\u201cYSOS\u201d debuted as part of a two and a half hour block that was called \u201cSaturday Night Review.\u201d The first hour, was \u201cThe Jack Carter Show,\u201d live from WMAQ in Chicago and was a comedy and variety affair airing at 8 Eastern.<\/p>\n
At 9, ninety minutes of fun on YSOS hit the air and was followed at 10:30 by \u201cYour Hit Parade\u201d. Jack Carter\u2019s show was replaced the next year by \u201cThe All Star Review.\u201d This two and a half hour block was the first time Pat Weaver’s \u201cparticipating sponsor\u201d plan was used, which gave us the now famous phrase; “Brought to you in part by _____,”<\/p>\n
The show debuted from NBC’s first theater converted to television, The International at 5 Columbus Circle. YSOS was actually a carryover from a 1949 show that had been so popular, it was canceled!?!? What? It’s true!<\/p>\n
“The Admiral Broadway Revue” was the start of one of television’s greatest early comedy teams…Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca, with the great Max Liebman producing. The show had great ratings but unbelievably, Admiral (who \u201cowned\u201d the show) ended it in May of ’49. It seems that the show generated sales of Admiral TV sets that were far beyond their capacity to manufacture them. Admiral had to either end the show or build a new plant.<\/p>\n
Since they owned the show, it could not continue with another sponsor and they would not sell it. Such were the sponsorship problems of the early days of television. Soon after this, NBC Vice President Pat Weaver would solve this problem by having the network own the shows and sell spots to sponsors. He is the man that brought magazine style ad sales to radio and television, which spread the cost of production among several advertisers.<\/p>\n
On February 25, 1950, four of The International’s brightest years started with the debut of \u201cYour Show Of Shows,\u201d Caesar and Coca were back with a cast of writers that have become the \u201cwho’s who\u201d of comedy including Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner and more.<\/p>\n