POP WOW: A WEIRD AND WILD HISTORY OF SUPER BOWL HALFTIME SHOWS

Carol Channing, Up with People, Elvis Presto, and the Jacksons

Usually I drop the subscriber Wow on Fridays, but on Sunday before the Super Bowl started, my friend Duncan posted this on Facebook.

Now I don’t know about you, but the idea of Carol Channing performing at a Super Bowl actually melted my brain. Seriously, the clean up took forever.

If you don’t know Broadway legend Carol Channing, check this out.

Now imagine that happening at the Super Bowl at halftime.

It gets weirder and weirder from here. First, Channing sang “When the Saints Come Marching In” at Super Bowl IV, which took place in 1970 in New Orleans and was Mardi Gras-themed. (Super Bowl halftime shows used to have themes, like “America Thanks” and “Happiness Is” or “Disney Would Like You To Buy”, as well as salutes to things like Motown or Duke Ellington.)

In a 2016 interview Channing remembered the experience. She was in “Hello, Dolly!” at the time, and she speculates producer David Merrick saw the halftime show as a great promotional opportunity. She had almost no rehearsal. “It was like an opening night on Broadway, except we didn’t have much time to prepare for that first appearance. It felt a little like an after-thought.”

Imagine that in comparison to the level of production of Sunday night’s affair. Usher DANCED ON ROLLER SKATES, y’all.

So here’s where it gets weird…