I Want My MTV—40 Years of Music Television

It’s impossible to overstate the impact MTV had when the channel debuted 40 years ago. Everything changed when the first video aired. In this list we hear from the originators, in their own words, about what it was like to be there.

It’s impossible to overstate the impact MTV had when the channel debuted 40 years ago. ... more

Curated byTanya Edwards, Hark Contributor

6 CLIPS20 MINS

Clip 1 of 6

MTV Was the Early 80s Version of a Start-up

Former MTV CEOs Tom Freston and Bob Pittman talk about the origins of the network and how they felt like they were working on “the early 80s version of a start-up,” offering a peek behind the scenes of where it all started.

MTV Was the Early 80s Version of a Start-up

Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing with Bob Pittman

3 MINS

Clip 2 of 6

Mark Goodman on Leaving a Top Radio Station for MTV

One of the original MTV VJs, Mark Goodman, says that he hating his radio DJ job when he got the call to go to a very seedy audition for the network.

Mark Goodman on Leaving a Top Radio Station for MTV

Talk Is Jericho

2 MINS

Clip 3 of 6

Martha Quinn’s Internship Got Her a Gig as a VJ

On the pod Rock Solid with Pat Francis, Martha Quinn tells the tale of not understanding what a VJ was before her audition, how interning in radio led her to 1980s TV stardom.

Martha Quinn’s Internship Got Her a Gig as a VJ

Rock Solid

3 MINS

Clip 4 of 6

"The Beauty & Wonder of Early MTV"

Former MTV Networks head Judy McGrath ruminates about one of the most incredible taglines in television: I want my MTV! A powerful phrase that was supposed to drive new subscriptions to the network, and ended up sparking a cultural revolution.

Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing with Bob Pittman

4 MINS

Clip 5 of 6

Is Nina Blackwood the Only Person to Turn Down John Taylor of Duran Duran?

In a candid conversation, VJ Nina Blackwood gives some behind the scenes scoop on working with rock stars in the early days of MTV.

Is Nina Blackwood the Only Person to Turn Down John Taylor of Duran Duran?

Stuck in the '80s Podcast

4 MINS

Clip 6 of 6

MTV’s Incredible Reach & Impact

Kids growing up in small towns and rural areas around the U.S. were exposed to things like fashion and androgyny via the small screen, journalist Rob Tannenbaum explains, and it changed their lives for the better.

Make Us A Mixtape Podcast

1 MIN

Curated byTanya Edwards

6 CLIPS20 MINS

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I Want My MTV—40 Years of Music Television

MTV Was the Early 80s Version of a Start-up

Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing with Bob Pittman

Mark Goodman on Leaving a Top Radio Station for MTV

Talk Is Jericho

Martha Quinn’s Internship Got Her a Gig as a VJ

Rock Solid

"The Beauty & Wonder of Early MTV"

Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing with Bob Pittman

Is Nina Blackwood the Only Person to Turn Down John Taylor of Duran Duran?

Stuck in the '80s Podcast

MTV’s Incredible Reach & Impact

Make Us A Mixtape Podcast

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