Editing CTV Television Network (section)

===Early years===
The network finally launched as the CTV Television Network on October 1, 1961.<ref name="GMOct61"/><ref name="Gitpp7273">[[#Git99|Gittins 1999]], p. 72-73</ref>{{refn|There may be some confusion about the network's launch date due to a celebration of "50 years of local news" held by local CTV and A-Channel stations in April 2008,<ref>[http://50yearsofnews.ctv.ca/ 50yearsofnews.ctv.ca] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120530005959/http://50yearsofnews.ctv.ca/ |date=May 30, 2012 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/April2008/08/c3619.html CTV and A-Channel Celebrate Local News] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412024903/http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/April2008/08/c3619.html |date=April 12, 2008 }}, CTV press release, April 8, 2008</ref> particularly as there were a handful of cases where the event was erroneously referred to as a "50th anniversary".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/ctv-celebrates-50-years-of-news-1.289355|title=CTV celebrates 50 years of news|work=CTV.ca|date=April 15, 2008|access-date=June 22, 2011|quote=CTV Anchors from across the country are in Ottawa to celebrate the network's 50th anniversary}}</ref> Neither the network nor any local CTV-owned station launched in 1958, although some of the stations that later joined CTV launched earlier in the 1950s.<ref>[http://50yearsofnews.ctv.ca/index.php/background/ CTV – Local News Matters – Background] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110323010123/http://50yearsofnews.ctv.ca/index.php/background/ |date=March 23, 2011 }} (list of CTV-owned stations that launched in the 1950s)</ref> The celebration was not timed to any particular anniversary but rather to a CRTC review of regulations for local television stations also held that month.<ref>[http://50yearsofnews.ctv.ca/index.php/about/ CTV – Local News Matters – FAQ] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100622162722/http://50yearsofnews.ctv.ca/index.php/about/ |date=June 22, 2010 }} (makes several references to CRTC review</ref>|group="nb"}} The CBC had objected to the network's initial name, apparently claiming it had exclusive rights to the term "Canadian", and therefore the letters "CTV" have no official expanded meaning.<ref name="Gittins 1999, p. 63"/>

The CTV network's first night on-air began with [[Harry Rasky]]'s promotional documentary on the new network. That was followed by a fall season preview program.<ref name="GMOct61">{{cite news | title=Filmed Accolades Put Private TV Network on the Air | work=[[The Globe and Mail]] | date=October 2, 1961 | first=Dennis | last=Braithwaite | page=4}}</ref>

CTV's initial 1961–1962 season began with the following programs, five of which were Canadian productions:<ref name="GMOct61"/>
* ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]'' (United States, [[CBS]])
* ''[[Checkmate (American TV series)|Checkmate]]'' (United States, [[CBS]])
* ''[[Cross Canada Barndance]]'' (Canada)
* ''[[Maigret (1960 TV series)|Maigret]]'' (United Kingdom, [[British Broadcasting Corporation|BBC]])
* ''[[The Rifleman]]'' (United States, [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]])
* ''[[Showdown (Canadian game show)|Showdown]]'' (Canada)
* ''[[Sing Along with Mitch|Sing Along With Mitch]]'' (United States, [[NBC]])
* ''[[Take a Chance (Canadian game show)|Take a Chance]]'', a quiz show by [[Roy Ward Dickson]] adapted from radio (Canada)
* ''[[Top Cat]]'' (United States, [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]])
* ''[[Twenty Questions (Canadian TV series)|Twenty Questions]]'' (Canada)
* ''[[West Coast (TV series)|West Coast]]'' (Canada)
* ''[[Whiplash (TV series)|Whiplash]]'' (Australia, [[ATN]]-7)

Other series such as ''[[Telepoll]]'' and ''[[A Kin to Win]]'' were introduced later in the inaugural season.

At first, flagship CFTO was the only station that carried programming live. During CBC's off-hours, CTV used CBC's microwave system to send programming to the rest of the country on tape delay.<ref name="Gitpp7273"/> Eventually, a second microwave channel opened up, enabling live programming from coast to coast.

The Caldwell-led management team immediately ran into financial trouble, and relations between the network and its stations were not smooth at first since CTV had essentially been the product of a forced marriage. For example, most of the rights to American programming rested with the ITO, not CTV.<ref>[[#Git99|Gittins 1999]], p. 78</ref> In many cases, CTV found itself competing with its own stations for the rights to programming.