Subject: [removed] Digest V2006 #136
From: [removed]@[removed]
Date: 5/16/2006 10:18 PM

To: [removed]@[removed]

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

                                The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                                  Volume 2006 : Issue 136
                             A Part of the [removed]!
                                 [removed]
                                     ISSN: 1533-9289

                                     Today's Topics:

      5-16 births/deaths                    [ Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed] ]
      WCAU Radio Classics with Gary Hodgso  [ Dancingdays72777@[removed] ]
      Re: radio shows that died young       [ Dixonhayes@[removed] ]
      "Don't Touch That Dial"               [ "Frank McGurn" <[removed]@sbcgloba ]
      Short run series                      [ Ivan Watson <watsoni@[removed]; ]
      Too short a series                    [ Jerry Shnay <jshnay1@[removed]; ]
      SPRING REVERB                         [ Sandy Singer <sinatradj@[removed]; ]
      I definitely agree with Joe Martelle  [ "Gary Dixon" <argy@[removed]; ]
      Quiet, Please                         [ "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed] ]
      Re: Short Series                      [ Christopher Werner <werner1@globalc ]
      J. red MacDonald                      [ "Frank McGurn" <[removed]@sbcgloba ]
      too short series                      [ K & J Hammel <haml@[removed]; ]
      Lorre "TV" film of 1945 broadcast     [ "bobb lynes" <iairotr@[removed]; ]
      Frankie Thomas                        [ "bobb lynes" <iairotr@[removed]; ]

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

    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 00:46:16 -0400
    From: Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
    To: Olde Tyme Radio Digest Digest <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  5-16 births/deaths

    May 16th births

    05-16-1882 - Mary Gordon - Glasgow, Scotland - d. 8-23-1963
    actor: Mrs. Emmett "Those We Love"; Mrs. Hudson "Sherlock Holmes"
    05-16-1890 - Kenneth Perkins - d. 6-7-1951
    writer: "Hawk Larabee"
    05-16-1891 - Richard Tauber - Linz, Austria-Hungary - d. 1-8-1948
    opera singer: "General Motors Concert"
    05-16-1892 - Osgood Perkins - West Newton, MA - d. 9-21-1937
    stage actor: "Flying Red Horse Tavern"
    05-16-1905 - Henry Fonda - Grand Island, NE - d. 8-12-1982
    actor: "Eyes Aloft"; "Romance"; "Suspense"
    05-16-1911 - Margaret Sullavan - Norfolk, VA - d. 1-1-1960
    actor: "Electric Theatre"; "Hollywood Playhouse"
    05-16-1912 - Studs Terkel - The Bronx, NY
    journalist, sometimes actor: "Destination Freedom"; "Ma Perkins"
    05-16-1913 - Woody Herman - Milwaukee, WI - d. 10-29-1987
    bandleader: (The Thundering Herd) "Wildroot Show"
    05-16-1916 - Bernard Braden - Vancouver, Canada - d. 2-2-1993
    actor: "The Gracie Fields Show"
    05-16-1919 - Liberace - West Milwaukee, WI - d. 2-4-1987
    pianist, singer: "Stars for Defense"

    May 16th deaths

    01-23-1910 - Django Reinhardt - Belgium - d. 5-16-1953
    jazz artist: "Djanjo Reinhardt and the Quintet of the Hot Club France"
    02-27-1913 - Irwin Shaw - NYC - d. 5-16-1984
    author: "Columbia Workshop";"Studio One"; "The Gumps"
    03-29-1890 - Joe Cook - Evansville, IN - d. 5-16-1959
    comedian: "House Party"; "Shell Chateau"
    04-04-1904 - John Brown - Hull, England - d. 5-16-1957
    actor: Digby "Digger" O'Dell "Life of Riley"; Melvyn Foster "A Date
    with Judy"
    06-22-1912 - June Carroll - Detroit, MI - d. 5-16-2004
    composer: "New Faces of 1948"
    07-11-1906 - Fred Feibel - Union City, NJ - d. 5-16-1978
    organist: "Between the Bookends"; "Organ Reveille"
    09-26-1912 - Al Helfer - Elrama, PA - d. 5-16-1975
    sportscaster: "Game of the Day"; "We Want a Touchdown"
    11-08-1918 - Paul Barnes - Chicago, IL - d. 5-16-1983
    actor: Red Albright/Captain Midnight "Captain Midnight"
    12-09-1902 - Margaret Hamilton - Cleveland, OH - d. 5-16-1985
    actor: Aunt Effie "Couple Next Door"; "The Free Company"

    Ron Sayles
    Milwaukee, Wisconsin
    Birthplace of Benny Fields

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

    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 00:48:43 -0400
    From: Dancingdays72777@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  WCAU Radio Classics with Gary Hodgson

    The reason I am an old time radio fanatic is an  OTR program that aired
    about 20 years ago on WCAU AM in Philadelphia  called Radio
    [removed] by a gentleman named Gary Hodgson. It  aired 7 nights a
    week  for a while, usually from 8 to [removed] he'd  play 3 or so shows a
    broadcast. I  used to listen as an elementary  school [removed] with my
    parents or in  bed. Mr. Hodgson would occasionally have guests from the OTR
    era (Lee Allman,  Paul Hughes,  Mel Blanc for example). He also used to bring
    his show to various   Philadelphia-area malls during the holiday season, and
    I had the pleasure  of  meeting him during one of these visits (I believe in
    December 1985,  when I was  8). He was a very, very nice man and allowed me
    to join him  on the  program for about an hour. Turns out, it was my radio
    [removed]  work in the  industry to this day!

    WCAU went off the air forever in  the summer of 1990 (it's now 1210
    WPHT)...and with it went Radio  Classics. For years, I've been wondering what
    ever happened to Mr.  Hodgson. I wanted to thank him for getting me involved
    in this wonderful [removed] helping to inspire me to make a living out of
    radio. Does
    anyone know what became of him and if I would be able to get in touch with
    him? Also, does anyone else remember this wonderful  program, or even have
    recordings of it? I'd love to listen back  again.

    Sincerely,

    Matt Cherry

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

    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 09:12:11 -0400
    From: Dixonhayes@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Re: radio shows that died young
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    In a message dated 5/15/06 11:19:07 AM Central Daylight Time,
    [removed]@[removed] writes:

>     what series in OTR should have had a longer run?    Lets say under  3 years
>     as a bench marker for a short run series on radio.

    That's an easy [removed]"The Stan Freberg Show" should've been on for years and
    years! Even if it was in purpose, a couple of months is way too short for a
    show that funny and that creative.

    Dixon

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    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 09:12:48 -0400
    From: "Frank McGurn" <[removed]@[removed];
    To: "The Old Time Radio Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  "Don't Touch That Dial"

    When I read Vince Long remarks about J. Fred MacDonald's Book , Don't Touch
    That Dial",It dawned on me I have It. So I went to my book case and there it
    was. The book was copyrighted in 1979, I probably bought it in 1980 and
    haven't looked at since. Chuck Schaden (Those Were the Days on WDCB FM on
    Saturdays 1 to 5 CST ) in the 80's was a fan and was helping to push the
    book, I ordered it through Chuck. I seem to remember that Chuck interviewed
    MacDonald on several occasions.

    Mac Donald was a college Prof. and used his book as a text book for class on
    Radio . I have to admit I never read the book word for word but I used it as
    a reference book. I have not looked at for about 20 years. Growing up when
    radio was growing up I felt that I knew alot of the subject covered by the
    book. I loaned to several OTR collectors who were a lot younger that me and
    they learned a lot and enjoyed it. I assume the book is out of print, I
    haven't heard of J. Fred Mac Donald in 20 years plus.

    I may just read the book maybe I've forgotten some of the history of Radio.

    Frank McGurn
    McHenry, IL

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

    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 09:13:03 -0400
    From: Ivan Watson <watsoni@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Short run series
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    Walden Hughes asked about short run series. Some of my favourites that I
    wished had aired longer include:

      STUDIO ONE (1948) - I really enjoy quality, hour-long dramatic series and
    although I think this one only lasted one season, it is one of my favourites.
    The writing, acting and directing were all top-notch. Also, I think that the
    director Fletcher Markle (a fellow Canadian!) was one of radio's greatest
    talents in the dying days of network radio. Although Studio One only lasted
    one season, it paved the way for the famous TV series of the same name in the
    1950s.

      ON STAGE (1953-1954) - Was there anything that Elliot and Cathy Lewis
    couldn't do? Again, this series came late in the game for big time network
    radio, but even today, episodes seem fresh and innovative. I think I read
    somewhere that Elliot Lewis remarked that with On Stage he was able to
    experiment in ways that would not have been possible even a few years
    earlier. By the time On Stage was on the air, the big advertising bucks were
    migrating to television and producers and artists had been given more freedom
    by the radio networks.

      JACK PAAR PROGRAM (1947) - I believe this began as a summer replacement
    series for Jack Benny in 1947 but continued for a couple of months into the
    fall season. The series provided the young Jack Paar with a premier showcase
    for his comedic talents. Paar of course went on to fame and fortune at the
    helm of the Tonight Show in the 1950s/early 1960s, but I find his early radio
    work to be surprisingly fresh (and funny!) even to modern ears. I wish he
    could have established himself as one of the greatest radio stars of the day,
    because I think that his talent, temperament and style was perfectly suited
    to the medium of radio.

      NBC PRESENTS: SHORT STORY (1951-1952) - I have always believed that the
    short story and the medium of radio are perfect partners. An excellent
    example of this is the adaptation of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" from
    this series. The stars and writers of this series were some of the most
    professional in radio and I believe that this show provided opportunities for
    rising talents like the young writer, Ernest Kinoy. I wish there were more
    series like this and the others I have mentioned in this post.

      I could comment on many more short run series, but these were just four
    that popped to mind when I first read Walden's post. By the way, if anyone
    has uncirculated episodes from any of these four series, I would be
    interesting in trading for some uncirculated material I have.

      Cheers,

      Ivan

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    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 09:16:51 -0400
    From: Jerry Shnay <jshnay1@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Too short a series
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    I would like to nominate CRIME CLASSICS as a prime example of a program that
    should have had a longer shelf life.
      The Howard Duff SAM SPADE series is also a worthy candidate, and might have
    been, had it not been for the temper of the times.

      jerry shnay

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    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 09:22:42 -0400
    From: Sandy Singer <sinatradj@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  SPRING REVERB

    Back in the days of Top 40 radio, we installed one of Damon's units.
    Interesting reverb story re the Harmonicat's recording of Peg O' My
    Heart.  I was recorded at the NBC studios in Chicago, using their small
    room, made of marble.  The audio was fed into the room, 'bounced' off the
    walls, into a mic.  The 'round-robbin' method of reverb had not been
    discoverd yet.

    [removed]

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    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 09:23:06 -0400
    From: "Gary Dixon" <argy@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  I definitely agree with Joe Martelle!
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    Hi!

    It has been awhile since I've posted in the OTR digest, but (as always) have
    enjoyed each issue.

    I definitely agree with Joe Martelle when it comes to the (too short) runs of
    FORT LARAMIE, TALES OF THE TEXAS RANGERS and especially, THE SIX SHOOTER.  All
    of these seemed to be the 'victims' of a new medium (at the time) called
    television?

    It would've been fun to see if Britt Ponsett (Jimmy Stewart) eventually
    settled down with [removed] in a few episodes he came pretty close!
    Raymond Burr seemed to be 'mellowing out' a little during the latter episodes
    of FORT [removed] the original Captain Lee Quince character in the earlier
    [removed] very cold!  Since I only have a few of TALES OF THE TEXAS
    RANGERS shows in my collection, I really can't make any comments about that
    show.

    But what's fascinating is that the network they aired on originally was
    willing to give each a chance to find an audience?

    [removed]'s a different story.  If the audience isn't around by
    episode #[removed] new TV show is HIS-TO-RY!

    argytunes

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    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 11:23:27 -0400
    From: "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed];
    To: "Old Time Radio Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Quiet, Please

    I surely agree with Kermyt that Quiet, Please should have enjoyed a much
    longer run than two years.  The creative mind of Wyllis Cooper and the
    multi-talented voice of Ernest Chappell in my opinion had many years to run
    before they ran out of ideas.  Where would we find such talent today?

    The science fiction series Dimension X and X-1, along with several other
    neat series like Exploring Tomorrow and 2000+ deserved more years, also.  We
    see many of our favorite television series re-created for the movie screens.
    Why not some re-creations of these radio shows on radio?  The only one I
    know of that is in regular syndication is Twilight Zone, a television series
    re-created for radio.

    Maybe when the talk shows have run their courses there will be time for real
    radio to [removed]

    Ted Kneebone / 1528 S. Grant St. / Aberdeen, SD 57401
    [removed]~stmarkch/
    Democrats: [removed]

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

    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 11:33:22 -0400
    From: Christopher Werner <werner1@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Re: Short Series

    I would offer up my all-time favorite: Crime Classics
    Based on historic real events
    Wonderful cast of performers
    Absolutely hysterical puns

    Karen L from RS offered up Black [removed] in a sense Whitehall 1212
    was the second version of the program. I preferred Orson Welle's
    delivery to that of the Whitehall program. There are some repeats,
    perhaps Scotland Yard ran out of really good crimes? Crime Classics
    didn't have that problem because they were not restricted to one
    country or time period.

    Dimension X/X-one had far too many repeats in their broadcast. I wish
    there were two additional years of original programs extending the
    run. It's not that the story volume was impossible, the Twilight Zone
    created 5 seasons of new plots shortly after the series ended ... and
    there were few crossovers to the Outer Limits who provided a long
    list of their own plots. Other than the occult or occasional foray
    into SciFi done by Suspense/Whistler/Escape/Mysterious Traveller it
    was a genre that never got the air time it deserved (non-fans may
    have a different view).

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

    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 13:10:51 -0400
    From: "Frank McGurn" <[removed]@[removed];
    To: "The Old Time Radio Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  J. red MacDonald

    I did a Google search on J. Fred he has many accomplishments in the realm of
    the history of audio & visual entertainment. Also did a Google search on
    "Don't Touch That Dial" it is available for $[removed] Several other titles in
    OTR category showed up one I may buy Is "I Love a Mystery"
    If and when searching, on Google, for a book title or persons name type it
    in "quotes" and you will eliminate all kinds combinations of different first
    and last names in the search.

    I missed Milt Rosenberg's show on may 5, because I was listening to the cubs
    game on WGN and watching  (muted) on TV. It's strange but baseball can't be
    broadcast on line. So Milts program was on line instead of over the air.
    Never thought about that until reading the digest.

    Frank McGurn

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    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 13:17:47 -0400
    From: K & J Hammel <haml@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  too short series

    I'm pretty taken with a 1951 summer show called "It's
    Higgins, Sir".  Very funny family sitcom about a regular
    American family that inherits the family silver from a
    lofty British relative along with a butler (Higgins). I'd
    sure have liked it if there had been more than the 13
    shows.

    I also have been part of a research group with Jack French,
    Karl Schadow, Ian Grieve, and Archie Hunter (with
    assistance from Jerry Haendiges) that are working on a
    children's serial called "Howie Wing".  It was actually
    slated for a third season, but it got cut short when the
    writer, Willfred Moore of "Jimmie Allen" fame, died
    suddenly.  (just a plug for a pet project!)

    Kathy Hammel

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    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 18:14:38 -0400
    From: "bobb lynes" <iairotr@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Lorre "TV" film of 1945 broadcast

    Martin Grams, Jr. posted on May 13 that a copy of the "Suspense" film
    exists.
    True.  The film was shown at a SPERDVAC meeting ('way back in the '70s!) and
    I saw it then.  I'm not sure of the source.  Herewith, a slight disagreement
    with you, Marty.
    I believe it was NOT a live broadcast kinescoped.  It appeared to be a
    3-camera set-up (much like the system used for "I Love Lucy" YEARS later!).
    Primative, but very well done (Roma Wines had deep pockets, I guess).
    Maybe Karl Fruend filmed it?  Yes, in color.
    Anyway, it was straight-to-film and NOT through a TV screen. It was 1945.  I
    know [removed] this was no kinescope.
    I,too would love to see it again!!!

    Bobb

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

    Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 19:10:54 -0400
    From: "bobb lynes" <iairotr@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Frankie Thomas

    Frank Thomas ,Jr. is dead , and with him go the wonderful characters he
    portrayed in the past.
    [removed]  Tim Tyler, Ted Nickerson, the mayor of "Boy's Town",
    "Wednesday's Child" and Tom Corbett, Space Cadet are still with us on film,
    tape, CDs & DVDs.  They will be here for generations to come, to enjoy and
    thrill to.  He entertained about 4 generations during his time on this
    planet.  A pretty nice legacy.
    What Frankie's death has taken away is more Sherlock Holmes stories and of
    course, an autobigraphy that will never be written.  He was so full of
    stories and he loved to tell them.   What I'll always remember is his
    friendship and availability to all his fans in general, and personally, to
    Barbara and me.  One of my favorite pictures is of him in his "Cadet"
    uniform (which he could still wear) and me in my "Superman" tee-shirt(which
    gets tighter each year).
    We'll miss you, my friend.
    Spaceman's Luck on this, your final journey,

    Bobb

    --------------------------------
    End of [removed] Digest V2006 Issue #136
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