Hootenanny

This musical variety show, first aired at the height of the pop-folk boom, had one very big strike against it from the start. Due to network or sponsor pressure (or possibly both), it blacklisted several performers outright, most notably Pete Seeger and The Weavers, because of their political views. This led to a boycott of the program by several top names (Peter Paul & Mary, The Kingston Trio, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, among many others). However, there were enough big names featured during the program's first season (The Limeliters, Bud and Travis, The Chad Mitchell Trio, Dick Smothers, Tom Smothers) to make the show a huge success during its first season. During the 1963 summer hiatus the producers approached Seeger again, saying he could appear on the show if he would sign a loyalty oath. Seeger angrily refused, and when word got out regarding this, many of the other big names who had appeared on the show in the past quickly joined the boycott. Judy Collins appeared on the program in 1964, but only after she agreed to alter the lyrics to one of her songs. She did, but she didn't like it, and afterwards joined the boycott. All the controversy, plus the unprecedented success of the "British Invasion" in early 1964, ended in "Hootenanny" being canceled after a two-season run.

Featured in My Darling Vivian (2020)