Subject: [removed] Digest V2004 #344
From: <[removed]@[removed]>
Date: 10/25/2004 4:20 PM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

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                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2004 : Issue 344
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                             [removed]
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  Retitled shows                        [ "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyro ]
  Racial stereotypes                    [ "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyro ]
  10-25 births/deaths                   [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
  Orestes Caldwell                      [ Osborneam@[removed] ]
  Christmas Sing with Bing              [ "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; ]
  AFRS                                  [ "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; ]
  OT, transistor radios                 [ "Kurt E. Yount" <blsmass@[removed]; ]
  More on Jack Benny and race           [ James Meadows <walthamus@[removed]; ]
  Wallace Beery                         [ "Philip Railsback" <philiprailsback ]
  Alfred E. Newman                      [ "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyro ]
  Bob Dylan                             [ "Philip Railsback" <philiprailsback ]
  "Renfrew of the Mounted"              [ "david rogers" <david_rogers@hotmai ]
  Re: Are We Certain They Were Black?   [ "David Kindred" <david@[removed] ]
  Sky King                              [ Bob Slate <moxnix1961@[removed]; ]
  10-26 births/deaths                   [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]

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Date: Sun, 24 Oct 2004 18:11:02 +0000
From: "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Retitled shows

 > I know the AFRS retitled programs to avoid mentioning the sponsors. ...
 > What did they do for things like Lux Radio Theater or Campbell
 > Playhouse, where the sponsor's name was so tightly integrated into the
 > title?

It does sond generic, but I remember that's what the local newspaper did in 
the television
listings back in the early 50s.  "Schlitz Television Theater" was listed as 
"Television
Theater," "Alcoa Playhouse" would be something like "TV Playhouse," etc.

-- A. Joseph Ross, [removed] [removed] 15 Court Square, Suite 210 lawyer@[removed] Boston, MA 02108-2503 [removed] ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 24 Oct 2004 18:11:10 +0000 From: "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Racial stereotypes > That's the view that gets expressed most frequently. Yet how true is it > really? Would jokes about a Benny character having a fondness for liquor, > women and gambling =really= only make sense if the character were known to > be (fill in your own preferred term for Eddie Anderson's "race" here)? For that matter, Jack's persona as a cheapskate was never connected to the fact that he was Jewish, even though this was a character trait widely attributed to Jews. In fact, it's rather amazing that, although it was no secret that Jack was Jewish, he managed to get away with the cheap jokes without them ever being connected with his Jewishness. ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 24 Oct 2004 18:11:18 +0000 From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: 10-25 births/deaths October 25th births 10-25-1882 - Richard Gordon - Bridgeport, CT - d. 12-1967 actor: Sherlock Holmes, "Advs. of Sherlock Holmes"; Jim Barrett, "Valiant Lady" 10-25-1888 - Richard E. Byrd - Winchester, VA - d. 3-11-1957 explorer: "Admiral Byrd Broadcasts" 10-25-1891 - Father Charles Coughlin - Hamilton, Canada - d. 10-27-1979 commentator, preacher: (The Radio Priest) 10-25-1901 - Daniel Landt - Scranton, PA - d. 2-24-1961 singer: Landt Trio, "Doc Pearson's Drug Store"; "Bob Hawk Show" 10-25-1901 - Walter T. Butterworth - Wallingford, PA - d. 3-10-1962 emcee: "Molle Merry Minstrels"; "Vox Pox"; "Take a Card" 10-25-1902 - Eddie Lang - Philadelphia, PA - d. 3-26-1933 jazz guitarest: "Music That Satisfies" 10-25-1908 - Polly Ann Young - Denver, CO - d. 1-21-1997 actress: (Sister of Loretta) "Lux Radio Theatre" 10-25-1909 - True Boardman - Seattle, WA - d. 8-4-2003 writer, narrator: "Silver Theatre"; "Favorite Story" 10-25-1912 - Minnie Pearl - Centerville, TN - d. 3-4-1996 comedienne: (Queen of Country Comedy) "Grand Ole Opry" 10-25-1914 - John Reed King - Atlantic City, NJ - d. 7-8-1979 announcer, actor:"Columbia Workshop"; Schuyler 'Sky' King " "Sky King" 10-25-1924 - Billy Barty - Millsboro, PA - d. 12-23-2000 comedian: "Spike Jones Band" 10-25-1927 - Barbara Cook - Atlanta, GA actress: Julie Boyd "Great Merlini" 10-25-1928 - Marion Ross - Albert Lea, MN actress: Lux Radio Theatre October 25th deaths 01-07-1903 - Betty Hanna - d. 10-25-1976 actress: Deborah Matthews "Ma Perkins"; Luella Hayworth "Step Mother" 02-12-1919 - Forrest Tucker - Plainfield, IN - d. 10-25-1986 actor: "Lux Radio Theatre" 03-05-1882 - Eustace Wyatt - Bath, Somerset, England - d. 10-25-1944 actor: Lord Percy "Our Gal Sunday" 05-12-1902 - Philip Wylie - Beverly, MA - d. 10-25-1971 writer: "This Is War"; "Sportsman's Club"; "Tomorrow"; "Lux Radio Theatre" 05-27-1911 - Vincent Price - St. Louis, MO - d. 10-25-1993 actor: Simon Templar "The Saint"; "Lux Radio Theatre" 06-19-1908 - Mildred Natwick - Baltimore, MD - d. 10-25-1994 actress: "Starring Boris Karloff"; "Best Plays"; "Campbell Playhouse" 06-21-1912 - Mary McCarthy - Seattle, WA - d. 10-25-1989 novelist: "Guest Star Time" 09-14-1907 - Cecil Brown - New Brighton, PA - d. 10-25-1987 newscaster: "CBS European News"; "Sizing Up the News" 10-31-1928 - Cleo Moore - Baton Rouge, LA - d. 10-25-1973 actress: "Bud's Bandwagon" 11-14-1901 - Morton Downey - Wallingford, CT - d. 10-25-1985 singer: (The Irish Thrush), "Morton Downey Show"; "Songs by Morton Downey" 12-29-1920 - Viveca Lindfors - Uppsala, Sweden - d. 10-25-1995 actress: "[removed] Steel Hour"
-- Ron Sayles Milwaukee, Wisconsin ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 24 Oct 2004 18:11:24 +0000 From: Osborneam@[removed] To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Orestes Caldwell I just found out that a fellow balloonist is the grandson of Orestes Caldwell. He's looking for shows he was in because his wife if still alive and my friend would like to give them to her. I find that both Radio Magic and Magic Waves is listed in my Hickerson, but no dealer's initials are listed with them, nor if any shows are extant. If anyone knows where he can find them, please let me know. I'll attach his email as an explanation as to who this man was. Arlene Osborne - -------------here's his message to me---------- My grandfather, Orestes H. Caldwell, was the first engineer on what is now the FCC (I have the presidential paper in my basement), He established the radio stations in the East (ie WBZ was originally in Worcester, and was the first 50,000 watt radio station). He established W for stations east of the Mississippi and K for those west. He had a radio program called Radio Magic in 1933+- that talked about what the radio could do. He was friends of Edison, Sarnoff etc. So when someone says Old Timers Radio, my ears perk up. I have a lot of his old stuff. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 09:53:46 +0000 From: "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Christmas Sing with Bing Hi Everybody, I am starting to plan my shows during the Christmas time. I am trying to track down all of the shows Christmas Sing with Bing from 1955 through 1963. Does any one have good ideas how I can find these shows. Take care, Walden Hughes o ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 09:53:55 +0000 From: "Walden Hughes" <hughes1@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: AFRS Hi Everybody, when I have done research work for both Kitty Kallen and the Sinatra family in tracking down there radio appearances, the Library of Congress explain to me that all of there AFRS show are not yet catalog. They believe they have over 1 million shows from the FRS network. Does anyone know if the 1947 and 1949 Command Performances Christmas show do exist or did they do one? I am also trying to find the complete 1953 ABC radio network broadcast of Handel Massiah narrated by Ronald Colmand is around? Take care, Walden Hughes ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 09:54:01 +0000 From: "Kurt E. Yount" <blsmass@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: OT, transistor radios I don't know if I have mentioned this here, but my brother Karl went on the Art Linkletter show, (sorry, no aircheck), and won a transistor radio, and I was wild to have one. I bugged my parents about it so much that they ended up washing my mouth with Pine sall, which didn't help, but cause me problems because of the blisters etc. I have always loved transistor radios, and there is still a thrill when I buy a new one. When I was at the blind school (CSB in California), in the three years I was there I cannot count how many I had. We used to "tune" them, fiddling with what we called the "IF cans" trying to get a better signal. Of course, we would break them in the end. If you dropped one, if it didn't break, sometimes the results would be interesting, the radio didn't work very well but then you would get AFRTS in the morning until about eight o'clock. I actually just bought me a new radio, sony, radio, AM and FM, TV, 2-13 and weather, which is no fun anymore now that they all have the same feed on them, although in southern california you can still get two feeds. Even the Pine Sall did not stop me from loving transistors and other radios, and of course as a blind person I was thrilled to find out about OTR, even though I didn't hear any till later. The closest thing I ever heard was Dear Abby and Norton Mockridge, who recently died and whose book I read because I liked his commentaries. The book was called Mockridge, you're slipping. I am sorry this was kind of off topic, but it gave me a chance to talk about the two things I have always loved, transistor radios or any radios and OTR. Kurt ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 09:54:06 +0000 From: James Meadows <walthamus@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: More on Jack Benny and race For my two cents on this discussion, I don't think it's quite fair to discuss how the Rochester character was depicted on the Jack Benny as an isolated case. Racism is a national phemonenon in America, and white Americans in the 1930s, 40s and 50s would have a hard time thinking about black people without that filter. With the filter in place, black people were limited to certain stations in life. Rochester could embody racial stereotypes like gambling and drinking. Or he could be smarter than his boss. I think we heard both depictions, because they were both considered funny. But as a black man, Rochester could only be subservient. He could not be Jack Benny's boss. He could not compete for Mary Livingston's affections (the fictional Mary, of course, not Mrs. Jack Benny of real life). He was a servant, and his knowing observations about Benny's character were the observations of a servant, who must study his master as part of his job. He could be depicted with great affection, but he could never step out of that role. Maybe Benny, or Eddie Anderson, or some of the writers thought about making an open break from the stereotype. But even if they did, they would have run up against all the pressures faced by mainstream entertainment. I remember a sign of changing times when, as a child, I watched one of the TV specials Jack Benny made after his weekly show had gone off the air in the 60s. As I remember it, a scene early in the show shows Rochester driving Benny home in a Rolls-Royce. There was the usual comic banter for a few minutes. Then, they arrived at Benny's home, and Benny got out. Rochester didn't. That was the punchline. The audience had been lulled into thinking Rochester was acting as Benny's chauffeur. But actually, Rochester, or Eddie Anderson, was just giving Benny a lift. As with Benny and the other characters, the lines between fiction character and actual people had become blurred. Rochester/Anderson switched from servant to successful Hollywood entertainer, who could afford a Rolls-Royce as easily as Dennis Day and Phil Harris. It was a neat, understated gag, the only one I remember from that TV show I watched more than 30 years ago. It worked because audience expectations had changed to allow it to work. It would have been nearly impossible to do a gag like it on Benny's radio show. Jim Meadows ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 09:54:16 +0000 From: "Philip Railsback" <philiprailsback@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Wallace Beery > 1935 - A talented twelve-year-old sang on Wallace Beery's NBC show. Wallace Beery had a show? What was it like? Sounds interesting. Any in existence today? - Philip ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 09:54:22 +0000 From: "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Alfred E. Newman > Date: Sun, 24 Oct 2004 11:32:14 +0000 > From: JackBenny@[removed] > There's a line in there about working, and Rochester says something > like, "What, me working?" (No, I don't know if there was an intended > connection to Alfred E. Newman.) If this was in 1952, it probably wasn't. I don't know when MAD first introduced Alfred E. Newman or the "What, me worry?" slogan, but a few years back, they reprinted their first 23 issues, which were in comic book format, and I have them. The last is dated May 1955, and Alfred is nowhere to be found. The March 1955 cover, however, consists of a highly detailed spoof of the multi-product ad pages in comic books of the day. In a very small ad for rubber face masks, a tiny Alfred face appears among faces of Hitler, Stalin, Marilyn Monroe, and Jerry Lewis. I think this may have been Alfred's first appearance.
-- A. Joseph Ross, [removed] [removed] 15 Court Square, Suite 210 lawyer@[removed] Boston, MA 02108-2503 [removed] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 09:55:05 +0000 From: "Philip Railsback" <philiprailsback@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Bob Dylan > I saw the unknown Bob Dylan at Hootenanny night at Gerde's Folk City in Greenwich Village > and a few weeks later when he had his first gig there, at the very beginning, in February > of 1961. Boy do I feel old. Wow, that's impressive. Did he make an impression? I used to have a friend that saw him at one of the folk clubs very early on. She thought he was dirty and couldn't sing. From my impresions of the era, a lot of people thought that about him. But the professionals, his fellow folk singers, knew he was something special right from the begininng. > I was sorry to miss his show in Berkeley last week. The show I saw was a day or two after his Berkely show. He plays very loud rock these days (and has for years) and his voice is ragged to say the least. If they'd been offering door prizes for anyone who could understand what he was singing, I would have gone home empty handed. But he still packs 'em in at colleges. Can't think of too many from 1961 that do that, though I guess there are few -- Stones, Ex-Beatles, etc. Just to bring this around to OTR, if possible, you are quite right that Dylan was a fan of Ozzie and Harriet's youngest. In recent years he has often included a Ricky Nelson song in his show. - Philip ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 09:55:12 +0000 From: "david rogers" <david_rogers@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: "Renfrew of the Mounted" > The radio series "Renfrew of the Mounted" while based upon Erskine's novel > of the RCMP hero, had no scripts or narration by the author. Erskine made a > bundle on not only his books, but the movie and radio rights to Renfrew. I was just looking through last weeks postings and I saw the above message and I thought why does that all look familiar to me? Then I remembered that I had jsut visited this page: [removed];collectionid=renfrew_of_the_royal_mounted I had just downloaded the file and converted it to a VCD. I hope that this is interest to others. Love as always, David Rogers ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 14:46:54 +0000 From: "David Kindred" <david@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Re: Are We Certain They Were Black? Thought I would add here that I just purchased a few Jack Benny TV episodes and watched them with my sons (they loved them--especially Rochester). But, here's the funny thing, we radio show listeners all knew that Rochester was black, based upon story elements, and some dialog, but my nine-year-old son was absolutely _dumbfounded_ to discover that Rochester wasn't a white guy. His surprise was delightful to experience. --David Kindred ("Tooth [removed]" to my buddy Hal) ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 14:47:05 +0000 From: Bob Slate <moxnix1961@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: Sky King X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: Alternative section used was text/plain I thought I would add a correction to one of Mr. Mackey's favorite radio shows, "Sky King", which happens to be one of my favorites,too, on his radio shows debut [removed] of all, the first actor to play Sky King in 1946 was Roy Engle, not Jack Lester. Jack Lester replaced Roy Engle, then Earl Nightingale replaced Jack Lester, and I also read, for a short time until it went off the air in the early 1950's, by John Reed [removed] was at least two actors who played Clipper. The first was Johnny Coons,who later in the late 1950's, had a kids show on television, Saturday mornings, emanating from [removed] left in the mid-1940's, along with Roy Engel and the actress who first played Penny ,who at this moment I can't [removed] Bivens played Clipper most of the rest of the [removed] show was sponsored in our area by Peter Pan Peanut Butter, not Mars candy [removed] "60 Minutes" Mike "Myron" Wallace announcing the show and doing the Peter Pan Peanut Butter commercials?Read Jim Harmon's books like "The Great Radio Heroes, "and John Dunnings 2 books on the [removed]'m just trying to help refresh everybody's minds on the subject, not to be a [removed] I have been of some help. Bob Slate *** This message was altered by the server, and may not appear *** *** as the sender intended. *** ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2004 15:08:16 +0000 From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; To: <[removed]@[removed]; Subject: 10-26 births/deaths October 26th births 10-26-1876 - [removed] Warner - London, England - d. 12-21-1958 actor: "Hollywood Hotel"; "Lux Radio Theatre" 10-26-1911 - Mahalia Jackson - New Orleans, LA - d. 1-27-1972 gospel singer: (The Angel of Peace) "Mahalia Jackson Show" 10-26-1913 - Charlie Barnet - NYC - d. 9-4-1991 jazz saxophonist: "Nothing Serious"; "Kate Smith Hour"; "Jubilee" 10-26-1914 - Jackie Coogan - Los Angeles, CA - d. 3-1-1984 actor: Ernest Botch "Forever Ernest" October 26th deaths 02-23-1909 - Anthony Ross - NYC - d. 10-26-1955 actor: Danny Clover "Broadway Is My Beat"; Broadway Columnist "Mr. Broadway" 03-08-1902 - Louise Beavers - Cincinnati, OH - d. 10-26-1962 actress: Beulah "Beulah"; "Screen Guild Theatre" 04-24-1910 - Albert Zugsmith - Atlantic City, NJ - d. 10-26-1993 film producer/director: "Bud's Bandwagon" 06-10-1895 - Hattie McDaniel - Wichita, KS - d. 10-26-1952 actress: Beulah "Beulah"; Mammy "Maxwell House Showboat"
-- Ron Sayles Milwaukee, Wisconsin [removed] -------------------------------- End of [removed] Digest V2004 Issue #344 ********************************************* Copyright [removed] Communications, York, PA; All Rights Reserved, including republication in any form. If you enjoy this list, please consider financially supporting it: [removed] For Help: [removed]@[removed] To Unsubscribe: [removed]@[removed] To Subscribe: [removed]@[removed] or see [removed] For Help with the Archive Server, send the command ARCHIVE HELP in the SUBJECT of a message to [removed]@[removed] To contact the listmaster, mail to listmaster@[removed] To Send Mail to the list, simply send to [removed]@[removed]