March 22, 1958 Little Theater, New York City, NY

The Dick Clark Saturday Night Show

Saturday, March 22, 1958

In late 1957, ABC wanted to capitalize on the success of the afternoon American Bandstand by presenting Dick Clark in prime time on Monday nights. Clark recounts in his book, Rock, Roll & Remember, that he hated the show and it was quickly canceled. It did not take long for ABC to return Clark to prime time, this time on Saturday nights. Clark was much happier with this show as he had total control of the production and booking of the artists. The show originated from the Little Theater in New York City. The venue was aptly named as it held only 498 seats. The first show aired on Saturday, February 15, 1958; it had no sponsor until the third week when Beech-Nut Gum came on board. Sam appeared on the show’s sixth week. There apparently is no existing footage of this performance, so it is only an educated guess that Sam would have performed “Win Your Love For Me” and “Lonely Island,” the double sided single which hit the Top Ten just two weeks later (#7 R&B - 04/07/58). According to TV Guide, in addition to Sam, Clark’s guests on this show were singers Betty Johnson, Billy Williams, The Diamonds, and Bill Haley and the Comets.