Subject: [removed] Digest V2001 #403
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 12/19/2001 9:03 AM

To: <[removed]@[removed];

    ------------------------------

                                The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                                  Volume 2001 : Issue 403
                             A Part of the [removed]!
                                     ISSN: 1533-9289

                                     Today's Topics:

      Best "Christmas Carol" / Recent "Chr  [ Wich2@[removed] ]
      RE: RADIO COMEDY ON BBC               [ "Owens Pomeroy" <opomeroy@[removed]; ]
      Re: Perry Como & Kraft                [ OTRChris@[removed] ]
      "Perry Como"                          [ "B. J. Watkins" <kinseyfan@hotmail. ]
      KMH on Decca Sound Quality            [ Roo61@[removed] (Randy Watts) ]
      Re: DVDs & MP3                        [ Richard Novak <rnovak@[removed]; ]
      BBC comedy favorite                   [ John Henley <jhenley@[removed] ]
      Kraft Music Hall retrospective        [ "Steven Lewis" <slewis5@[removed]; ]
      Lum and Abner mystery probably solve  [ "dick wamser" <snapp@[removed]; ]
      First singer on radio                 [ Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed] ]
      John Guedel died                      [ Michael Biel <mbiel@[removed]; ]
      Joel Grey (offspring)                 [ "Philip Chavin" <philchav@[removed] ]
      DVD/MP3 question                      [ Osborneam@[removed] ]
      Crisis                                [ "John edwards" <jcebigjohn41@hotmai ]
      helping Hal out                       [ "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; ]

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 09:36:01 -0500
    From: Wich2@[removed]
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject: Best "Christmas Carol" /  Recent "Christmas

    Carol"
    Approved: ctrn4eeWlc

>     From: "michael edwards" <medwards_47@[removed];

>     With all the talk recently about various versions of "A Christmas Carol"
>     floating about, I am wondering what list members think is the BEST version
>     of "A Christmas Carol"<

    As a REAL "Carol" fan, I'd agree that the '39 Campbell Playhouse is a true
    classic. Barrymore is in top form (I think he'd done it 4 times before?). The
    previous year's Welles' version, with Orson subbing for an ailing Lionel, is
    strange: a lesser script, and a weak performance by the lead.
    (By the way, Lionel did it for about another 15 years; once, his brother John
    filled in for him: if anyone has a copy of this, LEMME KNOW!).
    I've heard a few of Lionel's later productions, as well as an Edmund Gwenn,
    and a Ronald Colman; all were done in 30m., which just isn't enough time to
    really tell the story.
    There's also a 50's Olivier production which is [removed], if a little dry. And
    the early 30's show written of here recently, and variations (THE SIX
    SHOOTER,,et. al.), and MANY [removed]

    NOW: to those of you folks who may be in the listening range of WONW-AM,
    Defiance, Ohio, give a listen this Sun. Dec. 23, or Mon. (Christmas Eve) Dec.
    24, at 8pm.
    The "Restored, Remastered Special Edition" of my Quicksilver Radio Theater
    version will be on the air.
    It's a labor of love, produced here in NYC; very faithful to Dicken's
    original "Ghost Story of Christmas".
    Happy Holidays,
    Craig Wichman

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 09:36:38 -0500
    From: "Owens Pomeroy" <opomeroy@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: RE: RADIO COMEDY ON BBC

    First, letme personally welcome my good friend Sybil Jason tothe Digest.
    Sybil is a real pioneer in radio and films, having appearde on Lux Radio
    Theatre, James Melron Show, Jimmie Durante Show, among others.  She will be
    areal addition to this Digest, I am sure.
    * *********************************************************************

    S. Skase speakes of the excellent programs now being aired on BBC, Australia
    and Casnada.  Why is it that these three Countries are the only ones in the
    World that is still airing what we now have to call Old Time Radio? I know
    this has been discussed before - but where did we go wrong to let it slip
    away from us? (Some people said that tere was more money to be had in the US
    with the advent of Television)  UK, Australia and Canada have a large TV
    Industry the same as us, but unlike us, they still held on to their radio
    end of broadcaating.  All I can say is they must be doing something right to
    still give the people of those specific countries radio drama and comedy
    entertainment every day, seven days a week, and we are (or did) something
    wrong to let it fade.

    * *********************************************************************

    Finally, I want to wish all my friends on the Digest a very Happy, Holiday
    Season!
    * *********************************************************************
    Owens

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 09:38:07 -0500
    From: OTRChris@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: Re: Perry Como  & Kraft

    Harlan Stone  writes:

>     The "Archie Andrews Show"  moved to "Prime Time" Radio, Wednesday
>     Nights, as the summer replacement for Perry, sponsored by Kraft.
>     My NBC Contract covered that specific time slot."Archie" Kraft Sponsorship
>     was for a 13 week  period, Commencing June 8, 1949, and terminating August
>     31, 1949. The 1/2  hour Program to be aired at 8:30 PM [removed]

     That particular time slot Wednesdays on  NBC  8:30-9:00PM EST  was occupied
    by none other than  "THE GREAT GILDERSLEEVE".  The last Gildersleeve show of the
    1948-1949  season  was on 06-01-49 replaced  for the summer by Archie Andrews
    on 6-08-1949.  However, Gildersleeve appears to not have returned until
    09-21-1949.
    So what filled the time slot for those few weeks in September --who knows ?
    Perhaps Perry Como ?
     The Kraft Music Hall  was on Thursday  Nights from 9-10pm EST  on NBC with
    Al Jolson  . The Music hall was taken over by Nelson Eddie during the summer
    months of 1947, 1948 and  1949.

    Como's popularity skyrocketed in the late 1930s after he became the featured
    vocalist with the Ted Weems orchestra. When the Weems band broke up in the
    early 1940s, NBC offered him a contract to share star billing with singer Jo
    Stafford on the Chesterfield Supper Club, a radio show broadcast Mondays
    through Fridays. Como usually sang romantic ballads during each broadcast.
    When that show came to Friday night television in the late 1940s Como
    continued to be a featured vocalist, supported by the Mitchell Ayres
    Orchestra and the Fontane Sisters. A smorgasbord of comedy routines, dancing,
    and singing, the show gave him the opportunity to reveal a captivating
    personality.  The program was soon moved to a half-hour slot on Sundays,
    competing with Ed Sullivan's Toast of the Town.

    In 1950 Como signed with CBS, hosting his own program for five seasons. In
    1955 he went back to NBC, starring in the weekly Perry Como Show, later
    titled The Kraft Music Hall. He remained with NBC until 1963.

    -Chris

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 09:40:40 -0500
    From: "B. J. Watkins" <kinseyfan@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: "Perry Como"

    Hal Stone mentioned "Archie Andrews" replaced Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall
    in 1949 and wrote:

>     To back up my claim, I have, in my hot little hands, a two page "publicity"
>     photo spread from a Entertainment magazine of the period, that does a silly
>     layout about "Archie" dreaming about becoming a famous singing star and taking
>     lessons from Perry. In addition, I poured through my Show Biz memorabilia,...
>     and found my NBC Contract that covered that specific time slot. The terms
>     stated that the "Archie" Kraft Sponsorship was for a 13 week period,
>     Commencing June 8, 1949, and terminating August 31, 1949. The 1/2 hour
>     Program to be aired at 8:30 PM [removed] .

    There's only one thing wrong with this. I suspect instead of "Archie" taking
    lessons from "Perry", it was from "Peary".  Hal Peary to be exact, since
    that time slot was occupied the week before (June 1, 1949) by the last show
    of the season of "The Great Gildersleeve", sponsored by Kraft.

    Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.
    Barbara

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 09:41:13 -0500
    From: Roo61@[removed] (Randy Watts)
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: KMH on Decca Sound Quality

>     By the way, the sound quality of the broadcast recordings on these LPs are
>     phenomenal. They could have been recorded yesterday.

    A good example of how fine old radio program material can sound when
    transferred from the kind of first generation material Decca had access
    to for the Jolson-Kraft LPs.

    Randy

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 09:42:28 -0500
    From: Richard Novak <rnovak@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: Re: DVDs & MP3

    On Monday 17 December 2001 22:04, OldRadio Mailing Lists wrote:

>     Date: Mon, 17 Dec 2001 14:39:12 -0500
>     From: "Harry Machin, Jr." <harbev5@[removed];
>     To: <[removed]@[removed];
>     Subject: DVDs & MP3

>     Had I known more about the
>     MP3 recording methods, I would have done what one gentleman
>     said he did --- take my CDs to the store and find a machine
>     that played them.  Perhaps the dealers who sell OTR on MP3
>     should clearly state how their CDs are recorded, in order to
>     help the less knowledgeable (like me).

    As a general rule of thumb, any CD that has approximately 100 half-hour
    shows on it is almost assuredly encoded at 32/22.
    The real problem with some DVD and MP3 players not recognizing mp3 files is
    not so much the bit rate, but the sampling rate. The 32/22 example means that
    it was encoded at 22 Khz, or half the sampling rate of standard CD formats.

    The good news is that more manufacturers seem to understand that many
    consumers want to play mp3s that are not  "standard," and we are seeing more
    players now that can accommodate these formats. The new Philips Expanium
    AZ 1155 is a good example. But note that the AZ 1165 will only fast forward
    through 44K mp3s and not 22K mp3s, although it will still play them.
    [removed]

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 09:43:08 -0500
    From: John Henley <jhenley@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: BBC comedy favorite

    Though I somehow missed the original post,
    AandG4jc@[removed] was inquiring about BBC comedy shows.

    My listening experience with BBC comedy is decidedly limited,
    but from what I _have_ heard, I have a definite favorite:  the
    series of Jeeves&Wooster stories by [removed] Wodehouse, made I
    think in the sixties and starring Michael Hordern and Richard
    Briers.  These were rebroadcast by NPR Playhouse during the
    80s; I taped half that series, and I still listen to it each year.  (And
    have been on the lookout for the remaining titles ever since.)
    Hordern and Briers are, vocally, the perfect Jeeves & Wooster bar none,
    and they're supported by anonymous but ready-to-go-over-the-top
    character actors - some of whom I fancy I've seen (heard) in Inspector Morse
    mysteries and the like on PBS.  In any case, the Jeeves shows are
    both literate and very, very funny.
    --
    John Henley
    jhenley@[removed]

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 10:36:37 -0500
    From: "Steven Lewis" <slewis5@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject: Kraft Music Hall retrospective

    The NBC radio network broadcast an hour-long retrospective on Feb. 12, 1978,
    of the Kraft Music Hall. Included were many excerpts from the Kraft shows,
    including Paul Whiteman, the first host, Bing Crosby, the longest host,
    Nelson Eddy and its final host, Al Jolson. (Jolson was in negotiation with
    Crosby to become a regular on his recorded ("transcribed") Philco Radio Time
    in 1947 when Kraft knocked on his door with an offer he couldn't refuse.)
    The retrospective was emceed by Eddy Arnold and Ed Herlihy. The entire
    retrospective was released on CD in 1998 by Radio Meltdown under the title
    "The Kraft 75th anniversary Radio Special."

    Steven Lewis
    [removed]~crosby

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 12:57:43 -0500
    From: "dick wamser" <snapp@[removed];
    To: "otr" <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject: Lum and Abner mystery probably solved

    HI to all otr folk out there in cyberland.

    A few weeks back I asked about some Lum and Abner programs from August of
    1935 sponsored by Horlicks.  I wondered why the organ interlude was all
    there was; no comercials.

    After listening very closely, I think that the music was added to mask the
    fact that either the original Horlicks spots were not there, or were omitted
    as they were rather repetitious.  The organ track is clean.  When Carlton
    Brickert announces and when the program begins, there is some recording
    scratch.  I'll take this as the answer to the puzzle; not because I figured
    it out, but because I can't come up with anything more sensible at present.

    Another question?  Can anyone tell me more about Carlton Brickert?  sounds
    to me like a genuine Santa Clause type; jollly and plump.  Did he have any
    other career beside announcing for Lum and Abner?

    Yall have a nice day.  oK?

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 14:25:55 -0500
    From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];
    To: otr-net <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject: First singer on radio

       Bill Jaker wrote, qouting me --

> >      From Those Were The Days --

> >     1907 - Eugene H. Farrar became the first singer to broadcast on radio.

>     It wasn't Boy George, but it wasn't boy Eugene either.  The singer was
>     Madame Eugenia Ferrer, a very popular and notably female concert performer

      I seem to recall a woman being a early singer on an experimental
    station.  The name escapes me at the moment but she eventually had her
    own radio show from the mid-20s to the mid-30s and died around 1942.

     And Michael Biel also wrote --

>     Gene would have been about 50 weeks late to be considered to have been the
>     first singer to broadcast on radio.  There were some songs sung--both live
>     and recorded--during Reginald Fessenden's two broadcasts on Christmas Eve
>     and New Year's Eve 1906.

      The date of 1906 rings a bell.  But I seem to recall, forget his name,
    saying "this is so-and-so and now so-and-so will sing" and someone else
    played the violin, which struck many telegraphers who happened to hear
    voices come out the air while they are transmitting and recieving
    wireless messages to and from Europe.
      Joe (whose back up files are as lost in a jumble as Hal's <g>)

    --
    Visit my home page:
    [removed]~[removed]

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 17:59:12 -0500
    From: Michael Biel <mbiel@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: John Guedel died

    Here's a Reuters obit for John Guedel, producer of "People Are Funny"
    and "You Bet Your Life".
    [removed]

    Michael Biel  mbiel@[removed]

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 17:59:48 -0500
    From: "Philip Chavin" <philchav@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: Joel Grey (offspring)

        Poster Jay R. wasn't sure if Joel Grey (singer, Oscar-winning actor,
    etc.) is the son of Mickey Katz (comic singer, musician, etc.).
        Response: Yes, he is.
        Tip:  Go to [removed], type in: Joel Grey Mickey Katz; search;
    several links/much info on Joel and Mickey.
       -- Phil C.

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 18:39:49 -0500
    From: Osborneam@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: DVD/MP3 question

    My husband wants me to ask the experts on this list a question.

    He is wondering if there is any DVD player which plays mp3 files
    and also can display jpgs onscreen?

    It would be terrific to be able to give family members CDs containing
    both audio files AND family photos.

    Anyone know?

    I also remember Dr. Biel discussing the 3 different models of
    APEX DVD [removed] anyone save that?  I can't find it and I'd like
    to know which is which!

    Thanks in advance.
    Arlene Osborne

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 18:41:49 -0500
    From: "John edwards" <jcebigjohn41@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject: Crisis

    I'm interested in a series call CRISIS. This series was from the mid 1970s
    and apparently most were done by Jack French.  I have some in my collection
    but for some reason thought the series only ran 40 or 50 shows.  I found out
    it ran some 153 episodes with all but one available.  My question is does
    anyone have the majority of the shows? I would like to get more as I now
    find (after finally listening to them) that it was a great series. I'm
    behind the times and only have reel to reel & cassettes.  Another quick
    question does anyone remember a series called THE HALL OF FANTASY? In a log
    it looks like the show was on a couple of times briefly before 1953 (I have
    several episodes from 1953).  Did it originate in Chicago? Did it only run
    the 1 year?  It was a good [removed] especially liked the opening of the
    show.
        On Real Crime dramas
       I liked THE LINE UP & TRUE DETECTIVE [removed] I'm not sure if
    they were based on actual crimes.  I thought they were.

    ------------------------------

    Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2001 23:13:37 -0500
    From: "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject: helping Hal out

    I wanted to help Hal out, thus I dug out my Great Gildersleive collection
    out because I know it was sponsored by Kraft on Wednesday night, and I
    notice the last show for the 1949 season was on 6-1-49 which was on a
    Wednesday and if Hal started on 6-8-49 maybe he replace the Great
    Gildersleive rather than Perry.  I also remember that Kraft use to like to
    mention there other shows which was the Bing,s in the earlier 1940s, but I
    don't member them ever mentioning Perry.

    Marry Christmas,

    Walden

    --------------------------------
    End of [removed] Digest V2001 Issue #403
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