Old Radio

On this day in 1911, Reed Hadley was born.

On this day in 1904, Phil Harris was born.

James Kern Kyser was born June 18, 1905 and became one of the most notable bandleaders of the 30’s and 40’s. He...oh wait, you may know him by his other name, Kay Kyser ...went onto become of the most respected and admired radio personalities of his day. Because of his energy and enthusiasm while in college, Kyser was asked to head up a band whose leader was moving on to other pursuits. As the new bandleader, Kay Kyser discovered his talent lay more in the announcing end of leading then trying to perform an instrument. Kyser would record a couple of hit pieces for Victor before becoming nationally acclaimed. As the band toured the country, Kay’s benchmark of turning playing music into quiz time for the audience, earned the band the name of the Kollege of Musical Knowledge . And as the “The Ol’ Perfessor”, Kyser would use his position to query and encourage the audience into dancing with phrases like, “C’mon chilluns, let’s dance”. By the late 30’s and in through the 40’s, the Koll

Whether it was his irascible personality in various motion pictures or as an animated host for playful reindeer, people instantly knew who Burl Ives was. Mr Ives had the voice that played to the radio audience because of its intrinsic calming quality and valued variance of intonation. Born June 14 of 1909, Burl Ives captured the American stage, movie and radio enclave with an almost operatic enhancement. One could say his first public performance was of him singing to a group of old soldiers. His uncle asked him to sing before the group and immediately his talents were noticed. His early days had him partnered with the Boy Scouts of America as a spokesman and a former scout. Radio was a big part of Burl Ives , beginning with his first 1940’s radio program called The Wayfaring Stranger, where Ives first heard the news of WWII . Mr Ives continued to work on radio guest-starring on programs such as Bing Crosby , Martin and Lewis and Command Performance . He continued to parlay his h

June 13: Bob Bailey was born on this day in 1913.   What was your favorite old time radio series that Bob Bailey starred in?

June 12: Happy Birthday, Vic Damone Today marks the day on which, in 1928, the crooner of "You're Breaking My Heart," "You Do," and "My Truly Truly Fair" came into the world. Vic Damone was a singer, an armed services veteran, and an all-around charming personage. When not cranking out the big hits, he had time to deliver them live on such big radio programs as Hedda Hopper's Hollywood and Guest Star . Guard Session featured Damone's recordings, interspersed with short interview slots in which he promoted the National Guard and talked about his experiences with them. Damone was a prototypical Italian crooner, classy, debonair, well-tailored. It all went with his silky-smooth voice. We're pleased to pay tribute to him, and we thank him for the old time radio memories !

If you are a guitarist and know what a “lick” or a “trill” is, than you undoubtedly know Les Paul . Les Paul , born in 1915, is the world’s most renown guitarist to date and influenced the work of many of the big names of today. In fact, Les Paul had an influence on guitars as the inventor of the full-body electric guitar. His playing style formula surpassed the guitarists of the day and drove towards innovations, such as the overlay of sound upon sound. In 1934, Paul got involved in radio with an interest in piano, but that changed and he became fascinated with the arena of the guitar. His jazz style drove him to form a band and he got a gig on Fred Waring ’s Pennsylvanians radio program. During the 1940’s Paul had opportunity to perform with some of the big names like Bing Crosby and Nat King Cole  People were becoming more familiar with the music man and his variations on the traditional way of play. What was not lost was that Les Paul stepped out from the norm and created