TODAY SHOW 1979 - SUPERTRAIN on NBC

Excerpted from an NBC Today Show, originally broadcast February 17, 1979 hyping up the new NBC show "Supertrain", one of the more infamous failures on network television. See Jane Pauley, young Tom Brokaw, and Gene Shalit introduce a filmed package (remember those?) by Jack Perkins at the MGM lot where Supertrain was filmed. Looks like the designing of a 1980's Walt Disney World Epcot ride. Check out those lights!

Supertrain was produced by Dan Curtis Productions, and was euphemistically referred to as "Love Boat with the action of Fantasy Island on a wide high-speed train".

The Jack Perkins package also has classic 'raw' dailies clips of the show (no music or final foley work). See Don Meredith yell "Stop the train! Somebody stop the train!!!" and the classic Keenan Wynn exclaiming, "Red Line it!"

This classic NBC Today show clip also includes the Show Open, Network Promos, and Show Ending.

Also see the original commercials and the weather report on separate YouTube clips:

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• SUPERTRAIN
• TODAY
• SHOW
• NBC
• 1979
• 1970s
• CLASSIC
• NEWS
• TELEVISION
• TV
• VINTAGE
• RETRO
• HIGH
• SPEED
• RAIL
• BULLET
• TRAIN
• DOCUMENTARY
• MGM
• STUDIOS
• JACK
• PERKINS
• TOM
• BROKAW
• JANE
• PAULEY
• GENE
• SHALIT
• DAN
• CURTIS
• PRODUCTIONS

[garrisonskunk]

Supertrain aside, its remarkable how relaxed and lowkey the Today Show is compared with the 'thousand bits of info a second' formats of modern day shows.

[johnnysama]

The theme song to Today during this era reminds me of Mister Rogers Neighborhood....

[nakamichiguy]

I really miss that low tech, laid back style of television. No, not crap like 'Supertrain', but news and sports production of the era. Wonderful clip, thanks for posting! 

[goastsighting]

@goastsighting Seriously, that comment wasn't spam. I really think Actor Sean Connery would make a good band name.

[DREWtubeStreet]

@bmasters1981 I really love that copyright. And I'm 17. But it's 2011 so...

[mrgb46]

You can buy SUPERTRAIN at mod cinema dot com....

[jshalom65]

I remember fondly the endless jokes by Johnny Carson about "Supertrain","Here's Boomer",and "Manimal"

[DesiluTrek]

There's a subtle degree of incredulousness among everyone on "Today" that they had to shill for this crap called "Supertrain" that was set to debut on their network, and that millions of dollars was spent on it. For basically a bad ripoff of Love Boat set on a train.

If nothing else, anyone who put up with that debut was rewarded with a Jack Klugman "Quincy" afterward.

[DesiluTrek]

Jack Perkins had a great laconic style, kind of like NBC's Charles Kuralt.