Cue the triumphant music. “And here it is. The greatest advance in television since color television itself.”
Take a trip back to 1961 when RCA introduced the remote control and forever increased the average weight of Americans. The original demo video is after the jump and well worth 5:47 of your day.
[via TV Squad]
I enjoyed this.
I wonder what employees wife they convinced to model for this bad boy.
ahhhhhh if only palm for the pre, samsung for the omnia and nokia for the n97 could give us such good teasers….Anyway, i’m off to circuit city 1961, i reallly, really, really need that wizardry of technology amplifier thingy !!
“Should the phone ring, or guests arrive…” just push the TIVO button to record your program for later on the hidden real-to-real tape recorder.
Anyway, it’s interesting how carefully they explain the usage of the remote. Obviously, that was a time when people were not acquainted with such technology, even in the wired form.
It’s also interesting how much they hype the wood cabinet, as nice as it may be. Little did they know that high-volume mass production and low prices would become the main driving factors in the marketplace, not to mention the use of plastics.
Oh, and I remember a somewhat later remote controlled TV that used near-ultrasonic sound produced from hammers striking tuning-fork-like rods upon pushing the buttons. Later, some remotes electronically produced ultrasonic sound. Then, the infrared remotes took over. Of course going way back, people just gave birth to kids to change the channels for them.
Well, those were the days before all this crazy Superconducting Quantum Interface Device (SQUID) technology took over that reads our minds without moving a muscle. Oh, and the other day, I saw a TV that determines what you want to watch before you’ve even thought of it. Yeah, it was right next to the camera that audibly says, “The picture you are about to take is poorly composed. Please reconsider your shot.”
Don’t tell me this 5-6 minute commercial actually aired on TV…
I remember our household in the ’80s having a Quasar TV with a two-button remote for changing the channel “clockwise” and “counter clockwise.”
I also love how we still use the term “rocker” as the narrator in the video did.