Shakedown, 1986-1992
Series Description
Described as “WJZ’s nightclub on the air,” Shakedown was a dance show executive produced by Michael Easterling, produced by Earnest Winbourne, and hosted by Harold Anthony. Every Saturday evening, Harold Anthony “invited viewers to hear the hottest music, see the best dancers and some of his favorite people from in and around Baltimore.” The show was seen as a revival of The Buddy Deane Show which aired from 1957-1964 until it was canceled due to integration controversy.
Apart from showcasing dancers and new music, Shakedown had many rotating segments. The “Silver Bullet Pick” featured a local radio personality who chose a top 40 song that they predicted would become number one. The show regularly hosted local Baltimore bands such as Oran “Juice” Jones, The Press Club, Sweet Cookie, and later expanded to host national musicians. The “Nightclub Salute” featured local nightclubs such as Odell’s and Hammerjacks. One or two videos were chosen per episode for the “Video Showcase” and at the beginning of the series, there was a “Rate-A-Video” segment where Shakedown dancers would rate a new video from 1-10. Dancers were interviewed in the “Fireside Chat” and were asked everything from their birthdays to recent accomplishments. The show typically ended with the “Shakedown Show Down” where dancers partnered and showed off their dance moves and outfits.
MARMIA has 57 surviving tapes from the series overall. Re-used labels suggest tape stock may have been recycled, taping over content from earlier shows. They primarily consist of the show’s first season which had a 44-week run in 1986, four tapes from the 12-week 1987 summer special, six tapes from the 1992 summer revival, four tapes of production elements from 1992, and one field tape saluting Odell’s nightclub.
Dates
- 1986-1992
Language of Materials
Collection content is in English.
Conditions Governing Access
Local access is restricted due to the fragile nature of the materials and amount of staff available. Local research is available for a fee and must be scheduled far in advance. Access to digitized reproductions of materials is available for free online. Please contact avtech@marmia.org for more information.
Biographical / Historical
The show first aired in February 1986 and was an hour long, and then was shortened to a half-hour. 60 dancers were chosen at auditions held at Maxwell’s, Odell’s, and the Golden Ring Mall. An hour-long show took between two to three hours to tape and typically two shows were taped in one day, usually Saturday morning on the Eyewitness News set.
The show was canceled at the end of November 1986 despite it finally being rated number one in October. WJZ promised Winbourne several specials in the future. The show was given a 12-week summertime series in 1987 with half-hour episodes from June through September. Harold Anthony returned as host and WJZ’s Steve Aveson from Evening Magazine took over the “Nightclub Salute” segment.
The show was revived again in 1992 for an 11-week summertime special. It still consisted of 60 dancers but few were featured, especially not as prominently as before. It was hosted by Tacuma in the studio and by “Hip-Hop Advisor” Prime in the field featuring regional locations such as Tom Mitchell’s Grid Iron, the Carrol County Fair, and Camden Yards. Prime also interviewed celebrities such as MC Search and Boyz II Men. The “Silver Bullet Pick” became the “Taco Bell Pick of the Week."
Extent
57 Cassettes : Umatic and Betacam
8 Reels ; 1 inch videotape
Processing Information
The arrangement of this series is primarily chronological. Tapes were identified by the wording found on their labels and were verified when the items were digitized.
The 1 inch videotapes remain unprocessed, are not digitized, and are not reflected in the finding aid.
Repository Details
Part of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Moving Image Archive Repository