AT40, April 1, 1978 (AT40 Goes to the Movies) [Part 1 of 2]

Let's travel back and take a look at the special American Top 40 episode for April 1, 1978  This episode contained no extras, no long distance dedications, no chart recaps, and no looks at other charts. Just Casey providing the background behind 40 songs and/or movies. Here's Casey's introduction:

Hello again and welcome to American Top 40 - a special edition of American Top 40! I'm Casey Kasem and what we have for you this week is our survey of the 40 biggest hit recordings of music from motion pictures: AT40 goes to the movies. We dug through the Billboard charts of the '60s and '70s to come up with the 40 biggest hit singles of songs written for, or introduced by, the movies. So settle back and enjoy them - the forty top hits from the flicks! Lights, camera, action!

The whole dang list looks suspect to me. I have no idea how they determined the line up and Casey never says how it was figured. So I've included the chart peak positions for each song to further confuse things for you. 😉

#40: "Live and Let Die" by Paul McCartney & Wings, from the 1973 movie of the same name. 12 weeks in the Top 40, including 3 weeks at #2.

#39: "Jean" by Oliver, from the 1969 film The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. 12 weeks in the Top 40, including 2 weeks at #2.

#38: "I Got a Name" by Jim Croce, from the 1973 film The Last American Hero. 13 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #10.

#37: "Town Without Pity" by Gene Pitney, from the 1961 movie of the same name. 10 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #13.

#36: "The Way We Were" by Gladys Knight & The Pips, a cover version of a song from 1973 movie of the same name. 12 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #11.

#35: "Where the Boys Are" by Connie Francis, from the 1960 movie of the same name. 12 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #4.

#34: "Can't Help Falling in Love" by Elvis Presley, from the 1961 film Blue Hawaii. 12 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #2.

#33: "Hang 'Em High" by Booker T. & The MGs, from the 1968 movie of the same name. 11 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #9.

#32: "Georgy Girl" by The Seekers, from the 1966 movie of the same name. 12 weeks in the Top 40, including 2 weeks at #2.

#31: "The Entertainer" by Marvin Hamlisch, from 1973 film The Sting. 12 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #3; the only Top 40 appearance for Hamlisch.

#30: "Ben" by Michael Jackson, from the 1972 movie of the same name. 11 weeks in the Top 40, including one week at #1.

#29: "Let's Do It Again" by The Staple Singers, from the 1975 movie of the same name. 12 weeks in the Top 40, including 1 week at #1.

#28: "The Morning After" by Maureen McGovern, from the 1972 film The Poseidon Adventure. 11 weeks in the Top 40, including 2 weeks at #1.

--end of hour one--

#27: "Theme from Shaft" by Isaac Hayes, from the 1971 movie Shaft. 12 weeks in the Top 40, including 2 weeks at #1.

#26: "Theme from Mahogany" by Diana Ross, from the 1975 movie Mahogany. 13 weeks in the Top 40, including 1 week at #1.

#25: "Return to Sender" by Elvis Presley, from the 1962 film Girls! Girls! Girls! 14 weeks in the Top 40, including 5 weeks at #2; Elvis' second appearance on this countdown (see #34).

#24: "A Hard Day's Night" by The Beatles, from 1964 movie of the same name. 12 weeks in the Top 40, including 2 weeks at #1.

#23: "Love Theme from Romeo and Juliet" by Henry Mancini, from 1968 film Romeo and Juliet. 12 weeks in the Top 40, including 2 weeks at #1.

#22: "Born Free" by Roger Williams, from the 1966 movie of the same name. 14 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #7.

#21: "Theme from The Apartment" by Ferrante & Teicher, from the 1960 film The Apartment. 15 weeks in the Top 40, peaking at #10.

More to come...