Watch a 1965 Zenith COLOR Television with original programming!

[@Captain_Char]

There's something very charming about the softer colors on these old sets

[@Channel-cm7yc]

The whole broadcast chain was also very much a part of that as well. Studio videos and audio Processing and even over the air signal processing has so very much evolved since that time as well. Solid state anything from the studio to the transmitter itself and to your home was still very much not a thing in 1965 and a labor of love for engineers of that era to maintain. There was so much signal drift with vacuum tubes in camera’s, exciters etc etc and one of the reasons broadcast stations signed off so services could be performed on studio and broadcast equipment late at night. Like television sets it was a high maintenance operation prone to failure and a moments notice! It sure was a different animal in the earlier days of TV & radio broadcasting. Many will agree a great time. Then time became a cost factor and things had to change!

[@anthonyv1971]

​@@Channel-cm7yc I'm 27 but I often forget that television was analog at one point up until the late 2000s, it's just errie yet fascinating at the same time that we once made memories watching our favorite shows/movies in that manner, I can't really explain it

[@darrylthomas2462]

Hello all! My Mom And dad had this same model. I was born in '62. Thank god for youtube. It's always good to reminisce..

[@michelescanzano6280]

darryl thomas Us too , the same

[@michelescanzano6280]

Twirk?

[@michelescanzano6280]

I watched the monkeys , on the same Kind of tv , looks, exactly like ours

[@michelescanzano6280]

V c r

[@michelescanzano6280]

500.

[@SaxonC]

I remember when TV sets had to warm up when they’re first turned on. I miss those good old days

[@yell0wberry]

Saxon C I would often get mad that I either had to walk up to the TV to turn the channel or I had to adjust the damn rabbit ears until the screen was clear

[@empireOfcHiNa8888]

You can still get one, just look for one :/

[@mikehudson8884]

WOW love those old TV's they are something. A possession you loved owning.

[@watershed44]

They were a significant investment when you look at what they cost back then. Of course they were built to last and if they needed service they were designed to be repaired fairly easily. When Made In The USA was the norm.

[@frankp3]

I FOUND IT! This is the SAME TV we had in our house up until about 1980. Although it never really worked right, (We took turns jumping on the wood floor to straighten out the "pulling" picture) I can remember watching The Ed Sullivan Show, Batman, Bewitched, and many historical moments on that TV...I really miss it..thanks for posting!

[@karlhungus5554]

People looked so much nicer back then. The ladies were gorgeous and classy.

[@Briandacunos]

Yes but I like the generation now more

[@karlhungus5554]

@@Briandacunos What ages are you referring to and what do you prefer about them? Also, how old are you (approximately)?

[@RodBeauvex]

@@Briandacunos How so?

[@SpoofedTVadmin]

You meant to say, the people they put on TV back than looked nice.

[@karlhungus5554]

@@SpoofedTVadmin Good point. That was certainly part of it. But, walking around society today, there's a stark difference between people now and the 1960s and prior. I remember the 1970s.

[@68lincoln]

Beautiful '65 Zenith color console and Sing Along With Mitch also brings back nice memories. Great set from the greatest era in the USA. It was a simpler time and yet we still had so much. I miss those days.

[@petertucker524]

Sweet then BS today

[@karenroy9045]

I had my last floor model TV in 1985 when I got married. It was beautiful and like a piece of furniture along with the rest of our furniture in our little apartment.

[@freagle123]

So here we are, the KZbin algorithm has led us to a 14 year old video about a 59 year old television.

[@eamonhorahan666]

we had this exact set! dad bought in 1965 for my mothers birthday.... but we all knew why he did it. nbc had the most color out there..... but they also had afl football... in color.... to make her happy it also happened to come with a Magnavox console stereo. when my navy dad went out to sea..... she would bring out the beatles records he hated..... and mom and I loved. but when he came back.... it was Lawrence welk. on the tv and the stereo. but the zenith stood tall throughout.... and lasted us 8 plus years! that quality was there I tell ya!!!!

[@appealingpit]

Wow very nice picture on that old set. A nice tv from history.

[@whiskeyify]

Our first color set was a 1968 RCA...I'll never forget that night I got to watch the Wild Wild West in color. I remember watching the tv repair guy come to home and seeing the inside of the set and wondering how it worked. Later on in life I got to manage a TV repair shop here in Los Angeles.

[@Bagel-the-Beagle-1]

Hi Doug I have my gradmothers tv from 1955. It's a Zenith Royal X Chasis with flashmatic cells on each corner. the set still works fine even after it got struck by lighting back in 1963.Cosmedilly it need help but the picture is great and the 10 in speaker was kicked in by my son. But all in all it still works.. great to c old tvs working

[@JENDALL714]

Those particle board back covers with the holes were so common with almost every piece of electronics in those days.

[@ThomasSchick]

...Brings back fond memories...

[@AI4QT]

Another great video. As I was watching this segment of the Mitch Miller "Sing Along" I thought, wow! His show was one of the earliest examples of "interactive" television! BTW, Mitch is still living and is 99 years old!!!!

[@RodBeauvex]

He died not long after you made this comment. D:

[@haileyh500]

Our first color tv was this exact model.

[@allenmoore8477]

Zenith sold a ton of this model set. I knew of a handful from just classmates in my elementary school. I think Zenith started offering this model in 1963 or so. I think they sold for something like $479.00 or so in 1965.

[@duanethamm4688]

My dad and I found one of these consoles on the street though I think mine did not have UHF. Best color I have ever seen. The red this TV produced look like blood. Rare earth tube with no bonded glass. Amazing.

[@joestewart8914]

Allen you are absolutely correct about the price. All these 21-inch sets were $479-$499 in various cabinet furniture styles, the most popular being Danish Modern. That's $4,000 in 2020 dollars.

[@LaurenceMacNeill]

Sing along with Mitch! Awesome. :-)

[@MegaRadio90]

Television! back when people cared about entertaining gosh how refreshing. :)

[@andrewphillips799]

I love it when the programming and the TV set are the same vintage. Nothing destroys a good vibe like 21st century jive turkey programming. It’s Sing Along With Mitch, sponsored by Sting Along With Itch (lotion). ;)

[@larryaldrich4351]

I enjoy this very much. I miss the old analog color set.

[@danmurphy7713]

We had one just like this when I was about 5 yrs old . I remember the bottom door and the color knobs , got my but spanked for messing with those dam knobs . Wow this brings back a flood of memories. THANK YOU Sir !!. We lived in the Chicago suburbs in the early 60s ..

[@thompsonmarkjohn]

I met Mitch Miller in a restaurant 15 years ago when I was having dinner with band leader Doc Severinsen. He came over to say HI to Doc and still looked a lot like this except with a gray goatee.

[@marcc3516]

How things have changed, if that program were on today it would be, Twerk along with Miley Cyrus.

[@B01G3n1us]

Or rap along with DaBaby

[@frankpitochelli6786]

Having been in the TV Repair business I started in 1978 , I was in the business until 2017 when the industry became a throwaway business. However, I remember working on many models from the 60s and 70's can still remember the smell of those older tvs ... I miss those days sincerely. I wish I would've saved all the tubes the I accumulated over those years.

[@michelescanzano6280]

I wish i still had ours, It looked exactly, like This one ....

[@DrunkenUFOPilot]

As a kid I poked around inside several TVs. Very familiar with the parts. I can almost smell the dust looking at this video.

[@davidmiller3573]

All Quality, All Style, All American!!!! If only we could go back.

[@diamonddave45]

This sort of reminds me of my parents' GTE-Sylvania 25 inch TV. Built in a very similar way. Vacuum tube for the picture, but transistorized for the audio. It was a workhorse for 18 years. Still wish we had it repaired instead of taken to the dump.

[@ldchappell1]

You were lucky to have a dad willing to buy a color TV. I was born in 1958 and we never had a color TV when I was growing up. "You want color? Go to the movies!" my dad used to say. Of course they were very expensive. $500 in 1966 is the same as $3,740 today. I didn't own a color set until 1977 when I was 19. My dad chewed me out for wasting money. I told him "Yeah, but it's MY money to waste." lol

[@donwebber7034]

Thank you for this I am crying bitter sweet tears as floods of memories cascade through my mind!

[@bubblegumgun3292]

Nostalgia, the sweetest poison

[@aldiakaroofus]

$5?!? Wow! Of course, it takes lots of skills to restore vintage equipment! I wish I knew how to fix things!

[@leehuff2330]

I remember us having a Zenith TV Similar to this when I was a small child in the very early 1970s. I don't remember if it was color or not, but the cabinet looks right.I was born in 1968, so my earliest memories are from about 1971 or 72.

[@danawadd]

wow... the Zenith is two years older than me... my parents bought Zenith sets before and during my childhood. You must've been a TV repairman in a previous life ;-)

[@avolite719]

8:58 - Wow, Milton Berle singing. I never knew.

[@bones007able]

My favorite time of year to watch mitch miller was of course christmas time .... as a kid it was awesome to sing all the christmas songs...

[@retrobeat4194]

Nice! I'd really like to watch something off one of these valve t.v's I just don't have the room at the moment to start restoring them! That T.V looks and sounds beautiful.

[@yell0wberry]

Retrobeat I would've kept the one I had, but once the cable systems changed to high DEF, it became near impossible to use these TVs anymore

[@jsilence418]

Such a big part of peoples lives and a big part of popular culture, yet not many like me for instance, know the workings of these beasts thanks !

[@drh4683]

Its the camera. It makes the screen look too blue. But yes, the purity is perfect.

[@paulburrell7058]

Very pretty console ... well done 👍🏾

[@toshiojohnston3732]

Nice if most flat screens could work so well so long in 9 years went through 2 tvs just bought #3 in feb lets hope it can last 3 to 5 years.

[@BIGD-gj1vb]

The roundie to die for. Man. If I could only find one...

[@lordruperteverton993]

Tint was an extremely important part of my life in the late sixties.

[@ttun100]

I remember when having a color tv was a big deal. My parents bought their first color tv in 1968, of course, it went in their bedroom. No color tv in the living room for us kids until 1971. Many of my friends didn't have a color tv in their house until well into the 1970's.

[@Turkeydoodlers]

This is great Doug, I haven't seen this video yet. Great loved it, I didn't know Mitch was on tv. I have a bunch of his records. Great stuff

[@kimkelly1492]

I'd love to see someone with one of these old sets play a clip of THE MONKEES! Same for Laugh-In and Carol Burnett!

[@yell0wberry]

Kim Kelly these TVs were absolutely perfect for watching the Ed Sullivan show

[@lawnking168]

wow!! that was great!!! plays great!!! of course, it's a zenith!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i have several zenith products and my newest is a 1990 floor model that only broke down 1 time for a sound card!! i bought it new in 90 and i have grown up with zenith since i was a kid!! [1962]. i have a console from 1938 and several trans-oceanics incl. the last one in 1982. it is so sad to see comp. like this fall into history books!! you are a doing a great service keeping quality before the name goes on!!!!!!!!

[@jerrycarriera8648]

My grandmother had a TV identical to this one. When she bought a new one in 1980, she offered this one to me. Like a damned fool that I am, I didn't take and it worked perfectly too. She just wanted a new one that had a bigger screen and a remote control.

[@frankp3]

The control door has the SAME SQUEAK!! Wow!

[@adriancressy8363]

my uncle would sing-along with Mitch all of those old songs when he would get ready for his shift

[@78recordrepair]

Those were the days. Like a time machine.

[@williamlinington9166]

I miss this guys videos.

[@therealhardrock]

I remember this song being used in "Two Chips and a Miss."

[@enigmablazemain1]

My mom's uncle have this it programs a 1967 ABS CBN because it was shipped in our country which is philippines until today it is still working alongside with my 1967 Radiowealth Technicolor TV and 1975 Samsung Econo TV

[@fredroper398]

Amassing this is when times were simple and good why cant they build LEDs in this style instead of molded plastic even the TV cabinet in the Zenith was warm looking and made television more fun to watch I miss those days so much the Tv shows are not as good as this a era a television that will be missed,Real talent

[@Jules7892]

This Zenith model 5219U is "extremely funny, its a literal walk into the "past of 1965 Living-Colour TechniColour Television Broadcasting"! Its just fantastic to go into this "Time Machine with this Zenith Colour CRT Television in "Living TechniColour and experience the Old times again, in Living-TechniColour Television Super Sharp.""!!

[@larry88628]

the channel that was reciving on the 1965 zenith was nbc 4 new york

[@julesverne4629]

Its a Great Trip back in Time on these "Zenith 24" inch round CRT Color Televisions". Its Great to go back in Time to 1965 on this Zenith 24" CRT Color Televisions!! Its fun to watch!!

[@glennk1931]

Thank you for this showing.

[@ThisGuyFrritz]

Our first color TV had a round tube just like that. Although it was not a Zenith but a Philco. One of my earliest memories (even before I was in Nursery School) in watching TV was "Felix the Cat" (when it was in re-runs in the '70s). Probably even older than that Mitch Miller show. Well, it became a piece of junk and stopped working. So, one of us destroyed the CRT tube. :-] By then, we've been using transistor or IC type TVs.

[@PlumbPitiful]

I grew up with black and white television because my mother was convinced that color tvs emitted harmful radiation.

[@frankp3]

How much did this cost in 1965 dollars? I remember when it was delivered--dad took time off from work to be home for it. It was a BIG deal!

[@thomaslucas6079]

I was 10 in 1965 so I never noticed. But seeing what corney programs they had in the day I feel sorry for the adults of the time period.

[@kathyquinn8616]

Wow, I would Love to have a TV like that in the family movie room of my house, in the family movie room of my house it would have a little kitchenette, with a Fridge that'll have nothing but Sodas, and Lemonade, and Cabinets would have Candy Bars, Potato Chips, Granola Bars, etc. etc. and six Bookshelves that'll have movies.

[@lohphat]

This looks really familiar to me. I think we had one when I was a toddler.

[@kimonosobek1]

Colors look great!

[@ToyKingWonder]

I have the same TV, but with a slightly different cabinet. On mine, the top is flat and does not have the rounded edge this one does. Mine still works, but needs some work done to it. My parents bought it new in 1965!

[@TheMaxx111]

+ToyKingWonder Were you guys wealthy? Color TV was really expensive back then.

[@BGnus-wr4ut]

my grandma told Me that she'd go watch colored mickey mouse cartoons because she couldn't afford a colored TV. she only had b&w!

[@dfpolitowski2]

How did you get original programing? And with the NBC peacock?

[@BETTERWORLDSGT]

A good one! You must have had to have a big income to buy a Color TV at that time, of course there was a tremendous amount of B& W still on all the time. In a TV guide it would tell what shows were in Color. 1965 was the Year most Shows went to Color, A few were already, but B& W Shows would still be on in Reruns for years and any Movies. We got Color in ,1975 and it was a Zenith! The old one was a 1957 Magnavox B&W floor model.

[@oldiesgeek454]

@BetterWorldSGT I really enjoyed your post. I once read that it wasn't until 1972 that color sets outsold black and white ones. Surprising to me, was the fact the first color TVs came out in 1953. They must've cost a fortune!

[@BETTERWORLDSGT]

@@oldiesgeek454 Yes, a lot of People didn't even have any TV at all. To have a Color Set in 1953 you'd have to be rich! Also there wasn't many shows in Color, they would only get anything Color Occasionally. I know that some Shows started early in Color like Bonanza, and I think The Lucy Show started Color in the 2nd Season in 1963, which was early. Ozzie and Harriet was in B& W from when it started up until the last year I think there are some Color Episodes and then it went off in 1966. Superman went to Color in the 50s and Flipper started in 1964 in Color. There are some others but they weren't real big shows I don't think.

[@oldiesgeek454]

@@BETTERWORLDSGT Interesting. I was thinking the only color programming in '53, would've been movies from the 40s...But those were rare too. I wonder if the World Series was broadcast in color by 1953?

[@BETTERWORLDSGT]

@@oldiesgeek454 I don't know. All of the Old World Series I've ever seen anywhere were in B&,W

[@BETTERWORLDSGT]

@@oldiesgeek454 I was thinking, there is a KZbin Channel that has full World Series Games from way back. I was checking out the 1971 World Series, a couple months ago because I was raised near Pittsburgh and remember seeing some of that. The Pirates Won that Year and in 1979. Willie Stargell, Roberto Clemente, a lot of legendary players were with the Pirates at that time. I don't follow Baseball anymore, don't know who's what, since maybe the early 90s!

[@mostwantedjames]

This made me smile!

[@kkteutsch6416]

Is there any advantage to use roundy kinescopes instead the rectangular ones ? After almost 60 years the picture is still very good and convergence is ok... At Brazil the color tv appeared only some 50 years ago by 1972 and no roundy kines was made here, the system adopted was Pal instead of NTSC because the cityes have a irregular signal transmitting stations and with lots of obstacles on view's sight...

[@RobertDillman]

With television programming like this, I don't understand why people gave up radio.:)

[@luisreyes1963]

The days of original programming on radio was coming to an end, afterwards terrestrial radio focused mostly on music, news & sports.

[@1L6E6VHF]

I have almost exactly the same set (in mine, a 5317U, the wooden front of the set tapers down to narrow beams that act as legs to support the front of the set. Sadly, I haven't been able to fix it. I do know the CRT is in excellent shape (a 1980s rebuild).

[@KaedeAnimation]

Zenith is like Sony of the 90s

[@chompo7]

wonderful as usual more and more lately i have been thinking about getting a vintage set like this.about how much should a restored color set like this cost?and would it be safe to use every day for a few hours? happy new year joe

[@johnnytacokleinschmidt515]

If you're lucky you can get one possibly working ok for a coupe hundred dollars. First you have to find one. Then you have to see if it works. Then will the owner sell it? If it's working well and been in use it should be fine to enjoy a few hours a day. Not as reliable as modern solid state CRT televisions, but fine to use while you're in the room. God Bless!

[@MrXminus1]

When you mention what chassis the sets use. Please tell us the pluses and minuses of that chassis. The model number is Greek to most of us.

[@MustangIVU]

Bonjour, where did you get those originals programs. Regards.

[@jasonsadventures64]

Awesome and sing along with Mitch.

[@ohger1]

Back when I was a teenager, I used to repair tons of these for poor color ie; "face tones". The solution was to replace both chroma demodulator transformers, demod tubes (can't recall the numbers!!) and realign them. It was the only way to restore real red back to the chroma.

[@trevordance5181]

Being from the UK we had Pal colour tv. Is it true that the Ntsc system was notoriously bad in showing true and consistant colours especially in poor reception areas or in certain weather conditions? I remember back in the late 60's/early 70's when watching US made shows in the UK, thinking that the colour, contrast, and sharpness of the picture was inferior to that of UK or European made programmes.

[@MrSteve24fps]

Was the set working at all when you got it? What was necessary to bring it up to specs?

[@shelbymunro8941]

I like the old tv sets better than the modern ones.

[@josephcostello695]

Funny it was something we took for granted when we were young. But now I think I could not watch a tv like that.

[@bestrickie2]

Very intersting, I like the round screen. Was this 1 of the first world wide colour TVS? I've seen inside old TVs, parts such as the colour gun. Can U remind me the colours that make up all colours seen via the screen? I know these old TVs & others up until recent years had a large tube with part of the rear filled with a vacume/gas that would implode if damaged. Do you still restore old TVs? These will be worth a lot in years to come, be very useful in a museums. Cheers

[@mariopartyfanify]

it must be nbc 5 chicago

[@nostalgiakid521]

How do you access the original programming?

[@RodBeauvex]

Probably a DVD player hooked to a low power TV transmitter.

[@mobzollerthememeguy6765]

Wow! TV in color?? What’s next? Flying cars, portable telephones, time machines??? Man, what will they think of next?

[@123demaio]

the set have the original crt?? Some of the rebuilt tubes where hard to do convergance on..

[@yell0wberry]

2:40......."they're here......"

[@alfmeister13]

Easy to see why the Japanese TV's conquered the market. The chassis looks like the same assembly US manufacturers used in the really old days. No PCB's, no solid state devices. My 1971 Sony Trinitron worked perfectly for 15 years and then I sold it for a newer model. Never needed a repair. I still remember the TV repair trucks parked all over the neighborhood servicing these old crap TV's.

[@richardhz-oi8px]

Not all that true, circa '65 all color sets were tube, with tube tech lacking PCBs was better as the heat dissipated better without baking the boards like with RCA and especially GE because their boards were cheap. Zenith's Chromacolor and Chromacolor II sets produced as good a picture as any Trinitron and were solid state as well. Components that got hot on them were still hand wired like this set, however each function like color demodulation, just to name one was on it's own modular board. All were socketed so that if one failed, the service man need not yank the chassis and take it back to the shop to replace individual components, he just swapped the socketed board and went on his way. This, of course, isn't to say that Trinitrons weren't good sets.

[@kimkelly1492]

Why play modern shows? The old shows bring back memories for some of us!!

[@1marcelfilms]

looks better then my small tv

[@GracielaBuenavida]

Magnífico aparato que funcione después muchos años,Genial.

[@alfredoagosto1196]

Great and cool tv.

[@mrhvids4461]

The one dislike is David Sarnoff

[@bubblegumgun3292]

Gotta Love the Wood

[@DrunkenUFOPilot]

If I weren't lazy I could look that up, but surely in or near the range $400-$600. This precious knowledge can be gained only by spending way too much time surfing sites about 1960s stuff! Yeah, whether delivered or lugged home from the store by dad, a family's first color TV was a big deal. Is anything one can bring home today such a similar big deal?

[@TheCRTman]

Freaking awesome!

[@frankp3]

What did this cost brand new (in 1965 dollars)?

[@DavidBerquist334]

I was in Chicago ohare are you near the airport I hear Chicago has high crime i hope your in a better part

[@AxelVanDyck]

I'm curious about how you tuned those channels :o

[@MrT8599]

I'm confused. What does that mean by the tv has original programming? Was that program stored on the TV itself or did it come from a video tape?

[@frankp3]

For an extra $50, you could get the Superheterodyne Disgronificator, the grandaddy of the VCR/DCR. So, it must have been stored in the TV! Oy.

[@luisreyes1963]

TV shows at the time were recorded on video tape, but few survive today.

[@oldiesgeek454]

@@luisreyes1963 I'm assuming there's a DVD player, or a VCR hooked up to this TV. But, it's out of camera range in order to make this demonstration look more realistic.