Satellite Program Network -1982

[K.M. Richards]

While looking for something else, I ran across an Orlando TV Guide for December 11-18, 1982 ... the only edition I ever saw with listings for the early cable service Satellite Program Network (which later became Tempo and was then "blown up" to use the transponder for CNBC).

The 9:00pm to midnight weekend/9:00pm to 1:00am weekday period was the TeleFranceUSA programming block; apparently TV Guide was provided program details by them.

A few things about SPN that this schedule confirms: (1) Certain programs ran in the same time slot Monday-Friday and about a dozen others rotated among available slots; (2) Most of the "All Night at the Movies" features were so ancient, TV Guide didn't even have release years for them in their database, much less plot outlines ... and a lot of them appeared to be cheap two-reeler Westerns; (3) Even TeleFrance did a lot of program repeats, even more than I remembered.

(All times Eastern)

Saturday, December 11

AM
(undoubtedly, a movie had started right before 5:00am and continued)
7:00 Movie: "Cheyenne Rides Again" (1937) Tim Tyler
8:30 Tennis Anyone? (instructional)
9:00 Jimmy Houston Outdoors
9:30 Sew-Video
10:00 The Name of the Game is Golf
10:30 Financial Inquiry
11:00 Scuba World
11:30 The "A" Play (sports)
PM
12:00 Jimmy Houston Outdoors
12:30 Medicine Man
1:00 Game Challenge (instructional)
1:30 Photographer's Eye
2:00 Now Magazine
2:30 Home Based Businesses
3:00 TBA
4:00 Mediterranean Echoes
6:00 Movie: "Hero in Blue" Jack LaRue
7:30 Traveller's World
8:00 Joe Burton Jazz
9:00 Cordon Bleu
9:30 A Boat for Lipaia (drama): The arrival of an attractive woman feeds a man's deternination to remain a bachelor
11:00 France in the 1930's (music)
AM
12:00 Paul Ryan (interview)
12:30 Connie Martinson Talks Books
1:00 Joe Burton Jazz
2:00 Movie: "Payroll" Steven Johnson
4:25 Movie: "Blazing Trail" Lane Chandler


Sunday, December 12

AM
5:40 Movie: "Crooked Wheels" Roger Pryor
6:55 Film
7:00 International Byline
7:30 TBA
8:00 World of Pentecost
8:30 Bible Answers
9:00 Hyde Park Hour
9:30 Zola Levitt Live
10:00 Kenneth Copeland
11:00 Oral Roberts
11:30 Jimmy Swaggart
(if it's not obvious, that entire 4½ hour block was all paid religious programming)
PM
12:30 First Nighter (interview)
1:00 Good Earth Journal
1:30 The Name of the Game is Golf
2:00 Real Estate Action Line
2:30 Christian Children's Fund
3:00 Breath of Life (religion)
3:30 Hallelujah Gospel
5:00 Hello Jerusalem
6:00 Movie: "What!" (Italian, 1963) Dire doings in a 19th Century castle. Daliah Lavi, Tony Kendall
8:00 Paul Ryan
8:30 Movieweek
9:00 replay of Saturday TeleFranceUSA block
AM
12:00 Mediteranean Echoes
2:00 Movie: "Arizona Days" (1937) Tex Ritter, Ethelind Terry
3:05 Movie: "Crazy Affair" George Wallace
4:10 Movie: "Frontier Town" Tex Ritter, Ann Evers


Monday, December 13

AM
5:15 Movie: "Flirtation" (1935) A country boy (Ben Alexander) goes to New York and falls in love with a disillusioned burlesque entertainer (Jeanette Lott)
6:20 Film
6:30 Movie: "The Big Race" Dickie Lee
8:00 International Byline
8:30 Financial Inquiry
9:00 Fran Carlton (exercise)
9:30 Aerobic Dancing
10:00 Medicine Man
10:30 Picture of Health
11:00 Body Buddies (exercise)
11:30 Sew-Video
PM
12:00 Cable Store
12:30 Gourmet
1:00 Muriel Stevens (cooking)
1:30 Personal Computer (instructional)
2:00 Home Based Businesses
2:30 Career Woman
3:00 repeat of 6:30am movie
4:30 Paul Ryan
5:00 Nostalgia
6:00 Connie Martinson Talks Books
6:30 Nikki Haskell (interview)
7:00 Now Magazine
7:30 Movieweek
8:00 Photographer's Eye
8:30 Moneyworks
9:00 Mount Oriol (drama) A banker attempts to turn a sleepy town into a bustling resort; based on the novel by Maupassant
10:30 Top Club (music) A medley of French songs
11:00 People of Mogador (serialized drama, part 11 of 13) Ludivine encounters tragedy
AM
12:00 Hantai (profile of the painter)
1:00 Traveller's World
1:30 Movie: "My Brother Joshua" Ingrid Andrea
3:15 Movie: "Billy the Kid in Law and Order" (1942) Buster Crabbe, Fuzzy St. John
4:20 Movie: "Court Intrigue" Diana Churchill


Tuesday, December 13, 1982

AM
5:25 Movie: "Hunting Trouble" Richard Talmadge
6:30 Movie: "Crooked Wheels" Roger Pryor (repeat of Sunday 5:40am, only it appears to be five minutes' longer now)
8:00 International Byline
8:30 Investors' Action Line
9:00 Fran Carlton
9:30 Aerobic Dancing
10:00 American Baby
10:30 Picture of Health
11:00 Body Buddies
11:30 Good Earth Journal
PM
12:00 Cable Store
12:30 New Antiques
1:00 Muriel Stevens
1:30 Traveller's World
2:00 Sew-Video
2:30 Tavi (magazine)
3:00 repeat of 6:30am movie
4:30 Paul Ryan
5:00 Nostalgia
6:00 Game Challenge
6:30 Eddie Robinson (sports)
7:00 Tennis Anyone?
7:30 Jimmy Houston Outdoors
8:00 Post Time
8:30 Scuba World
9:00 Cinema: "La Fin du jour" (French; 1937) Louis Jouvet
11:00 Mount Oriol (repeat of Monday 9:00pm)
AM
12:30 Top Club (repeat of Monday 10:30pm)
1:00 Good Earth Journal
1:30 Movie: "No Diamonds for Ursula" (1967) Five top international criminals are forced by a blackmailing mastermind to join together in a diamond heist. Dana Andrews
3:20 Movie: "Glory Trail" Tom Keene
4:45 Movie: "Her Lucky Day" Walter Neal


Wednesday, December 14, 1982

AM
6:25 Film
6:30 Movie: "His Private Secretary" (1933) A wife goes to work for her father-in-law to prove to her husband that she didn't marry for money. Evalyn Knapp, John Wayne
8:00 International Byline
8:30 Moneyworks
9:00 Fran Carlton
9:30 Aerobic Dancing
10:00 Medicine Man
10:30 Picture of Health
11:00 Body Buddies
11:30 Tavi
PM
12:00 Cable Store
12:30 Career Woman
1:00 Muriel Stevens
1:30 Personal Computer
2:00 Sewing with Nancy
2:30 Good Earth Journal
3:00 repeat of 6:30am movie
4:30 Paul Ryan
5:00 Nostalgia
6:00 Wok with Yan (cooking)
6:30 Photographer's Eye
7:00 Medicine Man
7:30 Career Woman
8:00 American Baby
8:30 New Antiques
9:00 People of Mogador (repeat of Monday 11:00pm)
10:00 Hantai (repeat of Monday midnight)
11:00 Cinema (repeat of Tuesday 9:00pm)
AM
1:00 Now Magazine
1:30 Movie: "The Magnificent Sinner" (French; 1959) The romance between a schoolgirl (Romy Schneider) and Czar Alexander II (Curt Jergens) in 19th-century Russia
3:20 Movie: "Border Roundup" George Houston, Al "Fuzzy" St. John
4:35 Movie: "Triple Trouble" Stanley Lupino


Thursday, December 15, 1982

AM
6:05 Films
6:30 Movie: "Hunting Trouble" (repeat of Tuesday 5:25am, only this one appears to run 25 minutes longer on its daytime airing)
8:00 International Byline
8:30 Home Based Businesses
9:00 Fran Carlton
9:30 Aerobic Dancing
10:00 Tavi
10:30 Picture of Health
11:00 Body Buddies
11:30 Sewing with Nancy
PM
12:00 Cable Store
12:30 Movieweek
1:00 Muriel Stevens
1:30 Photographer's Eye
2:00 American Baby
2:30 New Antiques
3:00 repeat of 6:30am movie
4:30 Paul Ryan
5:00 Nostalgia
6:00 Good Earth Journal
6:30 Home Based Businesses
7:00 First Nighter
7:30 Personal Computer
8:00 Traveller's World
8:30 Sharper Image Living Catalog
9:00 Mount Oriol (repeat of Monday 9:00pm)
10:30 Top Club (repeat of Monday 10:30pm)
11:00 People of Mogador (repeat of Monday 11:00pm)
AM
12:00 Hantai (repeat of Monday midnight)
1:00 Connie Martinson Talks Books
1:30 Movie: "What!" (repeat of Sunday 6:00pm, but 30 minutes shorter)
3:00 Movie: "Stagecoach Outlaws" (1945) Buster Crabbe
4:05 Movie: "Shipwrecked" Fritz Kother


Friday, December 16, 1982

AM
5:10 Movie: "Valley of Vengeance" (1944) Buster Crabbe
6:15 Films
6:30 Movie: "Billy the Kid in Law and Order" (repeat of Monday 3:15am; like the two mentioned before, it runs 15 minutes longer this time)
8:00 International Byline
8:30 Real Estate Action Line
9:00 Fran Carlton
9:30 Aerobic Dancing
10:00 American Baby
10:30 Picture of Health
11:00 Body Buddies
11:30 Career Woman
PM
12:00 Cable Store
12:30 Gourmet
1:00 Muriel Stevens
1:30 Traveller's World
2:00 Connie Martinson Talks Books
2:30 Game Challenge
3:00 repeat of 6:30am movie
4:30 Paul Ryan
5:00 Nostalgia
6:00 Wok with Yan
6:30 Movieweek
7:00 Nikki Haskell
7:30 Investors' Action Line
8:00 Home Based Businesses
8:30 Now Magazine
9:00 Cinema (repeat of Tuesday 9:00pm)
11:00 Mount Oriol (repeat of Monday 9:00pm)
AM
12:30 Top Club (repeat of Monday 10:30pm)
1:00 Nikki Haskell
1:30 Movie: "Eighteen in the Sun" (Italian; 1962) Tale of romance-minded youths vacationing on the island of Ischia. Catherine Spaak
3:20 Movie: "Tearing into Trouble" Richard Talmadge
4:30 Movie: "Trigger Trouble" Forrest Taylor

 

[SteveRichards]

For 2 or 3 years, maybe 1983-'85ish (if that long), KTVO (ABC affiliate) in Kirksville, Mo. operated low-power K40AI, also licensed to Kirksville. K40AI ran quite a bit of programming from SPN (it was the only reason I knew SPN existed). K40AI also mixed in a few of the syndicated shows also aired on KTVO, such as "Solid Gold" and "All-Star Wrestling," and I think some local movies might have been aired, as well. I remember having reason to believe K40AI was running some SPN shows out of pattern on tape-delay, but I'm not sure of that and I don't remember what made me think it at the time, as I had no source for SPN program listings.

 

[wf200]

SPN was on the cable system here in Pittsburgh (it was Warner Qube in the early 80's). It certainly was an interesting hodgepodge of programming, some of which I even remember. "Nikki Haskell" was an early "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" with this jet-setting socialite who was some sort of honorary royalty who visited her spoiled, uber-rich buddies in places like Cancun, the Riviera or the Greek Islands. "TeleFrance" actually started out with blocks of purchased time in both the morning and evening, but like a lot of early cable ventures, it failed to attract much sponsorship and the AM show was dropped after a few months and the evening version didn't last more than a year or two before it disappeared. The movies they showed in between contracted programming were certainly very old, most likely they were all public domain films which everyone had forgotten about with good reason. Definitely one the quirkiest channels ever to hit the air.

 

[milwaukee_dave]

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned elsewhere on this board (a quick cursory search didn't turn up anything), but I encourage folks interested in SPN/Tempo to check out K.M.'s excellent write-up on the channel's history on Clarke Ingram's History of UHF Television website: http://www.uhftelevision.com/articles/spn.html

This article is, by far, the most extensive collection of information I've found on SPN/Tempo. Growing up on cable's infancy, I was long fascinated by this early offering in the 36-channel universe. Even as a kid, I could quickly tell it was a rather low-budget affair. Personally, I recall watching music videos on the channel and also caught a few of those really oldie-moldy, obscure movies when I'd stay up all hours of the night in the summer.

One thought: SPN/Tempo reminds me of the early 1990s LPTV network Channel America. Some of the programs that aired on SPN/Tempo ("Connie Martinson Talks Books" comes to mind) also appeared on Channel America. I also recall Channel America airing a steady library of old public domain movies.

Anyway, thanks, K.M., for the very thorough article!