COLOR TV SET TO CELEBRATE 45TH BIRTHDAY

COLOR TV SET TO CELEBRATE 45TH BIRTHDAY

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Wireless Flash) -- March 25 will mark a colorful anniversary for TV freaks: it's the 45th anniversary of the day the very first mass-produced color TV sets rolled off the assembly line. On March 25, 1954, RCA started manufacturing the CT-100 color TV set, which sold for $1000 and featured a tiny 11-1/2 by 8-1/2-inch picture tube. The first regularly-scheduled color TV series aired on NBC - - which was owned by RCA. "The Marriage", a short-lived sitcom starring Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy, debuted in July of 1954 but was canceled within six weeks. Only 68 hours of color broadcasts aired during all of 1954. It wasn't until 1963 -- when color TVs outsold black and whites for the first time -- that CBS and ABC really jumped on the color bandwagon.

CONTACT: David Arland, ***1/2 (RCA press contact); Indianapolis, IN; (317) 587-4832