The growth of picture tubes – and television as a whole – was stunted by World War II. But the post-war economy saw a boom in both, and by 1950 there were over 100 manufacturers producing sets that topped out at around 19 inches. By the mid-1950s, the picture tube of the typical console television found in family living rooms measured around 21 inches. By the end of the decade, 24-inch sets were on the scene and being seen in more and more in homes.

Screen size growth slowed a bit in the 1960s as consumers and manufacturers focused on color and portability. Although color television debuted in 1954, it was during the 1960s it entered the mainstream. As the decade began, 21-inch color TVs with nearly oval CRTs were the norm, but by 1969, 23-inch rectangular tubes were vying with tiny battery-capable portables for headlines.

By the 1970s and ’80s, flagship sets had grown to 25- or 26-inch screens. But the most game-changing moment in screen growth was the introduction in 1973 of rear projection televisions, which used three large CRT tubes (one red, one green, one blue) and mirrors to project up to a 45-inch image on an internal screen were becoming popular. By the end of the 1980s, RPTV’s had grown to 55 inches and were becoming very popular.

But because conventional CRTs had much better picture quality, tubes continued to grow into the 1990s, with some 43-inch behemoths actually reaching consumers’ homes. But for the most part, 36 inches seemed to be the practical limit for conventional picture tubes, and 31 inches became the sweet spot of the price/value/size equation.

The introduction of flat panel technologies as the new millennium arrived marked the end of CRT size increases – and signaled the beginning of the end for the technology itself. Today, even RPTVs have been dropped by most manufacturers. But based on the annual CES size battles, there is no end in sight to how big TV screen sizes might grow in the future.

Check out these other historical perspectives from our special section, “The Evolution of TV”:
-Where Did TV Come From?
-TV Enters The Living Room
-The Ways We Watch
-The Rise of the Flat Panel
-Flat Panel Battles: Plasma vs LCD
-The Dawn of HDTV

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