Six Flags and Red Zone acquire dick clark productions

Thanks to AB I was exposed to bands Adam & The Ants, X, and The Go Go's amongst many others back in the day. It was cool seeing them perform "live", even if they were really only lip synching.

By the way, I also have mentioned that Dick Clark pretty much controls the ACMs (Academy of Country Music Awards). The people who win are the people he wants to win. These are the artists or groups who will gladly do his bidding. He gives them a touch of fame and the reciprocate by playing his venues. He just sits in the office and cashes the checks.

By the way...the CMA (Country Music Association) only has one award for new artist of the year or band called the Horizon award. Dick is smart. He has a best new male, best new female and best new duo or group. It's more people in his pocket to control.

Jeff - - - > Why do people come out and freeze their behinds off in the middle of winter to see a stinking ball drop? Because he made it an event. Why? Because it made him money. Last year when he was "Trying to made a return to the airwaves, the ratings were even better, because he was coming back.

Our company at one time was located in One Times Square Plaza. I was slated to cut tape that night. (Back then we did use razor blades and editing tape). As we were getting closer to midnight, I wanted to just go upstairs and have a window view of the crowd. His people, even though I worked for his company, wouldn't even let me near a window. I'm not talking about the private restaurant on the roof or the outdoor platform, just a stinkin' window. (I spent that new years eve alone in my studio)...although I heard the rest of New York at midnight.

He just wasn't a good person behind the scenes unless you could help him.

OK - My rant is over.

Read:

http://www.timessquarenyc.org/nye/nye_ball.html

It states that revelers have been celebrating NYE in Times Square since 1904 but that the ball has been dropping since 1907. Dick Clark is old but he's not that old, so no Dick Clark didn't make it an event, Dick Clark just capitalized on it.

The Kansas City ( Overland Park ) location of the AB Grill closed last month and from what I heard from the people who work at the hotel just across the street it was quite suddenly too.

Like Richie Reflux, I too worked in radio and since the station I worked at aired the Dick Clark's Rock, Roll, and Remember radio show ( and a bunch of other United Stations stuff ) , I guess I indirectly worked for the company as well. And I agree RR & R was very, very poorly made.

One thing I learned about Dick Clark ( or at least Dick Clark Productions ). They are very picky. The station I work at , we had this guy who came in on Sunday nights to do a 50s doo-wop show. He has been on the years for years and over the years he collected a number of sound bytes ( promos )from so many people when he worked in a number of major markets such as "..Hi I am Chubby Checker and you are listening to Max On Cool 95 !!". One of those promos featured Dick Clark saying the same thing. Well that promo came to an end when Dick's people got wind of it and threatened to sue if our DJ aired it again even though Dick Clark himself did the promo for him several years back.

His company has gone after a number of people who uploaded on You Tube clips from American Bandstand. A friend of mine did just that ( her clip was of the Stray Cats ) and of course Dick Clark Productions got the clip removed and claimed "copyright violation" which it is but Dick Clark Productions took this one step further. My friend received an personal email from Dick Clark Productions DEMANDING that sem mail them the orginial tape of the clip she uploaded so they could destroy it or face a lawsuit. Weird !!!

Oh just before Clark's stroke, I remember reading a news report at work about how someone took a picture of Dick Clark at some function he attended back in the 70s . She posted the pic on her own website only to get a letter from Dick Clark Productions demanding she take down that pic or else even though it was a pic she took herself. I guess if one sees Dick Clark in public and wants to take a pic of him , better get his OK or else. I can't think of any other major celebrity that acts like that.

Yeah, I can see why Dick Clark leaves a bitter taste in their mouths of many.

So did your friend mail Dick a copy of the Stray Cats video tape...and keep the original for herself? ;)

No, she never did send Dick Clark anything. I believe the email they sent was just to scare and thats it. I can't see them getting their lawyers to go after a woman who recorded a TV show back in 1982 on her own VCR. Other than requesting a clip to be removed from You Tube either contacting the site itself or the person who uploaded it, I believe that is as far as they can go.