New Adventures of Queen Victoria by Pab Sungenis for April 18, 2010

Just out of curiosity, how many posters here actually remember seeing that indian head test pattern appearing on TV?

Or the broadcast day ending with the National Anthem, and then…nothing!

I remember, as well as watching “Insight” before signoff. It was like a religious “Twilight Zone”.

”There is nothing wrong with your television……….Do not attempt to adjust the picture.” Test patterns freaked me out as a kid since that opening.

Before I scrolled down to the comments I was thinking, “What a memory flogger this is!” The only difference is that the cabinet we had was twice that size, to hold all the vacuum tubes. So, yeah, I remember.

It’s nice to see the Queen supporting an English actor, Hugh Laurie, even though he’s doing an American accent.

we are all pretty @#%&*! old huh

As good as Hugh Laurie is - I can’t be sucked in by medical melodrama

I rather watch Jeeves & Wooster

I remember back when television wasn’t on 24/7. Before the Indian-head test pattern I’d get a reading of John Gillespie Magee Jr.’s poem “High Flight”. Frankly, I consider the test-pattern to be a lot more entertaining than what passes for a lot of late-night programming these days.

You do realize that House is based on Sherlock Holmes…………….Wilson: Watson.

The Suspense. House misdiagnosis seven times before the electric paddles come out. In a drugged fog, he has a sudden revelation ten minutes before the show ends. Oh, he might insult someone.

I remember the test pattern. We also used to have a channel that would just show a clock, and various weather dials.

This is the 4th place I’ve flagged that spammer (reading in alphbetical order) - usually the spam is gone before I get online. +++++++++ Speaking of getting sucked into a show- I don’t watch House, but I watched a marathon Dr Who yesterday (It has been many years since I watched that regularly) but the new season is starting on BBC.

Saw the new Who last night - not bad! Not bad at all!

I never saw the Indian-head pattern, except as a joke in movies & commercials. Ditto the national anthem. I remember the colored bars, though, especially when the EBS was testing (remember how annoying that was?) What I do recall at sign-off, was a small station during the late 90’s, which would do a really OLD Air Force recruiting ad, featuring an overblown, hammy rendition of “America the Beautiful,” and ending with, “AIM HIGH AMERICA!”

on one of the 4 channels available oh so long ago, I remember a preacher or some sort coming on to spew out a few ‘words to live by’, followed by the star spangled banner, followed by ………..static

Oh, man, I remember that test pattern too – that was my first thought when seeing today’s strip. But I thought it was the CBC’s test pattern; didn’t realize until YEARS later that it was universal.

4 channels & 3 of them were weak & fuzzy, but the programing was better. We need “Your Show of Shows” or Steve Allen.

Re Yukoner: I noticed the resemblance to Basil Rathbone.

Prayer, anthem, test pattern, static and my father snoring through it all. How many times did I get up and turn off the TV and leave my father sleeping in the easy chair? Too many times to count.

House? Never watched it. Did like the Who season premiere, but I’m waiting for Primeval to return next year.

I don’t remember the test pattern, but I do remember the flag & National Anthem at the end of the broadcasting day. Also, before I was old enough to attend school, I used to wake up early enough to watch Modern Farmer. Ah ! The good old days !! (And I do mean OLD !)

In Ohio, channel 3 was originally channel 4 but changed to 3 when it kept interfering with channel 5. I started watching TV around 1947 and the test pattern came on about 7n or 8 am and programming began about an hour later. The national anthem played around midnight.

Those were the days of “Super Circus’” “howdy Doody’” and “Kate Smith.” …

I only saw TV at someone else’s house but I still remember that test pattern.

This is why there’ll have to be a remake of Poltergeist.

That’s why everything went digital. The poltergeists were getting to be a problem.

Flagged the mofo, for the umpteenth time!