A week of self-congratulation: CBS On The Air (1978)

 CBS marked 50 years on the air, between radio & television, with a week-long miniseries that was more about self-congratulation than anything else.

However, CBS On The Air, despite all the star power, had its flaws. The miniseries united the news & entertainment departments. How else could you see veteran newsman Bob Schieffer virtually rubbing shoulders with Isabel Sanford (The Jeffersons)? On the other hand, a fair number of iconic series were not represented at all. Ed Sullivan had passed on some time earlier, and, if memory serves me, so did Rod Serling (The Twilight Zone). They threw a bone to daytime, inviting game show hosts Bert Convy (Tattletales), Gene Rayburn (Match Game), and Bob Barker, whose Price is Right might've started a new string of primetime specials by that point. Of course, Barker was also the go-to host for the Miss USA & Miss Universe pageants back then. Bill Cosby was there more for a short-lived 1972 variety show than his iconic Saturday morning series, Fat Albert & The Cosby Kids. Bob Keeshan (Captain Kangaroo) carried the flag for children's television.

But who was missing? That's actually fairly easy:

Eddie Albert (Switch, ex-Green Acres). 

Richard Boone (ex-Have Gun, Will Travel).

Raymond Burr (ex-Perry Mason).

Bob Crane (ex-Hogan's Heroes). Crane would pass away three months after this miniseries ended.

Ken Curtis (ex-Gunsmoke).

Bill Bixby (The Incredible Hulk, ex-My Favorite Martian).

Lou Ferrigno (The Incredible Hulk).

Jackie Gleason.

Peter Graves (ex-Mission: Impossible).

Larry Hagman (Dallas was either in production or had started its first season).

Guy Lombardo, Mr. New Year's Eve at CBS.

Allen Ludden (Password was less than a year away from returning----on NBC).

And that just scratches the surface. While June Lockhart was there with Lassie, she and announcer Dick Tufeld were the lone cast members from Lost in Space. Buddy Ebsen was recognized for both Barnaby Jones and The Beverly Hillbillies. We have to assume Switch and Hulk were in production when this was being taped.

Mary Tyler Moore & Walter Cronkite were the lead hosts.

The following video is incomplete, missing some segments due to copyrights or lost tape or somesuch. There will be no rating.

NBC had already done specials to mark 40 (1966) & 50 years (1976), and would do a 60 year salute in 1986. ABC would follow suit with salutes of their own. CBS had the formula, but it got a wee bit bloated, don't you think?