Fortunately, after the values of CBS and NBC stock depreciated greatly during the mid-sixties due to a rumor that televisions made by RCA (which owned NBC at the time) would explode when someone nearby said "pantyhose", IBS's profits soared, expanding the network all over the country. New studios were built and furnished with the latest in space-age technologies. RCA TK-41 cameras were bought by the dozens at great expense. The shows that today produce warm feelings of nostalgia such as "The Music Hour", "Jeannie Loves Barry", "Ring! Ring!", "Password Musical Chairs", "Star Trek" [prior to NBC], and "Betty's Kitchen" were the hits of the year. IBS was on top.

"Your Show Tonight", IBS's first late-night talk show, was launched in 1959 with host Jack Klugman, fresh off his hit film 12 Angry Men. Klugman left in 1976 to star in his crime drama "Quincy" and the position was devoid of a long-term host for two years. Many celebrities traded off hosting duties through that period, including Sonny & Cher, Jane Fonda, Rick Nelson, Natalie Wood, Tony Randall, Ed Wynn, Ed Sullivan (when his show ended), and a young Mark Hamill. Many believe the "Your Show" set the standard for all the talk shows to follow on IBS. There was no studio audience, the taping usually took two to three days to complete, and there were no celebrity guests. The show hinged on the host's ability to charm and entertain the home audience. In 1978, British stage actor Sir John Gielgud took over hosting duties and starred on the show during the most successful years IBS has seen. The "Your Show" went off the air when Sir Gielgud retired from television in 1982

IBS went off the air briefly in the mid-seventies when the main broadcast tower in the Verdugo Mountain Range was dismantled and stolen by a group of vandals who have also been convicted of creating crop circles and signs on the highway that say "If You Lived Here, You'd Be Home By Now". During the eighties IBS fell into a slump, routinely coming in last in ratings. Many have speculated to the reasons for this happening, though most agree that the shows on the network at the time were "God-awful". Roseanne Barr had a morning coffee klatch styled show in 1986. It was cancelled before its third episode.

Finally, in 1991, IBS aired a last-ditch attempt to resurrect their ratings. The show "Cary and Clark", based on the premise that Cary Grant, Clark Gable, Greta Garbo, and Megan Mullally are roommates living in modern-day Brooklyn, was an unmitigated success. It gave birth to a surge of interest in movies from the forties through the sixties. No teenage girl's locker could be found without a picture of Grant or Gable pasted on the door. Women adored them and men wanted to be them. It was an exciting time for the entire country.

Spencer Howard was hired in the late nineties to bring back the grandeur of IBS in its prime. "The Spencer Howard Show" began taping on September 14, 1998 and ratings soared after that. Though viewership has flagged in recent years (mostly due to outrageous stunts that ended up harming the performers) Howard remains adamant that you won't find a better talk show on television today. His idols David Letterman and Johnny Carson have declined to comment on the matter.

Shortly after, in 2001, "The Not Quite Late Enough Show" began telecasts. Running in the time slot after "The Spencer Howard Show", exuberant host Dirk Eisenstadt plays to the younger late night talk show crowd. His hip, edgy, and occasionally subversive humor attracts the key demographic. Some say he is the clear heir to the late night throne after Spencer's contract runs up.

And the rest, they say, is history.