After Guy Lombardo's death in 1977, CBS and the Royal Canadians attempted to continue their New Year's Eve broadcasts from the Waldorf-Astoria for 1977–78. However, the effects of Lombardo's absence led to a decline in viewership, allowing "New Year's Rockin' Eve" to overtake the Royal Canadians in viewership in only its fifth year on-air. The threat of the new special also prompted CBS to drop the Royal Canadians entirely in 1979 in favor of a new special, "Happy New Year, America", which premiered for New Year's Eve 1979–80. With its recent success, Clark began hoping that "New Year's Rockin' Eve" would become a television tradition of its own, lamenting that "Lombardo would always win New York because of the Waldorf and 35 years of tradition, but we finally got it wrested." Clark's hopes soon became reality, as "New Year's Rockin' Eve" had displaced Guy Lombardo as the most popular and most-watched New Year's Eve special on American television in the years following.