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1940 First color television broadcast from CBS transmitter atop the Chrysler Building is received in the CBS building at 485 Madison Avenue.
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1941 Arthur Godfrey CBS gets its first FM station, WCBS in New York. After the war, CBS picks up its other FM frequencies.
Dr. Stanton persuades Arthur Godfrey to move from a local Washington, D.C. station to do a radio show from WCBS in New York.
July 1, 1941 Fifteen hours a week of black-and-white television programming begins at New York station WCBW (later renamed WCBS). News is prominent in the schedule.
December 7, 1941 John Daly of CBS News interrupts network programming to announce that the Japanese have attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. CBS experimental station WCBW in New York goes on the air with a nine-hour broadcast on the attack on Pearl Harbor, which is the first television news instant special. CBS broadcasts nearly 35,700 programs connected with the war effort throughout the war.
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1942 WCBW television cuts programming back from 15 hours a week to four for the rest of the war.
Many CBS radio broadcasts are done from army bases, and big bands often play for the USOs. Amateur shows put on talent from local army bases.
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1943 Paley takes a leave of absence from CBS to serve as a colonel in the U.S. Army. Attached to General Eisenhower's staff in London, Col. Paley heads the Office of Psychological Warfare. Paul Kesten, whose genius for promotion was critical in making CBS competitive, is named Executive Vice President and heads CBS during Paley's absence. Dr. Stanton, now Vice President and General Executive, is one of CBS's top four executives.
Along with the war reporting, radio listeners still hear some favorite CBS entertainment shows, such as "Hit Parade," "Suspense," "Inner Sanctum" and "Lux Radio Theater."
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1944 CBS Radio Network has 147 stations.
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1945 Back from the war, Paley becomes Chairman of the CBS Board, Paul Kesten requests a less active role, and Dr. Frank Stanton is named President of the Company.
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1946 CBS, which has been developing a color television system under Dr. Peter Goldmark since the late 1930s, petitions the FCC to permit it to begin broadcasting commercially in color. The problem with the CBS system is that broadcasts transmitted in color can't be picked up on existing black and white sets. The FCC denies the petition.
CBS Television Network presents first-ever television broadcast of the National Football League.
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1946-1948
CBS radio begins to produce its own shows, including "My Friend Irma," "Our Miss Brooks," "Crime Photographer" and "Life with Luigi."
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1947 CBS telecasting expands beyond New York to feed programming to other stations: Baltimore, Washington, D.C. and, later, Philadelphia.
CBS broadcasts the World Series between the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers.
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1948 Paley lures some of NBC's biggest stars--Jack Benny, Red Skelton, Edgar Bergen (father of future CBS star Candice Bergen) and Amos 'n' Andy--to CBS. Though first on CBS radio, most will move on to become CBS television stars.
Arthur Godfrey debuts on CBS Television with "Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts," (which is already on CBS Radio), followed by "Arthur Godfrey and His Friends" (title later changed to "The Arthur Godfrey Show") on January 12, 1949; the show runs until April 28, 1959. He also does a daytime show, "Arthur Godfrey Time" (which also airs on radio and TV). Other Godfrey programs include "Arthur Godfrey and His Ukelele" and "Metropolitan Parade." The popular "Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts" becomes the number-one rated regularly scheduled primetime program of the 1951-52 season.
The CBS Television Network is formed, with WCAU-TV Philadelphia as the first affiliate. There are 30 affiliate stations within the year.
Plans are announced to build the largest and most modern television studios in the world in Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan.
March 1948 Television was the baby of broadcasting back when CBS Chairman William S. Paley announced that on Tuesday, April 6 at 7:00 PM, "CBS-TV cameras visit the Alvin Theater in New York City to present...actual play scenes and behind-the-scene glimpses of the Broadway smash hit, 'Mr. Roberts,' starring Henry Fonda." It was the first program in a series called "Tonight on Broadway," and the first program broadcast on the CBS Television Network.
May 3, 1948 Douglas Edwards begins "The CBS-TV News," a regular 15-minute nightly newscast later named "Douglas Edwards with the News." It is broadcast weeknights at 7:30 PM and is the first regularly scheduled television news program.
June 20, 1948 Ed Sullivan's "Toast of the Town" debuts (and runs through June 6, 1971). The name is changed to "The Ed Sullivan Show" on September 18, 1955, the year in which it wins an Emmy Award for Best Variety Series. (See September 9, 1956 and February 9, 1964)
November 2, 1948 CBS News provides its first dual radio and television coverage of the political conventions: Radio coverage is nationwide, television coverage is primarily in the East. CBS also provides all-night reporting of presidential election returns, from Tuesday night (8:00 PM) into Wednesday morning (5:40 AM).
November 7, 1948 "Studio One" begins producing an hour of live, original television drama each week. In its 11-year run, "Studio One" produces fine drama such as "Twelve Angry Men" and "The Scarlet Letter." The series runs through September 29, 1958 and wins an Emmy for Best Dramatic Series for the 1951 season.
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September 1949 "Candid Camera," hosted by Allen Funt, joins CBS for one season, then returns from October 1960 to September 1967.
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