The Nicest Kids in Town : American Bandstand, Rock 'n' Roll, and the Struggle for Civil Rights in 1950s Philadelphia

__American Bandstand,__ one of the most popular television shows ever, broadcast from Philadelphia in the late fifties, a time when that city had become a battleground for civil rights. Counter to host Dick Clark’s claims that he integrated __American Bandstand,__ this book reveals how the first national television program directed at teens discriminated against black youth during its early years and how black teens and civil rights advocates protested this discrimination. Matthew F. Delmont brings together major themes in American history—civil rights, rock and roll, television, and the emergence of a youth culture—as he tells how white families around __American Bandstand’s__ studio mobilized to maintain all-white neighborhoods and how local school officials reinforced segregation long after Brown vs. Board of Education. __The Nicest Kids in Town__ powerfully illustrates how national issues and history have their roots in local situations, and how nostalgic representations of the past, like the musical film __Hairspray,__ based on the __American Bandstand__ era, can work as impediments to progress in the present. American Bandstand, one of the most popular television shows ever, broadcast from Philadelphia in the late fifties, a time when that city had become a battleground for civil rights. Counter to host Dick Clark’s claims that he integrated American Bandstand, this book reveals how the first national television program directed at teens discriminated against black youth during its early years and how black teens and civil rights advocates protested this discrimination. Matthew F. Delmont brings together major themes in American history—civil rights, rock and roll, television, and the emergence of a youth culture—as he tells how white families around American Bandstand’s studio mobilized to maintain all-white neighborhoods and how local school officials reinforced segregation long after Brown vs. Board of Education. The Nicest Kids in Town powerfully illustrates how national issues and history have their roots in local situations, and how nostalgic representations of the past, like the musical film Hairspray, based on the American Bandstand era, can work as impediments to progress in the present. Contents Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Making Philadelphia Safe for “WFIL-adelphia” 2. They Shall Be Heard 3. The de Facto Dilemma 4. From Little Rock to Philadelphia 5. The Rise of Rock and Roll in Philadelphia 6. “They’ll Be Rockin’ on Bandstand, in Philadelphia, P.A.” 7. Remembering American Bandstand, Forgetting Segregation 8. Still Boppin’ on Bandstand Conclusion: Everybody Knows about American Bandstand Notes Index