FILE - In this March 17, 1971 file photo, Richard and Karen Carpenters of The Carpenters pose with their Grammy during the 13th annual 1970 Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. The brother-sister duo was named best new artist of the year, 1970, and also won as the best contemporary duo or group vocalists for "Close to You." In a new collection “Carpenters with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra,” Richard Carpenter gave new string arrangements to many of the duo’s classic recordings from the late 1960s through the early 1980s, including “Close to You” and “Superstar." (AP Photo, File)
Christina Zeiders is the Communications Specialist at WITF. She helps get the word out about all of WITF's programs, events and community conversations.
Associated Press
FILE - In this March 17, 1971 file photo, Richard and Karen Carpenters of The Carpenters pose with their Grammy during the 13th annual 1970 Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. The brother-sister duo was named best new artist of the year, 1970, and also won as the best contemporary duo or group vocalists for "Close to You." In a new collection “Carpenters with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra,” Richard Carpenter gave new string arrangements to many of the duo’s classic recordings from the late 1960s through the early 1980s, including “Close to You” and “Superstar." (AP Photo, File)
This music-filled documentary traces the Carpenters’ rise to the top of the charts and features their top hits, including (They Long to Be) Close to You, Top of the World, For All We Know, Superstar, Yesterday Once More, Rainy Days and Mondays and We’ve Only Just Begun.
Watch The Carpenters: Close to You on WITF TV on Saturday, December 3 at 6:30pm or Monday, December 5 at 9:30pm. You can also live-stream the special through the free PBS Video app by tapping the “Live TV” button in the top right corner of the screen.
The Carpenters were awarded 10 gold singles and 9 gold albums between 1970 and 1983, many achieving multi-platinum status. They won Grammy Awards as Best New Artist and Best Contemporary Vocal group in 1970 and for Album of the Year in 1971.
From 1970 to 1981, the Carpenters were on the Billboard charts consistently with 17 of their singles charting in the Pop Top 20, including three #1 songs and six songs at #2, in addition to 17 songs reaching #1 on the Easy Listening chart.
The Carpenters became the top American recording act of the 1970s and have sold over 100 million recordings worldwide.
The Carpenters: Close to You features interviews with Richard Carpenter in addition to the group’s musicians, friends, and colleagues – particularly those who helped them achieve stardom – including Herb Alpert, Paul Williams, Burt Bacharach, and Petula Clark.
The special also contains rare footage of Richard and Karen, including never-before-seen promotional films, concert performances, studio recording sessions, archival television appearances, and outtakes.
Watch The Carpenters: Close to You on WITF TV on Saturday, December 3 at 6:30pm or Monday, December 5 at 9:30pm. You can also live-stream the special through the free PBS Video app by tapping the “Live TV” button in the top right corner of the screen.
