Reels of classic TV shows destroyed

Press, 26 April 1983, Page 13

Reels of classic TV shows destroyed

Will future generations of television viewers ever have the chance of seeing the shows that still hold such fond memories for many people — classics of the 1960 s and 70s like “Quatermass,” “Gunsmoke,” “Wagon Train,” “Danger Man,” “Dragnet” and "Wells Fargo”? The list is endless — and depressing. More than 80 per cent of the world’s television output before the mid-1970s has either deteriorated to the point where it is unusable, or has been consigned to the incinerator because television companies simply did not have the space to store cumbersome reels of film. Even today, when programmes are recorded on miniature cassettes, only about 30 per cent of the output of major television channels is saved for posterity — a fact that deeply upsets enthusiasts who feel that priceless social history — not to mention top-class entertainment — is being needlessly destroyed. Now television buffs in Britain, Europe and America are banding together to save yesterday’s television heroes — and putting pressure on networks to preserve shows of the past, and classic series of the P Britain’s “Wider TV Access” pressure group, for instance, has discovered that all copies of the earliest “Dr Who” series, “Quatermass,” the early “Avengers” and even very early instalments of “Dad’s Army” no longer exist. Says WTVA’s Paul Kerr:

“When you asked the networks what had happened to old television shows, the invariable response was: ‘Sorry, they seemed to have been junked, old boy’.” Now, says Mr Kerr, bombarding television companies with requests for reshowings does seem to have some effect. A recent triumph was bringing back “The Fugitive,” in which the late David Janssen played Dr Richard Kimble, a man wrongfully accused of murdering his wife. Mr Kerr believes that attitudes to old programmes are slowly changing: “Once everyone lived just for the day’s output. You recorded a programme, showed it, and forgot it. There was absolutely no room for sentiment. “But television is now reaching the age when it has a past and a history. Do you realise, for example, that there is a generation which has never seen black-and-white TV?” When WTVA stepped up its lobbying of television companies, to preserve current classics and re-broad-cast old ones, the 8.8. C. cooperated by turning over a proportion of its output to the National Film Archive of the British Film Institute. “It was considered a revolutionary move,” says Mr Kerr, “but in fact, Canada, France and Scandinavia have been preserving their television shows for years. “The situation in America is a bit different because of the highly complicated copyright laws.” British television viewers, however, should soon be treated to a re-run of a classic United States crime series, “Johnny Staccato,” while science-fiction enthusiasts can look forward to the reappearance of the 20-year-old “Twilight Zone.” “Once it was fearsomely expensive to preserve tape,” says Mr Kerr, “but cassette technology is changing all that and preservation costs are getting very reasonable. “Not even modern videotape is unperishable, but any used now should last until at least the end of the century.” Thanks to the efforts of pressure groups, viewers will soon get a chance to watch “Dragnet,” starring the late Jack Webb, and the comedy police series, “Car 54, Where Are You?” starring Joe E. Ross. Some addicts of yesterday’s television go to the

lengths of hiring cinemas in i which to re-run old series — recently, London enthusiasts stared entranced at a crime series called “The Untouchables,” with Robert Stack as Elliott Ness. Says Mr Kerr: “This is reckoned an important series — when it first appeared, it was thought to reach a new low in screen violence!” WTVA even has its own magazine, “Prime Time,” which not only carries articles about old television shows, but also catalogues the titles, directors and stars. Did you know, for example, that “Naked City” started off as a half-hour series from 1958-1959, becoming an hour-long series from 1960 until 1963? What were British television audiences watching during, say the week of September 12, 1958? They were being entertained by “No Hiding Place” (a crime series now destroyed), “Take Your Pick,” a quiz show starring the late Michael Miles, and “Probation Officer,” a social drama series. Now WTVA members are "anxious to get their hands on “Ready Steady Go,” the 1960 s musical series, which, along with the defunct “Oh Boy,” was looked upon as light entertainment trailblazer. “There are still television companies who do not see the point of preservation and there is the complicated business of repeat fees for artists,” Mr Kerr says. “But slowly these problems are getting ironed out. Networks are realising that people should have access to what they want to see — even if it was made 20-odd years ago.” Now his ambition is to organise a season of “Z Cars,” which ushered in a new realism in police series, and, of course, there was “Emergency Ward 10,” the first of the cliff-hanging hospital dramas. Through the world, the search is on for the longforgotten television shows that were once international favourites — “Perry Mason,” “Dr Kildare,” “Kojak,” “Ironside” ... the list is endless. Once they do get back on the television screen, the golden oldies seem to have lost little of their sparkle. For instance, top of the current ratings in Taiwan is a 20-year-old series of the epic soap opera, “Peyton __Place.’;