I want my, I want my, I want my VJV.
August 14, 2009 10:32 AM Subscribe
Central Massachusetts, sometime in early 1985. You were cranking your way through the
UHF dial when you caught a glimpse of
Rock and Roll. It was
V66, and you were hooked.
On February 12, 1985,
WVJV-TV - V66 - was born in Natick, Massachusetts. A local, over-the-air competitor to MTV, V66 was a dream come true for the cable-less masses. V66 was fairly chaotic - playing local artists (
The Fools,
Lizzie Bordon and the Axes, and
Extreme), next to more alternative bands (
the Cure,
the Smiths,
the Cult, and
Kate Bush (interesting prehistoric ARPA post of some sort from a grateful fan in 1986!)), while also producing local versions of national songs (like a debasement of the worst song ever recorded,
We Built this City, with Boston replacing SF, and an edited
Money For Nothing with the
V66 logo replacing MTV), as well as videos of local interest (This
excrutiating alternative to the
Superbowl Shuffle.
Clearly the v66 candle burned twice as bright because by late 1986 it was all over - replaced by Home Shopping. So, until the
documentary is finished, all we can do is watch these
station ID outtakes starring Aerosmith, Cheech and Chong, and AC/DC (warning - dumbasses))
The day the Challenger exploded I came home from school and was watching V66 when some caller (yep, they took callers) made a joke about the astronauts forgetting to turn off the "no smoking" sign. That was an awkward moment for the VJ, whose name I can no longer remember.
They broadcast out of the Good and Plenty building, which was new at the time and notable for its pink and gray color scheme.
posted by bondcliff at 10:40 AM on August 14, 2009