This one will take you back—31 years back, to be precise. YouTube user Kwadwo Holloway cut together almost 20-minutes worth of show intros from 1983, from both network and cable sources, and the result is a blast from the past. At least, some viewers will think so. Others (those not old enough to remember the decade) might wonder why any of us ever bothered to watch TV in the ’80s at all.
What familiar faces do you see? David Letterman is in there. And Johnny Carson. And a handful of others. But more noticeable are the shows and entertainers that have all but been lost to television history, as far as younger audiences are concerned.
Ask anyone under 30 who Mike Douglas was, and they’ll probably tell you he was the guy who was married to Catherine Zeta-Jones. Little do they know, you were actually referring to the long-time entertainer who, in 1983, hosted “People Now." And how could you not giggle along with Galavisión’s early intro? At the time this featured snippet first aired, the network was only four-years-old. As of last year, the now 35-year-old network boasted over 68 million households receiving its broadcasts.
Brace yourself, though, because we think the winner might come in around the eight and a half minute mark with “NBC News Overnight,” hosted by Linda Ellerbee and Lloyd Dobyns. Who doesn’t love this intro, which Linda kicks off?
“As you may have expected, all is not well in the world at the moment, which is still no good reason to go to bed and miss the details.” Lloyd continues, “On the other hand, it isn’t all bad, either. Some of what happened might even amuse you; it does us, and that’s why those reports are on ‘Overnight.’”
We’d totally watch that nightly news broadcast if it was on today. Thanks to Joe Adalian for reminding us about this YouTube gem.