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SIGNING OFF WITH "DIXIE"

RWells, do you remember the WTBF sign-off?

"Moonlight Serenade," baby! Still used until around 1999-2000!

Thinking back to the old WBAM sign-off "Dixie," it seemed very fitting that a station known for covering so much musical (not to mention terrestrial) territory to use that tune. I think Bama Country has "Dixie" in some of its new imaging.

And now, moving slightly off-topic ...

  • WCOV-TV 20 in Montgomery, back when it was a CBS affiliate and had a logo similar to WBMG-TV 42 in Birmingham, used to sign on with "Here Comes the Sun", written by George Harrison, performed by what sounded like the Ray Conniff Orchestra!
  • WSFA-TV 12 has the BEST sign-off with the Singing Sergeants of the USAF performing "The Star-Spangled Banner". I still get the chills thinking about the airplane flying off into the sunset as the chorus sings America ... my ... hooooome!
 
graceunlimited said:
My memory is failing me, but I remember several stations that would sign off or on using Elvis' "Battle Hymn of the Republic", I think?" It includes a chorus of "Dixie" and the familiar "Glory, Glory, Hallaluya" refrain. Being a soutern boy, I always thought it was prety cool. :)
Click to expand...

That Elvis release was entitled "American Trilogy."

LF
 
MBird said:
RWells, do you remember the WTBF sign-off?

"Moonlight Serenade," baby! Still used until around 1999-2000!
Click to expand...

And remember the anthem, sung acapella by one of the TSU vocal ensembles?


WCOV-TV 20 in Montgomery, back when it was a CBS affiliate and had a logo similar to WBMG-TV 42 in Birmingham, used to sign on with "Here Comes the Sun", written by George Harrison, performed by what sounded like the Ray Conniff Orchestra![/list]
Click to expand...

That must've been the '80s .... because the first thing which came to mind was that for awhile in the mid-ish '70s, then WKAB-32 (WNCF) had a 'mod' like logo which had a resemblance to WBMG-42's longtime (1970-80) logo. Wish I could find one ... I remember the "MONTGOMERY" in the ID being sideways.

WSFA-TV 12 has the BEST sign-off with the Singing Sergeants of the USAF performing "The Star-Spangled Banner". I still get the chills thinking about the airplane flying off into the sunset as the chorus sings America ... my ... hooooome!
Click to expand...

It all comes back. Their sign-off was a thing of beauty, wasn't it? Remember the "sermonette" feature? The brief theme had a lot of surface noise on it.

WSFA was one of the last network affils to go 24/7.

--Russell
 
Ah, yes. Dear departed WKAB. Their former news anchor told me that Channel 32 didn't get the news film developed in time for the show one evening, so they put on a "Hogan's Heroes" rerun instead. And, when the ratings came in, the "HH" rerun beat WSFA in that time slot!

Remember Sue Ann Horvath? She did the news at Channel 32 for a while, as well, when it was WKAB. She was a former Miss Alabama who started at WTBF Radio. Her picture is on the Wall of Fame there.

Bahakel Communications still owns the property where WNCF-ABC 32 sits. So, when Bahakel-owned WAKA-CBS 8 does their "CW News at 9" show, it appears on the CW affiliate -- also owned by the same company that owns WNCF, but is on Bahakel property. Confused?

You're right about the WSFA 12 signoff and sermonette ... they were the best. Some more off-topic old TV stuff ...

Remember "Alabama Almanac," the farm report that aired during Today until as late as 1993?

Who could forget "PM Magazine" with Dan Atkinson and Sydney Kohara?

And ... the last of the big ones ... "Young World," with Marge Payne?

The one thing I don't remember Montgomery having (at least in my lifetime) was its own Bozo, but we did have Cartoon Carl and Princess Pat.
 
MBird said:
And ... the last of the big ones ... "Young World," with Marge Payne?
Click to expand...

Dammit, now I have "Sing" by The Carpenters going through my head! "la la-la-LA-la..."

And no, Montgomery didn't have a Bozo franchise ... Birmingham did for awhile, and did well with it for a time, however it wasn't as big as in Little Rock or - of course - Chicago. I think Birmingham (there it was played for much of its run by Ward McIntyre) had the state's only Bozo.

--Russell

(At this rate, we'll be banished to the "Classic TV" board before too much longer!)
 
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