Subject: [removed] Digest V2004 #144
From: <[removed]@[removed]>
Date: 4/24/2004 4:58 PM

To: <[removed]@[removed];

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

                                The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                                  Volume 2004 : Issue 144
                             A Part of the [removed]!
                                 [removed]
                                     ISSN: 1533-9289

                                     Today's Topics:

      Palomar 'scope, Lowell Thomas         [ Lee Munsick <leemunsick@[removed] ]
      Sergeant Tattaglia                    [ "John Eccles, Jr." <jeccles@earthli ]
      re: The Sergeant & Danny              [ Gerald Wright <gdwright@[removed] ]
      Art and friends                       [ "Mark Kinsler" <kinsler33@[removed] ]
      Sgt Tartaglia                         [ William Brooks <webiii@[removed]; ]
      4-25 births/deaths                    [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
      Texaco's Sponsorship of Met Opera En  [ Mark J Cuccia <mcuccia@[removed]; ]

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

    Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 21:15:45 -0400
    From: Lee Munsick <leemunsick@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Palomar 'scope, Lowell Thomas

    Mark Kinsler wrote about heavy coverage by Lowell Thomas of the 200" Hale
    telescope mirror and its travails.

    I wouldn't put too much faith in the admittedly funny line about people who
    heard Lowell Thomas while waiting for "that other program".  Thomas was a
    huge success on the lecture circuit, through numerous fascinating books, on
    film and newsreels, and on the radio, for many, many years.  I gather from
    the way he writes that Mr. Kinsler is too young to have heard Lowell Thomas.
    That's unfortunate.  I listened for decades, and enjoyed it enormously, even
    on the several occasions when some funny news story would completely break up
    the veteran newscaster.

    There is a wonderful book which is titled, if I recall correctly, "Those
    Radio Commentators".  It describes about a dozen major commentators of the
    30s 40s and 50s, and contains two of those paper-thin black plastic,
    double-sided phonograph recordings (at 33-1/3 RPM) which contain brief snaps
    of all the major commentators with sizeable sections in the book.  Lowell
    Thomas is the last major writeup in the book and inclusion on the records.
    Get it from your library's Inter-Library Loan system, if they don't have it
    on the shelf.  Funny, informative, eye-opening, and definitely well
    worthwhile.

    Some years back, Newsweek or Time magazine, I think it was, carried a story
    about "survival" arrangements for our national government, during the dark
    days of atomic-war threatening Cold War.  Shades of the news these past
    couple of weeks, about the neo-executive branch that President Eisenhower set
    up with major non-government people in case of atomic attack, the most well
    known name (to us, at least) of which was Frank Stanton of CBS.

    The Time article talked about the several emergency shelters set up in a ring
    some miles away from Washington, where the Executive, Judiciary and Congress
    would flee to underground bunkers, to conduct the business of the American.
    One of them was opened a half-century later for visitation by us common folk.
    It's underneath a high-priced vacation spa, the gorgeous Greenbrier in White
    Sulphur Springs in the mountains of West Virginia, not far from where I now
    live.  It's owned by the CSX Corporation, which if memory serves is the
    remains of the old Chessie (Chesapeake Railroad system).

    Anyway, part of the Time story told that special recordings (and probably
    films for TV use) were made by President Eisenhower and several
    highly-trusted Americans, which would be aired in case of an enemy attack.
    Obviously, the point was to help calm the people and avoid panic, while the
    real executives and those on the recordings would be whisked off to remote
    transmitters.  Back then, science apparently did not know (or did not share
    with us) what we have since been told, that atomic attacks would interfere
    with any kind of electrical current and transfer, including broadcasts, auto
    ignition systems, etc.  Sort of like in the film "The Day the Earth Stood
    Still", except that ambulances and aircraft and other emergency situations
    would not be spared.  The atomic and hydrogen bombs would not have been as
    Gort and Klaatu.  All right, everyone, repeat after me:
    "Klaatu Mirada Nikto!"

    The other voices beside the President included Arthur Godfrey, Edward R.
    Murrow, and Lowell Thomas.  The idea was that these were the voices which
    commanded the most confidence and belief among the American public, and would
    be instantly recognizeable and the hardest for some enemy (read: USSR) to
    somehow duplicate successfully and believably over a long period of time.
    This would involve the use of the ConElRad system (from
    CONtrolofELectromagneticRADiation, discussed here a number of times before,
    the successor to which is today's EBS (Emergency Broadcast System).  For more
    information, go to
    [removed]
    You will find more about Mr. Godfrey's involvement there as well.

    Despite constant requests for confirmation from the named writer of the
    article and from the magazine, I and others have never received any response,
    except that the magazine said it stood by its story.  The reporter weakly
    said that he'd forgotten his source.

    I spent hours with Frank Stanton some years back, and we talked about these
    revelations.  I said he must have been proud that these "most trusted voices"
    were top CBS personalities.  He smiled.  Looking at the recent news based on
    newly revealed material in the hands of the Eisenhower Library, I wish I had
    pursued the topic [removed] he would have let slip about Ike asking
    "Doc Stanton" to head up an ad hoc organization to keep the nation's media
    and communications systems going.  Sigh.

    Other "inside information" long ago revealed by Eisenhower biographers and
    anecdotists revealed that privately, the President thought all the Civil
    Defense and government preparations in case of an atomic war, were
    ridiculous, in Ike's opinion.  He felt (I think quite realistically) that
    were we to really get into an atomic holocaust, we'd not be worrying about
    how to convene congress or save top people in Washington, but that we'd find
    ourselves back in the dark ages or worse, the caveman era.  Base survival
    problems.

    Fortunately, many things combined to prevent all that.  The Soviet leaders
    were avid and dedicated, but were not suicidal.  Curtis Lemay built up SAC in
    open view of our people and our adversaries in Moscow, just as they did with
    their counterpart,  keeping us informed of their ability to wipe us out just
    as we would them.

    It was a very scary time, but the strategic planning worked, and we got
    through the cold war in that period until Ronald Reagan threatened the
    Russkies with an increase in the arms race with which they could not possibly
    keep pace.  This ran into "glasnost", Gorbachev, and general upheaval among
    the Soviet people.  Remember Mr. Reagan's challenge, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear
    down this wall!"

    Unfortunately, Lowell Thomas had passed away in 1976, so we did not hear
    about all of this from his "most trusted" voice, but rather from a successor
    "most trusted", Walter Cronkite.  Interesting that he is now quoted as ruing
    the day he retired.  Thomas, who like Cronkite initially said he was going to
    enjoy retirement, later said much the same thing.

    Like a lot of retirees who realize after the fact that they wish they'd never
    done any such thing!  Does that strike a chord with anyone here?

    Bestus, Lee Munsick

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

    Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 21:53:53 -0400
    From: "John Eccles, Jr." <jeccles@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Sergeant Tattaglia

    Re Matthew Bullis' question about a radio show with a character named
    Sergeant Tartaglia, the show was "Broadway Is My Beat" with Larry Thor as
    Detective Danny Clover and Charles Calvert as Sergeant Gino Tartaglia.  Jack
    Kruschen was also a regular as Sergeant Muggavan.

    John Eccles, Jr.

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

    Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 21:54:32 -0400
    From: Gerald Wright <gdwright@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  re: The Sergeant & Danny

     >Matthew remembered: a detective show which had a secondary character
    named Sergeant Tetaglia that the main
    character would visit at least once a show. I think the main character
    was named Danny.

    The show is Broadway Is My Beat starring Larry Thor as Det. Danny
    Clover, and his foil was Sgt. Gino Tartaglia played by Charles Calvert.
    There are over 150 shows in circulation.

    Gerry Wright
    ZoneZebra Productions
    San Francisco

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

    Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 00:14:27 -0400
    From: "Mark Kinsler" <kinsler33@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Art and friends

>     I have a friend who just asked me on the phone the other day if it's
>     possible to acquire an old-time radio show of Art Linkletter's HOUSE PARTY
>     that features Bela Lugosi as a guest.

    I laughed when I read this: the sunny Art Linkletter and his guest, sunny
    Bela Lugosi.

    The point, I guess is that it is easy for fans (like me) to confuse an actor
    and his show-business persona.  Art and Bela could have gone fishing
    together every weekend, for all I know.

    I had the same reaction when I read that Elvis Presley and Pat Boone were
    old friends.

    M Kinsler

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

    Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 00:58:07 -0400
    From: William Brooks <webiii@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Sgt Tartaglia

    Matthew Bullis asked about Sgt. Tartaglia.

    He was the Sergeant to Lt. Danny Clover on "Broadway is my Beat"

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

    Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 16:58:06 -0400
    From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
    To: Olde Tyme Radio List <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  4-25 births/deaths

    April 25th births

    04-25-1899 - Guinn (Big Boy) Williams - Decatur, TX - d. 6-6-1962
    actor: "Biography In Sound"
    04-25-1908 - Edward R. Murrow - Pole Cat Creek, NC - d. 4-27-1965
    newscaster: (This is London) "Edward R. Murrow with the News"
    04-25-1918 - Ella Fitzgerald - Newport News, VA - d. 6-15-1996
    singer: "Flow Gently, Sweet Rhythm"; "Jubilee"
    04-25-1919 - Albert Aley - NYC - d. 1-1-1986
    actor: Hop Harrigan "Hop Harrigan"; Bob James "Stella Dallas"
    04-25-1921 - Robert Q. Lewis - NYC - d. 12-11-1991
    disc jockey, comedian, host: "Arthur Godrey Time"; "Robert Q. Lewis Show"

    April 25th deaths

    01-09-1915 - Anita Louise - NYC - d. 4-25-1970
    actress: "Stars Over Hollywood"
    01-16-1907 - Alexander Knox - Strathroy, Ontario, Canada - d. 4-25-1995
    actor: "Document A/777", BBC
    01-19-1906 - Lanny Ross - Seattle, WA - d. 4-25-1988
    singer: "Lanny Ross Program"; "Maxwell House Show Boat"
    01-22-1878 - Constance Collier - Windsor, Berkshire, England - d. 4-25-1955
    actress: Jessie Atwood "Kate Hopkins, Angel of Mercy"
    03-10-1905 - Richard Haydn - London, England - d. 4-25-1985
    actor: Professor Carp "Edgar Bergen/Charlie McCarthy Show"
    07-16-1911 - Ginger Rogers - Independence, MO - d. 4-25-1995
    actress: "Star and the Story"; "Packard Hour"; "Lux Radio Theatre"
    07-29-1911 - Florence Freeman - NYC - d. 4-25-2000
    actress: Ellen Brown "Young Widder Brown"; Wendy Warren "Wendy Warren and the
    News"
    09-01-1900 - Don Wilson - Lincoln, NE - d. 4-25-1982
    announcer: "Jack Benny Program"; "Good News of 1941"
    10-01-1903 - George Coulouris - Manchester, England - d. 4-25-1989
    actor: Hugh Drummond "Bulldog Drummond"; Frank Harrison "As the Twig Is Bent"
    --
    Ron Sayles
    For a complete list:
    [removed]

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

    Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 17:51:44 -0400
    From: Mark J Cuccia <mcuccia@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Texaco's Sponsorship of Met Opera Ends

    Saturday 24 April 2004 is the very last Metropolitan Opera radio
    broadcast to be sponsored (underwritten) by Chevron-Texaco, previously
    Texaco prior to merging with Chevron (Standard Oil of California).

    The following URL gives some history of the Metropolitan Opera itself
    (which dates back to 1883), as well as the radio broadcast history:
    [removed]

    There is also a "timeline" chart regarding the radio braodcast of the
    Opera:

    1931 was the first regularly scheduled live radio broadcast of the
    metropolitan Opera, on Christams Day with Humperdinck's "Hansel und
    Gretel". (There is no mention of any sponsor, nor if it aired only
    locally or regionally, or if it was on any network - either NBC Red,
    NBC Blue, or CBS).

    December 1940 was when Texaco took over sponsorship, with a performance
    of Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro". (Again, there is no mention of
    whether this aired only locally in New York City, or regionally, or
    possibly carried over a coast-to-coast network, whether NBC, NBC-Blue,
    CBS, or Mutual).

    The next "box" in the time-line states "1944/1958 Networks". It mentions
    that the opera is now broadcast by NBC over a 129-station network in the
    US, and by shortwave to Latin America. The the broadcasts moved to ABC
    in 1944 and then to CBS in 1958. But the way the "box" states 1944/1958,
    it isn't clear when it actually began on NBC, if it were supposed to
    have "moved" to ABC.

    I would assume that it started on NBC, the National Broadcasting Company
    sometime in the *EARLY* 1940s, most likely being the Blue Network of NBC
    which RCA sold off to Edward J. Noble (of Life Savers Candy) circa 1943,
    the now-spun-off NBC-Blue Network being renamed ABC, the American
    Broadcasting Company.

    The CBS Radio Network did pick up the Texaco Metropolitan Opera for the
    1958/59 broadcast season (beginning December 1958). I assume there is
    some kind of article (in Broadcasting Magazine maybe?) explaining the
    reasons for ABC Radio dropping the Opera with the 1957/58 [removed]
    I wonder if maybe ABC Radio's O&O stations (and other non-owned
    affiliates too?) were becoming more "youth" and "rock" oriented in the
    late 1950s? (Even if ABC Radio had continued with the Opera into the
    1960s, they would probably haved to have drop it by [removed] for the
    1967/68 season because of the [removed] "four-way identity split" of ABC
    Radio).

    CBS Radio also carried the Texaco Metropolitan Opera a second season in
    1959/60. But during 1960, CBS Radio announced *MAJOR* revamping of their
    program schedule which was to take effect in late November 1960, which
    caused NUMEROUS programs to be cancelled, including the Metropolitan
    Opera on CBS. Another type of "opera" also left CBS Radio in [removed],
    the last broadcasts of the long running P&G *SOAP* operas (Ma Perkins,
    Helen Trent, Young [removed], etc) on radio being on Friday the day
    after Thanksgiving, November 1960. That weekend after Thanksgiving was
    also the last CBS Radio broadcasts of the radio version of "Have Gun
    Will Travel", and the temporary end of "SUSPENSE". (Suspense would
    return six months later in June 1961, cancelling the radio edition of
    "Gunsmoke"). Another classical music program was cancelled by CBS Radio
    at this time, the radio broadcasts of the New York Philharmonic.
    Beginning in [removed], CBS Radio would concentrate mostly on its weekday
    daytime personality/variety programming (Godfrey, Linkletter,
    Crosby/Clooney, Garry Moore, etc), and there would be CBS Radio hourly
    news for virtually every hour of the broadcast day (except when a
    football game or such would be on), previously, while there were several
    five-min CBS Radio hourly newscasts scattered throughout the broadcast
    day (7-days a week), it was no where near most (if not all) hours. With
    [removed], in addition to having hourly newscasts for virtually every
    hour of the broadcast day, MOST of these newscasts were now a longer TEN
    minutes in length. (I've heard promos for the expanded CBS News in tapes
    of Suspsense, Johnny Dollar, Have Gun Will Travel, etc. of the 1959/60
    and thru [removed] timeframe).

    But the Texaco Metropolitan Opera would continue on radio, even with its
    cancellation by the CBS Radio Network. During 1960, when CBS Radio made
    it known that they were not going to be carrying the Opera anymore for
    the 1960/61 season (due to major program schedule changes), Texaco and
    the Met put togather an "ad-hoc" radio network similar to various "team"
    or sports events radio networks. They leased their own 5-Kc landlines
    from AT&T (Maw Bell) and had commitments from numerous local radio
    stations, many also non-commercial (which was something rather "new" or
    "novel" in the 1960s). I wonder how many CBS affiliates chose to
    continue with the Opera via the new "ad-hoc" network after CBS Radio
    dropped the broadcasts? In the 5-March-1977 CBS Radio special Saturday
    afternoon "listener call-in talk-show" broadcast with Cronkite and
    President Carter, it is mentioned in one of the CBS Radio hourly
    six-minute newscasts a couple of hours prior to the "Ask President
    Carter" special (Christopher Glenn anchoring that particular hour's
    newscast - and he is *STILL* doing CBS Radio hourly news! :), that KLAV,
    CBS Radio's Las Vegas affiliate, would tape-delay the CBS Radio "Ask
    President Carter" special, because they would be carrying the Texaco
    Metropolitian Opera LIVE, that Saturday 5-March-1977 broadcast being
    Mozart's "Marriage of Figaro". KLAV-AM (according to the Opera's
    website) still is the Vegas affiliate for the Opera, but I don't know
    offhand if they are still the Las Vegas affiliate of the radio side of
    CBS/Westwood/Infinity/Viacom/whatever.

    I can remember hearing some of the Texaco Operas locally on WVOG-600-AM
    and [removed] here in New Orleans in the later 1970s (I was still in
    High School at the time), and WVOG was (still is) a local religion (paid
    time) station, and [removed] was (still is) the NPR affiliate. WVOG-600
    hasn't carried the Opera in *YEARS* (I don't know when they dropped it),
    but [removed] still airs it. I can remember hearing the 5-Kc "network"
    audio quality, and in mono even on the FM side.

    Then for Fall 1999, as I was told by a contact with AT&T/South Central
    Bell at the main telco building downtown -- he was the manager of the
    network radio/TV distribution board for New Orleans, that Texaco and
    AT&T worked out a MASSIVE project where the entire continental US would
    get the Texaco Metropolitan Opera fed down *15* Khz bandwidth lines,
    actually a *STEREO PAIR* of 15-Khz lines! It was very expensive for
    Texaco and the Met Opera foundation, and it involved a lot of intricate
    on-hands engineering by telco people all over the country to feed full
    15-Khz audio (analog) in stereo.

    Beginning in 1980, Texaco leased transponder space from NPR's
    multi-channel satellite facility on Western Union's Westar satellite.

    I don't know which satellite(s) Texaco is using now, but the Met is fed
    by satellite to radio stations and other networks in Europe, in Latin
    America, in Australia, Japan, and eslewhwere. Full listings can be found
    at the Met Opera's website: [removed]
    CBC's English and French networks in Canada have picked up the Met Opera
    as fed out of New York City for *YEARS*.

    Over the years, the network "outcue" for station identification at the
    end of each act has grown considerably [removed] The commercial network
    identification was most likely used in the 1940s/50s (NBC-Blue, ABC,
    CBS). In the 1970s, it was simply "This is the Texaco Metropolitan Opera
    Radio Network". In the 1990s, as other countries (in addition to Canada)
    started picking up the satellite feedcs, the outcue was expanded to be
    "This is the Texaco Metropolitan *INTERNATIONAL* Radio Network". And
    more recently, with the merger of Chevron (SOCal) and Texaco, the outcue
    is expanded even further, possiblly one of the LONGEST radio or TV
    network outcues, even longer than the "formal" ones of the 1930s/40s:
    "This is the Chevron-Texaco Metropolitan Opera International Radio
    Network".

    Also in more recent years, many individual radio stations and networks
    carrying the Opera from the Met's own network, have set up their own
    websites and streamings, thus one can now hear the Met streamed to their
    computer from one of these many affiliates directly to their computer!

    As I mentioned at the beginning, today, Saturday 24 April 2004 is the
    very last Metropolitan Opera radio broadcast to be sponsored
    (underwritten) by Chevron-Texaco. It was Richard Wagner's German Opera
    "Gotterdammerung" (there's an 'umlat' over the 'o' and 'a'). This is the
    forth (and final) Opera of Wagner's complete "Ring" cycle. It begn at
    12:oo Noon (EDT), and is expected to run SIX hours total (with all
    intermissions, the Opera Quiz, commentaries, etc). More info can be
    found at [removed] or
    [removed]

    Even though Chevron-Texaco is dropping its almost 65 year history of
    sponsoring the Metropolitan Opera Radio Broadcasts, they will still be
    involved with funding educational projects of the Opera. And the
    December-thru-April weekly Saturday afternoon broadcasts will continue
    with December 2004, this time underwritten by huge multi-million dollar
    grants from The Annenberg Foundation and The Vincent A. Stabile
    Foundation.

    I don't know which opera will be performed for the first radio broadcast
    under the new foundation sponsors, but I assume that it will air on the
    first Saturday of December (2004), on 4-Dec-2004.

    I also wonder how the network outcue will be re-worded as well! :-)

    BTW, I know that Milton Cross was the announcer thoughout most of the
    1940s and 50s, during the ABC Radio years, as Mr. Cross was also a staff
    announcer at ABC well into the 1960s (at least). Who was the announcer
    for the two CBS Radio years? Was it someone with CBS? Or was it an
    announcer employed by the Opera itself? I know that in later years (at
    least since the 1970s), Peter Allen has been the announcer.

    Mark J. Cuccia
    mcuccia@[removed]
    New Orleans LA CSA

    --------------------------------
    End of [removed] Digest V2004 Issue #144
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