------------------------------
The Old-Time Radio Digest!
Volume 2006 : Issue 231
A Part of the [removed]!
[removed]
ISSN: 1533-9289
Today's Topics:
Lone Ranger origin [ "Jim Nixon" <ranger6000@[removed] ]
RE: Archives [ stewwright@[removed] ]
Sidekicks [ "Stephen A Kallis, Jr" <skallisjr@j ]
Peter Quill program? [ Bill Miles <bmiles@[removed]. ]
Re:Phil Harris, Alice Faye Show [ "Andrew Godfrey" <niteowl049@[removed] ]
Gangbusters Date [ "RadioAZ@[removed]" <radioAZ@bas ]
more on Sidekicks [ "Holm, Chris " <[removed]@[removed] ]
The Game with a Broken Foot [ Wich2@[removed] ]
8-24 births/deaths [ Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed] ]
Orson's Shadow [ Sean Dougherty <seandd@[removed] ]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2006 13:13:17 -0400
From: "Jim Nixon" <ranger6000@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Lone Ranger origin
Bob Watson said he seemed to remember that it was a woman who found the
wounded Texas ranger who became "The Lone Ranger", not Tonto, and asks if
the "origin story" got changed. Bob's memory is correct. There was once a
story line that included a woman finding the soon-to-be masked man. Of
course, there was always Tonto. It was decided very early in the program's
run that the masked man needed a partner to talk to, since Silver didn't
have much to say. But there was never an attempt to tie the whole thing
together until much later. In fact, Tonto didn't even get a horse of his
own for several years. They rode double.
But back to the girl. After Brace Beemer took over the role on the radio
program in 1941, an ambitious series of sixty-some programs was launched in
which the Lone Ranger hunted an outlaw organization known as the "Black
Arrow". A female government agent named Joan Barkley was created to help
him. Joan also appeared in a later series dealing with the "Iron Spur", a
fictitious telling of the laying of a transcontinental railroad. Here she
reveals that her brother Jim (or Bob, the story uses both) was one of the
six Texas rangers and that she discovered the wounded ranger before Tonto
got there and rode off for help, returning only to find the six graves.
Supposing her brother and his friends dead, she is shocked to see one of
them still alive.
However, I suspect George Trendle didn't like this character much, even
though she helped involve the program's female listeners. There was a hint
of a love affair, a large no-no on the show. Fran Striker re-wrote the
origin story and wove it into the Dan Reid series in December, 1942. The
girl (played by Lee Allman) disappeared from the program, never to be
mentioned again.
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2006 14:15:34 -0400
From: stewwright@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: RE: Archives
Walden asked:
I would be interested in reading post
about what kinds of OTR materials that
are in different archives around the USA
that is not available to us collectors yet.
A book was published in late 2005 that contains exactly the kind of
information you seek. I have purchased this book, have used this book
several times, and found it to be a Wonderful Source of OTR research source
information. Several well-known OTR researchers and authors supplied
information to the authors of this book.
It is:
A Resource Guide to the Golden Age of Radio
By Susan and David S. Siegel
Hardcover (Smyth sewn binding), 215 pages
ISBN: 1-891379-04-6 or 978-1-891379-04-8
Publication Date: 2006
$[removed]
Research how radio was used to entertain, inform, influence and motivate the
public.
Discover the personal and business papers of the people who made radio
possible.
Locate scripts and actual recordings of hard-to-find local and network
programs and special broadcasts.
Identify subject specific bibliographic sources
Book Details:
2,300 Special Collections in academic and public libraries, historical
societies, museums, corporate archives and private collections. (For a
sampling of the diversity of the collections,
1,400 Bibliographic citations, grouped into 54 subject specific categories,
from Advertising to World War II. (For a partial list of the categories
100+ non-commercial research oriented Internet sites with leads to more
sources.
3,800 sources integrated into a single Index that can be searched by person,
program or subject heading.
The Link for this book is:
[removed]
Signing off for Now,
Stewart Wright
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2006 14:20:56 -0400
From: "Stephen A Kallis, Jr" <skallisjr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Sidekicks
Chris Holm, speaking of Margot Lane's role in The Shadow observes on
sidekicks,
Of all the "sidekick" characters, the one who escapes
this helpless hanger-on treatment the best is Gunsmoke's
Chester.
I think a good case can be made for Joyce Ryan on the Captain Midnight
radio show. She was more than the usual "there to be rescued" character.
During World War II, she participated in aerial dogfights, went on
commando raids in occupied France, and even held a bluff against a
quasi-Inca tribe, where failure would have made her a human sacrifice.
I still admire Joyce.
Stephen A. Kallis, Jr.
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2006 14:58:31 -0400
From: Bill Miles <bmiles@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Peter Quill program?
Hi gang!
Does anyone besides me remember a short-lived sci-fi type radio show
concerning a Tom Swift sort of guy named Peter Quill? The only episode
that sticks in my mind is one where Peter develops a pair of glasses
that enables the wearer to see the spirit world around him. Needless to
say the guy borrowing them went whacko! Anybody know of any shows that
exist?
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2006 14:58:46 -0400
From: "Andrew Godfrey" <niteowl049@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re:Phil Harris, Alice Faye Show
Phil Harris had the best of the Jack Benny spinoff shows. Phil and Alice
both had great comedic sense and timing.
As much as I liked Dennis Day and Mel Blanc they were not close to as good
as Phil Harris. Their radio shows may have been OK but they did their best
playing off of Jack Benny's lines.
The Phil Harris shows still hold up over the years and the kind of show
that makes it easy to keep your attention while listening because of the
banter between Harris and Faye and the stellar cast that included Elliott
Lewis, Walter Tetley of Great Gildersleeve fame and Gale Gordon.
That may have been a key ingredient to the success of the show having so
many of the great OTR actors in that one show.
Andrew Godfrey
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2006 16:00:42 -0400
From: "RadioAZ@[removed]" <radioAZ@[removed];
To: "OTR Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Gangbusters Date
I have a recording of a Gangbusters show which has been mislabelled. I'm
hoping to find the correct date for it.
Its called "Danville Bank Job." The date I have is listed as 10/3/53. But
that can't be correct. It starts out by saying that the story took place in
February 1954--four months after the supposed air date!
The only other clue I have is that at the end they announce next week's show
as "The Case of the Jealous Wife."
(Aside--for a show that was so popular and so well-remembered I'm amazed
there isn't a more thorough log of the episodes.)
Ted
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2006 16:01:15 -0400
From: "Holm, Chris " <[removed]@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: more on Sidekicks
Responding to my post about Chester being the only competent sidekick,
Stephen A Kallis, Jr: writes:
I think a good case can be made for Joyce Ryan on
the Captain Midnight radio show. She was more
than the usual "there to be rescued" character.
During World War II, she participated in aerial
dogfights, went on commando raids in occupied
France, and even held a bluff against a quasi-Inca
tribe, where failure would have made her a human
sacrifice.
Mr Kallis is quite correct and makes a good point about Joyce Ryan. I
was clumsy when I said that Chester was the one sidekick who escaped the
"there to be rescued" or the "stupid to make the hero look good"
treatment. I should have said something along the lines of him being
ONE of the ones to escape it.
Two other examples of competent, effective 'sidekicks' that spring
immediately to mind are Tonto and Kato.
-chris holm
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 24 Aug 2006 17:09:16 -0400
From: Wich2@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: The Game with a Broken Foot
From: "Holm, Chris " <[removed]@[removed];
the Dr Watson character
in the New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is nearly always incompetent -
not because the real Dr Watson was like that, but because if you make
Watson look stupider, it's an easy way to make Holmes look more
brilliant in a 22 minute script
Dear Chris-
Rather than call that an "easy" way, I would call it a lazy, cheap - and,
considering how it effectively rapes the original author's intent - nearly
venal way.
Proof? It has often NOT been done that way, by other writers in other
successful Baker Street series - even ones also under the <30 min. constraint.
Best,
-Craig Wichman
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 25 Aug 2006 00:19:14 -0400
From: Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
To: Olde Tyme Radio Digest Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: 8-24 births/deaths
August 24th births
08-24-1875 - Frank Craven - Boston, MA - d. 9-1-1945
actor: "Arthur Hopkins Presents"; "Cavalcade of America"
08-24-1884 - Earl Der Biggers - Warren, OH - d. 4-5-1933
author: Charlie Chan books
08-24-1896 - Cyril Armbrister - d. 9-18-1966
producer, director: "Chandu the Magician"; "Strange As It Seems";
"Terry and the Pirates"
08-24-1896 - Phil Baker - Philadelphia, PA - d. 12-1-1963
comedian, emcee: "Honolulu Bound"; "Take It or Leave It"
08-24-1898 - Malcolm Cowley - Belsano, PA - d. 3-28-1989
speaker: "NBC University Theatre"
08-24-1900 - Jimmy Fidler - St. Louis, MO - d. 8-9-1988
commentator: "Jimmy Fidler"
08-24-1900 - Preston Foster - Ocean City, NJ - d. 7-14-1970
actor: "NBC University Theatre"
08-24-1900 - Ralph Kirbery - Patterson, NJ - d. 8-14-1993
singer: (The Dream Singer) "Mohawk Treasure Chest"; "Musical Moments
Revue"
08-24-1903 - Claude Hopkins - Alexandria, VA - d. 2-18-1984
bandleader: "Jubilee"; "Let's Go Nightclubbing"
08-24-1905 - Don Douglas - Kinleyside, Scotland - d. 12-31-1945
actor: "Good News of 1939"; "Cavalcade of America"; "Did Justice
Triumph?"
08-24-1912 - Durward Kirby - Covingnton, KY - d. 3-15-2000
announcer, emcee: "Club Matinee"; "Honeymoon in New York"
08-24-1913 - Howard Duff - Bremerton, WA - d. 7-8-1990
actor: Sam Spade "Advs. of Sam Spade"; Mike McCoy "McCoy"; Josh
Chandler "Dear John"
08-24-1919 - Dennis James - Jersey City, NJ - d. 6-3-1997
host, announcer: "Lawyer Q"; "Major Bows Original Amateur Hour"
08-24-1933 - Bobby Ellis - Chicago, IL - d. 11-23-1973
actor: Henry Aldrich "Aldrich Family"; Chester A. Riley, Jr. "Life of
Riley"
08-24-1957 - Stephen Fry - London, England
actor: Guest Panelist "One Minute Please"
August 24th deaths
01-06-1897 - Billy M. Greene - NYC - d. 8-24-1973
actor: Sheriff McGrath "His Honor, The Barber"
02-15-1916 - Mary Jane Croft - Muncie, IN - d. 8-24-1999
actor: Sandra Martin "Story of Sandra Martin"; Alice Henderson "Beulah"
02-17-1919 - Kathleen Freeman - Chicago, IL - d. 8-24-2001
actor: California Artists Radio Theatre"
02-27-1902 - Joe Tarto - d. 8-24-1976
musician: "The Ipana Troubadors"
06-27-1933 - Gary Crosby - Los Angeles, CA - d. 8-24-1995
singer: "Gary Crosby Show"; "Bing Crosby Show"
08-28-1900 - Rudy Schrager - Czernowitz, Austria-Hungary - d. 8-24-1983
musical director: "Box 13"; "Lux Radio Theatre"
09-02-1896 - Amanda Randolph - Louisville, KY - d. 8-24-1967
actor: Mama "Amos 'n' Andy"; Oriole "Beulah"
09-09-1924 - Jane Greer - Washington, [removed] - d. 8-24-2001
singer, actor: "Rudy Vallee Show"; "Lux Radio Theatre"
11-20-1912 - Harold Ensley - d. 8-24-2005
produced over 5,000 radio shows
12-07-1912 - Louis Prima - New Orleans,LA - d. 8-24-1978
jazz trumpeter: "You Can't Have Everything"; "Songs by Sinatra"; "The
Navy Swings"
xx-xx-1902 - Leonard Lee - d. 8-24-1964
writer: "Sherlock Holmes"
Ron Sayles
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 25 Aug 2006 11:29:39 -0400
From: Sean Dougherty <seandd@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Orson's Shadow
A review of Orson's Shadow can be found here:
[removed]
Sean Dougherty
SeanDD@[removed]
--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2006 Issue #231
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