From Bob Hope to Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade to ‘Wicked: One Wonderful Night’: How NBC Became America’s Home for TV Specials

By Cynthia Littleton

Cynthia Littleton

Business Editor

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It didn’t get great reviews. The host was awkward on camera as he navigated the emerging medium. The musical numbers and sketches didn’t translate well to the home screen.

But none of it mattered. Bob Hope’s first-ever television special for NBC — “The Frigidaire Star Spangled Revue” — was a big hit with viewers when it aired in the late afternoon in Eastern time zones on Easter Sunday, April 9, 1950.

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