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

[removed] Digest				Volume 96 : Issue 306

Table Of Contents: 

	 sf otr
	 Re: TV Actors on Radio
	 Conventions Dates
	 Lady of the Press
	 OTR Vs. Television
	 Trip to Mars
	 Mrs Calabash
	 Subject: Roy Shield, Chi. Music Dir.
	 Candy Matson
	 Leonard Martinez
	 Re: WGN Yearbooks
	 Jack Benny Log 
	 OTR shows on the Internet

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

Date: 29 Aug 96 01:58:13 EDT
From: Michael Berger <[removed]@[removed]>
To: otr <otr@[removed]>
Subject: sf otr
Message-ID: <[removed]@[removed]>

As a San Francisco native who grew up during the 1940s, and in response to the query about local radio in those days, a few ramblings:

KQW (now KCBS) was one of the earliest radio stations in the nation, and in my youth was the Columbia station for the Bay Area. It was staffed by many well known announcers, including Don Mozely, Fred Goerner, Ken Ackerman, Clancy Cassell.

Those who recall sports announcer Don Klein, who did 49er games on KCBS in the late 70s/early 80s, may not know that he got his start at KSFO in the late 1940s, broadcasting the San Francisco Seals' baseball games.

Some months ago, someone recalled a KCBS cult figure from the 1950s named Red Blanchard, whose late night talk and music show had quite a following among the teenagers I ran around with in those days. And then, like so many others, he just seemed to disappear.

KPO (now KNBR, but for a while it was KNBC and later lost those call letters to its LA [removed] why?) featured lots of live music, including a Standard Oil "good music" show to which classes of schoolkids were often invited to visit the fancy NBC studio on Mason Street and listen to the Standard Orch.

Believe that Art Linkletter also got his start in SF, and Ben Alexander, later of Dragnet radio and TV fame, was both a radio announcer and later had his own TV show in the early 50s on KPIX.

KYA at one time had the most popular DJ in town. Named Les Malloy, and he was later another of those early TV stars, sort of a San Francisco Arthur Godfrey. This was some time before Don Sherwood became a major DJ name at KSFO.

KFRC was the Mutual station, and it had its own version of the Breakfast Club. Called the Breakfast Gang, hosted by Mel Venter, another old radio star in SF. Another KFRC show was a "man-in-the street" interview show, done M-Fri from in front of the old Owl Drug Store next to the cable car turntable at Powell and Market Streets.  The announcer was Dean Maddox, another big name in the 30s/40s, who also had a Sunday morning interview show from the old Cliff House restaurant at Ocean beach.  When Maddox died, the old heavyweight boxer, Max Baer, took over and the show hung on until the mid-1950s.

Another well known DJ was Frank Cope of KJBS, which had a little studio on Bush (or was it Pine?) off Polk, with its own transmitter right on top of the building.

Across the Bay, there were three stations which I remember: KLX, which broadcast the Oakland Oaks' PCL baseball games with Bud Foster at the mike; KROW (now KABL) and KRE in Berkeley, one of the oldest radio stations in the country.

Enough. Maybe these notes will inspire another senior SF hand to carry on.


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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 06:56:56 -0400
From: martyj@[removed] (Martin Jukovsky)
To: [removed]@[removed]
Cc: BensmanM@[removed]
Subject: Re: TV Actors on Radio
Message-Id: <v02130500ae4af06580fc@[[removed]]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

At 1:01 AM 8/29/96, bensmanm@[removed] (Marvin R. Bensman) wrote:
>------------------------------



>
>One of the most compelling voices on so many shows and commercials was and
>is Mason Adams. I love listening to his cracking voice. I think he played
>Pepper Young.
>
>I was pleasantly surprised to both hear and see him playing the executive
>editor (Charlie) of the LA newspaper that employed "Lou Grant."
>
>I think that Mason probably did more voice-over work than even people like
>Marvin Miller (who appeared on the TV's "Millionaire," if memory serves).
>
>************************************************************************
>*Professor Marvin R. Bensman, [removed], [removed]                              *
>*Department of Communication; Office Phone: (901) 678-3174 or 678-2565 *
>*University of Memphis        Fax: (901) 678-4331                      *
>*Memphis, TN 38152                                                     *
>*E-mail: BensmanM@[removed]                                       *
>*
>*
>* To see University of Memphis radio archive look at:
>
>[removed]~[removed]            *
>
One of my favorite commercial audio tapes is Mason Adams reading four short
stories by John Cheever.  His voice and accent (New England?) are perfect
for Cheever.


Martin Jukovsky
Cambridge, Mass.

martyj@[removed]
Web site:  [removed]

            ****************************************************
            --listen:there's a hell
            of a good universe next door;let's go
                       --e. e. cummings
            ****************************************************

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 07:04:21 -0400
From: David Van Nostrand <davetv5@[removed]>
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Conventions Dates
Message-Id: <[removed]@[removed]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Hi

Could someone supply me with the October convention info.


thanks
David Van Nostrand
davetv5@[removed]

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 08:23:40 -0400
From: JRayb71827@[removed]
To: otr@[removed]
Subject: Lady of the Press
Message-ID: <960829082338_396719014@[removed]>

  The posting by Lois Culver on "Lady of the Press" sounded interesting and
I'd love to have a xerox copy for possible information for my OTR newsletter,
"Thrilling Days of Yesteryear."  However, I've been unable to get a
successful connection to Lois's E-mail address.  So, Lois, if you're out
there and a copy would be possible, I'd really appreciate it.  My snail mail
address is:
          John Rayburn
          [removed] Box 36106
          Denver, CO 80236

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 08:46:05 -0400 (EDT)
From: JSEXTON@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: OTR Vs. Television
Message-id: <01I8UB1X1RJS8WWJOD@[removed]>
Content-type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII
Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT

   I can't remember the year that I noticed that OTR was [removed] Television
was sure shining brightly in the 50's and almost everyone was watching [removed]
even had neighbors come over to watch certain [removed] as I said in my
earlier posting I still listened to OTR AND watched TV according to the
ones I loved the best.
  But the trend I gradually noticed was that stations became more attuned
to becoming "Top 40" hits stations,Country and Western music,All News
stations like KYW,and the "early" talk show stations(Remember the Long John
show? Long John Nebel was out of NYC-the first UFO and other controversial
show).As late as the early 60's I think some of the soaps,and shows
like Art Linkletter's House Party were,I think,still on.
   All the Networks still had their hourly news programs-NBC,CBS,ABC,
Mutual broadcasting,Some were on the half [removed]
   In the late 60's I think some stations still had Don McNeil's Breakfast
Club, but by the 70's everything had started to fade out.
   Has anyone remembered the year that OTR took it's greatest decline as far as
discontinued shows are concerned??  Best,John (JSEXTON@[removed])

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 07:57:03 -0500 (CDT)
From: caldwell@[removed] (Wayne Caldwell)
To: otr@[removed] (otr mailing list)
Subject: Trip to Mars
Message-Id: <[removed]@[removed]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Length:       1068

 If I were taking a trip to Mars I would have to take along the Johnny Dollar 5
parters. They are in my opinion the best OTR out there. Next I would include 
X Minus One and Suspense.
 A Friend of mine asked me to loan him a show that would get his pre-teen son
interested in OTR. I gave him a tape with X Minus One and he said his son loved
it. There is still hope for the young generation.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Wayne Caldwell        |                                  |   
  [removed] 831183        |    caldwell@[removed]    |   214-436-2724
  Richardson, Texas     |    MSGID = CWB                   |  answer machine
  75083-1183            |                                  |   
 
                   [removed]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"They say your memory is the second thing to go. But I can't remember what
 the first was."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 10:50:46 -0400 (EDT)
From: Aubrey Bullard <aubrey@[removed]>
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Mrs Calabash
Message-ID: <[removed]@[removed]>
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII

This is the story that moved on UP 3/13/66 re Mrs. Calabash. I also have an
audio tape of Durante when he made the announcement.

"UP 3/13/66.

Jimmy tells who Mrs. Calabash is.

Washington (UPI)..."Goodnight Mrs. Calabash wherever you are."

Time and time again, Jimmy Durante ended his tv shows that way. The last
joke would be told, the laughter would die down and the Great Schnozzola
would bid his special goodnight.

To Durante fans, Mrs. Calabash was a mystery. Some thought she was real,
some thought she was fictional. And Durante wasn't telling anybody.

Until this month. The 73-year-old comic picked an appearance at the National
Press Club here to tell the world about Mrs. [removed] both Mrs.
Calabashes. He pounded the piano, sang "Inka-Dinka-Do" and "Bill Bailey" and
"Say it With Love" and then turned serious.

The first Mrs. Calabash, said Jimmy, was a boardinghouse keeper in an
Illinois city. But The Mrs. Calabash Jimmy was saying goodnight to, he said,
was his wife Jeanne.

Jeanne, who died in 1943, became friends with the original Mrs. Calabash
when the Durante's stayed at her boardinghouse. And she talked about her so
much that Jimmy began calling his wife Mrs. Calabash.

Years after her death, he began closing his shows in her memory.

Why wait until now to disclose the identities of Mrs. Calabash? Jimmy just
explains that it seemed "the appropriate time" to tell."

This appeared in UPI's " World Horizons" feature.




Aubrey B.

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 15:59:54 GMT
From: rwright@[removed] (Richard Wright)
To: [removed]@[removed],
        bensmanm@[removed] (Marvin R. Bensman)
Subject: Subject: Roy Shield, Chi. Music Dir.
Message-ID: <[removed]@[removed]>

>Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 07:36:01 -0500
>From: bensmanm@[removed] (Marvin R. Bensman)
>To: [removed]@[removed]
>Subject: Roy Shield, Chi. Music Dir.

>Dear Dr. Bensman:
>
>Rich Samuels, who has a homepage on radio in Chicago, suggested that I
>write to you with the following queries.
>
>I am researching the work of composer Roy Shield (1893-1962) who was
>NBC's music director between 1931 and 1955. For most of that time he
>worked in Chicago. He conducted his orchestra in many popular variety
>programs, news programs, and plays. I am looking for recordings of his
>music; in particular, the following:

I found a reference in _The Big Broadcast_ by Frank Buxton and Bill
Owen

Author's Playhouse                                              Drama
This was a dramatic program with scripts by various writers. It was
first heard over Mutual in 1941. Wynn Wright created the show; ROY
SHIELDS and his orchestra furnished the music.

Don't know whether this is the same person being researched but it
might be.
-------------
Richard
aka rwright@[removed]

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 09:25:40 -0700 (PDT)
From: roy547@[removed] (Roy Trumbull)
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Candy Matson
Message-Id: <[removed]@[removed]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Length:        344

I believe Candy Matson - Girl Detective was produced for Mutual
Radio and may have originated at KFRC in San Francisco.
I believe the initial run was live. It was a half hour show and
one time they got the better part of the first 15 minutes out and
then something went wrong and the time was filled out with organ
music. I never did hear why.

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 96 11:51:54 -0400
From: rickh@[removed] (RICK HARTNETT)
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Leonard Martinez
Message-Id: <[removed]@[removed]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

I have just received the sad news from YUSA that Leonard Martinez has just
passed away as a result of a CVA (stroke).  Leonard was one of the
announcers on YUSA.  He did a one hour show which featured many western
shows in addition to other types of OTR shows.  I was very fortunate to meet
Leonard at the YUSA reunion this summer and was pleased to be able to count
him as a friend.  I am sure that all of you who heard him on his show agree
that he will be missed.

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 13:09:31 -0400
From: Udmacon@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: WGN Yearbooks
Message-ID: <960829130931_190401835@[removed]>

Didn't know WGN did yearbooks, but WLS sure did, from approximately 1930 to
1957. I have quite a run of them. Also have a good run of the weekly WLS
newspaper "Standby" from the mid-thirties. Anybody else collect these, and
what other stations had yearbooks?

BILL KNOWLTON, WCNY-FM, Syracuse NY

PS: Speaking of smooth announcers, anybody remember Dick Stark?! ("Camay, the
soap of beautiful [removed]") In his later years, the mid sixties, Stark
resumed his military career, as director of Public Affairs for the Marines,
at a remote outpost: 663 Fifth Avenue! I was next door as a mere Air Force
Captain in a similar capacity. 'twas fun; a chance to meet OTR-ers like Peter
Donald, Ben Grauer, Arthur Hale, and Arthur Austin (who worked on the
Toscanini NBC broadcasts) among [removed] [removed]

Aside to Bill Jacker; your e-mail address isn't [removed]

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 13:32:40 -0400
From: KWE001@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Jack Benny Log 
Message-ID: <960829133239_272386513@[removed]>

I am looking for a solid Jack Benny Log. I have one which I purchased from
Jay Hickerson about twelve years ago and it is somewhat incomplete. I found
one
on the NET but it only goes up to 1943. Does anyone have a more complete
version?

I also saw where Max Schmid mentioned that there are two WEB sites dedicated
to Jean Shepherd info. What are the addresses for those sites. I'm very
interested
in knowing what Mr. Shepherd is up to these days (is he still with us?).

Kevin Eastwood

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

Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 11:33:24 -0700
From: alvo@[removed] (Alan Voorhees)
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: OTR shows on the Internet
Message-Id: <v01530501ae4b2e7c5696@[[removed]]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
content-length: 556

[removed] I thought I was being so carefull to include everything (thanks
to those who sent me e-mail):

The URL for the eight OTR programs available on our internet site is:

               [removed]

You'll need the latest Shockwave plugin, a 68040 Mac/486 PC or better, [removed]
modem or faster net connection.

The programs currently available are: Burns & Allen Show; Jack Benny
Program; Mr. Keene, Tracer of Lost Persons; Kay Kyser's Kollege of Musical
Knowledge; Bob Hope Show; Grand Central Station; Philo Vance; Jimmy Durante
Show.




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End of [removed] Digest V96 Issue #306
*******************************************

