------------------------------
The Old-Time Radio Digest!
Volume 2003 : Issue 36
A Part of the [removed]!
ISSN: 1533-9289
Today's Topics:
March of Time [ "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; ]
Raymond Gram Swing [ "Tom van der Voort" <evan@[removed] ]
Re: Intimacy in Radio [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
two contacts [ "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; ]
accents on radio [ sacchief <sacchief@[removed]; ]
Ozzie and Harriet [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
Re: 16" sleeves [ Fred Berney <berney@[removed]; ]
Adam and Eve [ loviglio <loviglio@[removed]; ]
Wayne Rainey [ "Bob & Carol Taylor" <qth4@[removed] ]
Ozzie and Harriet [ erest@[removed] ]
Sgt Preston [ "Don Frey" <alanladdsr@[removed] ]
Rhubarb, [removed]'ve been thinkin [ Derek Tague <derek@[removed]; ]
Ozzie vs Married with children [ Ed Kindred <kindred@[removed]; ]
Re: Cassette Holders [ George Guffey <grguffey@[removed]; ]
Radio Program "Somebody Knows" [ "Mark Goodrich" <tootieches@earthli ]
Phil Harris warmups [ "Andrew Godfrey" <niteowl049@[removed] ]
Today in radio history [ Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed] ]
85 page One Man's Family Log at Half [ HRRMIKES@[removed] ]
Halls of Ivy [ "[removed]" <[removed]@[removed] ]
28th Old-time country Music Contest [ JayHick@[removed] ]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 16:57:39 -0500
From: "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: March of Time
Hi Everybody, a gentleman is looking for either a copies of the March of
Time broadcast of 7-8-37, and 7-15-37. These broadcast is dealing with the
missing of Amelia Earhart. He would also be happy just with written text of
what the actress said. He is writing an article and is hoping to use the
material. Take care,
Walden Hughes
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 16:57:16 -0500
From: "Tom van der Voort" <evan@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Raymond Gram Swing
After reading comments by Elizabeth McLeod and Chris Chandler on Fulton
Lewis, Jr. and [removed] Kaltenborn, I have to put in a good word for my favorite
news analyst, Raymond Gram Swing. His coverage of the Munich crisis and the
German invasion of Poland was right on the money. I contend that his
analysis of Hitler's upcoming peace proposal speech on October 5, 1939, is
absolutely masterful--much better than anything you'll "see" today. He
discussed Hitler's three audiences--the Reichstag, the German people, and
the world community--and how Der Fuhrer's speech would be tailored to appeal
to each group. Great stuff!
Interesting that MBS had two superb commentators--one conservative
(Lewis) and one liberal (Swing)--yet gets so little respect when it comes to
its news programming.
Tom van der Voort
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 16:57:52 -0500
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re: Intimacy in Radio
On 1/23/03 1:12 AM OldRadio Mailing Lists wrote:
A formal presentation, even in a comedy, was what people expected to hear
>from actors, and the style only changed (and rather slowly at that) once a
new generation, trained on microphones, took over.
Arthur Godfrey comes to mind here. My sense is that his verbal style was
far less formal than that of his contemporaries in the early days.
The earliest examples that come to my mind for breaking free of "stage
acting" were Correll and Gosden -- they were by all evidence the very
first dramatic performers in radio to realize they weren't performing for
a theatre-type audience, and to fully understand the implications of that
difference. As a result they became the first performers in radio drama
not to even try to simulate the experience of a stage play. They played
to the microphone exclusively -- if you listen to the surviving 1929
"Amos 'n' Andy" episodes, you'll notice that they've already developed a
sophisticated understanding of how to act to a microphone, compared to
the "stand-there-and-emote" manner that many stage-trained performers
were using well into the 1930s. Point of view shifts in the midst of a
scene simply by a slight movement of the performers' head toward or away
from the mike -- and the illusion of eavesdropping on a quiet
conversation is uncanny. There's no sense at all that this is a
"performance." (This is also the main reason why addition of a live
audience with the start of the half hour series in 1943 utterly destroyed
the program's original intimate mood.)
I'd also cite three prominent bandleaders of the 1920s as major factors
in influencing the development of an intimate presentation style in
radio: Vincent Lopez, Ben Bernie, and Rudy Vallee. All of these
performers were known for announcing their own programs, and in doing so
they talked directly to listeners on a one-on-one basis. Lopez was
probably the first to do this, and Bernie probably had the most stylized
mannerisms -- but Vallee was the most effective performer in this vein.
Not only did he tailor his announcing style to this intimate approach,
his musical selections were also chosen for a specifically intimate
appeal to the listener. The effect was that the Connecticut Yankees were
playing just for *you,* and when you compare this to the generic style of
most musical programs of the era, it was an incredible breakthru.
Several announcers also come to mind as pioneers of an intimate
one-on-one approach. Bill Hay, the "Amos 'n' Andy" announcer always spoke
in a quiet, low-key voice -- addressing the audience directly and
intimately, both in the commercials and in the narrative introductions to
the A&A episodes. He never raised his voice, he never put on a
fake-exuberant hard-sell manner -- he just told you about Pepsodent,
one-on-one, quietly and convincingly, and then casually set the stage for
Amos and Andy. He was doing this in an era where stiff formality was
still the rule for announcers, and I think he deserves considerable
credit for emphasizing that the old fashioned technique wasn't
necessarily the most effective. Hay was never ultra-informal in the
Godfrey manner -- and his Scots accent may have sometimes made him sound
more formal than he really was -- but he was a pioneer of one-on-one
announcing.
Another announcer of the early 1930s I'd single out is Jimmy Wallington
-- who was best known as Eddie Cantor's sidekick-stooge on the Chase &
Sanborn Hour, but also had a very casual, effective, one-on-one style
while working other programs. He was especially effective on Rudy
Vallee's variety hour, contrasting with the breathless gee-whiz approach
of Graham McNamee. He really makes you think that eating yeast three
times a day will give you healthy glowing skin.
And then there's Milton Cross -- who managed to be dignfied but not
formal and intimate but not artificially chummy. Listen to surviving
examples of his Metropolitan Opera commentaries from the mid-thirties for
a demonstration: he comes across like the kind of friendly, knowledgeable
person you'd enjoy attending the opera with, and not simply as an
Announcer.
Elizabeth
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 16:58:06 -0500
From: "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: two contacts
Hi Everybody, does any one have either a email or telephone number for two
OTR Clubs. 1. Radio Collectors of America, and 2. Radio Listener Lyceum.
I would like to have some one to be a guest on my show to help promote there
club on Yesterday USA. Please contact me off list,
Walden Hughes
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 16:58:27 -0500
From: sacchief <sacchief@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: accents on radio
I have another possible explanation for the loss of "accents" on the air. I
first encountered this subject when I was in college, majoring in speech,
and while I did have a brief and undistinguished career as an announcer, I
had not thought of the issue in terms of broadcasting.
My theory is that America is rapidly losing its accents, whether on the air
or in everyday speech, and that broadcasting is merely a microcosm of the
overall cultural changes. I can remember easily the days when the accent of
the "deep South" was very common, along with the New England Twang, and the
Southwestern drawl. However, as Americans have become more mobile and no
longer spend their entire lives in one section of the country, the accents
have tended to "fade" or blend". In some instances, however, the speech
pattern has been transferred by the re-location of the masses. For example,
in California's great central valley (Bakersfield to Redding, but especially
in the area south of Fresno), there was a huge influx of "Southwesterners"
in the 1930's and 40's ([removed] "Grapes of Wrath"). Even today, there are
communities in this valley where the prevailing speech pattern is that of
Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, etc. Similarly, there are areas of the country
which were largely influenced by Southern sympathizers during and after the
Civil War, and their speech patterns remain today in these areas (parts of
Arizona are a good example).
In the past, there have even been speech differences pretty much restricted
to cities. For example, there was the Bostonian who"pahrked his cahr in the
Harvahrd yarhd! Similarly, until after WWII, native San Franciscans had
their own speech patterns and terms, both of which are almost never heard
today.
Another factor which has escalated the loss of accents is, I believe, the
growth of the electronic media. When people got their news on the printed
page, they continued to speak in their native accents. When, however, radio
and later TV became so all-invasive, the accents began to fade and/or blend.
In some instances, the speech was not just a matter of accents, but of a
small, closely held language. In Northern CA, there is the town of
Boonville, which for years has had its own language, although this is also
fading rapidly.
The sum of it: Except for some places in the deep south or New England, our
American speech, on the air or off, has become homogenized--for better or
worse! Personally, I enjoyed the old time accent.
bob keldgord (Sacramento)
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 16:58:56 -0500
From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Ozzie and Harriet
Mike Leannah wrote:
The Adventures(???) of Ozzie and Harriet"? Come on!
Ozzie trying on an old suit and finding that it doesn't fit anymore can
hardly be called an adventure. The same can be said for when he just can't
remember where he laid that screwdriver he had been using. Sorry, but this
show does nothing for me.
I must agree with my good friend Mike. He hits the nail right on the head. I
liken The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet to the Amos 'n Andy Show, neither
one of which was a shining example of what good radio was all about. I once
made a statement on this list that the worst radio show was better than the
best television show. I stand corrected, in these two instances that is not
true.
My collection consists of over 24,000 programs, I have only 9 Amos 'n' Andy
with no thought of getting any more and a like number of Ozzie and Harriet
with no thought of getting any more. However, I will keep them, for it reminds
me that not all old time radio was good time radio.
Ron Sayles
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Make your day, listen to an Olde Tyme Radio Program
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 16:59:09 -0500
From: Fred Berney <berney@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: 16" sleeves
A while back, someone was asking for a place that sold 16" sleeves for
transcription disc. I got the following name from the Library of Congress.
Kurt & Diane Nauck
22004 Sherrod Lane
Spring, TX 77389-4539
281-288-7826
nauck@[removed]
[removed]
My note says that the price for a 16" sleeve is 75 cents.
Fred
[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 17:13:30 -0500
From: loviglio <loviglio@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Adam and Eve
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There's a wonderful, if slightly academic, piece by Matthew Murray on the
dust up over Mae West's
suggestive performance as Eve in the skit with Charlie McCarthy. The essay is
called "The Tendency
to Deprave and Corrupt Morals" and its in Radio Reader: Essays in the Cultural
History of Radio, edited by Michele Hilmes and me. The
essay includes a great publicity photo of Charlie and Mae
reclining in bed together, basking in the afterglow of
a wonderful performance.
Jason Loviglio
Loviglio@[removed]
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 18:11:27 -0500
From: "Bob & Carol Taylor" <qth4@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Wayne Rainey
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This day Jan. 23 is the tenth anniversary of Wayne Rainey's death.
Bob
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 18:11:37 -0500
From: erest@[removed]
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Ozzie and Harriet
Let's not forget Ozzie was Red Skelton's band leader for a while before they
got their own show.
Harriet played the mother of the mean little kid, amoung other roles on the
show and sang as well.
Rob
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 19:37:34 -0500
From: "Don Frey" <alanladdsr@[removed];
To: "otr message" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Sgt Preston
All reference books say that the sgt was l5m starting 2/ 3/38, once a week.
After 484
broadcasts the pgm switched to 30m on 6/l2/47 and went from Mutual to ABC
with Quaker sponsorship. Starting on 9/6/48 it was heard 3x a week. For 3
months, beginning on 6/l5/49, it was again once a week. It went back to
Mutual on l/2/50, 3x, and the last show was #l260 on 6/9/55. So there! Oh,
the TV sgt did pass away sometime around 1/l9, a brief tribute to the series
and TV's Preston was done on CBS's
Sunday Morning on the l9th.
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 19:38:09 -0500
From: Derek Tague <derek@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Rhubarb, [removed]'ve been thinkin'...
Hi Gang:
With all this talk about actors repeating the word "rhubarb" in order to
amplify a crowd scene, I'd like to recount something along similar lines.
At FOTR/Newark in 1999, I had the pleasure of moderating a panel about "The
CBS Radio Mystery Theatre," which included among its participants authors
Gordon "the Sci-Fi Guy" Payton and Martin Grams, Jr.,
& CBSRMT perennials Gilbert Mack Jr, Teri Keane, Russell Horton, Gordon Gould,
Catherine Byers, Martha Greenhouse, Corinne Orr, & (I know I'm forgetting
somebody). Anyway, the question of staging crowd-scenes came up. One of the
actors evoked an old actor trick of repeating the phrase
"cabbage-rubbish, [removed]" On my count of 3, I prompted this
illustrious panel to stage such a scene, & a handful of performers sounded
like several dozen.
It was one of the highlights of the convention. Someday--not this
year--I'll ask Jay Hickerson if I can stage "CBSRMT--Part II."
Yours in the ether--
Derek Tague
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 19:38:42 -0500
From: Ed Kindred <kindred@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Ozzie vs Married with children
I enjoyed the insipid adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and their escapades,
experiences (take your choice) as maybe an escape from the not so quiet
home in which I was raised. I knew some Father Knows best kind of fathers
and hope that I had similar characteristics. I can assure that I never ever
experienced the crudeness of Married with Children in any of my household
experience. Two viewings was [removed] too many. Since our son reads this
digest he is free to refute anything I have said. You may think me a tad
square since I enjoyed the Nelsons in addition to Kraft Music Hall, Red
Skelton, Bob Hope, Fibber,Throckmorton P. Cavalcade of America,, Jacque
Benet, Eddie Cantor, Amos and Andy, Lum & Abner, with the Railroad Hour
and Cavalcade being two of my favorites. Don't forget the Halls, Lone
Ranger and Sgt. Preston. I had eclectic taste. But to affirm my squareness
the TV programs I watch on a regular basis are, Touched by an Angel,
Seventh Heaven, Everwood, Ballykissangel, Sue Thomas FB Eye and Diagnosis
Murder with a healthy dose of History Channel. Been known to sneak a peak
at Nash Bridges and soak up Cosby reruns. Give me the Huxtables over the
Bundys anytime.
Ed Kindred
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 19:39:06 -0500
From: George Guffey <grguffey@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: Cassette Holders
Mike Kerezman Jr. wrote:
I am tring to find some Cassette Storage racks for
my Mother who still listens to Cassettes mainly. I
Take a look at the plastic holder for sale on this Web
page:
[removed]
George
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2003 23:11:13 -0500
From: "Mark Goodrich" <tootieches@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Radio Program "Somebody Knows"
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A short lived radio program entitled "Somebody Knows" originally appeared in
the early 1950's. I believe only two episodes survive on record. One of
these episodes dealt with the real life murder case of the Black Dahlia,
Elizabeth Short, in LA in the late 1940's. Does anyone know where I might be
able to obtain a recording of this episode? Thanks so much, Mark
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------------------------------
Date: Fri, 24 Jan 2003 12:13:38 -0500
From: "Andrew Godfrey" <niteowl049@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Phil Harris warmups
Want to thank Harlan Zinck for the tip about the Phil Harris show warmups
from the 50's. These warmup shows give listeners a chance to really get to
know people like Phil Harris. Didn't know he was a bandleader until
listening to the Jack Benny shows. Always thought of him as a comedian that
sang and liked to hunt.
Andrew Godfrey
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 24 Jan 2003 12:13:45 -0500
From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];
To: otr-net <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Today in radio history
>From Those Were The Days --
1930 - Ben Bernie (Benjamin Anzelwitz) began a weekly remote broadcast
from the lovely Roosevelt Hotel in NYC.
1942 - Abie's Irish Rose was first heard on NBC this day replacing
Knickerbocker Playhouse. The program was based on the smash play from
Broadway that ran for nearly 2,000 performances. Sydney Smith played the
part of Abie. Rosemary Murphy was played by Betty Winkler.
Joe
--
Visit my home page:
[removed]~[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 24 Jan 2003 12:14:08 -0500
From: HRRMIKES@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: 85 page One Man's Family Log at Half Price
As a membership incentive, The "One Man's Family" Family club, has announced
that during February and March new members will be able to purchase an
incredible 85 page log on OMF at half price ($5 vs. $10). The log is
available only to members. Dr. H. Edwin Titus has poured years of research
into this detailed and accurate work, including history, cast lists,
sponsor and premium information and more-along with a truly amazing log of
Books and Chapters of OMF. Contact Mike Sprague hrrmikes@[removed] website
[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 24 Jan 2003 12:57:07 -0500
From: "[removed]" <[removed]@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Halls of Ivy
Are there any books or references which focus on the Halls of Ivy. I really
enjoy this show and find myself wanting to know more about it.
-Chris Holm
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 24 Jan 2003 13:48:14 -0500
From: JayHick@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: 28th Old-time country Music Contest and
Festival
Please spread the word to authors: Details on convention are:
28th Old-time Country Music Contest and Festival, Aug 25 ’Äì 31, 2003 at
Harison County Fairgrounds in Missouri Valley, Iowa. For information contact
Bob Everhart at Box 492, Walnut, IA 51577 (712) 762-4363
<bobeverhart@[removed];.
Hello Jay
I'm in Mexico and won't be back to my Iowa office
until first of April, but that does not prevent me
from enjoying your missives. We are moving our big
festival in the fall from Avoca, Iowa, to the Harrison
County Fairgrounds in Missouri Valley, Iowa. To the
600 performers on ten stages over seven days, we are
contemplating adding a nice portion of the real estate
to "authors" and whatever product they might have to
sell. We are especially interested in Iowa authors,
but will take anyone who would like to try this kind
of marketing tool. We expect 35,000-45,000 so it's
not a small deal. For the first trial, I would give
the space (what we have set aside for this project) to
legitimate authors with product for sale, free of
charge. All they have to do is buy a ticket in. Check
our website at [removed] Help us
help authors if you can.
Bob Everhart
--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2003 Issue #36
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