------------------------------
The Old-Time Radio Digest!
Volume 2009 : Issue 28
A Part of the [removed]!
[removed]
ISSN: 1533-9289
Today's Topics:
Meet Corliss Archer [ "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@hotm ]
Quiet Please Missing Episodes [ Neal Ellis <bstenor@[removed]; ]
seeking Whistler info [ Ben Ohmart <benohmart@[removed]; ]
Corliss and Ma [ "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed] ]
CHANDU Questions! [ Ljk2476@[removed] ]
2-5 births/deaths [ Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed]; ]
Fw: Quiet Please [ "AVPRO" <avprotr@[removed]; ]
Quiet Please - Camera Obscura [ "jazmaan@[removed]" <dmf273@yahoo ]
Meet Corliss Archer [ Frank McGurn <[removed]@sbcglobal. ]
Roosevelt Fireside Chats [ <georgewagner@[removed]; ]
RE: Fireside Chats, 20th amendment [ "Belpedio, Dr. James" <[removed] ]
Meet Corlis Archer [ Radioclass <radioclass@[removed] ]
Gunsmoke [ "joe@[removed]" <jsalerno@earthli ]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:55:49 -0500
From: "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Meet Corliss Archer
Kenneth Clarke asked about MEET CORLISS ARCHER. It was a situation comedy
about a teenager named Corliss, who had a boyfriend named Dexter. It's the
radio show that made Janet Waldo famous among old-time radio fans (her voice
as Judy Jetson makes her famous for TV fans). Shirley Temple played the role
in two major movies (of which I found, like the radio show, an average
situation comedy).
Yes, Ma Perkins is a soap opera in serial form.
Ken,
I don't mean to sound sarcastic, but it doesn't sound like you have John
Dunning's ON THE AIR. If I may be candid, I don't know of anyone who is a
true fan of old-time radio who doesn't have that book. It would have answered
the questions you asked. When the book was first made available at FOTR at
the 1998 or 1999 Friends of Old-Time Radio Convention, they sold out almost
as fast as they were put on the table. While it is agreed upon by many OTR
fans and researchers that it's not perfect, it is perhaps the VERY first book
everyone turns to when they have a question about a radio show. First
retailed between $40 and $55 years ago, I bought my copy for $30 many years
ago and as a number of postings in recent issues of the Digest suggest, you
can get a copy for as low as $15. The book is a 820 page hardcover book that
features every major (and minor) radio program that we all frequently listen
to, offering cast, directors, writers, dates the show was broadcast, and
background material that makes pleasant reading if you want a brief
background on the program before listening to the episodes, or while
listening to them. Considering I spent $95 last month for a McFarland book
that was 256 pages thick, fifteen dollars is a bargain.
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:56:41 -0500
From: Neal Ellis <bstenor@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Quiet Please Missing Episodes
The following episodes of Quiet Please are not in circulation.
#09 08/17/47 A Mile High and a Mile Deep
#10 08/24/47 Mirror, Mirrow on the Wall
#11 08/31/47 A Ribbon of Lincoln Green
#12 09/03/47
#13 09/10/47 Three Sides to a Story
#15 09/15/47 The Big Box
#16 09/22/47 (Only Pt. 1 of this show exists)
#17 09/29/47 The Low Road
#20 10/20/47 The Girl with the Flaxen Hair
#29 12/22/47 Berlin 1945 (although the repeat of this show does exist)
#41 03/15/48 Meeting at Ticcndaroga
#43 03/29/48 Quiet Please (although the repeat of this show does exist)
#52 05/31/48 Below 5th Ave.
#53 06/07/48 100,000 Diameters
#63 08/30/48 Motive
#78 12/12/48 Read Me This Riddle
#79 12/19/48 The Gothic Tale
#95 04/03/49 The Venetian Blind Man
This is a total of 18 shows. The figure given of 15 is actually correct.
They are counting the 1/2 show and the two repeats mention above.
Neal Ellis
Old Time Radio On MP3
[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:56:48 -0500
From: Ben Ohmart <benohmart@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: seeking Whistler info
My friend and fellow author Dan Van Neste is working on a book about The
Whistler films, but he's falling down in the J. Donald Wilson department.
If you have any significant information for him on the Whistler's creator,
please email him directly at DVann2800@[removed]. Thanks much.
Ben Ohmart
Old radio. Old movies. New books.
[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:57:18 -0500
From: "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Corliss and Ma
Ken asked about "Meet Corliss Archer." This was a teenage comedy, something
like The Aldrich Family and Archie Andrews, but from a girl's viewpoint.
Another girl's show was "A date with Judy."
I have some of both these shows. Here is what Hickerson says about [removed]
"Meet Corliss Archer", 1943-56, CBS, ABC, NBC. 7 episodes available.
"A date with Judy", 1941-50, NBC & ABC. 39 episodes available.
As a kid, I listened to both of these, as well as the boy's counterpart
shows.
"Ma Perkins" was a soap opera that lasted from 1933 to 1960. NBC & CBS.
Virginia Payne starred as Ma for the entire run of the program. 280+, 17
shows available.
Ted Kneebone. 1528 S. Grant St., Aberdeen, SD 57401. Phone: 605-226-3344.
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:57:45 -0500
From: Ljk2476@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: CHANDU Questions!
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Hello, everybody! Long time, no see!
Outside of the fact that I'm going to be a "daddy" - hopefully - at the end
of April of this year, I've been pretty darn busy! My co-author Kristin Dewey
and I were hoping to have our CHANDU THE MAGICIAN book finished by the tail
end of last year. It didn't happen, but we're hoping that all will go well
that it will be finished by the spring, and ready to send to Ben Ohmart and
BearManor Books!
Our biggest setback has been the fact that a gentleman by the name of
George Vander has seemed to vanish from the face of the earth. George - we
learned - was an old-time radio collector, and a very good friend of Martin
Grams, Jr. Through Martin's help, George contacted us - after several months
of
waiting (he was working on a project overseas, apparently) - and stated that
he
had over a thousand CHANDU radio scripts, memos, etc. Well, this was PERFECT
for our project, as nobody seemed to have a complete log of the 1930s CHANDU
syndicated broadcasts anywhere. After a few e-mails to try to set up a
meeting, we never heard from George Vander again. The last time I contacted
Martin
Grams, even he hadn't heard from his friend, George. If anybody here knows
anything about the health of Mr. Vander, or how we could contact him, PLEASE
let me know!
Regarding all of that, we've gone about as far as we can tracing the
correct dates for all the CHANDU shows known to exist, as well as the
short-lived Chicago series in 1935. What we haven't found is anything close
to a final
date for the last 1930s broadcast of CHANDU. When I was a youngster - and I'm
sure this goes for just about all of you here - the TV season ended for the
summer, and then started again around Labor Day in September. the following
year. I am assuming that this was generally true "back in the day" for radio
programming as well. I've scanned just about every page - on microfilm - of
BROADCASTING magazine from 1934 until my eyeballs have yet to recover from
the
strain. Nothing whatsoever could I find!
Would a fan magazine like RADIO MIRROR or RADIO DIGEST generally have an
article or snippet about the last broadcast of such a popular show? As
CHANDU was syndicated, I've been told that newspapers really are not to be
trusted
re: listings of programs. We've gotten plenty of other info. on CHANDU, it
would be a "crying shame" not to pinpoint the last syndicated broadcast by
date, for sometime - we think - in the Summer of 1934. We've found that a
lot of
available broadcasts with 1935 dates appear to be later transcription dates
for syndication, but that the actual recording dates or first broadcast dates
were later in 1933, or very early in 1934. These so-called 1935 shows
feature Chandu and Co. in the lost island of Lemuria, and we know that these
adventures took place later in 1933 and may have continued into 1934, but
certainly
before production began on the 1934 movie serial version starring Bela
Lugosi. If anybody can help us here, please let me know as soon as possible!
Also, try as we might, we haven't been able to contact any relatives of
the CHANDU copyright owner, Harry A. Earnshaw. We know that his son, Harry
Lewis Earnshaw, had the copyright transferred to him around 1948, and that he
passed away in Hawaii some years ago. Another son - and I don't have the name
handy right now - was a writer and - I believe - a producer - in TV during
the late '50s and early '60s. But we've found no relatives yet. Anybody here
have a clue to how we might go about this? We've located CHANDU writer Vera
Oldham's grandchildren. We've located CHANDU director Cyril Armbrister's son.
We've talked to CHANDU producer Raymond Morgan's son, and other people
connected with the show, but an Earnshaw relative would be key to wrapping
everything
up together. Any leads, again, please let me know! In the words of Charlie
Chan: "Thank you, so much!" - Leonard Kohl
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:59:05 -0500
From: Ron Sayles <bogusotr@[removed];
To: Olde Tyme Radio Digest Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: 2-5 births/deaths
February 5th births
02-05-1884 - Joan Harvey - Bangalore, India - d. 11-5-1965
writer: "The Hidden Valley"
02-05-1893 - Carlton Coon - Rochester, MN - d. 5-4-1932
bandleader: (Coon-Sanders Nighthawks) "Florsheim Frolic"
02-05-1898 - Sidney Fields - d. 9-28-1975
comic, comedy writer: "Abbott and Costello Show"; "It's Time to Smile"
02-05-1901 - Arthur Sheekman - Chicago, IL - d. 1-12-1978
writer: "The Marx Brothers"
02-05-1906 - John Carradine - NYC - d. 11-27-1988
actor: "Lux Radio Theatre"
02-05-1908 - Bob Dunn - Fort Gibson, OK - d. 5-27-1971
steel guitar: "The Musical Brownies"
02-05-1911 - Bert Wilson - d. 11-5-1955
chicago cubs play-by-play announcer 1944-1955
02-05-1912 - Tex Atchison - Rosine, KY - d. 8-4-1982
singer: (Prairie Ramblers) "Smile-a-While"
02-05-1918 - Tim Holt - Beverly Hills, CA - d. 2-15-1973
actor: "Lux Radio Theatre"
02-05-1919 - Red Buttons - NYC - d. 7-13-2006
actor: "Guest Star"; "Friar's Club Roast"
02-05-1934 - Hank Aaron - Mobile, AL
baseball legend: "Baseball: An Action History"; "Tops In Sports"
02-05-1941 - David Selby - Morgantown, WV
actor: "Empire of the Air"
02-05-1942 - Susan Hill - Scarborough, England
writer: "Miss Lavender Is Dead"
February 5th deaths
01-16-1907 - John Hiestand - Madison, WI - d. 2-5-1987
announcer: "Amos 'n' Andy"; "Cinnamon Bear"; "Feg Murray Show"
02-11-1909 - Joseph L. Mankiewicz - Wilkes-Barre, PA - d. 2-5-1993
screenwriter, film director: "Theatre Guild On the Air"; "Lux Radio
Theatre"
02-14-1905 - Thelma Ritter - Brooklyn, NY - d. 2-5-1969
actor: "Aldrich Family"; "Big Town "; "McGarry and His Mouse"
02-17-1905 - Kuda Bux - Kashmir, India - d. 2-5-1981
magician: "Believe It or Not"
02-18-1907 - Griffing Bancroft - d. 2-5-1999
newscaster: "The Big News of 1957"
03-13-1909 - Herbert Kline - Davenport, IA - d. 2-5-1999
worked for a loyalist radio station in Madrid during the Spanish
revolution
04-10-1868 - George Arliss - London, England - d. 2-5-1946
actor: "Lux Radio Theatre"
04-11-1902 - Carroll Carroll - NYC - d. 2-5-1991
writer: "Over Here"; "Guest Star"
05-04-1913 - Carroll Moore, Jr. - Somerville, MA - d. 2-5-1977
writer: "The Henry Morgan Show"
05-09-1912 - Rupert Pray - d. 2-5-1973
writer: "Forever Ernest"
05-27-1916 - Analee Whitmore - Price, UT - d. 2-5-2002
panelist: (Wife of Clifton Fadiman) "Information Please"
06-10-1909 - Larry LeSueur - NYC - d. 2-5-2003
CBS news correspondent: "This Week in Europe"; "The World Today"
06-29-1908 - John Hench - Cedar Rapids, IA - d. 2-5-2004
actor: Stanley Gilman "Those Happy Gilmans"
07-06-1905 - Pauline Drake - Denver, CO - d. 2-5-1981
actor: Bessie "Great Gildersleeve"; "Miss Duffy "Duffy's Tavern"
07-22-1912 - Orren Allen - d. 2-5-1993
sportscaster: WKAN Kankakee, Illinois
11-04-1914 - Court Benson - Vancouver, Canada - d. 2-5-1995
announcer, narrator: "Tennessee Jed"; "Backstage Wife"
11-07-1903 - Dean Jagger - Lima, OH - d. 2-5-1991
actor: "Crisis in War Town"; "Columbia Workshop"; "Cavalcade of America"
12-01-1896 - Ethel Shutta - NYC - d. 2-5-1976
singer-comedienne: "Jack Benny Program"
12-08-1910 - Ruth Matteson - San Jose, CA - d. 2-5-1975
actor: Nicole Scott "Against the Storm"
12-10-1893 - Lew Brown - Odessa, Russia - d. 2-5-1958
producer: "Music for Millions"
12-13-1914 - Tiger Haynes - Fredriksted, St. Croix - d. 2-5-1994
guitarist: (The Three Flames) "Scout About Town"; "Peter Donald Show"
Ron
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:59:25 -0500
From: "AVPRO" <avprotr@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Fw: Quiet Please
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Ted,
Randy Eidemiller is no longer able to be an active part in Old Time Radio. He
no longer lives at the Lampson Avenue address, but is in a limited facilty
home. He has been there for a few [removed] did not know this when you
published his address in Radio Digest.
Randy's Collection is in storage and is being looked after by his daughter and
his colleagues in the West Coast Syndicate. There are 6 of us still around.
Who are we? We formed in 1972 and were instrumental in putting much of the
OTR available today into circulation.
I found the Quiet Please episodes at the University of Florida. A work Study
student dubbed the discs. The University would not allow any outside people
to touch them. The Work Study Student did not clean or even bother to wipe
off the discs,. He just put them on a turntable and dropped the needle. That
is the reason so much noise is on many of the early surving episodes.
Mrs. Chappell was going to let us, Randy and Me, copy the discs, but
negotiations dragged on and on. Then the discs would up in the OTR Museum in
New York City. They do not cooperate with anyone as far as I know.
If you wish a copy of Chris Lambesis's and Randy's Log, I'll speak to Chris
and I am sure he would get more printed. He does not E-Mail.
Ron Barnett does not have all the epsiodes. There are 17, as far as I know,
that have not been located and one 1/2 show. It is #15 09-11-47 "Be a Good
Dog Darling."
Don Aston
avprotr@[removed]
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:59:31 -0500
From: "jazmaan@[removed]" <dmf273@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Quiet Please - Camera Obscura
One of my favorite Quiet Please episodes is "Camera Obscura" - maybe because
I live and work for the City of Santa Monica where the original "Camera
Obscura" which inspired the episode still exists and is open to the public.
In fact, the Camera Obscura is now a Senior Citizen's center. On more than
one occasion I've stopped in there to chat with the old-timers, asked if
anyone remembers "Quiet Please" and offered to do a Halloween event where I
would play the episode for the seniors there. But so far all I've gotten
are puzzled looks.
As I said, I happen to work for the City of Santa Monica. I wonder if
there's any local OTR club that might be interested in doing a LIVE
recreation of the "Camera Obscura" episode AT the Camera Obscura next
Halloween? The script for "Camera Obscura" is readily available online.
If I can get some interest here, I do will contact the person who runs Santa
Monica's theater arts program and I won't take "no" for an answer!
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:59:42 -0500
From: Frank McGurn <[removed]@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Meet Corliss Archer
Kenneth Clarke asked about Corliss [removed]
"Meet Corliss Archer" "America's teenage Sweetheart" was was a teenage
sitcom that was written for teens, in my opinion. It started in
January of 1943 and ran of and on until 1956, and was the basis of a
TV series. The radio program was sponsored by Anchor -Hocking Glass and
Campbell's Soups.
Priscella Lyon and Janet Waldo both were [removed] The program started
on CBS in 1943, ABC in 1950, & CBS in 1954.
Yes, there are episodes available, I have seem them listed on some OTR
web sites.
Frank McGurn
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 16:59:53 -0500
From: <georgewagner@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Roosevelt Fireside Chats
Please be aware that the [removed] Fireside Chats are VERY
abbreviated, many or even most of them running only two to four minutes.
Sincerely,
George Wagner
georgewagner@[removed]
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 17:00:00 -0500
From: "Belpedio, Dr. James" <[removed]@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: RE: Fireside Chats, 20th amendment
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FDR gave a total of 30 fireside chats between 1933 and 1944. The first, on
March 12, 1933, dealt with the bank crisis and was effective in stemming the
runs on banks. FDR actually presented similar "chats" on radio as Governor of
New York beginning in in 1929 as a means of talking directly to the people to
counteract the hostility of the Republican dominated New York legislature.
After he became president, the nationally broadcast fireside chats were
extremely popular and probably did more to publicize FDR's New Deal policies
than any other medium. Recordings of the "chats" and their scripts are
available on the Web.
The writer is incorrect when he states that FDR prompted Congress to change
the date of the presidential inauguration. The 20th amendment to the
Constitution was proposed by Congress on March 2, 1932, when FDR was Governor
of New York and, although he was considered to be the front runner in the race
for the Democratic nomination for President, he would have had no influence on
Congress at this time. The amendment was ratified by the requisite number of
state legislatures on January 23, 1933 and the provision changing the
inauguration date (Section 1) did not become effective until after the 1936
election, on January 20, 1937.
James R. Belpedio
Becker College
Worcester, MA
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[removed]]
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------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 17:00:07 -0500
From: Radioclass <radioclass@[removed];
To: Old Time Radio Digest <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Meet Corlis Archer
Hi
In digest #27, Kenneth Clarke asked about Corlis Archer. The title of the
program was Meet Corlis Archer and it was a teenage sitcom.
Per John Dunning's Encylclopedia of Old-Time Radio:c Broadcast history is
Jan 7, 1943 - Sept 30, 1956. Also, per Dunning,there were several sponsors,
Campbell Soup, Anchor Hocking, Toni.
There are very few in circulation. You can listen to some shows at the
internet archive. [removed]
Anne
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2009 18:28:53 -0500
From: "joe@[removed]" <jsalerno@[removed];
To: OTR List <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Gunsmoke
Exactly how many rehearsals of Gunsmoke are in circulation? Are there
others that survive that are not in circulation?
joe salerno
--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2009 Issue #28
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