Subject: [removed] Digest V2004 #92
From: <[removed]@[removed]>
Date: 3/13/2004 8:21 AM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2004 : Issue 92
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                             [removed]
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  ADMINISTRIVIA: New [removed]         [ Charlie Summers <charlie@[removed] ]
  Rupert Holmes Citings                 [ seandd@[removed] ]
  Re: Feuds                             [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
  Jack Benny could have been referred   [ Jer51473@[removed] ]
  Named after Colman                    [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
  Re: "King for a Day"--The Musical     [ "Michael J. Hayde" <michaelhayde@ea ]
  Joel Rapp's new book                  [ benohmart@[removed] ]
  Re: Rocket Radio                      [ Shenbarger@[removed] ]
  Have Gun, Will Travel                 [ William Brooks <webiii@[removed]; ]
  Cincinnati Convention                 [ "Bob Burchett" <haradio@[removed] ]
  The ultimate answer on the Benny-All  [ JackBenny@[removed] ]
  New Audio Drama - involving kids, hu  [ Dino <pangier@[removed]; ]
  Rocket Radio                          [ "Stephen A Kallis, Jr." <skallisjr@ ]
  Charlie McCarthy                      [ "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyro ]
  Re: Archie Andrews answers???         [ hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed]; ]
  LS/MFT                                [ wilditralian@[removed] ]

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 16:56:01 -0500
From: Charlie Summers <charlie@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  ADMINISTRIVIA: New [removed]

Folks;

   Just a note that I've started a new website, after receiving some pressure
from some folks both on and off the list. It's a place for my personal
comments, lengthy administrivia, news from around the Internet, and anything
else you or I think should be there.

[removed]

   I hope you'll visit and read the "welcome" post, and maybe even subscribe
to the RSS feed to track hedlines as they are added.

         Charlie

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 16:54:10 -0500
From: seandd@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Rupert Holmes Citings

OTR Fan Favorite Rupert Holmes has a new show out - with some reviews coming
up.  Cross your fingers and hope we'll be able to ask him about these as well
as Remember WENN at next year's FOTR -

Sean Dougherty
SeanDD@[removed]

PERFORMANCE/THEATER
Oregonian - Portland,OR,USA
"Accomplice": Part murder mystery and part sex farce, Lakewood Theatre
Company's latest entertainment comes from Rupert Holmes, the amusing creator
of "Escape ...
<[removed]
[removed];

FROM Hollywood to Lakewood Alan Shearman leaves LA hustle for a ...
Oregonian - Portland,OR,USA
... But the first run-through of Rupert Holmes' play, billed as "a hysterical
murder mystery . . . an adult comedy thriller," went remarkably smoothly.
...
<[removed]
est_[removed];

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 17:30:26 -0500
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Re: Feuds

On 3/12/04 4:54 PM [removed]@[removed] wrote:

    I've often wondered about the famous (infamous?)
feud between Jack Benny and Fred Allen.  Was there an
actual feud between the two or was this just an ongoing
ploy to provide the two with heightened ratings? Was
the answer to this questions ever REALLY known?

Purely a gimmick. Allen knew all about the publicity value of such things
from his days in vaudeville, where fake feuds were commonly conducted
thru ongoing series of comedic ads in trade magazines. Allen himself had
engaged in such a feud in the late 1910s with a smalltime comic named
Harry LaToy, who had been a mentor of his in Boston only to help himself
to Allen's "World's Worst Juggler" slogan, and the tone of the ads that
he ran during this period ("X-Rays Reveal Not an Original Bone in LaToy's
Body") clearly anticipate the sorts of jibes that would be exchanged
during the Benny feud.

Allen and Benny were friends in real life, but not especially *close*
friends. Even during the years when they both lived in New York, they
tended to move in different circles: Allen's close friends tended to be
newspaper people like Alton Cook, H. Allen Smith, and Al Hirschfeld, and
with the exception of fellow New Englanders like Uncle Jim Harkins, Jack
Haley and Doc Rockwell, he didn't generally like to spend much time with
other show-business people.

Elizabeth

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 17:51:39 -0500
From: Jer51473@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Jack Benny could have been referred to as----
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Mr. Radio, along with several others, but Milton Berle was the only Mr.
Television and sold more tvs than any other star- end of controversy. I was
born in
1936 and was an avid radio listener, but i had never heard of Berle until
about 1947 when it seemed everyone wanted a tv to watch the Texaco show
starring
Milton. As big as Benny, Allen, Hope, and Crosby were on radio, it was Berle
that dominated on tv. It really wasnt even close as he got a big jump on them
and became the publics favorite tv star even though his success on radio had
only been moderate at the most.

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Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 18:30:46 -0500
From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Named after Colman

Irene Heinstein wrote:

I too am a big Colman fan and love their appearances with Jack Benny as well
as on The Halls of Ivy.

I am not only a Ronald Colman fan, I was named after him. When I was born
(1936) my mother was a huge Ronald Colman fan. She thought it just natural
that she should name me Ronald. And I am glad she did. As it turned out I
became a huge fan of Ronald Colman myself.

Ronald Col . . . er Sayles

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 18:31:15 -0500
From: "Michael J. Hayde" <michaelhayde@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: "King for a Day"--The Musical

Derek Tague, "that funny ether man," wrote:

With all this talk about Fred Allen, Jack Benny, and "King for a Day," I'm
reminded that there's a song from the OTR era also called "King for a Day."
Unfortunately, the only context with which I know it is its use in several
Warner Bros. cartoons. <snip>  As always, I defer to everybody's favourite
OTR-cum-animation historian Michael "Mr. Dragnet" Hayde.

Yeesh.  As a certain animated (and OTR) sailor would say: "How embarraskin!"
The song dates back to at least 1928, composed by Ted Fiorito.  I remember it
from the Bugs Bunny, but not the Daffy Duck cartoon; certainly some of the
crooners of the era covered it.

BTW, since we're talkin' Warner Bros. animation - and its trove of OTR
references - Warner Home Video will be releasing another 4-DVD "Looney Tunes
Golden Collection" set later this year.  No financial interest here - just a
heads-up from a deliriously happy customer of the first set.

Michael

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 18:52:41 -0500
From: benohmart@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Joel Rapp's new book

Bickersons fans might be interested to know that I've just put out Joel Rapp's
autobiography. He is the son of Bickersons creator Phil Rapp, and did a ton
of writing
on his own (Gilligan's Island, McHale's Navy, etc.). He also talks a bit
about Fannie
Brice (his godmother) and growing up with The Bickersons and radio. You can
find
more info about it at [removed]

Thanks for readin'!

Ben Ohmart

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 19:30:07 -0500
From: Shenbarger@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: Rocket Radio
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In a message dated 3/12/2004 JIM HARMON wrote:

Much later, as a teen ager or even in my early twenties I had a pocket
rocketship radio that operated on a crystal inside, came with a modern
earphone that fit in your ear like a hearing aid.

I have a modern version purchased from the local Cracker Barrel. It works
fine and gets two to four stations in my location about 60 miles southwest of
Chicago without stringing the antenna. The cost was $7.

The brand name is DaMert and they have a web site with the thing shown, but
apparently sell wholesale only. The radio is cute and includes a spool of wire
for an antenna and a prewired antenna lead with an alligator clip. It is the
type of crystal set that has a diode in a glass bead, not the type with a
fussy
cat whisker. I have it connected to the computer desk frame and get two
stations. I see at least two other models from other suppliers, they may not
all be
created equal. None of the present radios I found are a genuine copy of the
original--they all have something different about the rocket ship part. The
one
I have has no fins on the rocket, the others I see have fins.

=[removed]
Scroll right about 60% of the page width.

Don Shenbarger

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Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 19:30:31 -0500
From: William Brooks <webiii@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Have Gun, Will Travel

Now here's a curious thought. I wonder if there could be a connection?

Hey Boy was frequently at odds with a member of his "Tong" by the
name of Hop Sing. In one episode of Have Gun, Hey Boy is the victim
of an assault by Hop Sing. Then we hear in a later episode that Hop
Sing has left San Francisco and moved to Virginia City. The series
Have Gun, Will Travel takes place in 1875.

Now we shift gears to Bonanza on TV. What was the name of the Chinese
cook for the Cartwrights'. You got it, it was Hop Sing.

The Bonanza show was set in and around Virginia City, and the time
frame appears to be about 1875. Any connection?----I wonder.

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 21:55:00 -0500
From: "Bob Burchett" <haradio@[removed];
To: "[removed]" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Cincinnati Convention
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 This is info that I got from The Best Western Hotel about making
you reservations after Charlie couldn't get the kind of room he wanted.
Have no idea what he wanted.
We will add this info next year to our convention mailer. If you don't
have a computer or a fax machine you can call their local number
not the 800 number. There are still room available. Be sure and
mention the convention and our "block of rooms".
Bob Burchett

We could also take reservations at our email address:
bestwesternspringdale@[removed]<about:blank> and/or reservations could be
faxed to us at 513-671-6600.  If reservations are faxed or emailed to us they
are handled by our front office manager who is very knowledgeable and
experienced with the handling of group block reservations.

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 22:01:50 -0500
From: JackBenny@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  The ultimate answer on the Benny-Allen Feud

Kenneth Clarke writes:

I've often wondered about the famous (infamous?)
feud between Jack Benny and Fred Allen.  Was there an
actual feud between the two or was this just an ongoing
ploy to provide the two with heightened ratings? Was
the answer to this questions ever REALLY known?

Here's the REAL answer:  there was no actual feud between the two men
off-mike.  In fact, they had a deep and abiding respect and affection for
each other.
 I wouldn't even call it an ongoing ploy for heightened ratings.  As with so
many things in the Benny show, it happened to happen, the audience liked it,
so they kept it.  Fred made a minor comment about Jack's violin playing after
Stuart Canin played "The Bee" on his show, Jack answered it briefly at the end
of his next show, so Fred threw barbs and Jack responded, and it went from
there.  The two didn't even talk to each other for the first several weeks of
the
feud, so there was no covert plot of "Hey, let's have a feud."  Besides, Jack
was so far up in the ratings that he really didn't need help.  Allen, on the
other hand, was still in the top 10 or so, but later commented that he had
"Hitched [his] gaggin' to a star" by starting the feud with Jack.

I recently relistnened to my recording of Jack's comments very shortly after
Fred's death, and Jack sounds like he's on the verge of tears the whole time.
It's powerful and moving, not so much for Jack's unscripted comments, but for
the intense emotion and grief in his voice.  If you ever, ever doubt whether
the feud was real or not, listen to that recording.  It's all you need to know.

--Laura Leff
President, IJBFC
[removed]

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

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 22:01:57 -0500
From: Dino <pangier@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  New Audio Drama - involving kids, humor and
 horror.

Hello everyone,

I just finished recording an audio drama and wanted to know if there was a
direction I could be following to get it heard and in some sort of
mainstream listening pool.

It's 40 minutes long and called "The Wonder Fears"

The whole story is based from a perspective of a child of 9-13 years old -
much like the TV show, "The Wonder Years". At a time when monsters and
scary situations are far too real. It is my belief that the reason most
horror movies have lost their realism is because they have adults dealing
with the situations. When you incorporate the innocence of a child in the
mix, it brings on a whole new perspective.

Here is a link to the site where I placed the entire project:
[removed]

If you want to listen to a short snippet of the show, click here:
[removed]

Anyway, I was just curious if any of you had any suggestions of where I
could go from here.

Thanks in advance for your time,

-Dino

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

Date: Sat, 13 Mar 2004 00:37:11 -0500
From: "Stephen A Kallis, Jr." <skallisjr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Rocket Radio
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After reading the entry on the lack of receptivity of the Rocket Radio
crystal set, I was surfing eBay, and came across this interesting entry:

I hooked the radio up to the antenna and put the earphone in my ear
then tried to tune in a station and I received nothing,needless to say I
was very [removed] I remembered how well my homemade crystal
radio worked and noticed that the brand new Crystal Rocket Radio that I
had just received in the mail only had one connector that you were
supposed to hook to the [removed] thought back to the homemade radio and
remembered that it was connected to a antenna and a ground(two
connectors),well the wheels started turning in my head and I decided to
add a grounding circuit to my brand new Crystal Rocket [removed] what a
difference,I could pick up 3 stations in the middle of the day of which
the closest is KMJ 580 Fresno(I live in Mariposa)and it is more than 65
miles away from where I [removed] same night I was able to listen to
radio stations hundreds of miles [removed];<

Apparently, the existing Rocket Radios can be "fixed" to greater
receptivity.

Stephen A. Kallis, Jr.

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

Date: Sat, 13 Mar 2004 01:13:59 -0500
From: "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Charlie McCarthy

Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 09:38:53 -0500
From: George Aust <austhaus1@[removed];

Anyway I don't know how old I was when I found out that Charlie was a
puppet, but I remember the initial disbelief. After all he had to be
real because he had a voice and spoke just like all those other real
people on the radio! Plus he had a great personality. 

You would love the Jack Benny TV show where Jack visits Edgar Bergen's home, and 
Charlie McCarthy walks into the room and talks with Mrs. Bergen.  Then Mortimer Snerd 
comes in the same way.  Jack is flabbergasted!  They apparently got either children or 
midgets and made them up to look like Charlie and Motimer.  

-- A. Joseph Ross, [removed] [removed] 15 Court Square, Suite 210 lawyer@[removed] Boston, MA 02108-2503 [removed] ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 13 Mar 2004 10:10:16 -0500 From: hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Re: Archie Andrews answers??? William Schell just posted;
I just fnished reading and enjoying Harlan Stone's book [removed], Archie!
Re-laxx!  It left me with a couple of questions.  Perhaps they were covered
and I am having a "senior moment".

Your lucky you are only having "senior moments" Bill. I'm now into the
"senior MONTHS" phase of my life.

Anyway,  When was the last broadcast of the  Archie Andrews Show?

Duh?

Was the final show announced as the end of the series ?

Double "Duh"?

What brought about the end, TV, lack of sponsors ? Maybe Hal Stone will read
this and provide me the answers.

Well, Hal Stone did read this, but as to providing answers, does 1 out of 3
restore a little of my credibility? I can only answer the third question,
Bill, with any semblance of accuracy.

As to the first question, I believe the last program was broadcast in mid to
late 1953. I had recently been discharged from the Air Force, got the part
back from Arnold Stang (who replaced me when I was sent overseas for a
year), and only played "Jughead" again for a few months until the show went
off the air. I was 23 years old by then, attending college at the time, and
was more engrossed on my studies, gearing up for the football season, and
the "New" career path I had chosen (TV Director), so I really wasn't focused
on the show going off the air. Incidentally, maybe Jay Hickerson can weigh
in this question. Jay has compiled extensive Broadcast logs for all the
major radio programs, and he probably has the dates listed.

As to question #2 about any final announcement, I don't recall. But it's
possible, and quite likely that NBC had to make some kind of announcement. A
major consideration probably had to do with audience "Ticket Requests". The
NBC executives (Sales and Programming) made the decision to pull the plug
based on many factors, (see below) but couldn't just stop abruptly. Once the
decision was made, NBC stopped honoring ticket requests for the broadcasts,
probably sending out a form letter apologizing for the fact that tickets
would no longer be available, and once those tickets already issued for
future shows had been used up, the show ceased to exist.

Bill, you hit the nail right on the head as to what brought about the end
after 9/10 years. It was a combination of the impact of TV, lack of
Sponsorship, AND, ever increasing costs to produce the program. Keep in mind
that after a 10 year run, talent fees for the 6 main characters kept
increasing every contract renewal period. So, as "Stars" of the show we were
no longer receiving minimum "scale" talent fee payments based on Union
guidelines for "sustaining" non commercial daytime programs. And I'm sure
the writer, Carl Jampel, had the same situation, and was getting more money
per episode. And I'm sure the Contract that NBC had with "Archie Comics
Publications" to pay for the "rights" to use the Characters for a radio show
had escalation clauses as well. We had been un-sponsored for about 2 years
after "Kraft", and new sponsors were hard to find, since by that time, most
advertisers realized that TV was the best place to put their advertising
dollars.

Added to that was another factor that I just recalled, (thanks to your
inquiring mind.) Our show, for most of it's run, was usually broadcast out
of Studio 6A, one of NBC's two major studios normally used to accommodate a
fairly large audience. (Not counting studio 8H, which at that time was the
largest "audience" studio ever built just for radio broadcasting.) Across
the hall from 6A was the identical companion studio 6B. At the time in
question, NBC had already converted 6B into a TV Studio, and I think that
Steve Allen's TV show was being broadcast from there. NBC undoubtedly had
plans to do the same renovation for our studio. All very costly to NBC, and
the cancellation of the "Archie" show was just an economic decision, plain
and simple, that was caused by the advent of TV broadcasting.

I have absolutely no recall as to what radio program replaced our show in
that Saturday morning time slot. Something obviously had to fill that air
time. But I'll bet the farm that if was a lot less costly for NBC to
produce. And my guess is that our competition on TV for that same time
period was probably old cartoons, like "Popeye". Or "Felix the cat". As for
[removed] I got to sleep in on Saturday Mornings for a change. For the first
time in 10 years. :)

I'm glad you enjoyed reading my book. It's nice to know that I've kept the
faith with OTR fans and they are enjoying an inside look at what performing
on radio was like back in those days, and the experiences I had (mostly
enjoyable) growing up in the crazy world of Show Business.

Wow, I didn't realize I dragged this answer out to such an extent. To all
who purchased the book, you can consider this the "missing" chapter that I
should have written. For those who missed out on all the other chapters,
there are still a few books available. :)

If interested, for ordering information, just go [removed]

[removed]

Hal(Harlan)Stone
"Jughead"

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

Date: Sat, 13 Mar 2004 10:11:53 -0500
From: wilditralian@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  LS/MFT

13 MAR 04

Good morning, all ---

	Harry Machin Jr writes that he would like to know the meaning of the
acronymic slogan, "LS/MFT".  It was the slogan of for Lucky Strike
cigarettes for a while.  It meant, "Lucky Strike Means Fine Tobacco".  I
remember hearing it on the Jack Benny Program in the early 50's.

Best regards,

Jim Arva

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2004 Issue #92
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