It didn’t get great reviews. The host was awkward on camera as he navigated the emerging medium. The musical numbers and sketches didn’t translate well to the home screen.
But none of it mattered. Bob Hope’s first-ever television special for NBC — “The Frigidaire Star Spangled Revue” — was a big hit with viewers when it aired in the late afternoon in Eastern time zones on Easter Sunday, April 9, 1950.
Hope was already a big box office draw and a major radio star for NBC. He was the first of the big radio comedy titans to try out a TV program. He earned a whopping $40,000 (from Frigidaire) for the first special. A few months later, Variety reported that Hope had signed with Frigidaire for six more NBC specials, also for $40,000 apiece (or about $555,000 today).
Hope would go on to host another 283 variety and comedy specials for NBC over the ensuing 46 years. The run, which included specials broadcast from behind the lines during the Vietnam War, remains a hallmark of longevity between a star and a network. It helped cement NBC’s reputation as a home for big entertainment specials and live events.
In radio and TV, NBC has consistently invested in special events to offset its regularly scheduled series. Some were designed to draw huge crowds to one-night-only performances, such as the famed 1983 concert special “Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever.” Some were designed to become annual traditions, such as the Tournament of Roses parade, the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting and the reigning champion of NBC’s holiday specials, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
“Today’s special is money in the bank for both the sponsor and the network,” Variety reported in 1957, when we also noted that ABC and CBS had gone “spec-happy,” following NBC’s lead.
For NBC, the company born as a radio network that is marking its 100th anniversary this year, the specials tradition endures. NBC delivered a surprise smash 13 years ago with an ambitious live musical staging of “The Sound of Music” starring Carrie Underwood. More recently, NBC brought Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande together for the musical special late last year, “Wicked: One Wonderful Night” that doubled as promotion for Universal Pictures’ theatrical release of “Wicked: For Good.”
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande perform on 2025’s “Wicked: One Wonderful Night” special
Griffin Nagel/NBC
Many of NBC’s top franchises are decades-old traditions that have become part of the annual calendar for viewers, a way to mark time between seasons. That’s a gift from NBC’s stewards of the past to the current generation of executives. Jen Neal, executive VP of live events and specials for NBC and Peacock, never takes it for granted.
“The audience’s desire for these communal experiences are as vital as ever — even more so today than in past years because there’s so much going on in the world,” Neal tells Variety. “At a time when media is very fragmented and there are so many options and so many places that you can consume content, live TV still remains one of the most powerful ways to bring people together.”
For advertisers as well as viewers, there’s something extra special about reaching viewers at a time when they’re likely to be reflective and nostalgic, especially around the holiday season.
“Live TV events does this differently than anything else,” Neal says. “NBCUniversal does that extraordinarily across sports and Olympics and news. But with the big live specials, it’s truly the place that you can bring people together for those habitual patterns during certain times of year.”
Here’s a look at some of the event-izing of its airwaves in roughly its first 50 years.
1938
Bob Hope is tapped to host NBC’s “The Pepsodent Show,” which vaults him to radio stardom and begins Hope’s 60-year partnership with NBC.
Bob Hope
Getty Images
1951
NBC televises the annual Christmas tree lighting in Rockefeller Center for the first time as part of “The Kate Smith Show.”
1953
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade airs on NBC as an hourlong special. In 1969, the parade telecast expanded to three hours. Today, the broadcast draws more than 20 million viewers. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the parade.
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1999
Craig Blankenhorn/NBCU Photo Ban
1954
NBC owner RCA introduces its cutting-edge color television system with the New Year’s Day broadcast of the Tournament of Roses parade.
1964
NBC first airs the Golden Globes. By the 2000s, the show was enshrined as an important precursor to the Oscars. Ricky Gervais as well as Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are among the NBC-affiliated stars who made multiple appearances as hosts of the kudocast during the NBCUniversal era.
Tina Fey and Amy Poehler host the Golden Globe Awards in 2013
Paul Drinkwater/NBC
1968
“Elvis, the ’68 Comeback Special” marks Elvis Presley’s return to live performances. It is renowned as one of the most-watched concert specials of all time.
Elvis Presley from his 1968 comeback special
NBCU Photo Bank
1974
“The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast” series of specials begins a 10-year stretch of bawdy ribbing and playful skewering. Guests included everyone from then-California Gov. Ronald Reagan to Truman Capote to Joe Namath.
Dean Martin, Don Rickles and Orson Welles on an early installment of “The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast.”
Paul W. Baley/NBC
1976
NBC airs the 4½-hour special “NBC: The First 50 Years.”
(Pictured top: Bob Hope and George Burns)
Source: variety.com
