Vintage Network promos

[Spiffy]

You know what's kind of cool? Vintage network promos.

I don't know why these things are so interesting. The very fact that they age SO BADLY is actually part of it. References to old hits long gone, over the top announcers, bad old graphics, little views of shows which were complete failures being given big pushes like they might be the next great thing.

Vintage network promos RULE.

Here's one. ABC 1977. Covered topics: The Welcome Back Kotter season premiere, where Mrs. K has twins, a Star Wars special, the failed Barney Miller spinoff for Fish, a short-lived TV reboot of Operation Petticoat (featuring Jamie Lee Curtis) and some wacky show called "The San Pedro Beach Bums", who happen to "meet" Charlie's Angels.

Wacky, I tell you!

[Spiffy]

1981 NBC promos. BJ & The Bear, Real People, Buck Rogers, Facts of Life, and lots of other goodness. Even some Robert Blake (who the promo tells us is accused of murder... but he didn't do it!!!), and some Morgan Fairchild at the end. Love the gigantic bow Rona Barrett has around her neck.

[Spiffy]

And the one thing they ALWAYS did in these Vintage promos? Seasonal Network THEME SONGS.

Here's one from WAY back. CBS 1973. Playing on the resemblance of their logo to an eyeball.



And you can tell 1973 was definitely CBS' time to dominate, because unlike a lot of these promos, its almost 40 years later, and yet you'll probably recognize every face in the promo.

[Weeto]

Some ITV promos from the UK.
http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/mivana/medi...nuity&type=mp4
http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/mivana/medi..._1985&type=mp4
The Scottish TV channel ident from 1985
http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/mivana/medi...t1988&type=mp4
First ever BBC COW ident and continuity
http://www.tv-ark.org.uk/mivana/medi...x1985&type=mp4

[Neil C.]

The only thing I remember from the San Pedro Beach Bums was one quote. They were trying to teach some foreign kid how to play football, and he ends up saying, "Football, you bet!" Don't remember the context or anything else.

You know what's kind of cool? Vintage network promos.

I don't know why these things are so interesting. The very fact that they age SO BADLY is actually part of it. References to old hits long gone, over the top announcers, bad old graphics, little views of shows which were complete failures being given big pushes like they might be the next great thing.

Vintage network promos RULE.

Here's one. ABC 1977. Covered topics: The Welcome Back Kotter season premiere, where Mrs. K has twins, a Star Wars special, the failed Barney Miller spinoff for Fish, a short-lived TV reboot of Operation Petticoat (featuring Jamie Lee Curtis) and some wacky show called "The San Pedro Beach Bums", who happen to "meet" Charlie's Angels.

Wacky, I tell you!

[Spiffy]

And the one thing they ALWAYS did in these Vintage promos? Seasonal Network THEME SONGS.

Here's one from WAY back. CBS 1973. Playing on the resemblance of their logo to an eyeball.



And you can tell 1973 was definitely CBS' time to dominate, because unlike a lot of these promos, its almost 40 years later, and yet you'll probably recognize every face in the promo.

You know I didn't realize that CBS has some many of these vanity musical promos. This one's pretty awesome too (from 1983). it informs us of how awesome CBS is, because its in the US, and because America is awesome, because enterprising kids wash dogs for profit, people use typewriters in the bathtub, and waitresses dance while serving us.

Or something like that.



A year later, 1984, it mushroomed into several other TOTALLY different versions of the same campaign. The ones in this video are actually a bit creepy--having to do with basketballs, and creepy dolls, kids and old ladies, passing inside the TV.



But what's even more awesomely bad/good? Two years later, the same campaign has now drafted KENNY ROGERS to sing a variant of it. Mind you, in 1985 Kenny was a HUGE STAR.



The one thing in common is how damn silly these all are. I recalled NBC having really wacky network promos in the 80s (I recall them as all being huge dance numbers with all the NBC stars), but completely forgot (or never knew) that CBS did too.

I certainly didn't recall that "We've got the touch" was CBS' motto for so many years.

[JBK405]

Please, they don't have the touch.

[Spiffy]

Please, they don't have the touch.

Yeah, that's a bizarre juxtaposition. Hair metal blasting behind giant cartoon robots.

[ZimMan2]

Yeah, that's a bizarre juxtaposition. Hair metal blasting behind giant cartoon robots.

That's not how you spell "perfect."

[jhota]

That's not how you spell "perfect."

i blame the educational system.