Subject: [removed] Digest V2004 #135
From: <[removed]@[removed]>
Date: 4/17/2004 2:30 PM

To: <[removed]@[removed];

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

                                The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                                  Volume 2004 : Issue 135
                             A Part of the [removed]!
                                 [removed]
                                     ISSN: 1533-9289

                                     Today's Topics:

      News Then and News Now                [ Christopher Werner <werner1@globalc ]
      BOLD VENTURE                          [ Gsgreger@[removed] ]
      Weekends with Walden Hughes           [ BryanH362@[removed] ]
      Re: Banana Oil                        [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
      Re: 4-19 births/deaths                [ "Michael J. Hayde" <michaelhayde@ea ]
      Product ownership                     [ <otrbuff@[removed]; ]
      Re:Pearl Harbor                       [ Don Shenbarger <donslistmail@sbcglo ]
      World News Today                      [ Christopher Werner <werner1@globalc ]
      1941 Jack Benny and the news          [ "Michael Hingson" <MHingson@guidedo ]
      Need Your Help                        [ "hugobet" <hugobet@[removed]; ]
      Halls of Ivy and banana oil           [ Lilah60@[removed] ]
      Glenn Miller Day broadcast            [ George Aust <austhaus1@[removed] ]
      Google's web [removed]                [ "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed] ]

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

      ADMINISTRIVIA: Everything's fine, folks; I forgot to turn off
      the "dead man's switch" I set up in case anything happened on
      the way to Cincy, is all. When I turned on the list, [removed]
      screwed up and did tings a little wrong, hence two small
      digests Thrs. night instead of one big one.

      But the server is fine, and so am I. Ok, as fine as I ever
      am, anyway.

      Notes on the convention with photos at [removed]

      --cfs3

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

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 15:57:38 +0000
    From: Christopher Werner <werner1@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  News Then and News Now

    At the risk of opening Pandora's box, I dutifully succumbed to Charlie's
    marketing and checked out his [removed] and read of sad and
    interesting tales. One of them was commentary about the recent removal of
    Bob Edwards as anchor for NPR's Morning Edition. I received the daily
    Digest and read Bill Murtough's account of December 7, 1941 newscast
    reactions vs post WWII and well, here goes.

    Warm and fuzzy feeling. The comforting sound of a trusted voice. A Robert
    Trout, Walter Cronkite, Peter Jennings, Bob Edwards, Red Barber, Earnie
    Harwell, Bob Allison, Bill Stern, Arthur Godfrey, or perhaps you can think
    of others in your own broadcast area. Folks who it is a pleasure to listen
    to. The Jim Hanson organization once had a series of programs (9) called
    the Storyteller (available on DVD) where one sat for 30 minutes and became
    spellbound by the tale, and by the voice of the Storyteller.

    In many ways the 'art' of storytelling is key to our perception of good vs
    bad radio (or any other media). But what makes a good storyteller?
    Is it just voice pitch and inflection? Is it enunciation? Is it good
    scripts/copy? Or is our enjoyment or belief tempered more by the trust we
    give the speaker through familiarity? Why are we more comfortable with the
    same voice at the same time everyday rather than the multitude of bits of
    'news' stories we could receive every moment from other sources?

    Bill related how on the evening of a great disaster folks were concerned,
    but they continued with their daily lives. Yesterday I read where someone
    commented that the networks didn't want to disrupt daytime programming to
    broadcast only news until CBS did and NBS felt that they were being
    'trounced' by their competition.

    Why does every organization think they have to be like every other one when
    it comes to news. If there is a disaster I can go to CNN or Fox and get the
    breaking news. Do I listen to it all day??? Never. News doesn't change that
    quick. Events happen, facts follow. Between the two either everyone
    speculates -or- one moves on to another story.

    When 9/11 occurred I didn't watch the TV *all day long* assuming by
    watching the moment of impact just one more time it would change things! I
    received the news and then awaited new information. I wasn't there in 1944
    when news became more important than regular programming in some broadcast
    executives mind. What in the world did they talk about between facts??? Did
    they also speculate for hours and repeat the same bulletin over and over as
    they do now?

    NPR provides slightly longer coverage than most networks to a given story.
    But I can count how many times an interviewer has asked a really good
    question and just as the interviewee is about to give a thoughtful and
    detailed answer they are cut off because some director thinks the program
    must move along to the next topic. Talk of the Nation used to be 1 hour
    about 1 subject, now it is 15 minutes per subject, often. I miss the slow
    news days of NPR in the 70s when a 20 minute piece on endangered freshwater
    shrimp in puddles in Arizona was a story.

    Ok, so I ramble. The point is, what makes good news reporting? How often
    should a story be reported (how often should a 'bulletin' interrupt?)? Is
    comfort and familiarity with an anchor (or with Huntley-Brinkley, a team)
    more important than a higher volume of news stories per minute in a
    broadcast? What examples from the OTR era would still be valid in today's
    climate?

    So many questions-

    Chris.

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 15:57:57 +0000
    From: Gsgreger@[removed]
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  BOLD VENTURE

    Having been a lifelong Bogart & Bacall fan, it's no wonder that I always
    enjoy their Ziv syndicated series, "Bold Venture."  Although there is some
    confusion in the OTR literature, it is generally accepted that the series
    of 78 shows aired from March of 1951 to September 1952 (yes, in some areas
    it may have started slightly earlier or later than the spring of
    1951).  It's a real joy to listen to the scripts of the ever-prolific
    Morton Fine and David Friedkin ("Crime Classics", "Broadway's My Beat") and
    hear how they captured the on-screen personalities of Bogie and
    Bacall.  Just view the classic film "To Have and Have Not" sometime and
    you'll see what I mean.
    Incidentally, one of the best on-line logs for Bold Venture was compiled by
    Dick Judge and can be found at
    [removed].  Judge points out the many
    difficulties in compiling a log when exact titles and exact dates are
    unknown.  He offers many alternate titles for each show which proved very
    helpful to me.
    As I've stated in this Digest before, I'm always trying-my-darndest to
    identify the other actors in the radio shows that I listen to, especially
    those (like BV) that fail to announce the actors names at the show's
    end.  Dunning describes the show in detail, so I won't do that here. At the
    hotel Shannon's Place in Havana, where many of the shows begin, the
    calypso-singing King Moses was played by Jester Hairston (famous for
    various A & A roles).  Besides Bogie's Slate Shannon and Bacall's Gayle
    "Sailor" DuVal, the only other recurring character is Havana Police
    Inspector LaSalle.  I haven't seen him identified anywhere, but I'm sure
    the actor is Nestor Paiva.  Paiva is probably best remembered as Captain
    Lucas of the "Creature from the Black Lagoon" films.  In radio, Paiva also
    appeared on Sam Spade, I Was a Communist for the FBI, The Green Lama, The
    Cisco Kid, and Gene Autry's Melody Ranch, among others.
    There appears to be only 31 examples of the Bold Venture series in
    circulation.  I have heard nearly all of the 31 and have identified many,
    but not all of the supporting actors.  If any other Digesters are BV fans
    or have compiled their own list of actors in the series and would like to
    "trade some names," please contact me.  Just for the record, other actors
    in the series include Bill Conrad, Howard McNear, Sheldon Leonard, Betty
    Lou Gerson, Barton Yarborough, Lillian Buyeff, Jay Novello, Herbert
    Rawlinson, Tony Barrett, Lou Krugman, Anne Whitfield, Bob Bruce, John
    Stephenson, Peter Leeds, Ken Christy, Rye Billsbury, and many
    more.  Finally, my notes state that the announcer was George Barkley, but I
    don't know where I learned that.  In this Digest, maybe?
    Gordon GregersenLa Grande, Oregon ("Nestled in the Blue Mountains of
    northeastern Oregon")

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 15:58:15 +0000
    From: BryanH362@[removed]
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Weekends  with Walden Hughes
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    Where :  Yesterdayusa
                   live  streaming  at  [removed]
    When  :   Fri , Sat , Sun    10:30  EDT / 7:30  PDT

    Featured :

      Friday 4-16-04

    This is the date when 69 years a go that Fibber McGee and Molly started
    thus   we will celebrate with an interview from the Frank Bresee archive with
    Jim
    Jordan.

    Saturday 4-17-04

    Part three of Martin Block interview with  Doris Day, and part three of the
    four part Doris Day special

    Sunday 4-18-04

    A.  Dr. Mike Biels will talk about 1920s radio announcer styles and sound
          recordings will be heard too.

    B.  Laura Leff  with  the Jack Benny show of 4-11-37

    C.  Replay interview  -Smokey Montgomery

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    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 15:59:47 +0000
    From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Re: Banana Oil

    On 4/15/04 11:47 PM [removed]@[removed] wrote:

     > He describes driving around in a
     >purple Stutz Bearcat, and wearing a yellow slicker with witty sayings all
     >over it like "banana oil".  The banana oil line gets a big laugh from the
     >audience, but I don't get the joke.  Can someone help a young whippersnapper
     >out?

    "Banana Oil" was early-1920s slang meaning "rubbish, nonsense, or
    claptrap," and was one of many catchphrases popularized by New York
    Journal cartoonist Milt Gross. The idea of painting snappy slogans on
    raincoats (and also on the sides of cars) was a very popular college fad
    of the twenties, and "Banana Oil" would likely have been one of the
    phrases most often seen.

    By the postwar era, such activities were seen by comedy writers as a
    sure-fire way of reminding listeners in their forties of how ridiculous
    they were in their youth and you'll find a lot of "roaring twenties"
    references getting embarrased laughs. It's the same idea as directing
    disco/leisure suit/feathered-hair comments toward those of us who came of
    age in the 70s.

    Elizabeth

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 16:00:15 +0000
    From: "Michael J. Hayde" <michaelhayde@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Re: 4-19 births/deaths

    An update for Ron Sayles, who wrote:

     >April 19th births
     >
     >04-19-1926 - Don Adams - NYC
     >comedian: "Kraft Music Hall"; "A Salute to Humble Howard"

    According to a friend of mine, who also happens to be Don's son-in-law, Mr.
    Adams was born on April 13, 1923.  This is also the date given at [removed]

    Michael

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 16:00:38 +0000
    From: <otrbuff@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Product ownership

    B. Ray wrote:

     > I hadn't realized that the Lifebuoy brand had been sold, nor that Lava was
     > no longer owned by Lever Bros.

     > I had been using Pepsodent for over 40 years, both when it was
     > (I think) a P&G brand, and later, after the brand was sold to
     > Chesborough-Ponds (the Vaseline folk), which is now a division of Unilever.

    Coming from a marketing background, I've been particularly interested in
    various commodities advertised on radio and who manufactured them.  I've
    made a point of delineating this information in my books, some may recall.
    Lava was never a Lever Brothers product; it was always owned by P&G which
    sold it to a small firm.  It's readily available on grocers' shelves across
    the country in the "unfamiliar" green bar B. Ray described.  Lifebuoy was
    sold by Lever decades ago and is available through several sources mentioned
    on this forum.  If my memory is correct there was a Pepsodent Company (by
    that name) near Chicago that manufactured Pepsodent and may still do so
    today (though it could now be owned by a corporate giant).  I know it was
    never a P&G property.  I'm uncertain about Cheesebrough-Ponds' involvement
    there.  P&G is selling off its lesser money-makers but you can purchase
    Oxydol and some other former product leaders from, for instance, most Kroger
    stores today.  Pepsodent has never been absent from supermarket, drug and
    discount store shelves anywhere to my knowledge.  I'm pleased to know Rinso
    (Lever [removed]) is still available on the west coast and maybe
    elsewhere.  It's a revered name from the childhoods and youth of many on
    this list.  Oh, if we could only find Duz (P&G) and Super Suds
    (Colgate-Palmolive) again!

    Jim Cox

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 16:00:52 +0000
    From: Don Shenbarger <donslistmail@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Re:Pearl Harbor

    On 4/15/2004, William L Murtough wrote: > I have noticed that there was
    some questions about radio news coverage of > the Pearl Harbor attack.
    Broadcasting of news was not the big deal that > it became during World War
    II. Good story Bill. It would be interesting to me to learn more about
    early location broadcasting. We should consider that details of the
    situation at Pearl Harbor had strategic value. This was the eve of the war
    that spawned such poster-famous sayings as "Loose Lips Sink Ships". Don
    Shenbarger

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 16:01:07 +0000
    From: Christopher Werner <werner1@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  World News Today

    Does anyone know the date of the first broadcast of World News Today? It
    ran on CBS. Jay Hickerson lists it as starting in 1940 but was not more
    specific than that. I just returned from the local library where I looked
    through microfilm of a local paper (local branch didn't carry NYTimes or
    Detroit News back that far) and was unable to locate it on random sampling
    of issues from 1/2/1940 through 9/12/1941. I know it was on the air in 1942
    because I have some recordings of it. The local paper stopped listing
    Sunday radio programming in 1943 so I was unable to check further. It does
    run on Sunday.

    I found Walter Winchell, H. V. Kaltenborn, News from Europe, World Today
    (only 15 minutes long) but not "World News Today" per se. I need to know
    the first broadcast so my logs and tape numbers are correct.

    Thanks.

    Chris.

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 16:01:21 +0000
    From: "Michael Hingson" <MHingson@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  1941 Jack Benny and the news

    Jim Widner says:

     > Due to the increased competitive nature of
     > news coverage and especially the shrinking demarcation between what is
     > entertainment and what is news - news organizations today are looking
     > for ways to constantly catch the eye (and ear) of the viewer/listener.

    Very true.  However, news is also more accessible today.  In our world
    the reporter can go "where the news is happening" almost at a moment's
    notice.  We have grown to expect on the spot reporting and the audience,
    (shall I say), demands the actual sights and sounds of news.

    On 9-11 I didn't get to experience the reporting of the news.  I was
    spending my morning climbing down from the 78th floor of Tower One of
    the World Trade Center, and then running from the falling buildings,
    always accompanied by my guide dog, "Roselle".

    That night when I finally made it home I learned how much detail the
    news had already given to a hungry world wide audience.  You all knew
    lots more than we who were there.

    The media has, in part, catered to an audience which wants to know first
    hand what is happening.  On 9-11 some networks went too far by showing
    jumpers from the upper tower floors.  Common sense finally prevailed.
    The fact that those shots even aired for a brief time shows that the
    prevailing view of the press was that people would want to see them.

    The real question is, are we as the audience sending wrong messages to
    the media about what we want to see and hear or is the media attempting
    to shape our priorities and values?  I suspect both the media and the
    audience can share in the responsibility of making today's news as much
    or more entertainment than real news.  For my part, I still prefer the
    broadcasts of the 1940s, even though the news evolution to today's
    standards was predictable given the advances in technology.

    Michael Hingson
    http: [removed]

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

    Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 23:43:19 +0000
    From: "hugobet" <hugobet@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Need Your Help
    X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
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    I have been collecting dates of birth and death of celebrities for the past
    twenty years.  The list now numbers over 5,000, many of which are old-time
    radio performers.  Two have escaped me and I'm asking for HELP.

    One is Paul Hughes, well-known villain regular on The Lone Ranger.  The other
    is Paul Brenner.  Mr Brenner was a very popular disc jockey on radio station
    WAAT, Newark, NJ.  His show was called, Requestfully Yours.  We listened
    regularly in the 1940's.  I'd truly appreciate any help.  Thanks.

    If anyone enjoys a similar hobby, I'd be happy to swap info.  Thanks again.
    Sy Palo

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    Date: Sat, 17 Apr 2004 00:58:33 +0000
    From: Lilah60@[removed]
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Halls of Ivy and banana oil

    After a quick Google, I believe I can say that the phrase 'banana oil' was a
    flapper age expression that meant 'nonsense' if you were a lady, or
    'bull----t' if you were not.

    See [removed] re 'Throughly Modern Millie'
    *Julie Andrews is at her peak of adorability in this enjoyable (and
    surprisingly sarcastic) spoof of the 1920s. It has every trick: occasional
    silent-movie
    intertitles, flapper lingo ("Oh, banana oil") . . .*

    Here is a site devoted to jazz age slang:

    [removed]~[removed]

    Claire Connelly
    Below the Beltway

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

    Date: Sat, 17 Apr 2004 10:00:00 +0000
    From: George Aust <austhaus1@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Glenn Miller Day broadcast

    I'm looking for the four hour Glenn Miller Day broadcast over WNEW from
    June 5, 1945.  I know that this is available on MP3 but I don't know where.
    Part of this broadcast went over NBC and possibly other networks also.
    Martin Block was the MC and it was a star-studded affair.
    There was a two LP set on Metronome records some years ago that I have, but
    this was a very edited down version . I am looking for the entire show.
    Can anyone give me some leads on this?

    George Aust

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

    Date: Sat, 17 Apr 2004 10:00:21 +0000
    From: "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Google's web [removed]

    Just copied this link from the 78-L:

    [removed]

    If you want to track some term, name, etc. on the internet, Google will send
    you an email alert and you can go and check it out.  That could be of
    considerable interest to us OTR collectors and traders.  Jeffrey Lichtman
    posted the notice.  Thanks, Jeffrey!

    Go register!

    Ted Kneebone/1528 S. Grant [removed], SD 57401/605-226-3344
    OTR: [removed]

    --------------------------------
    End of [removed] Digest V2004 Issue #135
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