In 1996, the UN General Assembly proposed to celebrate World Television Day, November 21, with the purpose of sharing television programs on peace, security, economic and social development and expanding cultural exchange.

Life modern man It’s hard to imagine without television, because today there are no states left in the world that are not covered by television broadcasting.

AiF.ru offers a selection of interesting facts from the history of television.

The Ostankino TV tower project was invented overnight

After the Great Patriotic War In the USSR, it was decided to improve the quality of television broadcasting, which required the construction of an additional television tower. Soviet scientist Nikolai Nikitin overnight he came up with a project for the Ostankino TV tower. In Europe, the Ostankino Tower is considered the largest free-standing structure. Its height is 540 meters (45 floors). For almost 10 years it was the tallest tower in the world. Before the construction of the Ostankino television tower, constant broadcasting of television programs was provided through the Shukhov tower on Shabolovka.

Ostankino Tower. Photo: RIA Novosti

CNN is the first 24-hour broadcasting channel

CNN became the first channel to broadcast news around the clock. In America, the channel received the nickname “Chicken Noodle Network”. The broadcaster broadcasts on six continents and four languages ​​- English, Spanish, Turkish and German - and has an audience of more than a billion viewers. CNN was one of the first to switch to digital technology.

CNN, Atlanta. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

Tallest TV tower in Japan

The Sky Tree is the tallest tower structure ever built. The height of the tower is 634 m. Tokyo Tower is not only a television tower, but also a huge entertainment and shopping complex. A total of 580 thousand people took part in its construction, and during the final stage of construction, 1,200 people were at the very top at a time. A total of $812 million was spent on Tree of Heaven.

Tokyo Sky Tree. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

Kiev TV Tower - the tallest lattice structure in the world

The Kiev TV Tower is a high-rise structure with a height of 380 meters and is the tallest lattice structure in the world. A unique feature of the design is that no bolts or rivets were used when installing the tower elements; all connections are made by electric welding. The 24-story tower is part of the television center, a complex of buildings built on the site of a destroyed Jewish cemetery. Construction of the complex began in 1983, but to this day the construction of the television center has not been completed.

Kyiv TV tower. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

The first television advertisement cost the customer nine dollars

The history of paid television advertising dates back to July 1, 1941. It was on this day that a ten-second video clip from the Bulova Watch Company was shown on television in the United States. It cost the customer nine dollars, including production. In the USSR, the year of birth of the first television advertisement is 1964. It was then that a short film with elements of a musical about corn was aired. And the most famous commercial in the world is “1984,” dedicated to the Macintosh computer. Directed by Ridley Scott, it was commissioned by Apple. The price of the video was 900 thousand dollars for 90 seconds.

In England there is a tax on watching television

In the UK there is a TV tax, since 2010 it has been £145.50 per year. Its collection ensures that the BBC's public television channel operates ad-free. All households are required to pay a license fee, regardless of how they receive the television signal. All TV sellers are required to provide buyers' addresses to a special database that the BBC uses to send letters to tax evaders.

The announcers used green lipstick in their makeup.

In the era of black and white television, presenters wore green lipstick before broadcasts. It stood out more than red when the picture passed through the red filters of the cameras, and red lipstick made the lips look pale on TV screens.

Why are television series called "soap operas"?

In the 1930s, serial programs with simple plots appeared on American radio. They were sponsored by manufacturers of soap and other detergents, since the main audience for these programs were housewives. Therefore, the expression “soap opera” was assigned to radio and subsequently television series.

The longest series is not “Santa Barbara”

The longest-running series in the world, the American Guiding Light is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest-running film on television. It had 15,762 episodes. It has been watched by several generations of television viewers since 1952.

Santa Barbara. Photo: Still from the film

Most expensive television contract

The most expensive television contract is the contract with Oprah Winfrey. In six years (from 1994 to 2000), he brought the Harpo company $300 million. Oprah Winfrey owns her own film studio and her own cable TV channel, OWN.

On October 1, 1931, full-fledged television broadcasting began in Moscow - the first television programs with sound on medium waves were broadcast.

On the anniversary of domestic television, RG selected several interesting facts about Soviet television broadcasting.

Lunch break

On weekdays, Soviet television broadcast mainly in the morning and evening - from 6-8 a.m. to midnight or 11:00 p.m. And during the day, as a rule, from 13:00 to 16:00, when the Soviet worker was at his place of work, there was a break in the programs. At this time, the “First Program” showed the clock, and the “Second” showed the tuning table.

Editorial

The creation of programs of various types on Soviet television was carried out by the Chief Editorial Offices - “for children and youth”, “information” and others. Among them were some that were quite specific to modern television, for example, Chief Editor folk art, which supported the presence of the culture of numerous peoples of the USSR on television.

Makeup

At the dawn of Soviet television, announcers wore green lipstick before broadcasts. This was a common practice of the era of black-and-white television: green lipstick stood out more than red lipstick when the picture passed through the common red filters.

For bedtime

At night, when the program program came to an end, a special reminder appeared on the screen for a few minutes - a flashing message “Remember to turn off the TV,” accompanied by an unpleasant sound. It was not easy for the viewers dozing off at the screen to ignore this call.

Mechanical television

Early television in the USSR was not entirely based on electricity and used mechanical TV technology. It initially did not even involve sound broadcasting, and it was in this silent format that the first experimental television signals were given on May 1, 1931. Mechanical television was finally abandoned in favor of electric television on April 1, 1941.

Good things come in small packages

After the launch of television broadcasting in Moscow, Leningrad and Odessa, broadcasts were not carried out very often. For example, in Moscow, programs were broadcast only 12 times a month, and their duration was 60 minutes. After the war, in December 1945, Moscow viewers were the first in Europe to enjoy regular broadcasting. And it became daily since the beginning of 1955.

Long breaks

In the first half of the 20th century, the television signal was often interrupted for quite some time. long time. At the end of 1933, broadcasting in Moscow stopped for two months - at this time experiments were carried out on the transition to electric television. Leningrad television was turned off during the blockade, and the Moscow television center interrupted the broadcast for six months in 1948-1949 due to reconstruction.

TV program

Soviet television practically did not use the now common term “channel”. Instead, the Soviet viewer could switch between “programs”. Only in November 1989, the Moscow program was replaced by the Moscow Television Channel, and later Ostankino Channel One, RTR, 2x2 and others appeared.

Wide choice

Until the mid-50s, Central Television was limited to one program. In 1956, the “Second Program” appeared, in 1965 - the educational “Third”, and two and a half years later - the “Fourth”. Subsequently, eight channels were used - they carried duplicates of the main programs, adjusted for local time in other time zones.

Advertising existed on Soviet television before it appeared in its usual form in the mid-80s. Only it was broadcast not during breaks in programs, but as independent programs called “Advertising” or “More good goods" and were somewhat reminiscent of "Shopping on the Couch."

Television is one of the most important and influential media. Since its inception, it has had a significant impact on the development of society. Television helps inform people about latest news, entertains and educates. In this article we will get acquainted with amazing facts about television that few people know.


1. The Science of Persuasion

3. Dreams and reality

4. No TV

5. Repair and bankruptcy

6. Pay your taxes

8. Hacking Ether

10. Ghosts on TV

11.Music in live

12. "CSI Effect"

13. Don't part with your TV

14. At the top of popularity

15. Even more episodes

In which country did they try to prevent the development of color television due to fears of social stratification?

When color televisions appeared in Israel in the 1970s, the government considered them an unjustified luxury that contributed to social stratification, and ordered television channels to continue broadcasting in black and white and to remove the color component from imported programs and films. To do this, the so-called sync pulse was suppressed at television stations, which is why a special module in television receivers interpreted color as noise and removed it. However, engineers immediately came up with an “anti-canceller” device, which was sold in stores for 10% of the price of a new TV. The inconvenience was that about once every 15 minutes the color disappeared, and viewers had to turn a special knob to restore it. A few years later, officials discovered that the vast majority of spectators had purchased anti-suppressants and lifted the ban.

Which person went to an interview for the position of IT specialist and became a TV star?

On May 8, 2006, an emigrant from the Republic of Congo named Guy Goma was broadcast live on the BBC news channel, although he came to the television center for an interview for the position of an IT specialist. Expert Guy Cuney, who was actually supposed to be interviewed, was in another waiting room, but due to erroneous tips from an assistant, a BBC employee invited Goma into the studio. He realized that there was a mistake when the presenter had already introduced him as Cuny, but he was not taken aback and answered all the questions about downloading music from the Internet. After this incident, Goma became a local TV star and took part in many TV shows on different channels, but never got a job at the BBC.

Where and when did coughing become the reason for the charges and court sentence?

In 2001, Charles Ingram won the British TV show Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?, winning a million pounds. However, the payment was delayed when he, as well as his wife and accomplice Tecwen Whittock, who were present at the filming, were suspected of cheating. It turned out that Wittock coughed every time the presenter, listing the answers, said the correct one. All three denied malicious intent, but were found guilty by the court and fined and given suspended sentences ranging from 12 to 18 months.

What does Bradbury think is the point of Fahrenheit 451?

The main topic In the novel Fahrenheit 451, most readers believe that individuality is suppressed through government censorship, but Ray Bradbury himself states that this perception is incorrect. The author's main message is the danger of television, which destroys interest in reading literature, replacing it with entertainment, and deep knowledge with superficial “factoids.”

Which prisoners unwittingly executed themselves in the electric chair?

In the history of American prisons, there are two cases when defendants had their sentences changed from death penalty to life imprisonment, but death from electricity still found them. In 1989, Michael Anderson Godwin gave himself the electric chair by sitting on a metal toilet in his cell while repairing his television. The short circuit occurred when he cut through the wiring. In 1997, a similar incident happened to Lawrence Baker - he also sat on a metal toilet while watching TV with homemade headphones.

Where and when did TV viewers witness suicide live?

In 1974, American television journalist Christine Chubbuck committed suicide live on Florida's WXLT-TV. Chubbuck was responsible for producing crime and murder news. At the eighth minute of her next talk show, there was a problem - the story about the shooting in the restaurant was not aired. Then the journalist said: “In accordance with the channel’s policy of broadcasting the most brutal scenes in bright colors, you will become the first witnesses to a suicide attempt,” after which [the information was deleted at the request of Roskomnadzor].

Why do Berliners call the city's TV tower "the Pope's revenge"?

Just above the middle of the Berlin TV tower, built in 1965, is a stainless steel ball. When the sun illuminates it, a reflection in the form of a cross appears on the ball. In this regard, Berliners gave several witty nicknames to the tower, hinting at the persecution of the church and the cultivation of atheism during the years of the GDR. Among them is “the pope’s revenge”, another option is the Church of St. Walter - an ironic reference to the name of Walter Ulbricht, who led the GDR for twenty years.

What surprise did Muse give when they were forced to play along to a soundtrack?

Once the group Muse was invited to perform on Italian television, but was forced to do it with a soundtrack. The musicians did not boycott the performance, but switched roles. Lead singer and guitarist Matthew Bellamy sat down at the drums, drummer Dominic Howard stood behind the microphone with a bass guitar, and bass guitarist Chris Wolstenholme took up the guitar and stood at the keyboard. And after performing the song, the drummer also answered questions as a frontman.

Why was the chiming clock on television delayed for a minute during the New Year of 1992?

At the end of 1991, there was complete confusion with the New Year's address to the people. Gorbachev was formally the president of the USSR, but he no longer decided anything, and Yeltsin was also unable to congratulate him for unknown reasons. An honorary role was offered to Mikhail Zadornov, who was the host of “ Blue light" The satirist spoke live and got so carried away that he spoke a minute longer. For his sake, the chimes were delayed.

How many times does the average American police officer shoot during his career?

According to statistics, the average American police officer uses his service weapon once every 27 years during his career. And in television series, the average police officer shoots to kill at least 10 times.

What game has found a second life thanks to color television?

The billiard game snooker declined in the mid-20th century. However, interest in it increased greatly again after the BBC chose it to demonstrate the advantages of color television and began broadcasting all championships. The green table and multi-colored snooker balls were perfect for this purpose.

More recently, it was difficult for us to imagine our life without TV even for a minute. Thanks to its presence, we could have a good time watching our favorite TV shows. But scientific and technological progress did not stand still, which led to the emergence of many technical innovations. Today, phones, tablets, computers, laptops and other modern gadgets are very popular. Despite the fact that television has begun to fade into the background, I think you will be interested to know amazing facts about televisions and delve into the history of their creation.

12 facts about TVs

1. Back in 1884 and 1906, scientists invented devices that in the future became the basis of mechanical television. The first television receiver was invented by Max Dieckmann in 1907 with a screen of only 3 by 3 cm. The scanning frequency of this receiver was 10 frames per second.

2. The first transmitting electron tube iconoscope was created by Vladimir Zvorykin in 1931. With this discovery he made a real breakthrough in all electronic television.

3. The first televisions measuring 13 by 25 cm began to be produced in large volumes in the USA.

4. The television era in the USA began with funny incident. During an advertisement for one company, a very clear and believable image of a cockroach appeared on televisions. After some time, everyone learned about the existence of two lawsuits in court. It turned out that two people, thinking that these were real cockroaches on televisions, smashed them to destroy the crawling monster.

5. According to statistics, the Japanese spend the most time watching TV. It takes them about 9 hours a day to do this.

6. In families where the habit of watching television programs during meals has taken root, digestive disorders are observed.

7. Plasma TVs are considered the most short-lived. They are designed for only 300 hours of operation. After this period has expired, the display gradually fades out. High operating temperatures are to blame.

8. Laser TVs on this moment occupy the first position in terms of durability. They were patented in 2008. Their advantage is the color range, which is wider compared to others, as well as the ability to support a high refresh rate (up to 240 Hz). The pixels of these screens are not subject to burnout, which extends the life of the lasers. Laser TVs consume several times less electricity than LCD TVs.

9. In China, there is a television cemetery, where about 90 thousand faulty equipment has already been recovered.

10. It has been proven that color TVs cause less harm to the eyes than black and white TVs.

11. Some cutting-edge models of this technique miraculously help relieve stress by stimulating the eye muscles.

12. If a person lives in the UK and owns a television, he is required to pay a certain amount of tax annually.

It would be appropriate to mention the main wisdom of life: without knowing history, the future is impossible. So, you have dived a little into the history and facts about such a “miracle of technology” as a TV. Now, knowing all these facts, you will be able to draw conclusions from mistakes and create technical progress in our future. Having mastered these fun facts, you improve the quality of your life. After all, it has long been known that knowledge is the engine of progress.

One more fact that I would like to add on my own behalf. As you know, everything is good in moderation. The influence of viewing advertising on the zombification of a person has been repeatedly noted. Watching this tempting technique leads to deterioration of the figure, since the person moves little and constantly absorbs food. Think about how much time you devote to this “little family member.” But you could devote this time to your family and friends, read educational book, go in for sports, go for a walk fresh air and improve your health. Therefore, you should know not only the facts about TVs, but also all the pros and cons of watching it. After all, everyone knows catchphrase the famous ancient Greek healer and physician Hippocrates that everything in small doses is medicine, and in large doses it is poison. Take this into account and approach all your hobbies with the utmost seriousness.