History of American Bandstand

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October 7, 1952 - Bandstand began as a local Philadelphia television program hosted by Bob Horn.

August 5, 1957 - Dick Clark’s first episode aired on the ABC network on Monday, becoming one of a handful of local established programs to broadcast nationally.  The show ran from 3:00 to 4:30 PM Monday through Friday and became a hit for the network.

1970's - The white middle class culture moved away from rock ‘n’ roll dance music and psychedelic art rock became more popular. To counter this trend, American Bandstand relied heavily on disco which went well with much of the show presenting teenagers dancing.

September 5, 1987 -  American Bandstand taped its last episode.

 ** American Bandstand’s thirty years of success relied on its ability to adapt to changing musical trends while maintaining the same format developed in the 1950s.  Dick Clark led the longest running broadcast program aimed at mainstream youth to air on American network broadcast television.