December 4, 1932:
The Jergens Journal, aka
The Walter Winchell Show, greeted the airwaves for the first time with the words, "Good evening. Mr. and Mrs. North and South America and all the ships at sea. Let's go to press." The program was broadcast over the NBC Blue network. The
radio gossip show was later named
Kaiser Frazer News and was kept alive for 2 years on the airwaves by Winchell. Jergens lotion was its first sponsor, then Jergens was replaced by Dryad deodorant, Kaiser Frazer cars, and Richard Hudnut shampoo.
Winchell started his career in journalism by posting notes about his acting troupe on backstage bulletin boards. Later on in 1920, he went to Vaudeville News. After Winchell left the paper for the Evening Graphic in 1924, he moved to the New York Daily Mirror on June 10, 1929. He was signed as the author of "On-Broadway," what would be the first syndicated gossip column.
Winchell presented two sides of journalism. He focused on gossip in his column, but on his radio program he presented a lot of international news. His radio program featured many more serious topics. He was one of the first American journalists to criticize
Adolf Hitler in the build-up to WWII, in spite of his sensationalist reputation for Hollywood gossip.
The
Jergen's Journal with Walter Winchell was a highly-rated show, one that managed to compete successfully with NBC's powerhouse Sunday night lineup.
GOOD EVENING MR. & MRS. NORTH & SOUTH AMERICA, LETS GO TO PRESS...! ... and all the ships at sea.
ReplyDeleteThe son of Walter Winchell was said to be at Parris Island firing the range. He stuck his head above the "butts" to see if the shooters were through. They wern't. Winchell was anti Marine Corps after that.