Subject: [removed] Digest V2010 #192
From: [removed]@[removed]
Date: 11/6/2010 2:19 PM

To: [removed]@[removed]
Reply-to: [removed]@[removed]

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

                                The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                                  Volume 2010 : Issue 192
                             A Part of the [removed]!
                                 [removed]
                                     ISSN: 1533-9289

                                     Today's Topics:

      Re: Fourth Wall Talk.                 [ "Glenn P.," <C128User@[removed]; ]
      Rochester                             [ Campbell Connell <rcconnell@[removed] ]
      Radio Through the Decades             [ Steve Darnall <fvpress@[removed] ]
      Shameless Promotion for Vic and Sade  [ "Jan Bach" <janbach@[removed]; ]
      Re: Fourth Wall Talk                  [ Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed] ]
      11-4 births/deaths                    [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
      Tippy Stringer Huntley Conrad         [ "bob@[removed]" <bstepno@mindsprin ]
      RE: Orson Welles and "The Shadow"     [ Michael Ogden <michaelo67@[removed] ]
      Jack Benny Radio Credits              [ Fass Martin <watchstop@frontiernet. ]
      Names--PS                             [ Fass Martin <watchstop@frontiernet. ]
      The Devil's Mask query                [ "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@hotm ]
      Benny credits by "real name"          [ "Laura Leff" <president@[removed] ]
      1938 War of Worlds report in UK       [ Michael Berger <[removed]@yaho ]

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:00:43 -0400
    From: "Glenn P.," <C128User@[removed];
    To: "[The Old-Time Radio Mailing List]" <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Re: Fourth Wall Talk.

    On Tue., 02-Nov-2010 at 12:01:46 EDT (-0400 GMT), RentingNow@[removed] wrote:

     > Would we consider Shakespeare someone who broke down the fourth wall?  I
     > would also suggest that the phenomenon goes all the way back to Greek times
     > - but then, one might say that there wasn't any wall in the amphitheater
     > from which to break forth.

    No. You miss the point entirely -- the Fourth Wall was then, and has always
    been, the (in a sense) actual, yet imaginary, "wall" of the on-stage room
    being depicted. Even way back in the days of the Greek ampitheatre, they must
    have had SOME plays with some scenes set in indoor rooms! Those rooms of
    necessity had to have invisible "walls" through which the audience was
    viewing the action, walls which were held to be solid to the actors, but
    nonexistent for the audience.

    Because of the "solidity" of these "walls" to the actors, the audience was
    held to be invisible to the actors -- they were concealed from their sight
    and hearing. Transgressing this convention was every bit as much "breaking
    the Fourth Wall" back then as it would be today -- it's just that, with
    invisible walls surrounding the *entire stage*, the concept was slightly
    broader Back Then than it is today.     :)

    [ADMINISTRIVIA: We're getting a bit far afield - back to OTR, shall we?
    --cfs3]

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:00:52 -0400
    From: Campbell Connell <rcconnell@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Rochester

    Since the more knowledgable people did not chime in, I believe that for the
    first few years Rochester was on the show, he wasn't credited at all.  He was
    just another character like those Mel Blanc played and those always had
    ficticious names.  As he became one of the show's top draws, they started
    crediting him, but I guess to avoid clashing with the show's illusion that
    everything that happened on it was real, they credited him with the name used
    on the show.

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:02:23 -0400
    From: Steve Darnall <fvpress@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Radio Through the Decades

    Many of you probably know that this last Tuesday November 2 was the 90th
    anniversary of the "debut" of Pittsburgh station KDKA, which began by
    broadcasting election returns (which meant that for some Americans, radio
    started with bad news). Anyway, in honor of this 90th anniversary, "Those
    Were the Days" is devoting our upcoming show to "Radio Through the Decades,"
    with en episode of the Empire Builders from 1930, Fibber McGee and Molly from
    1940, The Big Show from 1950, and Suspense from 1960. Those of you in Chicago
    are invited to tune in from 1 to 5 pm CST this Saturday; around the world,
    you can hear us live at [removed] (and we'll archive the show for a week
    at [removed]).

    That same night, the celebration continues with the live induction broadcast
    for the National Radio Hall of Fame. This year's inductees include country
    music legend Ralph Emery, sonic icon Sam Phillips, and "Music and the Spoken
    Word." Information about the live broadcast can be heard at [removed].

    Thanks for listening.

     ***** WARNING! UNHANDLED BAD CHARACTER!!!!!

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:02:29 -0400
    From: "Jan Bach" <janbach@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Shameless Promotion for Vic and Sade piece

    Hello, again --

    Many of you know that I am a professional musician and composer. Thought you
    might like to know that for a recent commission I combined the dialogue from
    an old Vic and Sade radio program "Vic Fakes the Cornet" (March 27, 1940)
    with several band pieces he mentions, played here by a brass quintet. If you
    are in the Chicago area, consider attending the Gaudete Brass Quintet
    concert this coming Saturday, November 6 at 7 pm at the Merit School of
    Music on 38 South Peoria Avenue, where "Vic and Sade's Band Concert" will
    receive its world premiere.

    Don't miss it if you can!

    Jan Bach
    [removed]

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:02:37 -0400
    From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];
    To: otr-digest <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Re: Fourth Wall Talk

        Larry Moore wrote --

       > ... the first  Burns and Allen episode.  You
    will see general confusion on how to handle  the fourth wall situation.
      In that episode there was literally a fourth  wall that George stepped
    over.  It was a sort of fake brick thing. Talk about  awkward?

       While I seldom watch t-------n, which I consider a passing fancy (and
    have had my mine on only twice since July, for a total of four hours) I
    have seen that first show and what I recall was Bill Godwin's middle
    Carnation commercial.  As on radio after presenting the attributes of
    Carnation he would walk away from the mike.  On the tv show he starts
    walking off and is called back by George, that he has to leave by the
    door, not walking though a wall.  Sheepishly, Godwin walks back across
    the stage and out the front door.  :)
       Ah, the joys of live early tv.
       Joe

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:02:42 -0400
    From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
    To: Olde Tyme Radio Digest Digest <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  11-4 births/deaths

    November 4th births

    11-04-1879 - Will Rogers, Sr. - Oolagah,  Oklahoma Territory - d.
    8-15-1935
    humorist: (America's Greatest Humorist) "Gulf Headliners"
    11-04-1892 - Philip Featherstone - Illinois - d. 3-19-1969
    mandolin: "Golden Melody Boys"
    11-04-1893 - Howard Hoffman - Ohio - d. 6-27-1969
    actor: Chandu "Chandu the Magician"
    11-04-1896 - Harry Woods - North Chelmsford, MA - d. 1-13-1970
    compser: "Great Moments to Music"
    11-04-1896 - Ian Wolfe - Canton, IL - d. 1-23-1992
    actor: "Suspense"; "Cavalcade of America"; "Escape"
    11-04-1900 - Arthur Schwartz - Brooklyn, NY - d. 9-3-1984
    composer: "The Gibson Family"
    11-04-1901 - Helene Dumas - Brooklyn, NY - d. 12-23-1986
    actor: "Jane Arden"; "Eno Crime Club"; "Short Short Story"
    11-04-1902 - Frank Jenks - Des Moines, IA - d. 5-13-1962
    actor: "The Navy Comes Through"
    11-04-1904 - Sam Hayes - Cooksville, IL - d. 7-28-1958
    news commentator: "Newstime with Sam Hayes"; "Sperry Breakfast News"
    11-04-1906 - Bob Considine - Washington D. C. - d. 9-25-1975
    announcer: "Fred Waring Show"; "Sports Broadcasts"
    11-04-1906 - Sterling North - Edgerton, WI - d. 12-21-1974
    writer, host, critic: "Of Men and Books"
    11-04-1908 - Colin Simpson - Petersham, Australia - d. xx-xx-1983
    writer: "Six from Borneo"
    11-04-1910 - Abby Lewis - Mesilla Park, NM - d. 11-27-1997
    actor: Telephone Operator "House in the Country"
    11-04-1911 - Dixie Lee Crosby - Harriman, TN - d. 11-1-1952
    actor: (Wife of Bing) "Shell Chateau"; "Bing Crosby Show"
    11-04-1911 - Jack Rose - Warsaw, Russian Empire - d. 10-21-1995
    writer: "The Bob Hope Show"
    11-04-1911 - Josephine Huston - d. 10-19-1967
    vocalist: "Take a Note"
    11-04-1912 - Humphrey Davis - Meriden, CT - d. 5-23-1987
    actor: Al Douglas "Life Can Be Beautiful"; Sheriff Jackson "Tennessee
    Jed"
    11-04-1914 - Court Benson - Vancouver, Canada - d. 2-5-1995
    announcer, narrator: "Tennessee Jed"; "Backstage Wife"
    11-04-1916 - Walter Cronkite - St. Joseph, MO - d. 7-17-2009
    newscaster: "Soldiers of the Press"; "A Tribute [removed]"
    11-04-1917 - Jean King - Dallas, TX - d. 8-19-1993
    disk jockey: Lonesome Gal "Lonesome Gal"
    11-04-1918 - Art Carney - Mount Vernon, NY - d. 11-9-2003
    actor: Billy Oldham "Joe and Ethel Turp"; General Dwight D. Eisenhower
    "Living 1948"
    11-04-1918 - Cameron Mitchell - Dallastown, PA - d. 7-6-1994
    actor: "Crime Does Not Pay"; "Lux Radio Theatre"
    11-04-1918 - Jay Jackson - Stockdale, OH - d. 8-16-2005
    host, announcer: "Broadway Talks Back"; "Radio Reader"s Digest"
    11-04-1919 - Martin Balsam - NYC - d. 2-13-1996
    actor: "Cloak and Dagger"
    11-04-1919 - Shirley Mitchell - Toledo, OH
    actor: Alice Darling "Fibber McGee and Molly"; Leila Ransom "Great
    Gildersleeve"
    11-04-1927 - Bobby Breen - Toronto, Canada
    singer, actor: "The Eddie Cantor Show"
    11-04-1930 - Kate Reid - London, England - d. 3-27-1993
    actor: "CBS Radio Mystery Theatre"
    11-04-1931 - Clinton Ford - Salford, Lancashire, England - d. 10-21-2009
    singer: "Saturday Club"

    November 4th deaths

    01-26-1945 - Marti Caine - Sheffield, Yorkshire, England - d. 11-4-1995
    comedian: "The Marti Caine Show"
    02-14-1904 - Bruce Barrington - d. 11-4-1990
    newscaster: WEBQ Harrisburg, Illinois
    03-29-1867 - Cy Young - Gilmore, OH - d. 11-4-1955
    baseball pitching great: "Feature Project: This Game of Baseball"
    04-04-1908 - Ernestine Gilbreth Carey - NYC - d. 11-4-2006
    writer: (Cheaper By the Dozen) "Lux Radio Theatre"
    05-13-1912 - Phil Alampi - d. 11-4-1992
    farm newscaster: ABC, WJZ New York, New York
    07-20-1902 - Jimmie Tansey - Omaha, NE - d. 11-4-1950
    actor: Danny O'Neill "The O'Neills"; Clement Arnaud "Hilltop House"
    08-02-1890 - Leila Roosevelt - d. 11-4-1973
    explorer: (cousin of FDR) "So You Want to Be"
    08-05-1916 - Elizabeth Bemis - d. 11-4-2004
    newscaster: WLW Cincinnati, Ohio
    09-22-1913 - Chuck Acree - St. Louis, MO - d. 11-4-1991
    emcee: "Hint Club"; We, the Wives"; Ladies Be Seated"
    10-21-1915 - Frances Mercer - New Rochelle, NY - d. 11-4-2000
    actor: "Nothing Serious"
    11-10-1899 - George Storer - Champaign, IL - d. 11-4-1975
    Broadcast Executive
    11-23-1908 - Nelson Bond - Scranton, PA - d. 11-4-2006
    writer: "Hot Copy"; "Suspense"; "Dr. Christian"
    12-02-1913 - Jerry Sohl - Los Angeles, CA - d. 11-4-2002
    author: "X Minus One"
    12-27-1893 - Ann Pennington - Camden, NJ - d. 11-4-1971
    actor: "Good News of 1938"
    xx-xx-1913 - Joy Hathaway - British Columbia, Canada - d. 11-4-1954
    actor: Amanda Dyke Leighton "Amanda of Honeymoon Hill"

    Ron

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:03:00 -0400
    From: "bob@[removed]" <bstepno@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Tippy Stringer Huntley Conrad

    (Sorry for the delay I accidentally sent this with the wrong mail-server
    and it was rejected.)

    Date: Nov 2, 2010 12:52 PM

    I did see a mention of Tippy Stringer Huntley Conrad and don't know
    whether anyone passed on her Washington Post obit:

    [removed]

    Given the day I'm sending this, I have to mention she was also "Miss
    Get Out the Vote" in 1956

    Bob
    [removed]

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:05:27 -0400
    From: Michael Ogden <michaelo67@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  RE: Orson Welles and "The Shadow"
    X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
    X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: Alternative section used was text/plain

    Martin made the assertion that Orson Welles was hoping to make a movie version
    of THE SHADOW in the fall of 1947:

>     Years after his departure from radio's The Shadow, in the fall of 1947, hard
>     up for money, struggling with a nasty divorce from wife Rita Hayworth and
>     fine-tuning his recent project, MACBETH, Orson Welles toyed with the idea
>     of producing and directing a motion picture in England based on The Shadow.
>     Screenwriter Charles Lederer completed a script. After failing to convince
>     at least two American producers to fund the project and unable to sign any
>     contracts with Street & Smith, Welles chose to film OTHELLO and spent no
>     further time working on bringing The Shadow to the big screen.

    My research has led me to a different conclusion, namely that "The Shadow"
    that Orson was proposing to film was not the pulp-and-radio character but
    rather the Ben Hecht short story, "The Shadow," that he had appeared in on
    SUSPENSE in 1944, under the title "The Marvelous Barastro." This makes a lot
    more sense, in the terms of a project that Welles in 1947 would actually have
    been interested in doing--a dual-role tour-de-force in hopefully what would
    have been a kind of follow-up to Hecht's own film version the year before of
    his story, "Spectre of the Rose."

    Mike Ogden

      *** This message was altered by the server, and may not appear ***
      ***                  as the sender intended.                   ***

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:05:43 -0400
    From: Fass Martin <watchstop@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Jack Benny Radio Credits

    On this matter of referring to one person on the show as "Rochester,"
    I wonder if anybody can answer this question.  What if the man
    himself, taking into account his ability to obtain work on other
    programs, in the movies and so on, WANTED to be named in the credits
    as "Rochester?"

    In other words, maybe that name was worth money, while "Eddie
    Anderson" was merely the name of some fellow nobody could really place.

    --Martin Fass

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:13:06 -0400
    From: Fass Martin <watchstop@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  Names--PS

    There are so many instances where performers had trouble getting
    others to speak their names as they, themselves, preferred.  Two
    examples.

    When he had his own fine radio program on a Los Angeles radio station
    in about 1960, it was clear that "Johnny Green" was "John" to his
    family and friends, and "John" is what he called himself.  In only a
    few rare credits was he identified that way.

    Louis Armstrong.  He wanted to be known as Louis, pronouncing the "s"
    distinctly.  His friends knew this, and spoke his name accordingly.
    Meanwhile, many who pretended to be one of his intimates would, time
    and again, called him "Satchmo" or "Louie."

    --Martin Fass

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:13:43 -0400
    From: "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  The Devil's Mask query

    I just listened to "The Devil's Mask" on THE WITCH'S TALE, concerning a man
    in the jungle land of British Africa, frustrated at the natives who continue
    beat their savage drums, and sets out to shoot one of them in between the
    eyes. He spends his remaining days in the jungle tormented by the Devil's
    Mask, which he cannot get rid of. Even on board the luxury liner back home to
    England, and at home as the sound of the drums keep torturing him. He goes
    slowly crazy as the weeks pass, unable to get rid of the Devil's mask that
    keep reappearing and finally the wooden mask is thrown into the fire -- a gun
    shot sounds, and he is shot dead between the eyes. Seems a cartridge was
    inside the mask and the fire caused the bullet to burst.

    What's bothering me is the fact that I've heard or read this story already. I
    have a very good memory for things like this but for the life of me, I cannot
    remember where. This same story, the exact story, was done on another radio
    program. I keep thinking I read a script (so it might have been to a radio
    broadcast that does not exist) but it might have been featured on an existing
    recording. Does this story ring a bell to anyone and if so, where was it
    broadcast other than THE WITCH'S TALE?

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:15:52 -0400
    From: "Laura Leff" <president@[removed];
    To: <[removed]@[removed];
    Subject:  Benny credits by "real name"

    Dixon Hayes wrote:

>     I know that's not much of an explanation, but I'm unaware  (Laura Leff,
>     call
>     me out of I'm wrong!) of say, Frank Nelson, Bea Benederet or  Mel Blanc
>     ever being credited on the show by their real or character  names.

    There were isolated cases when Jack would bring out a supporting player and
    introduce them by their "real" names.  This happened mostly with Mel Blanc,
    and more on television than radio.  And how could you introduce Frank Nelson
    by his character's name?  The "Yeeeeesssss" man?  Of course, supporting cast
    was never credited at the top of the show.  And there are at least a couple
    end-of-season shows where Jack brings out a lot of people and introduces
    them by name.

    I'm basically in line with what a lot of people have said on this question.
    Don Wilson is the only one where his birth name = his character name.
    (Don't forget that Phil Harris was actually Wonga Phillip Harris.)  For most
    of the others, their "legal name" = their "character name".  Eddie Anderson
    is even buried as Eddie "Rochester" Anderson, and never really tried to move
    away from the character, as opposed to someone like Butterfly McQueen trying
    (very unsuccessfully) to move away from "Prissy".  One has to wonder if
    Anderson saw her lack of success in breaking the typecast (remember that
    McQueen worked on the Benny show and left it because she was "tired of
    playing Prissy"), figured he knew what side his bread was buttered on, and
    stayed with a good thing.  Plus, Anderson's personal priorities were much
    more centered around his boats, race horses, cars, etc., than trying to make
    himself into a bigger star.  Like Jack not needing the punch line because
    people would remember that "The Jack Benny Program" was [removed] long as
    "Rochester" is getting the exposure and that's no one other than him, why
    bother trying to reinforce the full name?

    --Laura Leff
    President, IJBFC
    [removed]

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

    Date: Sat, 6 Nov 2010 16:17:54 -0400
    From: Michael Berger <[removed]@[removed];
    To: [removed]@[removed]
    Subject:  1938 War of Worlds report in UK

    The Guardian today reprinted its story from the 1 November 1938 edition
    titled: Radio play upsets Americans / Michael Berger

    Here's the text:

    NEW YORK, OCTOBER 31

    A wireless dramatisation of Mr H. G. Wells's fantasy "The War of the Worlds"
    - a work that was written at the end of last century - caused a wave of panic
    in the United States during and after its broadcast last night at eight
    o'clock. Listeners throughout the country believed that it was an account of
    an actual invasion of the earth by warriors from Mars. The play, presented by
    Mr. Orson Welles, a successful theatrical producer and actor, gave a vivid
    account of the Martian invasion just as the wireless would if Mr. Wells's
    dream came true.

    The programme began with music by a New York City hotel dance band, which was
    interrupted suddenly by a Columbia news announcer who reported that violent
    flashes on Mars had been observed by Princeton University astronomers. The
    music was resumed, but was soon interrupted again for a report that a meteor
    had struck New Jersey. Then there was an account of how the meteor opened and
    Martian warriors emerged and began killing local citizens with mysterious
    death-rays. Martians were also observed moving towards New York.

    Many people tuning in to the middle of the broadcast jumped to the conclusion
    that there was a real invasion. Thousands of telephone calls poured into the
    wireless station and police headquarters. Residents of New Jersey covered
    their faces with wet cloths as a protection against poisonous gases and fled
    their homes carrying their most valuable possessions.

    Reports of a gas attack spread so quickly in New Jersey because of the
    broadcast that doctors and nurses offered their services and hospitals
    treated many people for "shock".

    A man burst into a cinema at Orange, New Jersey, shouting warnings. The
    entire audience leapt to its feet and the cinema emptied within a few
    minutes. In some cases people told the police and newspapers that they had
    seen the "invasion".

    In parts of Atlanta, Georgia, the inhabitants thought the end of the world
    had arrived. A man ran into an Indianapolis church screaming "New York is
    destroyed. It's the end of the world. We might as well go home to die. I've
    just heard it on the radio."

    The wireless audience was fooled to a considerable extent in spite of
    repeated announcements during the broadcast that the drama was purely
    fictional. The Federal Communications Commission has begun an inquiry with a
    view to preventing the repetition of such a terrifying event. A senator from
    Iowa said that he has prepared a bill for the next session of Congress with
    the same purpose.

    --------------------------------
    End of [removed] Digest V2010 Issue #192
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