Comments on: The 80's Were the Decade Of The Cable Guy http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/ Wed, 15 Feb 2012 04:23:27 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: jay http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105228 jay Mon, 27 Jul 2009 17:12:24 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105228 The fact alone that George Carlin and others could appear on HBO uncensored is almost enough to make the statement above about the Golden Age of TV ( all things considered) ring very true. Also, if you don't remember the true cultural impact MTV had back then, you simply were not alive then. Cable was basically HBO, MTV, and the rest - oh yeah, CNN, but unbelievably back then many local providers only carried CNN HEadline News. ( Ours did, anyway.) ... C'mon, people chime in! You make some of us sound more old and pedantic than we really are just by being afriad to contribute! The fact alone that George Carlin and others could appear on HBO uncensored is almost enough to make the statement above about the Golden Age of TV ( all things considered) ring very true. Also, if you don’t remember the true cultural impact MTV had back then, you simply were not alive then. Cable was basically HBO, MTV, and the rest – oh yeah, CNN, but unbelievably back then many local providers only carried CNN HEadline News. ( Ours did, anyway.) … C’mon, people chime in! You make some of us sound more old and pedantic than we really are just by being afriad to contribute!

]]> By: John http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105211 John Mon, 27 Jul 2009 16:29:38 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105211 Thanks for the information, Bill. Very interesting stuff. Thanks for the information, Bill. Very interesting stuff.

]]> By: Mikey http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105144 Mikey Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:01:16 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105144 Good note about the rise of cable in the 80s. I've come to believe that the true golden age of network television was not the 50s but actually the early 1980s. There's a period of a couple years there, say 1980-1985, where TV usage was hitting record highs but cable had not yet reached critical mass, and as a result the power of the three major networks was gigantic. If you go back and look at the ratings from this era, 1980-85 includes the highest-rated single program of all time, the highest-rated Super Bowl ever, highest-rated World Series ever, and highest-rated TV movie ever. The cultural influence that the big three had at that time was just staggering, and I guess it goes without saying that that influence was almost entirely wasted. Good note about the rise of cable in the 80s.

I’ve come to believe that the true golden age of network television was not the 50s but actually the early 1980s. There’s a period of a couple years there, say 1980-1985, where TV usage was hitting record highs but cable had not yet reached critical mass, and as a result the power of the three major networks was gigantic.

If you go back and look at the ratings from this era, 1980-85 includes the highest-rated single program of all time, the highest-rated Super Bowl ever, highest-rated World Series ever, and highest-rated TV movie ever.

The cultural influence that the big three had at that time was just staggering, and I guess it goes without saying that that influence was almost entirely wasted.

]]> By: paul 80 http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105114 paul 80 Mon, 27 Jul 2009 04:18:09 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105114 I remember renting VCR tapes from Quentin Terentino, when he worked at Video Archives in Manhattan Beach, Ca. The store was the first tape rental store in the south bay. They had both Beta and VHS. He was a great video clerk. Man times fly's. I remember renting VCR tapes from Quentin Terentino, when he worked at Video Archives in Manhattan Beach, Ca. The store was the first tape rental store in the south bay. They had both Beta and VHS. He was a great video clerk.
Man times fly’s.

]]> By: Holly http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105104 Holly Mon, 27 Jul 2009 02:55:49 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105104 ^I remember renting the VCR from the video store (you could also rent a Beta). ^I remember renting the VCR from the video store (you could also rent a Beta).

]]> By: Lanie Grace http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105089 Lanie Grace Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:46:33 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105089 My husband's family was one of the first to have a Video Rental Store in the Metro Houson area in 1984. He told me they used to rent VCR's as well as the tapes, hard to believe! ~Lanie~ My husband’s family was one of the first to have a Video Rental Store in the Metro Houson area in 1984. He told me they used to rent VCR’s as well as the tapes, hard to believe!

~Lanie~

]]> By: Robert Seidman http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105088 Robert Seidman Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:26:31 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105088 the notes above are clear on that: video games = at least one TV set with a videogame console attached, so computer gaming is definitely not included. the notes above are clear on that: video games = at least one TV set with a videogame console attached, so computer gaming is definitely not included.

]]> By: Bill Gorman http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105087 Bill Gorman Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:24:39 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105087 Scott Jensen, what you see is what I've got. I don't think that "video games" refers to sales of individual games but instead the household penetration of game consoles themselves. This chart is all about household adoption/penetration not individual yearly sales. Scott Jensen, what you see is what I’ve got. I don’t think that “video games” refers to sales of individual games but instead the household penetration of game consoles themselves. This chart is all about household adoption/penetration not individual yearly sales.

]]> By: Scott Jensen http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2009/07/26/the-80s-were-the-decade-of-the-cable-guy/23599/comment-page-1/#comment-105085 Scott Jensen Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:16:24 +0000 http://tvbythenumbers.com/?p=23599#comment-105085 The video game stat is possibly misleading. It might be seen as including computer games. Any data on computer games? Most games are computer games, not video games. The video game stat is possibly misleading. It might be seen as including computer games. Any data on computer games? Most games are computer games, not video games.

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