Wooden TV cabinets were hugely popular in the 1950s and due to the recent introduction of the television into American households, people tended to see the television as another piece of furniture hence them being encased in wood.
They are seen a kitsch and retro these days, but as the television developed into something sleeker and larger, they ended up sitting on top of the cabinet or mounted on the wall, so the need for a cabinet to hold it disappeared.
Please don’t feel the need to bead…..