Starting in the late ’70s, my brother and I got sent to Camp Grandma in southwestern Michigan for a couple weeks every summer. The rules were extremely relaxed at Camp Grandma. Pepsi and Vernors and my brother’s beloved root beer flowed freely, and Grandma always bought Pringles and Lucky Charms and Slim Jims and all sorts of other junk food we got very little of at home. We’d sit up late with our grandparents every night, playing penny-ante poker or Kismet and listening to their stories of the Depression and the fabulous 50s until Grandma’s Gallo (from the gallon jug with the screw cap) and Grandpa’s Pabst Blue Ribbon got the better of them. Then we’d roll out our sleeping bags in front of the TV and watch until all the stations had signed off. Those were great days.
Me at Camp Grandma, 1977
The late-night-TV pickings were slim in those days when there were few choices beyond CBS, NBC, and ABC. The networks gave it up at 12:30 or 1 a.m. and most of their stations just signed off. WKZO, Channel 3 in Kalamazoo, sometimes ran a late-late show, if I remember right. Independent WUHQ, Channel 41 from Battle Creek, always did, if memory serves, but we couldn’t pull it in unless the sky was clear and Grandpa’s antenna rotator was working. Weather and antenna usually determined our bedtime, actually! A few times, we were still up when Grandpa made his way to the coffee pot at 5:30.
We always looked forward to the CBS Late Movie, which started right after the news. It ran lots of B and made-for-TV movies in the mid 70s, including monster movies on Friday nights. But by the late 70s, the CBS Late Movie showed more and more crime-drama reruns, which were sped up by 10 percent and crammed so full of commercials that the shows ran 70 minutes instead of 60. We preferred the movies, but could be happy with good action and suspense in Hawaii Five-O, Quincy, M.E., or Kolchak: the Night Stalker.
What made the CBS Late Movie so cool was its open and bumpers. The opening theme’s vigorous horns triggered anticipation of gritty drama to come. The colors in the star and spinning wheel popped against the black background, and there was nothing like it in prime time. Here’s how the program opened one night late in August, 1982.
Because this bumper was transferred from the 35 mm masters, you can see how colorful these elements were. This particular bumper was used in and out of commercials, and the announcer would say either “We will return to” or “We now return to” followed by the movie name and its stars. The music sounded lonesome, which seemed appropriate for watching in the dark in the middle of nowhere.
The CBS Late Movie theme is called So Old, So Young, composed by Morton Stevens, who wrote lots of television music in his time. Here it is, from my collection.
In the summer of 1985, the CBS Late Movie ditched these elements for CBS’s then-current prime-time movie look and theme. The program was also renamed to CBS Late Night. David Letterman, filled with mock indignation over the slight to his program, then on NBC and also named Late Night, called CBS during his program one night, demanding to know why they were infringing on his territory. I saw that bit back then, and it made me laugh. That almost made up for losing that classic theme and graphics. At least until YouTube brought them back.
11 Comments
26 September 2008 at 6:15 pm
Hey,
I stumbled upon your blog looking for info on the CBS Late Movie theme. I love that colorful star and lonesome far off music. I remember sitting up late with my twin brother. We’d watch “The Night Stalker” and “The Avengers” and the “Saint” along with a lot of obscure TV and theatrical movies. I recall a TV movie called Harpy and there was Welcome to Arrow Beach and The Vanishing Point. Oh, and I still drink Vernors, great stuff.
27 September 2008 at 2:51 pm
Frederick, thanks for stopping by. I remember seeing some William Shatner movie about spiders or bees or something, and the various Planet of the Apes movies.
24 October 2008 at 10:27 am
I used to watch CBS Late Night when I was a little girl.
Back in the days I watched Night Heat all my life. I love this tune on CBS Late Night. All the good stuff is mine.
25 October 2008 at 5:03 pm
I have never forgotten this movie theme. It has haunted me for years, as is the ABC Movie of The Week theme. They were part of my childhood, of staying up late to watch a highly anticipated movie of the week. TV was so different then – our choices were certainly very limited to all the cable stuff nowadays, but I wouldn’t trade those days for anything.
28 October 2008 at 2:10 pm
Man, that sounds like heaven. :) I only wish I’d had a brother to share stuff like that with.
When I was just getting old enough to stay up later than my folks in the very early 80s, there was a show on an independent station in Toronto called “The All-Night Show” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wT18Giv_uoI), hosted by “Chuck the Security Guard” and his heard-but-never-seen buddy Ryerson behind the camera. They used to run just about anything they could get their hands on… weird animation (first place I ever saw Bambi vs. Godzilla), corny old commercials, B movies, 1960s TV series… it was the first place I saw The Twilight Zone, Outer Limits, The Andy Griffith Show, McHale’s Navy, all that stuff. It was just a treasure box of odds and ends; a smorgasbord of 20th century pop culture, and my introduction to much of it. Those summer nights, it was like only I, the TV, and those guys far away in another city were the entire world. I only wish the show were available on DVD. From what I understand, when the station tried to screw the cast out of residuals or something, the cast trashed most of the tapes. Sure, they can see it on Tau Ceti, but not on Earth anymore… :)
28 October 2008 at 2:50 pm
LP, sounds like the guys at The All-Night Show were willing to experiment. It had to have been a lot of fun.
10 February 2009 at 9:59 am
hey great i remember this too, but i was looking for the late show theme that preceded the late movie … or maybe it was on another network but i remember it being on cbs … it had lyrics .. “the late show, relax enjoy a snack and watch the late show, the greatest od stars, here on the late great show” or something like that. it’s in my heart but i’d like to hear it in my ears one more time. I am 48. any clues?
8 October 2009 at 4:40 pm
I, too, am looking for the old 60’s-70’s Late Show theme. It was on CBS. I watched it on WBBM Chicago Channel 2 back in the mid-70’s. It came on before the All Electric Magic Lantern Moving Picture Show.
I had taped the Late Show theme off of the tv with a cassette player, but the tape broke and I doubt if I still have it.
I hope this theme shows up somewhere soon!
10 February 2009 at 10:51 am
Doug, I’m not familiar with that one! Sorry!
29 June 2009 at 6:20 pm
Yes, Doug. I grew up in LA and that was the 60’s theme to the local late show at (then) KNXT (now KCBS). Most likely changed and syndicated to work with any channel number, but I remember the lyrics to be:
The Late Show
Relax, enjoy a snack and watch the Late Show
Channel 2 is proud to bring the greatest of stars
Here on the great Late Show.
19 July 2009 at 12:16 am
I’ve been searching unsuccessfully for what I remember as the closing of the CBS Late Movie, probably circa mid-70s. I swear the music was the piano solo at the end of Derek and the Dominos’ (Eric Clapton’s) “Layla”. Seems I remember swirling animated movie projectors. This was always right before the station signed off. Does this ring any bells with anyone?