American television broadcasting is largely a post‐World War II phenomenon, although technical research in the field began decades earlier. Television is a ubiquitous medium. It serves a source of information, entertainment, and, sometimes regrettably, companionship. The literature on television is voluminous, covering technological innovations, political, social, economic, and even religious aspects of programmes and broadcasting. Because viewers have emotional attachment to individual shows, enterprising publishers frequently release many book titles on specific television series and overall guides to programming. Ron Lackmann’s book is one such guide in the latter category.
Lackmann, is a writer, teacher, actor, broadcaster; he has authored more than 20 books, including The Encyclopedia of American Radio. The book on American Radio received favorable reviews, and Lackmann’s goal is to write a similar work for American television.
To make the encyclopedia manageable, he established some criteria for inclusion. Lackmann concentrates on broadcast network programmes that lasted at least one season (generally 26 episodes). He excludes any programmes that ran for less than a season, although he does include some notable exceptions. He excludes cable programmes and networks, because the many shows they provide would be impractical for a one volume encyclopedia. Lackmann includes the major television networks (NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox, and WB) but excludes the DuMont network, even though DuMont operated from 1946‐1956.
Using an alphabetical arrangement, the encyclopedia includes information on both series and notable performers. The writing is very good, and the encyclopedia is easy to use. In comparison with other television encyclopedias, the coverage is good. A spot check on articles relating to the popular situation comedy Three’s Company showed some difference in length between this book and Newcomb (1997). The latter work does not present articles on all network programmes, but it provides articles on “significant” and “influential” programmes. Lackmann’s annotations tend to be longer than annotations from McNeil (1996) and Brooks and Marsh (1999).
As for the accuracy of the entries, it is generally good, but the listing for Get Smart, lists the wrong actor (Stacy Keach, Sr) for the character Siegfried. Bernie Kopell actually played the character. This is a minor point, but the editors should take care to correct errors such as this in any future editions. The encyclopedia includes two fine appendix sections. Appendix A lists the top rated programmes for the years 1952‐1999. Appendix B includes the annual Emmy Awarding winning programmes for the years 1948‐1999.
Libraries with large performing arts and/or mass media collections will want to purchase this book. Lackmann’s book is not as expensive as Newcomb, which costs $300 for the three‐volume set, but this work includes more material on international television while Lackmann focuses primarily on USA. The latest edition of McNeil retails for $25, but the book dates from 1996 and covers television shows only through 1995. The edition of Brooks and Marsh currently available dates from 1999 and costs $26.95, but (according to its Web page) the publisher has announced that another edition will be available in September 2003. Those libraries that receive few questions relating to television may safely rely on these titles with supplementary assistance of the Internet Movie Database at: www.imdb.com.
