------------------------------
The Old-Time Radio Digest!
Volume 2007 : Issue 91
A Part of the [removed]!
[removed]
ISSN: 1533-9289
Today's Topics:
Godfrey did not fire Julius LaRosa [ <verotas@[removed]; ]
Betty Hutton [ "George Tirebiter" <tirebiter2@hotm ]
betty hutton: he says murder [ Joan Leya <joanleya@[removed]; ]
[removed] [ "Joe Stickney" <jstickneysbd@earthl ]
Benny hour shows [ "Laura Leff" <president@[removed] ]
Truth or Consequences [ "Jay Manarky" <jayman@[removed]; ]
Natural Bridge Revue [ jack and cathy french <otrpiano@ver ]
3-21 births/deaths [ Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed] ]
Groucho Marx [ Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed]; ]
OTR beverages [ Kermyt Anderson <kermyta@[removed]; ]
#OldRadio IRC Chat this Thursday Nig [ charlie@[removed] ]
Golden Age of Radio and One Night St [ "Bob Scherago" <rscherago@[removed] ]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 19:02:54 -0400
From: <verotas@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Godfrey did not fire Julius LaRosa
Thanks to my etherpal Derek Tague for dragging me in kicking and screaming -
of course - to answer again some of the lies about Arthur Godfrey that so
many people for years have accepted "have legs" as the newsies say. It
would take many pages to respond to all of this - like most human endeavors,
these things are very complex and involve many undercurrents. Two of the
"big lies" about Mr. Godfrey are: (1) He fired Julius LaRosa (on the air, as
if that makes it somehow worse). (2) Godfrey was a big and anti-Semite. I
will answer in detail in my book, but let me give here a quick shot.
"Boy singer" Julius LaRosa was NOT fired. Read that again. Do not miss the
"Not". He had begged Mr. G for months to let him go. Mr. Godfrey kept
telling Julie that he was not ready, and to hang around a while and learn
from old pros like Archie Bleyer and Frank Parker, not to mention Mr. Godfrey
himself. Julie (whom I know and with whom I've spent hours talking about
this) kept bugging Mr. Godfrey, who finally decided to relent and accede to
the LaRosa wishes. First he discussed it with his mentor, Frank Stanton, the
No. 2 man at CBS under Bill Paley. Stanton - an absolutely charming and
kindly man who passed away last December 20 at 98 - agreed to let LaRosa go,
and said, "You hired him on the air, didn't you?" Godfrey replied, "Yes".
Stanton said, "Then why not let him go on the air?".
That's what happened - in the last of the six-segments of the Friday morning
simulcast. Godfrey did everything he could to give Julius LaRosa the most
positive send-off possible. He spent much of that 15 minutes lauding Julie,
saying how proud he was of him, how well he was doing, etc. Julie sang a
song, at the end of which things were running very late - not unusual for a
Godfrey 'cast. Mr. Godfrey said, "That was Julie's Swan Song" and explained
how Julie would be going out and have his own show and so on, and suddenly
had to blurt out, "This is CBS - The Columbia Broadcasting System".
Julie did not know what "Swan Song" meant, but gathered from the groan of the
studio audience that it was not good. He had recently hired a manager or
agent - something the Godfrey 'kids' were not supposed to do, as the Godfrey
office took care of their extra bookings, etc. The manager heard the show,
called Julie, said he'd set up a news conference early in the afternoon, and
said Julie should be there and let the agent do all the talking. He did,
depicting Mr. G as a nasty old millionaire picking on this poor little kid.
One could almost hear Red Skelton with those last words.
Unfortunately, the resulting heavy coverage the next day neglected to point
out that Julie never said anything like this, it was this agent. The damage
had been done. When he saw the coverage, Mr. Godfrey quite understandably
lost his temper, and instead of explaining what really had happened, he blew
up and fought back. Understand something - Mr. Godfrey was an emotional
person. He could get very excited and enthusiastic about something, which
made him the outstanding salesman he was. He also could be moody and have
bad periods. Not surprising - he was in pain nearly all his waking hours
from 1931 when a truck ran head-on into Godfrey's car and caused him to
nearly die, and suffer from dozens of fractures all over his body, constant
headaches, and a lot of pain. People in the Godfrey cast and office watched
his blue eyes. If they were gray, they knew to keep away from him - he was
hurting or angry, and that was not a good time to approach.
A reporter asked Godfrey why he fired Julie. Instead of saying he did no
such thing, Mr. Godfrey lost it. He snapped back, "I guess he (LaRosa) lost
his humility". Of course the press turned that word right around and threw
it back in Godfrey's face.
There's one more point here. The show was simulcast. Each quarter-hour
segment of the 90 minutes had its own sponsor and was aired with network and
station IDs and ads in between. The TV side generally opened and closed each
part with a 30-second film showing the sponsor's wares. That audio was not
used on the radio side, which Mr. Godfrey and/or his announcer Tony Marvin
opened and closed. Mr. Godfrey's "swan song" line and the brief comments
which followed were heard on CBS Radio but NOT CBS Television.
The result was not dissimilar to the reaction to the infamous Nixon-Kennedy
debate, where most of those polled who listened on over a radio thought Mr.
Nixon won, and those who watched on TV said they thought JFK won (the
audience was said to be about 50-50; remember, this was still early in the
importance of television to politics). Nixon looked ghastly. He was just
out of the hospital suffering from painful, debilitating Phlebitis. Against
his physician's urgent advice, he arrived with those heavy, shadowed jowls.
Then there's that controversial business about the set backdrop being changed
several times so JFK and his suit looked good against it but RMN did not -
we've all heard this over and over.
Just last week someone told me that Godfrey fired Julius - he heard it and
knew he remembered. I asked if he listened or watched, and he said , I
watched on television - I remember!". I informed him that in that case, he
misremembered. If he watched, he wouldn't have heard anything other than the
end of Julie's song. If the reader gets a copy of the radio portion, I think
he will agree with others who have told me, "It certainly didn't sound like a
firing to me!" On the contrary, all the conversation BEFORE Julie's song
was all very complimentary. What my friend remembered didn't happen - but he
combined the news coverage of the next few days (1) with what he had seen on
TV (2) and came up with (7)!
Remember the old Hitler/Goebbels technique of "The Big Lie"? Tell it over
and over enough and people think it's the truth. That's what has happened
with this story in the half-century since this occurred. Unfortunately,
neither Mr. Godfrey or Mr. LaRosa came forward with the true story, which I
pieced together talking with nearly everyone that was around Mr. Godfrey and
the shows at the time. There is much more to this than what meets the eye,
even what I have written above. MUCH more.
The next big lie is the whole business about Arthur Godfrey being a bigot and
anti-Semite. To give the reader a breather, I will delve into this here, in
the next few days. Thanks again Charley for providing the platform, and
Derek for dusting it off for me. Bestus - Lee Munsick
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 19:03:20 -0400
From: "George Tirebiter" <tirebiter2@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Betty Hutton
The short that includes Betty Hutton singing "Murder, He Says" on Command
Performance turns up on Turner Classic Movies from time to time as one of
their "One Reel Wonders" (a title they give to both one and two reelers).
Unfortunately, as far as I am aware there is nowhere you can find out in
advance what short subjects are scheduled for TCM. However, I have noticed
that if the short includes a feature film star there is tendency to use them
just before or just after a film starring that person. Since Bob Hope is
the host of that Command Performance you could try checking for that short
before or after a Hope picture (or better yet, between two Hope pictures if
they are scheduled back to back).
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 22:58:01 -0400
From: Joan Leya <joanleya@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: betty hutton: he says murder
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: Alternative section used was text/plain
her performance on command performance with an introduction by bob hope is
seen in its entirety on [removed] look under videos with the subject betty
hutton ...
Need Mail bonding?
*** This message was altered by the server, and may not appear ***
*** as the sender intended. ***
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:00:02 -0400
From: "Joe Stickney" <jstickneysbd@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: [removed]
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: Alternative section used was text/plain
It's taken a while, but a buddy and I have finally launched the test version
of a streaming audio station devoted to old time radio.
We are still ironing out the kinks and the content is limited, but if you
would like to, head over to [removed] and see what you think.
Any feedback is appreciated and as we get the site up, any writings
concerning old time radio that you might allow us to include in the site
would be appreciated as well.
Joe Knight
[removed]
*** This message was altered by the server, and may not appear ***
*** as the sender intended. ***
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:00:10 -0400
From: "Laura Leff" <president@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Benny hour shows
Sean Doughterty asked :
Did Jack ever do hour-long shows on the radio?
Just the 1956 Christmas show.
--Laura Leff
President, IJBFC
[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:00:48 -0400
From: "Jay Manarky" <jayman@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Truth or Consequences
If I recall correctly, Ralph Edwards took care of 'the correct
answer matter' masterfully.
The last syllable of the last word of the question was barely out of
Edwards' mouth when the buzzer would sound, making it almost impossible for
anyone to answer correctly.
Edwards could read his audiences well. That little bit of chicanery
always brought howls of laughter from everyone in the house!
Jay Manarky
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:01:03 -0400
From: jack and cathy french <otrpiano@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Natural Bridge Revue
On Tuesday, March 20, 2007, at 07:07 PM, Bryan Wright wrote:
The show was sponsored by Craddock-Terry Shoe Corporation (then
based in Lynchburg, Virginia) and was named after the famous nearby
natural landmark, "Natural Bridge." . From May 1930 until October
1930, it
starred a young singer from Lynchburg, 'Cile Turner When she left
around the end of October, she
was replaced by a generic dance band. I don't have any recordings of
the program and doubt that any exist--but I would VERY much like to
obtain copies should any episodes survive.
Amen, brethren and sistren, let us open our "Ultimate History of
Network Radio" as was writ by Brother Jay Hickerson, and read on page
338 that this show aired from 1930 to April 1931 on the Blue Network on
Friday evenings at 8:45 pm. Two programs, both with "Nat and Bridget,"
exist now. Bless you, Brother [removed]
Well, I do have one of those shows, but have never found the second
one. In my copy (dated only 1931) the theme song is "Step up, Pep Up,
in Natural Bridge Shoes." "Nat" and "Bridget" alternate singing solos
and duets, including "Honey, I Just Wanna Sing About You", "C'mon and
Let's Get Friendly" "I Found a Million Dollar Baby in the 5-and-10 Cent
Store" and "Honey Love." A live band accompanies them but is not
identified. Of course, between every song, there is a shoe commercial
one of which is a parody of the Little Red Riding Hood tale.
Jack French
Editor: RADIO RECALL
<[removed]>
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:01:29 -0400
From: Ronald Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
To: Olde Tyme Radio Digest Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: 3-21 births/deaths
March 21st births
03-21-1867 - Florenz Ziegfeld - Chicago, IL - d. 7-22-1932
showman: "Ed Sullivan Show"; "Ziegfeld Follies of the Air"
03-21-1869 - Vivia Ogden - Ohio - d. 12-22-1952
actor: Mrs. Manners "John's Other Wife"; Annie "Orphans of Divorce"
03-21-1893 - Aileen Stanley - d. 3-24-1982
vocalist: (The Victrola Girl) "RCA Thesaurus Music Hall Varieties"
03-21-1893 - Sidney Franklin - San Francisco, CA - d. 5-18-1972
film producer, director: "Academy Awards Program"; "Screen Guild
Theatre"
03-21-1903 - Mark Hellinger - NYC - d. 12-21-1947
broadway, hollywood producer: "Jack Benny Program"; "Post Toasties Time"
03-21-1903 - Nan Boardman - NYC - d. 9-9-1984
actor: "The Modern Adventures of Casanova"
03-21-1908 - Vincent Pelletier - Minneapolis, MN - d. 2-25-1994
actor: Victor Powell "This is Life"; Robin "Calling All Detectives"
03-21-1911 - Henny Backus - Philadelphia, PA - d. 12-9-2004
actor: "Romance"
03-21-1912 - Henry Gibson - NYC - d. 5-29-2003
director, writer: "Burns and Allen"; "Junior Miss"
03-21-1912 - Suzanne Kaaren - Brooklyn, NY - d. 8-27-2004
actor: "Lux Radio Theatre"
03-21-1915 - Hank D'Amico - Rochester, NY - d. 12-3-1965
clairinetist: "Rumpus Room"; "Saturday Senior Swing"
03-21-1918 - Cliff Norton - Chicago, IL - d. 1-25-2003
actor: Connie the coolie "Terry and the Pirates"; "American Novels"
03-21-1919 - Lois Collier - Salley, SC - d. 10-27-1999
actor: Carol Chandler "Dear John"
03-21-1926 - Virginia Weidler - Eagle Rock, CA - d. 7-1-1968
actor: "Edgar Bergen/Charlie McCarthy Show"
03-21-1932 - Tommy Bernard - Los Angeles, CA
actor: David Nelson "Ozzie and Harriet Show"
March 21st deaths
01-30-1914 - John Ireland - Vancouver, Canada - d. 3-21-1992
actor: "MGM Theatre of the Air"; "[removed] Steel Hour"
03-15-1913 - Macdonald Carey - Sioux City, IA - d. 3-21-1994
actor: Jonathan Hillary "Just Plain Bill "; Lee Markham "Woman in White"
03-20-1908 - Michael Redgrave - Bristol, England - d. 3-21-1985
actor: Horatio Hornblower "Horatio Hornblower"
03-28-1871 - Willem Mengelberg - Utrecht, Netherlands - d. 3-21-1951
composer, conductor: "The New York Philharmonic Orchestra"
03-28-1917 - Randy Brooks - Sandford, ME - d. 3-21-1967
bandleader: "One Night Stand"; "The Kate Smith Hour"
05-08-1915 - Nan Wynn - Wheeling, WV - d. 3-21-1971
singer: "Ceiling Unlimited"
05-22-1903 - Ward Wilson -Trenton, NJ - d. 3-21-1966
actor, announcer: Mr. DeHaven "Aldrich Family"; Beetle "Phil Baker Show"
05-27-1904 - Marlin Hurt - Du Quoin, IL - d. 3-21-1946
actor: Beulah "Fibber McGee and Molly"; Bill Jackson "Beulah"
06-08-1918 - Robert Preston - Newton Highlands, MA - d. 3-21-1987
actor: "Lux Radio Theatre"; "Eternal Light"; "Medicine USA"; "Silver
Theatre"
07-18-1891 - Gene Lockhart - Ontario, Canada - d. 3-21-1957
actor: "Nebbs"; "Doctor Fights"; "Abroad with the Lockharts"
08-17-1903 - Bob Evans - California - d. 3-21-1961
actor: "Sing It Again"
09-15-1924 - Bobby Short - Danville, IL - d. 3-21-2005
singer: Sang on Chicago radio at beginning of his career
11-27-1925 - Ernie Wise - Leeds, England - d. 3-21-1999
comedian: "The Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise Radio Show"; "Bandwagon"
Ron Sayles
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:01:52 -0400
From: Jim Widner <jwidner@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Groucho Marx
A. Joseph Ross said:
> Then again, Groucho Marx never did You Bet Your Life live. It was
> always by transcription, tape, or film.
Actually, this is not correct. The earliest shows were indeed live and
therein lay the problem. Groucho simply could not connect with the
contestants. Hesitation ensued on both sides. It was when it was decided
by John Guedel, the creator, to tape 60 minutes of the show and then
edit them down to the 1/2 hour, that the success of the show began. Over
that hour, Groucho grew more comfortable with the visitors to the show
and Guedel was able to take the "best" of it into the program we hear on
extant episodes.
Jim Widner
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2007 23:02:21 -0400
From: Kermyt Anderson <kermyta@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: OTR beverages
I think the original poster asked about specific alcoholic beverages
drank by OTR characters (at least, that was implied). I doubt very much
this is alcoholic, but Judge Hooker on The Great Gildersleeve was very
fond of a mysterious beverage called Kaylac (spelling?) water. Does
anybody know what this is? Knowing the Judge's weak constitution, it
was probably something vaguely herbal and medicinal that tasted awful
but was supposed to improve your digestion.
Kermyt
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2007 02:12:01 -0500
From: charlie@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: #OldRadio IRC Chat this Thursday Night!
A weekly [removed]
For the best in OTR Chat, join IRC (Internet Relay Chat), StarLink-IRC
Network, the channel name is #OldRadio. We meet Thursdays at 8 PM Eastern
and go on, and on! The oldest OTR Chat Channel, it has been in existence
over nine years, same time, same channel! Started by Lois Culver, widow
of actor Howard Culver, this is the place to be on Thursday night for
real-time OTR talk!
Our "regulars" include OTR actors, soundmen, collectors, listeners, and
others interested in enjoying OTR from points all over the world. Discussions
range from favorite shows to almost anything else under the sun (sometimes
it's hard for us to stay on-topic)...but even if it isn't always focused,
it's always a good time!
For more info, contact charlie@[removed]. We hope to see you there, this
week and every week!
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2007 12:31:55 -0400
From: "Bob Scherago" <rscherago@[removed];
To: "Old Time Radio" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Golden Age of Radio and One Night Stand with
the Big Bands
The latest "Golden Age of Radio" programs with Dick Bertel
and Ed Corcoran, and "A One Night Stand with the Big Bands"
with Arnold Dean can be heard at [removed].
Wach week we feature four complete shows in MP3 format
for your listening pleasure or for downloading; two "Golden
Age of Radios" and two "One Night Stands." The two WTIC
programs are on different pages.
We present new shows every week or so. The current four
programs will be available on line at least until the morning
of March 28, 2007.
"Golden Age of Radio"
Program 44: November, 1973 - Howard Duff
Hardcase leading man Howard Duff built his reputation on
radio, where among several other assignments he was cast
as Dashiell Hammett's two-fisted private eye Sam Spade.
Program 45 - December, 1973 - Himan Brown
Legendary Producer/Director/Creator, Himan Brown's
productions include audio works such as Inner Sanctum,
The Thin Man, CBS Radio Mystery Theater, Terry and
the Pirates, Bulldog Drummond, Dick Tracy, Adventure
Theater, Grand Central Station, and an endless list of
daytime soap operas.
A One Night Stand with the Big Bands
Program 41 - May, 1975 - Charles McPherson
Charles McPherson was born in Joplin, Missouri and grew
up in Detroit from the age of nine. Charles McPherson is
one of the four or five great alto saxophonists on the
planet now in the new millennium. He certainly is one of
those ?chosen few? still left who have essentially learned
their craft at the feet of ?the master?, Charles ?Bird?
Parker. The style of Charles Parker has had a profound
effect on McPherson, who has absorbed Bird?s playing
and constructed it into his own very personal style.
Program 42 - June, 1975 - Billy Butterfield
Billy Butterfield was born in 1917 in Middleton, Ohio.
He attended high school in Wyoming and studied
medicine at Transylvania College. After the war, he
formed his own successful band which continued until
1947, after which he began a prolific studio recording
career in New York. Throughout the 40's and 50's, Billy
continued working at Nick's and Condon's as well as
touring with his own small group. From 1968-73 he
worked regularly with the World's Greatest Jazzband
and appeared at many jazz festivals well into the 80's.
In the 1970's WTIC decided that there was a market in
the evening for long-form shows that could be packaged
and sold to sponsors. Two of those shows were "The
Golden Age of Radio" and "A One Night Stand with the
Big Bands."
Dick Bertel had interviewed radio collector-historian
Ed Corcoran several times on his radio and TV shows,
and thought a regular monthly show featuring interviews
with actors, writers, producers, engineers and musicians
from radio's early days might be interesting. "The Golden
Age of Radio" was first broadcast in April, 1970; Ed was
Dick's co-host. It lasted seven years. "The Golden Age
of Radio" can also be heard Saturday nights on Walden
Hughes's program on Radio Yesteryear.
Arnold Dean began his love affair with the big band
era in his pre-teen years and his decision to study
the clarinet was inspired by the style of Artie Shaw.
When he joined WTIC in 1965 he hosted a daily program
of big band music. In 1971, encouraged by the success
of his daily program and "The Golden Age of Radio"
series, he began monthly shows featuring interviews
with the band leaders, sidemen, agents, jazz reporters,
etc. who made major contributions to one of the great
eras of music history.
Bob Scherago
Webmaster
--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2007 Issue #91
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