The Sylvania Awards were given by the television manufacturer

Sylvania Electric Products Sylvania Electric Products Inc. was an American manufacturer of diverse electrical equipment, including at various times radio transceivers, vacuum tubes, semiconductors, and mainframe computers such as MOBIDIC. They were one of the companies inv ...

for various categories of television performance, broadcasting, scripts, music and other aspects of production between 1951 and 1959. In their day they rivaled the

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for prestige. They came to an end after the sponsor was merged into GTE.

History

Sylvania Electric Products, a television set manufacturer, gave the annual Sylvania Awards from 1951. The awards were given for advancing creative television techniques. The Sylvania Award was as prestigious as the

in the early days of television. It was one of several developed in the 1950s after the Emmy award was founded in 1949. Others included the ''

TV Guide Award The ''TV Guide'' Award was an annual award created by the editors of ''TV Guide'' magazine, as a readers poll to honor outstanding programs and performers in the American television industry. The awards were presented until 1964. The ''TV Guide'' A ...

'' and the ''Look Magazine TV Award''.

Ed Sullivan Edward Vincent Sullivan (September 28, 1901 – October 13, 1974) was an American television personality, impresario, sports and entertainment reporter, and syndicated columnist for the ''New York Daily News'' and the Chicago Tribune New Yor ...

gave out the ''Michael'' award in Los Angeles from 1950 to 1953. In 1951 the Sylvania award for best program suitable for children was given to ''

Zoo Parade ''Zoo Parade'' is an American television program broadcast from 1950 to 1957 that featured animals from the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. Presented by Marlin Perkins, the show was broadcast on Sunday afternoons on NBC. History The show was first ...

'' by the

National Congress of Parents and Teachers National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...

, headed by Mrs. Johnny Hays. The awards for 1953 were presented in New York on 1 December 1953, with winners announced in advance. No grand award was presented. Winners included

Rod Steiger Rodney Stephen Steiger (; April 14, 1925July 9, 2002, aged 77) was an American actor, noted for his portrayal of offbeat, often volatile and crazed characters. Cited as "one of Hollywood's most charismatic and dynamic stars," he is closely assoc ...

(actor) and

Paddy Chayefsky Sidney Aaron "Paddy" Chayefsky (January 29, 1923 – August 1, 1981) was an American playwright, screenwriter and novelist. He is the only person to have won three solo Academy Awards for writing both adapted and original screenplays. He was ...

(script) for '' Marty'',

Donald O'Connor Donald David Dixon Ronald O'Connor (August 28, 1925 – September 27, 2003) was an American dancer, singer and actor. He came to fame in a series of films in which he co-starred with Gloria Jean, Peggy Ryan, and Francis the Talking Mule. His b ...

Danny Thomas Danny Thomas (born Amos Muzyad Yaqoob Kairouz; January 6, 1912 – February 6, 1991) was an American actor, singer, nightclub comedian, producer, and philanthropist. He created and starred in one of the most successful and long-running sitc ...

and

Mary Martin Mary Virginia Martin (December 1, 1913 – November 3, 1990) was an American actress and singer. A muse of Rodgers and Hammerstein, she originated many leading roles on stage over her career, including Nellie Forbush in ''South Pacific'' (194 ...

. The 1955 awards were presented by broadcaster

Deems Taylor Joseph Deems Taylor (December 22, 1885 – July 3, 1966) was an American music critic, composer, and promoter of classical music. Nat Benchley, co-editor of ''The Lost Algonquin Roundtable'', referred to him as "the dean of American music." Earl ...

on 29 November 1955. Sylvester L. Weaver Jr., head of

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

, received an award. 1957 Sylvania Television Award winners included

Dinah Shore Dinah Shore (born Frances Rose Shore; February 29, 1916 – February 24, 1994) was an American singer, actress, and television personality, and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1940s. She rose to prominence as a recording artist during ...

Marian Anderson Marian Anderson (February 27, 1897April 8, 1993) was an American contralto. She performed a wide range of music, from opera to spirituals. Anderson performed with renowned orchestras in major concert and recital venues throughout the United ...

Steve Allen Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen (December 26, 1921 – October 30, 2000) was an American television personality, radio personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian, and writer. In 1954, he achieved national fame as the co-cre ...

and

Jack Paar Jack Harold Paar (May 1, 1918 – January 27, 2004) was an American talk show host, author, radio and television comedian, and film actor. He was the second host of '' The Tonight Show'' from 1957 to 1962. ''Time'' magazine's obituary of Paar rep ...

. The 1958 awards were presented in January 1959 at a ceremony in the Grand Ballroom of the

Plaza Hotel The Plaza Hotel (also known as The Plaza) is a luxury hotel and condominium apartment building in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is located on the western side of Grand Army Plaza, after which it is named, just west of Fifth Avenue, ...

in Manhattan attended by about 400 guests including performers and representatives of networks, TV stations and production companies. Comedian

Orson Bean Orson Bean (born Dallas Frederick Burrows; July 22, 1928 – February 7, 2020) was an American film, television, and stage actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He was a game show and talk show host and a "mainstay of Los Angeles’ small ...

was the master of ceremonies. The awards were presented by Don G. Mitchell, chairman and president of Sylvania Electric Products. In 1959 Sylvania Electric Products merged with General Telephone to form General Telephone and Electronics ( GTE). The awards for 1959 were the last.

Trophy

The award winners received a trophy in the form of a clock. A walnut wood base is decorated by a high-relief sculpture of a woman in a robe who carries the clock face on her shoulders. The face is made of glass, with etched gilt stars at each hour and stylized metal lightning bolts for hands. Some versions of the award were functioning electric clocks made by Jefferson Electric Company of Bellwood, Illinois. In others the clock hands were permanently attached to the glass face. The clock was about tall, made by the Medallic Art Co. of New York, NY.

Awards

Complete listings of award winners are set forth at: *

1951 Sylvania Television Awards The 1951 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on November 8, 1951, at the Hotel Pierre in New York City. The awards were established earlier in 1951 by Sylvania Electric Products. Deems Taylor was the chairman of the judges committee. The pa ...

1952 Sylvania Television Awards The 1952 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on December 11, 1952, at Hotel Pierre in New York City. The Sylvania Awards were established in 1951 by Sylvania Electric Products. Deems Taylor was the chairman of the judges committee. The fol ...

1953 Sylvania Television Awards The 1953 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on December 1, 1953, at Hotel Pierre in New York City. The Sylvania Awards were established by Sylvania Electric Products. The awards were selected by a committee of 16 judges led by Deems Taylor ...

1954 Sylvania Television Awards The 1954 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on November 30, 1954, in New York City. The Sylvania Awards were established by Sylvania Electric Products. The awards were selected by a committee of judges that included Ethel Barrymore, Deems T ...

1955 Sylvania Television Awards The 1955 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on December 2, 1955, in New York City. The Sylvania Awards were established by Sylvania Electric Products. The committee presented the following awards: * Best show of the year - ''Peter Pan'' (NB ...

1956 Sylvania Television Awards The 1956 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on December 6, 1955, at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. Don Ameche was the master of ceremonies. The Sylvania Awards were established by Sylvania Electric Products. Deems Taylor was the chairma ...

1957 Sylvania Television Awards The 1957 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on January 15, 1958, at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. Don Ameche was the master of ceremonies. The Sylvania Awards were established by Sylvania Electric Products. The committee presented the ...

1958 Sylvania Television Awards The 1958 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on January 22, 1959, at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. The Sylvania Awards were established by Sylvania Electric Products. The 31-member panel that decided the winners was chaired by Deems Tay ...

1959 Sylvania Television Awards The 1959 Sylvania Television Awards were presented on January 21, 1960, at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. The Sylvania Awards were established by Sylvania Electric Products. The nominees were selected by a 32-person panel of critics, and the wi ...

Notes

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{authority control 1951 establishments in the United States 1959 disestablishments in the United States American television awards Awards established in 1951