WHUM-TV, Channel 61 (CBS)
Reading, Pennsylvania (1952-1954?)
Owned by Humboldt J. Grieg
"The Power Station of the Nation"
Probably no television
station in the country was described with as many superlatives as WHUM-TV,
Channel 61, in Reading, Pa. The pet project of a fellow
named Humboldt J. Greig (thus the call letters), WHUM-TV was supposed to be the
first commercial UHF television station in the country, the most powerful
television station in the world, and, promised Greig, would operate in the
black on the first day of operation. Not bad for a UHF station in
a medium-sized Pennsylvania city that had no sets capable of receiving UHF. The station had big plans.
Its antenna was situated
about 22 miles from Reading in the middle of a circle that encompassed Reading,
Allentown, Wilkes-Barre, Lebanon, Harrisburg, Lancaster, and York. The coverage area reached some 750,000
families, slightly more than the San Francisco market. Greig promised programming to reflect those
communities. The station intended to
build studios in Wilkes-Barre, Harrisburg, Allentown, and at its home base in
Reading. The tower was located on
Route 83 in Summit Station, Pa. It was
one of only three 1,000-foot towers in the country at the time. The antenna was 2,688 ft. above sea level
(or twice the height of the Empire State Building, as a 1952 ad in Variety
boasted.) Height was important, because
it meant less power was needed. The station was also to be
the world's most powerful, with 261kw of effective radiated power. General Electric supplied the equipment, the
centerpiece of which was the first Klystron high-power amplifier to be used
commercially. The 261kw signal was said to be more powerful than all the New
York and Philadelphia TV stations combined. (Variety, July 30, 1952). Greig insisted on the high
power because he felt no one would watch a weak signal. WHUM-TV affiliated with CBS,
and Greig intended to launch with a schedule of 109 hours a week, broadcasting
from 8 a.m. to midnight daily. In addition to network fare, the station planned
30 hours a week of local, live programming and 30 hours of film. The station's intention to
be profitable from day one was interesting. The fact that there were no UHF-capable sets in the area leading up to
launch didn't worry Greig. He estimated
that 100,000 sets would be able to receive WHUM-TV on his UHF day.
The station struck a deal
with several manufacturers to supply UHF-converters to the market. Central Pennsylvania was a pioneer in cable
television (or community antenna as it was called back then), which was a benefit
to WHUM-TV. An estimated 40,000 sets in
the coverage area were hooked up to such systems, and would be able to see the
station's signal on a VHF channel because of the cable. Variety reported in 1952
that WHUM-TV had signed up a long list of national and local advertisers even
before the station signed on the air. The station was granted a
construction permit on Sept. 4, 1952, but WHUM-TV staged several demonstrations
before that with a mobile unit. The
station televised by closed-circuit at the Reading, Allentown, and Bloomsburg
fairs in '52. Television Digest reported the CP was delayed because of an
allocation error made by the FCC.
As best I can tell, WHUM
went on the air in December 1952, a few months behind KPTV in Portland, Oregon,
and therefore denied a first. Unfortunately, I have not been able to determine what became of WHUM-TV. I heard stories that the
station's biggest strength -- its power -- turned out to be its biggest
weakness. Apparently the signal was so
strong, that it skipped right over Reading, and nobody in the city
could receive it. The station
apparently tried to compensate by tilting the antenna. I have no confirmation of this account,
however. If anyone remembers watching
WHUM-TV, or knows what became of it, I'd love to hear from you.
Program Schedule from 1953:
5:00 Hopalong Cassidy
6:00 Varieties
6:30 Earl's Waxworks
7:30 News
7:40 Sports
7:45 Perry Como
8:00 Superman
8:30 My Friend Irma
9:00 Playhouse of Stars
9:30 Our Miss Brooks
10:00 Mr. and Mrs. North
10:30 Big Picture
11:00 News
11:15 Feature Film
Written by Scott Allen, spudri@cox.net.
Sources: Business Week, Aug. 9, 1952
General Electric News
Digest, Dec. 1952
Television Digest, Sept. 6,
1952
Television Digest, Nov. 15,
1952
Variety, July 30, 1952
Variety, Sept. 28, 1952
Variety, Oct. 8, 1952
WHUM-TV Promotional
Materials
