The Clay Cole Show
The Clay Cole Show (1959–1967) was an American rock music television show based in New York City, hosted by Clay Cole.
History[edit]
First broadcast on WNTA-TV (now WNET) in September 1959 as Rate the Records, within two months the format was changed, and an hour-long Saturday-night show was added. In the summer months, the show was expanded to an hour, six nights a week, live from New Jersey's Palisades Amusement Park, where Chubby Checker first performed and danced "The Twist".[1][3] In 1963, the show moved to WPIX-TV, where for five years it was successful, thanks to first-time guest appearances of the Rolling Stones (on a program with one other guest act – the Beatles), Neil Diamond, Dionne Warwick, Simon & Garfunkel, Richie Havens, Tony Orlando, Blood, Sweat & Tears and the Rascals.[1][2] On the WPIX version's first few months, it was titled Clay Cole at the Moon Bowl and was taped at the Bronx-based amusement park Freedomland U.S.A.. For the first WPIX edition, his guests were Lionel Hampton, Bobby Darin, and Joey Dee and the Starlighters.[4]
In 1965 the show was renamed Clay Cole's Discotek.[2] Clay produced a full hour with just one guest, Tony Bennett. Clay's all-star, ten-day Christmas Show in 1960 at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater holds the all-time box-office record for that theater.[5][6]
Cole was the first to introduce stand-up comics such as Richard Pryor, George Carlin and Fannie Flagg to a teen audience.[1][3] He was the first to produce a full hour of all-black performers, his historic Salute to Motown.[1][3] Unlike other teen music show hosts, Cole danced to the music he played on his shows; he was also unafraid to book lesser-known performers.[1][3][7]
In December 1967, at the height of his show's popularity, Cole left the show and moved to then-NBC-owned-and-operated station WKYC in Cleveland. He was reportedly unhappy with the shift in pop music to psychedelic acid rock and heavy metal.[1][3] The final edition of his program in New York aired on December 16, 1967. He hosted the first half hour, featuring live guests Paul Anka and Bobby Vee and a film performance from the Beatles. In the second half hour, he introduced the host that replaced him on WPIX: Canadian singer Peter Martin.[8]
His memoir of the early years of rock and roll and live television, Sh-Boom! The Explosion of Rock 'n' Roll (1953-1968) has been published by Morgan James.[9][10] Cole died on December 18, 2010.[1][2][3][11]