Old Time Radio Comedy

The Amos & Andy Show "Christmas Show" (12-19-54)

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 19:51:56 -0800

Amos 'n' Andy was a situation comedy popular in the United States from the 1920s through the 1950s. The show began as one of the first radio comedy serials, written and voiced by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll and originating from station WMAQ in Chicago, Illinois. After the series was first broadcast in 1928, it grew in popularity and became a huge influence on the radio serials that followed. Amos 'n' Andy creators Gosden and Correll were white actors familiar with minstrel traditions. They met in Durham, North Carolina in 1920, and by the fall of 1925, they were performing nightly song-and-patter routines on the Chicago Tribune's station WGN. Since the Tribune syndicated Sidney Smith's popular comic strip The Gumps, which had successfully introduced the concept of daily continuity, WGN executive Ben McCanna thought the notion of a serialized drama could also work on radio. He suggested to Gosden and Correll that they adapt The Gumps to radio. They instead proposed a series about "a couple of colored characters" and borrowed certain elements of The Gumps. Their new series, Sam 'n' Henry, began January 12, 1926, fascinating radio listeners throughout the Midwest. That series became popular enough that in late 1927 Gosden and Correll requested that it be distributed to other stations on phonograph records in a "chainless chain" concept that would have been the first use of radio syndication as we know it today. When WGN rejected the idea, Gosden and Correll quit the show and the station that December. Contractually, their characters belonged to WGN, so when Gosden and Correll left WGN, they performed in personal appearances but could not use the character names from the radio show.

THIS EPISODE:

December 22, 1944. NBC network. Sponsored by: Rinso. The program's traditional Christmas show. Freeman Gosden, Charles Correll, The Paul Taylor Chorus, Harlow Wilcox (announcer). 29:40.

My Friend Irma "Christmas Party" (12-22-47)

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 07:33:26 -0800

My Friend Irma, created by writer-director-producer Cy Howard, was a top-rated, long-run radio situation comedy, so popular in the late 1940s that its success escalated to films and television, while Howard scored with another radio comedy hit, Life with Luigi. Dependable and level-headed Jane Stacy (Cathy Lewis) narrated the misadventures of her innocent and bewildered roommate, Irma Peterson (Marie Wilson), a dim-bulb stenographer. Wilson portrayed the character on radio, in two films and a TV series. The successful radio series with Marie Wilson ran on CBS Radio from April 11, 1947 to August 23, 1954. The TV version, seen on CBS from January 8, 1952 until June 25, 1954, was the first series telecast from the CBS Television City facility in Hollywood. The movie My Friend Irma (1949) starred Marie Wilson and Diana Lynn but is mainly remembered today for introducing Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis to moviegoers, resulting in even more screen time for Martin and Lewis in the sequel, My Friend Irma Goes West (1950).

THIS EPISODE:
December 22, 1947. CBS network. Sponsored by: Swan Soap, Spry. It's Christmas Eve and Irma's going to spend it all alone! The script was subsequently reused on "My Friend Irma" on December 20, 1948, on December 26, 1949, on December 25, 1950, on December 23, 1951, December 23, 1952 and December 22, 1953. Marie Wilson, John Brown, Cathy Lewis, Gloria Gordon, Hans Conried. 1/2 hour.

The Burns & Allen Show "Gracie's Christmas Dream" (12-24-41)

Tue, 23 Dec 2008 15:47:01 -0800

Burns and Allen were an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife, Gracie Allen.Burns wrote most of the material, and played the straight man. Allen played a silly, addleheaded woman. Both attributed their success to the other, to the ends of their lives. Early on, the team had played the opposite roles until they noticed that the audience was laughing at Gracie's straight lines, so they made the change. Burns and Allen developed their popular routine over more than three decades of stage, radio, film, and television. Historians of popular culture have often stated that Allen was a brilliant comedian, whose entire career consisted of engaging in dialogues of "illogical logic" that left her verbal opponents dazed and confused, and her audiences in stitches. During a typical 23-minute episode of the Burns and Allen show, the vast majority of the dialogue and speaking parts were written for Allen, who was credited with having the genius to deliver her lengthy diatribes in a fashion that made it look as though she was making her arguments up on the spot. (One running gag on the TV show was the existence of a closet full of hats belonging to various visitors to the Burns household, where the guests would slip out the door unnoticed, leaving their hats behind, rather than face another round with Gracie.) A continuing joke on the show was that George would say, "Say good night, Gracie," and Gracie would say, "Good night Gracie!" Ralph Pape used the catchphrase for the title of his play, Say Goodnight, Gracie, produced by Steppenwolf in 1983, and the phrase lives on as a title of other books and stage productions. Other fine radio actors were a part of the fun. Mel Blanc did the happy postman, and was also famous for his zany characters on The Jack Benny Show, and his own Mel Blanc Show. Elliott Lewis, a veteran of many radio dramas, played many of the bit parts on the Burns and Allen shows of the 40s. Burns & Allen were touring England in 1929 when they made their first radio appearance on the BBC. Gracie Allen died on August 27, 1964. George Burns died on March 9, 1996. First Broadcast date february 15th 1932. Last Broadcast date may 17th 1950.

Adventures Of Ozzie & Harriet "Christmas Gifts" (12-19-48)

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 21:28:43 -0800

Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet launched on CBS October 8, 1944, making a mid-season switch to NBC in 1949. Adventures Of Ozzie & Harriet - The final years of the radio series were on ABC (the former NBC Blue Network) from October 14, 1949, to June 18, 1954.The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, an American radio and television series, was once the longest-running, live-action situation comedy on American television, having aired on ABC from 1952 to 1966 after a ten-year run on radio. Starring Ozzie Nelson and his wife, singer Harriet Hilliard (she dropped her maiden name after the couple ended their music career), the show's sober, gentle humor captured a large, sustaining audience, although it never rated in the top ten programs, and later critics tended to dismiss it as fostering a slightly unrealistic picture of post-World War II American family life. When Skelton was drafted, Ozzie Nelson was prompted to create his own family situation comedy. The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet launched on CBS October 8, 1944, making a mid-season switch to NBC in 1949. The final years of the radio series were on ABC (the former NBC Blue Network) from October 14, 1949, to June 18, 1954. In an arrangement that amplified the growing pains of American broadcasting, as radio "grew up" into television (as George Burns once phrased it), the Nelsons' deal with ABC gave the network itself the right to move the show to television whenever it wanted to do it---they wanted, according to the Museum of Broadcast Communications, to have talent in the bullpen and ready to pitch, so to say, on their own network, rather than risk it defecting to CBS (where the Nelsons began) or NBC. Their sons, David and Ricky, did not join the cast until five years after the radio series began. The two boys felt frustrated at hearing themselves played by actors and continually requested they be allowed to portray themselves. Prior to April 1949, the role of David was played by Joel Davis (1944-45) and Tommy Bernard, and Henry Blair appeared as Ricky. Since Ricky was only nine years old when he began on the show, his enthusiasm outstripped his ability at script reading, and at least once he jumped a cue, prompting Harriet to say, "Not now, Ricky." Other cast members included John Brown as Syd "Thorny" Thornberry, Lurene Tuttle as Harriet's mother, Bea Benaderet as Gloria, Janet Waldo as Emmy Lou, and Dick Trout as Roger. Vocalists included Harriet Nelson, the King Sisters, and Ozzie Nelson. The announcers were Jack Bailey and Verne Smith. The music was by Billy May and Ozzie Nelson. The producers were Dave Elton and Ozzie Nelson.

THIS EPISODE:
December 19, 1948. NBC net. Sponsored by: International Silver. Ozzie and Harriet decide to be "sensible" this year and not give Christmas presents. The program runs late and is cut off the air by NBC. Ozzie Nelson, Harriet Hilliard, Verne Smith (announcer), Tommy Bernard, Henry Blair, Billy May (composer, conductor). 29:28.

Jack Paar Show "With Jack Benny" (08-17-47)

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 19:12:54 -0800

Television and radio pioneer Jack Paar has been called the most imitated personality in broadcasting. He virtually created the late-night talk show format as the host of The Tonight Show , one of television's longest continuously running programs. The Washington Post said, "Jack Paar was genuine, and the footprints he left on the loony moonscape of television are enormous; they will be there forever." As the stars of stage and screen were rising around him, Paar was becoming an icon himself, on television sets in the homes of millions of Americans across the country. During the Golden Age of television, Paar was its golden boy, charming guests and viewers alike. From 1957 to 1962, Paar was the king of late-night television as host of The Tonight Show, which NBC eventually renamed The Jack Paar Show. He turned it from a typical variety format into something very different. With a rare combination of intelligence, irreverence and intuition, he invented a new genre of programming that would become ubiquitous to television.Paar helped launch the careers of such performers as Carol Burnett, Woody Allen and Liza Minnelli, but his guests weren't limited to the glitterati. He discussed religion with Billy Graham, visited Albert Schweitzer in Africa, and talked politics with Richard Nixon, all before the transfixed eyes of the American television audience.

The Life Of Riley "17th Anniversary" (11-08-47)

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 23:59:52 -0800

The Life of Riley, with William Bendix in the title role, was a popular radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film and continued as a long-running television series during the 1950s. The show began as a proposed Groucho Marx radio series, The Flotsam Family, but the sponsor balked at what would have been essentially a straight head-of-household role for the comedian. Then producer Irving Brecher saw Bendix as taxicab company owner Tim McGuerin in the movie The McGuerins from Brooklyn (1942). The Flotsam Family was reworked with Bendix cast as blundering Chester A. Riley, riveter at a California aircraft plant, and his frequent exclamation of indignation---"What a revoltin' development this is!"---became one of the most famous catch phrases of the 1940s. The radio series also benefited from the immense popularity of a supporting character, Digby "Digger" O'Dell (John Brown), "the friendly undertaker."Beginning October 4, 1949, the show was adapted for television for the DuMont Television Network, but Bendix's film contracts prevented him from appearing in the role. Instead, Jackie Gleason starred along with Rosemary DeCamp as wife Peg, Gloria Winters as daughter Barbara (Babs), Lanny Rees as son Chester Jr. (Junior), and Sid Tomack as Gillis, Riley's manipulative best buddy and next-door neighbor. John Brown returned as the morbid counseling undertaker Digby (Digger) O'Dell ("Well, I guess I'll be... shoveling off"; "Business is a little dead tonight"). Television's first Life of Riley won television's first Emmy (for "Best Film Made For and Shown on Television"). However, it came to an end on March 28, 1950 because of low ratings and because Gleason left the show, thinking he could find a better showcase for his unique abilities. Groucho Marx received a credit for "story."

THIS EPISODE:
November 8, 1947. NBC network. Sponsored by: Prell Shampoo, Ivory Snow. Not auditioned. Junior and Babs plan an anniversary party for their parents. William Bendix, Irving Brecher (producer, director), Ken Carpenter (announcer), Alan Lipscott (writer), Reuben Ship (writer), Paula Winslowe, John Brown. 29:44.

Duffy's Tavern "Archie Wants To Patent Electricity" (02-23-49)

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 21:13:19 -0800

Duffy's Tavern, an American radio situation comedy (CBS, 1941-1942; NBC-Blue Network, 1942-1944; NBC, 1944-1952), often featured top-name stage and film guest stars but always hooked those around the misadventures, get-rich-quick-scheming, and romantic missteps of the title establishment's malaprop-prone, metaphor-mixing manager, Archie, played by the writer/actor who created the show, Ed Gardner.

THIS EPISODE:

February 23, 1949. NBC network origination, Nostalgia Broadcasting Corporation syndication. Commercials added locally. Slippery McGuire sells Archie a patent on electricity! Alan Reed appears as "Slippery McGuire." Ed Gardner, Eddie Green, Charlie Cantor, Alan Reed, Gloria Erlanger. 24:20.

Abbott & Costello Show "Christmas Shopping" (12-14-44)

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 20:38:00 -0800

Abbott and Costello William (Bud) Abbott and Lou Costello (born Louis Francis Cristillo) were an American comedy duo whose work in radio, film and television made them one of the most popular teams in the history of comedy. Thanks to the endurance of their most popular and influential routine, "Who's on First?"---whose rapid-fire word play and comprehension confusion set the preponderant framework for most of their best-known routines---the team are also the only comedians known to have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Bud Abbott was born in Asbury Park, NJ, October 2, 1897 and died April 24, 1974 in Woodland Hills, California. Lou Costello was born in Paterson, NJ, March 6, 1906 and died March 3, 1959 in East Los Angeles, California. After working as Allen's summer replacement, Abbott and Costello joined Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy on The Chase and Sanborn Hour in 1941, while two of their films (Buck Privates and Hold That Ghost) were adapted for Lux Radio Theater. They launched their own weekly show October 8, 1942, sponsored by Camel cigarettes. The Abbott and Costello Show mixed comedy with musical interludes (usually, by singers such as Connie Haines, Marilyn Maxwell, the Delta Rhythm Boys, Skinnay Ennis, and the Les Baxter Singers). Regulars and semi-regulars on the show included Artie Auerbrook, Elvia Allman, Iris Adrian, Mel Blanc, Wally Brown, Sharon Douglas, Verna Felton, Sidney Fields, Frank Nelson, Martha Wentworth, and Benay Venuta. Ken Niles was the show's longtime announcer, doubling as an exasperated foil to Abbott & Costello's mishaps (and often fuming in character as Costello insulted his on-air wife routinely); he was succeeded by Michael Roy, with annoncing chores also handled over the years by Frank Bingman and Jim Doyle. The show went through several orchestras during its radio life, including those of Ennis, Charles Hoff, Matty Matlock, Jack Meaking, Will Osborne, Freddie Rich, Leith Stevens, and Peter van Steeden. The show's writers included Howard Harris, Hal Fimberg, Parke Levy, Don Prindle, Ed Cherokee, Len Stern, Martin Ragaway, Paul Conlan, and Ed Forman, as well as producer Martin Gosch. Sound effects were handled mostly by Floyd Caton. Abbott and Costello moved the show to ABC (the former NBC Blue Network) five years after they premiered on NBC. During their ABC period they also hosted a 30-minute children's radio program(The Abbott and Costello Children's Show), which aired Saturday mornings with vocalist Anna Mae Slaughter and announcer Johnny McGovern.

THIS EPISODE:
December 14, 1944. NBC network. Sponsored by: Camels, Prince Albert. Bud and Lou take a trolley downtown to go Christmas shopping. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Freddie Rich and His Orchestra, Connie Haines, Ken Niles (announcer), Mel Blanc, Artie Auerbach. 29:34.

The Milton Berle Show "Salute To Women" (02-24-48)

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 20:10:50 -0800

The Milton Berle Show - In 1934-36, Berle was heard regularly on The Rudy Vallee Hour, and he got much publicity as a regular on The Gillette Original Community Sing, a Sunday night comedy-variety program broadcast on CBS from September 6, 1936 to August 29, 1937. In 1939, he was the host of Stop Me If You've Heard This One with panelists spontaneously finishing jokes sent in by listeners. Three Ring Time, a comedy-variety show sponsored by Ballantine Ale was followed by a 1943 program sponsored by Campbell's Soups. The audience participation show Let Yourself Go (1944-45) could best be described as slapstick radio with studio audience members acting out long suppressed urges (often directed at host Berle). Kiss and Make Up, on CBS in 1946, featured the problems of contestants decided by a jury from the studio audience with Berle as the Judge. He also made guest appearances on many comedy-variety radio programs during the 1930s and 1940s. Scripted by Hal Block and Martin Ragaway, The Milton Berle Show brought Berle together with Arnold Stang, later a familiar face as Berle's TV sidekick. Others in the cast were Pert Kelton, Mary Schipp, Jack Albertson, Arthur Q. Bryan, Ed Begley, vocalist Dick Forney and announcer Frank Gallop. The Ray Bloch Orchestra provided the music for the series. Sponsored by Philip Morris, it aired on NBC from March 11, 1947, until April 13, 1948. His last radio series was The Texaco Star Theater, which began September 22, 1948 on ABC and continued until June 15, 1949, with Berle heading the cast of Stang, Kelton and Gallop, along with Charles Irving, Kay Armen and double-talk specialist Al Kelly. It employed top comedy writers (Nat Hiken, brothers Danny and Neil Simon, Aaron Ruben), and Berle later recalled this series as "the best radio show I ever did... a hell of a funny variety show." It served as a springboard for Berle's rise as television's first major star.

The Great Gildersleeve "The Fortune Teller" (03-01-42)

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 21:47:10 -0800

The Great Gildersleeve (1941-1957), initially written by Leonard Lewis Levinson, was one of broadcast history's earliest spin-off programs. Built around a character who had been a staple on the classic radio situation comedy Fibber McGee and Molly, The Great Gildersleeve enjoyed its greatest success in the 1940s. Actor Harold Peary played the character during its transition from the parent show into the spin-off and later in a quartet of feature films released at the height of the show's popularity. On Fibber McGee and Molly, Peary's Gildersleeve was a pompous windbag who became a consistent McGee nemesis. "You're a haa-aa-aa-aard man, McGee!" became a Gildersleeve catch phrase. The character was given several conflicting first names on Fibber McGee and Molly, and on one episode his middle name was revealed as Philharmonic. Gildy admits as much at the end of "Gildersleeve's Diary" on the Fibber McGee and Molly series (10/22/40). He soon became so popular that Kraft Foods — looking primarily to promote its Parkay margarine spread — sponsored a new series with Peary's Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve as the central, slightly softened, and slightly befuddled focus of a lively new family.

THIS EPISIODE:

March 1, 1942. NBC network origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. Gildersleeve offers to help in fund raising and is minipulated into becoming a Fortune Teller. Andy White (writer), Bud Hiestand (announcer), Earle Ross, Jack Meakin (music), John Elliotte (writer), Lillian Randolph, Marylee Robb, Richard LeGrand, Walter Tetley, Willard Waterman. 28:38.

Fibber McGee & Molly "Stock In The Transit Co" (10-4-52)

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 20:22:12 -0800

Fibber McGee and Molly premiered in 1935. The program struggled in the ratings until 1940, when it became a national sensation. Within three years, it was the top-rated program in America. Few radio shows were more beloved than Fibber McGee and Molly. The program’s lovable characters included Mayor LaTrivia, Doc Gamble, Mrs. Uppington, Wallace Wimple, Alice Darling, Gildersleeve, Beulah, Myrt, and the Old Timer. 79 Wistful Vista was one of America’s most famous addresses and Molly’s warning to Fibber not to open the hall closet door (and his subsequent decision to do it) created one of radio’s best remembered running gags that audiences expected each week. Jim Jordan (Fibber) was born on a farm on November 16, 1896, near Peoria, Illinois. Marian Driscoll (Molly), a coal miner’s daughter, was born in Peoria on November 15, 1898. After years of hardship and touring in obscurity on the small-time show biz circuit, they arrived in Chicago in 1924, where they eventually performed on thousands of shows and developed 145 different voices and characters. Broadcast to the nation from WMAQ/Chicago, the show entertained America until March 1956, and continued on NBC’s Monitor until 1959. Jim Jordan died on April 1, 1988. Marian Jordan died on April 7, 1961. Fibber McGee and Molly was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1989. First Broadcast date April 16, 1935. Last Broadcast date September 6, 1959.

THIS EPISODE:
October 14, 1952. NBC network. Sponsored by: Reynolds Aluminum. Fibber has purchased a share of stock in the Wistful Vista Transit Company. He and Molly tour their new holdings. Jim Jordan, Marian Jordan, Harlow Wilcox, Billy Mills and His Orchestra, The King's Men, Phil Leslie (writer), Keith Fowler (writer), Max Hutto (director), Bill Thompson, Richard LeGrand, Arthur Q. Bryan, Marvin Miller, Betty Moran, Theodore Von Eltz. 29:33.

The Amos & Andy Show "Radio & TV Delivery Job" (04-04-54)

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 21:00:01 -0800

The Amos 'n' Andy Show - was a situation comedy popular in the United States from the 1920s through the 1950s. The show began as one of the first radio comedy serials, written and voiced by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll and originating from station WMAQ in Chicago, Illinois. After the series was first broadcast in 1928, it grew in popularity and became a huge influence on the radio serials that followed. Amos 'n' Andy creators Gosden and Correll were white actors familiar with minstrel traditions. They met in Durham, North Carolina in 1920, and by the fall of 1925, they were performing nightly song-and-patter routines on the Chicago Tribune's station WGN. Since the Tribune syndicated Sidney Smith's popular comic strip The Gumps, which had successfully introduced the concept of daily continuity, WGN executive Ben McCanna thought the notion of a serialized drama could also work on radio. He suggested to Gosden and Correll that they adapt The Gumps to radio. They instead proposed a series about "a couple of colored characters" and borrowed certain elements of The Gumps. Their new series, Sam 'n' Henry, began January 12, 1926, fascinating radio listeners throughout the Midwest. That series became popular enough that in late 1927 Gosden and Correll requested that it be distributed to other stations on phonograph records in a "chainless chain" concept that would have been the first use of radio syndication as we know it today. When WGN rejected the idea, Gosden and Correll quit the show and the station that December. Contractually, their characters belonged to WGN, so when Gosden and Correll left WGN, they performed in personal appearances but could not use the character names from the radio show.

THIS EPISODE:
April 4, 1954. CBS network origination, AFRS rebroadcast. "Television Job". The Kingfish gets Andy into the TV repair business. After disaster strikes, Andy tells it to the judge whose nickname is, "Twenty-Year Johnson." See cat. #92217 for a network, sponsored version of this broadcast. Freeman Gosden, Charles Correll, Jeff Alexander (music), Harlow Wilcox (announcer), Joe Connelly (writer), Bob Mosher (writer), Ernestine Wade, Johnny Lee, Amanda Randolph, Cliff Howell (director), Tommy Moore, Jean Vander Pyl, Will Wright, Ken Christy. 25 minutes.

You Bet Your Life "Secret Word Is Name" (12-28-49)

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:04:31 -0800

You Bet Your Life - Groucho Marx matches wits with the American public in four episodes of this classic game show. Starting on the radio in 1947, You Bet Your Life made its television debut in 1950 and aired for 11 years with Groucho as host and emcee. Sponsored rather conspicuously by the Dodge DeSoto car manufacturers, the show featured two contestants working as a team to answer questions for cash prizes. Another mainstay of these question and answer segments was the paper mache duck that would descend from the ceiling with one hundred dollars in tow whenever a player uttered the "secret word." The quiz show aspect of "You Bet Your Life" was always secondary, to the clever back-and-forth between host and contestant, which found Groucho at his funniest. It's in these interview segments that "You Bet Your Life" truly makes its mark as one of early television's greatest programs. Directed by: Robert Dwan.

THIS EPISODE:
12-28-49 NBC network Sponsored by: Elgin-American. One of the contestants is tackle for the Green Bay Packards". Secret Word "Name." The system cue is added live. Groucho Marx, George Fenneman (announcer), Mike Wallace (commercial spokesman, billed as "Myron Wallace"), Robert Dwan (director), Bernie Smith (director), Jerry Fielding (music), John Guedel (producer), Henrietta Adair. 30:12.

My Friend Irma "Irma Wins A Trip To England" (05-26-53)

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 17:50:12 -0800

My Friend Irma - In 1947 Marie Wilson starred in the radio sitcom "," throughout its radio run, in a 1952-54 television series and in two films that introduced the new comedy team of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Her open, grinning face belying her age, Wilson continued doing her dumb-blonde act into the 1960s, starring in summer stock and dinner-theater productions of Born Yesterday and appearing in commercials. Marie Wilson's last TV assignment was a voice-over role in the 1970 animated cartoon series Where's Huddles?; two years later, she died of cancer at the age of 56. Marie Wilson is, of course, Irma Peterson. The "friend" narrator Jane is played by Cathy Lewis (wife of Elliot Lewis, "Remley" on Phil Harris/Alice Faye Show). John Brown is Irma's boyfriend Al. Professor Kropotkin is played by the hilarious Hans Conreid. Irma's boss, Mr. Clyde, is played by Alan Reed.

THIS EPISODE:
May 26, 1953. CBS net origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. "Coronation Show". Irma has won an all-expense-paid trip to England. Marie Wilson, Mary Shipp, Cy Howard (creator), Gloria Gordon, John Brown. 25:18.

The Abbott & Costello Show "Visit To A Sanitarium" (01-13-44)

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 20:45:12 -0800

The Clitheroe Kid "Thinking About A Holiday" (06-27-71)

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 20:39:40 -0800

The Clitheroe Kid was James Robertson Clitheroe, Jimmy Clitheroe to most, who by some strange coincidence did come from the town of that name without having to change his family name! At his full height he was 4ft 3in, and played the naughty schoolboy from 1958 to 1972. Although plausable from a distance, he was not really able to pass himself off as a youngster close up, so a TV career did not really take off too well, but at the peak of his fame the radio show was raking in about 10 million listeners, although by the end this had dropped to a tenth of that figure. Clitheroe was a very private person, and the shows became a sort of escape for him, as well as the release from the worries of his diminutive size, but despite this, his popularity increased and increased, making this series one of the longer running on the radio - a total of 17 series. It is surprising then that with such a success, and with such a long run that the shows are rarely broadcast. The humour was very obvious and probably wouldn't stand up in todays climes, but there has been one release from the BBC radio collection, so if you wanted to hear some of the shows, you can hunt this down in the shops. I would like to thank Tony Lang for the following information about the series. I do not have any of this series on tape myself, so if anyone has comments to make I would be most grateful. The scripts were generally written by James Casey and Frank Roscoe, with the shows production by James Casey. The series sprang from a single show broadcast on 24-4-56 as part of a Variety Playhouse series The pilot series did not have individual names for the episodes. The producer was Geoff Lawrence, with the music supplied by the BBC Northern Dance Orchestra, conducted by Alyn Ainsworth, and broadcast in the North of England only.

The cast consisted of Jimmy Clitheroe, Eddie Leslie (1-6), Peter Sinclair (1-3, 5-10), Judith Chalmers (2-10), Rosalie Williams (2, 5-6, 8), Fred Fairclough (2), Brian Truman (3,10), John Broadbent 3), Bob Monkhouse (4), Jack Watson (4), Herbert Smith (4,8), Jack Howarth (5, 7-8, 10), Fred Ferris (5, 7-10), Shirley King (6), Violet Carson (7-8, 10), Tom Harrison (9-10), Patrick Wells (9)

The Jack Benny Show (Jello Program) "Alexander Graham Bell" (05-28-39)

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 21:56:08 -0800

Jack Benny had been only a minor vaudeville performer, but he became a national figure with The Jack Benny Program, a weekly radio show which ran from 1932 to 1948 on NBC and from 1949 to 1955 on CBS, and was consistently among the most highly rated programs during most of that run. With Canada Dry Ginger Ale as a sponsor, Benny came to radio on The Canada Dry Program, beginning May 2, 1932, on the NBC Blue Network and continuing there for six months until October 26, moving the show to CBS on October 30. With Ted Weems leading the band, Benny stayed on CBS until January 26, 1933. Arriving at NBC on March 17, Benny did The Chevrolet Program until April 1, 1934. He continued with sponsors General Tires, Jell-O and Grape Nuts. Lucky Strike was the radio sponsor from 1944 to the mid-1950s. The show returned to CBS on January 2, 1949, as part of CBS president William S. Paley's notorious "raid" of NBC talent in 1948-49. There it stayed for the remainder of its radio run, which ended on May 22, 1955. CBS aired reruns of old radio episodes from 1956 to 1958 as The Best of Benny.

THIS EPISODE:

The Jell-O Program Starring Jack Benny. May 28, 1939. Red net. Sponsored by: Jell-O. Kenny sings, "Melancholy Moon." The cast does its version of, "Alexander Graham Bell." Phil sings, "Snug As A Bug In A Rug." Don Wilson, Jack Benny, Kenny Baker, Mary Livingstone, Phil Harris and His Orchestra, Eddie Anderson, Sam Hearn, Harry Baldwin, Ed Beloin (writer, performer), Bill Morrow (writer), Blanche Stewart (doubles). 29:35.

The Amos & Andy Show "Andy The Sailor" (05-25-45)

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:20:54 -0700

THIS EPISODE:
May 25, 1945. NBC network. Commercials deleted. Andy impersonates a sailor and is lucky enough to be the millionth visitor to the "Harlem Canteen." Harlow Wilcox (announcer), Freeman Gosden, Charles Correll. 27 minutes.

The Life Of Riley "Football Pool Card" (11-01-47)

Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:25:47 -0700

THIS EPISODE:
November 1, 1947. NBC network origination, AFRS rebroadcast. Junior picks a pretty good football pool, which gets Riley a promotion. The date is subject to correction. William Bendix. 1/2 hour.

The Abbott & Costello Show "Spanish Acting School" (05-03-45)

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 20:28:46 -0700

The Abbott and Costello Show - Abbott and Costello William (Bud) Abbott and Lou Costello (born Louis Francis Cristillo) were an American comedy duo whose work in radio, film and television made them one of the most popular teams in the history of comedy. Thanks to the endurance of their most popular and influential routine, "Who's on First?"---whose rapid-fire word play and comprehension confusion set the preponderant framework for most of their best-known routines---the team are also the only comedians known to have been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Bud Abbott was born in Asbury Park, NJ, October 2, 1897 and died April 24, 1974 in Woodland Hills, California. Lou Costello was born in Paterson, NJ, March 6, 1906 and died March 3, 1959 in East Los Angeles, California. After working as Allen's summer replacement, Abbott and Costello joined Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy on The Chase and Sanborn Hour in 1941, while two of their films (Buck Privates and Hold That Ghost) were adapted for Lux Radio Theater. They launched their own weekly show October 8, 1942, sponsored by Camel cigarettes. The Abbott and Costello Show mixed comedy with musical interludes (usually, by singers such as Connie Haines, Marilyn Maxwell, the Delta Rhythm Boys, Skinnay Ennis, and the Les Baxter Singers). Regulars and semi-regulars on the show included Artie Auerbrook, Elvia Allman, Iris Adrian, Mel Blanc, Wally Brown, Sharon Douglas, Verna Felton, Sidney Fields, Frank Nelson, Martha Wentworth, and Benay Venuta. Ken Niles was the show's longtime announcer, doubling as an exasperated foil to Abbott & Costello's mishaps (and often fuming in character as Costello insulted his on-air wife routinely); he was succeeded by Michael Roy, with annoncing chores also handled over the years by Frank Bingman and Jim Doyle. The show went through several orchestras during its radio life, including those of Ennis, Charles Hoff, Matty Matlock, Jack Meaking, Will Osborne, Freddie Rich, Leith Stevens, and Peter van Steeden. The show's writers included Howard Harris, Hal Fimberg, Parke Levy, Don Prindle, Ed Cherokee, Len Stern, Martin Ragaway, Paul Conlan, and Ed Forman, as well as producer Martin Gosch. Sound effects were handled mostly by Floyd Caton. Abbott and Costello moved the show to ABC (the former NBC Blue Network) five years after they premiered on NBC. During their ABC period they also hosted a 30-minute children's radio program(The Abbott and Costello Children's Show), which aired Saturday mornings with vocalist Anna Mae Slaughter and announcer Johnny McGovern.

THIS EPISODE:
May 3, 1945. NBC network. Sponsored by: Camels, Prince Albert. Costello wants to become a dramatic actor from Brazil...another Carmen Veranda! Bob Matthews (an ex-aerial gunner) sings for the first time on the show (and sounds like an off-key Mel Torme). Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Will Osborne and His Orchestra, Bob Matthews, Connie Haines, Ken Niles (announcer), Mel Blanc. 29:28.

My Favorite Husband "The Quiz Show" (10-23-48)

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 20:59:25 -0700

My Favorite Husband began as a radio sitcom on CBS Radio. The show starred Lucille Ball and Richard Denning as Liz and George Cooper (Liz and George Cugat in early episodes). The couple lived at 321 Bundy Drive in the ficticious city of Sheridan Falls, and were billed as "two people who live together and like it." The main sponsor was Jell-O, and an average of 3 "plugs" for Jell-O were made in each episode. The program ran from 1948 through 1951, throughout which 124 episodes were aired. The program initially portrayed the couple as being a well-to-do banker and his socially prominent wife. Shortly into the show's run, three new writers, Bob Carroll, Jr., Madelyn Pugh, and Jess Oppenheimer took over the scripting tasks, and the characterization of the couple was altered somewhat. Along with the change of the couple's last name to Cooper, the couple was also portrayed as being more middle-class, and thus more accessible to the average listener. When Lucille Ball was asked to do a television version of the show (with Jell-O remaining as sponsor), CBS insisted on Richard Denning continuing as her co-star. However, she said that she would not do a husband-and-wife sitcom without her real-life husband Desi Arnaz being the husband. The network reluctantly agreed to this (thus reworking the concept into "I Love Lucy"), but Jell-O dropped out. However the three radio writers did agree to do the switch to the "I Love Lucy" show. Many of the "My Favorite Husband" radio episodes were subsequently reworked into I Love Lucy episodes, especially early in the TV show's run. For example, the 1948 radio episode entitled "Quiz Show" inspired the I Love Lucy episode called "Redecorating," with some lines being exactly the same. Many of the actors who had done the "My Favorite Husband" radio show also appeared on "I Love Lucy", sometimes in episodes where they reprised their roles using a reworked "Husband" script.

THIS EPISODE:
March 18, 1949. CBS network origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. Liz thinks she's gotten a call from a radio quiz show and won the jackpot. So of course, she sells the car and furniture. Lucille Ball, Richard Denning, Gale Gordon, Frank Nelson, Isabel Scott Rorick (creator). 25 minutes.

The Martin & Lewis Show "Guest William Boyd" (08-02-49)

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 19:50:19 -0700

The Martin and Lewis Show - On July 25, 1946, Jerry began a show business partnership with Dean Martin, an association that would soon skyrocket both to fame. It started when Jerry was performing at the 500 Club in Atlantic City and one of the other entertainers quit suddenly. Lewis, who had worked with Martin at the Glass Hat in New York City, suggested Dean as a replacement. At first they worked separately, but then ad-libbed together, improvising insults and jokes, squirting seltzer water, hurling bunches of celery and exuding general zaniness. In less than eighteen weeks their salaries soared from $250.00 a week to $5,000.00. For ten years Martin and Lewis sandwiched sixteen money making films between nightclub engagements, personal appearances, recording sessions, radio shows, and television bookings. Their last film together was "Hollywood or Bust" (1956). On July 25th of that year the two made their last nightclub appearance together at the Copacabana, exactly ten years to the day since they became a team.

THIS EPISODE:
August 2, 1949. NBC network. Sustaining. Dean's first tune is "Five Foot Two, Eyes Of Blue." Dean, Jerry, and Soapy Leonard go on vacation to the High Sierras, where they meet guest William Boyd (Hopalong Cassidy). Sheldon Leonard, William Boyd, Sy Rose (writer), Mort Lachman (writer), Dick Stabile and His Orchestra, Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Flo McMichaels, Robert L. Redd (producer, director), Dick McKnight (writer), Ray Allen (writer), Ben Alexander (announcer). 29:38.

Lum & Abner "Three Episodes" (02-18-53) (02-19-53) (02-20-53)

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 17:45:31 -0700

Lum and Abner , The Adventures of two small town shop keepers in the Town of Pine Ridge Arkansas Lum and Abner were Broadcast from 1931 until 1954. Lauck and Goff had known each other since childhood and attended the University of Arkansas together (joining the Sigma Chi Fraternity together while there). They performed locally and established a blackface act which led to an audition at radio station KTHS in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Prior to the audition, the two men decided to change their act and portray two hillbillies, since there were already an overabundance of blackface acts at the time. After only a few shows in Hot Springs, they were picked up nationally by NBC, and Lum and Abner, sponsored by Quaker Oats, ran until 1932. Lauck and Goff performed several different characters, modeling many of them after real-life residents of Waters, Arkansas. After the Quaker contract expired, Lauck and Goff continued to broadcast over two Texas stations, WBAP (Fort Worth) and WFAA (Dallas). In 1933, Ford Motor Company became their sponsor for approximately a year. Horlick's Malted Milk, the 1934-37 sponsor, offered a number of promotional premium items, including almanacs and fictional Pine Ridge newspapers. During this period, the show originated from Chicago's WGN, one of the founding members of the Mutual Broadcasting System. In 1936, the city council of Waters changed the town's name to Pine Ridge. Postum cereal sponsored Lum and Abner in 1938-39, before Alka-Seltzer picked up the duo for eight years. Over the course of its life, Lum and Abner appeared on all of the major radio networks, CBS and ABC (formerly NBC Blue), in addition to NBC and Mutual. Starring: CHESTER LAUCK [1902-1980] AND NORRIS "TUFFY" GOFF [1906-1978] CHET PLAYED LUM EDWARDS (EDDERDS),GRAND-PAPPY SPEARS, AND CEDRIC WEEHUNT. TUFFY PLAYED ABNER PEABODY DICK HUDDLESTONE MOUSEY GRAY AND SQUIRE SKIMP ALONG WITH MOST OF THE OTHER PEOPLE PASSING THROUGH TOWN.

TODAY'S SHOW: 02-18-53 "Abner Has AShort-Wave Transceiver" 02-19-53 "Starting A Radio Station" 02-20-53 "Cedric Tries To Tune In The Boys On Their Radio Station".

Fibber McGee & Molly "The One Hundred Thousand Dollar Stamp" (11-14-50)

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 19:47:29 -0700

THIS EPISODE:
November 14, 1950. NBC network. Sponsored by: Pet Milk. Fibber begins a search for a rare postage stamp worth $100,000! Harlow Wilcox, Bill Thompson, Gale Gordon, The King's Men, Billy Mills and His Orchestra, Richard LeGrand, Danny Richards Jr., Don Quinn (writer), Jim Jordan, Marian Jordan, Phil Leslie (writer), Max Hutto (director). 29:29.

The Life Of Riley "The Geiger Counter" (10-14-49)

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 20:17:58 -0700

My Friend Irma "Bon Voyage" (05-10-48)

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 01:10:33 -0700

The Amos & Andy Show "Ink Flow Company" (12-01-44)

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 20:42:25 -0700

The Amos 'n' Andy Show was a situation comedy popular in the United States from the 1920s through the 1950s. The show began as one of the first radio comedy serials, written and voiced by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll and originating from station WMAQ in Chicago, Illinois. After the series was first broadcast in 1928, it grew in popularity and became a huge influence on the radio serials that followed. Amos 'n' Andy creators Gosden and Correll were white actors familiar with minstrel traditions. They met in Durham, North Carolina in 1920, and by the fall of 1925, they were performing nightly song-and-patter routines on the Chicago Tribune's station WGN. Since the Tribune syndicated Sidney Smith's popular comic strip The Gumps, which had successfully introduced the concept of daily continuity, WGN executive Ben McCanna thought the notion of a serialized drama could also work on radio. He suggested to Gosden and Correll that they adapt The Gumps to radio. They instead proposed a series about "a couple of colored characters" and borrowed certain elements of The Gumps. Their new series, Sam 'n' Henry, began January 12, 1926, fascinating radio listeners throughout the Midwest. That series became popular enough that in late 1927 Gosden and Correll requested that it be distributed to other stations on phonograph records in a "chainless chain" concept that would have been the first use of radio syndication as we know it today. When WGN rejected the idea, Gosden and Correll quit the show and the station that December. Contractually, their characters belonged to WGN, so when Gosden and Correll left WGN, they performed in personal appearances but could not use the character names from the radio show.

THIS EPISODE:
December 1, 1944. NBC network. Sponsored by: Rinso, Lifebuoy. Andy and The Kingfish are selling "Ink-Flow" pens in competition with none other than Miss Blue (of "Buzz Me Miss Blue" fame)! Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll sing the Rinso jingle as "Amos 'n' Andy." Charles Correll, Freeman Gosden, Harlow Wilcox (announcer), James Basquette, Lou Lubin, Madeline Lee. 30:02.

Our Miss Brooks "The Frog" (02-20-49)

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:35:17 -0700

Our Miss Brooks, an American situation comedy, began as a radio hit in 1948 and migrated to television in 1952, becoming one of the earlier hits of the so-called Golden Age of Television, and making a star out of Eve Arden (1908-1990) as comely, wisecracking, but humane high school English teacher Connie Brooks. The show hooked around Connie's daily relationships with Madison High School students, colleagues, and pompous principal Osgood Conklin (Gale Gordon), not to mention favourite student Walter Denton (future television and Rambo co-star Richard Crenna, who fashioned a higher-pitched voice to play the role) and biology teacher Philip Boynton ( Jeff Chandler), the latter Connie's all-but-unrequited love interest, who saw science everywhere and little else anywhere.

THIS EPISODE:
February 20, 1949. CBS network. Sponsored by: Palmolive Soap, Lustre Creme Shampoo, Palmolive Shave Cream. (Gold Rush contest) Miss Brooks decides to get a girl frog for Mr. Boynton's pet frog, MacDougal. Eve Arden, Richard Crenna, Gloria McMillan, Bob Lemond (announcer), Verne Smith (announcer), Jane Morgan, Jeff Chandler, Al Lewis (writer, director), Wilbur Hatch (music), Gerald Mohr, Gale Gordon, Larry Berns (producer). 29:47.

The Great Gildersleeve "Back Yard Camping" (07-16-52)

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 21:40:39 -0700

You Bet Your Life "Secret Word Is Door" (03-01-50)

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 20:50:45 -0700

THIS EPISODE:
March 1, 1950. NBC network. Sponsored by: Elgin-American. The secret word is "Door". Groucho Marx, George Fenneman (announcer), Mike Wallace (commercial spokesman, billed as "Myron Wallace"), Jerry Fielding (music), John Guedel (producer), Robert Dwan (director), Bernie Smith (director), Frank Martuccio. 29:45.

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet "March 3rd Dilemna" (03-02-47)

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 21:03:36 -0700

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet launched on CBS October 8, 1944, making a mid-season switch to NBC in 1949. The final years of the radio series were on ABC (the former NBC Blue Network) from October 14, 1949, to June 18, 1954.The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, an American radio and television series, was once the longest-running, live-action situation comedy on American television, having aired on ABC from 1952 to 1966 after a ten-year run on radio. Starring Ozzie Nelson and his wife, singer Harriet Hilliard (she dropped her maiden name after the couple ended their music career), the show's sober, gentle humor captured a large, sustaining audience, although it never rated in the top ten programs, and later critics tended to dismiss it as fostering a slightly unrealistic picture of post-World War II American family life. When Skelton was drafted, Ozzie Nelson was prompted to create his own family situation comedy. The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet launched on CBS October 8, 1944, making a mid-season switch to NBC in 1949. The final years of the radio series were on ABC (the former NBC Blue Network) from October 14, 1949, to June 18, 1954. In an arrangement that amplified the growing pains of American broadcasting, as radio "grew up" into television (as George Burns once phrased it), the Nelsons' deal with ABC gave the network itself the right to move the show to television whenever it wanted to do it---they wanted, according to the Museum of Broadcast Communications, to have talent in the bullpen and ready to pitch, so to say, on their own network, rather than risk it defecting to CBS (where the Nelsons began) or NBC. Their sons, David and Ricky, did not join the cast until five years after the radio series began. The two boys felt frustrated at hearing themselves played by actors and continually requested they be allowed to portray themselves. Prior to April 1949, the role of David was played by Joel Davis (1944-45) and Tommy Bernard, and Henry Blair appeared as Ricky. Since Ricky was only nine years old when he began on the show, his enthusiasm outstripped his ability at script reading, and at least once he jumped a cue, prompting Harriet to say, "Not now, Ricky." Other cast members included John Brown as Syd "Thorny" Thornberry, Lurene Tuttle as Harriet's mother, Bea Benaderet as Gloria, Janet Waldo as Emmy Lou, and Dick Trout as Roger. Vocalists included Harriet Nelson, the King Sisters, and Ozzie Nelson. The announcers were Jack Bailey and Verne Smith. The music was by Billy May and Ozzie Nelson. The producers were Dave Elton and Ozzie Nelson.

THIS EPISODE:
March 3rd Dilemna - March 2, 1947. ABC network origination, AFRS rebroadcast. Not auditioned. School report card day. Some good, some not so good. Ozzie Nelson, Harriet Hilliard, David Nelson, Ricky Nelson, Verne Smith (announcer), John Brown. 25:31.

The Real McCoys-"The Matchmaker" (1-23-58)

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 18:48:37 -0700

The Matchmaker adapted for radio aired on January 23,1958. The Real McCoys was a situation comedy that aired on the ABC network from 1957 through 1962. It aired for one more season on CBS before its end in 1963. The series revolved around the lives of a mountain family who originally hailed from West Virginia. The McCoys moved to California where they became dirt farmers. The family consisted of Grampa Amos McCoy, the head of the family played by Walter Brennan, his grandson Luke played by Richard Crenna, Luke's new bride Kate played by Kathleen Nolan, teenage sister Hassie played be Lydia Reed, and 11-year-old brother Little Luke played by Michael Winkelman. The Real McCoys paved the way for such rural hits as The Beverly Hillbillies and The Andy Griffith Show.

*Show notes from The Old Time Radio Researchers Group

Abbott & Costello "Matrimonial Agency" (10-26-44)

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 19:53:26 -0700

THIS EPISODE:
October 26, 1944. NBC network. Sponsored by: Camels, Prince Albert. Costello's cousin Hugo has gotten married. The boys plan to open a matrimonial agency. Costello's "kid brother" Sebastian (played by Costello) pretends to be Abbott's son. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Freddie Rich and His Orchestra, Connie Haines, Paul Giles (trumpet), Ken Niles (announcer), Artie Auerbach, Dick Mack (director). 29:30.

The Martin & Lewis Show "Jane Russell" (12-14-51)

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 22:57:51 -0700

The Martin and Lewis Show - On July 25, 1946, Jerry began a show business partnership with Dean Martin, an association that would soon skyrocket both to fame. It started when Jerry was performing at the 500 Club in Atlantic City and one of the other entertainers quit suddenly. Lewis, who had worked with Martin at the Glass Hat in New York City, suggested Dean as a replacement. At first they worked separately, but then ad-libbed together, improvising insults and jokes, squirting seltzer water, hurling bunches of celery and exuding general zaniness. In less than eighteen weeks their salaries soared from $250.00 a week to $5,000.00. For ten years Martin and Lewis sandwiched sixteen money making films between nightclub engagements, personal appearances, recording sessions, radio shows, and television bookings. Their last film together was "Hollywood or Bust" (1956). On July 25th of that year the two made their last nightclub appearance together at the Copacabana, exactly ten years to the day since they became a team.

THIS EPISODE:
August 30, 1949. NBC network. Sustaining. Dean's first tune is, "Your Lips Tell Me No, No, But There's Yes, Yes, In Your Eyes." After Florence quits, Dean and Jerry hire guest Jane Russell to be their new secretary. Don't miss the line where Jerry says "I'd know Jane Russell if I were within a hundred yards of her...blindfolded!" At this point, the audience cracks up! Jane Russell, Dick Stabile and His Orchestra, Flo McMichaels, Ben Alexander (announcer), Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Robert L. Redd (producer, director), Dick McKnight (writer), Ray Allen (writer), Mort Lachman (writer), Sy Rose (writer), Sheldon Leonard. 29:37.

My Friend Irma "Irma's Boss Buys A Race Horse" (06-02-53)

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 05:50:49 -0700

My Friend Irma, created by writer-director-producer Cy Howard, was a top-rated, long-run radio situation comedy, so popular in the late 1940s that its success escalated to films and television, while Howard scored with another radio comedy hit, Life with Luigi. Dependable and level-headed Jane Stacy (Cathy Lewis) narrated the misadventures of her innocent and bewildered roommate, Irma Peterson (Marie Wilson), a dim-bulb stenographer. Wilson portrayed the character on radio, in two films and a TV series. The successful radio series with Marie Wilson ran on CBS Radio from April 11, 1947 to August 23, 1954. The TV version, seen on CBS from January 8, 1952 until June 25, 1954, was the first series telecast from the CBS Television City facility in Hollywood. The movie My Friend Irma (1949) starred Marie Wilson and Diana Lynn but is mainly remembered today for introducing Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis to moviegoers, resulting in even more screen time for Martin and Lewis in the sequel, My Friend Irma Goes West (1950).

THIS EPISODE:
June 2, 1953. CBS network origination, AFRTS rebroadcast. "Laughing Boy". Irma's boss has purchased a race horse named, "Laughing Boy." Marie Wilson, Mary Shipp, Gloria Gordon, John Brown. 25:57.

Amos & Andy "The Census Taker" (04-16-50)

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:07:31 -0700

THIS EPISODE:
The Amos 'n' Andy Show. April 16, 1950. CBS network. Sponsored by: Rinso. The Kingfish appoints Andy an official census taker. A woman thinks Andy's going to rob her, the Kingfish dreams that he's going to the "chair!" Freeman Gosden, Charles Correll, Lou Lubin, Ernestine Wade, Johnny Lee, Willard Waterman, Jean Vander Pyl, Roy Glenn, Jeff Alexander (music), Ken Carpenter (announcer). 29:48.

The Life Of Riley "Junior Quits School" (09-22-45)

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:55:05 -0700

Blondie "The Gypsy Queen" (04-22-40)

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 23:24:14 -0700

Blondie was a radio situation comedy adapted from the long-run Blondie comic strip by Chic Young. The radio program had a long run on several networks from 1939 to 1950. After Penny Singleton was cast in the title role of the feature film Blondie (1938), co-starring with Arthur Lake as Dagwood, she and Lake repeated their roles December 20, 1938, on The Bob Hope Show. The appearance with Hope led to their own show, beginning July 3, 1939, on CBS as a summer replacement for The Eddie Cantor Show. However, Cantor did not return in the fall, so the sponsor, Camel Cigarettes chose to keep Blondie on the air Mondays at 7:30pm. Camel remained the sponsor through the early WWII years until June 26, 1944. In 1944, Blondie was on the Blue Network, sponsored by Super Suds, airing Fridays at 7pm from July 21 to September 1. The final three weeks of that run overlapped with Blondie's return to CBS on Sundays at 8pm from August 13, 1944, to September 26, 1948, still sponsored by Super Suds. Beginning in mid-1945, the 30-minute program was heard Mondays at 7:30pm. Super Suds continued as the sponsor when the show moved to NBC on Wednesdays at 8pm from October 6, 1948, to June 29, 1949. Ann Rutherford took over the radio role of Blondie in 1949, and at times, Patricia Van Cleve and Alice White were also heard as Blondie. In its final season, the series was on ABC from October 6, 1949, to July 6, 1950, first airing Thursdays at 8pm and then (from May) 8:30pm. The radio show ended the same year as the Blondie film series (1938-50)

THIS EPISODE:

April 22, 1940. CBS network. Sponsored by: Camels. Not auditioned. Dagwood has bought a trailer and names it, "The Gypsy Queen". Arthur Lake, Penny Singleton, Bill Goodwin (announcer), Leone LeDoux, Hanley Stafford, Ashmead Scott (writer, director), Billy Artz (conductor). 29:32.

The Great Gildersleeve "Gildy Gets Eyeglasses" (02-11-48)

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 20:45:08 -0700

The Great Gildersleeve (1941-1957) was the arguable founding father of the spin-off program, as well as one of the first true situation comedies (as opposed to sketch programs) in broadcast history. Hooked around a character who had been a staple on the classic radio hit Fibber McGee and Molly, The Great Gildersleeve enjoyed its greatest period in the 1940s, when Harold Peary graduated the character from the earlier show into the sitcom and in a quartet of likeable feature films at the height of the show's popularity.

THIS EPISIODE:
February 11, 1948. NBC network. Sponsored by: Kraft Parkay (jingle), Kraft Dinner. Gildersleeve gets a pair of glasses, even though he really doesn't need them! Oh yeah? Lillian Randolph (as "Birdie") joins announcer John Wald in one of the commercials. Andy White (writer), Bea Benaderet, Earle Ross, Harold Peary, John Elliotte (writer), John Wald (announcer), Lillian Randolph, Louise Erickson, Richard LeGrand, Walter Tetley. 29:31.

Fibber McGee & Molly "The Gildersleeve Memory Course" (03-14-39)

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 20:26:26 -0700

THIS EPISODE:
March 14, 1939. NBC network. Sponsored by: Johnson's Wax. Molly does not appear. Fibber takes a memory course and promptly forgets where he put a ten carat diamond! Jim Jordan, Harold Peary, Isabel Randolph, Mel Blanc, Bill Thompson, Harlow Wilcox, Billy Mills and His Orchestra. 1/2 hour.

You Bet Your Life "Secret Word Is Food" (09-21-59)

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 22:02:50 -0700

You Bet Your Life - Groucho Marx matches wits with the American public in this classic game show. Starting on the radio in 1947, You Bet Your Life made its television debut in 1950 and aired for 11 years with Groucho as host and emcee. Sponsored rather conspicuously by the Dodge DeSoto car manufacturers, the show featured two contestants working as a team to answer questions for cash prizes. Another mainstay of these question and answer segments was the paper mache duck that would descend from the ceiling with one hundred dollars in tow whenever a player uttered the "secret word." The quiz show aspect of "You Bet Your Life" was always secondary, to the clever back-and-forth between host and contestant, which found Groucho at his funniest. It's in these interview segments that "You Bet Your Life" truly makes its mark as one of early television's greatest programs. Directed by: Robert Dwan.

THIS EPISODE:
September 21, 1959. NBC network. Sponsored by: Elgin-American. The secret word is "Food". Groucho Marx, George Fenneman (announcer), Mike Wallace (commercial spokesman, billed as "Myron Wallace"), Jerry Fielding (music), John Guedel (producer), Robert Dwan (director), Bernie Smith (director), Frank Martuccio. 29:45.

The Jack Benny Program "Last Night At The Kern Theater" (05-10-53)

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 21:32:31 -0700

The Jack Benny Program - Benny had been only a minor vaudeville performer, but he became a national figure with The Jack Benny Program, a weekly radio show which ran from 1932 to 1948 on NBC and from 1949 to 1955 on CBS, and was consistently among the most highly rated programs during most of that run. With Canada Dry Ginger Ale as a sponsor, Benny came to radio on The Canada Dry Program, beginning May 2, 1932, on the NBC Blue Network and continuing there for six months until October 26, moving the show to CBS on October 30. With Ted Weems leading the band, Benny stayed on CBS until January 26, 1933. Arriving at NBC on March 17, Benny did The Chevrolet Program until April 1, 1934. He continued with sponsors General Tires, Jell-O and Grape Nuts. Lucky Strike was the radio sponsor from 1944 to the mid-1950s. The show returned to CBS on January 2, 1949, as part of CBS president William S. Paley's notorious "raid" of NBC talent in 1948-49. There it stayed for the remainder of its radio run, which ended on May 22, 1955. CBS aired reruns of old radio episodes from 1956 to 1958 as The Best of Benny.

Benny was remarkable in many ways, but in none more than this: he built a character of every sour ingredient in life, but somehow his real personality trickled through and made it wonderful. Would a real miser act that way before 30 million people each week? The Benny of the air was a fraud, a myth, a creation. It should have surprised no one to learn — after years of toupee jokes that played so well into the vanity theme — that Benny never wore one. He overtipped in restaurants, gave away his time in countless benefit performances, and was lavish in his praise of almost everyone else. The Jack Benny Program is a classic comedy that is truly one of the best-loved programs from the Golden Age of Radio. It started life as The Canada Dry Program in 1932 on the Blue Network and finished off as The Lucky Strike Program on CBS in 1955. In between, it kept the audience in stitches and established Benny as one of America's all-time great comedians.

THIS EPISODE:

From San Francisco at the Kern Theater. The cast discusses their time in San Francisco, on this, the last of three consecutive shows from the city. United States mints are used as a running gag in this episode, as is Don Wilson's "I carry a lot of weight in this town" bit. Rochester calls from Sausilito, doing nothing, the "main industry" there. The cimmaron roll bit is referenced. "Your Mother and Mine" - Dennis Day; "Chinatown, My Chinatown" - The Sportsmen Quartet. Special Guest: Lt. Governer Goodwin Knight.

The Abbott & Costello Show "New Press Agent" (03-08-45)

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 19:13:59 -0700

THIS EPISODE:
New Press Agent - March 8, 1945 - NBC net. Sponsored by: Camels, Prince Albert Pipe Tobacco. Costello gets a new press agent. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Carl Hoff and His Orchestra, Amy Arnell (vocal), Bert Cordon (sound effects), John Pawlek (engineer), Ken Niles (announcer), Elvia Allman, Sharon Douglas (doubles), Mel Blanc (quadruples), Sidney Fields, Don Prindle (writer), Ed Forman (writer), Don Bernard (producer, director), Andrew Potter (producer, director). 29:46.

The Amos & Andy Show "Raiding The Piggy Bank" (09-09-47)

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 19:58:59 -0700

THIS EPISODE:

September 30, 1947. Program #72. NBC network origination, AFRS rebroadcast. "Piggy Bank Show". The Stevens' twenty fifth anniversary piggy bank is empty and must be refilled...quickly! Freeman Gosden, Charles Correll, Jeff Alexander and His Orchestra, The Jubalaires, James Basquette, Eddie Green, Ernestine Wade, Art Gilmore (nouncer). 30:09.