It's amazing how you can kill an afternoon on YouTube.I have been listening to a podcast, The Entertainment Beat With Frances Gumm, which is a show that can only be described as "unique." The concept of the show is that Judy Garland comes back as a podcaster. The sound quality and effects are top notch, and while the concept gets weird at times (especially listening to a number of episodes in a row), it is enjoyable.
But I digress.
I decided I was going to wikipedia and look up shit on Judy. See the problem with that is once you look at one link, then you find another link...and another...and another...and the next thing you know it's been an hour an a half. From Judy, I went to The Merv Griffin show, and from there, The Mike Douglas Show, both of which I remember my mother watching when I could come home from school (when she wasn't watching Another World). Anyway, reading about Mike Douglas, I discovered that he orginated his show out of Philly, and it was based there for many years. They had the call letters for the (then) NBC affilate, KYW-TV, and I went there as well, looking at the history of that channel.
As a child, there was really only one local news channel we would watch, and that was WPVI Channel 6 in Philadelphia. So it makes sense that I would look to see if they had a page, and they do. It gives an extensive history of the channel, and is interesting really only to those who have watched the news there, so I'll spare you all the details, with the exception of two memories I have from the channel:
- Jim O'Brien was the local weatherman when I was a kid. I remember him being very happy all the time and making lots of jokes on camera. He was into skydiving as a past time, and in 1983, he was killed after helping another skydiver get his parachute open, not leaving enough time to get his own open. I remember I was helping my dad build our backporch (i.e. drinking coke and reading comic books while he did all the work) when they announced his death on the radio (The Phillies game was on, and they stopped the game for a moment of silence) I remember lots of horrible jokes after that in school ("What was the last thing to go through Jim O'Brien's head?""His knees.") And I remember the anchors crying on the air while they talked about him. Oh, and an interesting factoid: He is the dad of Peri Gilpin of "Frasier."
-We were home from school on a snow day when Budd Dwyer killed himself live on TV. Dwyer
had been found guilty of acceptiing kickbacks while working in the treasurer's office of the State of Pennsylvania. He called a press conference the day before his sentencing, made a speech, gave three of his assistants envelopes (one of which had a suicide note in it for his wife), pulled out a gun, put it in his mouth and pulled the trigger. I remember my mother screaming from the other room (my sister and I were playing in our playroom), and my mother quickly turning the television off. Channel 6 recieved hundreds of calls complaining about the live segment, and many more when they REPLAYED the incident on the 6 o'clock news (editing out the actual shooting.)
Well, those were two happy thoughts, huh?
Anyway, The two things that I love most about Channel 6 is that many of the news anchors from the 80s are still there. What's more - the don't ever seem to age. I can go home after two years and turn on Channel 6 and see the same people! But more importantly, the thing I absolutely love about Channel 6 Action News is the CHEESY theme music. I decided to investigate the YouTube and found that YES! The opening montage is available to view - not only that, THIS is the opening montage from summer, 1985!!! Hear the music that they are using? THEY STILL USE THIS MUSIC. In fact, in the mid 90's, they tried to change it and received so many complaints, that they changed it back to the old music! (PS - Drum Riley Calhoun LOOOOVES to make fun of this music.)
The only thing better is the music with the lyrics they would play at the end of a show....I wonder if I can find that.....HOLY CRAP! They DO!
But I digress.
I decided I was going to wikipedia and look up shit on Judy. See the problem with that is once you look at one link, then you find another link...and another...and another...and the next thing you know it's been an hour an a half. From Judy, I went to The Merv Griffin show, and from there, The Mike Douglas Show, both of which I remember my mother watching when I could come home from school (when she wasn't watching Another World). Anyway, reading about Mike Douglas, I discovered that he orginated his show out of Philly, and it was based there for many years. They had the call letters for the (then) NBC affilate, KYW-TV, and I went there as well, looking at the history of that channel.
As a child, there was really only one local news channel we would watch, and that was WPVI Channel 6 in Philadelphia. So it makes sense that I would look to see if they had a page, and they do. It gives an extensive history of the channel, and is interesting really only to those who have watched the news there, so I'll spare you all the details, with the exception of two memories I have from the channel:
- Jim O'Brien was the local weatherman when I was a kid. I remember him being very happy all the time and making lots of jokes on camera. He was into skydiving as a past time, and in 1983, he was killed after helping another skydiver get his parachute open, not leaving enough time to get his own open. I remember I was helping my dad build our backporch (i.e. drinking coke and reading comic books while he did all the work) when they announced his death on the radio (The Phillies game was on, and they stopped the game for a moment of silence) I remember lots of horrible jokes after that in school ("What was the last thing to go through Jim O'Brien's head?""His knees.") And I remember the anchors crying on the air while they talked about him. Oh, and an interesting factoid: He is the dad of Peri Gilpin of "Frasier."-We were home from school on a snow day when Budd Dwyer killed himself live on TV. Dwyer
had been found guilty of acceptiing kickbacks while working in the treasurer's office of the State of Pennsylvania. He called a press conference the day before his sentencing, made a speech, gave three of his assistants envelopes (one of which had a suicide note in it for his wife), pulled out a gun, put it in his mouth and pulled the trigger. I remember my mother screaming from the other room (my sister and I were playing in our playroom), and my mother quickly turning the television off. Channel 6 recieved hundreds of calls complaining about the live segment, and many more when they REPLAYED the incident on the 6 o'clock news (editing out the actual shooting.)Well, those were two happy thoughts, huh?
Anyway, The two things that I love most about Channel 6 is that many of the news anchors from the 80s are still there. What's more - the don't ever seem to age. I can go home after two years and turn on Channel 6 and see the same people! But more importantly, the thing I absolutely love about Channel 6 Action News is the CHEESY theme music. I decided to investigate the YouTube and found that YES! The opening montage is available to view - not only that, THIS is the opening montage from summer, 1985!!! Hear the music that they are using? THEY STILL USE THIS MUSIC. In fact, in the mid 90's, they tried to change it and received so many complaints, that they changed it back to the old music! (PS - Drum Riley Calhoun LOOOOVES to make fun of this music.)
The only thing better is the music with the lyrics they would play at the end of a show....I wonder if I can find that.....HOLY CRAP! They DO!
Anyway, sorry for the lengthy walk down Memory Lane....Again, I'm just trying to avoid doing laundry...
2 comments:
It's like I always say...Philly is so stuck in the 70s! They need to upgrade to some quality newscasters, like Gayle Guyardo.
So Weird. I remember your post now, but I think I was in a hurry when I read it cause it didn't click. Oh man.
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