1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,920 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:12,360 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hello and welcome to This Day in History Class, 3 00:00:12,400 --> 00:00:15,880 Speaker 1: a show that serves the channels of History seven days 4 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:20,279 Speaker 1: a week. I'm Gabe Bluesier, and in this episode we're 5 00:00:20,320 --> 00:00:23,680 Speaker 1: talking about the birth of HBO, a new kind of 6 00:00:23,720 --> 00:00:27,000 Speaker 1: network that appeared in the dark days of television and 7 00:00:27,120 --> 00:00:38,040 Speaker 1: raised expectations for quality programming on the small screen. The 8 00:00:38,159 --> 00:00:44,960 Speaker 1: day was November eighty two. Home Box Office or HBO, 9 00:00:45,520 --> 00:00:49,760 Speaker 1: began broadcasting for the first time at a time when 10 00:00:49,800 --> 00:00:53,000 Speaker 1: cable television was still in its infancy. One of its 11 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:57,840 Speaker 1: most prominent advocates was an American businessman named Charles Dolan. 12 00:00:58,480 --> 00:01:01,560 Speaker 1: He believed there was an audience for a premium channel 13 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:05,640 Speaker 1: that broadcasted recent films, as well as special events like 14 00:01:05,840 --> 00:01:10,840 Speaker 1: live sports, stand up comedy, and concerts. Dolan took his 15 00:01:10,959 --> 00:01:13,880 Speaker 1: idea to Time, Inc. Which was looking for a way 16 00:01:13,920 --> 00:01:18,360 Speaker 1: to break into the growing cable TV business. Dolan originally 17 00:01:18,400 --> 00:01:22,000 Speaker 1: pitched the service under the working title of the Green Channel, 18 00:01:22,480 --> 00:01:25,440 Speaker 1: but once Time signed on as an investor, he and 19 00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 1: his staff changed the name to Home Box Office Has 20 00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:32,200 Speaker 1: a Way to showcase the Hollywood and event programming that 21 00:01:32,240 --> 00:01:37,360 Speaker 1: would become the channel specialty Time Inc. Marketed HBO in 22 00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:41,080 Speaker 1: the same way it did its magazines, by having subscribers 23 00:01:41,160 --> 00:01:44,640 Speaker 1: pay a monthly fee for the content. In the case 24 00:01:44,720 --> 00:01:48,320 Speaker 1: of HBO, it launched with a subscription fee of about 25 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:52,040 Speaker 1: six dollars per month. The channel kept a little over 26 00:01:52,160 --> 00:01:55,120 Speaker 1: half of the profits, with the rest going to Time Inc. 27 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:59,560 Speaker 1: And the local cable operators who distributed the service. For 28 00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:04,120 Speaker 1: most of its first decade, HBO aired programming for only 29 00:02:04,160 --> 00:02:07,680 Speaker 1: about nine hours a day. It didn't switch to its 30 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:12,280 Speaker 1: current twenty four hour schedule until as a way to 31 00:02:12,320 --> 00:02:17,359 Speaker 1: match its main competitor, Showtime. The first thing HBO ever 32 00:02:17,440 --> 00:02:22,000 Speaker 1: broadcast was a little known movie from seventy one called 33 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:27,880 Speaker 1: Sometimes a Great Notion. The drama about Oregon loggers was 34 00:02:27,960 --> 00:02:32,840 Speaker 1: directed by Paul Newman, who also starred alongside Henry Fonda. 35 00:02:33,160 --> 00:02:36,680 Speaker 1: After that, the channel aired its first live sporting event, 36 00:02:37,200 --> 00:02:40,920 Speaker 1: an NHL hockey game between the New York Rangers and 37 00:02:40,960 --> 00:02:46,919 Speaker 1: the Vancouver Canucks. Other early event programming included three hours 38 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: of coverage of the nineteen seventy three Pennsylvania Polka Festival. 39 00:02:52,240 --> 00:02:56,480 Speaker 1: HBO subscribership took a dip that year, from fourteen thousand 40 00:02:56,600 --> 00:03:00,560 Speaker 1: down to eight thousand, Not that I'm suggesting Alka Fest 41 00:03:00,639 --> 00:03:04,399 Speaker 1: had anything to do with that. The truth is that 42 00:03:04,480 --> 00:03:08,799 Speaker 1: reduced subscribership was still far better than the channel's first year. 43 00:03:09,440 --> 00:03:13,280 Speaker 1: When HBO debuted in nineteen seventy two, it had only 44 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:17,239 Speaker 1: three hundred and sixty five subscribers, all of whom lived 45 00:03:17,280 --> 00:03:21,720 Speaker 1: in or around Pennsylvania. This was due in part because 46 00:03:21,760 --> 00:03:26,560 Speaker 1: the channel was broadcasting its signal via microwave relays, which 47 00:03:26,600 --> 00:03:30,440 Speaker 1: are significantly cheaper than satellites but have a far more 48 00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:36,600 Speaker 1: limited range. Eventually, HBO subscriber list plateaued, and the channel 49 00:03:36,680 --> 00:03:40,080 Speaker 1: was forced to pony up for satellite distribution in order 50 00:03:40,120 --> 00:03:44,080 Speaker 1: to reach a broader audience. The changeover took place on 51 00:03:44,200 --> 00:03:49,680 Speaker 1: December seventy five, just in time for the landmark Thrilla 52 00:03:49,760 --> 00:03:53,880 Speaker 1: in Manila boxing match between Joe Frasier and Muhammad Ali. 53 00:03:54,680 --> 00:03:59,040 Speaker 1: The switch to satellite broadcasts allowed the channel to grow exponentially. 54 00:03:59,760 --> 00:04:03,520 Speaker 1: Just two years later, in nineteen seventy seven, the service 55 00:04:03,560 --> 00:04:08,760 Speaker 1: had soared to over six hundred thousand subscribers. Of course, 56 00:04:08,960 --> 00:04:12,200 Speaker 1: a major part of the channel's appeal was the rotating 57 00:04:12,240 --> 00:04:16,080 Speaker 1: selection of recent hit films that HBO licensed for TV. 58 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:20,800 Speaker 1: At the time, the home video market was small and 59 00:04:20,839 --> 00:04:25,240 Speaker 1: growing slowly. That means a pay service like HBO was 60 00:04:25,320 --> 00:04:27,800 Speaker 1: a lot of people's only option if they wanted to 61 00:04:27,839 --> 00:04:32,239 Speaker 1: watch popular movies that had already left theaters. The channel 62 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:35,280 Speaker 1: catered to this demand by scooping up the rights to 63 00:04:35,400 --> 00:04:39,760 Speaker 1: bigger and better films, but sometimes they didn't come cheap. 64 00:04:40,480 --> 00:04:43,120 Speaker 1: The cost for the rights to broadcast a movie were 65 00:04:43,120 --> 00:04:46,719 Speaker 1: based directly on how well that movie had performed in theaters. 66 00:04:47,279 --> 00:04:49,800 Speaker 1: The more money had made at the box office, the 67 00:04:49,839 --> 00:04:52,960 Speaker 1: more it would cost the home box office to air. 68 00:04:53,800 --> 00:04:57,159 Speaker 1: One of the pricier deals HBO made for movie rights 69 00:04:57,520 --> 00:05:02,680 Speaker 1: was the four hit ghost Busters. According to former HBO 70 00:05:02,760 --> 00:05:07,360 Speaker 1: employee Bill Messi, the channel paid Columbia Pictures a jaw 71 00:05:07,480 --> 00:05:13,520 Speaker 1: dropping forty million dollars for the exclusive broadcast rights. For reference, 72 00:05:13,680 --> 00:05:18,120 Speaker 1: just a few years earlier, HBO it licensed forty films 73 00:05:18,160 --> 00:05:22,839 Speaker 1: from MGM for about thirty five million dollars, but the 74 00:05:22,920 --> 00:05:27,000 Speaker 1: high price of big draw movies like Ghostbusters was ultimately 75 00:05:27,040 --> 00:05:31,360 Speaker 1: worth it. HBO continued to expand, and by the mid 76 00:05:31,440 --> 00:05:36,760 Speaker 1: nineteen eighties it boasted over ten million subscribers, representing about 77 00:05:36,880 --> 00:05:42,479 Speaker 1: fifty of all pay TV customers. Today, the channel has 78 00:05:42,520 --> 00:05:46,120 Speaker 1: more than ten times that amount of viewers, but blockbuster 79 00:05:46,240 --> 00:05:50,760 Speaker 1: films aren't the main draw anymore. HBO began producing its 80 00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:54,680 Speaker 1: own original films and shows in the nineteen eighties, but 81 00:05:54,760 --> 00:05:58,960 Speaker 1: it wasn't until The Larry Sanders Show in two that 82 00:05:59,040 --> 00:06:03,280 Speaker 1: the networks in house productions began to truly hit their stride. 83 00:06:04,040 --> 00:06:07,000 Speaker 1: The dark comedy series functioned as a parody of late 84 00:06:07,120 --> 00:06:11,760 Speaker 1: night TV chat shows, with frequent celebrity guests playing exaggerated 85 00:06:11,880 --> 00:06:16,880 Speaker 1: versions of themselves. The distinctive show drew rave reviews from critics, 86 00:06:17,360 --> 00:06:20,840 Speaker 1: which in turn encouraged HBO to take bigger risks on 87 00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:25,880 Speaker 1: more new shows. A string of successful original series followed, 88 00:06:26,120 --> 00:06:30,760 Speaker 1: including Sex in the City, Oz The Wire, The Sopranos, 89 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:34,800 Speaker 1: Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Game of Thrones, to name a few. 90 00:06:35,720 --> 00:06:39,320 Speaker 1: This slate of original programming helped raise the bar for 91 00:06:39,400 --> 00:06:43,839 Speaker 1: television quality, ushering in what's often described now as a 92 00:06:44,040 --> 00:06:47,919 Speaker 1: Golden Age of TV. Just don't tell that to the 93 00:06:48,000 --> 00:06:52,080 Speaker 1: channel because they're still under the impression that it's not TV, 94 00:06:53,120 --> 00:06:58,840 Speaker 1: it's HBO. I'm gay, Bluesier and hopefully you now know 95 00:06:58,920 --> 00:07:02,480 Speaker 1: a little more about his street today than you did yesterday. 96 00:07:03,320 --> 00:07:05,000 Speaker 1: If you'd like to keep up with the show. You 97 00:07:05,040 --> 00:07:08,480 Speaker 1: can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at t 98 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:12,720 Speaker 1: d I HC Show and if you have any feedback 99 00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:16,080 Speaker 1: or recommendations for what to watch on HBO, you can 100 00:07:16,120 --> 00:07:18,800 Speaker 1: send them my way at this Day at i heart 101 00:07:18,880 --> 00:07:22,960 Speaker 1: media dot com. Thanks to Chandler Mays for producing the show, 102 00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:25,760 Speaker 1: and thank you for listening. I'll see you back here 103 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:36,560 Speaker 1: again tomorrow for another day in History class. For more 104 00:07:36,600 --> 00:07:39,120 Speaker 1: podcasts for my Heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, 105 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:41,840 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.