------------------------------
The Old-Time Radio Digest!
Volume 2002 : Issue 479
A Part of the [removed]!
ISSN: 1533-9289
Today's Topics:
Blacklisting [ Kenneth Clarke <kclarke5@[removed]; ]
Empire of the air [ "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed] ]
More blacklist debate [ "J. Pope" <jpope101@[removed] ]
NBC chimes [ "john abizaid" <JAbizaid@[removed]; ]
Blacklists [ Alan Chapman <[removed]@verizon. ]
Re: Elsa Maxwell [ Mark J Cuccia <mcuccia@[removed]; ]
Re: Listings in Red Channels [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
Secret Agent premiums [ "Candy Jens" <candyj@[removed]; ]
Re: Pearl Harbor Interruptsions [ Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed] ]
McCarthyism: Reuben Ship's "The Inve [ Joyce Brabner <jbrabner@[removed]; ]
Various oddities & questions [ "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@hotm ]
the blacklist and McCarthyism [ "Mark Kinsler" <kinsler33@[removed] ]
Today in radio history [ Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed] ]
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 13:13:01 -0500
From: Kenneth Clarke <kclarke5@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Blacklisting
I wasn't even BORN yet when all of the blacklisting
was happening. I have, however, heard several reports
of various actors and actresses whose names were
placed on it. Senator Joseph McCarthy really thought he
was right by backing this blacklist--but thinking you're
right and actuaally being right (especially in this case)
were two different things!
I found it interesting that most of the people being
placed on this blacklist were in the entertainment industry.
Some of the ones who stood up against it, I'm told, were
June Havoc (Gypsy Rose Lee's daughter), Humphrey
Bogart and Lauren Bacall, Danny Kaye, Edward G.
Robinson and Jackson Beck among many others. I was told
they went to Washington, [removed] to stand up for the 1st
Amendment. Some of them actually appeared before the
House Un-American Activities Committee, I'm told.
Why was it that the entertainment industry was so
summarily targeted? Why didn't McCarthy research his allegations
against these people more thoroughly before publicly placing
their names on a list which damaged many of their careers?
During a time when we were already having to fight enemies
outside of our country, why did McCarthy feel it was necessary to
start an entirely new war within it?
I heard two quotes which seem to fit the bill adequately:
'Politics is onely job where a man can sit all day, lie like a snake,
and get paid for it' and one from Will Rogers: 'We have the best
politicians money can buy!'
Kenneth Clarke
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 13:13:29 -0500
From: "Ted Kneebone" <tkneebone1@[removed];
To: "Old Time Radio Digest" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Empire of the air
Thanks to Mark Lambert for alerting us to the re-run of Ken Burns' special
about radio, "Empire of the air." I checked our South Dakota schedule and
it isn't there, at least not in December. Guess I'll call the network
headquarters and find out when we get the show. I think I saw the program
when it was new in 1992 and taped the audio. Someone here also mentioned
that that program was also carried on public radio.
Ted Kneebone/1528 S. Grant [removed], SD 57401/605-226-3344
OTR: [removed]
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 13:38:59 -0500
From: "J. Pope" <jpope101@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: More blacklist debate
Anthony Tollin:
The Bill of Rights applies only to government, and so is not relevant
when discussing the blacklist. As for "an effectively two-party system
gives you only one more choice than the Russians had under Communism" -
that's a nice, witty soundbite, but like most such things, it's a gross
oversimplification to the point of being silly.
Irene:
Your nice friends who believed that alleged Communists didn't deserve to
work have something to answer to IMHO. How democratic is that?
It's perfectly democratic, actually, if those "nice friends" were a
majority at the time. And it didn't matter whether belonging to the
Communist Party was illegal or not; private organizations have the right
to decide for themselves who to include among their ranks, based on their
own criteria.
Even if their political views were wrong surely you're not suggesting
that they were an actual threat to anything.
They were when they tried to use Hollywood as a political platform.
Americans in general may be able to think for themselves, but most of
their facts come from television and radio programs. Control the media
and you control minds - something of which communists, and totalitarians
in general, are very much aware.
I can not admire them personally when their actions, not their beliefs,
are harmful and reckless.
If one's beliefs are harmful and reckless, do you really think that
one's actions will not be?
don't trivialize the reality of the real harm suffered by people, and
don't dismiss the need for some accountability.
Don't trivialize the threat which communism was, and don't dismiss
the power it had. There's a general notion that communists were simply
out for racial equality, women's rights, the elimination of poverty, etc.
But there is a much, much darker side to the ideology - Marx also called
for the violent overthrow of governments and destruction of the
"bourgeoisie." Russia, China, North Korea, Cambodia, etc., all discovered
the hard way which side of communism truly predominates.
Was the world made safer because of the blacklist? So far no one has
written a book which makes that argument.
You need to do a little more research. I'd recommend "The Red
Decade: The Classic Work on Communism in America During the Thirties," by
Eugene Lyons; "Hollywood Party: How Communism Seduced the American Film
Industry in the 1930s and 1940s," by Kenneth Lloyd Billingsley; and
perhaps "Joseph McCarthy: Reexamining the Life and Legacy of America's
Most Hated Senator," by Arthur Herman.
I ask how they would have felt if their livelihood was taken away from
them for not doing anything wrong
If whatever grad school I attend decides to unionize, I may be placed
in exactly that situation. I'll simply find somewhere else to make my
living. Some may argue for a "right to work," but there is no right to
work at the job or location of your choice.
I am very surprised to find open supporters of the blacklist.
You haven't found any. We're not defending the blacklist. We're
making the point that many behind it were working with legitimate motives
against a legitimate threat, sometimes with legitimate methods.
Jennifer
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 14:46:40 -0500
From: "john abizaid" <JAbizaid@[removed];
To: "lcbb" <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: NBC chimes
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: Alternative section used was text/plain
After reading the interesting discussion about the NBC chimes ,I decided it
would be nice to have my door chimes play the wonderfully nostalgic notes-G-E
& C. I found a place to buy what they call "Record-A-Chime" . Its wireless and
your able to record up to 32 separate 10 second segments for playback. Now
when someone rings my bell they hear Ken Carpenter(I think) intone the words,
"This is NBC" followed by the chimes. I also put the Lone Ranger theme and a
few others on the tape. You all probably know of this product, but for those
who don't, and want the e-mail address, contact me at jabizaid@[removed].
Jack
*** This message was altered by the server, and may not appear ***
*** as the sender intended. ***
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 14:47:07 -0500
From: Alan Chapman <[removed]@[removed];
To: OldRadio Mailing Lists <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Blacklists
Irene Heinstein wrote:
...I really don't know why being a "nice" or "pretty" person is
relevant to you in what seems to be your approval of the actions of
self-appointed "patriots"...etc.
I concur entirely with Irene ... Thank you for an intelligent and
forthright response.
I would like to point that effects of the HUAC and McCarthy hearings
were felt -- with far less fanfare -- across many sectors of our
society. The highly publicized hearings embolded people in many
industries and communities to use "red scare" tactics to oppose anyone
they either didn't agree with or in some way threatened their business
or social institution.
For example, "Blacklisting" of sorts occurred in many business sectors.
Sometimes, it was driven by patiotic zeal, but it was also driven by
personal or competitive jealousies, greed, and, in some cases, outright
bigotry masquerading as patriotism.
Both my father and uncle were "blacklisted" in their respective
industries -- my uncle for supporting the unionization of newspaper
truck drivers; my father for OPPOSING unionization in the retail trade.
(Go figure, two opposite positions -- but than my father and uncle never
did agree on much. However, there was one common factor in their
blacklisting -- they were Jewish.) They were both labeled "communist"
and "subversive" (those were the nicer epithets thrown at them)
eventhough neither was a member of or supported the then legal Communist
Party.
The discussion that has been occurring here on this forum on the subject
of the blacklist is an excellent example of the kind of free exchange of
ideas that our Constitution guarantees. Had the internet existed in
1950, do you suppose we could have carried on this discussion without
getting on one hate list or another? I don't.
BTW, I am reading Howard Blue's book "Words at War." Whatever your
position on the blacklist, this is book worth reading -- it is
exceptionally well written, and it is an excellent snapshot of the time.
This is NOT a book about blacklisting -- that is actually a
comparatively small part of book -- this is book about RADIO (you know,
that subject we used to talk about on this digest) and its role in history.
Alan Chapman
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 15:21:42 -0500
From: Mark J Cuccia <mcuccia@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Re: Elsa Maxwell
Chris Holm wrote:
I've been listening to shows and during the commercial the announcer
uses the phrase: "famous entertainer Elsa [removed]" Who was Elsa
Maxwell, and how does one become famous for entertaining.
I know that in the early years of Suspense, when sponsored by Roma Wines,
the announcer does refer to Elsa Maxwell, and I think that there might
even be some words from her on serving Roma Wines at dinners and parties.
I never really thought about it -- I'd never really heard of her in
anything else (neither movies nor as a voice part in radio), but I always
assumed that she was some kind of "high society" hostess, or maybe some
"guru" on gracious living, good manners, etc. Sort of like a cross between
Emily Post or "Hints from Heloise" or "Miss Manners", and maybe today's
Martha Stewart. By "entertainer", it wasn't necessarily that she was a
performer on stage, screen or radio, but she "entertained" invited guests
at dinner parties that she "hosted".
I did a "google" search on Elsa Maxwell, and came across the following
page (among others): [removed]
She lived for some eighty years, born in 1883 in Keokuk Iowa, and died in
1963. She was with a Shakespeare touring company in her early 20s, but it
mentions that in 1919 she found her "true calling", hosting a lavish
dinner at the Ritz Hotel in Paris for England's Secretary of Foreign
Affairs. She also appeared in movies, and she had her own radio program
but the webpage bio doesn't seem to indicate what the program was about
(was it "tips for hosting dinner parties" or was it some kind of stories
about her life adventures?), but her primary "claim to fame" was as a
hostess of "High Society" events. The webpage bio does mention that she
was a frequent guest on Jack Paar's TONITE show (NBC-TV) in the early
1960's. She also authored four books. Apparantly, she was NOT "born" into
money, background or family, but became accepted into that "high society"
as a hostess of such Society dinner parties and affairs.
Mark J. Cuccia
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 15:22:57 -0500
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re: Listings in Red Channels
On 12/9/02 1:38 PM OldRadio Mailing Lists wrote:
How many people were listed in "Red Channels"?
Exactly 151 names were listed: actors, writers, directors, producers,
singers, dancers, folkorists, poets, and a harmonica player. Copies of
the book were sent to every network office, advertising agency, and
broadcasting station in the country in June 1950, and additional copies
were available by sending a dollar to "Counterattack." Interestingly, the
copies actually issued to industry insiders were serially numbered, as if
they were a Confidential Official Document, while those available to the
general public replaced the serial number with a lurid picture of a red
hand clutching a microphone.
Subsequent issues of the "CounterAttack" newsletter and the publications
of Aware Inc. added significantly to the blacklist -- but these 151
performers were the first to be denounced.
Copies of Red Channels are hard to find today -- I picked mine up several
years ago from a second-hand book dealer, and I think I paid $50 or so
for it. For those interested in a closer look, excerpts from the book are
available on line at
[removed] This site
includes actual page scans of several prominent performers' listings --
including the nearly two full pages devoted to that noted enemy of the
state, Orson Welles.
As a final thought on this subject, I might point out that an interesting
bit of insight into the philosophy behind this volume can be found in a
short note just before the listings begin. I quote verbatim:
"The purpose of this compilation is threefold. One, to show how the
Communists have been able to carry out their plan of infiltration of the
radio and television industry. Two, to indicate the extent to which many
prominent actors and artists have been inveigled to lend their names to
these public records, to organizations espousing Communist causes. THIS
REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THEY ACTUALLY BELIEVE IN, SYMPATHIZE WITH, OR EVEN
RECOGNIZE THE CAUSE ADVANCED. Three, to discourage actors and artists
from naively lending their names to Communists organizations or causes in
the future."
The emphasis in that paragraph is mine -- and I find it chilling to read.
"Red Channels" wasn't about uncovering spies or saboteurs or hardcore
Communists. It was about intimidation, plain and simple -- it was about a
small, self-appointed body of inquisitors passing judgement on what would
or would not be considered acceptable thought for those working in
network broadcasting.
That's about as Stalinist as you can get -- and such an attitude is
repellent no matter which side of the political spectrum it's coming
from. One does not conquer an evil by adopting its methods.
Elizabeth
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 16:03:34 -0500
From: "Candy Jens" <candyj@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Secret Agent premiums
From: "Stephen A Kallis, Jr." <skallisjr@[removed];
Subject: Secret Agent, Men -- And Women
Another premium for budding spies was the hollow silver bullet offered on
the Lone Ranger show.
Our parents bought a lot of cereal and Ovaltine to get us the goodies - but,
in my case at least, made sure the product was consumed!
Candy Jens
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 16:17:54 -0500
From: Elizabeth McLeod <lizmcl@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Re: Pearl Harbor Interruptsions
On 12/9/02 9:42 AM OldRadio Mailing Lists wrote:
(Does anyone have the details on what NBC Red,
NBC Blue and the Columbia Network were carrying at the time they broke in
with the news?)
The break on NBC was fed simultaneously over Red and Blue, with the
insert coming on the Red Network just at the conclusion of the Sammy Kaye
Serenade program. On the Blue, the break came just about halfway thru a
"Great Plays" production of "The Inspector General."
CBS did not interrupt regular programming at all to broadcast the first
flash, faked recordings to the contrary (and this may be why Murrow and
Friendly found it necessary to fake a recording in the first place: in
retrospect, they might have thought it made CBS look bad that they were
the last network to air the news of the attack.) The first CBS
announcement of the attack came as the lead item on the
regularly-scheduled 2:30pm news period.
I believe the interrutpion during the Dodgers-Giants football game was
only on WOR, not the full Mutual network -- I've not seen any evidence
that the game was fed to the network or carried anywhere outside of New
York. Other Mutual stations for which I've seen December 7th listings
show only local programming for this time period.
Elizabeth
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 16:18:39 -0500
From: Joyce Brabner <jbrabner@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: McCarthyism: Reuben Ship's "The Investigator"
Canadian radio writer Reuben Ship was living in California when he was
deported from US States. Summoned to appear before the HUAC because of
past membership in the Communist Party, he refused to name names.
He got back by producing the then censored parody of the 1950s McCarthy
Hearings, "The Investigator." A recently deceased "McCarthy" tries to
uncover conspiracies in heaven after a plane crash. It's brilliant
because the actor actually traveled to the hearings and mastered
Tailgunner Joe's voice and nuances perfectly. The story of the CBC
broadcast's suppression and clandestine distribution is pretty amazing.
You'll find it at
[removed]
There's a recent new Canadian recording starring John Drainie, Barry
Morse & James Doohan as an audio book, but why bother?
------------------------------
Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2002 21:37:54 -0500
From: "Martin Grams, Jr." <mmargrajr@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: Various oddities & questions
Various odd questions. Any bright light bulbs know the answers to any of
these? One is of curiousity, the other two are for research.
What the heck is a Capehart? was it a turntable for 78 rpm or LP records in
the forties?
I came across a fan letter mailed to a broadcasting station regarding a
radio mystery, and it was signed Gerry de la Ree. A very knowledgable
authority said they believe he was a well-knonw science-fiction fan or
author of the 1950s. Anyone know who he is? It's be interesting because of
the letter he wrote.
A radio actor once lived in Dougleston, Rhode Island, but after checking a
few maps, can't find such a city. Was there really such a city during the
forties?
I misplaced the e-mail address to Kim Gillespie in California. Kim, can you
drop me a line so I can drop you a line?
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2002 10:57:50 -0500
From: "Mark Kinsler" <kinsler33@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject: the blacklist and McCarthyism
Wow. The senior people on this list lived through some of our most
tumultuous times, and I get to hear them discuss it.
For those of you who are younger (I was born in 1947) let me assure you that
the McCarthy period was scary, even for little kids. We got harangued in
school about the Communist threat--we had to see movies that dramatized the
great struggle, etc. If we hadn't been in the second grade, they probably
would have made us sign loyalty oaths. Our teachers had to, as did both of
my parents at their jobs.
But we're Jewish, and at home my parents would speak in hushed tones about
one or another friend of theirs who was in trouble. Both of my parents went
to the University of Chicago, which was considered a hotbed of Communist
activity by the right wing. Hence, my parents made arrangements for the
care of me and my sister in case they were forced to leave the US suddenly.
It didn't happen, but it was sure something to think about in Cleveland
Heights, Ohio in 1954.
I am grateful to hear the stories and opinions of those who were on both
sides of the conflict. I believe that, for all the suffering that was
involved, it was something that our nation had to endure to ultimately grow
and survive.
Mark Kinsler
512 E Mulberry St. Lancaster, Ohio USA 740 687 6368
[removed]~kinsler
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 10 Dec 2002 11:00:32 -0500
From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];
To: otr-net <[removed]@[removed];
Subject: Today in radio history
>From Those Were The Days --
1927 - Announcer George Hay introduced the WSM Barn Dance as The Grand
Ole Opry. The show's title may have changed but it remained the home of
country music.
Joe
--
Visit my home page:
[removed]~[removed]
--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2002 Issue #479
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