preview

The Impact of Television on the Film Industry

Good Essays

The advent of television and television shows may have come long after film, but it enhanced film production almost instantly. Television naturally derived from early film since each uses basically the same medium: the motion picture camera. Since film had already set a base in the industry and mastered the new techniques and technology of cinematography, television had the opportunity to learn from film?s mistakes and advance itself quickly. For this reason, television evolved very rapidly and was able to develop its own technology and techniques separate from film. The concept of television became so popular and gained so much success that Hollywood began experimenting with the technology and techniques television had brought about. The …show more content…

The result was the live programming, with each show airing 52 weeks of the year, that defined the medium's Golden Age. Television?s Golden Age consisted mainly of variety shows because of their similarity to radio programs. As the nation's economy grew and the population expanded, television and advertising executives turned to dramatic shows as a programming strategy to elevate the status of television and to attract the growing and increasingly important suburban family audience. Golden age dramas quickly became the ideal marketing vehicle for major U.S. corporations seeking to display their products favorably before a national audience.

Thus, in the 1960's, the sitcom developed. Situation Comedies followed families experiencing common, everyday situations but adding humor to. Sitcoms gained popularity quickly and were unique to television. The most significant contributor to early television was Desi Arnaz with his sitcom I Love Lucy. The success of I Love Lucy is unparalleled in the history of television. The combination of Arnaz?s business skills and his wife Lucille Ball?s comedic talent swept the nation. The cinematic innovations of the I Love Lucy show made it very popular among producers. Arnaz made the decision to film it, rather than do it live, making it possible to have a high-quality print of each episode available for endless re-broadcasts, as opposed to the poor quality kinescopes of live shows.

Get Access