You've put your finger on the divergence. I think it's all about the housing stock. Central heating, either steam or hot air, was an expectation rather than a luxury in middle-class American homes by the early 20th century. (Maybe even earlier; I'm not a historian.) By 1963, most American houses with a television would also have central heat; fireplaces were and are decorative elements, not sources of warmth. The TV might very well be in a different room from the fireplace, if the house had a fireplace at all. I remember fireplaces being called out as decorative features (and extra-cost options) in new home construction, and worthy of mention in for-sale ads.

"The TV"; how old I am. We've got two, but the children mostly watch TV shows (old again!) on their computers in their rooms, reserving the living-room TV for video games.

I remember how weird I found it to visit my grandmother's house (1920s build, I think) in Texas; her gas furnace sat out in the living area, and the bathroom had an exposed gas heater with little ceramic points over which flames flickered. Frightened and fascinated me, that did.