MISSING THE FLIGHT
By Andrew Williams


Even with the ever-increasing expansion of television technology and the
number and variety of channels available to the eyes and ears of America,
it can still be needle-in-a-haystack time when it comes to finding strange
videos on the Tube. Where, for instance, can one viddy reruns of Captain
Beefheart and William S. Burroughs on Saturday Night Live? Or the
legendary malcontent/televangelist/raconteur/ranter Dr. Gene Scott? Well,
pardners, there used to be a program that catered exclusively to us
beautiful mutants. Its most appropriate moniker: NIGHT FLIGHT.

Thumbnail history sketch: NIGHT FLIGHT (henceforth NF) took off in 1983 on
the USA Network. In the late 1980's, USA began syndicating NF to broadcast
channels. This lasted until 1993, when NF was grounded due to pilot
incompetence. For a decade, it was an insomniac's delight, a video orgasm
of surrealism for strange rangers all across the USA.

I remember my first exposure to the Flight. It was the mid-1980's, and bad
taste--then as now--dominated the airwaves. I was at a college friend's
party, juicing and toking, when the now-dear-to-me logo came on the
cathode screen, followed by a vast cavalcade of strangevid. "What
wonderful madness is this?" I wondered to myself (though not in those
exact words). "'Tis either catastrophic miracle or miraculous
catastrophe!" Due to lack of funds, it wasn't until 1989 that I was able
to sign up for cable and envisage NF once more.

If you prefer roaming through the aisles of Northern Virginia's Video
Vault to a visit to Blockbuster, then NF was probably one of your sources
in the 1980's and 1990's for outre video. Short films, classic 'toons,
videos by famous and novice filmmakers were served up with heaping doses
of aud/vid montages edited by NF's crackerjack staff, interspersed with
interview of the coolest bands on the planet (e.g., Living Colour, Sisters
of Mercy).

The treasure-trove of audio and video arcana available on NF was
breathtaking. Ever wanted to see Robert Rodriguez's student film
"Bedhead?" NF ran it. Curious about the Church of the SubGenius and its
Prophet/Savior, J.R. "Bob" Dobbs? NF broadcast the infamous "ARISE" video
in discrete segments for easier digestification under the title "Love That
'Bob'." Heard about animation genius Mike Jittlow's ambitious short film
"Wizard of Speed and Time" but could never find it? NF, again. And how
about an early animated short by Bruno Bozzetto (ALLEGRO NON TROPPO)? Yup,
youguessedit.

And then, the seemingly inevitable...

All this weirdness was apparently "more fun than humans should be allowed
to have," in David Letterman's apt phrase. In 1992, NF underwent a
catastrophic format change--a video prefrontal lobotomy. The sexy
voice-over narrator was replaced by--well, let's be as kind as possible;
I've forgotten his name anyway--an on-screen host. The short films were
thrown out to make way for more music videos, which themselves became
increasing pedestrian. No surprise, then, but much sadness, that 1993
marked NF's last gasp. Once again, there were too few Johnsons and too
many shits.

Clearly NF survives in the minds, hearts and videotape collections of its
hardcore fans. A routine search on Google will turn up many sites
fannishly devoted to the late lamented NF. But that is not enough. We
want--no, we demand--a Channel of the Weird, a video home on the strange
where one can watch Luis Bunuel's "L'Age d'Or" back-to-back with a classic
episode of MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000. We need, yet again, classic early
Letterman with over-the-top appearances by Terry Gilliam, Captain
Beefheart, Iggy Pop, Jonathan Winters, and Robin Williams. It's way past
time that our market share be represented with a network of its own. And
the flagship program of that network must be--resurrected for the 21st
century--NIGHT FLIGHT.