WXTV-Channel 45-A valiant effort..

WEWS-5 ad for the Cleveland Browns Quarterback Club,,December 1960 < From April 1958-Something different:A TV Guide Southen Ohio ad for several syndicated shows on WTVN-Tv 6 in Columbus. (now WSYX) WJW-TV 8 ad for "Bozo" in December 1960..Ed Fisher, Longtime radio personality, was said to have been Cleveland's Bozo. 

 As indicated by the lack of programming, I could find no TV Guide Ads to represent WXTV-45.. 

      We saw in our last post that WKST-Channel 45 had moved down the dial to channel 33 around December 1, 1959. That left the familiar Youngstown limeup of 21-27-33 that local viewers started getting used to..Channel 45 was basically "turned in" to the FCC.  It wasnt terribly long before someone gave channel 45 a second go..This time as Independent WXTV, making Youngstown a 4-station market for about 2 years. 

     The biggest difference aside from loss of Network hookup (which ended up being huge) was that channel 45 had an even later sign-On time (6PM). I imagine it bacame harder, with less advertising dollars, to buy and keep any syndicated programming, old or new, as time went by.

      I have not been able to find out who owned this incarnation of Channel 45, but there was a permit for WXTV Channel 73 in 1965 owned by a "Community Telecasters" of Farrell, Pa. I cannot really tell if they operated WXTV 45 or not..

      There is almost no information about WXTV anywhere to be found unless I pore through old Youngstown Vindicator articles.Havent the time or financial resources to really do that.. 

      The best thing I can do is compare TV Guide Schedules from the period..We know they were on the air from at least December 3, 1960-March 16, 1962..The last day they were listed in Cleveland's TV Guide..

 First: December 3-9, 1960

 Saturday December 3, 1960 

6PM Star Showcase-Drama 

6:30 Susie-Ann Sothern 

7PM Movie Ghost Town-1955 

8:30 Ellery Queen 

9PM Tiger by The Tail-English 1957 

10:30 Movie-Ghost Town 1955

 Sunday December 4, 1960 

6PM Star Showcase

6:30 Cannonball 

7PM Movie-Running Target 1956 

8:30 Stage 7-Drama 

9PM Movie-Monte Carlo Story 1957 

10:30 Movie-Running Target 1956 

 Monday December 5, 1960 

6PM Hawkeye (Mohicans) 

6:30 Ramar 

7PM Movie-Monte Carlo Story 1957 

8:30 Stage 7 

9PM Movie-Running Target 1956 

10:30 Movie- Monte Carlo Story 1957 

 Tuesday, December 6, 1960 

6PM Hawkeye \

6:30 Ramar 

7PM Movie-Bandido-1956 

8:30 New York Confidential 

9PM Movie Spring Reunion 1957 

10:30 Movie-Bandido 1956 

 Wednesday, December 7, 1960 

6PM Hawkeye 

6:30 Ramar
7PM Movie-Spring Reunion 1957
8:30 Susie 

9PM Movie-Bandido 1956

10:30 Movie-Spring Reunion-1957 

Thursday December 8, 1960 

6PM Hawkeye
6:30 Ramar
7PM Movie-The Showdown 1950
8:30 Charlie Chan
9PM Movie-Shanghai Story 1954
10:30 Movie-The Showdown 1950

 Friday December 9, 1960

6PM Hawkeye
6:30 Ramar
7PM Movie-Shanghai Story 1954
8:30 Man From Interpol
9PM Movie-The Showdown-1950
10:30 Movie-Shanghai Story 1954

     While WXTV had a fairly decent lineup of Syndicated Shows, they were starting already to buy fewer movies-and run them 2-3 times a week   

Next: June 3-9, 1961

Saturday, June 3, 1961

5:30 Sagebrush Theater
6:30 Weather
6:35 Home Show
7PM Movie-Spring Reunion 1957
8:30 Movie-Bandido-1956
10PM Movie-Ghost Town-1955

Sunday, June 4, 1961

5:30 Yugoslav Melodies
5:45 US Air Force-Documentary
6PM Way Of Truth-Religion
6:15 Victor George Show
6:30 Big Picture-Army
7PM Polka Party
8PM Movie-Spring Reunion-1957
9:30 Movie-The Showdown-1950

Weeknights-6-7:30PM

 
6PM Northfield Racing

6:10 Club Calendar
6:15 Pezzenti Show-Music
6:20 Baby Showcase
6:25 Weather
6:30 45 Hop-Music
10:30 Weather

 Prime Time Evenings

 Monday June 5, 1961

7:30 Movie The Showdown-1950
9PM Shanghai Story-1954
10:35 Movie-Spring Reunion-1957 (Third time in 3 days!)

Tuesday, June 6, 1961

7:30 Movie-Shanghai Story-1954
9PM Movie-City That Never Sleeps-1953 
10:35 Movie-Shanghai Story-1954

Wednesday, June 7, 1961

 
7:30 Movie-City That Never Sleeps-1953
9:30 Movie- Hell's Outpost-1955
10:35 Movie-City Theat Never Sleeps-1953

 
Thursday, June 8, 1961

7:30 Movie-Hell's Outpost-1955
9PM Movie-Bullfighter and the Lady-1951
10:35 Movie-Hell's Outpost-1955

Friday, June 9, 1961

7:30 Movie- Bullfighter and the Lady-1951
9PM Movie-Lisbon-1956
10:35 Movie-Bullfighter and the Lady-1951 

      Here, there were a few short local shows, but the rest of the schedule was basically all movies-The Only filmed shows besides movies, were "Big Picture" and the like..They seemed to have a very small film library. 

     Another Note:In acquiring TV Guide listings, what I get date wise tends to be entirely at random.  In both December 1960 and June 1961 the Movies Bandido, Spring Reunion, Shanghai Story and The Showdown were shown..pointing out just how small the film library was.

      Now lets look at Friday March 16, 1962. It appears to be the last date WXTV-45 was carried in Cleveland's TV Guide. By now just about all Syndicated programming was gone and all that was left was a few movies and very cheap local shows..

5:45 Dusty Boyd-Children 
6:15 Camera 15 
6:30 45 Hop-Music 
8PM Movie Sheriff of Las Vegas 1944 William Elliott Bobby (Robert?) Blake
9PM Movie-Fighting Kentuckian John Wayne, Oliver Hardy
11PM Trial At Tara-About St. Patrick Standing Trial for converting Druids to Christianity.

      Channel 45-WXTV just couldn't get anything going.  After a short while it was probably obvious, they were not going to make it long term. The 1964 law requiring TV sets to have UHF/VHF Tuners should have helped WXTV some and probably would have changed other later channels in the Cleveland/Youngstown Markets.

      While 3-16-62 is the last day of TV Guide listings, it May have stayed on the air longer.  The grand Y-Town Independent TV experiment had pretty much failed.  Channel 45 remained silent from late 1962-1973 when Akron, Kent State and Youngstown State Universities appropriated channel 45, now licensed to Salem/Alliance, Ohio as WNEO-PBS WEAO-49 was added in 1975.  

     Both stations simulcast as PBS 45/49 In Akron-Canton/Youngstown, Ohio. (As of 2022 Now known as Western Reserve PBS) Incidentally, in the mid 1950's both 45 and 49 were ABC in Youngstown/Akron at the same time.  Finally, anyone that has any memories of WXTV-45 from 1960-62, or information about the station more specifically as far as programming, personalities, etc.  It would be appreciated very much.  Please contact me through my e-mail or blog comments.