Old Radio

  December 24, 1944: The Andrews Sisters were featured in the first episode of The Andrews Sisters' Eight-to-the-Bar Ranch on ABC. Maxene, Patty,and LaVerne ran an imaginary guest ranch. American George 'Gabby' Hayes and Vic Schoen's pop group were permanent guests. The ranch remained on air until 1946.

December 22, 1922: This day is the first double wedding ceremony broadcast on WEAF. This is proof that WEAF could be a pillar of radio promotion; the wedding ceremony at Grand Central Palace was watched by 4,000 spectators. The WEAF coorperated with the American Radio Exposition to conduct this classic radio broadcast and participating wedding couples received $100 as compensation. As the pioneer sponsored program broadcasting station, WEAF use long distance telephone service to broadcast their program. WEAF made arrangment between sponsorhip company and others radio stations that would be the chain station for equal distribution of service cost. The chain station received a portion of advertising program fee or could obtain non advertising program of the chain management for a fee.

December 12: Happy Birthday, Edward G Robinson Edward G Robinson could attack a role and make it not only his, but perpetuate a level of expertise that would keep others from having the same effectiveness in the casting. Born in 1893, this Romanian-American cast a spell over Hollywood with his dynamic approach to serious acting that transcended the industry. Most people remember his as Ricco in Little Caesar and the too-ambitious dathan in The Ten Commandments. In his 50 years of acting, Robinson was cast in more than 100 motion pictures and a sampling of stage. His voice was used in a few on-air radio characterizations of hit dramas. Besides being an ardent actor, Edward G. participated in politics during the 30’s and 40’s as a die-hard opponent of buying German made goods. Robinson, however, became entangled in the 50’s congressional witch hunts of communist sympathizers, which Robinson was able to keep his name clean. However, like many an actor during that period of our

A happy birthday this time, not to an actor or a commander of the microphone, but to a writer and producer, William Spier.  Lovers of Adventures of Sam Spade and Suspense have enjoyed the good work of Spier. Born today in 1906, Spier started his writing career as a critic for the magazine Musical America.  After foraying into radio in 1929, he decided he'd like to stay in the medium a bit longer. He got a job as a director of the news show The March of Time .  It began as a WLW (Cincinnati) program that gave voice to material from Time magazine.  It eventually evolved into The March of Time , on which talented actors dramatized the day's big news stories.  Spiers got a chance to work with huge stars such as Everett Sloane, Orson Welles, Lionel Barrymore , Nancy Kelly, and Joseph Cotten . From there, it was a stint as the chief of the writing department at CBS , a gig that led to his producership of Suspense and then The Adventures of Sam Spade . So let's salute th

November 25, 1920:  For the first time in College Station, WTAW broadcast a play-by-play radio football match , during which Texas University beat the Aggies of Texas A&M by a score of 7-3 WTAW was one of the oldest radio stations continually in service for their listeners around central Texas At the time of the broadcast, communication for a wide range was commonly conveyed by dots and dashes using the International Morse radio telegraph code. The vacuum tubes that would be used for voice transmission did not exist yet. Transmissions by code were much slower than by voice. Harry Saunders, previously an operator at Western Union, advertised the play by play football at Texas University using a commercial telegraph to notify the public that there would be a list of abbreviations that was being prepared. When they heard about the news, 275 then-licensed amateur radio operators in the state requested a copy of the list. Thus, WTAW transmitted the broadcas

November 23, 1929:  Shirley Booth and Ed Gardner married on this date. Ms. Booth was a famous actress who played the title role on the television show Hazel . She also appeared with her husband on Duffy's Tavern as Miss Duffy and Archie. In the years following her marriage to Ed Gardner , Ms. Booth win every major acting award without formal dramatic or musical training.  Her performance in the role of smart, sassy, take-charge maid on the TV sitcom Hazel propelled the show to the top of the ratings charts. She won two Emmys for Best Actress while on the show. Their marriage ended in divorce in 1942 and each would go on to remarry.

With her syrupy Southern drawl, Judy Canova hosted her show with a disarming charm. Opening with a monologue, she'd then sing a number and go into skits or performances of the musical guest. Each half an hour episode was sponsored by Colgate and aired Tuesdays by CBS, from July '43 to May '53. Other stars of the Judy Canova Show were Mel Blanc , Sheldon Leonard, Verna Felton and Ruby Dandridge. It was on the Judy Canova Show that Mel Blanc developed the Sylvester the cat and Speedy Gonzalez characters he would later make famous on cartoons, though they appeared here under different names. The song "Goodnight Soldier" was a wartime favorite, and Canova recorded it in 1946. Canova (1913-1983) was born into a vaudeville family in Starke, Florida. Though not from the Ozarks, she somehow acquired the moniker "the Ozark Nightingale." Like just about everyone in show business, she aspired to be taken seriously. In her case, though, she was saddl

The angels sing a happy birthday to swing era crooner Martha Tilton .  Originally destined to be the pride of Corpus Christi, Texas, Tilton was instead moved with her family to Los Angeles at the tender age of 7.  Taking full advantage of living in an entertainment mecca, Martha turned pro as a singer during the 11th grade and dropped out of school.  We now know her for huge hits such as "Moon Dreams," "I Should Care," and "And The Angels Sing." While Alka-Seltzer Time might sound like a dubious name for a radio program, listeners were less than nauseated about tuning in to hear Martha Tilton , starring alongside Curt Massey.  After the show's 1953 cancellation, the duo appeared on such programs as Guest For Defense and Guest Star . Thanks for musical memories, Martha.

"WANNA BUY A DUCK?"  Happy Birthday to a favorite radio comedians, Joe Penner . Lesser known today,  Joe Penner  was a huge star in the 1930s on radio, on stage, and in films.  He died of heart failure at the age of 36...so he has faded from memory, but if you ever get to catch one of his films you'll find him to be a very funny and quirky presence.  Wherever he is now there are plenty of ducks.

November 7, 1938: Radio soap opera ‘ This Day is Ours ’ went on air for the first time on CBS. On the air for two years, the main character Eleanor McDonald was played by Joan Banks and later by Templeton Fox. She faced many tribulations including her child’s abduction. Written by Don Becker and Carl Bixby, the series also stars Jay Jostyn, Patricia Dunlap, Alan Devitt, and Santos Ortega. The last episode was aired on January 9, 1940. Only a single recording from this series is still believed to be in existence.

Bob Feller (1938-2010) November 3: Happy Birthday, Bob Feller, who was born today in 1938!  Bob Feller was a natural ball player who had a stellar 20 year career with the Cleveland Indians. He was also the first professional athlete to enlist to serve in WWII. After his storied career, he recorded the syndicated Bob Feller Show. The 4 minute programs each showcase a great contest from the history of sports, including Bob's own return to baseball, the wreck filled 1956 Indianapolis 500, Lou Gehrig's attempt at five homers in a single game, the 1936 Stanley Cup game which went into multiple over-times until 2 in the morning, Wilt Chamberlain scoring 100 points in a single game, and many others.

October 29: Happy Birthday, Jack Pearl !

"And now....here he is....the one....the only.....GROUCHO!"   You Bet Your Life debuted today in 1947 on ABC Radio. October 27, 1947: The quiz show You Bet Your Life  went on air for the first time on ABC. It was hosted by Groucho Marx  and George Fenneman. The show remained on radio from 1948 to 1959 and made the jump to TV from 1950 to 1961. The show included very easy questions, such as, “Who is buried in Grant's tomb?” Apart from hearing it on the radio, You Bet Your Life  could also be seen on television. The show featured teams of contestants consisting of one male and one female, usually selected from the audience. Sometimes, famous people were also invited to play. In the actual game, each team was given the chance to choose a category (from the 20 available), and their task was to answer the questions from that category. Every time they answered the question correctly, they earned money. For those who had earned $25 or less, a very easy question