American Bandstand

(originally Bandstand)

(1952 - 1989)

Family / Variety

60 minutes / 90 minutes

Hosted by Bob Horn

Hosted by Dick Clark

Bandstand was a weekly television program originally broadcast in Philadelphia on station WFIL-TV, hosted by Bob Horn, and showing short musical films .  After only one month, Horn arranged to have the format changed to be predominantly a musical program with a teenage audience dancing to the tunes being played.

Dick Clark replaced Horn as the host of the program in 1956, and continued until 1989.  Each episode included teenagers dancing to recorded music from the Top 40, and at least one in-studio performance by a popular artist of the day, usually lip-syncing their most recent song.  In 1957 the program was picked up by ABC for broadcast nationwide, and was renamed American Bandstand.