A question for "old skool" people about cable tv..

[mrburns918]

I was just sitting here doing a spreadsheet at work and got distracted thinking about cable television back in the 70's and 80's.

My question is... "Was HBO ever called the "Q" channel?" It seems like I remember it being called that. I also remember the channel showing alot of foreign films, including a short they always played about a pigeon dropping his load on people. I also remember being traumatized by the movie that was a rip off of "The Exorcist" called "Beyond the Door" Anyone else remember the type of shows on "Q"? If that was what the channel was called.

Any other names for stations(channels) that were on the cable system back in the70's and 80's?

Playboy channel = Escapade
USA Network - which had video concert hall and up all night. Great channel.

Yes, I am bored.

Mr. Burns.

[Ibanez]

HBO was originally called "The Green Channel." The name was changed to HBO in 1972.

USA Network is still around

The Playboy Channel has always been called that as far as I know.

[dbacks fan]

It wasn't called "Q" it was "Z" before HBO came along. I also remember when HBO did not start showing movies until 4:00 in the afternoon. I also liked that Tulsa Cable as it was back then showed the races from the speedway. My two favorite channels were KTVT from Ft. Worth and KXTX from Dallas, and then in the late 70's we got WTBS and WGN. I also loved the classic movies that they played on channel 5.

Escepade was the forerunner to the Playboy channel. I remember that the line up was HBO channel 14, Cinemax channel 15, and Escapade was channel 16.

[TheTed]

quote:Originally posted by dbacks fan

and then in the late 70's we got WTBS and WGN. I also loved the classic movies that they played on channel 5.

It's too bad the superstations, like society as a whole, are getting homogenized. There's no longer anything on TBS that pertains to Atlanta at all.

At least WGN still has the news, Cubs baseball and a few Bulls games. Hopefully that won't change. I still hold a grudge against them for changing to eastern time when they talk about upcoming shows. They used to be the only channel to list shows in central time first.

[waterboy]

When I returned home from college to Tulsa in '73 my parents had "Q". Later on it was changed to "cable". There wasn't much on it but it was exciting for everyone. I remember we thought it would lead to real time interactive voting of some sort. It seems the name "Q" came from a movie at that time showing how real time voting on issues could take place. Even suggested it could be used for judgements in jury trials. The jury being the cable viewers.

I also remember seeing one of the channels showing a spread sheet with comparisons of grocery store pricing. It was pretty rudimentary cable.

[Hoss]

quote:Originally posted by dbacks fan

It wasn't called "Q" it was "Z" before HBO came along. I also remember when HBO did not start showing movies until 4:00 in the afternoon. I also liked that Tulsa Cable as it was back then showed the races from the speedway. My two favorite channels were KTVT from Ft. Worth and KXTX from Dallas, and then in the late 70's we got WTBS and WGN. I also loved the classic movies that they played on channel 5.

Escepade was the forerunner to the Playboy channel. I remember that the line up was HBO channel 14, Cinemax channel 15, and Escapade was channel 16.

I also remember TCI having Kansas City ch 41 for as long as I can remember.  All those commercials about furniture stores in Raytown...I remember that pretty vividly.

[sgrizzle]

I just remember the "remote" ie. the box that you could put next to your lazboy with the channel push buttons.

[dbacks fan]

quote:Originally posted by Hoss

quote:Originally posted by dbacks fan

It wasn't called "Q" it was "Z" before HBO came along. I also remember when HBO did not start showing movies until 4:00 in the afternoon. I also liked that Tulsa Cable as it was back then showed the races from the speedway. My two favorite channels were KTVT from Ft. Worth and KXTX from Dallas, and then in the late 70's we got WTBS and WGN. I also loved the classic movies that they played on channel 5.

Escepade was the forerunner to the Playboy channel. I remember that the line up was HBO channel 14, Cinemax channel 15, and Escapade was channel 16.

I also remember TCI having Kansas City ch 41 for as long as I can remember.  All those commercials about furniture stores in Raytown...I remember that pretty vividly.

I forgot about that one. They had the guy that hosted the old movies, Elvira, and the commercial I remember was the one for Blue Springs Datsun/Nissan.

It was KSHB, and I think it was discontinued because TCI could not carry two channels from the same owner. In this case I thinke it was Scripps Howard, and they owned KSHB and KJRH(KTEW) channel 2 in Tulsa.

[patric]

quote:Originally posted by sgrizzle

I just remember the "remote" ie. the box that you could put next to your lazboy with the channel push buttons.

It was the size of an encyclopedia with a long brown wire that tangled and frayed easily, and some of the channels were letters (like "Q") instead of numbers.  
HBO was A, Cinemax was B, Escapade C, etc.

Tulsa Cable.  That was when Turner was hip and cool.

Here is a photo of the smaller, newer box they introduced later:

[iplaw]

quote:Originally posted by sgrizzle

I just remember the "remote" ie. the box that you could put next to your lazboy with the channel push buttons.

And the selector switch and roll dial on the side.

Oh the hours spent trying to fine tune a scrambled Playboy channel with that damned thing...

[mobboss]

i remember the HUGE control box with 3 rows of letters you could push ala "jukebox" style..if you pressed 2 at the same time and used the fine tune you could get scrambled escapade network, ahhhh "emmanuelle in bangkok" or some women in prison pron!

HBO showed the kraftwerk short film of the song 'Autobahn" often, i had heard that Video Concert Hall was programmed out of tulsa, later the creator , Bob Pittman, went on to form MTV..
(i also remember the theme music to VCH, carouselambra by led zeppelin)

[Breadburner]

Don't forget Skinemax.....

[mrburns918]

quote:Originally posted by mobboss

i remember the HUGE control box with 3 rows of letters you could push ala "jukebox" style..if you pressed 2 at the same time and used the fine tune you could get scrambled escapade network, ahhhh "emmanuelle in bangkok" or some women in prison pron!

HBO showed the kraftwerk short film of the song 'Autobahn" often, i had heard that Video Concert Hall was programmed out of tulsa, later the creator , Bob Pittman, went on to form MTV..
(i also remember the theme music to VCH, carouselambra by led zeppelin)

I remember watching Emmanuelle in Bangkok! I remember a scene where a ping pong ball pops out of her uh you know what and they actually showed it! I would sneak into the living room and watch Escapade while my parents slept. My jaw hit the floor everytime I would see the ping pong scene.

Ahhh, to be 32 years old again.

Mr. Burns

[monterey1967]

quote:Originally posted by iplaw

quote:Originally posted by sgrizzle

I just remember the "remote" ie. the box that you could put next to your lazboy with the channel push buttons.

And the selector switch and roll dial on the side.

Oh the hours spent trying to fine tune a scrambled Playboy channel with that damned thing...

i remember that if you pushed 2 buttons down at the same time [like 5 and 9] and if it was raining outside the playboy channel would come in real good.

[dbacks fan]

quote:Originally posted by patric

quote:Originally posted by sgrizzle

I just remember the "remote" ie. the box that you could put next to your lazboy with the channel push buttons.

It was the size of an encyclopedia with a long brown wire that tangled and frayed easily, and some of the channels were letters (like "Q") instead of numbers.  
HBO was A, Cinemax was B, Escapade C, etc.

Tulsa Cable.  That was when Turner was hip and cool.

Here is a photo of the smaller, newer box they introduced later:

When I was in high school, my mother would stretch the cord across the living room and turn out the lights, so that when I came in later than I should, I would snag the cord, it would hit the floor and scare the cats to let her know what time I came in.

Z Channel