This Week in Baseball

Infobox Television
show_name = This Week in Baseball


caption =
show_name_2 = "TWIB"
genre = Family / News / Sport / Baseball / Kids / Non Fiction
creator = Joe Reichler
writer = Mark Durand
James Rogal
Jeff Scott
director =
creative_director =
developer = Major League Baseball Productions
Phoenix Communications Group, The
presenter = Mel Allen
Warner Fusselle
Ozzie Smith
Buzz Brainard
starring = Mel Allen
Warner Fusselle
Ozzie Smith
Buzz Brainard
Jennie Finch
voices =
narrated = Mel Allen
Warner Fusselle
Buzz Brainard
theme_music_composer = Mike Vickers
opentheme = "Jet Set"
endtheme = "Gathering Crowds"
composer = Matthew Cang
country = USA
language = English
num_seasons =
num_episodes =
list_episodes =
executive_producer = Larry Parker
Geoff Belinfante
co_exec = Jennifer Dee
producer =
supervising_producer = Michael Kostel
asst_producer =
co-producer =
editor = Tony Tocci
Michael Kostel
Marco Lagana
story_editor =
location =
cinematography = Savas Alatis
Richard Wilmot
camera =
runtime = 30 minutes (including commercials)
network = First-run syndication
FOX
picture_format =
audio_format =
first_run =
first_aired = April 1, 1977
last_aired =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
related = "Major League Baseball Game of the Week"
website = http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/video/twib/index.jsp
production_website =
imdb_id = 0075595
tv_com_id = 11582

"This Week in Baseball" is a weekly television program, originally designed to show highlights of the previous week's Major League Baseball action. [ [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2007-06-29-allen-twib-anniversary_N.htm This Week in Baseball, the groundbreaking precursor to SportsCenter that helped spawn a deluge of sports-highlight programs, gave Allen his rebirth. The announcer's October tones, which narrated TWIB, endeared him to a new youthful generation of baseball fans.] ]

"TWIB" (pronounced phonetically; the acronym is often familiarly used by viewers, and came to be used by the host also) debuted in by|1977. [ [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2007-06-29-allen-twib-anniversary_N.htm In 1977, when a group of young, mostly unknown writers and producers had the idea for this bold highlight program, they took a chance on Allen's voice for legitimacy.] ]

History

Genesis of the series

When Commissioner Bowie Kuhn first took office in by|1969, [ [http://curtsmith.mlblogs.com/archives/2007/12/bowie_kuhn.html In 1969, baseball had one network series: NBC's Game of the Week. Worse, pro football blanketed TV syndication. Kuhn craved a weekly half-hour show of highlight, lowlight, feature, and other fare.] ] the only network television series that Major League Baseball had was the Saturday afternoon "Game of the Week" on NBC. Meanwhile, the National Football League in sharp contrast, blanketed TV syndication with NFL Films produced programs like the "NFL Films Game of the Week". Kuhn craved a weekly half-hour show of highlights, lowlights, features, and other fare. So "This Week in Baseball" was, in a sense, meant to be baseball's answer to NFL Films.

End of the Mel Allen era

Veteran sportscaster Mel Allen [ [http://bioproj.sabr.org/bioproj.cfm?a=v&v=l&bid=760&pid=16892 Joe Reichler, a former sportswriter working in the commissioner's office, gave him the job.] ] hosted and narrated the show from its inception until his death [ [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/comment/sbcol11.htm Without Allen, 'TWIB' no longer meaningful] ] in by|1996. Warner Fusselle filled-in for Allen when needed, and Allen was succeeded for a time by former St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Ozzie Smith.

From Syndication to FOX

While "TWIB" was originally syndicated to various stations around the country, the FOX network relaunched the series in by|2000 (after a one year absence off of television). It returned as a pregame show for its Saturday afternoon Major League Baseball telecasts, replacing "In the Zone", which had a similar format to "NBA Inside Stuff" and was listed as part of the Fox Kids line-up.

During the heyday of "TWIB", the program would air on stations that also had television rights to major league franchises like WTBS in Atlanta or KTTV in Los Angeles. "TWIB" would also air on owned-and-operated NBC [ [http://curtsmith.mlblogs.com/archives/2005/07/allstar_game_st.html Then, in 1977, "This Week In Baseball" began on syndicated (later, NBC) TV -- ultimately, sport's highest-rated serial. One Saturday a sometime fan entered the living room. My mother could not have heard his crisp-voweled vent since 1964. "I can't believe it. Is that Mel Allen?"] ] stations as a prelude to the "Game of the Week". [ [http://beyondboxscores.blogspot.com/2005/01/twib-notes.html First, you watched TWIB, then the NBC Game of the Week, then played baseball until the sun went down.] ]

Format

The show also airs on regional sports networks around the country, on Rogers Sportsnet in Canada, and is also often played as part of the pre-game entertainment on the TV screens of major league stadiums. Buzz Brainard is the current host of "TWIB", while a current major league player is profiled each week.

Also, from by|2004-by|2005, segments of the show were hosted by U.S. fast-pitch softball sensation Jennie Finch.

In by|2007, "TWIB" was slated for 26 episodes running from April to the end of September, focusing on stories of various clubs and different baseball themes each week. The segment "Front Row Fan" features celebrities reminiscing about their favorite baseball memories. Guests have included Tom Hanks, Bernie Mac, Alyssa Milano and Kevin James.

Highlights of the past week's action are used less frequently, except for a closing highlight reel set to popular songs. The highlight reel is named "How 'Bout That?", in reference to Mel Allen's well-known catchphrase. Video is gathered from each of the 30 Clubs' Stadium Loggers, who compile highlights of each game and send them to MLB Productions in New York City.

The program also uses educational segments to help it qualify for E/I status in the United States.

Music

The opening theme music to "TWIB" is called "Jet Set" composed by Mike Vickers, a former member of the original Manfred Mann band. "Jet Set" was first used as the theme for the original 1974-75 version of the game show "Jackpot". It has also been used as introductory music for productions as company training films. When FOX brought "TWIB" back, a slightly revamped version of "Jet Set" is written.

The closing theme "Gathering Crowds", composed by Patrick J. O'Hara Scott, a pseudonym for the same Mike Vickers. It is typically played over a montage of baseball's greatest moments, building to a crescendo with a punctuated 3-note chord as the MLB logo slides into view. This tune, which replaced "Jet Set" as the theme of the 1974-75 "Jackpot", has also been known to be used to similar effect for montages and credits at the end of local TV newscasts and the like.

Additional uses of "Gathering Crowds"

*The music was also used by ABC News for their "ABC Evening News" sometime during the 1970s.
*In at least the late 1970s and early 1980s, KLCS, the TV station owned by the Los Angeles Unified School District, used the full version of this song (not a 30-second edit used by this show) during the station's sign-off.

Advertising

During the show's first season on FOX in by|2000, there was an advertising campaign that appeared every Friday in "USA Today". The ad featured a photo of a pair of eyes that belonged to the player hosting the show for that week's episode.

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0075595|name=This Week in Baseball
*Tv.com show|id=11582|title=This Week in Baseball
* [http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/video/twib/index.jsp Major League Baseball : Productions : "This Week in Baseball"]
* [http://www.tv.com/this-week-in-baseball/show/11582/summary.html TV.com Complete Episode Guide - "This Week in Baseball"]
* [http://www.80stvthemes.com/ra/121999/TWIB.ra 80stvthemes.com - "This Week in Baseball"]
* [http://www.jumptheshark.com/forum/week-baseball/1999 Jump The Shark - "This Week in Baseball"]