⚠️This fact has been debunked
The Bulova watch commercial was indeed the first legal TV commercial (aired July 1, 1941), but it was only 10 seconds long, not 60 seconds. Multiple authoritative sources confirm the 10-second duration.
The first TV commercial showed a Bulova watch ticking onscreen for exactly 60 seconds.
The First TV Commercial Was Only 10 Seconds Long
If you think today's 15-second YouTube ads are short, consider this: the very first legal television commercial in American history lasted just 10 seconds. On July 1, 1941, at precisely 2:29 PM, Bulova Watch Company made history with a simple graphic that cost them a grand total of $9.
The commercial aired on NBC-owned station WNBT in New York, right before a baseball game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies at Ebbets Field. About 4,000 television sets in the New York area—roughly the entire TV-owning population at the time—could have seen it.
What Did America's First Ad Look Like?
No celebrity endorsements. No catchy jingles. No elaborate production. The Bulova commercial featured a static image of a clock face superimposed over a map of the United States, accompanied by a voiceover that declared: "America runs on Bulova time."
That's it. Ten seconds. Nine dollars. History made.
Bulova paid $4 for the airtime itself and $5 in station charges. To put that in perspective, a 30-second Super Bowl ad in 2025 costs over $7 million—that's roughly 777,777 times more expensive than that pioneering Bulova spot.
The "60-Second" Myth
So where does the claim about 60 seconds come from? It's become one of those advertising legends that sounds plausible enough to stick around. Perhaps people assumed the first commercial must have been longer, or maybe the detail got garbled over decades of retelling.
The truth is far more interesting: early television advertising regulations were incredibly strict. The Federal Communications Commission had only authorized paid commercials two months earlier, in May 1941. Networks were still figuring out the rules, and brief spots like Bulova's 10-second ad were the standard.
Before Bulova: The Test Runs
Technically, Bulova wasn't the first commercial ever shown on TV—it was the first legal one. NBC had aired test commercials back in 1939, before the FCC allowed networks to charge for airtime. But July 1, 1941 marked the beginning of television as we know it: a commercial medium.
Within months, the advertising landscape would transform dramatically—but not immediately. World War II put commercial television development on hold. After the war ended, the industry exploded, and by the 1950s, TV advertising had become the dominant force in American marketing.
That humble 10-second Bulova spot launched an entire industry. Today, the average American sees between 4,000 and 10,000 advertisements per day across all media. It all started with a ticking watch and a map—and it was over before you could finish reading this sentence.