Subject: [removed] Digest V2002 #502
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 12/24/2002 7:33 AM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2002 : Issue 502
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  The Two Types of Radio Premium        [ "Thomas Mason" <batz34@[removed] ]
  OTR Raymond Chandler                  [ Kenneth Clarke <kclarke5@[removed]; ]
  Re: Red and Blue                      [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
  calendars                             [ "Roby McHone" <otr_alaska@[removed] ]
  Merry Christmas                       [ ericandsusie@[removed] ]
  NBCs Blue Network Audience            [ Bill Harris <radioguy@[removed] ]
  Re: Struts and Frets: On Writers      [ Jordan Young <jyoung@[removed]; ]
  TV Guide remembers Parley Baer        [ jhcollins@[removed] ]
  Today in radio history                [ Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed] ]

______________________________________________________________________

    ADMINISTRIVIA:

We take pleasure in answering at once and thus prominently the
communication below, expressing at the same time our great
gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends
of The Sun: 

Dear Editor, I am 8 years old.
Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. 
Papa says "If you see it in The Sun it's so."
Please tell me the truth. Is there a Santa Claus?
         Virginia O'Hanlon
         115 West Ninety-fifth St.


VIRGINIA, Your little friends are wrong. They have been affected
by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except
they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible
by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or
children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere
insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world
about him, as measured by the intelligence of grasping the whole of
truth and knowledge 

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love
and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and
give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would
be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as
if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then,
no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should
have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with
which childhood fills the world would be extinguished. 

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies!
You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on
Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa
Claus coming down what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus but
that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things
in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you
ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no
proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the
wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world. 

You tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside,
but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest
man, not even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever
lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance,
can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty
and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world
there is nothing else real and abiding. 

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand
years from now, Virginia, nay ten times ten thousand years from now,
he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood. 

   -- Editorial page of the New York Sun, September 21, 1897


>From our entire family to yours; Annie, Katie (who knows perfectly well
there _is_ a Santa Claus, because she kissed him - 
[removed] ), and yours truly;
no matter what you are celebrating at this truly amazing time of the year,
Happy Holidays!

______________________________________________________________________


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

Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2002 17:49:03 -0500
From: "Thomas Mason" <batz34@[removed];
To: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  The Two Types of Radio Premium

Radio Premiums and their successors.

When television came into being, a few tv shows attempted the mail in
premium [removed]'s Captain Midnight tried it, but to me they never
had the pizazz that the radio ones had, and tvs Captain Midnight did not fit
my memory of radio's Ed Prentiss.
The most successful for me was Space Patrol.  They carried over the radio
premium idea to the nth degree.  Most of the premiums were integrated into
the storyline of many shows so as to extend the premium's life-span. Most
all the premiums were never more than 25 cents and a boxtop.  To me, the
Space Patrol premiums are the most sought after even lo these many years
since the show's demise.  The decoder belt, cosmic smoke guns, cardboard
space helmets, rocket cockpit and so many others are still around to be
collected today and found on places like ebay.  The existing video transfers
from old kinescope recordings are available and we can actually see the
items pitched and how they were integrated into the show.
What fun it was to have been a space cadet.
Tom Mason

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

Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2002 19:29:49 -0500
From: Kenneth Clarke <kclarke5@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  OTR Raymond Chandler

          As most everyone knows, I am a mystery writer in
my spare time.  That being said, one of my fellow writers
wrote me recently to say he'd added some OTR programs
of Raymond Chandler detectives to his mystery web site.
With Window Media Player, I understand you can listen to
it as it is downloading and can surf the web while doing
so.

          His web site is [removed].  I just
thought I'd offer this to anyone who's interested.

Happy Holidays!

Kenneth Clarke
kclarke5@[removed]

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

Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2002 19:29:31 -0500
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Re: Red and Blue

On 12/23/02 5:52 PM OldRadio Mailing Lists wrote:

I have read in the past  ,  from quite a few  sources,   that  also indicate
that NBCs blue network  was geared to the more "upscale" and carried a lot
more sustaining  prestige programming .  However,  some of the programs  that
aired on NBCs Blue  would seem to counter this  statement .  How much actual
truth is there in  the statement ?    If true,   was it a deliberate
programming  attempt or did the Blue just end up that way while part of NBC ?

It depends on the period under consideration. Prior to about 1937, there
was no perceptible difference in programming between Red and Blue, nor
was there any deliberate effort to direct "popular" programs to Red and
"prestige" programming to Blue -- indeed, "Amos 'n' Andy," the most
popular program of the first half of the decade, was a Blue feature from
8/19/29 to 7/12/35.  Conversely, "prestige" programming like the Atwater
Kent Hour, the Voice of Firestone, and Cities Service Concerts, were
always Red features.

In all cases, these network choices were the result of advertiser
decisions, not any integrated "network programming philosophy." Network
decisions were made by advertisers on the basis of the most powerful
stations for the best per-station per-hour price for the specific time
period desired, and there was very little difference in terms of rates or
station power between Basic Red and Basic Blue.

Around 1937, however, this began to change. At this point, as a direct
result of mounting
sentiment among federal regulators that the operation of two networks by
a single corporation was not in the public interest, NBC began to make a
conscious effort to differentiate Red and Blue, and for the first time a
seperate Blue Network sales office was established in order to create the
fiction that the two networks genuinely competed for advertising clients.
This issue was investigated by the FCC during its 1938 hearings, and the
fiction of "competition" thoroughly exposed.

It was also at this time that NBC began to emphasize sustaining
"Educational" features on the Blue. These were the so-called "upscale"
programs that created the impression that Blue was a more highbrow
alternative to the mass-audience Red network. This was a rather overt
attempt at convincing investigators that the Blue served a higher purpose
than simply ensuring that NBC had a greater number of available
affiliates than its competitors. It's also likely that NBC feared federal
intervention forcing it to divest itself of one of the two networks, and
was taking care to ensure that its big money contracts were lined up on
one side of the scale before this happened. (As, in fact, it did with the
issuance of the FCC's "Report on Chain Broadcasting" in 1941.)

Elizabeth

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

Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2002 20:43:44 -0500
From: "Roby McHone" <otr_alaska@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  calendars

Merry Christmas everyone!
I am enjoying the thread of "how I, as a young person, got interested in
OTR".  I was around for the latter years of OTR and remember it well.  I
remember my mother explaining that Charlie McCarthy was a wooden man and
Edgar Bergan talked for him while moving Charlie's mouth.  I wasn't a very
bright child and could never imagine how it worked until I saw a picture of
the two.
Does anyone know where I can get replicas of old calendars?  Several years
ago an outfit was selling replicas of old calendars that matched up with the
present year.  2003 should match up with 1941 and I would like to get a copy
of a 1941 calendar.
Thanks much,

Roby McHone
Fairbanks Alaska, where we always have a white Christmas

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

Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2002 09:24:31 -0500
From: ericandsusie@[removed]
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Merry Christmas

Hi,
I would just like to wish everyone a merry Christmas and/or Happy
[removed] consider you all part of my extended family, and I hope you
all have a prosperous New Year.
God Bless,
Eric Hardy
Gervais, Oregon

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

Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2002 09:25:17 -0500
From: Bill Harris <radioguy@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  NBCs Blue Network Audience

BryanH362@[removed] wrote"

 "NBC  was able to guarantee advertisers huge domestic audiences. NBC even
offered advertisers a choice -- breaking its network into two separate
operations, the general-audience Red and the more upscale Blue Network ."

According to "Stay Tuned" by Sterling and Kittross, NBC Red had
the pick of stations and programs and brought in more advertising
income than the Blue. Erik Barnouw states in his book "A History
of Broadcasting in the United States - Vol II" that RCA tried to
used the Blue network to supress competition against NBC Red.
So given that, I would suspect that the Red network tended to
carry the more popular programing. RCA split the two networks into
wholly owned division in an attempt to avoid having to divest
itself of one of the networks because of the FCC Chain
Broadcasting rule, but the supreme court upheld the rule and RCA
sold the NBC Blue which became the ABC network. I bet Elizabeth
can elaborate more on the subject.

As an aside in regards to the Red and Blue networks, a
[removed] Fairbanks in an Interdepartment Correspondence to Mr. Keith
Kiggins suggested that the chimes on the Blue Network be different
from the Red Network chimes. "Specifically, I would like to see
some serious consideration given to a change in Blue Network
chimes that would unquestionably identify the programs being
carried over this network." He suggested adding 4, 5, or 6
carefully selected notes to the present three-note chime so the
well known NBC musical trade mark would be retained but would give
the Blue a unique label. (NBC Interdepartment Correspondence, July
21, 1939. Subject: Blue Network Chimes - Library of Congress, NBC
file)

Bill H. - wishing everyone a Happy Holiday Season.

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

Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2002 09:29:59 -0500
From: Jordan Young <jyoung@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: Struts and Frets: On Writers

Another, perhaps stranger addition to this group was Cy Howard who, like
Harfield Weedin, the nominal producer of Dear Abby, had worked in the
advertising department of a Houston newspaper. How Cy became (a) a comedy
writer, (b) a producer-director, (c) the progenitor of My Friend Irma and
Life With Luigi I don't know.

One of the mysteries of radio. According to veteran comedy writer
Parke Levy, who worked on "My Friend Irma" for years, "He didn't
create it. The guy who created 'My Sister Eileen' created it. Cy
Howard couldn't write his name."

The "guy" who created "Eileen" -- a precursor so similar to "Irma"
that there was a big expensive lawsuit -- was actually a gal named
Ruth McKenney.

Parke Levy, who discussed his career in depth for my book, "The Laugh
Crafters: Comedy Writing in Radio and TV's Golden Age," went on to
create "December Bride." And speaking of censorship, Levy once had to
delete the word "girdle" from a script to pacify a sponsor. How
things have changed.

Jordan R. Young

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

Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2002 09:30:23 -0500
From: jhcollins@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  TV Guide remembers Parley Baer
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: Alternative section used was text/plain

Here's their obituary, in full:
"A circus ringmaster turned actor, Baer spent five decades lending splendid
support. He was Darby the next-door neighbor on The Adventures of Ozzie and
Harriet and Mayor Stoner on on The Andy Griffith Show. Baer, who died at
88, also had a sweet sideline - as the voice of Ernie the Keebler elf."

  *** This message was altered by the server, and may not appear ***
  ***                  as the sender intended.                   ***

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

Date: Tue, 24 Dec 2002 09:30:30 -0500
From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];
To: otr-net <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Today in radio history

12/24

>From Those Were The Days --

1906 - Professor Reginald A. Fessenden sent his first radio broadcast
from Brant Rock, MA. The program included a little verse, some violin
and a speech.

1928 - The first broadcast of The Voice of Firestone was heard. The
program aired each Monday evening at 8 [removed] The Voice of Firestone
became a hallmark in radio broadcasting. It kept its same night, time
(in 1931 the start time changed to 8:30) and sponsor for its entire run.
Beginning on September 5, 1949, the program of classical and
semiclassical music was also seen on t--------n.

1944 - The Andrews Sisters starred in the debut of The Andrews Sisters'
Eight-to-the-Bar Ranch on ABC. Patty, Maxene and LaVerne ran a fictional
dude ranch. George 'Gabby' Hayes was a regular guest along with Vic
Schoen's orchestra. The ranch stayed in operation until 1946.

12/25

1934 - The Charles Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol, was read by
Lionel Barrymore on The Campbell Playhouse on CBS radio. The reading of
the tale became an annual radio event for years to come.

1937 - Arturo Toscanini conducted the first broadcast of Symphony of the
Air over NBC.

1942 - The longest, sponsored program in the history of broadcasting was
heard on the NBC Blue network. The daylong Victory Parade's Christmas
Party of Spotlight Bands was heard over 142 radio stations. The marathon
broadcast was sponsored by Coca-Cola.

  Joe

--
Visit my home page:
[removed]~[removed]

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2002 Issue #502
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