Sometimes it’s the little things that are lost to history. But if one or two small details had changed, the way radio and TV in the GTA looks today would be very different. These are the odd stories that didn’t seem like much at the time, but might have changed the course of broadcast history.
 
American TV Literally Comes to Canada
 
Canada has an unfortunate history when it comes to broadcast innovation. The U.S. got TV in the 40s. Our first station, CBLT Toronto, didn’t come along until 1952.
 
They had colour TV in the 50s. We didn’t get any hues besides black and white until 1967.
 
And the Americans went all HD in 2009 before we made the same move in 2011.
 
So it might surprise you that the Americans wanted in on our TV market on this side of the border before there even was a TV market here.
 
From Sept. 1946:
 

The Sound Of Video
 
Imagine if the sound on your old analogue TV was delivered on AM instead of FM. It appears that’s the way experts were leaning when they got ready to set the standards for video broadcasting way back in 1944.
 

 CKVR Channel 3 In Toronto?
 
We’re used to stations near the top market, Toronto, trying to take advantage of that proximity. But if things had gone differently, Barrie’s Channel 3 might not have been there for long. We’ve published this before, but it’s worth another look.
 

 CHCH TV Channel 13?
 
Back before CHCH was officially on the air, it appeared they might not assume their now longtime dial position. Instead, you would have had to click two stations over. From 1953:
 

 
Channel 11 is where they were when sign-on day finally came the following January.
 

 If 13 had been used, what might have happened to CKCO Kitchener? It was looking higher up the dial.
 
April 1953:
 

 Channel 19 Was In The Planning For Almost A Decade
 
It signed on as CICA, Channel 19 in 1970, the first educational station on UHF in Canada. But did you know that position on the dial was reserved for such an entity way back in 1961?
 

 Parlez Vous CFTO?
 
It’s hard to imagine that this would have ever happened, but it appears Channel 9 might well have been planned to be Channel Neuf if things had been different.
 

 
Fortunately for Toronto TV audiences, la plus ca change etc.
 

So What Would Have Happened To Channel 25?
 
A lot of people were speaking English when it came to try for what is now CBLFT, Channel 25. It’s hard to say who might have gotten Channel 16, if things had been different in 1968. And can you imagine the infamous Allen Brothers, owners of CHIC, running a television station?
 

 Would You Pay $2.50 For The CBC?
 
Critics say it’s not worth a plug nickel, but at one time, Canadians were forking over $2.50 a year for the privilege of listening to the CBC.
 
Oct. 1946:
 

 Canadian Radio & TV: Never On A Sunday?
 
In a place where Sunday shopping wasn’t a fact of life until recently and TV and radio stations stay on 24 hours a day, it seems almost impossible to believe – but several radio stations, including the CBC, once got into big trouble for daring to broadcast on the last day of the weekend. And it wasn’t deemed kosher until early 1959.
 

Speaking Of Bans… 
 
It’s impossible to imagine what a Hockey Night in Canada broadcast might have looked like, considering radio stations weren’t allowed to speak a word about the demon liquor on their airwaves back in the 1940s, despite CFRB’s best efforts.
 
March 1946:

One month later came this “dry” decision:
 

But liquor ads eventually came into common use. Not so this product, until August 1971.
 

Oakville’s CHWO Almost Came In Hot
 
They would be great call letters today. But back in April 1956, no one was using the word “hot” the way it’s used today.
 

Less than seven months later, everything had changed.
 

CKLW In Trouble Over CanCon – In 1960!
 
Some believe the end of the Big 8 came when the CRTC mandated 30% Canadian content on all radio stations. So in a somewhat ironic foreshadowing of what was to come, the CRTCs predecessor called the company's TV station on the carpet in 1960 for not showing enough Cancon.
 

As bad as some felt about that 30% rule in the early 70s, this story from Feb. 1961 shows it could have been a lot worse. 55% Cancon? Yikes!
 

And Now A Word From Our Sign-Off
 
Hard to know how long this lasted, but what a strange concept back in the days when some stations weren’t on the air 24/7. WBEN-TV tried to buy their sign-off announcements in 1955, to tell listeners there was somewhere else to tune.
 

 Baseball Broadcasts On Radio: “You’re Out!”
 
Considering how ubiquitous baseball has been on radio over the years, this decision by two teams in 1943 is simply unbelievable. I’m assuming it didn’t last long.
 

 What was in the water that year? Turns out, it took until 1943 to ease a ban on something we take for granted these days.
 

 It’s All Thanks To The Competition
 
And finally, something you’ll likely never see again. A Buffalo TV station taking out a full page ad thanking its competition.
 

Next week: It’s Saturday morning all over again, with a look back at what you were watching year-by-year as a kid.