Subject: [removed] Digest V2004 #404
From: [removed]@[removed]
Date: 12/23/2004 12:00 PM

To: [removed]@[removed]

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

                                The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                                  Volume 2004 : Issue 404
                             A Part of the [removed]!
                                 [removed]
                                     ISSN: 1533-9289

                                     Today's Topics:

      Amos And Andy's Christmas [removed]  [ "tlones" <tlones@[removed]; ]
      Truth or Consequence                  [ "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; ]
      Best of the Worst                     [ "Barnett, Tom L" <[removed]@acs ]
      Re: RADIO GOES TO THE MOVIES          [ "Michael J. Hayde" <michaelhayde@ea ]
      Basil Rathbone as Scrooge             [ Paulurbahn@[removed] ]
      One too few Scrooges                  [ "WILLIS G Saunders" <saunders8@veri ]
      Barrymore as Scrooge                  [ "Philip Railsback" <philiprailsback ]
      Re: More generational difference      [ "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed]; ]
      Dragnet: Radio vs. TV                 [ "Philip Railsback" <philiprailsback ]
      Re: Favorite OTR Christmas Shows      [ "Ron Vanover" <rvanover@[removed] ]
      12-23 births/deaths                   [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
      RE:Favorite Christmas shows           [ "Andrew Godfrey" <niteowl049@[removed] ]
      OTR Movie "Meet John Doe"             [ "Derek Tague" <derek@[removed]; ]
      Christmas OTR Marathon                [ Rod Gowen <aw723@[removed]; ]
      Fibber's Closet                       [ Conrad Binyon <conradab@[removed] ]
      Merry Christmas                       [ "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[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 talked to him -
    [removed] ), and yours truly;
    no matter what you are celebrating at this truly amazing time of the year,
    Happy Holidays!

    ______________________________________________________________________

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 14:15:24 -0500
    From: "tlones" <tlones@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Amos And Andy's Christmas [removed] to
     [removed]"Her own Color"

    I have both the TV and Radio versions of the classic A&A Christmas show.
    The color of the doll was never mentioned specifically by Arbadella, Though
    in the TV Version the Doll is of course shown as [removed]

    Tim Lones

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 14:15:37 -0500
    From: "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Truth or Consequence

    Hi Everybody,

    regard the 12-20-47 Truth or Consequence broadcast.  I recall that bobb
    Lynes on his OTR show told a story that his friend Harvey who had an OTR
    show back in the 1970s called Hubert C. Smith for a interview.  Hubert left
    the hospital in the mid 1950s.  His home town bought him a house, and he did
    married his girl friend who had pass away.  Maybe Bobb can relay more
    information.  Take care,

    Walden Hughes

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 14:16:34 -0500
    From: "Barnett, Tom L" <[removed]@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Best of the Worst

    We often engage in nostalgic rememberances of our favorite OTR programs.
    Arguable what we we talk about most on this list is considered to be the
    cream of the crop, best-of-breeds if you will.

    I am interested in what OTR Digesters feel were some the *worst* programs of
    old radio. I am just unfamiliar with what some of the bad programs were.
    Let's face it - not everything that made the airwaves was necessarily worth
    saving, let alone listening to again.

    Tom Barnett, PMP

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 14:16:55 -0500
    From: "Michael J. Hayde" <michaelhayde@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Re: RADIO GOES TO THE MOVIES

    "bobb lynes" <iairotr@[removed]; wrote:

>     I was honored to host an interview with some of Jack's
>     co-wokers; Peggy Webber, Art Gilmore, Herm Saunders.
>     Also on the panel was Michael Hayde (Dragnet Fan #2, after me).
>     What a weekend!!!

    A great event, [removed] and I'm ready, willing and eager to do it again
    someday.

    How's about it, Bobb?  One can hope!

    Michael
    (Dragnet Fan #2)

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 14:17:07 -0500
    From: Paulurbahn@[removed]
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Basil Rathbone as Scrooge
    X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
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    Probably my favorite Scrooge (on records like radio) is Basil Rathbone. He
    did a radio like production for Columbia that was issued on 78s in the 50s and
    later on LP. He also did it on TV I understand.
    But in the movies for me British comedian Alistar Sim was Scrooge in the
    flesh in the early 50s version which is on video and shows up on TV.

    Both are forst rate performances.

    Paul Urbahns

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 14:17:19 -0500
    From: "WILLIS G Saunders" <saunders8@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  One too few Scrooges
    X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
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    Aside from me, does anybody remember the syndicated version of "A Christmas
    Carol", starring Alfred Shirley as Scrooge?  It was done sometime in the
    mid-to-late 1940's.  What made it unique was that a coral group did Christmas
    carols in the spaces for commercial breaks.  Whoever locally sponsored the
    show could use this time either for commercials or to let the audience enjoy
    some less-familiar carols.

    Are there any surviving copies, and where might they be?

    Thanks for any help anyone may be able to give.

    Willis G. (Buck) Saunders

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 14:17:44 -0500
    From: "Philip Railsback" <philiprailsback@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Barrymore as Scrooge

>     Lionel Barrymore was the obvious first choice to play Scrooge in MGM's
>     adaptation of "A Christmas Carol", however, he fell and broke his hip on
>     the
>     set of "Saratoga", which had already been broken once before.

    Talk about a cursed movie, and rather disappointing one IMO.

    I seem to recall reading a review of book on the Barrymores about ten years
    ago that raised big questions about what was wrong with Barrymore and
    whether his addiction had anything to do with it.  That is, the suggestion
    was that his addiction(s?) had a more to do with being a Barrymore than any
    real delibitating pain. If I remember right the story had always been that
    arthritis had put him in a wheel chair but the author cast doubt on that.

      - Philip

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 14:34:33 -0500
    From: "MICHAEL BIEL" <mbiel@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Re:  More generational difference

    Clif Martin mentions as a generational difference   "DVD movies where the
    music and sound are so much louder than the dialogue that I'm cranking the
    volume up and down."   While I do not doubt that there are movies where the
    music and sounds are recorded louder than the dialogue, it should be
    mentioned that this is also a symptom of the hearing disorder "nerve
    deafness."  This is when background noise--and music is considered noise in
    this instance--masks the intelligibility of speech.  You can hear the
    speech, you just can't understand it when there is some other accompanying
    sound.  My father had this problem, and we now know that the first symptom
    was when he would complain about my sister and I mumbling when we were in
    the car, but he never complained about this anywhere else.

    Clif went on to say: "I'll bet our younger members, born into the
    audiophile age, will say they love those movies and new time radio shows
    precisely because of the great, speaker rattling sounds coming from all
    over the room. We can't get into each other's world."

    It is not really a generational difference anymore.  MANY youngsters now
    suffer from the problem of nerve deafness because of all of the loud music
    they listen to.  It is not due to old age, it is due to exposure to loud
    sounds, with a bit of genetics mixed in.

    It is why I INSIST that whenever any re-creations contain GUN SHOTS that
    they ___MUST WARN US___.  Part of my hearing problems are SPECIFICALLY due
    to a Ray Erlenborn gunshot.

    Michael Biel   mbiel@[removed]

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 16:22:56 -0500
    From: "Philip Railsback" <philiprailsback@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Dragnet: Radio vs. TV

    Dragnet: Radio vs. TV

>     I've been privileged to be able to listen now to just
>     about every episode of Dragnet's first year on Radio
>     and have some observations.  Having grown up with
>     Dragnet on TV, I notice some real differences in
>     acting, character portrayal and believability, not
>     only of characters but story lines as well.

    Very astute observations there, David.  The 1967 Dragnet was really my first
    real exposure to Dragnet (I had caught a few B&Ws when I was little kid, but
    that's about it).  I am probably a little older than you.  My friends and I
    considered the Dragnet a complete joke.  We'd sit around ans smoke stuff
    that wasn't tobacco and laugh and laugh.  My best friend and I had kind of
    love hate relationship with Jack Webb.  While we thought Dragnet was a hoot,
    we did know that he did have talent as a director, as shown in the feature
    film of Dragnet and bits and pieces of "The DI".

    At that time I had never heard the radio show. In fact it wasn't until about
    six years ago that I finally got a chance to give the show a good listen.
    Webb was a revolutionary.  Just great stuff.  You might say he was the Orson
    Welles of radio, except that radio already had an Orson Welles so that
    analogy doesn't really work.  One Dragnet I'm thinking of (can't remember
    the title) actully foreshadows Welle's famous tracking shot in "Touch Of
    Evil". In this radio "tracking shot" we follow Friday and Romero as they
    drive their car, park in the police garage, get out, cross the garage to
    some stairs, climb the metal steps two flights, go down a hall, enter an
    office, sit down, have a conversation with their boss, leave the room,
    retrace their steps all the way back to their car, get in the car, drive out
    to the steet where they have to weave their way through a noisy parade
    that's passing by, drive a few blocks to a hotel, get out, walk in, cross
    the lobby to the desk, talk with the desk clerk, go upstairs a flight or
    two, enter room to catch the criminal, he escapes and they chase him
    downstairs.

    All this in one long shot.  Amazing.

    So what happened?  Why was the 1960's show so bad?  Is it that the
    techniques of realism circa 1950 were hopelessly outdated by 1967?  I think
    that's a large part of it.  I think you're right that the writing took a big
    hit.  Also Webb's direction (or production) was incredibly flat. Look at the
    Tom Hanks-Dan Ackroyd parody movie for a perfect aping of Webb's style (the
    rest of the movie sucks).  As you say Friday's one-liners were over the top.
      Morgan didn't work, etc, etc.

    When TV Land brougth back Dragent, too bad they chose the color one instead
    of the real one (not that I have cable anyway, but it might have helped
    Webb's  reputation if they had shown the fifties version).

      - Philip

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 16:24:19 -0500
    From: "Ron Vanover" <rvanover@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Re: Favorite OTR Christmas Shows

    Rich asked:

>     Is it true that in this episode a girl asks Andy/Santa for a doll
>     her own color?

    I listened to this wonderful program again this morning and only heard a
    reference to a "talking" doll.

    I agree with Kenneth Clarke.  This is a Christmas classic.  I've put it on
    my site for any who don't have a copy.  Feel free to use the link below to
    secure it.

    [removed]

    Merry Christmas,
    Ron

    Affordable OTR
    http://[removed]

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 16:24:35 -0500
    From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
    To: Olde Tyme Radio List <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  12-23 births/deaths

    December 23rd births

    12-23-1887 - John Cromwell - d. 9-26-1979
    actor: "Lux Radio Theatre"
    12-23-1893 - Anne O'Neal - St. Louis, MO - d. 11-24-1971
    actress: Cynthia Veryberry "Grapevine Rancho"
    12-23-1903 - Helen Troy - San Francisco, CA - d. 11-1-1942
    actress: Telephone Operator "It Happened in Hollywood"
    12-23-1907 - Don McNeill - Galena, IL (Raised: Sheboygan, WI) - d. 5-7-1996
    host: "Breakfast Club"
    12-23-1911 - James Gregory - The Bronx, NY - d. 9-16-2002
    actor: Captain Vincent Cronin "21st Precinct"
    12-23-1913 - Anton M. Leader - Boston, MA - d. 7-1-1988
    director: "Eternal Light"; "Murder at Midnight"; "Suspense"; "Words at War"
    12-23-1924 - Floyd Kalber - Omaha, NE - d. 5-13-2004
    news correspondent: NBC; News Anchor for WMAQ and WLS in Chicago
    12-23-1943 - Harry Shearer - Los Angeles, CA
    actor: Member of the Beavers "Jack Benny Program"

    December 23rd deaths

    01-03-1909 - Victor Borge - Copenhagen, Denmark - d. 12-23-2000
    comedian, pianist: "Victor Borge Show"; "Kraft Music Hall"
    01-30-1862 - Walter Damrosch - Breslau, Germany - d. 12-23-1950
    conductor, commentator: "Baulkite Hour"; "Music Appreciation Hour"
    02-08-1886 - Charlie Ruggles - Los Angeles, CA - d. 12-23-1970
    comedian: "Texaco Star Theatre"; "Suspense"; "This Is My Best"
    04-02-1920 - Jack Webb - Santa Monica, CA - d. 12-23-1982
    actor: Joe Friday "Dragnet"; Pete Kelly "Pete Kelly's Blues"
    04-06-1924 - Mimi Benzel - Bridgeport, CT - d. 12-23-1970
    singer: "Jack Pearl and Mimi Benzel"; "Railroad Hour"
    05-14-1890 - Carlton Brickert - Martinsville, IN - d. 12-23-1943
    actor: David Post "Story of Mary Marlin"; Howard Thurston "Thurston the
    Magician"
    07-01-1901 - Irna Phillips - Chicago, IL - d. 12-23-1973
    actress, writer: Mother Moran "Today's Children"; "The Guiding Light"; "Road
    of Life"
    07-02-1910 - Jeff Alexander - Whidbey Island, WA - d. 12-23-1989
    conductor: "Amos 'n' Andy"; "Light Up Time"; "Tums Hollywood Theatre"
    10-25-1924 - Billy Barty - Millsboro, PA - d. 12-23-2000
    comedian: "Spike Jones Band"
    11-11-1911 - Patric Knowles - Horsforth, Yorkshire, England - d. 12-23-1995
    actor: "Lux Radio Theatre"
    --
    Ron Sayles
    Milwaukee, Wisconsin

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 16:24:43 -0500
    From: "Andrew Godfrey" <niteowl049@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  RE:Favorite Christmas shows

      Another of my favorite Christmas shows is the Duffy's Tavern December 22,
    1948 Miracle On 3rd Avenue show with Jeff Chandler. It is the kind of show
    makes you feel better just for listening to it.

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

    Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 23:44:48 -0500
    From: "Derek Tague" <derek@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  OTR Movie "Meet John Doe"
    X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
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    I'd like to add to the on-going discussion about old movies in which radio
    plays a part.
    One of my all-time top-ten favourites is Frank Capra's "Meet John Doe." Like
    Capra's
    more famous "It's a Wonderful Life," the denouement of this film also takes
    place on
    Christmas Eve and also involves a potential suicide.

    "Meet John Doe" tells the story of a down-on-his-luck bush-league baseball
    pitcher
    (Gary Cooper) who finds himself embodying the ideals of the average American
    when he is
    hired by a pair of conniving journalists (Barbara Stanwyck and James Gleason)
    for a publicity
    stunt extolling the virtues of all the John Does of America. After a series of
    well-calculated
    radio speeches, a "John Doe" movement is born which is further exploited by
    the newspaper's
    crypto-Fascist owner  [removed] Norton (Edward Arnold), who plans to use the
    impetus of the
    movement  for his own evil political ends. When Cooper rebels and refuses to
    be a pawn in Arnold's
    schemes, Arnold discredits Cooper to the point where the valiant John Doe
    actually contemplates
    suicide on Christmas Eve.

    I don't want to give away the ending, but would like to point out that Miss
    Stanwyck's reformed character
    makes an impassioned speech at the film's conclusion which is quite
    appropriate for the Christmas season.

    So, if you've never seem "Meet John Doe," do seek it out. I believe it'll be
    on TCM sometime over the up-
    coming Christmas weekend. When "Wonderful Life" regained its copyright status
    about ten years ago
    after many years in the public domain, I honestly thought local stations were
    going to fill the gap with
    "John Doe," the other major public domain Capra film. I guess I was wrong. It
    never happened.

    Either all the major studios followed the lead of "IaWL" & exerted other ways
    of re-securing copyrights
    or we're all resigned to the fact that local TV stations just don't show old
    movies anymore.

    Or both.

    Merry Christmas, Everybody!!

    Derek "Ether" Tague

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

    Date: Thu, 23 Dec 2004 02:17:06 -0500
    From: Rod Gowen <aw723@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Christmas OTR Marathon

    Hi folks,

    Just a note to let all know
    that we, at Golden Hours Radio
    in Portland, Oregon, will
    be airing a 58 hour
    OTR Christmas show marathon over
    the Christmas weekend.

    It airs locally on the [removed] of our
    local Public Broadcasting
    TV station.

    You can also listen free on the internet
    if you go to:

    [removed]

    find the WRAIN/Golden Hours Radio link
    and listen instantly via
    Live365, courtesy of
    Oregon Public Boadcasting.

    Our party starts with a live studio
    party at 6 PM Pacific Time and the OTR starts at 9 PM Christmas Eve.
    It then runs more or less continuously until 7 AM
    on Monday morning, the 27th.

    If you have time, tune in and listen to some great OTR Christmas shows.
    Some you may never have heard before!

    Happy Holidays!
    >From the staff and volunteers
    at: Golden Hours Radio!

    Rod Gowen
    OTR Editor
    Golden Hours Radio

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

    Date: Thu, 23 Dec 2004 08:20:15 -0500
    From: Conrad Binyon <conradab@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Fibber's Closet

    iairotr@[removed] asked:

    About Fibber's closet being pictured visually either
    in films or other areas.

    Bobb,

    What I remember visually is a photograph somewhere
    seen, perhaps in an issue of 'Radio Life,'
    of the Fibber Closet setup being all sorts of
    household items, bowling ball, wood blocks, metal
    shelf pieces, etc being stacked on the various
    ascending stairsteps of a  rolling sound effects set
    of stairs construction.  The pictured sound man (I
    seem to remember it being the 'other' NBC soundman,
    not Bud Tollefson, I knew them both) shown standing
    behind with a stick to use to begin knocking the items
    down the stairs into a crescendo of noise as the stuff
    made its ways falling down one stair after another
    down to the floor, being of course aided and abetted
    by the shuffling of addition rattling and shoving by
    the soundman's hands as well. After the commotion all
    stops he picks up the bell and throws it to the floor
    to tinkle away. On each show the bell chimes just a
    little bit differently which adds to the effect of the
    running gag.

    Now, can you imagine the anxiety of the Fibber
    audience
    upon seeing that setup in plain view after the studio
    curtain parts to allow them to see the show?  Of
    course in the warm up the announcer explains what the
    setup is and that they are about to witness a Fibber
    McGee closet episode later in the show. Ah, the
    anticipation of it all, hence the enthusiastic
    audience reaction heard after that bell.

    CAB

    --
    conradab@[removed] (Conrad A. Binyon)
    Encino, CA
    Home of the Stars who loved Ranches and Farms

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

    Date: Thu, 23 Dec 2004 13:51:31 -0500
    From: "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Merry Christmas

    I want to wish all of you a Merry Christmas, and please enjoy this wonderful
    season of the year.

    Walden Hughes

    --------------------------------
    End of [removed] Digest V2004 Issue #404
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