Subject: [removed] Digest V2003 #67
From: "OldRadio Mailing Lists" <[removed]@[removed];
Date: 2/12/2003 10:01 PM
To: <[removed]@[removed];

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


                            The Old-Time Radio Digest!
                              Volume 2003 : Issue 67
                         A Part of the [removed]!
                                 ISSN: 1533-9289


                                 Today's Topics:

  Pilgrimage of Poetry                  [ "Jerry Williams" <mrj@[removed]; ]
  Judy Tyler                            [ "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyro ]
  Jimmy Durante                         [ "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@attorneyro ]
  LR Tonto and Todd                     [ Rob Chatlin <rchatlin@[removed] ]
  The OTR Time Machine                  [ Smzmurphy@[removed] ]
  Shadow Program                        [ "Bob & Lois Reynolds" <boblo1@allte ]
  Today in radio history                [ Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed] ]
  "Don't bring up Lulu!"                [ Derek Tague <derek@[removed]; ]
  Shadow sponsors/Carl Kroenke          [ Rick Keating <pkeating89@[removed]; ]
  Re:Derel's Ad Agency                  [ hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed]; ]
  Who dat again?                        [ John Henley <jhenley@[removed] ]
  Hal Stone and the burlesque           [ "[removed]" <[removed]@[removed] ]
  George & Gracie on DVD                [ "Ivan G. Shreve, Jr." <iscreve@comc ]
  Re: Shadow Episode                    [ Steven Kelez <otrsteve@[removed]; ]

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:18:07 -0500
From: "Jerry Williams" <mrj@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Pilgrimage of Poetry

Greetings all,
In my library there is a book from 1939 called "A Listener's Aid to
Pilgrimage of Poetry"  It is from NBC and has the broadcast dates from Oct.
15, 1939 to May 26, 1940.
Has anyone heard of this program and if there are any shows available. It
was a Sunday afternoon 1:00 to 1:15 EST [removed] has "Ted Malone's
Album of Poetic Shrines" on the front [removed] some great pictures in it
also.
Thanks to you all
Jerry Williams

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:19:02 -0500
From: "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Judy Tyler

Date: Tue, 11 Feb 2003 12:29:17 -0500
From: hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed];

Which brings to mind yet another question--did you know Judy Tyler (in
any sense of the word)?)

[removed] Tsk. Whatever are you implying?  I did know an actress by
the name of Betty Jane Tyler. Does that count? Do you know a Judy Tyler?
Did she say she is going to file a paternity suit. It wasn't me.
 
Judy Tyler, who was a teenager when first hired, played the part of Princess Summerfall 
Winterspring on the Howdy Doody Show.  She later left for Hollywood and starred with Elvis 
Presley in =Jailhouse Rock=.  She was married while out there, and she and her new 
husband drove east in a sportscar.  Somewhere in Wyoming, I think, they were killed in a 
head-on collision.  That was in 1957.  She would probably have been an important actress in 
the 1960s if that hadn't happened.

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:18:44 -0500
From: "A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Jimmy Durante

Date: Mon, 10 Feb 2003 10:15:51 -0500
From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];

1893 - Jimmy (James Francis) Durante actor, comedian: "Good night Mrs.
Calabash, wherever you are."; The Jimmy Durante Show; died Jan 29, 1980

That means that Jimmy Durante was almost exactly one year older than Jack
Benny!

--
A. Joseph Ross, [removed]                           [removed]
 15 Court Square, Suite 210                 lawyer@[removed]
Boston, MA 02108-2503           	         [removed]

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:19:11 -0500
From: Rob Chatlin <rchatlin@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  LR Tonto and Todd

I'm pretty sure I've heard at least one episode
where Brace Beemer played Tonto.
Of course, this was before he assumed the role of the Ranger.

Beemer was doing a good version of Todd's Tonto,
but the voice was still recognizable.

Can anyone confirm this?

rob

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:19:26 -0500
From: Smzmurphy@[removed]
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  The OTR Time Machine
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: from multipart/alternative
X-Converted-To-Plain-Text: Alternative section used was text/plain

Question of the day: You have a time machine that enables you to go back to
the OTR era with a state-of-the-art tape recorder. What "lost" show(s) would
you go back in time to record? (You can return to the present with the
tape(s) when you're done.)

For myself, I'd tape LIGHTS OUT's "Chicken Heart" and the missing episodes of
my favorite I LOVE A MYSTERY, "Temple of the Vampires."

Best to all,

Mike

  *** This message was altered by the server, and may not appear ***
  ***                  as the sender intended.                   ***

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:19:34 -0500
From: "Bob & Lois Reynolds" <boblo1@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Shadow Program

The title of the train program, where a jewel robbery takes place, when the
robbers take over the train is The Giant of Madras.  I may have mispelled
Madras.  I do have the show in my collection.  I wrote this down w/o going
into my files.  Bob Reynolds  boblo1@[removed]

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:19:49 -0500
From: Joe Mackey <joemackey108@[removed];
To: otr-net <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Today in radio history

>From These Were The Days --

2/12

1924 - Calvin Coolidge, known by many as the 'Silent Cal', made the
first presidential political speech on radio. The speech originated from
New York City and was broadcast on five radio stations. Some five
million people tuned in to hear the President speak.

1924 - The Eveready Hour became radio's first sponsored network program.
The National Carbon Company took the honor of being the first sponsor of
a network show.

1940 - Mutual presented the first broadcast of Superman. The identity of
the man from planet Krypton was unknown to listeners for six years. The
secret eventually leaked out that Superman's voice was actually that of
Bud Collyer.

2/13

1939 - Virginia Payne, already popular as the voice of Ma Perkins, took
on a new character in NBC's soap opera, The Carters of Elm Street.
Virginia played the part of Mrs. Carter.

  Joe

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

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:20:36 -0500
From: Derek Tague <derek@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  "Don't bring up Lulu!"

Jell-O Again, Gang!

James Altenburg wrote:

I was wondering if Smilin' Ed McConnell was married to or related to Lulu
McConnell of It Pays to be Ignorant fame.  By the way does anyone know where
I could see a picture of Lulu McConnell, perhaps somewhere on the Internet?
I really enjoy that show It Pays to be Ignorant.

Back in 1997, I entered the Friends of Old-Time Radio script-writing contest
administered by Dave Zwengler. My pitch was a new treatment of "It Pays to Be
Ignorant" in which OTR, in general, was celebrated in the guise of questions
such as "In what train terminal does 'Grand Central Station' take place?" and
"What is the profession of 'Mister District Attorney'?" The script, however,
didn't win in the two years I entered it (1997 & 1998), but was eventually
produced by [removed] (Milwaukee Area Radio Enthusiasts) at a monthly meeting
last March [Thanks Ron Sayles, Michael Leannah, & the rest of the Milwaukee
gang].

While writing this fun-flavoured script, I did a bit of research on "It Pays
to Be Ignorant" and its major players, Here for anybody interested is some
background of the so-called panel of experts.

Host TOM HOWARD was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, on 16th June 1885. When he
was 11  months old,  his parents, Mr. & Mrs. Thomas  Black, relocated the
family to the [removed] In 1905, while working in a Philadelphis grocery store, Tom
Howard adapted the stage name "Tom Howard" -- in order to spare his mother's
feelings -- and embarked on a show-biz career, at first earning $[removed] a day
for a dozen vaudeville "turns" a day.

In 1910, he married the former Miss Harriet Berg.  Over the years, he
performed on the American and Columbia Wheels burlesque circuits; acted on
Broadway in shows such as "Ziegfeld Follies," "Smiles" (a  Ziegfeld production
which also starred Fred  and Adele Astaire, Marilyn Miller, and
Eddie Foy, Jr.), "Keep Moving," "The Gang's All Here" (with future 3 Stooges
front-man Ted Healy), "The Greenwich Village Follies," and "Rain or Shine."

Eventually Howard formed the burlesque comedy team "Howard and Shelton" with
future "ignoramus" George Shelton. This pairing eventually led to them
starring as a team in approximately 55 comedy shorts (mostly for Educational
Pictures). Howard & Shelton also were heard as regulars on "The Rudy
Vallee/Fleischmann Yeast Hour" for 87 weeks in the mid-1930s.

In later years, Tom Howard resided in Red Bank, NJ, eventually moving to the
nearby town of Little Silver. He died of a heart attack at Hazard
Hospital in Long Branch, NJ, at the age of 69 on 27th February 1955.  He was
survived by his wife Harriet; his son, radio writer Tom Howard Jr.; and his
daughter Mrs. Ruth Howell Hoyt, known professionally as Ruth Howell, who wrote
many gags and scripts for "Ignorant."

GEORGE SHELTON was born on New York City's Bowery  on 4th March 1884. He
started his vaudeville career playing tent shows in Iowa, toured
with a repertory company for 5 years ["I used ta woik in dat
town!..."],enlisted in the Army and saw action in World War I, toured post-war
Germany in a show called "The Sporting Duchess," returned to the [removed] for more
vaudeville dates eventually replacing Bobby Clark in an act called "The Merry
Wives of Windsor." Shortly thereafter, he met up with and formed a partnership
with Tom Howard.

Shelton also appeared in the aforementioned Broadway show "Rain or Shine." His
film appearance include "House on 92nd Street" and "Kiss of Death" (which
featured OTR's Richard Widmark).  During the radio and television runs of
"Ignorant, Shelton made his home in Hempstead, Nassau County (Long Island),
NY.

George Shelton died in a freak accident at the age of 87 on 24th April 1971 at
a New York City nursing home where he resided. According to his "Variety"
obituary, "...he was lighting his pipe when a book of matches exploded in his
hand and his bedclothes caught fire. The third-degree burns were fatal."  He
was survived by his wife.

HARRY MacNAUGHTON was born into a British theatrical family which also
included music hall headliners Alice Lloyd and Marie Lloyd. MacNaughton's
father was the manager of London's Adelphi Theatre.

MacNaughton served with the British Rifle Brigade during World War I ["I was
in the last war, you know!..."],  was captured as a POW by the Germans in
1918, and was so severely beaten  that he bore scars on his face from this
experience.  He eventually went into theatre and emigrated
to the [removed] in 1919 as part of the show "The Bitter 'Ole" which starred
Charles Coburn.

In 1929, while making a film in New York at Pathe' Studios, he escaped a fire
by jumping out the window.  In the midst of the ensuing confusion, MacNaughton
 grabbed a chorus girl who later became the star Constance Cummings, in
essence saving her life as the fire produced fatalities. In 1935, he began a
six-year stint playing "Bottle" the butler on radio's "Phil Baker Show."

MacNaughton, like Shelton, made his home in Nassau County, Long Island, first
in Manhasset, and later in Amityville. He and his wife, women's golf champion
Marion Turple, loved cats, having owned 14 felines at one time. Harry died at
the age of 70, on 26th  February 1967.  He was survived by Ms. Turple.

Born in Kansas City, LULU  McCONNELL was a seasoned performer by the time she
was 16. The daughter of a dentist, Lulu began acting in  a [removed] stock company.
This led to vaudeville where she met her future husband, fellow performer
George Simpson, whom she married in 1907. Simpson & McConnell ["Me and my old
[removed]"]  treaded the boards for several years.  In 1910 while playing the
Alhambra Theatre, a temporary case  of stage fright caused her to lose her
voice; this led to her getting through a performance with a series of rasping
sounds, which brought down the house, established her as a polished
comedienne, and gave her  trademark nails-on-chalkboard delivery.

Throughout the  years, Miss McConnell performed in several Broadway shows with
the likes of Nora Bayes, Lew Fields, Clifton Webb, and Willie & Eugene Howard
and on the same vaudeville bills with Eddie Cantor, Lillian Russell, Anna
Held, Eva Tanguay, and George Jessel.  She took particular pride in
"discovering" comedian  Jack Oakie in the chorus of a show called "Peggy Ann,"
in which she co-starred.

Lulu's first radio appearance was with Gertrude Niesen and bandleader Isham
Jones.   Like her fellow panelists MacNaughton and Shelton, she made her home
in Nassau County in the town of Floral Park. While visiting the home of a
former maid in Los Angeles on 9th October 1962,
Lulu McConnell collapsed and died. She was 80. She was pre-deceased by her
husband Grant Simpson, who died in 1932 at the age of 48.

So, James, you're not the only "It Pays to Be Ignorant"  fan out there. I've
always enjoyed it simply because it's FUNNY. By today's [removed] standards, the
rapid-fire litany of drunk jokes, fat jokes, ugly jokes, and stupid jokes may
seem unnerving to the non-OTR initiate. However, I thought there were some
clever repartee and double-talk routines among the show's [removed] if most
of the material was  comprised ofrecycled burlesque gags from Howard &
Shelton's touring days.

Recently, a professorial OTR historian/re-creationist/elder-statesman-of-
the-hobby from the Elmira, NY, area cited "IPtBI" as one of the "Ten Worst OTR
Shows of All-Time." I respect his opinion especially since said professor is a
good friend of mine. However, I'm at variance with his contention that
"Ignorant" catered its humour to the "least common denominator."  Maybe so.
But I, at least, take comfort in the fact that the "[removed]" of the 1940s far
out-classes  today's "[removed]," which has no problem with the tasteless toilet
humour that permeates today's top-"grossing" comedy movies.

I truly think "Ignorant" could work today--maybe not on a network or in
syndication, but perhaps on an outlet like "Comedy Central." Just get a bunch
of comics (let's not name  names) known today for acting "stupid"
and let 'em go.

Enough "soap-boxing." This "Elizabeth-an" length screed has tired me out.

Yours ever in the ether,

Derek Tague

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:21:22 -0500
From: Rick Keating <pkeating89@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Shadow sponsors/Carl Kroenke

Anthony Tollin wrote:

 The episode in question,
"Can
the Dead Talk," exists in both Blue Coal and Goodrich
versions.  It's
the
Goodrich version that's featured in Radio Spirits' THE
SHADOW'S
GREATEST
RADIO ADVENTURES 40-show collection, and it features
Goodrich
commercials,
not Blue Coal.

You're right. I'd relied on my memory, rather than
checking the actual tape, assuming that since most of
the shows on the tapes immediately previous to and
following that one were Blue Coal-sponsored, this one
was, too.

But on the subject of Shadow sponsors, I'd still like
to know how frequently Shadow records, tapes or CDs
were released with the wrong sponsor ([removed] an Orson
Welles' Goodrich commercial in a Johnstone episode). I
know this topic came up sometime last year, but I
haven't been able to track down the information to
review it. I have at least one tape in my collection
that features Welles hawking Goodrich in the middle of
a Johnstone adventure, and I recall from the previous
discussion on this topic that there was at least one
other.

And, regarding the split sponsorship (Blue Coal in the
East, Carey Salt in the Midwest, Don Barr in the South
and the USAF on the Don Lee network) alluded to in the
booklet for the Shadow's Greatest Padio Adventures,
was this during the entirety of Morrison's run, or
only a portion of it? Dunning doesn't list the other
sponsors in the split, but he does list Blue Coal
through (or until) 1949. Is it possible that no Blue
Coal broadcasts survive after 1949, but that it and
the other sponsors continued to be involved beyond
that point?

On a related note, the episode "The Living Head",
dated 2/10/46 is sponsored by Grove Cold Tablets. Was
that a subsidiary of one of the above sponsors? If
not, how does Groves fit into the mix? Dunning lists a
Groves' Labs as a sponsor, in or after 1949.

And finally, are there any surviving episodes of the
Carl Kroenke Shadow programs?

Thanks.

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:21:47 -0500
From: hal stone <dualxtwo@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Re:Derel's Ad Agency

When Derek asked what was a PBX (And got inundated with answers), he also
mentioned the letters BBD&O, and indicated he knew that they were the
initials of an advertising agency.

For what it's worth, they were a major player in broadcasting back in those
days. (No one on the Digest seemed to really care what the letters stood
for, but I'll tell you anyway) :)

We used to make up silly names to match the initials, (out of earshot of
Agency personnel) but which actually stood for the 4 founders of the agency,
Batton, Barton, Durston & Osborne.

Hal(Harlan)Stone
Jughead

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:21:54 -0500
From: John Henley <jhenley@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Who dat again?

An OT quickie:
Elizabeth pointed out that
 "who dat" ["Who dat say who dat say who dat?"] is the punchline to a
very, very, very old dialect gag that predates A&A by about fifty years.

A version of this gag shows up in a 1943 East Side Kids movie
called "Ghosts on the Loose" and the people who perpetrate it
there are gang leader Leo Gorcey and - none other than Bela
Lugosi.
Imagine "Who dat say who dat when I say who dat!?" enunciated with
a heavy Hungarian accent, and you've got the idea.

John Henley

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:22:26 -0500
From: "[removed]" <[removed]@[removed];
To: <[removed]@[removed];
Subject:  Hal Stone and the burlesque

Greetings,

	I use Microsoft Outlook to handle my email, and it has a couple of
filters built into it.  If it suspects that an email is junk it will
highlight it lime green, and if it suspects that an email contains adult
content, it will highlight the email maroon.  Imagine my surprise when Digest
#65 showed up in my mailbox highlighted maroon.  Adult content in the
digest???  I was [removed] well, not really, but I was really curious.
So I read through the whole digest to find out what kind of salacious posting
could so offend my Outlook software.  The only thing I could find which even
came close was Hal Stone's memories of visiting the burlesque with his
buddies after work.

	Imagine, the fine gentleman we all know and respect spreading such
smut in a family forum!  Just so you can see the depths of his depravity, I
quote the offending section here:

*** begin quoted section.
to attend the afternoon performance at the
Hudson Burlesque Theatre in Union City [removed]
..... that's where we got our fill of "blue"
material from the "baggy pants" [removed]
and (sigh!) Strip Tease Artists.
*** end quoted section.

	I'm just kidding of course.  I love hearing about the first hand
experiences of Hal Stone, Harry Bartell, and others.  I just thought it was
hilarious that my software would label this bit as "ADULT CONTENT," and I
wanted to share it with all of you.

Regards,
-Chris Holm

[removed] Come to think it, a few of those emails where Hal was pitching his book
were highlighted in junk mail lime green.  That's ok, I can't wait till
Cincinnati where I can buy a copy of his book and get it autographed in
person.

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:23:13 -0500
From: "Ivan G. Shreve, Jr." <iscreve@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  George & Gracie on DVD

I didn't see anyone on the digest mention this, so I thought I would throw
it into the mix for [removed]

Universal Home Video recently released a triple feature DVD of some of Burns
& Allen's 1930s feature films.  The movies are HERE COMES COOKIE (1935), SIX
OF A KIND (1934), and LOVE IN BLOOM (1935).

Of the three, SIX OF A KIND is probably the best, although ironically it's
not the best showcase for George and Gracie--because Gracie's character in
the film is not so much dizzy or ditzy as downright imbecilic.  But the
movie does contain the great pool table routine by co-star [removed] Fields,
who's really the whole show.  All in all, it's a pleasant little comedy with
great supporting performances by Charlie Ruggles and Mary Boland.

HERE COMES COOKIE is an interesting little screwball comedy--a wealthy,
retired businessman (George Barbier) attempts to keep one of his daughters
from marrying a fortune hunter by temporarily turning over his fortune to
his other daughter (Gracie, natch).  COOKIE has a wafer-thin plot but is
breezy and easy to take, and Gracie does a cute musical number called "The
Vamp From the Pampas."

The final film, LOVE IN BLOOM, is interesting mostly as a curio--George &
Gracie get top billing in the film, but they take a backseat to a somewhat
sappy romance between two lovebirds (Joe Morrison and Dixie Lee--Bing
Crosby's first wife).  The comedy bits that the Burnses do are funny, but
there just aren't enough of them--although Gracie does get to do another
musical number at the beginning, "Here Comes Cookie" (hey--wasn't the title
of a 1934 film?).

All in all, not a bad disc--it retails for $[removed], but you can probably hunt
it down on the Net for cheaper.  I'm hoping Universal will be bold enough to
issue future DVD releases like this one--a 3-for-1 deal can't be beat with a
stick.

Ivan G. Shreve, Jr.

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

Date: Wed, 12 Feb 2003 23:49:26 -0500
From: Steven Kelez <otrsteve@[removed];
To: [removed]@[removed]
Subject:  Re: Shadow Episode

Hi Everybody, when I started to collect OTR in 1976.  One of my first 4
shows was a Shadow broadcast where a train was highjack, by jewels thieves.
Does any one know that title of this show and where I can find it I know
longer have a copy of this show.  Take care,

The episode of the Shadow you are looking for is The Giant of Madres broadcast on
5/16/48. You can get a cleaned up disc transfer from Old Time Radio Archives on CD,
or you can get a slightly more cleaned up copy of their transfer from me at Radio
Showcase, on either CD or cassette. I eliminated some disc clicks/scratches they
overlooked. The commercials are missing.

Steven Kelez
RADIO SHOWCASE
[removed]

--------------------------------
End of [removed] Digest V2003 Issue #67
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