Local TV, Inc. (LTV) in East Hampton has been awarded a $1500 grant from the Robert Lion Gardiner Foundation to support its Bill Fleming Project. The funds will be used to assist in digitally preserving 34 years of The East End Show which was hosted by Bill Fleming.
The East End Show was LTV’s longest running show. From 1985 until Fleming’s untimely death in 2018, the show was broadcast on Thursday evenings at 8 PM on LTV. His show captured life on the East End and proper preservation will ensure that it can be viewed and property archived for all time.
“Bill’s show was classic community television,” said Michael Clark, executive director at LTV. “The beauty of that is it truly shows what life was like during that period of time. His guests, the discussions and even the reading of local newspaper headings immediately brings you back to that time and what was on everyone’s mind. It’s an important piece of local history. Having the Gardiner Foundation recognize that it is wonderful and having them support it is event better.”
The project involved properly digitizing 965 shows. The goal is to have the project completed by February.