Old Radio

Sept 2 1941, the radio program "The Great Gildersleeve," a spinoff from "Fibber McGee and Molly" starring Harold Peary , debuted on NBC.

On this day in 1916, Larry Thor was born.

Join us in celebrating the nativity of one of Old Time Radio's most beloved and recognizable character actors, Mr. Eddie Anderson . The actor so many of us love as Jack Benny 's sidekick Rochester was born on September 18, 1905. In a less enlightened time,  we might say that Eddie Anderson did very well for one of his races. It might even be said that Eddie would never have gone as far if not for his association with Jack Benny . To a certain extend both of these sentiments were true, but when we look at Eddie Anderson's achievements it becomes pretty obvious that Eddie would have found the opportunities and resources to do great things no matter what. Eddie was born into a show business family in Oakland. “Big Ed” Anderson was a minstrel performer and his wife Ella Mae was a tight rope performer until a fall put an end to her career. As a boy Eddie sold newspapers on the street corner. The newspaper boys believed that whoever would yell the loudest would get the mo

On this day in 1920, Ray Bradbury was born.

On this day in 1907, Alan Reed (aka Teddy Bergman) was born.

On this day in 1916, Marie Wilson was born.

On this day in 1916, Marie Wilson was born.

On this day in 1899, Alfred Hitchcock was born.

On this day in 1911, Lucille Ball was born.

On this day in 1914, Parley Baer was born.

On this day in 1905, Alice Frost was born.

On this day in 1930, The Shadow debuts on Detective Story Hour.

June 29, 1947: Radio game show   Strike It Rich went on air for the first time, and it quickly became one of the most loved programs on CBS. The show was first presented by Todd Russell, followed by Warren Hull. Strike It Rich was a radio game show that featured less-fortunate people as the contestants. The show's format involved requiring the contestants to answer very easy questions in exchange for a money prize. When the question was answered incorrectly, the so-called "Heart Line" was opened, allowing one viewer on the phone to make donations for the contestant's family. However, the show's 11-year run was showered with controversy. Some people thought that the less-fortunate contestants were being exploited by the sponsors. They also pointed out that out of 5,000 people who send their stories every week, only a small percentage of them were given the chance to appear on the show. Viewers argued that they were picked based on who had the most intere