it not an abstract discussion, but the daily business of life. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com watch the tv. >> the average time spent watching television is five to six hours per day. >> let's change the channel. >> we want to rap about our -- >> here is the news. >> we must give the american viewers what they deserve. >> television has grown faster than a teenager and now it is time to grow up.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ the tv was the center of the

house. i don't remember a time without tv. >> by 1960, essentially every household in america had a television. it was a new way of bringing the world to you. >> when something big happened on television it really did happen to the entire country and impacted the entire country at the same time. >> keep an awakened eye on the world. >> suddenly television was the main event. everything else changed even the way you went about the business of getting someone elected president. >> david, would you hit the one-minute button. 30 seconds and the cut please. >> in 1960 the nixon-kennedy debate was a first in television. a lot of people were watching that night and it introduced a

lot of people to kennedy. >> the tight shot on camera one. >> hear me now speaking in is that about the right tone of voice. >> good evening, the television and radio stations of the united states and their -- >> when the networks offered a debate, kennedy immediately said yes because he was sure he could do better than nixon. >> i think mr. nixon is an effective leader of his party. i hope he would grant me the same. the question before us is which point of view and which party do we want to lead the united states. >> mr. nixon do you have a comment on that statement? >> i have no comment. >> if you are live on television and there is a camera right here there is no place to hide. once you see a guy sweating when asked a question, are you sure he is the leader for you? >> that the question before the american people and only you can decide what you want this country to be and what you want to do with the future. i think we're ready to move.

>> if you saw it on television, clearly kennedy won that debate. >> it was the beginning of a new form of political craftsmanship. you could structure the message appropriately for the tv camera you were in and if you couldn't, you were toast. >> please give a warm hand to mr. john kennedy. >> may i ask you a tough question right off the bat? >> whether i'm democrat or republican? >> television was now the medium that mattered. it wasn't before 1960 and it was every day after 1960 after those presidential debates. >> try to find a western.

>> once everyone had a tv set in their living room and advertisers got a grip of how effective a way it was to sell products what you were doing is trying to create entertainment that would appeal to as many people as possible. >> eat your brussels sprouts. >> i can't. >> no excuses. >> "leave it to beaver" was something that a lot of families understood. it's the first show that was ever shot from the perspective of a child. >> beaver. >> most people have had a lot of the experiences that the wally had and everyone in their life has an eddie haskell. >> some dumb kid fell in his soup. >> good evening, mr. cleaver. some poor unfortunate child is trapped up there. >> everyone has that moment when they were so embarrassed and thought they would never get over it but they did. >> tonight's special report from

the scene of the 1961 emmys. >> whether it's a situation comedy or western or drama, i think it's the quality of the show itself that's important. >> the "andy griffith show" a kinder, gentler place. >> the core of the "andy griffith show" was this rock at the center of it. wisdom. >> i have taken parts of the people i know in my life and put them into andy taylor. i hope there comes a time when you have to stop the play acting and tell the truth. >> don't you believe me, pa? don't you, pa? >> people appreciate emotional honesty. they appreciate it more than laughs. it's great the you can achieve both simultaneously and the "andy griffith show" did that often. for a sitcom it shows unexpected depth.

>> the second dance number should come before the big sketch. >> i don't know. >> i like it. >> now i like it. >> me too. >> now i like it too. >> what do you know? look at that tie you're wearing. >> i only wrote what i knew about which was my life. and if you're writing about that, nobody can say that's not true. it is true, i'm living it. >> on the "dick van dyke show" we could relate to them because these are real people. >> women are -- >> honest and direct. >> no. >> courageous -- >> we all have the same needs, feelings, relationships with husbands and wives. that's the comedy we did, the problems of living. >> how much do you like that baby?

>> don't tell me you are jealous already. >> the season opening episode for the 1963 season was seared into my head. >> our wives had a baby in the same day and the hospital was very busy. >> they thought they got the wrong baby from the hospital. so he calls the parents of the other kid and thinks you know, we may have your kid and you may have our kid. >> hi, we're mr. and mrs. peters. >> come in. >> mrs. peters, won't you come in? >> it was beautiful. absolutely beautiful. here they're tackling a subject without tackling it. >> why didn't you tell me on the phone. >> miss the expression on your

face? >> the network worried about the fact that the african-americans might be upset by it. the network was always a little behind. there is always somebody back there who doesn't have b-a-double l-s balls. >> in the hollywood, the co-writer, carl reiner, "dick van dyke." >> i wish somebody had told me. i would have worn my hair. the one who seems like he's already got the job 'cause he studied all the right courses from the get-go. and that's an accountant, a mom, a university of phoenix scholarship recipient, who used our unique --scratch that-- awesome career-planning tool. and that's a student, working late, with a day job, taking courses aligned with the industry he's aiming to be in. ready to build an education around the career that you want? let's get to work.

why let erectile dysfunction get in your way? talk to your doctor about viagra. ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain. it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. side effects include headache, flushing, upset stomach, and abnormal vision. to avoid long term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. stop taking viagra and call your doctor right away if you experience a sudden decrease or loss in vision or hearing. this is the age of taking action. viagra. talk to your doctor. if your doctor decides viagra is right for you,

you can fill your prescription at your pharmacy. or, check out viagra home delivery, a convenient place to fill your prescription online and have it shipped at no additional cost straight to your door. viagra home delivery. get started at viagra.com. viagra home delivery. ♪ ♪fame, makes a man take things over♪ ♪fame, lets him loose, hard to swallow♪ ♪fame, puts you there where things are hollow♪ the evolution of luxury continues. the next generation 2015 escalade. ♪fame

>> i have got to tell you this one, you know those knock, knock jokes? >> yeah, but they're old now. >> i have got a real good one, a

real funny one, go ahead, start, say it. >> knock, knock. >> who is there? >> there was only three networks, there was only one late night show, really, jack parr -- >> they don't understand what -- how we do this show. we just keep talking with no script. >> i know, it is agony. >> jack parr invented the late night television talk show. >> you feel confident? there is not a man in the world to beat me. i'm as good as liberace. >> jack had in his corner his personality. his fabulous, complex, frightening, neurotic, but in other cases, enthusiastic, informed personality. it made for great television. >> how much time have i done? >> i don't have a watch either. how much?

has it been charming? i'll quit now, then. >> here's johnny! >> johnny carson inherited "the tonight show" but he made it his own. >> it is going to be wild tonight, i can always tell. >> he hosted a nightly party. >> are you married? >> oh. >> and if his buddies came, and they started playing together you felt like what it must have felt like to go to las vegas at 3:00 a.m. and have the rat pack come out. >> no, but where is the guy you talk to? >> it was a beautiful thing to watch a guy working at his best. >> okay. bingo. get your axe and let's go. [ laughter ]

>> if you watch it closely, he is gauging how much longer he can wait to let the laugh die before what he says will be irrelevant to what happened. and he gets it just on the nose. it is beautiful to watch. >> i didn't even know you were jewish! >> johnny was the best audience in the world. and he loved comedy. >> the woman is watching him from the corner of her eye and says to him what are you looking at? the guy says i'm looking at that ugly baby. that's a badooking baby, lady. >> johnny was there listening for you.

he wanted you to score. and when you scored, he scored. >> i said now calm down. he said madam, the pennsylvania railroad will go to any length to avoid having differences between the passengers. perhaps it would be more of a convenience if we rearranged your seating. and as a small compensation, if you come with me to the dining car, we'll give you a free meal. maybe we'll find a banana for your monkey. [ laughter ] >> i'm dick cavett, funnier than chet hutley, and as pure and honest as new jersey. >> you could get people like norman mailer and woody allen. >> my only new year's resolution this year, i think i'm going to try to sleep through the nixon administration. >> you have authors on there. heavyweight boxers. >> there were conversations. >> when you mentioned the

national anthem and talk about playing it in any unorthodox way, you immediately get a guaranteed percentage of hate mail from people who say how dare -- >> that is not unorthodox? it isn't unorthodox? >> no, no, i thought it was beautiful. there you go. >> i just thought anything that is interesting ought to have a place on a talk show rather than young pretty actresses who use the word "excited" in every sentence. >> you're not frequently seen on television. is that by choice? >> it is the most impressive medium. it is the medium that will either save america or send it down into demise, there is no question. >> i'm getting out of it myself. >> really? we'll be right back after this. >> what you do is book the best possible guests from different kinds of businesses, maybe not everybody in show businesses, some politics, some newspaper people. get them all on the stage together and hope something works. but it is a great show, a great platform for people who have something to say.

>> the point is they take these scripts out of the drawers. they change the things around. maybe it doesn't work on "green acres" but that is why night after night you turn on these serials and they all seem they came out of the same bread box. >> back then you had copy cats. you had "the adams family" and then "the munsters," you have "bewitched." and then "i dream of jeanie." if one person is doing this fantastical hit, we're going to do that. >> now, is that considered a crime? >> i'm afraid not. there are not laws to protect us against bad tv shows yet. so you're safe. >> well, thank you. >> what i'm surprised by are some of the shows i can't even imagine the pitch meetings for. like "hogans heros." >> it's a story about american prisoners of war in a nazi concentration camp which doesn't sound like it's exactly a funny comedy. >> why don't they trust us?

>> that shows you how weird the '60s was right there. >> there is another one of our fine shows this year. pit stop! moving story of an effeminate race car driver, who was really an astronaut for the mafia. 9:30 eastern time, 8:30 central time, quarter after 2:00 pacific time. ♪ so nice, so nice ♪ sweet, sweet, st. thomas nice ♪ ♪ so nice, so nice ♪ st. croix full of pure vibes ♪ so nice, so nice

♪ st. john a real paradise ♪ so nice, so nice ♪ proud to be from the virgin islands ♪ ♪ and the whole place nice [ female announcer ] to experience your virgin islands nice, book one of our summer packages today. virgin islands nice, i live in a luxury penthouse overlooking central park. when the guests arrive, they're greeted by my butler, larry. my helipad is being re-surfaced so tonight we travel by more humble means.

at my country club, we play parlor games with members of the royal family. yes i am rich. that's why i drink the champagne of beers. here, announcer: athe moment babies are born, their brains are forming the connections that determine how they learn...think...and grow. in the sky. [ babbles ] talk and read to your children from day one. this is tomato soup. announcer: their brains are actually developing

with your every word. it's free, easy, and something you can do anytime. talk. read. sing. your words have the power to shape their world. learn more at first5california.com/parents

cbs presents this program in color. >> i didn't have color television until i was 16 years old. yes, i lived like an animal. >> the following program is being brought to you in living color on nbc. >> getting the color tv was huge because suddenly we could watch walt disney's wonderful world of color on sunday nights. which was just an acid trip of a show. we just could not believe it. tinker bell going bing, bing, bing, and it was like special effects, par excellence. ♪ the world is a carousel of color ♪ >> it also happened just coincidently at the time when what we think of as the mod '60s came in, colors were all over the place just as tv could start to take advantage of them. >> hi.

>> well, glad you could make it. >> i remember saying stay tuned for "gidget" next, in color. >> in color on abc. >> it was a big marketing thing. >> color tv was a huge step forward as far as the technology went. and yet, i think of "lost in space." it started off as a black and white show and went to color. it didn't get any better when it went to color. >> dr. smith, you're alive. >> of course i'm alive. do i look like a corpse? >> the period has a reputation for it have as a kind of candy. it seems like an aggressive innocence to it. >> you are only to blow that in an emergency. >> this is an emergency, you're standing on my foot! >> "gilligan's island" made no sense whatsoever logistically. how is the professor able to build all this stuff but not build a damn raft? it makes no sense if you pull

any single thread on it but it was just the kind of show designed to live forever in syndication. >> who are you looking for? >> a nun, who else. >> are you kidding? >> "flying nun" is a crazy show. like, what is that about? >> look, it is very simple. you see i only weigh 90 pounds and the combination of my cornet and the wind lifts me. >> which was just complete nonsense. let's face it. it was the height of the '60s, and everybody was eating granola and dropping out and doing god knows what else, and i wasn't. >> hello, central? i'm switching to my eyeglasses. put a hold on my wallet but keep my shoe open. >> television more than ever in the '60s was a place to escape to. >> let's go. ♪

>> seemed like it was sort of almost a willful respite from the stuff that was going on in the world and in real life. >> here is a bulletin on cbs news. there has been an attempt as you know on the life of president kennedy. he was wounded. in an automobile driving -- >> in the early '60s, television was by and large seen as something as a back water to print journalism. and even to radio. but the kennedy assassination was the moment that television journalism came of age. >> continue full-day coverage of the presidential funeral. and the final procession -- >> more and more people were depending on television to give them the headline news of the day. >> 330 americans were killed in combat last week in vietnam. but the number of wounded, 3886 was the highest of any week in the war. >> most of the 1960s, the contrast between what you saw in your entertainment and what you in the news was, you know, planetary. >> never has this descent been

as emotional. as intense. >> in the '60s, it was one thing after another. each year it was filled with important events. >> governor wallace has ordered 500 alabama national guardsmen into tuscaloosa. at the moment, they are under his control. >> whether it was the civil rights movement or it was the kennedy assassination or the space race, when there was a huge thing that happened, it happened on tv. >> the witness to the violence, said it seemed to be unprovoked on the part of the demonstrators. >> television became the fire in which the whole tribe gathered around to listen to the elders telling them what was going on. >> police reinforcements moving down the street now. [ chanting ] [ chanting "the whole world's watching" ]

cut! [bell rings]

this...is jane. her long day on set starts with shoulder pain... ...and a choice take 6 tylenol in a day which is 2 aleve for... ...all day relief. hmm. [bell ring] "roll sound!" "action!" little things, anyone can do. it steals your memories. your independence. insures support. a breakthrough. and sooner than you'd like... ...sooner than you think. ...you die from alzheimer's disease. ...we cure alzheimer's disease. every little click, call, or donation adds up to something big. alzheimer's association. the brains behind saving yours. does your dog food have? 18 percent? 20? purina one true instinct has 30. active dogs crave nutrient-dense food. so we made purina one true instinct. learn more at purinaone.com

♪ good evening, ladies and gentlemen, tonight, live from new york. >> from hollywood. >> from beautiful downtown burbank. >> here is the star of our show, bob hope!

>> variety was the backbone of television back then. one year, there were like 18 different variety shows. everybody had a variety show. >> everybody was different because of who was helming the show. ♪ >> dean martin was just so loose he acted as though he was doing the whole show drunk without a rehearsal. >> this is a real international show, now, where else could you see a smooth italian and a slippery pole? >> he was funny, he was really, really funny. ♪

>> he always looked as if he was a bit lost. people thought that it was because he was tiddly. but that was part of the charm. >> here he is, ed sullivan! >> thank you. >> no matter who controlled the tv set on the other nights, on sunday night at 8:00, you were going to watch ed sullivan. >> now, ladies and gentlemen, a very -- >> ed sullivan was a phenomenon. he was a powerful force. >> quiet, please. >> the beauty of the sullivan kind of variety show is that if you didn't like something, something else would be around in four minutes. >> no. >> no. >> why? >> it is very difficult. >> easy. >> advertisers wanted everybody. and so they got everybody. a little kid and his grandparents to watch the same show. >> they would have an elephant on, and then the next thing somebody doing shakespeare, and the next thing, a comic.

there would be an acrobat and then an opera singer the next bit, which was true variety. ♪ go downtown things will be great when you're downtown ♪ >> anything that was current was on "the ed sullivan show." >> a young richard pryor. joan rivers. >> rodney dangerfield. >> everybody wanted a showcase. if you got on sullivan you could talk about it. did you see sullivan? >> my whole life i don't get no respect, no respect from anyone. >> as a performer you couldn't get a better place to sell your product. >> when i started out they would say variety is a man's game. it's dean, milton berle, jackie gleason, but variety is what i know. i felt it was in my genes to do this.

>> she had been so good on the garry moore show, she always knew she could sing and dance and be funny. >> on my show, i would do prat falls and jump out of windows and get pies in the face, and it was heaven. >> i think it is -- >> you know, i still see a rerun of carroll burnett show, and i say they're funny! there has never been a better three-wall sketch show ever. >> and the best in bed, too, remember? >> you never went to bed with -- >> well. >> not supposed to curtsy, you're supposed to bow. well, i get dizzy when i bend over. >> when tim conway came on his goal in life was to destroy harvey. >> here's tim with our own harvey korman as a new dentist with his very first patient. we used to have a pool back

stage, not as to whether harvey was going to break up, but how far along he would get on a sketch before he broke up. >> novocaine. okay here. novocaine. take a firm hold of the hypodermic needle. right. >> they never knew what he was going to do. but they knew it was not going to be what they expected. >> when they did the dentist sketch none of that was rehearsed. >> yeah, be right with you. >> poor harvey was helpless, tears coming down. and tim swears that harvey wet his pants during that sketch. >> i don't know why that worked so well. watching two actors break character and just crack each other up. should not be as entertaining.

but somehow when it is tim conway and harvey korman doing it, i could just watch that stuff forever. >> i just thought if we have fun, the audience will. we're going to go out there and do what we do best and it worked. >> you can plan it and write it and rehearse it. you hoped for magic. it was carol, carol, the magic of carol burnett. your education is built to help move your career forward. here's how: we work with leading employers to learn what you need to learn so classes impact your career. while helping ensure credits you've already earned pay off. and we have career planning tools

to keep you on track every step of the way. plus the freshman fifteen, isn't really a thing here. and graduation, it's just the beginning. because we build education around where you want to go. so, you know, you can get the job you want. ready, let's get to work. it's about getting to the finish line. in life, it's how you get there that matters most. it's important to know the difference. like when i found out i had a blood clot in my leg. my doctor said that it could travel to my lungs and become an even bigger problem. and that i had to take action. so he talked to me about xarelto®. [ male announcer ] xarelto® is the first oral prescription blood thinner proven to treat and help prevent dvt and pe that doesn't require regular blood monitoring or changes to your diet. [ brian ] for a prior dvt i took warfarin, which required routine blood testing and dietary restrictions. not this time. ♪ while i was taking xarelto®,

i still had to stop racing, but i didn't have to deal with that blood monitoring routine. ♪ you made great time. i found another way. [ male announcer ] don't stop taking xarelto®, rivaroxaban, unless your doctor tells you to. while taking xarelto®, you may bruise more easily and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. xarelto® may increase your risk of bleeding if you take certain medicines. xarelto® can cause serious bleeding, and in rare cases, may be fatal. get help right away if you develop unexpected bleeding, unusual bruising, or tingling. if you have had spinal anesthesia while on xarelto®, watch for back pain or any nerve or muscle related signs or symptoms. do not take xarelto® if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. tell your doctor before all planned medical or dental procedures. before starting xarelto®, tell your doctor about any conditions such as kidney, liver, or bleeding problems. xarelto® is proven to reduce the risk of dvt and pe. with xarelto® there is no regular blood monitoring and no known dietary restrictions.

treatment with xarelto® was the right move for me. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor about xarelto® today. for more information including savings options, download the xarelto® patient center app, call 1-888-xarelto, or visit teamxarelto.com.

are you saying he is a tv addict? >> well, perhaps he has been staring at this electronic blessing, the tv set for so long that his life became his. and he is at a stage of confusion that he no longer knows whether or not he is watching the action or participating in it. ♪ >> you unlock this door with the key of imagination. beyond it is another dimension. >> there was desire on the part of writers and producers to push the envelope and stretch the medium. you certainly saw that with the "twilight zone." it was a very cinematic show. >> this is not a new world, it has patterned itself since the beginning of time. >> rod serling who created "the twilight zone" realized he could

through a lens of fantasy or science fiction he could tell stories about racism, he could tell stories about fascism. >> tonight, i shall talk to you about glorious conformity. >> it was a way to deal with a lot of the issues that america was starting to go through at that time. but in a fantastic setting so that there is some divide between you and the show. >> they sent four people, a mother and father and two kids who looked just like humans. but they were not. >> "the twilight zone" had these little oh, henry like little twists and was allowed to have happy endings. >> they picked the most dangerous enemies they could find and it is themselves. now sixth months a fugitive, this is richard kimball a new identity and for as long as safe, a new name. >> "the fugitive" was a character study. >> beware the eyes of strangers, keep moving.

>> everybody wanted to see what happened to "the fugitive". >> i'm about ready to give up. >> when it ended, it broke the viewership records set by the beatles on ed sullivan. it was one of the first tv shows that actually went somewhere. >> you know, youngstown is not exactly on our course. >> in a lot of ways, television was showing slices of the world that people may have never seen before. "route 66" was an innovative show because it was actually filmed on location. so the audience was exposed to things that were not their exact orbit. >> space, the final frontier. >> you know, there is a little bit of the mayberry aspect to the world of "star trek." follow me here. people want to believe that such a place can exist. the idea of a future in which a lot of the biases and the fears

of the past has evolved out of us. >> where i come from, size, shape or color makes no difference. >> there is one episode where some of the members of the crew were taken over by these mental giants. >> this psychokinetic power of yours, how long have you had it? >> they forced captain kirk and and lieutenant ohura to kiss. it was the first interracial kiss on television. ♪ >> nbc asked me if i would do my own special. and i had always adored harry belafonte. we decided to do one duet called "the path of glory." it is an anti-war song and we just felt strongly about it. i just touched his arm.

the sponsor went crazy. my star doesn't touch a black man's arm. >> petula clark said, i'm not doing it over, and it is my show and it is going out that way. >> we weren't having any of that nonsense, no way. so it went out the way we wanted it to go out. i didn't really have any other problems with sponsors but that sort of gave me a taste of what could happen. ♪ ♪ a car that's moving fast and clean and strong ♪ ♪ get the leather seats you can't go wrong ♪ >> in the tv business, the '60s was probably about the last decade during which the sponsors had a really iron grip on content. >> brought to you by dash. >> even if they tried to keep tv this white homogenous whole milk product, the world found its way in. it just had to. >> what's the trouble, driver?

>> can't you ever remember to bring a silencer? >> it ruins the liner in my suit. >> with "i spy," robert culp and bill cosby were equals. cosby is this pioneer in terms of a black male lead in a drama. he made race a nonissue. because he's undeniable. >> the winner is bill cosby. >> bobby and i tried to put forth an example of the way it should be, racially, in this country. we need more people in this industry to put forth that message and let it be known that the bigots and the racists, that they don't count. thank you. >> as television changed, it was helping all americans to understand that this is what america looks like.

>> frankly, you're not exactly what i expected. >> no? >> no, not from what i read yet. >> did you expect me to be older or younger? >> julia was going to be the first time a black woman starred in her own television show. >> has mr. colton told you? >> told me what? >> i'm colored. >> what color are you? >> she was a black woman raising her own son. it has a universality that is just something new. >> and you keep out of mischief. >> i'll just watch the old tv. >> good. >> in the '60s, america was exploding in a way that needed to be reflected on tv. ♪ >> stand still! >> "dragnet" came back in the late '60s and friday was now in a very different world than he had been in in the black and white days. and suddenly there were the

dirty hippies. >> jack webb would lecture you about the dangers of marijuana smoking and crazy drug culture. >> they're trying to deal with the counter culture but they don't understand it. so it is basically the stereotypes of what the hippies were like. and it plays exactly like that. >> keep your nose out of my purse. >> keep yours out of the acid. next time i will. care what age you are.

take it on the way you always have. live healthy and take one a day women's 50+. a complete multivitamin with 7 antioxidants to support cell health. age? who cares.

announcer: babies who are talked to from the time they're born.. are more likely to have a successful future. talking and reading to children in their first years has a huge impact on what they do with the rest of their lives. the fewer words they hear, the greater their chances of dropping out of school and getting into trouble. talk. read. sing. your words have the power to shape their world. learn more at first5california.com/parents

move this country safely through the 1960s. >> there was tremendous anxiety and fear. >> 25 russian ships are on route to cuba on what may be a collision court. >> jfk said to his brother, what if there is a nuclear war and our children die. who is going to blink first. ♪ stop children what's that sound everybody look what's going down ♪ >> whatever the president does,

he risks nuclear war. nbc presents, rowan and martin's laugh in. ♪ >> our country would be much better off with a strong leader. >> i know but sinatra can't do everything. ♪ >> when "laugh-in" came along we never seen anything that was kind of like grown-ups acting goofy and hip that way, you know. they had girls dancing in bikinis and the joke wall. >> who's in there with you? >> cool hand luke. >> and it was nothing but jokes. >> i was at the hospital. >> anything serious? >> a black widow bit me. >> if never would have happened if he'd been a gentleman. >> we took it to the network and the network said, what the hell is this? this makes no sense.

i said, right. >> hi, you two. >> they acknowledged the hippie generation, yet the hosts were in tuxedos smoking cigarettes. they were still your parents. but other people let loose on the show were this kind of young vaudeville. >> hey. it's sock it to me time. >> she socked it to herself. >> we knew that sock it to me didn't mean sock it to me. right? so we thought, oh. >> sock it to me. >> sock it to me. >> ha-ha. >> sock it to me. >> it wasn't as subversive as it sounds. yes it was. no, it was fun. >> sock it to me? >> it was the first time presidential candidates ever appeared on a comedy show and that may have got him elected. and i've had to live with that. anyway --

>> the family that watched laugh-in together really needs to pray together. >> just happening right now, about right now, that was the greatest thing ever. the fusion of politics and comedy and everything else into one television show. >> when we take over, i'm going to look out for you. >> the subjects that were verboten, we don't talk about these things, were starting to come up in tv. because it was well executed, it changed everything. >> this is the smothers brothers comedy hour. production 124 air, take one. >> good evening and welcome to the smothers brothers show. >> if rowan and martin and the smothers brothers are the new stars of tv comedy, it is the comedy itself rather than the comedians which is more often in the spotlight. these two programs tried to influence people by comedy techniques that breakthrough the traditional song and skit routines and with subject matter often on the cutting edge of

what is new. >> our government is asking us as good citizens to refrain from traveling to foreign lands. >> okay. all you guys in vietnam, come on home. >> times were changing so quickly. and the '60s. and we didn't change them. >> we just reflected them. >> what are you doing? >> getting ready to go to college. >> cbs gave the smothers brothers that show because they were clean-cut folk satirists. they wore blazers. they could sing well. they were funny. >> mom liked you best. >> you lower your voice. >> mom liked you best. >> they told us what they thought we could do and what we should do and it was totally wrong. tommy said, i would like to do a show where we could be relevant. >> if we could get a war without blood and gore i would be the first a go ♪ ♪ but until then mr. mcnamera i'm just 18 and i always carry a

purse ♪ >> if you were in counter culture started making these shows and they don't want to play by the rules that other people did before then but who would expect the smothers brothers of all people to be the ones raising this much of a fuss. >> good script. >> i would hold my breath every time they did the show. i knew the network people were befelling their trousers with fear. >> nothing funny in this. yeah, boys, we're through censoring your show. >> they said that the social subjects we touched on were not appropriate for the 9:00 family viewing hour. they came up with any excuse to make it difficult. >> and i came up with any excuse to push it. >> yeah. ♪ cbs would like to give us notice ♪ ♪ and some of you don't like the things we say but we're still here ♪ ♪ oh, yeah we're still here >> they were going to speak truth to power.

and they were not compromising. >> you have something important? >> something very important to say on american television. >> a lot of times we don't have the opportunity to say anything important because on american television, every time you try to say something important -- >> well, whether you can say it or not, keep trying to say it. that's what's important. you get that? >> there's no way in the world if anything is meaningful and truthful that you're not going to offend someone. you've got to be able to say what it is. say how it is. and take the consequence. >> cbs announced today that the smothers brothers comedy hour will not return to the cbs television network next season. network president robert woods said it became evident that brothers, quote, were unwilling to accept the criteria of taste established by cbs. cbs news efforts to reach the brothers for comment have been

unsuccessful. >> i was angry. but we never regretted it. we never did regret it. >> what do you think television, honestly, do you think it's good? >> yes, i do. particularly for what it is. for the amount of hours that it gives you for enjoyment. either education or for pure entertainment, it's remarkably good. >> what television did in '60s was to show the american people to the american people. until then, we did not truly know much about each other. we knew only what we had seen, which was very little. and what we had read, which was even less. >> a few years ago i thought it was the end of the world. >> no, it's just the beginning. >> i think people looked at television for answers, maybe. that world is just confusing. it's going to hell all over the place. maybe something on here will help. >> there was no denying the shift and attitudes towards sex, towards race relations, towards politics.

it was all televised. >> that i will faithfully execute the office. >> that i will faithfully execute the office. >> when it works, television conveys impression and evokes memories. when it works well, television makes us feel. >> good morning. it's t-minus 1:29:53 and counting. >> television created the sense of national unity around cultural events. >> okay, neil, we can see you coming down the ladder now. >> you can turn on the machine and be somewhere else. >> looking good. >> television changed absolutely everything. >> beautiful view. isn't that something? -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

♪ ♪ beautiful, right? we can already indulge ourselves into something special, such a beautiful day. >> pony ride. >> absolutely. now we are coming to your most beautiful fascination side of russian legacy. the birches. >> ah. the forest of birch. >> ah, what a place.