Subject: [removed] Digest V2002 #20
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 1/20/2002 3:03 PM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2002 : Issue 20
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  Lincoln Highway Radio Show            [ passage@[removed] ]
  Bob & Ray                             [ "Rodney w bowcock jr." <rodney-self ]
  Arthur Godfrey/FDR                    [ chris chandler <chrischandler84@yah ]
  Phil Harris CD                        [ Clifengr3@[removed] ]
  Today in OTR History                  [ Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed] ]
  Phil Harris CD                        [ jackbenny39@[removed] ]
  MP3 files and USENET                  [ "Vince Long" <vlongbsh@[removed]; ]
  Re: Archie X-Rated?                   [ hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed]; ]
  Godfrey (&c.)                         [ Wich2@[removed] ]
  RE: Vintage Microphones               [ Harlan Zinck <buster@[removed]; ]
  Godfrey's horse - and hate            [ leemunsick@[removed] ]
  Arthur Godfrey                        [ otrbuff@[removed] ]

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:07:26 -0500
From: passage@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Lincoln Highway Radio Show

Hi All,

I received the following query from Carol Ruth <bluhyws@[removed];:
- ---------
I was looking at your log page while in search of whether there was
such a thing as a Lincoln Highway Radio Show or whether any show
had a Lincoln Highway theme song?
- ---------
Any ideas?

Frank

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:07:38 -0500
From: "Rodney w bowcock jr." <rodney-selfhelpbikeco@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Bob & Ray

Only one group of stations still airs The Bob & Ray public radio show.
The X-star network, headed by WVXU, [removed], in Cincinnati.  [removed]  I
think you can listen online.  Bob & Ray airs Mondays at 11:30am.

rodney.

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:10:43 -0500
From: chris chandler <chrischandler84@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Arthur Godfrey/FDR

Lee Munsnick's inquiry about the Arthur Godfrey
description of the FDR funeral cortege set me to
thinking, which is always a dangerous [removed]

HOW do we know the clip of this event is any more
authentic than anything else on the "I Can Hear It
Now" album?

Not to cast aspersions on Mr. Godfrey (though I'll
happily cast a few on that faker Mr. Fred Friendly),
but Godfrey would have been right there at CBS New
York with the rest of the "[removed]" conspirators.

I am traveling and do not have ready access to the
[removed] Anybody's who's curious might take a
listen and see how suspicious this clip sounds in
light of what we all now know about some of the rest
of the "actualities" on the album.

Chris

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:12:05 -0500
From: Clifengr3@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Phil Harris CD

Anyone out there know of a CD of Phil Harris songs that are availabe?
I've been listening to lots of Harris-Faye shows lately, and I really
enjoy his songs.

I have one entitled "That's What I LIke About Phil Harris" It has 24 tunes by
Ol'' Curley, including That's What I Like About the South, Ding Dang Daddy
from Dumas, The Thing, The Preacher and the Bear, Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy
and more, more, more.
It was a gift, so I don't know where you can get it, but the internet is a
wonderful thing and I bet with some diligent searching you can find it for
sale. It's by BMG Music identified as MMC1-0826. Happy listening.

Jim Yellen

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:12:24 -0500
From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];
To: otr-net <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Today in OTR History

  From a long time subscriber --

January 19, 1950 - The Better Half, a popular radio quiz show that ran almost
a whole decade over the Mutual network, came to a close, airing it's final
broadcast.

  Joe

--
Visit my home page:
[removed]~[removed]

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:12:40 -0500
From: jackbenny39@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Phil Harris CD

There's a CD called "That's What I Like About Phil Harris" that has 24 of
his songs on it, including "That's What I Like About the South."  I think
it was put out by RCA in 1988.  I found a copy at a flea market, but I
don't know whether it's still available in stores anymore.
  I hope this helps!  Have a terrific day!
                                -Karen

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:15:08 -0500
From: "Vince Long" <vlongbsh@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: MP3 files and USENET

"daveclea" <daveclea@[removed]; wrote:

At the suggestion of our ListMaster I located the Newsgroup
"[removed]" and found a number of apparent MP3
files
which display as "corrupted" text.  I cannot find a way to access these
files with my "Real Audio" MP3 player.


As a high school technology teacher I will have to say that the most
commonly asked question I get these days has to do with accessing
information in USENET.  The word is out that USENET, one of the oldest parts
of the Internet, has many advantages over the Napster-type of file sharing,
but most net users are not aware of its existence and, once they find it,
have difficulty figuring out what all those strange characters found in the
posting mean.

However, there is a web site that I've started directing my students to that
does a great job of explaining how to access the binary data in USENET.  For
our OTR group that data is many old time radio shows in the MP3 format.  The
site is:

[removed]

It is fairly non-geeky and covers everything you might want to know from
getting access to playing the files found there.  It is written for both
Macintosh and Windows users and is organized in an easy-to-navigate 6-step
process.

A word of caution:  While USENET has some great discussion groups,
especially for us techno-geeks, the binary groups, where you find pictures,
audio files, and video, are also heavily littered with pornography.

Vince

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:11:45 -0500
From: hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re: Archie X-Rated?

Ian Grieve" posted

"The content of every activity involving the group will be subject to the
approval of Archie Entertainment, in order to preserve the wholesome
tradition of the beloved fictional Riverdale High School teenagers first
introduced in the 1940s."

Hmm, Wholesome, guess that scrubs Hal's book of tales about his growing up
with adoring female fans.  Better release the book at another time, we don't
want to miss the gossip.

Hey there, you awesome Aussie. Not to worry. If necessary, I'll prepare two
versions of the book. One, nothing but "wholesome" fare, and boring as hell.
The other, laced will all sorts of sexually explicit material. :)

But to tell the truth, I found the press release most interesting. (my wife
printed out the full content for me). The Founder of Archie Comic
Publications, John Goldwater had a good friend and partner, Mr. Silberkleit.
I can vaguely recall them bringing their kids in to see the show on
occasion. It turns out that the old relationship remains intact with a new
generation. ACP Chairman is now Michael Silberkleit, ACP President is
Richard Goldwater.

I really must contact them. Maybe I'll get ACP to publish the "wholesome"
version.

Hal(Harlan)Stone
Jughead

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:15:37 -0500
From: Wich2@[removed]
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Godfrey (&c.)

Folks-
I always find it interesting when people have difficulty separating a
performer's public persona from his true character - "I love his
acting/singing - how could he NOT be lovable!?"
As a perfomer myself, I can tell you that in many cases, these personas are
not one and the same (of course, as in ALL fields, the mature souls have the
most
unity between the [removed])
So, it is not at all strange in human nature to find Jolson gifted/miserable,
Cohen charming/wife beating, Godfrey warm/despised, etc.
Especially among those with great fame, the problem seems to be that found by
Harry Truman in Gen. MacArthur:
"He'd forgotten that there was a difference between himself and God Almighty"
-Craig Wichman

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:18:32 -0500
From: Harlan Zinck <buster@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: RE: Vintage Microphones

Les Rayburn <les@[removed]; writes:

I'm interested in getting a classic microphone of the type used on the air
in the golden days for use with my amateur (ham) radio transceiver.
Something like one of the old RCA 74B's or something of that ilk.

I hope you're in the chips, Les, because good condition microphones from
the "golden days of radio" go for between $600 and $2000 these days. Check
out eBay sometime and you'll see what I mean - there's an RCA 44A on sale
now, with a current bid price of $[removed]

A friend of mine bought a 44B awhile back which was hollowed out - he only
wanted it for display - and it *still* cost him just under $[removed]

I'll likely replace the capsule with a modern one, so it's not critical that
it be working.

If you can find one that's still working, don't mess with it. The fidelity
of a good condition ribbon mic is really quite remarkable. This is why
folks like Larry King & David Letterman still use them - and also because
they look really cool, of course!

Harlan

Harlan Zinck
First Generation Radio Archives
[removed]

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:23:13 -0500
From: leemunsick@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Godfrey's horse - and hate

Let me answer the questions posted here about Mr. Godfrey's Horse
(incidentally, the name of a song written by Red Skelton), and "the
millions of people who hate Arthur Godfrey".

The famous horse which Arthur Godfrey usually rode in his equestrian shows
was named Catoctin Gold, but generally referred to by nearly everyone as
"Goldie".  Actually, there were two horses which looked very much alike,
called by insiders "Goldie 1 and Goldie 2" although they did have separate
names.  When doing a show, Mr. Godfrey brought both, just in case anything
were to happen to Goldie.  But usually Goldie was the star.

Catoctin, by the way, refers to the Catoctin Mountains in northwestern
Virginia, near Leesburg.  Godfrey amassed a large estate there over a
matter of years.  The Catoctins were part of the Blue Ridge Mountains,
which in turn are part of the Appalachians.

For many years while his morning CBS radio show was popular (for a time it
was simulcast on CBS-TV), pilot Godfrey would leave New York City after his
Thursday program, drive to Teterboro Airport in northern New Jersey, and
fly his airplane to what he jokingly called "Leesburg International Cow
Pasture" in Virginia.  That description was not far from the truth.

Ultimately he gave the property to the town of Leesburg, which made a huge
profit selling it for what are now shops, apartments, a mall, etc.  The
arrangement was that the town would use those profits to acquire another
property out of town, which lent itself much more readily to heavier flight
activities.  That airport is now Leesburg Municipal on all the charts, but
is formally named "Arthur Godfrey Field", a fine asset to Leesburg and
surrounding Loudoun County.

Mr. Godfrey would do his part of the Friday morning program from a small
studio just off the kitchen of his "Beacon Hill" home, and then enjoy the
rest of the weekend with family and friends.  The rest of the cast and
orchestra would be in the studio in New York.  He'd fly back to Teterboro
on Sunday, to be ready for the next week's activities.  Talking about all
this made Teterboro famous.

On these and other sessions broadcast from Virginia, the orchestra in New
York would not play the usual theme song, Carmen Lombardo's "Seems Like Old
Times", which this exposure made into a classic.  Instead, it would play
(In the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia on) "The Trail of the Lonesome
Pine".  He recorded this for Columbia Records, adding some of his own
lyrics.  The song came from a motion picture which in turn was taken from a
play taken, from a popular book about real life and characters in rural
southwestern Virginia.  The play is still performed annually near Big Stone
Gap, Virginia, the area where the action took place on which all this was
based.

As to how Mr. Godfrey is so hated.  For years magazines and newspapers
would vie with each other to see who could run more adulation stories about
Arthur Godfrey.  Putting his picture on one's cover or page one would
guarantee heavy sales.  Many publications would increase their press run
and tell their advertisers that it would be to their advantage to be in
that issue (sometimes at increased rates).

I recall thinking in the early 1950s that this deification of Arthur
Godfrey was very unfair, putting him up on a pedestal when he was certainly
very much a real human being with faults and foibles.  In their cover
article about Mr. Godfrey, Time Magazine made that comment, saying it
seemed but a matter of time before the second syllable of Mr. Godfrey's
name totally disappeared.  Years later, the tide turned quite
literally.  The media left behind any picture of fairness, moving in the
exact opposite direction to vilify Arthur Godfrey, often with recurring
stories which were absolutely untrue but became public "fact".

The "firing" of Julius Larosa instituted a feeding frenzy of anti-Godfrey
vituperation.  I put "firing" in quotes because it was nothing of the
sort.  I think any fair person would realize this, listening to the program
segment on which "it" took place.  It actually was a lengthy lauding of
Julie's warmth, abilities and personality, followed by a very positive
send-off from Mr. Godfrey.

This release of Julie from the Godfrey programs was done by Mr. Godfrey
against his better judgment, and at the repeated urging of Larosa
himself.  He wanted to move on to bigger opportunities, Reno and Las Vegas
bookings, his own TV show, etc.  Mr. Godfrey warned Larosa that he wasn't
ready, and if he left before maturing his stage personality, he would
indeed have all kinds of offers, but his meteoric initial career would
quickly burn out, a flash in the pan, to die after the novelty wore
off.  This is exactly what happened.

Another example of the lies told about Mr. Godfrey is "his reputation" as
an anti-Semite.  Like most rumors, this charge was engendered by several
events and happenings, but the resulting charge is simply untrue.  Quite
the opposite.  Think about [removed] could any rampant anti-Semite become a
star in the entertainment world--especially broadcasting--owned, controlled
and ruled by Jewish people?

Mr. Godfrey was surrounded by Jewish people.  Many on his shows were
Jewish.  I have spoken with many of them about this.  All of them roundly
affirm that there was absolutely no truth to his so-called
"anti-Semitism".  Most said he was quite the opposite.  His friend Bernard
Baruch, a Jew, advised Mr. Godfrey to fight back against the
charges.  Unfortunately, Mr. Godfrey chose not to.  It's a shame; had he
done so, he could have been helpful in overcoming much anti-Jewish hatred
in this country.

It could have been as beneficial as was his revelation that he had
Cancer.  This  greatly helped open doors to public acceptance of discussion
about the previously unmentionable "Big C", which to that point was put in
the same category as venereal disease.  I can recall in my own radio career
in those days, that one simply did not use the word "sex" on the radio,
even when one only meant "gender".

Godfrey's free discussion of his cancer was front-page, headline news
across the country.  This made it acceptable to talk about the previously
unspoken disease.  This undoubtedly led many people to seek help from
physicians, to avail them of the benefits of treatment possible for persons
who get early diagnosis of the many forms of cancer.  Who knows how many
lives this saved, as was pointed out at the time by numerous physicians and
others in the fight against cancer.  His cancer was ironic;  Mr. Godfrey
for years was thoroughly identified with smoking, first with cigars and
then synonymously with Chesterfield cigarettes, which he made into a major
brand.

Arthur Godfrey was a board member of the Damon Runyon Memorial Cancer Fund,
founded by Walter Winchell in memory of their friend, author Damon Runyon
("Guys and Dolls"), who died of cancer.  When Winchell retired as President
of the Runyon Fund, Mr. Godfrey succeeded him.  He also became a director
of the Strang Cancer Prevention Institute and Clinic, which continues in
association with a major cancer hospital and medical school in New York
City.

Arthur Godfrey was not a bigoted person.  Quite the contrary; he hated
bigotry and fought against it.  He defended black performers, often taking
on various power structures in the process, such as the DAR, which refused
to let him bring his mixed-race quartet The Mariners to perform in a Red
Cross benefit in their Constitution Hall in Washington.  His on-the-air
Bronx Cheer practically wrecked the DAR.

The Godfrey shows had many blacks on them over many years.  Many of those
performers have told me that they were most grateful for the performing
opportunity, as well as the fact that Godfrey referred to people by their
names, never as "black American musician", "Afro-American singer" or the
like.  He never indicated their race.

One popular performer who frequently substituted for Godfrey when he went
away or was in the hospital, was known in the business to be homosexual,
but not to the public.  This was during a time when this information would
have been the kiss of death.  Mr. Godfrey knew this and helped immensely in
the performer's career, which undoubtedly would have achieved far less fame
and fortune without that support.

My proposed book will go into all these things.  To those who've heard me
say this for years, I can only say that it has become a bigger project than
I ever realized,.  It's been delayed by many factors, most recently by my
move from New Jersey to Virginia (not far from those same Blue Ridge
Mountains) and huge delays in the construction of a building to hold all
our "stuff".  But I'm working on it!

My point here is that to a very large part, the fickle public--always eager
to tear down idols--instantly and gleefully went along with the bedevilment
of Arthur Godfrey.  It certainly cut his popularity ratings, although he
continued as a star for two more decades.  To his greatest sorrow, it
reduced his effectiveness in supporting the many important causes he
espoused.  These included cancer research, blood donations, conservation, a
volunteer military, and many other truly patriotic stands.

Perhaps this will explain why I admire Mr. Godfrey for many things he did,
while at the same time I cannot excuse his behavior toward women, which was
deplorable.  I'm hopeful that the revelation of the truth will help
overcome the continuing unfair and untrue public perception of one of the
giants of American communication and entertainment.  Thanks for giving me
the opportunity to go into this.

Lee Munsick

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

Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2002 15:24:31 -0500
From: otrbuff@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Arthur Godfrey

"Hated" is too strong a term as applied by one poster to this forum in
classifying the public's assessment of Arthur Godfrey's fall from grace.
Actually, as he began a foolhardy, little understood or appreciated
dismantling of his vast empire, the public turned from adulation to
agitation.  When he persisted in his bent to self-destruct, the largest
percentage of those 80 million idol worshipers tuning him in regularly
found other things to do with their time, and he quickly lost more and
more favor with fans who had only a short time earlier adored him.  It
was a tragic development in what had been a simply awe-inspiring career.

The poster noted that no one he personally knew stopped admiring him.
I'm unsure where he was but if the headlines in the newspapers and trade
journals and commentary on various other programs was to be believed,
Godfrey was turned off by the vast majority as the 1950s progressed.
Documentation of his downward spiral is included in my book as evidence.
You'll also discover it in Arthur J. Singer's well written biography of
the man.

I clearly recall going into a science classroom in public school the day
after Julius LaRosa was publicly fired on the air by Godfrey, clearly the
first of several outbursts by the old redhead that led to his fall from
the high perch he occupied.  My teacher was an outspoken woman of many
topics and she was so angry by what Godfrey had done that she vented her
emotions to the class in what I recall was something like a 10-minute
tirade.  She gave each of her students opportunity to respond and I think
science was canceled that day and most of the hour was consumed by an
ethics lesson.  I don't know that our experience was typical and doubt
that it was.  But I have never forgotten how it was impressed upon that
group of adolescents.

Godfrey was a great man.  He plowed new fields and made enormous strides,
especially in his demonstrated marketing genius.  His impact on
broadcasting was immediate and lasting.  I'm grateful for the hundreds of
hours of unparalleled entertainment he provided in my home and I can't
recall making many trips by automobile that Arthur Godfrey didn't go
along for the ride.  Too bad so much of it became tarnished at the
pinnacle of success.

Jim Cox

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2002 Issue #20
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