April 1956-Time of Transition

A double page ad by Storer Broadcasting announcing the move of WXEL/WJW to new studios at 1630 Euclid Avenue, Downtown Cleveland, where they would remain till the 70's when studios would move to 5800 South Marginal Road near downtown..Also, there was a special program Sunday April 15, 1956 at 2:00PM dedicating the new studios and announcing the call letter change from WXEL to WJW-TV to match Storer's newly acquired WJW-AM 850


TV Guide Ad for the Monday April 16, 1956 KYW-TV 3 premiere of "Six O Clock Adventure" a hodgepodge of western, action and adventure shows during the 6:00 hour. According to the listing "former Philadelphian" Big Wilson is host for the hour (55 minutes actually)
This indicates that Wilson may have only recently arrived at KYW, where he would stay till 1961.


TV Guide Ad for the syndicated "Man Behind The Badge" with Kroger as sponsor, Monday at 10:30PM on KYW-3


TV Guide ad for varied Thursday evening shows on Cleveland stations.


In our first major historical post of 2009 I thought we would look at the week of April 14-20, 1956. KYW-TV was settling in after the Westinghouse swap with Philly's channel 3, with several local program changes.. WEWS was preparing to move into its new srudios at 3001 Euclid Avenue, where they are to this day. WXEL was about to move into new studios downtown with the call letters WJW-TV..Some program highlights:

Saturday 4/14
9AM WEWS-5 Fun Farm with hostess Mary Ellen..Captain Penny (Ron Penfound) would take over Fun Farm by Spring 1957.

3:30 WXEL-8 Humbard Family-Rex Humbard's Broadcast from Akron, Ohio
4PM WXEL-8 Wrestling
6:30 WEWS-5 Little Rascals
6:50-WKBN-27 Ohio Story-Visit to the Toledo Zoo
8PM KYW-3/WFMJ-21 Perry Como-With Ginger Rogers, Tennesee Ernie Ford, Phil Foster and the Duke Univ. Choir
11PM KYW-3 News-Tom Field

Sunday 4/15
Noon-WEWS-5 Gene Carroll
2PM WXEL-8 WJW-TV Dedication-TV 8 changes calls from WXEL ro WJW
7:30 KYW-3 WFMJ 21 Salute to Baseball..90 minute spectacular on the opening of the 1956 Baseball season..
10:30 WEWS-5 Bill Randle Show

Monday 4/16

9AM KYW-3 Morning Surprise-Tom Haley
10:45 WFMJ-21 Industry On Parade
12:30 WEWS-5 Uncle Leslie-Linn Sheldon
6PM KYW-3 Six o' Clock Adventure-DEBUT-Captain Z-RO and an episode of "My Hero" With Bob Cummings-Big Wilson hosts.
6:50 WEWS-5 News-Bob Dale/Paul Wilcox
7:30 WAKR-49 Chef Lorenzo
7:45 KYW-3 WFMJ-21 John C. Swayze News-Originating from WNBQ Chicago, which became fhe first TV station to broadcast "virtually" all its shows in color
9PM WJW-8 WKBN 27 I Love Lucy-The "Grape Stomping" episode
10PM WEWS-5 Boxing from St. Nicholas Arena, NY-The last DuMont series.

Tuesday 4/17
1PM WJW-8 Alice Weston
2PM WEWS-5 WKBN-27 Baseball-Indians at Chicago White Sox..Opemning Day Ken Coleman, Jim Britt Indians lost 2-1

6PM WJW-8 Looney Tunes
6PM WFMJ-21 Susie Sidesaddle
7:30 WEWS-5 WKBN-27 WAKR-49 Warner Brothers Presents-Cheyenne
11:05 KYW-3 Weather-Joe Finan

Wednesday 4/18
7PM WEWS-5 Inside Catholic Schools
7:30 WEWS-5 Disneyland
8PM WAKR-49 Akron Jaycees
8:30 WAKR-49 Wrestling-Hollywood
10PM WJW-8 20th Century Fox Hour Reginald Gardiner and Eddie Bracken in "Mr. Belvedere"
10:30 KYW-3 Midwestern Hayride

Thursday 4/19

1:15 WEWS-5 Double Drama-Bob Dale
6PM WEWS-5 Superman-George Reeves
6:20 WAKR-49 Sports-Bob Wylie
7:15 WEWS-5 ABC News-John Daly
8:30 WJW-8 WKBN-27 Climax!-The Lou Gehrig Story

Friday 4/20
8:55 WJW-8 Farm News
1:15 WFMJ-21 Hal's A Poppin-Hal Fryar
5:55 WJW-8 News
7PM KYW-3 Amos and Andy
7PM WJW-8 WFMJ-21 Badge 714 (Dragnet-Jack Webb)