Old Radio

Today's birthday salute goes to Joan Crawford , born today in 1904.  Crawford's career began kicking in 1924, when she worked as a dancer in traveling revues.  Spotted in a performances, she landed a gig in Innocent Eyes on Broadway.  It wasn't long before she landed her first movie role, in The Circle, and the rest is history. In 1934, Crawford made her first of many appearance on The Lux Radio Theatre , starring in an adaptation of the 1934 MGM film "Chained."  In 1938 it was "Anna Christie," with Crawford playing the role made famous by Greta Garbo .  She would later star in "A Doll's House" on the same program. The much-sought actress also lent her talents to Screen Directors' Playhouse , Stars Over Hollywood , Hollywood Star Playhouse , and Suspense . A happy birthday to Joan Crawford .

March 22: Happy Birthday, Chico Marx It's pronounced "Chick-o." Legend has it that in an early press release, the typesetter forgot the "k," and in a spirit of whimsy, the Marx Brothers left it that way. It therefore began to be pronounced the way it was spelled, and the name essentially began going by either pronunciation. In the fall of '32, the mispronounced Marx brother began appearing with just Groucho on a radio program called Flywheel, Shyster, and Flywheel, the Monday installment of Standard Oil's Five Star Theatre. Chico played Emmanuel Ravelli, the assistant to Groucho's lawyer character. In Spring of '34, the two had a quick stint on a show called Marx of Time which lampooned current events. Chico appeared in a handful of episodes of Pabst Blue Ribbon Town, which Groucho Marx hosted. He also lent his talents to Command Performance , Radio Hall of Fame , and Hollywood Hotel. The piano-playing funny man died in October

Bandleader, radio star, TV star, holder of a law degree, paradigm for generations of fathers, Ozzie Nelson did just about everything.  We know he'd become grandfather to the awful early-90's rock duo Nelson (Gunnar and Matthew of the long white hair), but we can't hold that against one of the godfathers of classic radio. Today's birthday boy was an Eagle Scout and high school football player in Ridgefield Park, New Jersey.  During this time he developed his music chops and became a teen bandleader.  He formed the Ozzie Nelson Band, which beat out Paul Whiteman 's orchestra in a 1930 New York Daily Mirror poll. The man who married Harriet Hilliard in 1935 was already a successful recording artist, not necessarily figuring to become essentially a metaphor for domesticity.  But the two of them put on a family-oriented radio show, and then the TV show with its cardigans that would characterize him as safe and paternal. A hallmark of a good father, in a lot

Not quite St. Patty's Day and not the Ides of March, today is still special by way of marking the birth of comic groundbreaker Henny Youngman . There are many examples of people who adore Youngman's work. Take my wife...please. Youngman wrote that seminal one-liner, along with, "I miss my wife's cooking...as often as possible," and "I was so ugly, when I was born, the doctor slapped my mother." Youngman was born Henry Yungman in Liverpool, England, in 1906. He learned the violin, began playing it in a jazz combo in American nightclubs, and then got into comedy. He ground out the brutal nightclub circuit for the rest of his life, though for much of it was an established star. His fame as a comedian took him to old-time radio, with appearances on Radio Hall of Fame and Command Performance . We salute the King of the One-Liner, Henny Youngman.

March 14: Happy Birthday, Les Brown Les Brown and his Band Renown were the centerpieces of The Les Brown Show . This NBC series treated listeners to performances of such favorites as "Just a Gigolo," "Shine On Harvest Moon," and "Moonlight in Vermont." The show was one of several sponsored by the Navy Recruitment Office as a PR and morale-boosting endeavor. Along these lines, the inimitable Brown himself embarked on many USO tours. He also recorded (with band member Doris Day on lead vocals) "Sentimental Journey," which would become an anthem for soldiers coming home. If you're like me you'll spend this day commemorating Brown's verse by thinking up rhymes like " Les Brown and his Band Go to Town," and " Les Brown's Band Wears the Crown."

March 12, 1933: US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave his first presidential address to the nation, eight days after his inaugural. This was the first among what were termed as Roosevelt's famous Fireside Chats . Newsman Robert Trout thought that Roosevelt sounded like he was just sitting with us in our living rooms beside a roaring fire, just telling it like it was; thus Trout came up with the term. During his campaign, Frederick D. Roosevelt known as a  friendly and intelligent personal. He used his charm smartly to get support.  But his speech after his inauguration seemed different: He delivered a deep religious speech. The speech discussed his hope for the new government and reminding Americans about nation's common difficulties concerning to material things. His famous quote was “The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself”.

March 7, 1944: Columbia Presents Corwin was presented by Norman Corwin on CBS radio. Norman Corwin was responsible for the creation of over 100 radio shows during Radio's Golden Age.

March 6: Happy Birthday, Virginia Gregg She had gun and she traveled, even if Virginia Gregg didn't have one of the lead roles in the radio drama Have Gun--Will Travel . She played Miss Wong, the girlfriend of Hey Boy (Ben Wright), a booksmart, somewhat sophisticated gal. Have Gun Will Travel  was a rare beast that began as a television series and then went to radio. Both versions were wildly successful, and some of the credit for the success of the radio show goes to the quality of the cast. Gregg was already a big name in radio before the show began airing. As was the case with many performers of the day, she made the rounds of many different series such as The Adventures of Adventures of Sam Spade , Lux Radio Theatre , Johnny Dollar , and Dragnet . Virginia Gregg was born on Mar. 6, 1916 in Harrisburg, Illinois, and died in Encino, CA on Sept. 15, 1986.

Today's birthday boy is Edgar Bergen ! Born Feb 16, 1903, Edgar Bergen had a successful career during the golden age of radio. With other characters including Charlie McCarthy , Mortimer Snerd, Effie Klinker and simply Bergen's hand with a handkerchief on it, Edgar Bergen entertained radio and vaudeville audiences with his quick wit and radio ventriloquism . Enjoy Bergie's banter with alter ego Charlie McCarthy : " Guest Star Nelson Eddy & Billie Burke "

February 15, 1943: My True Story debuted during the golden age of radio on ABC.  The program ran for seventeen years in collaboration with True Story magazine. "Truth is Stranger than the Fiction” is a phrase that has always been the subtitle of the magazine True Story Confession. The magazine was the source of the stories for a radio series program that ran for almost 20 years entitled   My True Story . The magazine was said to be one of the earliest in today’s genre of confession magazines. Though the radio series was a success, My True Story ’s TV version was only able to have one season.

Chuck Yeager, the first pilot to break the sound barrier, was born on this day in 1905.  The pride of Hamlin, West Virginia, he enlisted in the Air Force and served in WWII . Yeager made a few interesting radio appearances.  In 1951, he guested on The Bob Hope Show giving the host a ride in an airplane. In 1953, The Hallmark Hall of Fame dramatized General Yeager's breaking of the sound barrier, with Raymond Burr , Lamont Johnson, and host Lionel Barrymore .  After the program proper, Yeager had a brief conversation with Barrymore. Finally, he appeared in a brief clip on the series Eyes On the Skies, discussing the Ground Observer Corps. One learns something new every day, right?  Happy birthday, Chuck Yeager.

February 12, 1956: Wild Bill Hickok made his final radio broadcast appearance on Mutual. The radio program began on 27 May 1951. Although the show stopped transmission to radio , it was picked up by television and kept the same cast: 271 episodes aired in total.

February 7: Happy Birthday, Eddie Bracken Just read through the episode titles of The Eddie Bracken Show and you know there's been a mix-up and that hilarity is about to ensue. There's "Switching Beauty Contestant Pictures, " "The Pretend Marriage and Baby Scales," and "To Borrow a Pig." On that note, we celebrate the 1915 birth of Eddie Bracken , radio star who also shone on the stage and screen. The oldt ime radio show bearing Bracken's name aired on Sundays from 1945-1947. The man who always had a sarcastic expression on his face also put in guest appearances on Suspense , Academy Award Theatre , Kraft Music Hall , and NBC University Theatre . The winsome film star is today's birthday boy. He was able to live a long, full life--his death was in 2002.