Augie 1 Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 I love everything John Williams wrote, even if it's quite short.JW composed several tv and movie logos. This one seems to betotally forgotten.I take the following quote from an interview-article by Ken Terry,published in the Pan Am Clipper (inflight magazine), back in April1982:"After being a widower for several years and bringing up three teenaged children, he recently remarried. "Samantha Winslow is her name,", he says. "We met at KCET, the public television station in Los Angeles. She was a casting director there, and we met when I did a musical signature for KCET a few years ago." He adds that she "is a great photographer."So, this was possibly composed in the late 70s/early 80s, at the timeof "The Ladd Company"-Logo, perhaps.Does anybody here know more about it? Are there any recordingsof this I don't know anything about? Is someone here more familiarwith KCET TV and its signatures than me? It must have been airedaround 1980. Probably John Williams', most treasured period.KCET TV - Signature Theme. The search goes on!Augie(your guy in Mos Eisley) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miguel Andrade 1,263 Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 I've read about this before.It probably dates from the mid 70's. I remember reading in a Boston Globe article that Williams had known Samantha Winslow for some 6 years before they got married in 1980. So he probably first met her loosely around the same time the late Barbara Ruick Williams passed away, which was in 1974. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augie 1 Posted January 16, 2012 Author Share Posted January 16, 2012 If that is correct, it hints to a signature tune composed around 1975/1976/1977.KCET is still active, but it underwent several re-incarnations. Maybe the tunewas dropped after one or two years or so. Let's see if somebody's rememberingmore about it. Wished I had lived through this particular period in sunny California.Reality check: I certainly haven't. Thanks, Miguel! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,503 Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Never heard of it before. Thanks for the heads-up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augie 1 Posted January 16, 2012 Author Share Posted January 16, 2012 This will be a rocky trip, if we can find it at all.Even John Williams' "rejected KFC theme" wouldbe easier to track down. If it existed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augie 1 Posted January 24, 2012 Author Share Posted January 24, 2012 Okay, here's something. The KCET TV ident in use from 1970 to1978. This sounds like some Billy Goldenberg tune to me. The signaturein question must be the one after this one, from 1978/1979, whenthey changed it, and Williams had become a popular choice for"serious things" like a tv signature or news theme. What do you think?Here's a database which specializes on tv signature and tv seriesmusic, but unfortunately you have to join/log in before searching:http://www.tvpmm.com/index.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmmusic 1,828 Posted March 31, 2018 Share Posted March 31, 2018 I've listened to some KCET logos from the 70s and I found these 2 that could be Williams. What do you think? especially the 1st one with the long melody. It was the only one which was longer and orchestral, and also has those large leaps in melody which is a Williams characteristic. the 2nd one is from 1971 so maybe it isn't this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,503 Posted March 31, 2018 Share Posted March 31, 2018 The second one, definitely not. The first could be, but I doubt it. I contacted KCET about this in 2012, when this information surfaced, and this is what they said: Quote Dear Thor J. Haga, Thank you for taking the time to write to us. We followed up with our Programming Department and, unfortunately, they were unable to find any information regarding John Williams. We wish we could have assisted you with this request, and wish you the best of luck with locating the information that you need. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact our Member & Viewer Services Department at (747) 201-5238. Our office hours are 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday. Again, thank you for your interest in KCETLink. So perhaps Williams didn't compose anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmmusic 1,828 Posted March 31, 2018 Share Posted March 31, 2018 11 minutes ago, Thor said: I contacted KCET about this in 2012, when this information surfaced, and this is what they said: So perhaps Williams didn't compose anything. Oh you did? hehe. I contacted them just a couple of hours ago.. Between you and me, I doubt if they looked for anything. How could he not have composed anything? So, that magazine/interviewer made that up? I'd like though to find that magazine. I found only the cover of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,073 Posted March 31, 2018 Share Posted March 31, 2018 Maybe JW made it up. He just needed a reason to hang around his future wife... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,503 Posted March 31, 2018 Share Posted March 31, 2018 2 hours ago, filmmusic said: Oh you did? hehe. I contacted them just a couple of hours ago.. Be sure to let me know if they respond differently to your request. It's been 5 years, after all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmmusic 1,828 Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 On 1/4/2018 at 12:51 AM, Thor said: Be sure to let me know if they respond differently to your request. It's been 5 years, after all. well: Quote We were contacted about this a few years ago and at the time we were unable to verify that recording. Since that time, we did go through all available archives a couple years ago when we were celebrating the station's 50th Anniversary, but still, we did not turn up that recording. Quote I've also spoken with someone who has been with the station for more than 25 years. While he recalls a documentary about George Lucas that was produced in 1971, he does not recall hearing about John Williams composing a theme for the station in the 1970s, although from the articles you referenced, it does appear that if he did, it would have been in the mid-1970s range. and they guided me to the youtube videos of various logos (which I had already watched). i guess we will never know then... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,073 Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 I maintain it was an cunning excuse engineered by JW in order to hang around his future wife. The only way to get a definite answer seems to be to contact JW's agent... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmmusic 1,828 Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 33 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said: I maintain it was an cunning excuse engineered by JW in order to hang around his future wife. Ok, I'm with you. But why should he mention it in an interview then? @Thor if you want to contact his agent (or a personal assistant - I don't know what he is exactly) I have his email. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,073 Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 17 minutes ago, filmmusic said: Ok, I'm with you. But why should he mention it in an interview then? He has to follow it up as long as he's married. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filmmusic 1,828 Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 9 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said: He has to follow it up as long as he's married. He didn't have to mention it. (I guess) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor 7,503 Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 37 minutes ago, filmmusic said: Ok, I'm with you. But why should he mention it in an interview then? @Thor if you want to contact his agent (or a personal assistant - I don't know what he is exactly) I have his email. I have his e-mail too, but I don't want to bother him with this particular request. I'll save it for a "more important" request (like a friggin' interview already!). But thanks for letting me know what the station said. They apparently remembered my query a few years ago. Too bad nothing came of it. Those in-flight magazines -- you can't trust them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jurassic Shark 12,073 Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 Maybe the interview was with another composer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yavar Moradi 2,599 Posted April 4, 2018 Share Posted April 4, 2018 Personally the actual melody in the background of the KCET signoff does sound like it could be Williams-composed, to me. Yavar filmmusic 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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