April 24, 1955 X-Minus One made its radio debut

On this day in 1955, X-Minus One made its debut.

April 24: X Minus One Debuts

The 1990s industrial rock band Rage Against the Machine might not have meant their name to be an homage to the classic radio gem X Minus One, but the phrase does do a good job of summing up the show's common story lines. On this revival of Dimension X, men fight computers and robots and are attacked by alien star fleets.


Today, 1955, marks the first time radio listeners got to hear the famous lines, "Countdown for blast off...three, two, X Minus One!" NBC launched (get the pun?) the series, with Don Pardo announcing as only he can.


Wendell Holmes, Ken Williams, and Luis Van Wooten starred in "No Contact" in which a space ship made a voyage toward a planet called Volta in a future time known as 1987.


Sources

radiogoldindex.com

otrcat.com

April 22, 1955 X Minus One debuts

On this day in 1955, X Minus One debuts on NBC.

April 8: Debut Episode of Dimension X

Today in 1950, NBC began airing the science fiction series Dimension X. It flew by the seat of its pants as an non-sponsored, sustaining program, but did just fine for itself. It enjoyed immense success and popularity, and would eventually evolve into another chestnut, X Minus One.

Staff writer Ernest Kinoy adapted top-notch sci-fi works by the likes of Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, and Kurt Vonnegut; acting talent included Joseph Cotten, Leslie Wood, and John McGovern.

The inaugural episode was "Outer Limit," adapted from a Graham Doar story about aliens carrying a warning to mankind. It had graced the pages of The Saturday Evening Post just months earlier (Dec. 24, 1949). As always, Norman Rose hosted, with Bob Warren announcing.

Passing of Don Pardo

We were saddened to hear of the passing of Don Pardo (1918-2014) this week at the age of 96.

In most recent history, he was best known for his legendary voice on SNL ("Saturday Night Live").

He was also one of the first voices heard in 1963 reporting the assassination of John F Kennedy.

During the golden age of radio, his voice talents were used on broadcasts of Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator, Just Plain Bill, The Magnificent Montague, The Catholic Hour, Pete Kelly's Blues and the sci-fi  radio classic, X Minus One.

Enjoy this broadcast of X Minus One episode from 1955: "The Parade":

August 22: Happy Birthday, Ray Bradbury

Today's birthday commemoration goes out to the renowned author Ray Bradbury. About sixty years before the "Green" movement, meant to stave off the destruction of the natural Earth, Bradbury set his stories in Green Town, an analogy for his hometown of Waukegan, Illinois. Green Town was green and inviting and nurturing, yet also the setting for fantastic events like an uncle growing wings and carnivals bringing characters with supernatural powers. 

It's no surprise that Bradbury's weird tales in the science fiction genre were adapted for radio, by programs such as Dimension X, X Minus One and Suspense. But did you know that at the tender age of fourteen, the future author of Fahrenheit 451 got his first paying gig as a writer for the Burns and Allen Show? That's right, loyal listeners.

Bradbury did something very unique and quirky in his literary career. Feeling the world needed a journal devoted just to his works, he published Futuria Fantasia, with almost all the work being written by him. He used pseudonyms to hide this, though. This was in 1938, when he was a whipper-snapper just graduating high school. We salute you, Ray Bradbury!