------------------------------
The Old-Time Radio Digest!
Volume 2004 : Issue 188
A Part of the [removed]!
[removed]
ISSN: 1533-9289
Today's Topics:
comics on radio [ Ben Ohmart <benohmart@[removed]; ]
Paul Petersen [ JayHick@[removed] ]
OTR cross-overs [ Kermyt Anderson <kermyta@[removed]; ]
Re: Paley 'Biz Week' profile [ chris chandler <chrischandler84@yah ]
Re: Paley's Programming Non-Coup [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
University of Wyoming [ <otrbuff@[removed]; ]
Jell-o Celebration [ seandd@[removed] ]
Charles Osgood [ seandd@[removed] ]
John Todd (the stage name for Fred M [ Paulurbahn@[removed] ]
D-day news recreation [ Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed]; ]
The Red Skelton Show [ "Kris Stone" <anaheim47@[removed] ]
Comic heroes to the [removed] [ Jack & Cathy French <otrpiano@erols ]
Fw: Re: WGN'S FIRST 80 YEARS: A RETR [ "Cynthia Van Cleave" <cvc@[removed]; ]
Red Skelton question [ Vincente Tobias <vincente_ca@yahoo. ]
Bill Paley in Business Week [ "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyro ]
tire rationing in WWII [ "Mark Kinsler" <kinsler33@[removed] ]
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 12:01:06 -0400
From: Ben Ohmart <benohmart@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: comics on radio
Interesting this subject should come up. Ron Lackmann
recently sent me a query on a book on comics in radio.
Looks like it's gonna be great!
Ben Ohmart
[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 12:28:51 -0400
From: JayHick@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Paul Petersen
Can anyone help Paul? His email is <ppetersen3@[removed];
I am looking for a copy of the script used on Lux Radio Theater broadcast of
"The Wizard of Oz" on Christmas, 1950.
I want to use it in my performance class at the Donna Reed Festival this year
(our 19th Annual, can you believe it?).
If you can help me dig up this gem I would be most appreciative.
Fraternally,
Paul Petersen
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 13:37:58 -0400
From: Kermyt Anderson <kermyta@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: OTR cross-overs
A few more OTR Cross-overs:
* The Shadow appeared several times on the quiz show
Quick as a Flash. I believe other detectives may have
as well.
* Sam Spade made a reference to Philo Vance in one of
his episodes. Also, in the Suspense version of The
Kandy Tooth Caper, Sam calls up Philip Marlowe (played
by Robert Montomery; presumably this scene wasn't in
the version that aired on Spade's own show). Sam Spade
also turned up once on Burns and Allen (2/10/49).
* some people have argued that the detective named Sam
played by Howard Duff in the Suspense episode "The
House in Cypress Canyon" (12/5/46) must be Sam Spade,
especially since both shows were directed by William
N. Robson. (Personally, I disagree because Spade was
based in San Francisco, and Cypress Canyon is very
clearly set near LA.)
* Grace Allen also made a cameo at the end of the
12/3/49 episode of The Adventures of Philip Marlowe
("The Kid on the Corner")
* Vincent Price appeared in the Johnny Dollar episode
"The Price of Fame Matter" (2/2/58), though I don't
recall there being any mention on the show of him
having been The Saint.
* Comedy cross-overs would be too numerous to mention
(if you count guest stars as cross-overs). However,
virtually every guest appearance I've ever heard was
"out of continuity" - [removed], it was just a character
appearing on somebody else's show, with no connection
to whatever was going on on the character's own show.
The only exception I can think of is the 3/7/43
episode of Jack Benny. Jack (and I think Mary) were
not on the show, and George Burns and Grace Allen were
the hosts. They brought along their entire cast--Bill
Goodwin, Tootsie Sagwell (I think), perhaps
others--and worked in the "Gracie wants to play at
Carnegie Hall" storyline that was currently playing
out on the Burns and Allen show. The rest of Jack's
cast was present as well. It really was a great
example of synergy. (The meeting between Gracie and
Dennis, two of the biggest airheads on radio, was
absolutely classic.)
* A few people have mentioned Gildy/Fibber crossovers,
such as when Gildy and Leroy filled in for Fibber and
Molly when Fibber had pneumonia (3/28/44). A few years
later on Gildy's own show (4/14/48), Floyd mentions to
Gildy that he prefers to listen to Fibber McGee and
Molly on the radio. Gildy made no reply. It'd been
several years since any reference to Fibber as his
"little chum" had occurred on the show--by now, the
two shows are completely separate, and for all intents
and purposes, Gildy might as well never have lived in
Wistfull Vista.
Kermyt
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 13:38:05 -0400
From: chris chandler <chrischandler84@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: Paley 'Biz Week' profile
Re Sean Daughterty's link to the Business Week
[removed]
Boy, whoever wrote this must have done all his
research by reading "As It Happened"--it's about as
accurate.
'Amos and Andy' did not debut on CBS, and certainly
not at the inspiration of Bill Paley. Bing Crosby
never jumped directly from NBC to CBS. Fred Allen's
move to Columbia in the early '40s was no promotion.
CBS was not "ahead of the main competition" (NBC) by
any stretch of the imagination in those early years,
or in the 'middle' years, or in fact at any time until
the turn of the 1950s. The author, Mike Brewster, is
clearly oblivious that Paley--when he was around--did
as much over the years to try and squelch CBS News as
he did to nurture it. And Mr. Brewster seems to think
the Sally Bedell Smith passage he quotes was intended
as a compliment; her enlightening Paley bio, in fact,
was anything but a glowing tribute.
We occasionally discuss here the almost comical
'Columbia-centric' bias that commonly permeates
historical treatments of early broadcasting; here is a
prime and perfect example. Take it with *several*
grains of salt. :)
chris
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 18:24:03 -0400
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re: Paley's Programming Non-Coup
On 6/2/04 11:47 AM [removed]@[removed] wrote:
Bill Paley and his talent raid are profiled in this week's issue of Business
Week.
Oh my. Nice to see that even posthumously, the Paley Publicity Mill
keeps-a-grinding.
The most flagrant error in the piece, of course, is the "Paley's next
programming coup was 'Amos 'n' Andy' in 1929." There's an interesting
story here, but it's too bad the author missed it -- what actually
happened is that Paley and his people had a chance to get A&A at the
beginning of the craze and they were so completely short-sighted that
they BLEW it.
A&A were based at WMAQ, which was at that time a CBS affiliate, and had
first refusal for network purposes of programs developed there. During
1928, CBS was futzing about with Moran and Mack, the Two Black Crows -- a
Columbia Records act which flopped resoundingly on radio because the
recording company refused to allow them to do any of their most familiar
material on the air. Meanwhile, Correll and Gosden were taking the
midwest and west by storm with their chainless chain, and CBS could have
had them at any time -- but had no interest. "If Moran and Mack can't
succeed in radio," they reasoned, "who are these two hicks?"
Finally, in January of 1929, WMAQ program director Judith Waller traveled
to New York to meet with Paley and his staff for the express purpose of
pitching "Amos 'n' Andy" as a network feature. They listened to her
presentation, and just stared at her. "Do you propose that we air this
program *six nights a week,*" Paley finally asked, "for *fifteen minutes*
a night?"
Waller indicated that this was, precisely, what she was suggesting.
She was shown the door. CBS didn't sell fifteen minute periods and didn't
believe in strips. The whole idea was preposterous.
That same month, Niles Trammel of NBC was having the same conversation
with Albert Lasker and William Benton of Lord and Thomas -- and unlike
Paley and his people, he understood. The New York CBS executives had
never heard Amos 'n' Andy, and had no real cognizance of the impact of
their serial format. Trammel, however, based in Chicago, was right in the
middle of it -- and managed to convince NBC's New York executives to
approve the idea.
Within a year, "Amos 'n' Andy" had revolutionized network radio, with NBC
raking in the profits. CBS, on the other hand, had a thick layer of egg
on its face that would take years to fully expunge. And one might
theorize that Paley's lifelong quest to surpass NBC had its origin right
there, no matter what the publicists try to tell us.
Elizabeth
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 18:24:39 -0400
From: <otrbuff@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: University of Wyoming
Irene Heinstein wrote:
During an interview on WCAU in Philadelphia in 1986 Joan Benny said that
she
had donated lots of scripts which she had inherited to the U. of Wyoming.
How much of Benny's stuff was donated to the U of Wyoming. And why
Wyoming?<
I can't answer how much of Benny's stuff was donated to the American
Heritage Center at the University of Wyoming but when I was there
researching two of my books, "Frank and Anne Hummert's Radio Factory" and
"Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons" released by McFarland
([removed] and 800-253-2187), I observed that they had
considerable holdings of Benny material. I was impressed that the works of
many other leading radio broadcasters--William Boyd (Hopalong Cassidy), for
instance--were housed there, too.
The Lawrence Klee (Mr. Keen's most durable author) and Hummert collections
were of paramount interest to me, of course. You know, anyone who loves to
read scripts, personal correspondence and other documentation on radio
luminaries' day-to-day business experiences could spend forever pouring
though the files that comprise those collections. They are well organized
and readily accessible and for a fee may be photocopied for your reading
pleasure or other use at home. In the nearly 500 large cartons in those
dual collections, for example, I discovered tens of thousands of scripts for
many different series. It is truly a gold mine for researchers. There are
many other individuals whose work is featured there but I didn't have time
to pursue all that would have interested me. I'd like to go back and look
for more on other topics eventually.
Irene asks why the University of Wyoming has become such a repository of
entertainers' wares, a question I posed to archivists when I was there. The
answer I received was that the school wanted to become known as a major site
housing such works (I believe it may have a strong performing arts academic
program). The facilities are comfortable, spacious and its staff is
hospitable. The materials are brought up from below ground on request (I
understood there were several floors below earth housing these closely
guarded prizes).
I related a funny story in my Hummert text that I'm reminded of now. In
1989 Anne Hummert, the surviving member of that duo, gave the University of
Wyoming permission to transport all of their personal papers,
correspondence, interoffice memos, official documents and scripts to Laramie
to create a permanent Hummert repository. "Why in the world they wanted all
that stuff is beyond me," she told an interviewer. In the same article, she
obviously embellished a littler, claiming "it took three planeloads to carry
it all to Wyoming." That line appeared in print more than once. While I
was doing my research, however, I asked the head archivist if the Hummert
material, despite its immense volume, filled three planes. The answer came:
"Perhaps one Greyhound was more like it."
It's still a fabulous find, going far beyond what the networks saved and
exceeding the expectations of even the most optimistic researcher or
pleasure reader.
Jim Cox
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 18:26:32 -0400
From: seandd@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Jell-o Celebration
I picked this up off the Internet this afternoon - Jell-O is honoring Bill
Cosby for being it's longest tenured spokesman, passing Jack Benny, Jackie
Cooper and Lucille Ball.
Apparently the Jell-O musuem near Rochester, NY, has a Jack Benny display,
which is fitting.
Has anyone been?
Sean Dougherty
SeanDD@[removed]
Jell-O honors
One of many side benefits of capitalism: Jell-O has a museum to love, honor
and cherish the cultural history of America's love affair with the dessert.
Yep, the museum, in Le Roy, [removed] (near Rochester), was built in '97. And on
Tuesday, it will honor Bill Cosby, whose 30 years hawking the dessert product
makes him "the longest-tenured spokesperson in history." (Hail to the gods of
marketing!) The kudos come with a special exhibit of radio recordings and TV
clips featuring the commercial work that Cosby, Jack Benny, Lucille Ball and
Jackie Cooper did to propel "the jiggly dessert into our hearts and homes."
Info: [removed].
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 18:26:52 -0400
From: seandd@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Charles Osgood
Charles Osgood, who has done many radio commentaries about the joys of old
time radio over the years, has his memoirs reviewed in today's Detroit News.
Sean Dougherty
SeanDD@[removed]
THE making of Charles Osgood
[removed] - Detroit,MI,USA
... tie and overflowed with good humor -- becoming fast friends with Peabody
... piano with her brother -- playing an old commercial for ... It was
a rich time (in America ...
<[removed];
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 18:27:09 -0400
From: Paulurbahn@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: John Todd (the stage name for Fred McCarthy)
I read on the Internet that John Todd (the stage name for Fred McCarthy) was
a veteran actor. In listening to a broadcast of Court Of Missing Heirs from
1938, one of the lead actors voices sounds like John Todd (or McCarthy). Is
there a listing of Todd's acting credits available?
Paul Urbahns
paulurbahn@[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 19:17:52 -0400
From: Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: D-day news recreation
Starting this Sunday for 33 hours into Monday, XM Radio's channel 4
(the 40's channel) will broadcast, in real time, a re-creation of the
news coverage of the invasion of Normandy, beginning with the first
bulletin at 2:45AM.
Keep in mind that this bulletin was a repeat of the earlier bulletins. The
first bulletins over CBS and NBC began soon after midnight Eastern War
Time. The AP released a bulletin reporting that a German news agency
(TransOcean) was reporting an invasion." But the networks were a bit
skittish about coming on the air after the false alarm from June 3rd.
NBC came on the air around 12:41 AM interrupting a music program. CBS
waited until another confirmation of the report came in from the
International News Service and came on the air at about 12:48 AM.
I am not sure what that bulletin is that appears on most tapes and CDs in
circulation. I believe it is a repeat because it is always claimed to be
from between 2:00 and 2:45. If it actually is the first bulletin, then it
is timed incorrectly. But I believe that the two networks did not begin
their historic recording for archival purposes until after the first
bulletins had been broadcast.
Jim Widner
jwidner@[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 19:20:15 -0400
From: "Kris Stone" <anaheim47@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: The Red Skelton Show
Deric commented,
I was to a Blue Star blades episode of Red Skelton last
night and noticed he didn't say "God blesss" like he did in later shows or
on tv. Does anybody know when he started using that sign off line?
The Red Skelton Show, which premiered on 30 September 1951, was one of the
first variety shows to make the successful transition from radio to
television.
The series originally aired in a half-hour format on NBC. When NBC canceled
the show, it was immediately picked up by CBS, and The Red Skelton Show
became a Tuesday night staple from 1954 to 1970.
The format of the series was similar to Skelton's radio program. Each show
began with Skelton performing a monologue based on topical material,
followed by a musical interlude. He would then perform in a series of
blackout sketches featuring one or more of his characters. The sketches were
a mixture of new material and old routines perfected over the years in
vaudeville and in nightclubs. At the end of the program, Skelton would
become serious and express his gratitude to his audience for their love and
laughter. His signature closing line became "Good night and may God bless."
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 22:10:20 -0400
From: Jack & Cathy French <otrpiano@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Comic heroes to the [removed]
The only comic book that springs to mind is Superman.
The Blue Beetle was a comic book hero that also appeared on radio
There are very few radio heroes that began in the comic books, and
Digesters have named most of them. The Black Hood also falls in that
category, as does Dan Dunn, Secret Operative# 48.
But if we open the gates to those coming from the newspaper comic
strips, the list goes on and on: Blondie, Buck Rogers, Buster Brown,
Don Winslow, Flash Gordon, Major Hoople, Joe Palooka, Dick Tracy,
Jungle Jim, Little Orphan Annie, Mark Trail, Sad Sack, Smilin' Jack,
Ripley's Believe It or Not, Tarzan, Terry & the Pirates, King of the
Royal Mounted, Harold Teen, Bringing Up Father, The Nebbs, Red Ryder,
Gasoline Alley, Tailspin Tommy, Jane Arden, Tillie the Toiler, Popeye
and Mandrake the Magician.
Jack French
Editor: RADIO RECALL
[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 22:15:05 -0400
From: "Cynthia Van Cleave" <cvc@[removed];
To: "Old Time Radio Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Fw: Re: WGN'S FIRST 80 YEARS: A RETROSPECTIVE
<snip original message>
Also, check out [removed] for various audio clips, some of
which will be part of their 80th anniversary CD. (Including some Sam 'n'
Henry clips!!)
Cynthia
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 2 Jun 2004 23:10:50 -0400
From: Vincente Tobias <vincente_ca@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Red Skelton question
To the question of when Red Skelton began saying "God
bless," actually he said,"May God bless." He speaks
about that in bit saved from a 1953 tv show.
Vince
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 3 Jun 2004 02:05:18 -0400
From: "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Bill Paley in Business Week
<[removed].
First the article refers to Paley as "CBS Founder" then describes how his father bought a
down-and-out network called Columbia which had 16 stations. That doesn't sound like he
was the founder to me.
--
A. Joseph Ross, [removed] [removed]
15 Court Square, Suite 210
lawyer@[removed]
Boston, MA 02108-2503
[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 3 Jun 2004 10:03:40 -0400
From: "Mark Kinsler"
<kinsler33@[removed];
To:
[removed]@[removed]
Subject: tire rationing in WWII
Just catching up on back issues of the digest after being out of pocket
and found comments on the subject interesting. The main reason for gas
rationing was to limit the amount of milage to keep tire wear down as
rubber was in shorter supply than gas. If you had a worn out or damaged
tire, you had to get confirmation from a garage that it could not be
fixed or recapped with reclaimed rubbber, then you applied to the
rationing board for authorizatioin to purchase a new one. Even if
approved, you still might not be able to find a dealer with a new tire
in the size you needed.
Imagine that the wheels have been removed from an automobile and replaced by
small cylindrical hubs. Extending from each hub are four wooden
broomsticks, arranged like the spokes of a wheel.
At the end of each hub is a shoe. Each shoe has clearly been salvaged from
various discards.
This was the arrangement that Olive Oyl had on her car during the war. I
don't know if it was a common scheme, but it passed unmentioned in the
cartoon I saw. Funniest thing there.
And a fairly long vignette was devoted to Mrs Uppington's pride in her new
posession, ogled and envied by Molly and others as she took it to the bank
for safekeeping. It was a new rubber band.
M Kinsler
--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2004 Issue #188
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