Subject: [removed] Digest V2001 #266
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 8/17/2001 9:03 PM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2001 : Issue 266
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  Waukegan Jack Benny celebration       [ JackBenny@[removed] ]
  Radio Programs from Cassette to CDR   [ "Ron Curtis" <rcurtis@[removed]; ]
  magazines                             [ Ira Chineson <irachin@[removed] ]
  HOLLYWOOD SIGN                        [ PURKASZ@[removed] ]
  Martin Grams interview                [ Gordon R Payton <thescifiguy@[removed] ]
  Harlan Stone                          [ "Stanley Probstein" <cwarner3@tampa ]
  Thoughts of Raymond Edward Johnson    [ "Robert Paine" <macandrew@[removed] ]
  Grandma Moses                         [ Donna Halper <dlh@[removed]; ]
  LP Records                            [ "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyro ]
  Re: Off-Network Syndication           [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
  Grandma Moses                         [ Bob Noble <bobnoble@[removed]; ]
  Hear It Now and See It Now            [ "Ed Ellers" <ed_ellers@[removed]; ]
  Hollywood Hills                       [ William L Murtough <k2mfi@[removed]; ]
  Australian OTR                        [ ArtsMilitaria@[removed] (Arthur Fun ]
  Raynond Edward Johnson                [ William L Murtough <k2mfi@[removed]; ]
  Jim or Jack French ?                  [ Jack A French <otrpiano@[removed]; ]
  Raymond Edward Johnson                [ "John Eccles, Jr." <jeccles@earthli ]
  shows that make you cry               [ "Ryan Osentowski" <rosentowski@neb. ]
  Re: "Mollie Mystery"                  [ Kenneth L Clarke <kclarke5@[removed] ]
  I can hear it [removed]                   [ "vze2m645@[removed]" <vze2m645@ve ]

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

Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2001 23:36:25 -0400
From: JackBenny@[removed]
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Waukegan Jack Benny celebration

I am very much behind in reading my OTR Digests, so my apologies if this has
already been mentioned.

The Waukegan Jack Benny statue celebration has been postponed until Spring
2002.  This was a decision based on a number of factors, and the extra time
will give everyone a chance to insure that everything runs according to plan.

I will be posting information on the IJBFC Web site ([removed])
shortly.  If you have any specific questions, please contact me directly at
jackbenny@[removed].

--Laura Leff
President, IJBFC
[removed]

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

Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2001 23:36:21 -0400
From: "Ron Curtis" <rcurtis@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Radio Programs from Cassette to CDR

I have a small collection of radio programs in cassette format.  I've
recently purchased a computer that included a CDR.  What do I need to do in
order to transfer the cassette radio programs from the cassette format to a
computer format then burn them into a CD?  What software and hardware is
needed to do this?

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

Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2001 23:36:16 -0400
From: Ira Chineson <irachin@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  magazines

Does any body know of any stores or dealers that deal in show business
magazines from the 1940s such as Downbeat?  Any lead would be very helpfully
for me on a project that I am working on.

For back issues of Downbeat and Metronome Magazine you can try the Jazz Record
Center at

[removed]

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

Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2001 23:36:19 -0400
From: PURKASZ@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  HOLLYWOOD SIGN

    Reader Dennis Crow jogged my memory with mention of Cahenga Blvd. below
where I lived in the hills above the Cahenga pass. Yes, the sign is visible
but is over on the next set of hills near the Griffith Observatory where
James Dean had a knife fight and swooned Natalie Wood many years ago.
    I recall also the famous battle of Cahenga pass in [removed] one day,
casualty, one goat!
                        Purkasz

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

Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2001 23:36:01 -0400
From: Gordon R Payton <thescifiguy@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Martin Grams interview

[removed] has announced this week that author Martin Grams, Jr. and
radio/TV
actor Will Hutchins will be guests of honor on an "interactive chat
board,"
lasting about 30 to 40 minutes.  [removed] is working on the chat page at

present, but you can get there from
[removed]
(this will redirect you to the future zelgo chat page).
The event is scheduled for August 23, 2001 at 9-10pm est. time.
There is no purchase necessary to attend, simply log on and ask the
questions - you'll get answers!
Martin Grams, Jr. is the author of the newly-published THE ALFRED
HITCHCOCK
PRESENTS COMPANION, and Will Hutchins acted in one of those episodes.

Gordon

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 00:04:03 -0400
From: "Stanley Probstein" <cwarner3@[removed];
To: "[removed]" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Harlan Stone

Enjoyed hearing you many Saturday mornings on the Archie radio program.
Thanks for the memories, Stan.

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 10:23:00 -0400
From: "Robert Paine" <macandrew@[removed];
To: "OTR Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Thoughts of Raymond Edward Johnson

I met Mr. Johnson at a convention in 1973 and had the opportunity to talk
with him for a few minutes. He was very kind, patient and friendly,
especially to a newcomer who had lots of interest but little experience with
OTR.

As we were talking he said something and without thinking I slipped into a
Scandanavian dialect I learned from some Swedish friends. I thought "Oh,
brother, me and my big mouth" and started to apologize. He looked up from
the wheelchair and said "WHERE did you learn that?" I answered that my
neighbors were Swedes; I'd got it from them and listening to a few Yogi
Yorgesson routines. Instead of telling me, as I expected, that it was
terrible, he said, "That is VERY good. Keep working at it and you'll do
great" or words to that effect. I later learned (DUH) that he was of
Scandanavian descent. Those
encouraging words came at pretty low point in my life and I lived off that
compliment for several weeks.

Some years later I had the chance to play two very small parts in an
abbreviated version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Ray Johnson
played Scrooge and it was an exceptional experience to see him work. I
didn't get to play a scene with him, but watching and hearing him [removed]

He came across like someone's favorite uncle, and if you didn't connect the
name with OTR you might have little expected that this nice gentleman used
to scare the wits out of people with that creaking door. He was even very
understanding when I'd said I had yet to hear an episode of The Inner
Sanctum and told me how the "voice" sounded.

I feel very fortunate to have know Raymond, even for so brief a time. He
seemed a pretty fine person.

Good night, Raymond.

 Macandrew

On the whole, I'd rather be in Great [removed];

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 10:23:08 -0400
From: Donna Halper <dlh@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Grandma Moses

Laurie asked--

I am reading up on Grandma Moses, and was wondering, was she ever
interviewed on the radio? And if she was, what show was she on.

I am sure that once the Grandma Moses craze began in the 40s, various
women's shows grabbed her up-- I vaguely recall seeing her name on a
program listing-- I need to go check my files.  But she was the subject of
an NBC Biography in Sound" in early September 1956, and of course Edward R.
Murrow interviewed her for TV in December of 1955.

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 10:23:10 -0400
From: "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  LP Records

Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2001 10:04:27 -0400
From: "Stephen A Kallis, Jr." <skallisjr@[removed];

If memory serves, that was in late 1948, which would mean that the I Can
Hear It Now LP was issued in 1948, too.

I believe that was the year that LP records were first introduced.  In light
of that, doesn't 1948 sound a bit too soon for your story?




 A. Joseph Ross, [removed]                           [removed]
 15 Court Square, Suite 210          lawyer@[removed]
 Boston, MA 02108-2503           [removed]

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 11:42:09 -0400
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Re: Off-Network Syndication

On 8/16/01 11:06 PM OldRadio Mailing Lists wrote:

Being a child
of TV, I was used to old shows being syndicated to individual stations and
broadcast every weekday afternoon, and not only dismissed the statement, but
almost completely forgot until my memory was jarred this morning.  In my
years of collecting though, I don't believe I have come across any
indications that radio shows were syndicated in this manner to individual
radio stations back in the 50's.

While "Our Miss Brooks" was never distributed as a syndicated rerun
during the 1950s, recorded syndication itself dates back to 1928 -- it
was invented by Correll and Gosden for "Amos 'n' Andy," and they had
tried unsuccessfully to patent the idea. By the early 1930s it had become
one of the fastest-growing aspects of the broadcasting industry, with
dozens of companies in the field. "Strip" shows were the most common
features distributed in this manner -- programs meant for broadcast five
or six times a week.

Many network programs were also distributed by syndication concurrent
with their network runs, as a way of increasing the reach of the program
beyond the wireline networks -- but the beginning of the idea of
syndicating reruns of a show *after it had ended its network run,* as
opposed to distributing new episodes made especially for syndication, is
more difficult to pinpoint. The earliest mention of this idea that I've
encountered is a New York Daily News radio column by Sid Shalit in the
summer of 1933, indicating that negotiations were underway for a
syndicated rerun of the "Ziegfeld Follies Of The Air" series, which had
run over CBS for Chrysler in 1932. Shalit specifically mentions that a
full run of recordings for this series was in the possession of its
orchestra leader, Al Goodman, and that these would be used as the source
for the syndicated rebroadcasts. I've been able to find no further
mention of this project in the trade press, but the first two episodes of
the series do survive with no indication of having been edited in any way
for syndication.

The most successful example of post-network rerun syndication in the OTR
era would probably be the exploitation of "Easy Aces" by the Frederick W.
Ziv Company in 1945-46. The series had ended its long network run in
1945, and Goodman Ace had in his possession a complete run of recordings,
originally made for extension spotting, of the entire Anacin run of the
series dating back to February 1935. As the copyright owner of the
series, Ace sold broadcast rights to the 1937-41 recordings to Ziv, and
these were reedited with new openings and closings, the commercials were
replaced by blanks for the insertion of local spots, and occasionally new
announcer lead-ins were recorded to bridge the gaps between storylines
when episodes were skipped. This package was then made available to local
stations, and about 100 stations signed up to carry "Easy Aces" as a
five-a-week strip, making the show one of the major syndication hits of
1946, and ironically giving the series greater exposure than it ever had
during its long run as a network feature.

Elizabeth

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 11:42:11 -0400
From: Bob Noble <bobnoble@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Grandma Moses

"laurie1125" <lauriep@[removed]; asks:

I am reading up on Grandma Moses, and was wondering, was she ever
interviewed on the radio? And if she was, what show was she on.

I don't know if Grandma Moses was ever interviewed on the radio, but it
is very likely she was. She lived in my area (Capital District of NYS)
and was likely interviewed on WGY as well as other stations.

Since the current attitude of radio is to erase (and even deny) as much
of its past as possible, I doubt that WGY would have kept an archive of
its old material. When I worked there, I was unaware of any such tape
archive. Now that they have moved into new and even smaller quarters,
it's even less likely that such stuff was saved.

Your best guess would be to send letters to the managers of WGY, WTRY,
and WROW and ask if any such archives exist. These are among the
stations which are likely to have done such interviews years ago. All
are group-owned and today are much less interested in the local
community than they are in maximizing profits for the stockholders.

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 11:50:54 -0400
From: "Ed Ellers" <ed_ellers@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Hear It Now and See It Now

"laurie1125" <lauriep@[removed]; wrote:

I am reading up on Grandma Moses, and was wondering, was she ever
interviewed on the radio? And if she was, what show was she on.

Dunno about radio, but she was featured on Edward R. Murrow's "See It Now"
in 1955 -- which is significant because that was the first, and perhaps
only, segment shown in color on that broadcast.  (It wasn't too hard to
do -- they just shot the segment in color, edited it on film as was the
practice back then, and put it on the air from the one color film scanner
that CBS had in New York.  Murrow's introduction was in black and white,
from the regular See It Now studio.)

Michael Biel <mbiel@[removed]; wrote:

Volume 1, 1933-1945 was issued in 1948, Volume 2, 1945-1948 was done in
1949, Volume 3, 1919-1933 was done in 1950, and Volume 4, 1949-1957 still
remains in the CBS archive unissued.

Do you mean the Sony Music Entertainment archive, or CBS News?

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 12:48:28 -0400
From: William L Murtough <k2mfi@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Hollywood Hills

In order to further orient the location of FM and Television transmitters
in the Los Angeles area, the mountains to the north were the San Gabriel
Mountains. Mt. Wilson is north of Pasadena and is 5710 feet high. The
range north of Hollywood was known as the Hollywood Hills. I do recall a
transmitter tower atop the Hills near the Ventura Blvd. pass. When I
arrived in Hollywood in 1945 there were the remains of a large sign lying
all over the  side of the Holywood Hills which had spelled
"HOLLYWOODLAND", a real estate development which had gone "belly-up". In
later years the sign was re-worked to spell "HOLLYWOOD". Mullholland
Drive ran along the crest. The view of the lights of the city from there
was spectacular. At night this was a favorite parking spot for lovers in
spite of the harrassment by the unromantic [removed] County police. A bunch of
"part poopers"!

BILL MURTOUGH

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 19:55:04 -0400
From: ArtsMilitaria@[removed] (Arthur Funk)
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Australian OTR

While reading Ian Grieve's latest post  on this topic, I suddenly
remembered a website which I filed among my favorites several years ago.
I checked and it is still live.  The URL is
[removed] and it's called Clark
Sinclair's Golden Days of Australian Radio.  The site includes Real
Audio samples of several programs including an Aussie production of
Gunsmoke.  Sinclair apparently hosts a program similar to When Radio
Was.  If someone has already passed this along recently, please excuse
the duplication.

Regards to all you nieces & nephews of Uncle Throckmorton,
Art Funk

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 19:55:00 -0400
From: William L Murtough <k2mfi@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Raynond Edward Johnson

How sad to lose a legend. At Newark FOTR I would always tell him to keep
coming as I didn't want to be the oldest guy there. He was a delightful
man, adored by all who knew him.

I first met him when I returned to CBS-New York in 1951. I was doing
vacation relief on"Second Mrs. Burton". He was playing the new husband of
the first Mrs. Burton, Ethel Owen. They were both a couple of "hams" and
played their characters to the hilt. He was trying to "do her in" for her
money and sawed through the rafters over her bed, and was going to push a
heavily loaded trunk over the spot to crash through the ceiling, killing
her. Fortuneatly the second Mrs. Burton, Patsy Campbell,  found out what
was going on and foiled the plot just in time. Ethel had been a Chatauqua
actress and had "paid her dues". We frequently rode the commuter train
together. She was married to a wealthy insurance company executive and
lived well in Scarsdale, New York. I remember on a Mother's Day when she
found her present in the driveway, a new white Cadillac!

THOSE WERE THE DAYS!

Bill Murtough

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 19:54:58 -0400
From: Jack A French <otrpiano@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Jim or Jack French ?

Harold Zeigler reports; "This week's 'TV GUIDE" , in next Tuesday's Aug. 21
listing , a movie features another one of our steady writers, JIM FRENCH in
a movie  entitled "Pecker" which will air on The Comedy Channel at 07:00
[removed] (Central Time) .I hope everyone in Granite City,Il. will be watching
as Jim used to live here many moons ago. I wonder what part he'll play in
the "Pecker"?

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

This makes the 14th time that Jim French and I (no relation) have been
mixed up in OTR [removed] time by my favorite former neighbor in
Illinois.

It's me in "Pecker", not Jim French. In addition to our similar names in
this small OTR hobby, he's in Washington State and I operate out of
Washington, DC.
When Jim and I finally meet, we'll doubtless have a lot of confusion to
sort out in prior mis-identifications by our OTR associates.

Jack French

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 19:54:56 -0400
From: "John Eccles, Jr." <jeccles@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Raymond Edward Johnson

I first met Raymond Edward Johnson at the FOTR Convention in Bridgeport, CT
in 1981 when I was 14 years old.  He was a tremendously talented and gifted
man who lit up a room simply by entering it.  I stood quite in awe of him,
but he put me completely at ease asking how a young boy became interested in
radio.  He reminisced with me about his life and career.  I felt then and
now that I was in the presence of a truly great man.

As for his ability as an actor, he was without peer.  I was privileged to
have seen him perform "The Tell-Tale Heart" in which he played every
speaking part with no sound effects or music accompanying his recitation.
He held an audience of over 200 spellbound for close to one hour.

Every convention he attended I, like many others, always made a point to
share a few moments with him as he was such a truly genuine warm caring
individual.  It seems so unusual to now speak of him in the past tense,
because his spirit was indomitable.

We all know he suffered from MS, but he never let it get in the way of his
life, a lesson he was able to teach me through example when I was diagnosed
with Type I Diabetes.  Although my condition was far less serious than his,
he took the time to speak with me and gave me a "life lesson" I will never
forget.  He taught me there is absolutely nothing one can not accomplish in
life as long as one is willing to keep going.  He never stopped.

I will now end this posting before I begin to ramble as I know so many
others have memories to share as well.

I am truly grateful to have had Raymond Edward Johnson a part of my life.  I
am also thankful that he is now at peace with his loved ones and that he
will really never leave us.  He will always be there by the simple act of
placing a tape or CD in a machine.  What a gift and a legacy he left as an
actor, and more importantly, as a human being.

Thank you, Raymond.  God Bless You.

John Eccles, Jr.

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 19:54:54 -0400
From: "Ryan Osentowski" <rosentowski@[removed];
To: "old time radio" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  shows that make you cry

Hi all:
I know this thread is dead, but I have been away for a couple of weeks and
am catching up.  I wanted to throw my two cents in on this one.  You realize
that I am a [removed] I very seldom cry.  I prefer to keep my macho image
intact.  *insert muscle flex here*  However, when I occasionally shed a
tear, here are a couple of shows that cause me to do so.
Gunsmoke- "Quarter Horse"  This is a story about an old man and his grandson
who are raising quarter horses on a ranch near Dodge.  They are constantly
harassed by local ranchers who find quarter horses to be too awkward to be
taken seriously.  In order to prove his point that quarter horses are
faster, the old man sets up a race with one of the local ranchers.  The
ending gets me every time.
Dragnet- "A Gun for Christmas"  Of course, any Dragnet fan knows this one.
The original version of this show is my favorite, with Bill Johnstone
playing the part of the grieving father.  His performance was so real, that
you can hear Barton Yarborough and other actors start to tear up as well.  I
don't know why they didn't use Johnstone when they repeated the performance
in future years.  I also found it interesting and very touching that they
chose to have the father break down, instead of giving us a big scene with
the boy's mother.  I thought men in the 50's were supposed to be
insensitive.  *smile*
The Great Gildersleve- "Why the Chimes Rang"  The story in this episode is
great!
X. Minus One- "Cold Equations"  Again, you just have to hear this one.
I'm done now.
RyanO


"Life is an unrelenting comedy.  Therein, lies the tragedy of it."
Dean Koontz

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 19:54:51 -0400
From: Kenneth L Clarke <kclarke5@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: "Mollie Mystery"

Howard,

          I don't remember any OTR program named "Mollie Mysteries".
I do, however, remember one called "Molle' Mystery Theatre".  This
might be the one she meant.   Although I don't have any tapes of this
program in my own collection, I remember hearing one or two episodes
of it on When Radio Was before it was taken off the air.  They were
quite good as I recall.

          Maybe there are some members from the list who can provide
further assistance.  I believe that several episodes of "Molle' Mystery
Theatre" are available now.

Kenneth Clarke
kclarke5@[removed]

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

Date: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 20:25:05 -0400
From: "vze2m645@[removed]" <vze2m645@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  I can hear it [removed]

          Not one challenge the good Dr. Biel, but wasn't their also a set
:Sounds of the Sixties, I can hear it now- with Walter Cronkite?  I think I
have it in my collection
Michael Muderick


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