Bob Carter, who portrayed Sammy Terry, died June 30, 2013.
Janie Woods Hodge, often simply known as “Janie,” was a beloved puppet show and cartoon host for more than 20 years at WTTV.
•
•
WTTV’s television legacy started with a converted drugstore, Herman B Wells and a puppet show.
And now, after nearly 65 years on the air, Bloomington’s former homegrown station will be the host of some marquee TV moments, including David Letterman’s final “Late Show,” with its new network affiliation.
Tribune Broadcasting Indianapolis LLC announced Aug. 11 that its formerly Bloomington-based station — and Indiana’s second-ever TV station — will replace WISH-TV as the CBS affiliate in Indianapolis as of Jan. 1, 2015. It will show longtime favorites such as “60 Minutes” and “The Price is Right” on a daily basis, as well as CBS’ presentation of Super Bowl 50.
The programming move for the current CW affiliate, however, is just the latest in WTTV’s curvy, yet wholesome, history.
It all started in the careful hands of engineer Sarkes Tarzian, an immigrant from Turkish Armenia, and his wife, Mary, in the late 1940s.
As electronics began to capture the attention of postwar America, Sarkes Tarzian, the chief engineer of Bloomington’s RCA plant, manufactured table-model and car radios.
Together, the ambitious couple had saved $50,000 at a time when many Americans were seeking normalcy and long-term direction. Mary was pushing Sarkes to start his own business.
By the end of the decade, the young couple would own a TV station, an AM radio station and businesses manufacturing semiconductors, TV tuners and broadcast equipment.
© 2024 HeraldTimesOnline, Bloomington, IN