January 18: Happy Birthday, Cary Grant

January 18: Happy Birthday, Cary Grant

When was the last time you used the word "debonair" in a sentence? It's out of fashion, and not a whole lot of today's men merit the adjective. But it's a word often used to describe Cary Grant, star of Bringing Up Baby, His Girl Friday, and North By Northwest. He was always neatly coiffured, even when being chased by an airplane, and wore a steely look on his placid face.

As for oldtime radio: Cary appeared on several vintage radio programs, chief among them
Lux Radio Theater. He appeared on that series' productions of The Philadelphia Story and Madame Butterfly as well as episodes entitled "The Theodora Goes Wild," "Only Angels have Wings," "Here Comes Mr. Jordan" and "The Awful Truth Stars Cary Grant."

He also starred on several episodes of Suspense, including "On a Country Road," broadcast Nov. 16, 1950. His co-stars were Cathy Lewis and Jeannette Nolan.

It's also worth a note, since it's Grant's birthday, that his 1948 movie Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House was adapted into a radio sitcom.

So put a little grease on your hair, light a pipe, and flash a smile in honor of Cary Grant. He would've been a hundred and eight!

October 4: Happy Birthday, Arthur Hopkins

Another star born on this day--in this case in 1878--is Arthur Hopkins.  As is apparent, Hopkins lived to adulthood before Marconi's marvelous invention began broadcasting content into homes.

He entered the world of theater as a press agent and began writing plays.  Late in his life, he endeavored to bring high-quality drama into American homes and thus produced and hosted Arthur Hopkins Presents.  The program brought to life such classics as "The Philadelphia Story," "The Deluge," "Mr. Pim Passes By," and "Our Town." Actors and actresses who contributed were Katharine Hepburn, Wendell Corey, and Helen Hayes.

We salute the contributions of this author, producer, and host.