[QuadList] QuadList Digest, Vol 19, Issue 53

[DCFWTX at aol.com]

My comments in BOLD


In a message dated 1/28/2010 1:36:38 PM Pacific Standard Time, 
dbingley at rock95.com writes:


> As I mentioned in an earlier post, our older machines did not have Editec
> although they used electronic editing. The electronic editor had the
> nomenclature PP which we human editors said stood for "Push and Pray." The
> machine did not go into full edit until about 3/4 of a second after 
> hitting
> record and play, so you had to anticipate the edit point. You could run
> through the potential edit a couple of times to see if you had the timing
> right, but when you finally made the edit it was all up to your reflexes. 
> No
> second chance. 
> 
> I always hated the fact that even with the Editor switched in, you had to
> hit a button that said "Record" It never seemed right to me. It seemed 
> that
> the button should have said "EDIT" That is exactly the same system I used 
> at KCOP in Los Angeles 1977-1979. Six VR 2000's and this hybrid/home-brew 
> edit system. Minus 5 or 10 (I don't remember). Kris Trexler (and other ex 
> KCOP lurkers to this list) have similar stories I'm sure. As you said the red 
> record light would be lit. You didn't know how the edit turned out till 
> playback. Your setting of tach phase was part of the pre-edit drama, watching 
> that stab. dot on the third serration in demod cross-pulse.  
> 
> Even the later Editecs and EECO editing systems left lots of room for
> operator error. The worst sin was to try to do go back to do an insert 
> edit
> in the middle of a completed show with the editor switched to assemble. 
> Very
> bad..even worse was forgetting to switch in the editor at all, resulting 
> in
> the machine going into full record about 10 seconds before the desired 
> edit
> point.Very, very bad. Yes, the nightmares are with us all...
> 
> We used to do a variety show taped before a live audience. The next day I
> would insert video clips of the performances from later in the show into 
> the
> pre-voiced show intro (Announcer: Tommy's guests are Anne Murray, Joe
> Schlunk, etc. Video- Quick camera cuts of performers.) 
> 
> So that we did not have to go down a generation we would transfer the 
> video
> of the performances to a second machine, then edit the video back to the
> master during the intro sequence. You better believe I was extra careful 
> to
> check all of the switch positions before hitting the record/play buttons! 
> I think we all (years later) have those same, recurring bad dreams of "hard 
> records" where they should not have been.
> 
> If an edit suite was not booked we would record black and time code onto
> both machines during the down-time. When we reused tapes we would first 
> run
> them through on fast forward with our fingers on both sides of the tape to
> check for edge damage. Thank fully, that was Jake's job. I'm in contact 
> with him (ex NBC Burbank). I'll have him add something here sometime.
> 
> During record we were supposed to sit around for an hour listening for a
> head to zing, indicating a problem tape, but usually we would sneak out 
> for
> a beer.. I loved my NABET card.  On another day (and thread), we should 
> all talk about the watering holes adjacent to television facilities. I 
> personally know of the ones walking distance to 3000 West Alameda. I believe 
> there is a famous one across the street from TV City, Hollywood. Liquid 
> refreshment  somehow had strong ties to on-the-job activities back then (usually 
> off-the-lot, except during Christmas parties...).
> 
> 
David
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