United States--1978 - Revision history

Jon Preddle at 01:18, 14 April 2025

2025-04-14T01:18:08Z

Jon Preddle at 21:20, 28 May 2021

2021-05-28T21:20:15Z

Jon Preddle at 01:31, 12 September 2020

2020-09-12T01:31:26Z

John Lavalie at 19:19, 12 August 2020

2020-08-12T19:19:06Z

Jon Preddle at 03:22, 27 June 2020

2020-06-27T03:22:38Z

Jon Preddle at 02:19, 22 January 2020

2020-01-22T02:19:58Z

John Lavalie at 02:05, 28 October 2019

2019-10-28T02:05:24Z

Jon Preddle at 20:36, 27 October 2019

2019-10-27T20:36:58Z

Jon Preddle at 01:08, 27 October 2018

2018-10-27T01:08:07Z

Jon Preddle at 23:48, 3 August 2018

2018-08-03T23:48:20Z

@@ Line 147: / Line 147: @@
 *'''25 October 1978''': ''[[wikipedia:Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' magazine carries a small review of the "low-budget sci-fi spoof", noting that was screening on WOR-TV in [[New York]].
 * As the fall television season gets under way, as many as '''75''' stations across America screen the "All New" series...
-* According to an unnamed, undated American publication (but reported on page 182 of ''The Key To Time''; Peter Haining; W H Allen; 1984), many of the initial of group stations drop the series due to poor ratings (which is certainly true of [[WVEC]] in [[Virginia]]). But others continue to pick it up, and within a year the programme is regularly being broadcast on '''92''' stations. Time-Life responds, saying that "'''Doctor Who's''' success in America is undeniable!"
+* According to an unnamed, undated American publication (but reported on page 182 of ''The Key To Time''; Peter Haining; W H Allen; 1984), many of the initial group of stations to buy have now dropped the series due to poor ratings (which is certainly true of [[WVEC]] in [[Virginia]]). But others continue to pick it up, and within a year the programme is regularly being broadcast on '''92''' stations. Time-Life responds, saying that "'''Doctor Who's''' success in America is undeniable!"
 {{US nav}}

@@ Line 102: / Line 102: @@
 ----
 *'''''Space Wars''''' magazine (Vol 2/4, cover dated August 1978) carries the feature '''"Dr Who comes to America"''', but this focuses mainly on the Pertwee stories that were still airing in some States (with an episode guide, listing the 13 serials in alphabetical order) and does not mention the syndication of the Tom Baker series at all (see [[United States--1979]] page for the magazine cover).
+**[https://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Dr._Who_Comes_to_America Space Wars article]
 *[[The Hand of Fear]] airs as an omnibus "movie" as a preview story to "test" the series' potential in the US. It is known to have aired on [[WPTV]], in [[West Palm Beach]], Florida on '''24 July 1978''' (and possibly a month earlier [[New York City|New York]] station [[WOR]], however no listings for this NY screening have been found).
 {{Image table

@@ Line 25: / Line 25: @@
   </tr>
 </table>
 ----
 ='''[[Tom Baker stories|TOM BAKER]]'''=
@@ Line 80: / Line 82: @@
 |-
 |}
 - The episodes are edited slightly to bring them under 23 minutes (for instance the sequence with the Doctor trying on various outlandish costumes was removed from part one of [[Robot]]), and have narration voiced by actor [[wikipedia:Howard da Silva|Howard da Silva]].

@@ Line 100: / Line 100: @@
 *[[The Hand of Fear]] airs as an omnibus "movie" as a preview story to "test" the series' potential in the US. It is known to have aired on [[WPTV]], in [[West Palm Beach]], Florida on '''24 July 1978''' (and possibly a month earlier [[New York City|New York]] station [[WOR]], however no listings for this NY screening have been found).
 {{Image table
-|[[File:HandFearWPTV.JPG|thumb|left|250px|Hand of Fear screens on [[WPTV]]; Orlando Sentinel 24 July 1978]]|[[File:TRA 19780814.png|thumb|right|350px|"Television / Radio Age, 14 August 1978]]
+|[[File:HandFearWPTV.JPG|thumb|left|250px|Hand of Fear screens on [[WPTV]]; Orlando Sentinel 24 July 1978]]|[[File:TRA 19780814.png|thumb|right|350px|Television / Radio Age, 14 August 1978]]
 }}
 {{clear}}

@@ Line 98: / Line 98: @@
 *'''''Space Wars''''' magazine (Vol 2/4, cover dated August 1978) carries the feature '''"Dr Who comes to America"''', but this focuses mainly on the Pertwee stories that were still airing in some States (with an episode guide, listing the 13 serials in alphabetical order) and does not mention the syndication of the Tom Baker series at all (see [[United States--1979]] page for the magazine cover).
-*[[The Hand of Fear]] airs as an omnibus "movie' as a preview story to "test" the series' potential in the US. It is known to have aired on [[WPTV]], in [[West Palm Beach]], Florida on '''24 July 1978''' (and possibly a month earlier [[New York City|New York]] station [[WOR]], however no listings for this screening have been found).
+*[[The Hand of Fear]] airs as an omnibus "movie" as a preview story to "test" the series' potential in the US. It is known to have aired on [[WPTV]], in [[West Palm Beach]], Florida on '''24 July 1978''' (and possibly a month earlier [[New York City|New York]] station [[WOR]], however no listings for this NY screening have been found).
 *Industry publications, such as [http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1978/BC-1978-06-12.pdf ''Broadcasting Magazine''] (12 June 1978 issue), and ''[[wikipedia:Variety magazine|Variety]]'' (14 June 1978 issue), run Time-Life's full or half page ads for '''Doctor Who's "98 Amazing Half-Hours..."'''.
+*'''14 August 1978''': '''Doctor Who''' is advertised in ''Television/Radio Age''-  see clipping above.
 [[File:Variety1978.JPG|350px|thumb|right|Variety magazine, 16 August 1978]]
 *'''16 August 1978''': ''[[wikipedia:Variety (magazine)|Variety Magazine]]'' features '''Doctor Who''' on its cover again, this time a half-page ad which names the '''17''' cities to which the new Tom Baker series has so far been '''SOLD''':
@@ Line 125: / Line 125: @@
 **[[WVEC|Norfolk/Hampton]]
 {{clear}}
 ----
-[[File:WGBH Baker.jpg|thumb|left|First Dr Who billing, 5:00pm, 28 August 1978]]
+[[File:WGBH Baker.jpg|thumb|left|First Tom Baker Dr Who billing, 5:00pm, 28 August 1978]]
 * '''28 AUGUST 1978''': The [[Tom Baker stories]] '''DEBUT''' on American television - at 5:00pm on channel 6, WTEV in [[Rhode Island]] which also served [[New Bedford]], Massachusetts.
 {{clear}}

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 [[File:USAEmbassy.JPG|250px|thumb|right|"Pilgrims of Horror" - outside the US Embassy, 12 February 1978; reported in Daily Express, 15 February 1978]]
-*'''January 1978''': Following the success of '''Star Wars''' (which opened in Britain on 27 December 1977), and with the world hungry for science fiction entertainment featuring robots, space battles and monsters, the BBC decides to give their little SF series '''Doctor Who''' another shot at North America. By the end of the month, a deal is made with '''Time Life Television''' (previously Time Life Films, who sold the Jon Pertwee stories from 1972) to handle sales and distribution. NTSC tapes are made; at the time, the latest series (season 15) hadn't yet completed its run on UK television.
+*'''January 1978''': Following the success of '''Star Wars''' (which opened in Britain on 27 December 1977), and with the world hungry for science fiction entertainment featuring robots, space battles and monsters, the BBC decides to give their little SF series '''Doctor Who''' another shot at North America. By the end of the month, a deal is made with '''Time-Life Television''' (previously Time-Life Films, who sold the Jon Pertwee stories from 1972) to handle sales and distribution. NTSC tapes are made; at the time, the latest series (season 15) hadn't yet completed its run on UK television.
 *'''12 February 1978''': Tom Baker with K9, and a collection of monsters (a Dalek, a Sontaran, a Zygon, a Wirrn, and a Voc robot) line up outside the American Embassy in Grosvenor Square, London, for a photo shoot to publicise the sale to the States.
 [[File:VarietyNATPE.JPG|left|thumb|250px|BBC at NATPE; Variety, 15 February 1978]]
-*'''15 February 1978''': ''Variety'' magazine includes an ad from Time Life listing some of the BBC programmes they will have on offer at the upcoming '''NATPE''' exhibit; included is a little something called '''Doctor Who'''. (The photo of the Cybermen has been cut from Target's '''Second Doctor Who Monster Book'''.)
+*'''15 February 1978''': ''Variety'' magazine includes an ad from Time-Life listing some of the BBC programmes they will have on offer at the upcoming '''NATPE''' exhibit; included is a little something called '''Doctor Who'''. (The photo of the Cybermen has been cut from Target's '''Second Doctor Who Monster Book'''.)
 {{clear}}
-*At the '''4-8 March 1978''', '''[[wikipedia:NATPE|NATPE]]''' (National Association of Television Program Executives) exhibit, held at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westin_Bonaventure_Hotel Bonaventure Hotel] in downtown Los Angeles, Time Life Television promotes its latest syndication package of BBC programming, which includes '''Doctor Who'''. A lavish glossy sales brochure promoting the '''98 AMAZING HALF HOURS''' is handed out to prospective buyers, which includes representatives from a number of PBS and network-affiliated stations across the US, as well as broadcasters in [[Ecuador]], [[Venezuela]], [[Mexico]] and [[Chile]]...
+*At the '''4-8 March 1978''', '''[[wikipedia:NATPE|NATPE]]''' (National Association of Television Program Executives) exhibit, held at the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westin_Bonaventure_Hotel Bonaventure Hotel] in downtown Los Angeles, Time-Life Television promotes its latest syndication package of BBC programming, which includes '''Doctor Who'''. A lavish glossy sales brochure promoting the '''98 AMAZING HALF HOURS''' is handed out to prospective buyers, which includes representatives from a number of PBS and network-affiliated stations across the US, as well as broadcasters in [[Ecuador]], [[Venezuela]], [[Mexico]] and [[Chile]]...
 **The brochure features artwork by Chris Achilleos. Use of this (taken from Target's '''Second Doctor Who Monster Book''') was not authorised by Achilleos, who received no payment for it, and was why Achilleos withdrew from painting any more covers for the Target novels.
 <table style="border-style:solid; border-width:medium; padding-right:2em;">
-  <th colspan="2" style="text-align:center;">'''Time Life brochure, 1978'''</th>
+  <th colspan="2" style="text-align:center;">'''Time-Life brochure, 1978'''</th>
   <tr>
    <td>[[File:TimeLifewho1.jpg|thumb|250px|Cover]]</td>
@@ Line 30: / Line 30: @@
 stories, 98 episodes:
-[[File:TimeLifepromo.jpg|thumb|right|500px|Time Life promo image used on-screen as a "bumper" by some PBS stations during station breaks, and later modified by fans into a convention poster]]
+[[File:TimeLifepromo.jpg|thumb|right|500px|Time-Life promo image used on-screen as a "bumper" by some PBS stations during station breaks, and later modified by fans into a convention poster]]
 {| {{small-table}}
 |-
@@ Line 99: / Line 99: @@
 *Circa '''June 1978''': [[The Hand of Fear]] airs as an omnibus "movie' as a preview story to "test" the series' potential in the US. It is known to have aired on [[WPTV]], in [[West Palm Beach]], Florida (and possibly a few months earlier [[New York City|New York]] station [[WOR]], however no listings for it have been found).
-*Industry publications, such as [http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1978/BC-1978-06-12.pdf ''Broadcasting Magazine''] (12 June 1978 issue), and ''[[wikipedia:Variety magazine|Variety]]'' (14 June 1978 issue), run Time Life's full or half page ads for '''Doctor Who's "98 Amazing Half-Hours..."'''.
+*Industry publications, such as [http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1978/BC-1978-06-12.pdf ''Broadcasting Magazine''] (12 June 1978 issue), and ''[[wikipedia:Variety magazine|Variety]]'' (14 June 1978 issue), run Time-Life's full or half page ads for '''Doctor Who's "98 Amazing Half-Hours..."'''.
 *By '''August 1978''', screenings of the [[Jon Pertwee stories]] draw to an end... Only 16 terrestrial stations  across the United States (as well as US territory [[Guam]]) have aired the Pertwee episodes between 1972 and 1978. The final US station to purchase and air the full package of 13 [[Jon Pertwee stories]] is [[KDIN]] in [[Iowa]], however the [[Qube]] cable screenings of a smaller selection of stories continues to play until the end of '''January 1979'''...
@@ Line 140: / Line 140: @@
 *'''25 October 1978''': ''[[wikipedia:Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' magazine carries a small review of the "low-budget sci-fi spoof", noting that was screening on WOR-TV in [[New York]].
 * As the fall television season gets under way, as many as '''75''' stations across America screen the "All New" series...
-* According to an unnamed, undated American publication (but reported on page 182 of ''The Key To Time''; Peter Haining; W H Allen; 1984), many of the initial of group stations drop the series due to poor ratings (which is certainly true of [[WVEC]] in [[Virginia]]). But others continue to pick it up, and within a year the programme is regularly being broadcast on '''92''' stations. Time Life responds, saying that "'''Doctor Who's''' success in America is undeniable!"
+* According to an unnamed, undated American publication (but reported on page 182 of ''The Key To Time''; Peter Haining; W H Allen; 1984), many of the initial of group stations drop the series due to poor ratings (which is certainly true of [[WVEC]] in [[Virginia]]). But others continue to pick it up, and within a year the programme is regularly being broadcast on '''92''' stations. Time-Life responds, saying that "'''Doctor Who's''' success in America is undeniable!"
 {{US nav}}

@@ Line 85: / Line 85: @@
 -The lead character was referred to as "Doctor Who" in these narrations.
-*[http://homepages.vodafone.co.nz/~jpreddle/HdaSilva.wav HOWARD da SILVA narrations medley (AUDIO ONLY)]
+{{Audio embed|file=HdaSilva.wav|align=center|top caption=|bottom caption='''Samples of Howard da Silva intros from Season 12'''}}
 {{image table
 |[[File:Howard Da Silva-Underworld.png|300px|right]]|[[File:Howard-da-silva-02.jpg|right|200px]]

@@ Line 101: / Line 101: @@
 *Industry publications, such as [http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1978/BC-1978-06-12.pdf ''Broadcasting Magazine''] (12 June 1978 issue), and ''[[wikipedia:Variety magazine|Variety]]'' (14 June 1978 issue), run Time Life's full or half page ads for '''Doctor Who's "98 Amazing Half-Hours..."'''.
-*By '''August 1978''', screenings of the [[Jon Pertwee stories]] draw to an end... Only 16 stations across the United States (plus [[Guam]]) have aired the Pertwee episodes between 1972 and 1978. The final US station to purchase and air the package of 13 [[Jon Pertwee stories]] is [[KDIN]] in [[Iowa]].
+*By '''August 1978''', screenings of the [[Jon Pertwee stories]] draw to an end... Only 16 terrestrial stations  across the United States (as well as US territory [[Guam]]) have aired the Pertwee episodes between 1972 and 1978. The final US station to purchase and air the full package of 13 [[Jon Pertwee stories]] is [[KDIN]] in [[Iowa]], however the [[Qube]] cable screenings of a smaller selection of stories continues to play until the end of '''January 1979'''...
 [[File:TRA 19780814.png|thumb|right|250px|"Television / Radio Age, 14 August 1978]]
 *'''14 August 1978''': '''Doctor Who''' is advertised in ''Television/Radio Age''-  see clipping below.
 [[File:Variety1978.JPG|350px|thumb|right|Variety magazine, 16 August 1978]]
-*'''16 August 1978''': ''[[wikipedia:Variety (magazine)|Variety Magazine]]'' features '''Doctor Who''' on its cover again, this time a half-page ad which names the '''17''' cities to which the series has so far been '''SOLD''':
+*'''16 August 1978''': ''[[wikipedia:Variety (magazine)|Variety Magazine]]'' features '''Doctor Who''' on its cover again, this time a half-page ad which names the '''17''' cities to which the new Tom Baker series has so far been '''SOLD''':
 **[[WOR|New York]]
 **[[KBSC|Los Angeles]]