KUHT Highlights

This digital collection sheds light on the groundbreaking creation and dedicated running of the first public television station in the country. Hundreds of black and white photographs illustrate the work that went on both in front of the cameras and behind the scenes at KUHT-TV.

Most of the photographs date from the station’s early days in the 1950s, but later decades are also represented. The snapshots capture production staff, cameramen, set designers, and engineers, as well as on-air personalities and sets from Channel 8 News and other shows. Items of note include photos of the figures who were instrumental in getting KUHT up and running, such as University President Dr. Walter W. Kemmerer, faculty member and choral director Dr. John Schwarzwalder, and producer/director George Arms. The collection also includes images of celebrities who appeared on PBS programs through the years: Mister Rogers, Julia Child, Phyllis Diller, Dustin Hoffman, and even Sesame Street’s Big Bird.

Located on the University of Houston campus, KUHT-TV was America's first public television station when it debuted in 1953, and it became one of the founding stations of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in 1969. Today, KUHT-TV/HoustonPBS continues to produce innovative programming while serving not only the students and faculty at UH, but the greater Houston community as a whole.

The original materials are available in UH Libraries’ Special Collections in the KUHT Collection. Film and video from the KUHT Collection are available in the Audio/Video Repository.