Fight Back! with David Horowitz
| Fight Back! with David Horowitz | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | California Buyline (1976-1977), Consumer Buyline (1977-1980) |
| Genre | Consumer Information |
| Created by | David Horowitz |
| Developed by | David Horowitz |
| Directed by | Glen Swanson |
| Presented by | David Horowitz |
| Opening theme | "Fight Back! Theme", sung by Steve Dunn (September 1985 - June 1992) |
| Ending theme | "Fight Back! Theme", sung by Steve Dunn (September 1985 - June 1992) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 16 |
| No. of episodes | 582 (including California/Consumer Buyline) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | David Horowitz |
| Producer(s) | Lloyd Thaxton, Merrill M. Mazuer (Season 1) |
| Location(s) | Los Angeles, California |
| Editor(s) | Steve Purcell, Rich Thorne |
| Camera setup | Bob Betzner |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Consuming Media, LTD. |
| Distributor | Group W |
| Release | |
| Original network | Syndicated |
| Original release | September 20, 1976 for California/Consumer Buyline; February 11, 1980 for Fight Back! (pilot episode) – 1992 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Consumer Buyline |
| Followed by | Money Tonight (special news segments aired from 1994-1995) |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Fight Back! with David Horowitz is a weekly consumer advocate show that ran from 1976-1992. The show, hosted by David Horowitz, attempted to inform consumers about corporations and other big businesses whose products were of poor quality. The format of the show allowed for some humorous segments, such as allowing people to send in photos of unintentionally funny signs (similar to Jay Leno's Headlines). In 1987 the show was awarded best public affairs series for a network station and Horowitz also got the Emmy in the host/moderator category.
Fight Back! made its television debut in September 1976. When the show initially premiered it was shown locally on KNBC television in Los Angeles. At its inception, the show was called California Buyline. This weekly show was one of the first consumer information shows to be taped in front of a live studio audience. Topics on California Buyline ranged from sneaky product labels to money saving tips and ideas.
In mid 1977, California Buyline changed its name to Consumer Buyline, and was nationally syndicated as of January 1978 through NBC O&O stations such as WNBC-TV (New York). Consumer Buyline continued to run until August 1980.
In February 1980, the pilot episode of Fight Back! With David Horowitz was broadcast. As explained in a news article, "Fight Back!" was the same show as Consumer Buyline, but with a "larger budget". The pilot episode featured a segment shot in North Carolina, as well as a commercial challenge of a Volkswagen Rabbit. "Fight Back!" formally replaced "Consumer Buyline" in September 1980.
As before with Consumer Buyline, "Fight Back!" was initially syndicated by Group W Productions, and aired through NBC O&O stations as well as some independent television stations. For the 1984-1985 season, distribution moved from Group W Productions to Paramount Television & King Features Entertainment. As a result, "Fight Back!" expanded into even more markets, and became an instant weekend favorite.
Fight Back! was unusual in that it blended hard-hitting journalism with humor. Two of the most popular segments on this show were the "Fight Back! Commercial Challenge" and the "Horror File".
The "Commercial Challenge" first appeared on Consumer Buyline on October 10, 1977. The challenge was that of an Imperial Margarine commercial, which stated that people couldn't tell the difference between Imperial margarine and butter. Horowitz went to an LA supermarket, and had 11 people try crackers with each product on it, to see who could tell the difference. In the end, all 11 people picked the butter over Imperial margarine. The following week was a taste test between Coca-Cola and Pepsi (more people did pick Pepsi over Coke). In the 15th anniversary special, it is mistakenly reported that the first commercial challenge aired in December 1977, where David Horowitz decided to challenge a commercial for a Timex watch. Per the commercial, former Timex pitchman John Cameron Swayze strapped a Timex watch to an outboard motor, and raced the motor through a tank of water. At the end of the commercial, the watch was still ticking. Horowitz performed this challenge with two other watches (a Seiko and a Citizen) in front of his live studio audience. All three watches passed the test (despite the Seiko losing its band, prompting Horowitz to exclaim, "We've lost one watch!! The Seiko is in the tank!!"). The Commercial Challenge proved to be so popular, that one particular episode of "Fight Back!" was devoted to nothing but commercial challenges (title of show: "30 challenges in 30 minutes").
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