Montage (TV series)

History

In 1965, the Federal Communications Commission and Justice Department forced NBC to reverse a 1955 trade with Westinghouse Broadcasting, returning WNBK-TV in Cleveland to NBC. NBC renamed the station WKYC-TV and moved several shows from Philadelphia to Cleveland, including the documentary series Montage. Dennis Goulden became executive producer of the show. Montage profiled local personalities such as Cleveland Orchestra director Lorin Maazel and Cleveland Browns coach Paul Brown, as well as national figures like Olympic skater Jo Jo Starbuck and Oscar-nominated actor William Gargan.

The series examined issues including pollution, race, homosexuality, drugs, crime, housing, education, medical advancements, and the Vietnam War. Some episodes featured guest hosts Bill Cosby and Robert Stack. The Montage unit traveled to Australia, Asia, Europe, and South America for stories, which were often broadcast on other NBC owned-and-operated stations, PBS stations, and others. In 1976, the show experimented with a magazine format for several episodes.

Goulden produced the show until its cancellation in 1978, by which time over 300 episodes had been produced. The show won dozens of Emmys and hundreds of other awards. In 1980, Dennis Goulden and WKYC-TV donated completed shows, raw footage, audio, scripts, production notes, and other materials to the library at Cleveland State University.