Thanks to my friend MJ over at EA, I found out about this, the latest in a string of craptastic maneuvers by the RIAA. I was floored. Because they got their greedy little hands on the new DVDs of the classic television show WKRP in Cincinnati, the DVDs have released with mostly generic music instead of the classic songs that were always central to the shows jokes and plot. Have I mentioned lately how much the RIAA sucks donkey nuts? No? Well they suck donkey nuts.
When told about the travesty that is the RIAA muddled version of WKRP in Cincinnati, the creator had this to say:
Wilson said he likes to think that he created a show with likable characters and funny scenes that can withstand any music alterations. Still, he confessed, “Every time we could do a joke with music, we sure did it — like [nerdy newscaster] Les Nessman jumping around to ‘Hot Blooded.’ ”
Told that that hilarious scene now featured a generic song instead of the Foreigner hit, Wilson said: “What? Aw — oh my, oh my, oh my, oh my, oh my. I didn’t know that. They told me they were going to keep a lot of the music.”
Changes made to the DVD include:
• The Ted Nugent rocker that DJ Dr. Johnny Fever (Howard Hesseman) plays when WKRP changes from an easy-listening format has been replaced by an unknown guitar-driven piece.
• A running gag in which the doorbell of high-maintenance secretary Jennifer Marlowe (St. Paul-born Loni Anderson) plays “Fly Me to the Moon” is gone now that the brief melody has been replaced.
• A conversation in which boss Mr. Carlson (Gordon Jump) and Johnny discuss the merits of Pink Floyd was cut along with the band’s song “Dogs.”
Basically, the RIAA ruined the songs that made the show great by replacing them with generic instrumentals and unknown music that has nothing to do with the show. Why? Because the creators of WKRP in Cincinnati couldn’t afford the steep RIAA price tag of over $50,000 per song when there were so many song clips in each episode. Write to Fox and complain if you want to, but with Fox obviously firmly in the RIAAs back pocket, I’m not sure how much good it will do to complain. I think we need to start speaking out with our wallets.
Buy used CDs, tapes and albums. Buy used DVDs. Don’t buy DVDs like this one at all when you know they’ve been altered. Buy only DRM free music from the new iTunes DRM free catalog or companies like eMusic (click here to get 25 free songs from eMusic). Speak in a language the RIAA can understand – the language of money. You can read the full article on the WKRP in Cincinnati DVD release debacle here.
Tags: RIAA Fox WKRP
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