The TV Show That Holds a Celebrity Time Machine

People can now find news about their favorite stars right on their phones—a huge change from the days when network TV only offered occasional celebrity interviews. Back in the 1970s, a host named Barbara Walters began doing star chats on prime‑time shows and some critics were shocked. The real turning point came in 1981 when a new daily program called “Entertainment Tonight” debuted. It was the first show to cover entertainment news every day and it used satellite technology so stations could air new episodes quickly.

Today that program is still on the air, now in its 45th season, and it reaches almost three million viewers each night. It also draws a billion YouTube views each month. What makes it stand out is its huge archive of footage—about 200,000 hours—recorded on sets, press junkets and red‑carpet events. The archive feels like a time machine that lets you see moments such as Jane Fonda doing an ‘80s aerobics workout, Michael Jackson shooting the “Beat It” video, or a young Leonardo DiCaprio being interviewed on an old sitcom set.

One of the most memorable clips in the vault shows William Shatner riding on a whale’s back at Marine World to promote an endangered species act. The show has kept every episode it produced, unlike many old talk shows that erased tapes to save money. This foresight has turned the archive into a valuable resource for news stories, tribute specials and even paid content on streaming services. The show’s co‑hosts say the archive is a news organization, not just entertainment fluff.

In recent months “Entertainment Tonight” has started digitizing all its episodes, moving the physical tapes from a storage site in Burbank to a new facility in New Jersey. The goal is to preserve the footage and make it easier for people to find old segments, which before required a production assistant to search through stacks of cassettes. Once digital, the material could be shared more widely online for fans who want to dig deep into celebrity history.