Theme
WFIL adopted the Action News format in 1970, along with a brass band theme written by a student at Temple University. The theme was offered through the Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper, as a single sided 45 RPM record for about $.25. Two years later, the station (under its new call sign WPVI) replaced the "Action News Theme" with Al Ham's well-known "Move Closer to Your World".
Unlike most stations, WPVI still uses this theme after four decades, and the theme has arguably become as much a part of the Philadelphia consciousness as the Rocky theme. This was proven in 1996 when the station replaced it with a fuller, orchestral rendition of the same theme performed by the London Philharmonic. Viewer outcry was so great that the station dropped the more thunderous and authoritative version within five days. WPVI has made numerous remasters of the theme to keep the sound fresh and to make it sound less dated. The theme has the unique distinction of being probably the only news theme to be offered as a ringtone, which WPVI offers at no charge, and is linked here and below.
Action News was innovative in many ways, including the first 6 & 11 newscast anchored solely by a woman (Diana Robinson and then Jacqui Mullen). Diana Robinson was the first African-American female news anchor in American television. WPVI opens its broadcasts with a rapid montage featuring scenes of Philadelphia-area activities, reinforcing the "Action" brand. The scenes are rotated at the official start of every season to reflect the current season; for example, Phillies, NASCAR, CART AND DIRT and other spring footage starts showing on the open on March 21, and Philadelphia Eagles, Philadelphia Flyers, and 76ers autumn footage starts on September 23, while the Mummers Parade and other winter footage is shown from December 21 to March 21.
Although "Move Closer to Your World" is strongly associated with the Action News format by Philadelphians and many others, many stations that have used the "Action News" name actually chose to use other pieces of music for their newscasts. Conversely, stations that use "Move Closer to Your World" do not necessarily use the "Action News" name or format either. WNEP-TV in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Pennsylvania used the original version for many years before switching to a modern variation which only partially resembles the original.
Read more about this topic: Action News
Famous quotes containing the word theme:
“And God-appointed Berkeley that proved all things a dream,
That this pragmatical, preposterous pig of a world, its farrow that so solid seem,
Must vanish on the instant if the mind but change its theme ...”
—William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)
“The one regret I have about my own abortions is that they cost money that might otherwise have been spent on something more pleasurable, like taking the kids to movies and theme parks.”
—Barbara Ehrenreich (b. 1941)
“If a theme or idea is too near the surface, the novel becomes simply a tract illustrating an idea.”
—Elizabeth Bowen (1899–1973)