Can any one remember what this was really used for?
Posted on 09/10/2013 8:32:11 PM PDT by lee martell
Nowadays, thanks to the internet, cable, and satellite media, there is programming literally around the clock, at least in today's United States. There is never a time when you could turn on your state of the art, flat wall screen tv, press all the button combinations, only to find "nothing is on". This seems to be what the public wants, a never ending access to shows, movies, youtubes and music. It is nice to have but a short road to almost any type of production, at almost anytime. Of course, all depends on a reliable electrical grid to keep everybody connected, if that's what you want. I recall when local stations would sign off, I mean really sign off the air for the whole night. Many local stations would end the day with a solemn reading by a famous historic figure, or when it was near Christmas and Easter, Psalms were read. Then a test pattern, then a fade to black, or all night static. One Easter, the Kyrie by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina was used; a combination adult and children's choir.
As late as in 1983 this was the case. I recall vividly the weekend the world found out that Lady Astronaut Sally Ride had gone into space. After all the interviews and hoopla, it was time for Channel 4 to go off the air. Channel 4 then played what is probably my favorite, a piece by Gabriel Faure called Pavane, Opus 50 for flute and orchestra. The scene shows a swan on the water slowly going to sleep.
I was a fan of the late shows, when I got older, the late-late shows, long before pioneers like Tom Snyder of the Tomorrow Show gave more of us a reason to stay up late. We no longer had to settle for yet another showing of a B movie. When I say B movies, I mean something like the one with Tallulah Bankhead, called 'Die, Die, My Darling!", or Bette Davis and Joan Crawford in "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane?".
Other classic B films came out during the "rodents are the perfect pet" phase, one was "Ben" a story about a Boy and his Rat. Theme song by Michael Jackson, prior to his 10th facial reconstruction. The second Rat film of the time would be "Willard" with Ernest Borgnine. This film centered around a nerdy young man who was as they say nowadays; bullied. His only friends were rats, which he trained to do his bidding. the Willard character was being pushed around by whoever Ernest Borgnine was playing. Willard's classic line was "Tear Him UP!!" as he sicced his ratty pals on poor Ernest B.
Yes, I remember “One Step Beyond” being used quite frequently as late-night filler. It could be quite eerie at times. There was an episode involving a clown that was particularly spooky.
Well, today they show non-stop Nobel Indonesian profiles...so maybe things haven’t changed all that much. :)
Earnest Borgnine.... RIP
I remember staying up late Saturday nights for NWA wrestling live from Dallas on Channel 11 (10pm to midnight), KTVT. It was a family thing, we had no idea this was more or less a local-regional program. This was a huge deal back then, lol.
We lived in an old house without AC, in north Texas. We had a single water cooler in the living room and that was it.
I believe the TV techs used them to test and calibrate their broadcast equipment each night.
Is that the one that started in 2008 and ran to the present?
Man, summers must have been fun back then. I live in North Texas now, and can't imagine life without it.
When I was an Army brat in Okinawa in the sixties, we lived without a/c for a time. It was freaking brutally hot. When Dad finally got us a proper house on base, we felt household a/c for the first time in our lives.
After moving back stateside, I didn't have a/c again until I was in my forties.
I think its state law now that any rental home/apt must have air conditioning
I don’t remember that one for some reason, I do, however remember the sign off in my area was the star spangled banner played and a formation of jets doing a fly over with other patriotic scenes too.
Just out of curiosity, were the summertime temps a bit milder here when you were a kid, or about the same?
I have no real idea, I guess I was hardier back then because we didn’t know any better. We were outside all the time it seems like.
Yet another great memory. LOL
Never imagined I'd look back on that as a fond memory!
Yeah, I suppose. We were all a lot skinnier back then, so I guess the heat didn't bother us as much. There's also the old saying, 'You can't miss what you never had.'
I remember walking to the mall, to the roller skate rink and stuff as a kid but somehow I never really minded not having AC at home back then
“Followed by the National Anthem.
EVERY station I’ve been around played the National Anthem, ever night.”
Fox Cable News has been playing the National Anthem every night, or should I say early morning as the split between their nighttime and daytime programming. It plays at 5 a.m. eastern time, every night. A nice touch and it indeed brings back memories of when virtually all the stations did this.
Bravo Fox for keeping the tradition going.
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