Here's Looking at Us: Celebrating Fifty Years of CBC-TV

Julie Rekai Rickerd is a Toronto-based broadcaster and public-relations
consultant.

It is hard to believe that it is 50 years ago, on September 8, 1952,
that CBC-TV first went on the air. For those who watched in those early
years, this well-researched, handsomely produced, and clearly organized
book is a wonderful trip down memory lane; for those who cannot imagine
life before 500 channels, it is a history well worth reading.

Author Stephen Cole interviewed more than a hundred on-air
personalities and production/technical talent. Organized by decade, the
chapters revisit the days of live dramas and variety shows, newscasts,
public affairs programs, sports and children’s shows. Norman Jewison,
Lorne Greene, Robert Goulet, Johnny Wayne, Frank Shuster, Barbara Frum,
Alex Trebek, Al Waxman, Bruno Gerussi, William Shatner, and countless
other celebrities began their professional careers at CBC-TV. Anne
Murray debuted on Don Messer’s Singalong Jubilee.

The coverage of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II was the beginning
of memorable CBC broadcasts of world events, weddings, and funerals. CBC
drama series were among the finest in North America. Hockey was king on
CBC-TV Sports. The coverage of Team Canada’s 1972 “Summit on Ice”
and Paul Henderson’s winning goal against the Soviets in Moscow was
Canada’s “shot heard around the world” (to this day, Hockey Night
in Canada is sacrosanct in many a home across the nation). Those
associated with the groundbreaking This Hour Has Seven Days were
pioneers in shock broadcasting.

In its early days, CBC-TV was the glue that kept Canada uniformly
informed and entertained from coast to coast. That time comes to life in
this thoroughly enjoyable book. Hundreds of black-and-white and color
photographs (both old and recent) are included.