LOCAL/CABLE
CBN Cable
Before the Family Channel there was CBN cable. Here's a vocal ID.
WISN Hello Milwaukee (1982)
The Milwaukee Jazz Conservatory sings this one.
Hello Nashville (1982, video)
The Nashville Symphony Orchestra accompanied the voice of "Hello," Florence Warner, in this piece...6 minutes of full-orchestral music. She's got quite a nose! A good example of the kind of community-oriented programming that is hard to find today.
KCAL California 9 (1989, video)
Very slick, very So Cal promo introducing the new KCAL. Music by 615 Productions in Nashville. Courtesy Tom in D.C.
KDKA KD & You (1989, video)
KDKA did a customized version of CBS' Get Ready campaign...featuring all your favorite Pittsburgh personalities.
WABC Late Night movie (1968)
A classic of the '70s...and a favorite among many station employees who could catch the WABC late movie on the feed.
WBAL CBS switch (1981, video)
In 1981 WBAL dumped NBC in favor of Number one CBS. This was a big deal...and CBS brought out some big star power to let Baltimore know that things are changing for the better. These spots feature Louise from the Jeffersons, Les and Mr. Carlson from WKRP, and Boss Hogg from The Dukes of Hazzard.
Thanks to Jim in Massachusetts for these great promos from WBZ and WCVB in Boston...two stations with a real commitment to the community.
WBZ We're 4 You (1978, video)
Beautifully shot film promo featuring people of all kinds having fun at work and play around Boston.
WBZ We're 4 You (1978, video)
Frozen, but friendly New England residents stay warm by singing along to the We're 4 song.
WBZ We're 4 New England talent promos (1978, video)
These spots highlight Eyewitness News talent Tony Pepper and Sharon King. Both emphasize their direct connection with the community...Tony's shows him having fun around town, and Sharon's has her explaining why she rides a bike to work.
WBZ We're 4 Sports (1978, video)
Len Berman (now at WNBC and on the Today Show) invites you to watch the Celtics take on the Warriors at home.
WBZ Today's 4 a whole lot more (1981)
Very well orchestrated promo song...composed by Edd Kalehoff.
WBZ Today's 4 a whole lot more (1981)
Full-orchestral instrumental of the above.
WBZ 4 Today
This is the background music from the '4 Today' spots of the 1980s.
WBZ We're 4 Today (1983)
Vocal image campaign to celebrate the station's 35th anniversary.
WBZ We're 4 Today (1983)
Instrumental version of the above promo.
The New York Times once called WCVB the best television station in the country. Its commitment to local programming during the '70s was unprecedented...and the station rose to the top very quickly by doing so. Find out more about its rich history here.
WCVB Channel 5 and You (1979, video)
This promo highlights the local programs.
WCVB Channel 5 and You (1979, video)
Impressive spot featuring catchy music and creative visuals...all featuring the '5' logo in various New England locations.
WCVB Channel 5 and You (1979, video)
Another spot highlighting the local shows on Channel 5...with legendary ABC announcer Ernie Anderson doing the voiceover.
WCVB Tuning in Together (1981, video)
WCVB continued its tradition of network-quality promos with great editing and camera work...and a good song to boot.
WCVB Tuning in Together (1982, video)
WCVB celebrated its tenth anniversary by throwing a big party in the park...and all of the station's talent is there to join in the fun.
WCVB We're With You (1984, video)
WCVB adopted ABC's 1984 campaign...and added some great shots of talent in the community. This spot wins points for the shot of the satellite truck with a computer-generated night sky in the background.
FYI, almost every one of the personalities featured in this promo still works at the station...in the same capacity. Courtesy David in New Jersey.
WJLA So good to turn to (1982, video)
This is funny to watch...the pinnacle of cheesy local campaigns. The music is addictive.
WJLA On your side (1984, video)
A really classy campaign. This features vocals by R&B; star Jeffrey Osborne and quality shooting/editing. Definitely worth watching. It's not sappy at all.
JLA had to dump the campaign in 1985. They blamed a soft ad market for not justifying the expense of renewing Osborne's contract. The station even tried making records of the song and distributing it to local radio stations in hopes of airtime...but that didn't work. Courtesy Tom in D.C.
WJLA On your side (1984, video)
Shorter version of the above promo.
WJZ That's what friends are for (1981, video)
Wow...see Oprah when she was host of Baltimore's People are Talking and Michael Richards (Kramer on Seinfeld) when he was on 'Fridays,' a late-night comedy/variety series. Thanks to Tom in D.C.
WNBC 4 New York (1992, video)
Despite its '90s date, this promo is in the spirit of extravagant '80s image campaigns. Quality photography and music by Edd Kalehoff. FYI, the female singer shown is his wife, who played Annie on Broadway as a child.
The campaign wasn't popular with New Yorkers. It was criticized for making the city look like a generic Midwest town. That's no surprise, since the GM of the station came from KSDK in St. Louis, where he made the station NBC's strongest affiliate...and image promos were an integral part.
WPVI Action News (1981)
Dan Lauria (the father on The Wonder Years) is featured in this promo for Action News at 5.
WRC Just Watch Us Now (1982)
Channel 4 ordered up a customized version of the NBC campaign...and threw in shots of all its talent. Charlie Rose is featured...he hosted a daytime talk show on the station.
Bay Area residents, the fellow with the moustache running is Henry Tennenbaum, KRON's entertainment/fluff reporter. He hasn't changed much.
WRC The Team 4 News (1982, video)
Words can't describe this one. The Channel 4 News team plays football with logo t-shirts and gets together for a Chesapeake seafood feast...with dessert prepared by Henry Tennenbaum.
WUSA-TV 9, Washington, D.C.
All courtesy Tom in D.C., these promos are from 'the one and only' Channel 9. The station was known as WTOP from 1950-78, and WDVM (for D.C., Virginia, Maryland) starting in 1978. WUSA was picked up when Gannett purchased the station in 1986.
WUSA/WTOP The one and only Channel 9 (1977, video)
Walter Cronkite makes a rare local apperance in this promo.
WUSA/WDVM You make us the one (1979, video)
Well-produced spot by Klein & featuring people from around the D.C. area. Tom notes that while most other stations used silver and gold metallic logo animations, WDVM opted for a unique blue plexiglass look.
WUSA/WDVM Looking Good (1979, video)
WDVM took a nice cut of the network Looking Good campaign and added scenes of folks in a local park. The file is labeled as WTOP...but that's wrong. The call letters changed the year before.
WUSA/WDVM One good thing leads to another (1981, video)
Promo for the station's morning block, featuring Diane Sawyer, Charles Kuralt, and Phil Donahue. Again, I labeled the file wrong...it should be WDVM.
WUSA/WDVM Ours to share (1982, video)
According to Tom, this promo got the creative services director fired. It was too sappy...not the image the station wanted.
WUSA/WDVM We've got the touch (1983, video)
CBS authorized a local-news version of We've Got the Touch for affiliates, and WDVM took them up, adding shots of talent at work.
The lady at the typewriter is Maureen Bunyan, who was with the station from 1973 unti 1995, when she left in a contract dispute. She stayed off the air until February, when WJLA brought her on board with much fanfare...and success. They made up a lot of ground in the May 1999 sweeps.
Gordon Peterson, the white-haired man in the newsroom, is still at the station.
WUSA A One and only kind of day (1989)
Nice song promoting the daytime lineup. Oprah's hair reaches record heights...but you do get to see shots of their simple, but nice looking news set.
It's glaringly obvious that Gannett, which owns the USA Today franchise, owns the station.
WUSA Get ready (1990)
Very slick graphics and special effects work...at the WUSA Cafe.
See