On New Year’s Eve, millions of Americans will tune in to Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve, with host, Ryan Seacrest. But like Nannette says, all historical roads lead to Schuylkill County. This event fits that mold.
Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve traces its roots to a Philadelphia radio program called Bob Horn’s Bandstand, which later evolved into a television program that many of our older generation found popular in the 1960s and ’70s.
But, as hard as it is to be believed, American Bandstand and our New Year’s broadcast from Times Square, has its connections to Schuylkill County.
Born at Pine Grove in 1916, Donald Lloyd Horn dropped out of high school, moved to the Reading area and eventually worked his way into a job as a disc jockey at WRAW, one of the oldest radio stations in Pennsylvania. By the time folks heard him on the radio, he had changed his name to Bob Horn.
Not quite settled into the Reading radio scene, Horn moved to Camden, New Jersey, in 1939 and eventually worked his way into positions with WIP and WPEN in Philadelphia. After a brief stint in Los Angeles after the war, Horn and his family returned to Jersey to work with WFIL-radio where he premiered his own show named, Bob Horn’s Bandstand.
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The popular show transitioned from radio to television, where it debuted on Oct. 7, 1952. The popularity of the show caught on in Philadelphia and shortly thereafter in the Philly Metro region.
Bob Horn’s Bandstand aired for four years, when, his days with the program came to a screeching halt. A series of run-ins with the law forced WFIL to send Horn on an extended vacation in 1956. A drunk driving indictment and later, another indictment for other more explicit events, brought his career to an end in the Philadelphia area. Horn and his family moved to Houston in July of 1957.
In the meantime, Dick Clark took over as host of the local dance show, Bandstand in July of 1956. Shortly thereafter, American Bandstand landed national exposure on August 5, 1957. The show’s production moved to Los Angeles in 1964 and aired weekly until its cancellation in 1989. MTV and the evolution of viewing habits brought about the show’s demise. While Bandstand remained a popular fixture in pop culture, NBC debuted Dick Clark’s Rockin’ Eve in 1972 (1973 New Year). The show moved to ABC and after Clark’s passing, Ryan Seacrest picked up the baton in 2012.
What happened to Bob Horn? The unfortunate events of 1956 led to a clearing of “Morals Charges”, but he was found guilty of Drunk Driving. These events ended his career in Philly. In 1957, Horn joined KILT radio in Houston as a news, talk and music personality. In Houston, Horn changed his name to Bob Adams. Pine Grove’s Bob Horne suffered a heart attack while mowing his lawn in Houston during the summer of 1966 and passed away at the age of 50.
So, if you decide to watch Ryan Seacrest’s version of Dick Clark’s New Years Eve celebration, you can amaze your friends and family with recounting the unique ties that this popular cultural event has to Schuylkill County.
For more details about Bob Horn and the roots of American Bandstand, you may want to explore this website.
ABOUT MARK MAJOR: Mark is a local historian and retired educator who has co-authored several works on local history. Raised in Port Carbon, he has been involved in heritage promotion through the Schuylkill County Visitors Bureau and Historical Society. He completed his undergraduate work in History at Penn State University and his graduate work at Alvernia University, where he earned his teaching certification and Masters in Education. Mark spent a little more than eight years as an officer in the U.S. Army during the Cold War era, and has lived in Schuylkill County for most of his life. Mark lives in Pottsville with his wife, Nannette, and daughter, Skye.
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