A Celebration of the ‘Bandstand’ Beat

It’s got a good beat and you can dance to it--or at least you could in the good old days. “American Bandstand” was the first network television show devoted to rock ‘n’ roll, and its legacy will be feted Friday with “American Bandstand’s 50th ... A Celebration” on ABC at 8 p.m.

The show that gave initial national exposure to Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly and had memorable early-career visits by Madonna and Prince will provide plenty of vintage footage, and there are some quirky new performances as well, including an “all star” band with Jim Belushi, Jerry Springer, Leif Garrett and others backing Little Richard.

Performances probably more meaningful to pop fans will be by Stevie Wonder, Babyface, Alanis Morissette and Cher.

The most intriguing performer is Michael Jackson, and not just for the usual reasons. The self-styled King of Pop was a performance pawn of sorts in a recent feud between the Grammys and the American Music Awards, the latter the baby of “Bandstand’s” Dick Clark. Clark filed a lawsuit last year claiming that the Grammys leadership unfairly pressured Jackson to skip out on the rival American Music Awards.

Clark says the battle with the Grammys continues but adds that Jackson “has been a friend for years, since his childhood” and that his appearance on the “Bandstand” special is unrelated. While Clark is usually eager to outline his animus toward the Grammys, it was clear in an interview last week that the anniversary show was his focus of the moment. “This old girl is special to me,” he says. “A lot of history.”

The show began in 1952 in Philadelphia, and Clark, a young radio personality at the time, came on board in 1956 (the previous host was ousted after a driving-under-the-influence charge) and soon became a famous face among pop fans.

Any regrets through the years? Clark says he agreed to ax the show in late 1989 because it had become a sad shadow of itself. Now, though, the man with an ear for history wishes he had hung on a few months longer so the show would have aired through five decades. “Can you imagine that? I’ve been really sorry I didn’t think of that then.”