The Midnight Special (TV series)
| The Midnight Special | |
|---|---|
 Chuck Berry as guest host, November 2, 1973. | |
| Genre | Music variety show |
| Created by | Burt Sugarman |
| Presented by | Helen Reddy (1975-1976) |
| Narrated by | Wolfman Jack |
| Opening theme | "Midnight Special" performed by Johnny Rivers |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of episodes | 450[1] |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Burt Sugarman |
| Producer(s) | Dick Ebersol |
| Location(s) | NBC Studios in Burbank, CA |
| Running time | 90 min |
| Production company(s) | Burt Sugarman Productions |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | February 2, 1973 – May 1, 1981 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Tomorrow |
The Midnight Special is an American late-night musical variety series that aired on NBC during the 1970s and early 1980s, created and produced by Burt Sugarman. It premiered as a special on August 19, 1972, then began its run as a regular series on February 2, 1973; its last episode was on May 1, 1981.[2] The 90-minute program followed the Friday night edition of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
Like its syndicated late-night cousin Don Kirshner's Rock Concert, the show typically featured guest hosts, except for a period from July 1975 through March 1976 when singer Helen Reddy served as the regular host. Wolfman Jack served as the announcer and frequent guest host. The program's theme song, a traditional folk song called "Midnight Special", was performed by Johnny Rivers.
The Midnight Special was noted for featuring musical acts performing live, which was unusual since most television appearances during the era showed performers lip-synching to prerecorded music. The series also occasionally aired vintage footage of older acts, such as Bill Haley & His Comets. As the program neared the end of its run in the early 1980s, it began to frequently use lip-synched performances rather than live ones. The program also featured occasional performances of comedians such as Richard Pryor, Andy Kaufman, and George Carlin.
History
In 1973, producer Sugarman pitched the program as a means for NBC to capitalize on The Tonight Show's large audience. At the time, none of the Big Three television networks had programming on after 1:00 a.m., as common practice was to sign-off after the final program. Despite this lack of competition in the time-slot, NBC initially rejected the idea. The rejection led Sugarman to buy the air time for the premiere on his own as a brokered show, convincing Chevrolet to become the show's first sponsor. It premiered with ratings high enough for NBC to reconsider its decision, and the network subsequently bought the program.[1] The program remained a part of NBC's late night lineup until 1981.
The pilot for the series aired on August 19, 1972. It was presented as a 90-minute special encouraging young people to vote in the upcoming Presidential election. Several months later, on February 2, 1973, it premiered as a weekly series.[3]
The Midnight Special original time slot was from 1:00–2:30am. When Johnny Carson cut his own show from 90 to 60 minutes, The Midnight Special was moved up to 12:30am–2:00am.[3]
In 1978, at the height of the disco craze, the set was changed to resemble a disco nightclub complete with a platform dance floor. Wolfman Jack stood behind an elevated DJ booth. By fall 1979, as the genre's popularity waned, the disco set was gone.[3]
Guest stars
Some notable guest stars and hosts included: ABBA, AC/DC, Aerosmith, America, Joan Baez, The Beach Boys, The Bee Gees, Blondie, David Bowie, Bread, Brooklyn Dreams, James Brown, The Cars, The Chambers Brothers, Ray Charles, Cheap Trick, Petula Clark, Jim Croce, Billy Crystal, Bo Diddley, The Doobie Brothers, Electric Light Orchestra, Cass Elliot, Fleetwood Mac, Peter Frampton, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Genesis, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Al Green, Heart, Janis Ian, Wolfman Jack, The Jackson 5, Rick James, Billy Joel, Elton John, Journey, KC and the Sunshine Band, Andy Kaufman, B.B. King, Kiss, Kris Kristofferson, Jerry Lee Lewis, Gordon Lightfoot, Loggins & Messina, Barry Manilow, Steve Martin, Eddie Money, Van Morrison, Randy Newman, Olivia Newton-John, The New York Dolls, Dolly Parton, Prince, Richard Pryor, Helen Reddy, REO Speedwagon, Diana Ross, T. Rex, Todd Rundgren, The Spinners, Steely Dan, Rod Stewart, Donna Summer, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, The Three Degrees, Thin Lizzy, Tina Turner, Village People, War, Weather Report, and Gary Wright. ELO had more appearances than any other band with four.
The show presented The 1980 Floor Show, the last performance of David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust. It was broadcast on November 16, 1973, and was taped a month earlier from specially-commissioned performances at the Marquee Club in Soho, London.[4]
Cancellation
The series was canceled by NBC at the request of Dick Ebersol as part of a deal for him to take over then-ailing Saturday Night Live.[5] The Midnight Special was replaced by SCTV, a Canadian sketch comedy series produced by the Toronto satellite of The Second City improvisational troupe. NBC would later return to Friday-only late night programming with Friday Night Videos.
DVD release
In 2006, a DVD collection entitled Burt Sugarman's Midnight Special was made available by Guthy-Renker through television and radio infomercials. In 2014, an 11-DVD collection entitled The Midnight Special was released by Star-Vista through standard retail channels.
See also
References
Notes
- 1 2 The Midnight Special Comes to VH-1, a 1997 article by pop culture critic Ed Robertson
- ↑ Promotional site for the DVD re-issue
- 1 2 3 TV.com. "The Midnight Special". TV.com. Retrieved 2013-09-22.
- ↑ [http://www.5years.com/1980.htm, a fan's detailed website focused just on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
- ↑ Dick Ebersol, from the Museum of Broadcast Communications
Bibliography
- McNeil, Alexander M. (1980) Total Television, New York: Penguin Books, Ltd. ISBN 0-14-004911-8