Debut
The show premiered in April 1992. The program began as the brainchild of Westwood One Chairman Norman J. Pattiz who assigned the project to his programming VP, Gary Landis. Although Westwood One had several country programs, mainly through its co-owned Mutual Broadcasting System, the company didn’t have a weekly country countdown show.
At the time, the leader was American Country Countdown with Bob Kingsley (now hosted by Kix Brooks). It was a traditional countdown show modeled after Casey Kasem’s American Top 40. Other shows on the air at the time included Unistar’s Weekly Country Music Countdown with Chris Charles (no longer on the air) and TNN’s Crook & Chase Top 40 (still on the air). The latter two included pre-recorded interview clips with artists, while ACC was strictly a scripted show (although interviews would later be added).
Read more about this topic: CMT Country Countdown USA
Famous quotes containing the word debut:
“Had I been less resolved to work, I would perhaps had made an effort to begin immediately. But since my resolution was formal and before twenty four hours, in the empty slots of the next day where everything fit so nicely because I was not yet there, it was better not to choose a night at which I was not well-disposed for a debut to which the following days proved, alas, no more propitious.... Unfortunately, the following day was not the exterior and vast day which I had feverishly awaited.”
—Marcel Proust (1871–1922)
“One should never make one’s debut with a scandal. One should reserve that to give an interest to one’s old age.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)