Old Radio

March 20: Happy Birthday,  Wendell Corey Wendell Corey was a stage and screen actor whose appealing voice made him a shoo-in for radio success. The star of the films Hell's Half Acre , Rear Window , and Alias Jesse James and the TV series Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Peck's Bad Girl , Corey also made notable appearances on the radio . His performances were on notable shows such as Inner Sanctum , Lux Radio Theater , and Cavalcade of America .  On Lux Radio Theater , Corey reprised his supporting role in the film " Carbine Williams ." A future Santa Monica City Council member, Corey was a team player as an actor, taking on many supporting roles.

March 16: Happy Birthday, Jerry Lewis It isn't easy to write a short entry on Jerry Lewis. Doing so can't capture his kinetic energy, his flowing and sprawling brand of physical humor. Nor is it adequate for discussing all the things he was: director, comedian, radio personality, fund raiser, winner of many prestigious awards. Maybe we should just focus on radio! The Martin and Lewis Show leapt onto the airwaves in 1949, starring Lewis and his partner Dean Martin, a popular nightclub act. With Martin as the butt of Lewis's jokes, the two provided zany and energetic comedy while also hosting guests. The program did not skimp on talent, with guests including Lucille Ball , Peter Lorre , Henry Fonda , John Carradine, Jane Russell , and many others. On the air or live, the two were the biggest comedy act of the early 1950's. As was the case with many radio stars, their show had more than one incarnation with more than one sponsor. In 1951, they took the ai

  March 14, 1937: For the first time Fred Allen and Jack Benny performed their radio comedy show together on the big stage of The Battle of the Century that aired from the Hotel Pierre's ballroom and heard by 2nd largest audience in the history of radio. Jack Benny and Fred Allen began their long-running feud gag show called the "Battle of the Century" on this day. With Jell-O as its main sponsor, the show was performed directly from New York City's The Hotel Pierre. While Benny was singing the Jello-O commercial, he was interrupted by Allen. The two started an argument and ended up recalling their Vaudeville days. That episode ended with Benny and Allen singing a duet .