Week of April 15, 1981

Space shuttle Columbia returns to

earth (Edwards Air Force base) with

astronauts John W. Young and

Robert L. Crippen who exclaimed -

“what a way to come to California.”

On this tax week, President Reagan

calls on Americans to “make it clear

to all elected officials that they are fed-up with big government and high taxes.”

Segurd Debus - a convicted terrorist of West Germany’s Red Army faction dies

in a Hamburg hospital after a 2 ½ month hunger strike, setting off fear of leftist

violence across the country.

In Redstone, Colorado - a long vigil by a prayerful coal mining community comes

to a sad end when search teams find the body of the last of 15 miners killed a

few days ago in an underground explosion.

The nation’s economy spurted ahead at a surprising 6.5% annual rate - the

biggest increase in 3 years.

Joe Louis - “the brown bomber” is buried in Arlington National Cemetery,

eulogized by President Reagan as a man whose life was “an indictment of racial

bigotry.”

Toshikhiko Seko (24) wins the Boston marathon.

Abbie Hoffman (44) surrenders to court officials in

Manhattan to begin serving up to three years in

prison for selling $36,000 worth of cocaine to

undercover agents in 1974. “The U.S. Press won’t

have Abbie Hoffman to kick around anymore,” said

Hoffman.

Business - American Motors Corp. reports that it lost

$52.7 million in the first three months of this year. The

company has a 10% price rollback program in place at dealers.

Week of April 15, 1981

Playing in Las Vegas -

Joey Bishop - Aladdin

Sammy Davis Jr. - Caesars Palace

Roy Clark - Frontier

Bill Cosby, Juliet Prowse - Hilton

Barry Manilow - Riviera

Bobby Vinton, Joan Rivers - Sands

Top television shows -

Dallas - 31.3

MASH - 25.5

Dukes of Hazzard - 25.2

60 Minutes - 24.9

Three’s Company - 22.2

Private Benjamin - 22.0

Diff’rent Strokes -21.5

House Calls - 21.1

Ten Commandments - 20.8

Too Close For Comfort - 20.7

The Two of Us - 20.5

Magnum, PI - 20.4

Facts of Life - 20.1

Lou Grant - 29.0

Alice - 18.8

The Love Boat - 18.7

Hart to Hart - 18.4

Greatest American Hero - 18.4

The Jeffersons - 18.3

Happy Days - 18.2

Bob Hope Special - 18.2

Top sports programs on television -

ABC’s Wide World of Sports (Sunday)

ABC’s Wide World of Sports (Saturday

ABC’s International Boxing (ABC)

Pro Bowler’s Tour (ABC)

The Superstars (ABC)

Sportsworld (NBC)

NCAA Basketball (NBC)

CBS Sports Spectacular

NBA Basketball (CBS)

Week of April 15, 1981

Television news -

CBS Cable announces the completion of nine original programs for its initial

schedule. Among the programs are the first two in a series of 25 programs on

American jazz planned over a five-year period. CBS launched its cable enterprise

last April with plans for 12 hours of cultural programming daily to be carried by

satellite to cable operators.

Cable penetration into U.S. TV homes has reached 25.3% according to A.C.

Nielsen.

24-hour Music channel coming to Cable TV. Robert

Pittman (27) - the vice president of programming for

Warner Amex Satellite Entertainments says that if cable

TV is to succeed, programmers will have to understand

and respond to the specific needs of the “TV

generation.” He predicted that the company’s recently

announced 24-hour music channel, for which he also

has program responsibility, would be for the forerunner

of “specialized sources’ for the youth market of the

future. “The only people who are going to watch this

channel will be very interested in music and will be

record buyers.” Pittman said the concept of a music

channel first was tested among 12-34 olds and that 53% were found to be “very

interested.” “It’s more like radio than TV; it catches their ear and they can come

in and out of the room to watch. And the advantage of this age group is that we

don’t have to worry about diverse tastes in music as we would with the 40-year

age range.”

Pittman says they’ve been auditioning for so called “video jocks” but have turned

up too many in the “Phil Donahue” tradition. New forms require new techniques

said Pittman.

Maureen McCormick , formerly with the

Brady Bunch - gives us an update… she’s in

the movie “The Idolmaker” and composes

music in her free time. “I have made several

recordings and have written the theme song

for ‘Texas Lightening’ which will released this

month.”

Saturday Night Live is knocked off the air by

a strike by the Writers Guild of America. It’s

Week of April 15, 1981

It’s official - Suzanne Somers has been dropped from

“Three’s Company” just renewed for it’s sixth season.

Somers last season earned $30,000 per episode and

was offered another $5,000 but turned it down. Instead,

she asked for $150,000.

Sunday night television -

CBS - 60 Minutes, Archie Bunker’s Place, One day At A

Time, Alice, The Jeffersons, Trapper John, M.D.

NBC - Disney’s Wonderful World, ChiPs, Movie

ABC - Debut-Omnibus, Movie

PBS - The Cousteau Odyssey, Steve Allen’s Meeting of

the Minds

Debut - Omnibus - Hal Holbrook hosts in a

series featuring world-renowned artists and

personalities. Guest - Larry Hagman, David

Bowie, Meredith, Bea Arthur, the Peking Opera

Theater of China and the USC Marching Band.

ChiPs - Jon and Ponch discover a van filled with

babies destined for black market adoption.

ABC Movie - “The Ten Commandments.”

Meeting of the Minds - An all-artists evening “featuring” Leonardo da Vinci, poet

William Blake and violinist Niccolo Paganni.

Music news - Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - a band

from Liverpool, appears at the Whiskey on the Sunset Strip.

The sound is techno-pop due to its reliance on electronic

sounds - danceable beats and catchy hooks. OMD is two

guys - vocalist Andy McCluskey and synthesizer player Paul

Humphreys . They had two others playing with them - Martin

Cooper on another synthesizer and drummer Malcolm

Holmes.

Todd Rungren’s Utopia and the Detroit-based pay-TV company “ON-TV” form a

deal involving the videotape and audio recording of the group’s concert in

Detroit’s Royal Oak Theater. ON-TV gets to air the concert in three cities in

return, will underwrite the production.

Week of April 15, 1981

Ringo Starr is sued by a Nancy Andrews - a

woman who claims Starr had reneged on an oral

promise to provide for her life-long financial

needs. Ms. Andrews claims she gave up her

career as a music publicist to devote herself to

Starr. She seeks half of the assets accumulated

by Star while the two were living together from

August, 1974 through last April. She also seeks

$5 million in punitive damages.

Geffen Records bows his latest artist - Elton

John through the music industry’s first live

satellite sales meeting. Using the Holiday Inn Hi-

Net Communications system which links some

33 sites around the country for two-way

audio/video communications - Elton John joined

Geffen executives - to discuss marketing,

advertising and merchandizing “The Fox”

Radio news - RKO radio announces the

formation of two new networks. “The Satellite

Music Network” will offer two 24-hour live formats

for radio stations “to plug into.” The live formats

come complete with live DJ’s for country or adult

contemporary formats. RKO is doing the venture

with Burkhart/Abrams/Michaels/Douglas &

Associates. They claim a medium market station

owner will save up to $150,000 after he plugs the

format in and fires his program director, dj’s and other support personnel.

Bad news for WABC. Media trend, which

sometimes predicts upcoming Arbitron

numbers had WABC down to a 1.9 in

March - from a 2.8 in February and 3.5

in January. The music station is dying

hard. Rival WNBC-AM is up to a 4.9 in

March, from a 2.6 in February and a 3.8

in January.

Top hits in Britain -

This Old House - Shakin’ Stevens

Making Your Mind Up - Bucks Fizz

Week of April 15, 1981

Lately - Stevie Wonder

Kids In America - Kim Wilde

Einsten A GoGo - Landscape

Intuition - Linx

Capstick Comes Home - Tony Capstick

It’s A Live Thing - Whispers

Can You Feel It - Jacksons

Four From Toyah - Toyah

Pop hits this week in 1981 -

Kiss On My List - Daryl Hall & John Oates

Morning Train - Sheena Easton

Rapture - Blondie

Just The Two of Us - Grover Washington Jr.

While You See A Chance - Steve Winwood

Being With You - Smokey Robinson

Woman - John Lennon

Don’t Stand So Close To Me - Police

Angel of the Morning - Juice Newton

I Can’t Stand It - Eric Clapton

The Best of Times - Styx

Keep on Loving You - REO

Speedwagon

Crying - Don McLean

Somebody’s Knockin’ Teri Gibbs

Her Town Too - James Taylor and J.D

Souther

Hello Again - Neil Diamond

9 To 5 - Dolly Parton

Living Inside Myself - Gino Vannelli

Top Albums this week in 1981 -

Paradise Theatre - Styx

Hi Infidelity - REO Speedwagon

Winelight - Grover Washington Jr.

Moving Pictures - Rush

Zenyatta Mondatta - Police

Double Fantasy - John Lennon/Yoko Ono

Crimes of Passion - Pat Benatar

Another Ticket - Eric Clapton

Faces Dances - The Who

The Jazz Singer - Neil Diamond

Week of April 15, 1981

Top movies this week in 1981 -

Star Wars

Excalibur

Nighthawks

The Howling

Hardly Working

Thief

Postman Always

Rings Twice

Ordinary People

Going Ape

Stir Crazy

Private eyes

Final Conflict

Tess

Nine to Five

Top country -

Old Flame - Alabama

Pickin’ Up Strangers - Johnny Lee

A Headache Tomorrow (Or A Heartache Tonight) - Mickey Gilley

Hooked On Music - Mac Davis

Rest Your Love On Me/I Am the Dreamer (You Are the Dream) - Conway Twitty

I Loved ‘Em Every One - T.G. Sheppard

Am I Losing You - Ronnie Milsap

Falling Again - Don Williams.