Subject: [removed] Digest V2005 #332
From: [removed]@[removed]
Date: 10/28/2005 2:01 PM

To: [removed]@[removed]

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

                                The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                                  Volume 2005 : Issue 332
                             A Part of the [removed]!
                                 [removed]
                                     ISSN: 1533-9289

                                     Today's Topics:

      Ruffled feathers                      [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
      Still Super, [removed]                   [ Wich2@[removed] ]
      WYXIE Wonderland                      [ "Arthur Funk" <art-funk@[removed]; ]
      New Email address Correction          [ george aust <austhaus1@[removed]; ]
      Essential" OTR Library: The Top Ten   [ "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed]; ]
      free cigarettes                       [ "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed] ]
      Hal Stone's "Bob Lynes" impression    [ Anthony Tollin <sanctumotr@earthlin ]
      Re: small cigarette packs             [ Brent Pellegrini <brentpl@rocketmai ]
      Halloween Weekend with Walden Hughes  [ BryanH362@[removed] ]
      Re: must-have books                   [ Jordan Young <jyoung@[removed]; ]
      Great Radio Heroes                    [ "Mike Hobart" <zines50@[removed]; ]
      Jean Shepherd on KYW                  [ Rutledge Mann <cliff_marsland@yahoo ]
      10-28 births/deaths                   [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
      Free cigarettes to the military       [ Herb Harrison <herbop@[removed] ]
      stuff for sale                        [ Clif Martin <martbart@[removed]; ]
      some audio and video equip            [ "Joseph" <drjoewebb@[removed]; ]
      review of OTR book                    [ "HOWARD BLUE" <khovard@[removed]; ]
      Rex Stout                             [ "kclarke5@[removed]" <kclarke5@juno. ]

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

    Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2005 18:50:01 -0400
    From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
    To: Olde Tyme Radio Digest Digest <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Ruffled feathers

    I knew that when I came out with my top ten, or is it twelve, olde
    tyme radio books I would ruffle some feathers. I have done just that.
    But, remember my disclaimer, I only listed books that I didn't
    consider reference works. Yes I know that many books can fall under
    both reference and pleasure. Jim Cox has that distinction. My
    definition of a reference work is a book that you might read once,
    and then put it back on the shelf and go back to it only if you need
    some information about a particular program. Books by DeLong, French,
    Harmon, Grams, Smith, Billips & Pierce and Dunning fall into this
    category. I put all of them in my top ten for reference works. I
    realize that I didn't explain what I view a reference work to
    be . . . my error.

    Also as others have pointed out, it is very subjective. I will never
    list an "Amos 'n' Andy" book no matter how well written, most of you
    know why. However, I am glad this caused a little dialog.

    Ron Sayles
    Milwaukee, Wisconsin (The 7th poorest city in the nation).

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

    Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2005 20:00:58 -0400
    From: Wich2@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Still Super, [removed]
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    From: Charlie Summers _charlie@[removed]_ (mailto:charlie@[removed])

>     Is it possible  _all_ of the memories of this are faulty,
>     and the "embarassment" Kennedy  caused the Klan and its leadership through
>     the
>     "Adventures of Superman" radio  series is nothing more than folklore, or at
>     least exaggeration based on faded  memory?

    Dear Charlie, & all Supermen (& Superwomen) of America-

    Yes - that is entirely possible.

    I've heard the story arcs referenced, and they are INCREDIBLY powerful. To
    have such an unflinching expose of human stupidity, in what was basically a
    children's show, is heady stuff.

    And, at a pivotal time: the immediate Post War, just after the defeat of
    world Fascism, was a real opportunity for growth - much like the immediate
    Reconstruction Era in the [removed] Alas, in both cases, human weakness got ahead
    of
    the curve, and the initiative was lost.

    But as to the "secret details" legend, it may VERY WELL be just that. Far
    from the first time that a pop-culture Truth was discovered to be founded  in
    sand. Such covers have even been blown in these esteemed pages.

    Best,
    -Craig

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

    Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2005 21:32:46 -0400
    From: "Arthur Funk" <art-funk@[removed];
    To: "OTR Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  WYXIE Wonderland

    In OTR Digest #331 Martin Grams mentioned that he'd been unable to help
    someone find a copy for sale.  A search on [removed] yielded four
    copies available for purchase ranging from $150 to $200.  Yikes!

    Regards to all,
    Art Funk

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

    Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2005 22:37:00 -0400
    From: george aust <austhaus1@[removed];
    To: OTR Digest <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  New Email address Correction

    When I concluded my post on digest #330 I put my new email address. Well
    I'm a creature of habit ! I wrote my old address. My new address is ...
    austhaus1@[removed]
    Sorry for any inconvenience.

    George Aust

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

    Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2005 22:37:32 -0400
    From: "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Essential" OTR Library: The Top Ten

    Jack French made a very astute observation on this subject when he said "
    an "essential" library depends on whether you are 1) a researcher,
    historian, or serious collector, or 2) an OTR fan who likes to read about
    your favorite shows."  While he guessed that Ron Sayles was in the latter
    category, I am sure that he and most of you would guess that I am in the
    former category.  Although I try to keep up with the new books and have
    most of the ones that have been mentioned in this thread, I tend to
    gravitate towards things that were written first-hand and often published
    during the OTR era.  (I hesitate to mention this since statements published
    in several books in this category have been trashed recently by my pal
    Jughead, but I do generally find fewer factual errors in those books and
    newer books that research from primary sources rather than from other
    secondary sources.)

    To start off, you need the trio of books by Eric Barnouw, "A Tower In
    Babel," "The Golden Web," and "The Image Empire."  I don't agree with all
    of his interpretations of the facts, but it is well footnoted so it is
    often possible to go back to the original source he used and make your own
    re-interpretation.  In short, I use these books more as an index and
    finding aid to primary sources.

    You also need "Stay Tuned" by Chris Sterling and John "Mike" Kittross, the
    best one volume history of broadcasting.  There are three editions, and the
    first two are probably not very expensive.  I like their layout better than
    the current edition, but the new one is updated with some new research, but
    also info on the newer years which are not of OTR interest, of course.  A
    less detailed book is "The Broadcast Century: A Biography of American
    Broadcasting" by Robert L. Hilliard and Michael C. Keith.

    Everyone should have the pictorial histories, starting with "A Pictorial
    History of Radio" by Irving Settle.  There are two editions, the first was
    published in 1960 so the second edition has an added chapter on the 1960s.
    (Settle also did a volume on TV, but the best TV pictorial history is
    Daniel Blum's 1958 epic, both with the same title "A Pictorial History of
    Television.")   Another pictorial history, mostly of radio,  with a lot of
    copy is "Cavalcade of Broadcasting" by Curtis Mitchell from 1970.  The most
    recent one is "Blast from the Past--A Pictorial History of Radio's First 75
    Years" by B. Eric Rhoads.  I don't have it at hand, but I remember there
    being some rather obvious bloopers in the captions.  Rhodes was editor of a
    trade press magazine "Radio Ink" and the special July 10-23, 1995 issue for
    radio's 75th anniversary published at the same time as the book has some
    great pictures and articles.  "Broadcasting & Cable" also had a special
    issue on Nov 6, 1995, but the issue of "Broadcasting" that is really
    important is the one for the magazine's 50th anniversary in October 1981
    because it includes a listing of the major point in every issue of the
    magazine -- a great basic index to the magazine and broadcasting history.

    Some of the greatest book primary sources is the pair of books published in
    the 1930s by Gleason L. Archer, "A History of Broadcasting to 1926," and
    "Big Business and Radio" which is really his history of radio 1926 to 1936.
    He used the NBC interoffice memo files for a lot of the second book and had
    access to those files before they were culled by NBC in the 1960s.  What is
    left is now at the Library of Congress and is a great resource.   Frances
    Chase Jr.'s 1942 "Sound and Fury: An Informal History of Radio" is less
    scholarly but very informative and authorative.

    The best book that tells you how radio was when the networks were being
    born is THE first textbook about commercial radio "Using Radio in Sales
    Promotions" by Edgar H. Felix from 1927.  I cherish this book and the fact
    that I got to meet and interview Felix late in his life.  Prior to this
    book he had been the publicist for WEAF, and at the time of the book he was
    editor of Radio Broadcast magazine.  This book is the treasure of what most
    of you might call the "pre-OTR" era and contains pictures seen nowhere else.

    "Broadcast Advertising" by ___ Arnold from 1930 has many complete early
    network radio scripts reprinted in the last third of the book.  There are
    some script excerpts, including a long routine from Eddie Cantor's April 8,
    1934 program in "So-o-o-o You're Going On the Air" by Robert West.  This
    book tells you how you can break into radio -- in 1934, of course.

    And the newest books about the earliest era of radio MUST be in every
    librory: "Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio" by Tom Lewis, and
    "Inventing American Broadcasting : 1899-1922" by Susan J. Douglas.

    A few more than ten, but you're not going to find some of them that quickly
    anyway.

    Michael Biel   mbiel@[removed]

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

    Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2005 22:37:46 -0400
    From: "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed];
    To: "Old Time Radio Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  free cigarettes

    Yes, I recall the little boxes of free cigarettes being given away at the
    campus snack bar (NSTC, 1952 etc.).  My ex wife got her start smoking by
    accepting the freebies.  She died a few years ago of lung cancer.  Pretty
    sneaky trick to get young people started smoking.

    Ted Kneebone.  OTR website:  [removed]
    Democrats: [removed]
    1528 S. Grant St., Aberdeen, SD 57401 / Phone: 605-226-3344

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

    Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2005 22:41:49 -0400
    From: Anthony Tollin <sanctumotr@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Hal Stone's "Bob Lynes" impression

    on 10/24/05 10:19 PM, "Jim Cox" <otrbuff@[removed]; wrote:

>      Mom, whom Tonto (Hal Stone) kept referring to as
>     "Mrs. Kemosaby," lectured her son about the need to "find a permanent job"
>     and observed:  "I bet you've never had a date in your life!"  She urged him
>     to marry a girl and live "a normal life."

    ***Yes, and it was yet another example of Hal Stone's amazing versatility.
    He was doing his famous Bob Lynes imitation throughout his performance as
    Tonto. (Those who attended my Sunday Morning panel will understand.)
    --Anthony Tollin***

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 00:20:58 -0400
    From: Brent Pellegrini <brentpl@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Re: small cigarette packs

    -I've got a bunch of those little cigarette packs. I think they came in the
    mail

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 08:19:29 -0400
    From: BryanH362@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Halloween Weekend with Walden Hughes
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    Heard  Friday , Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 pm Pacific Time.  With a special
    Halloween
    program produced by REPS ( The Radio Enthusiasts of Puget Sound
    [removed])
    heard Monday 6pm-1:30 am Pacific Time.   Live streaming at
    [removed] .

    Friday 10-28-05

    A.  Classic Interview:  Frank Bresee interviews Rudy Vallee.

    B.  OTR programs heard throughout the evening.

    Saturday 10-29-05

    A.  Vintage interview program: Dick Bertel and Ed Corcoran interview Parker
    Fenelly who played Titus Moody on Fred Allen.

    B.  Stu Weiss  a new friend Walden met at  FOTR . Walden will feature an
    interview from
                  Stu Weiss' archives.

    C.  OTR like Fibber  McGee and Molly , Gildersleeve, Phil Harris, Our  Miss
    Brooks, and Information Please will follow ..

    D.  Same Time Same Station Halloween special

    Sunday 10-30-05

    A.  Laura Leff presents  Jack Benny of 10-28-45.

    B.  Bill Bragg hosts Michael Biel's .

    C.  Mercury Theater 10-30-38 and interview with Orson Welles

    Monday 10-31-05

    REPS present a 7 hour Halloween special starting at 9 PM Eastern time.
     15 Halloween OTR programs to be featured . Mostly thriller ,  horror and
    suspense
    with some classic comedies.

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 08:20:50 -0400
    From: Jordan Young <jyoung@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Re: must-have books

>     There's one I just came across, that is a must have as well. It's entitled
>     The Laugh [removed] It really gives you an insight into what went
>     on behind the scenes, and how those
>     guys got to be so funny in the first place.

>     Mike

    Pleased to meet you and thanks for the unsolicited review, Mike. It
    makes a pretty good birthday present. It was a joy to interview those
    old comedy writers, guys like Parke Levy, who knew he was dying but
    was happy to talk about what it was like to work with Jack Pearl and
    Joe Penner in the very early [removed] Sherwood Schwartz about Armed
    Forces [removed] Bob Weiskopf about Fred [removed] and so many more.
    Contact me off list if you're interested in a copy.

    Jordan R. Young

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 08:21:01 -0400
    From: "Mike Hobart" <zines50@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Great Radio Heroes

    At the risk of repetition of previous contributors, I too salute Jim
    Harmon's books The Great Radio Heroes.

    It was the first book I ever saw about radio.  I think I bought a copy in
    1969 from legendary Melbourne bookseller Mervyn Binns -   for 95 cents I
    notice (I still have it of course).

    It was utterly fascinating and like many others I thought "What a shame I'll
    never actually get a chance to listen to any of these [removed]"

    Little did I know.

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 08:21:29 -0400
    From: Rutledge Mann <cliff_marsland@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Jean Shepherd on KYW

    In response to last week's request for Jean Shepherd
    Cinci shows, I have come across none yet, but I did
    come across one 6:48 fragment of his KYW show - he
    talks about Vic & Sade.  I came across it while
    transferring Vic and Sade off an old reel from "Golden
    Age Radio" from St. Louis.  A dealer of the past, I
    suppose.

    The FOTR Convention sounded like such fun - I wish I
    could have made it.

    *Don't forget Martin Grams' "ILAM Companion" as part
    of ones' indispensible OTR bookshelf!

    Trav

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 08:22:11 -0400
    From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
    To: Olde Tyme Radio List <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  10-28 births/deaths

    October 28th births

    10-28-1886 - Ruth Gates - Denton, TX - d. 5-23-1966
    actress: Mrs Lenord "Amanda of Honeymoon Hill"
    10-28-1895 - Herb Butterfield - Rhode Island - d. 5-2-1957
    actor: Clarence Wellman "Halls of Ivy"; Hunter Glenn "One Man's Family"
    10-28-1895 - John Boles - Greenville, TX - d. 2-27-1969
    actor, singer: "Texaco Star Theatre"
    10-28-1896 - Howard Hanson - Wahoo, NE - d. 2-26-1981
    conductor, composer: "New York Philharmonic"; "ASCAP World's Fair Concert"
    10-28-1897 - Edith Head - San Bernardino, CA - d. 10-24-1981
    costume designer: Intermission Guest "Lux Radio Theatre"
    10-28-1902 - Elsa Lanchester - Lewisham, England - d. 12-26-1986
    actress: "Arch Oboler's Plays"; "Columbia Presents Corwin"; "Everyman's
    Theatre"
    10-28-1905 - Ed Thorgerson - Wisconsin - d. 8-xx-1985
    sports announcer
    10-28-1906 - Lou Bring - d. 7-15-1951
    orchestra leader: "The Al Jolson Show"; "The Gracie Fields Show"
    10-28-1913 - Ruth Peterson - Wauwatosa, WI - d. 2-2-1985
    actress: Linda Carroll "Hawthorne House"
    10-28-1917 - Ron Rawson - d. 7-18-1994
    announcer: "Right to Happiness"; "Advs. of Topper"; "Advs. of the Thin Man"
    10-28-1934 - Johnny Western - Two Harbors, MN
    singer, actor, songwriter: (Ballad of Paladin) Daily show on KFDI Wichita, KS

    October 28th deaths

    01-26-1914 - Jack de Manio - Hampstead, England - d. 10-28-1988
    announcer: "Today"; "Jack de Manio Precisely"; "Woman's Hour"
    02-22-1891 - George Jeske - Utah - d. 10-28-1951
    writer: "Truth or Consequences"
    04-01-1917 - Leon Janney - Ogden, UT - d. 10-28-1980
    actor: Danny Stratford "Life of Mary Sothern"; Richard Parker "Parker Family"
    07-27-1918 - Veola Vonn - New York, NY - d. 10-28-1995
    actress: Dimples Wilson "Blondie"; Princess Nadji "Chandu the Magician"
    08-29-1913 - Sylvia Fine - New York, NY - d. 10-28-1991
    writer: (Wife of Danny Kaye) "Danny Kaye Show"; "Forecast"; "Bud's Bandwagon"
    09-16-1919 - Larry Dobkin - New York, NY - d. 10-28-2002
    actor: Archie Goodwin "Advs. of Nero Wolfe"; Ellery Queen "Advs. of Ellery
    Queen"
    09-17-1907 - Alice Yourman - d. 10-28-2000
    actress: Mary Andrews "Archie Andrews"; [removed] Aldrich "Aldrich Family"
    10-06-1899 - Mitchell Leisen - Menominee, MI - d. 10-28-1972
    director: Lux Radio Theatre
    11-02-1892 - Alice Brady - New York, NY - d. 10-28-1939
    actress: "Hollywood Hotel"
    --
    Ron Sayles
    Milwaukee, Wisconsin

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 08:23:16 -0400
    From: Herb Harrison <herbop@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Free cigarettes to the military

    When I was a US Army cook stationed in Germany from 1963-1965, one of our
    periodic "mandatory menus" was to serve surplus C-Ration meals to the
    troops in our battalion mess hall. We'd open a bunch of cases of meals and
    prepare a serving line of their contents:
    Canned bread (opened/sliced)
    Canned main entrees (assorted/heated)
    Canned side items (assorted/heated as needed)
    Condiments (salt, pepper, etc.)
    Miscellaneous (toilet paper packets, etc.)
    Cigarettes -
    	We usually dumped these packs (10/pack, I think) in a large bin at
    the end
    of the line, no quantities limited.
    Some soldiers loved them because they were free - a big benefit when we
    were paid around $90-$120/month.
    Some soldiers liked to try out brands they hadn't smoked before. (In some
    cases they wouldn't smoke them again, either: The C-Rations had been packed
    in the late '40s or '50s, so brands like Wings or Fatima were long gone.)
    Some soldiers refused to smoke "stale stuff" and bought their cigarettes at
    the PX for around $2 per carton for American brands.

    Most soldiers smoked, and there was no such thing as "no smoking areas". We
    grew up watching WWII movies in which the wounded soldier/airman/sailor
    always asked for a last cigarette before he died. When the chaplain took
    the lit cigarette from the victim's lips, we knew he was dead.
    As far as OTR is concerned, many of us in the early 60s would have been
    listening to shows like Dragnet in our civilian lives. Friday and the other
    cops and the malefactors were always smoking up a storm!

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 11:05:45 -0400
    From: Clif Martin <martbart@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  stuff for sale

    I want to unload my precious OTR and nostalgia book collection before I go to
    that great studio A in the sky and my kids trash it.  It includes the
    original Great Radio Heroes, two
    Breakfast Club books, CKLW souvenir book from 1941, WJR 50th anniversary book
    and record, picture of the Hermit and cast, 1922 Book about WWJ, Fred Allen's
    Treadmill to Oblivion,Steve Allen's Bigger than a breadbox, sheet music with
    Marian and Jim Jordan on the cover, before F and M, Mary Jane Higbys Tune in
    tomorrow  ... and lots more.  I have not yet priced  it.  Would prefer to
    sell the whole package but I will send a four or five page list as a Word
    document to anyone who is interested in all or part.  Clifsr71@[removed]

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 11:16:57 -0400
    From: "Joseph" <drjoewebb@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  some audio and video equip

    i have the following available for free, for anyone interested who will just
    pay shipping cost ($10, or $15 for both)... i'm cleaning out!

    1) Numark DM-500 stereo audio mixer (2 channels that are for either phono or
    line, 1 mic channel).
    2) Sony Video Enhancer XV-3000W (phase correct and adjust sharpness, noise
    clip for video)

    Please let me know ASAP. I got them in the late '80s.

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 15:48:29 -0400
    From: "HOWARD BLUE" <khovard@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  review of OTR book

     I am pleased to announce that my book WORDS AT WAR (Scarecrow Press, 2002)
    continues to receive positive reviews.  In The Journal of Cold War Studies
    (Fall 2005) Prof. Andrew J. Falk of Christopher Newport University writes
    about WORDS AT WAR (which he calls a  "thought provoking book") "Howard Blue
    has written a book full of anecdotes to satisfy old-time radio enthusiasts,
    but also has provided a valuable resource suitable for media scholars. . .
    Perhaps the greatest strengths of the book derive from the impressive
    compilation of interviews and use of rich archival collections. . . the book
    is noteworthy for its fine use of new sources, . . . . Howard Blue

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

    Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2005 15:48:47 -0400
    From: "kclarke5@[removed]" <kclarke5@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Rex Stout
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           On the most recent mailing list, I noticed the name of Rex Stout
    listed
    on the births/deaths list.  His credits listed him as the creator of Rex
    Stout.
    I'm a bit [removed]'t the creator of Nero Wolfe?  Am I mistaken?

    Another OTR Fan,

    Kenneth Clarke

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    --------------------------------
    End of [removed] Digest V2005 Issue #332
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