Any info on a WKRP in Cincinnati season release???
 

With all the TV series coming to DVD in 2004, any1 have any information on 'KRP? Even just to see the first season again would be glory!!

Very slim odds that this will ever get released due to music rights issues. However I would buy this as soon as it was released.

Yeah, that seems to be a hot button issue with TV series getting to DVD. Did they really use alot of songs from the time period? I mean, I know there was alot of music being played, what with WKRP being a top 40 formatted station. But didnt they use alot of basic rock sounding music instead of copyrighted songs? I could be wrong. Its been awhile since 'KRP has been on Nick at Night.

I wouldn't hesitate in plunking down some hard earned cash for this *brilliant* show if it ever came to DVD. One of the funniest shows ever, bar none. To be honest though, I'd get it just for the scenes with Bailey in them. The actress who played her was breathtaking.

Was having this discussion with my bud earlier. Bailey was definitely an understated, underrated babe. I'd take Season 2 and beyond Loni "Jennifer" Anderson anyday. She was in her prime looks-wise, and I liked how she played mother hen to the motley crew at KRP.

WKRP....with more news, and Less Nessman!!!

I'd buy it just to hear the Ferryman Funeral jingle again..."Hey, You're Young and Swingin'..."

I don't think music rights would really be an issue with this show. There wasn't actually a whole lot played, and when it was played you'd only hear about 10-15 secs of a song as it started up or ended, which I believe is fair use. Whenever there was music on all the time (usually a scene w/ Andy talking to Venus in the booth) it was kind of a non-descript rock music instrumental, not from an actualy song. Hopefully this will come out one day, I'd buy 'em.

I can remember at least a couple of instances where the music being played was directly a part of the scene being played out (this is from memory so if I get a detail wrong please don't attack me :) ):

An episode where Johnny Fever is playing a cut from Pink Floyd's "Animals"; I believe that Les comes into the booth and thinks that Johnny is interested in Les's farm reports because of the music he's playing. There are several lines of dialog mentioning Pink Floyd.

Another time when Johnny is feeling depressed; he plays Linda Ronstadt's remake of "Oooh Baby Baby"; there is a specific mention of Linda Ronstadt I believe.

If I can remember these two, there are probably a lot more. If the music rights couldn't be secured for scenes like this, I don't see how they could be included as the dialog makes specific mention of specific artists and songs.

Just for any studios out there who may be listening - I think most of us would be willing to fork over the extra $10 or so per set in exchange for getting episodes the way they were orginally aired! They'll sale MORE - not less - copies of the episodes if they get it right!

Now that that's settled, will someone PLEASE release "The Greatest American Hero" on DVD! This is killing me, since this is one of my favorite shows from my childhood, and I haven't seen it aired on TV for years! (okay - a little off topic, but seemed like a good thread to bring it up!)

Yes to both paragraphs! Fox, I have money, why don't you take it and give me uncut WKRP? If I bought all that Trek, then I'll buy yours, too. :D

And Greatest American Hero is a must-have, too. Who owns that one?

All I can say is, 'Turkey's can not fly'!

Absolutely. There were those that realized it. I mean, James Brolin was with her for awhile. He has always been a great barometer of hot babes, just look who he is married to now.

Oh, wait.........never mind.

A few months backs, there was a story (discussed in this forum even I believe) about how WKRP can never be released on DVD due to the music rights. Too many scenes would have to be changed that financially, it couldn't be done.

I'd love it as well.

It's a helicopter, and it's coming this way.

It's flying something behind it, I can't quite make it out, it's a large banner and it says, uh - Happy... Thaaaaanksss... giving! ... From ... W ... K ... R... P!!

No parachutes yet. Can't be skydivers... I can't tell just yet what they are, but - Oh my God, they're turkeys!!

Johnny, can you get this?

Oh, they're plunging to the earth right in front of our eyes!

One just went through the windshield of a parked car!

Oh, the humanity!

The turkeys are hitting the ground like sacks of wet cement!

Not since the Hindenberg tragedy has there been anything like this!”

"As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly."

Mr. Carlson, I'm sure that turkeys are flying in formation around that radio station in the sky.

Years ago on WBCN in Boston, they did a re-anactment of that classic radio broadcast scene witht he actor who played Les Nessman. That episode is one of the funniest episdoes in TV history.

I would love to have this show on DVD (with or without original music).

One of my favorites was the episode "Hold Up." Johnny is doing a remote broadcast from Del's Stereo and Sound.

It looks like someone is coming in. He's looking around and...he's leaving. No wait. He's coming back in and...he's...pull out a gun! Any police that might be listening, it looks like we're being robbed down here at Del's Stereo and Sound. That address again is... :D

Look about 5 or 6 posts up from yours.

Personally, I don't understand all of the hoopla over music rights. Yes, a particular song helps set the stage, but we might only hear about twenty seconds of it. It's not like we'd buy WKRP to hear a few seconds of Elton John. Nor would we think we wouldn't have to buy an album because we can hear those few seconds on a DVD. In fact, it might even encourage album sales.

At least I've been hearing rumors that Northern Exposure is in the works. I'm sure that one was a music rights nightmare too.

Company credits for
"Greatest American Hero, The" (1981)

Production Companies
Stephen J. Cannell Productions

Distributors
American Broadcasting Company (ABC) [us]

Unfortunately, clearing music rights has little to nothing to do with album sales and rarely involves the record companies. It's the music publishers--companies and people who buy and sell the rights to songs like real estate--who control the re-use rights to the songs as they pertain to TV shows.

Producer Paul Brownstein told me a story about an episode of the Sonny & Cher Show that has never aired in reruns (TV Land) because he couldn't clear the rights to a song. It was a song written and sung by Sonny, he owned half of the publishing rights and he was perfectly willing to grant permission. But the publisher who owned the other half of the song absolutely refused to grant permission to use it. So Sonny Bono couldn't rerun his own song on his own show because of a co-publisher. How crazy is that?

Now, that's an example for a rebroadcast (and helps explain why some rerun shows have really odd edits--to delete uncleared music), but the same idea applies to DVDs. Every song has its own quirky story just like that. Multiply that headache by 5 to 10 songs per episode, as in the case of WKRP, and you have a music-clearance nightmare. You can't negotiate blanket deals, because every song has a different publisher.

WKRP used real songs nearly all the time, even if it was just an instrumental portion. And--getting back to another of RKillgore's points--it doesn't matter if it was just a snippet as Johnny started to spin a record at the end of a scene or a major use, such as Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" for the episode where Bailey falls for the Russian defector; the rights still have to be cleared. A publisher might be more willing to clear the rights for a snippet, but it's still a lot of groundwork.

They substituted this in the versions that run on TV Land for what originally were real songs because of rights issues. Trust me, it really weakens the show compared with how it originally aired.

Johnny: Gripping music, huh?
Mr Carlson: Yeah, that's good all right. What's the name of that orchestra?
Johnny: Pink Floyd.
Mr Carlson: Oooh, is that Pink Floyd? Do I hear dogs barking on that thing?
Johnny: I do.

Johnny: Don't you people get it? It's the phone cops!!
Andy: There is no such thing as phone cops!
Johnny: Oh sure. Cover for them.


Officer, testing Johnny's reaction time: According to this, completely sober, he has the reaction time of a man who has had six vodka martinis.

Reporter: Are you on the air?
Venus: On the air? I am the air! I am the wind! Thanks for the lid, Art.

(same episode, where Johnny & Venus are drinking to show the effects of alcohol)
Andy: You'll find basically this is a very professionally-run radio station.
Venus enters, drunk: Hey white folks! What's happening in the executive suite?

I'm another fan of this show that would buy it first week out if it was released on DVD. As great as some of the episodes are that members have mentioned above, my favorite was from the first season, when the first ratings book comes in and everyone but Travis is thrilled.

By the by, JesseCuster, are you aware that James Brolin dumped "Bailey" for "Babs"? (Talk about a downgrade...)