''The Astor Show'' was an Australian television series which aired in 1958 on Melbourne station
GTV-9
GTV is a commercial television station in Melbourne, Australia, owned by the Nine Network. The station is currently based at studios at 717 Bourke Street, Docklands.
History
GTV-9 was amongst the first television stations to begin regular ...
. In the series, the cast danced to and mimed hit recordings (a mix of contemporary and older hits). The series ended with the 31 August 1958 broadcast. The timeslot of the series was then occupied for several weeks by a series of specials starring
Shirley Abicair
Shirley Abicair (born 26 October 1930) is an Australian-born singer, musician, television personality, actress and author. In the 1950s and 60s, she was probably best known as an exponent of the zither.
Early life
Shirley Abicair was born in Mel ...
, and later by an American drama series.
Synopsis
The format of the series was very similar to ''
Hit Parade
A hit parade is a ranked list of the most popular recordings at a given point in time, usually determined either by sales or airplay. The term originated in the 1930s; ''Billboard'' magazine published its first music hit parade on January 4, 1936 ...
'', which debuted earlier and aired on rival station HSV-7. Series consisting of the cast lip-syncing other artists songs were not uncommon on the early Australian television, but eventually vanished, likely rendered obsolete by the likes of ''
Six O'Clock Rock
''Six O'Clock Rock'' was an Australian rock and roll television show broadcast on ABC from 28 February 1959 to 1962 at 6 p.m. on Saturdays.
Program synopsis
Inspired by the BBC program '' 6.5 Special'', it had a similar format to its riva ...
'' and ''
The Bobby Limb Show
''The Bobby Limb Show'' was an early Australian television music/variety series which aired from 1959 to 1961, and was later re-titled (with minor format changes) as ''The Mobil-Limb Show'' from 1961 to 1964. It was hosted by Bobby Limb, and was ...
'' in the late-1950s.
Sponsorship
As the title suggests, the series was sponsored by
Astor Radio Corporation
Astor - Radio Corporation - Electronic Industries was the largest Australian electronics manufacturer, manufacturing across the retail sector of products from Washing Machines to Radio. Astor, which began operating in 1926, making electronics in V ...
.
Production
There is no information available as to whether any
kinescope recordings (also known as telerecordings) exist of the series (kinescope recording/telerecording being the method used to record live television in Australia prior to the introduction of video-tape). However, it is confirmed that kinescopes exist of rival series ''
Hit Parade
A hit parade is a ranked list of the most popular recordings at a given point in time, usually determined either by sales or airplay. The term originated in the 1930s; ''Billboard'' magazine published its first music hit parade on January 4, 1936 ...
''.
See also
*
Astor Radio Corporation
Astor - Radio Corporation - Electronic Industries was the largest Australian electronics manufacturer, manufacturing across the retail sector of products from Washing Machines to Radio. Astor, which began operating in 1926, making electronics in V ...
*
Astor Records
Astor Records was an Australian recorded music manufacturer and distributor that operated from the early 1960s to the early 1980s. Astor was the trade name of the consumer electronics manufacturer Radio Corporation Pty. Ltd, a division of Electron ...
*
Astor Showcase
''Astor Showcase'' was an Australian television variety series which aired from 1957 to 1959 on Sydney station ATN-7.
As the title suggests, it was sponsored by Astor Radio Corporation. The producer was Frank Strain. The orchestra was conducted ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Astor Show
Nine Network original programming
1958 Australian television series debuts
1958 Australian television series endings
Black-and-white Australian television shows
English-language television shows
Australian music television series
Pop music television series