------------------------------
The Old-Time Radio Digest!
Volume 2008 : Issue 122
A Part of the [removed]!
[removed]
ISSN: 1533-9289
Today's Topics:
Philo Vance [ Radioclass <radioclass@[removed] ]
Help [ Radioclass <radioclass@[removed] ]
re EASY ACES [ "B. J. Watkins" <kinseyfan@hotmail. ]
Re: obscure reference of the week [ Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed]; ]
Good ol' Button Gwinnett [ jack and cathy french <otrpiano@ver ]
ADMINISTRIVIA: Temporary Disruptions [ Charlie Summers <listmaster@lofcom. ]
WROW [ Ken Stockinger <bambino032004-otr@y ]
Mystery Radio Announcer [ "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@hotm ]
Kane [ John Mayer <mayer@[removed]; ]
5-13 births/deaths [ Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed] ]
New York Recordings [ "Paul Thompson" <beachcrows@sbcglob ]
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 13:57:38 -0400
From: Radioclass <radioclass@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Philo Vance
In a message dated May 10, Jay asked about an episode
of Philo Vance from 1943. The OTTR (Old Time Radio
Researchers Group)and Jerry Haendiges Vintage Radio
Logs both have a log for Philo Vance that lists two
shows from 1943. The Cellini Cup, April 29. 1943, and
The Mystery of The Singing Cat, May 6, 1943. As
explained by Frank Passage on his Old Time Radio Logs
site, there is confusion regarding some dates of this
program.
Anne
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 13:57:49 -0400
From: Radioclass <radioclass@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Help
Hi everyone
I very recently got a new computer and in transferring
my files, I lost the link to the newspaper listings of
old radio programs. Can anyone point me in the right
direction?
Thanks
Anne
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 15:10:08 -0400
From: "B. J. Watkins" <kinseyfan@[removed];
To: oldtimeradio Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: re EASY ACES
Ted wrote, quoting an Easy Aces script:
Now, after some research I discovered Button Gwinnett was one of the
signers of the Declaration of Independence -- not the US Constitution.
He was a delegate from Georgia. He was involved with writing the Georga
State Constitution. A county near Atlanta is named for him.
Is it just me, or does that seem like a pretty difficult remark for even
radio's 1940s erudite listeners to catch?
Even more so for the 2008 audience! That's why we changed it to John Hancock
when we performed it at the SPERDVAC convention last weekend.
There's another joke that we didn't change and after four performances of
this script, it has yet to get a laugh. The dialogue goes like this:
MOTHER: What do you mean "intentions", Janie?
JANE: Mother, do I have to draw a bluepoint for you?
ACE: Yes, mother, don't clam up.
They get the bluepoint/blueprint joke but not the clam. Probably people on
the east coast would be more familiar with bluepoint clams. For us uneducated
seafood eaters, a clam is a clam.
Barbara
(who likes clams of any color)
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 18:18:33 -0400
From: Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: obscure reference of the week
Now, after some research I discovered Button Gwinnett was one of the signers
of the Declaration of Independence -- not the US Constitution. He was a
My guess is that the scriptwriter didn't really know or was stretching a
bit to bring in the "Button" and "Parchment" tied to "Constitution" so
the joke would work. Also, as I recall (possibly because of the unique
name), his signature always brought big money prices for collectors.
Just looking through newspapers of the forties, I see lots of references
to his name.
Still an obscure reference because most probably didn't know who he was.
Jim Widner
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 12 May 2008 19:26:43 -0400
From: jack and cathy french <otrpiano@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Good ol' Button Gwinnett
"Ted" nominates a mention of Button Gwinnett as most obscure OTR
reference of the week. He further speculates that this signer of the
Declaration of Independence would be unknown to even the "erudite
listeners" of the 40's.
Goodman Ace, like Franklin P. Adams and [removed] Menken, wrote witty,
literate prose for a wide-scale audience in the print media. Ace
continued this in scripting "Easy Aces" and Adams did so at the mike
of "Information Please;" few of radio listeners of that program would
have been ignorant of Mr. Gwinnett.
Button Gwinnett, if anything, was "famous" for being obscure, much as
Millard Fillmore is well known by many Americans who can't name even
ten other [removed] Presidents prior to FDR. Richard Amour, a humorist who
made a career of mangling history (in both Playboy magazine and over
a dozen books,) specifically mentioned only six signers when he
humorously covered the Declaration of Independence; one of them was
"a slovenly fellow named Unbuttoned Gwinnett."
I have no doubt that the majority of Ace's radio audience "got" the
reference to Mr. Gwinnett. My question would be: why would Peter
Stone and Sherman Edwards leave good ol' Button Gwinnett out of their
enormous cast of "1776"? Scandalous!
Jack French
Editor: RADIO RECALL
<[removed]>
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 10:20:05 -0400
From: Charlie Summers <listmaster@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: ADMINISTRIVIA: Temporary Disruptions
Folks;
Over the next week or two, there will probably be some temporary
disruptions to the OTR Digest, Nostalgia Pages, and Nostalgic Rumblings
blog/podcast. As blog readers know, there are some personal issues I need to
deal with, so there will probably be some short delays in deliveries and
such. Understand, no mail will be lost, the Digest just may arrive in your
inbox a little later than usual, that's all.
This also goes for deliveries from the [removed] Shop - orders may take
an extra day or two to get shipped out. If you haven't been to the store at
[removed] lately, check it out. It's been remodeled with a
fresh coat of paint, an updated shop engine, some new items, and what I hope
is a more navigatable interface. I hope you'll approve, and agree with me
that there isn't a better place on the Net to spend a few fins of your
"economic stimulus" tax rebate, other than maybe the voluntary contribution
page at [removed] - where else can you get
the entertainment value of the shows there and the Digest itself for so
little? (And if you have purchased from The Shop, feel free to write a review
of your purchase to help others with their decisions!)
Charlie
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 10:20:40 -0400
From: Ken Stockinger <bambino032004-otr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: WROW
The majority(if not all) of the 1957 Brooklyn Dodgers
radio broadcasts that survive are WROW airchecks. In
fact, one of them is interrupted for a breaking local
news [removed] a local man was holding his
wife and children hostage in their home. Of course,
they went back to the ballgame. :)
Ken
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 10:21:17 -0400
From: "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Mystery Radio Announcer
There is a radio announcer at the 7 minute mark on this segment of "I Am the
Night," and the voice is VERY familiar. At the Cincinnati OTR Convention, I
played the segment to se eif anyone can recognize it and while a lot fo
people said the voice was very familiar, someone suggested Larry Thor. Gary
Lowe suggests it might also be Larry Thor. He remains uncredited in
production paperwork. If anyone has a few moments, click on the link and
skip to the 7 minute mark. If anyone can be absolutely certain it's Larry
Thor, please let me know. He did radio's SUSPENSE and BROADWAY IS MY BEAT but
I hate to make an assumption without verification, but if a whole bunch of
people say it's him, then I'll feel reserved to label this TV episode among
his professional radio/TV credits.
[removed]
Martin
mmargrajr@[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 10:22:35 -0400
From: John Mayer <mayer@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Kane
Craig W. gently corrected my statement:
The only Welles character I can think of whose middle name
mightbe remembered is John Foster Kane.
with this:
I think you're thinkin' of CHARLES Foster [removed]
And Robert Birchard" <bbirchard@[removed]; sighed:
Perhaps Welles's character's name is not so well known after all. True,
the middle name was "Foster," but the first name was "Charles," not "John."
Perhaps you were confusing Kane with "John Charles Thomas"--or all three of
'em, as Durante might say. ;-}
This is definitely not the place to speak out without thinking.
That's one of my favorite movies - I would say who DOESN'T feel that
way, but, astonishingly, I've found there are a few - but I guess I
don't know it as well as cultural literacy would require. Apropos de
bottes, Kane is also the name of my late friend Karl Wagner's only
series character, though I don't think Karl was familiar with that
movie when he began writing the stories way back in high school. It's
also the name of my largest pit bull. But neither of those Kanes have
first names. I daresay I'll not make THAT mistake again. Funny I'd
forget the first name but remember the middle name. But, anyhow, that
WAS the character referred to, right?
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 10:22:45 -0400
From: Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
To: Olde Tyme Radio Digest Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: 5-13 births/deaths
May 13th births
05-13-1842 - Arthur Sullivan - London, England - d. 11-22-1900
composer: (Gilbert and Sullivan) Several of his works were adapted
for radio
05-13-1899 - David Broekman - Leiden, The Netherlands- d. 4-1-1958
conductor: "Mobil Magazine"; "Texaco Star Theatre"
05-13-1907 - Daphne du Maurier - London, England - d. 4-19-1989
author: "Campbell Playhouse"; "Several of her works were adapted for
radio
05-13-1907 - Warren Angell - Brooklyn, NY - d. 5-6-2006
singer: "Fred Waring and his Pennsylvanians"
05-13-1909 - Ken Darby - Hebron, NE - d. 1-24-1992
singer, choral conductor: (The King's Men) "Fibber McGee and Molly"
05-13-1911 - Maxine Sullivan - Homestead, PA - d. 4-7-1987
vocalist: "Night Life"
05-13-1912 - Helen Craig - San Antonio, TX - d. 7-20-1986
actor: "Crime Does Not Pay"
05-13-1912 - Phil Alampi - d. 11-4-1992
farm newscaster: ABC, WJZ New York, New York
05-13-1914 - Bill Rose - Fort Dodge, IA
actor: Chuck Ramsey "Captain Midnight"; Shamus "Houseboat Hannah"
05-13-1914 - Joe Louis (The Brown Bomber) - Lafayette, AL - d. 4-12-1981
heavyweight boxing champ: "Fred Allen Show"; "Freedom's People"
05-13-1915 - Ruth Doering Reynolds - Chicago, IL
singer: (Doring Sisters) "Contented Hour"
05-13-1928 - Nils-Bertil Dahlander - Gothenburg, Sweden
composer, drummer: "Thore Ehrling Radio Band"
May 13th deaths
01-24-1913 - Gwen Bagni - d. 5-13-2001
writer: "Suspense"; "Family Theatre"; "Escape"
02-27-1902 - Gene Sarazen - Harrison, NY - d. 5-13-1999
golf legend: "Tops in Sports"
03-05-1922 - Robert Burr - Jersey City, NJ - d. 5-13-2000
actor: "CBS Radio Mystery Theatre"
03-06-1905 - Bob Wills - Limestone County, TX - d. 5-13-1975
western singer: (Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys) "Rexall Rhythm
Round-Up"
04-22-1939 - Jason Miller - NYC - d. 5-13-2001
playwright: "Earplay"
05-30-1896 - Whispering Jack Smith - The Bronx, NY - d. 5-13-1950
singer: "Whispering Jack Smith"
07-24-1875 - Frank Moulan - NYC - d. 5-13-1939
comedian: :Roxy and His Gang"
08-16-1904 - Ruth Gillette - Chicago, IL - d. 5-13-1994
actor: "Theatre Five"
11-04-1902 - Frank Jenks - Des Moines, IA - d. 5-13-1962
actor: "The Navy Comes Through"
12-23-1924 - Floyd Kalber - Omaha, NE - d. 5-13-2004
news correspondent: NBC; News Anchor for WMAQ and WLS in Chicago
Ron Sayles
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 13 May 2008 10:24:35 -0400
From: "Paul Thompson" <beachcrows@[removed];
To: "OTR Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: New York Recordings
Joe Webb asked:
Many of the recordings in the late 50s and 60s of CBS shows and
sports events (like baseball games) seem to exist only because a lone
radio enthusiast in the Albany, NY took the time and spent the money
on recording tape to preserve the shows. Does anyone know who this
collector was? Without the effort of this person, many Johnny Dollar
and Suspense shows would have been forever lost to collectors.
I don't know who might have recorded shows in Albany but a trading
partner of mine in the 60's and 70's, the late Pat Rispole who lived
in Schenectady, NY, taped many, many sporting events and Suspense and
Johnny Dollar shows as they were aired. I know that he taped all the
Dollar and Suspense shows from 1959 until conclusion. Pat's catalogs
listings, some of which I still have to this day, were remarkable for
the time period. He had runs of syndicated shows and network series
which would make many collectors today envious. In addition to trading
shows with each other I also taped for Pat a number of SF Giant
ballgames from start to finish which back then, were for the most
part, aired only regionally here in the west. I have no idea what
happened to his collection when he died, but it was a treasure trove.
Paul Thompson
--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2008 Issue #122
*********************************************
Copyright [removed] Communications, York, PA; All Rights Reserved,
including republication in any form.
If you enjoy this list, please consider financially supporting it:
[removed]
For Help: [removed]@[removed]
To Unsubscribe: [removed]@[removed]
To Subscribe: [removed]@[removed]
or see [removed]
For Help with the Archive Server, send the command ARCHIVE HELP
in the SUBJECT of a message to [removed]@[removed]
To contact the listmaster, mail to listmaster@[removed]
To Send Mail to the list, simply send to [removed]@[removed]