'120 Minutes' and Matt Pinfield returning to MTV

Matt Pinfield

Credit: AP Photo

NEW YORK (AP) — One of MTV's iconic programs, the defunct "120 Minutes," is returning.

The network will announce Thursday that "120 Minutes" is coming back as a monthly show on MTV2 and as a weekly webcast, which has been dubbed "120 Seconds."

Matt Pinfield, the VJ most identified with the original show, is returning as host.

"People have been wanting for so long for the show to come back," says Pinfield. "I couldn't be more over the moon about it."

The original "120 Minutes" ran from 1986 to 2003, airing on MTV, and in its last years, on MTV2. The new incarnation will similarly include interviews, performances and music videos, along with increased fan interaction.

Amy Doyle, executive vice president of music and talent at MTV, says the network wanted a multi-screen showcase for emerging music and found there's still an affinity for "120 Minutes."

"Why create a whole new franchise when we have one that means something still?" Doyle says. "Instead, let's dust it off and modernize it."

The brief, online "120 Seconds" will premiere Friday on MTV Hive, a recently launched online music destination. The broadcast "120 Minutes" will premiere later this year, though Doyle says she expects that to be "sooner rather than later."

Much of the original appeal of "120 Minutes" had to do with its era of music, particularly the then-thriving alternative rock and metal scenes. As a host for four years, Pinfield distinguished himself as an earnest and thoroughly knowledgeable interviewer.

Since "120 Minutes," Pinfield, 44, has hosted a number of music programs, including VH1's "VSpot Top 20 Countdown" and HDNet's "Soundoff With Matt Pinfield." He currently hosts a show for New York radio station WRXP, which he will continue to do, shifting from mornings to afternoons.

He says "120 Minutes" will highlight "a very broad base of independent and alternative rock."

"There's more new bands and good music coming out than ever," says Pinfield. "There's so much to be found."

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