Holiday Spirit from 1937, 1938, and 1939 as served up by Old Time Radio!
Christmas Time is here again. A time when us older folks reconnect with the child we once were. Moments from past Christmases relived, smiles and tears remembered. Longing and gratitude and the laughter of those we’ve lost.
At least that’s what happens to me. Every Christmas that passes magnifies the memories of Christmases from a lifetime ago.
Old Time Radio like this helps me through the bittersweet nostalgia for days that no longer exist.
The concept of Thanksgiving is as ancient as ancient can be. Harvest festivals dedicated to the god or gods currently in fashion as thanks for abundance and the survival it would provide.
But like so many things, Americans have made thanksgiving their very own with traditions and customs created and nurtured here in the good old USA.
At Halloween the thin boundary between living and dead dissolves so that ghosts, goblins, and the sins we thought long buried come back to feast on our fright filled souls.
Day of the dead, all souls day, two thousand years ago the Pagen Celts called it Samhin, we call it Halloween. The time when ghosts, ghouls, and costumed children all wander the streets looking for their favorite tasty treats. The children want candy, the others from beyond the grave want to feed on your sweet, sweet, sinful soul.
The earliest peoples knew this, huddled around the first campfires now lost in memory the shamans told of ghosts and the risen dead shambling across the earth to restore cosmic justice through black magic, revenge, and terror.
Tales of horror and supernatural evil are as old as mankind, spoken tales of terror and vengeance from beyond the grave are older than memory but never go out of style.
A fact that made the Horror Genre a natural part of Old Time Radio.
Scary shows were perfect for dramatic radio. Arguments can be made that the situation comedy and variety show genres were better suited for television. But horror shows peaked with radio, nothing being scarier than those fears we carry with us in our imaginations. A theater of the mind permits our own deepest fears to chill us to the bone.
Halloween 2025 Features:
The Witches Tale
Lights Out
The Whistler
With Special Appearances by Orson Welles and Agnes Moorehead
Early American entertainment included the circus, the minstrel show, vaudeville, broadway revues, all popular forms of the variety show.
And it was talent from those stage shows that created radio.
But radio wasn’t the same as the stage.
Radio was different manifesting new possibilities for entertainment.
An opportunity to entertain with new formats.
The situation comedy was one such format, brand new, a child of radio, never before seen in the history of man.
Although the situation comedy format is only a hundred or so years old, there is still a mystery surrounding who was the first and when.
My research indicates three radio shows have claim to be the first situation comedy. But the early recordings that exist casts some doubt on each claim.
That is, according to my definition of Situation Comedy.
If you know others who might be the first, or have recordings I have failed to discover, or want to argue a different definition of SitCom, please let me know in a comment on BeforeTvBlog.com.
The first generation of radio talent, performers, directors, and writers came from the worlds of vaudeville, minstrel shows and Broadway revues. All forms of variety theater, so it isn’t any wonder that the variety show quickly emerged as a common Radio format.
Here are the three Old Time Radio shows from the 1930’s I feel best exemplify the variety format, and the reasons why.
I expect you, dear listener, might respectfully disagree with my choices. Leave me a comment on my blog, BeforeTVBlog.com, I’d love to hear your opinions.
Sometimes an actor playing a character becomes so popular with their audience that it becomes more than a character, it becomes a persona that the actor inhabits.
Such was the case with Vera Vague, a creation of actor/writer Babara Jo Allen.
Vera Vague was a constant presence on Old Time Radio, man-hungry, misinformed, and most amusing.
Old Time Radio was dog eat dog, CBS and NBC scooped up the all the best stations and biggest talent, leaving all the little local stations in the dust.
Not all the independent stations wanted to let NBC and CBS run away with their audiences
In 1934 WGN and 3 other independents, WOR in New York, WLW in Cincinnati, and WXYZ in Detroit entered into a program sharing agreement. They called themselves the Mutual Network but they were more Mutual than Network. There was a coordination committee, but the real power was with the individual stations who maintained their autonomy as equals.
It was a bottom-up business model. Socialized Radio that shared shows for a several hours a week, but also did their own local thing with the lion’s share of their airtime.
From these humble beginnings, Mutual would grow to cover the entire country and compete head to head with NBC and CBS.
In public, Eddie Cantor was known as a charming clown with a side of song.
In private, Eddie Cantor was a concerned citizen who dedicated much of his personal time and wealth to Jewish charities and causes. The more he saw the rising hatred directed at the Jewish people, the more he felt the need to ease their burden.
Radio Priest Father Charles Coughlin preached we should give the Germans benefit of the doubt. Communism was just as bad. And did you notice all those Commies are Jews?
Not subtle, but effective and a message that would meet with brave resistance from Eddie Cantor.
A real life Radio Feud with national political implications.
Edgar Bergen was also Charlie McCarthy but Charlie McCarthy was one of a kind. The cutest little obnoxious guy on the radio. A big personality in a tiny package.
Charlie McCarthy took radio by storm and Edgar Bergen rode his coattails to fame and fortune. Actually Bergen rode his own coat tails, but it was so easy to forget they were the same person. Charlie seemed to have a life of his own.
Given his first big radio break by Rudy Vallee, Edgar Bergen himself doubted the wisdom of a ventriloquist act on Radio. But audiences couldn’t resist Charlie McCarthy and history was made.
This episode features some of the biggest stars in Hollywood cavorting with our wooden protagonist, Charlie McCarthy, thanks to Edgar Bergen and Chase and Sanborn!
1939 SoundScape part 10, Radio highlights originally broadcast live May 22 through June 4, 1939 Curated clips of live broadcasts from popular radio shows of the day.History through the eyes of people as they lived it, reported by radio.
17 year old Wynn Murray already had two Broadway hits on her resume when she joined The Fred Allen show as the resident Female Vocalist in 1939.
Fred Allen’s decision to bring a famous female vocalist onto his show in 1939 was a recognition that female singers were now in vogue.
Singers like Connie Boswell on the Good News Program, and Charlie McCarthy’s Dorothy LaMour were part of their show’s ratings success.
Those Shows broadcast from Hollywood so those singers came from the film industry.
Fred Allen broadcast from New York City so he had access to Broadway Talent, and Wynn Murray was one of New York Theater’s most promising young shining stars.
Close harmony groups were popular in the 1920’s, 30’s,40’s and 50’s. The Merry Macs were among the most successful and were certainly the longest lived of all the Old Time Radio harmony groups.
Close Harmony singing evolved from the Barbershop Quartets of the 1880s and 1890s, but with a jazz age sensibility. Closer harmonic chords and experimentation with tempo and rhythm are some differences between the two styles of harmony.
The Songs you’re going to hear are all recorded from live broadcasts in 1939:
Radio highlights originally broadcast live March 22 through April 5, 1939
Curated clips of live broadcasts from popular radio shows of the day.
History through the eyes of people as they lived it, reported by radio.
In today’s soundscape:
Nothing about the war in this one, things were quiet there and we were more than happy to pretend the bombs and blood wasn’t real. We will soon find out different.
The violent wedding of Andy Brown!
Georgie Jessell kills it with the comedy on the Fed Allen show!
These Interviews were a regular feature of The Lux Radio Theater, a show that presented radio versions of current Hollywood films.
At act break host Cecil B. Demille and an expert guest would comment on the radio play so far.
Sometimes the guest would be from the rich, famous and powerful classes, we’ll hear those in part 2.
This episode presents the common working men who did the jobs that week’s story was about. Some of these jobs no longer exist, but they were important in their time.
I had thought Dorothy Lamour to be just another pretty face who had a technically good voice but was somewhat interchangeable with the other bright, young, pretty songstresses of old time variety radio in that Dorothy’s songs were good enough but stylistically the same you heard on other popular shows.
Then I discovered this musical treasure trove and was forced to completely re-think my opinion. There are things Dorothy does with these classic songs that make them personal and unique.
1939 was a year where everything changed. An uneasy peace became all out war. Society and culture and government were questioned as never before. The evil inside the human race made itself known that year, as ferocious as in the past but applied with an improved efficiency.
Radio was there to witness it.
And I got to Live 1939 second hand through these radio voices from the past.
In my OTR collection I have hundreds of hours of 1939 broadcasts. I listened to them in Chronological order to research the documentaries, the year 1939 as seen through comedy, drama, music, and of course news broadcast at the moments the history happened.
Here are curated highlghts of that journey for you to experience. This Soundscape delivers January 24 – March 2 1939 as seen by Old Time Radio, presented by the following voices from the grave, alive again because you’re listening:
1939 was the year the country woke up to the horrific scale of the death to come on land, sea, and in the Air
Seems obvious now, but at the time lots of people thought the first great war had been so terrible it could never happen again. I wish they had been right.
The Soundscapes for 1939 series is the story of optimism to pessimism, of hope to resignation, compromise to confrontation through a tapestry of OTR clips.
Here is part 2, Curated clips broadcast chronologically January 12 to January 23, 1939. The early, hopeful days in 1939.
Highlights include
Do we have a free press or don’t we?
Better food with less kitchen time!
Mutiny on the Bounty descendants on Pitcairn island.
Connee Boswell was one of the first white artists to integrate the jazz and swing experimentations of black New Orleans musicians into popular music.
The tempo, rhythm and pitch changes she and her sisters introduced to close harmony arrangements fused together Classical, Jazz, Swing, and Blues as never before.
The work she did on the radio and on the screen as well as behind the scenes as writer and arranger changed the sound of popular music and influenced directly or indirectly every vocalist since.
We’ve got both reassuring fantasy and unsettling reality in this episode. On one hand we’ll hear old friends Donald Duck and the Seven Dwarfs in a fairy tale setting, and we’ll hear our soon to be enemy, Nazi Germany take over the real world Austria.
This Episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live December 11 through December 22, 1938.
Starring:
The Cast of Family Doctor
Fred Allen
Santa Claus
Robert Young
Lionel Barrymore
Reginald Owen
Jack Benny
Eddie “Rochester” Anderson
Don Wilson
Mary Livingstone
Phil Harris
Kenny Baker
Andy Devine
Hanley Stafford
Fanny Brice
In this episode:
Fred Allen interviews Santa Claus!
Lionel Barrymore Narrates “A Christmas Carol”!
Jack and the Gang take the Train Cross Country!
Baby Snooks goes to the department store!
It’s Christmas in 1938!
And More!!
Please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of show biz from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
Soundscape 1938, part 31, from When Radio Ruled, offered without further commentary for your entertainment and education. But mostly for your entertainment.
My personal OTR collection contains thousands of hours of old time radio I use in order to create the year by year historical When Radio Ruled documentaries, and as I listen to each episode I extract the most interesting and entertaining bits to create a best of reel as a reference for when writing the scripts. And that’s what you are about to hear, part of that best of reel, a one hour chunk of really great audio artifacts from 1938.
The Episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live November 25 through December 11, 1938.
Starring:
Orson Welles
Agnes Moorehead
Don Wilson
Jack Benny
Phil Harris
Kenny Baker
Mary Livingstone
Eddie “Rochester” Anderson
Cast of Family Doctor
Featured Songs Include
They Say – Helen Forrest with the Artie Shaw Orchestra
My Reverie – Helen Forrest with the Artie Shaw Orchestra
Who Blew Out The Flame – Helen Forrest with the Artie Shaw Orchestra
Pocketful of Dreams – Phil Harris and His Orchestra
My personal OTR collection contains thousands of hours of old time radio I use in order to create the year by year historical When Radio Ruled documentaries, and as I listen to each episode I extract the most interesting and entertaining bits to create a best of reel as a reference for when writing the scripts. And that’s what you are about to hear, part of that best of reel, a one hour chunk of really great audio artifacts from 1938.
The Episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live November 17 through November 24, 1938.
Starring:
Louis B. Mayer
Father Flanagan
Don Wilson
Mary Livingstone
Phil Harris
Jack Benny
Kenny Baker
Cast of The Family Doctor
Robert Young
Fanny Brice
Hanley Stafford
Mickey Rooney
Louis Stone
Faye Holden
Cecelia Parker
Ann Rutherford
In this episode:
Louis B Mayer talks about the Movie BoysTown!
Kenny Baker Plays a Cannibal!
Baby Snooks Gets a New Car and Daddy gets a ticket!
The Hardy family show us the true meaning of Thanksgiving!
My personal OTR collection contains thousands of hours of old time radio I use in order to create the year by year historical When Radio Ruled documentaries, and as I listen to each episode I extract the most interesting and entertaining bits to create a best of reel as a reference for when writing the scripts. And that’s what you are about to hear, part of that best of reel, a one hour chunk of really great audio artifacts from 1938.
The Episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live November 10 through November 17, 1938.
The Episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live November 2 through November 6, 1938.
Starring:
Fred Allen
Harry Von Zell
Portland Hoffa
Orson Welles
Don Wilson
Jack Benny
Phil Harris
Mary Livingstone
Kenny Baker
Bill Goodwin
Charlie McCarthy
Edgar Bergen
Ray Noble
Jean Arthur
And
The Merry Macs
In this episode:
Fred Allen’s Tribute to November!
Sound Poems from Columbia Workshop!
Jean Arthur Tells Charlie McCarthy about Goldilocks
And More!!
Please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of show biz from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
The Episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live October 23 through October 31, 1938.
Starring:
Orson Welles
Lionel Barrymore
Clark Gable
Robert Young
Frank Morgan
Don Ameche
Judy Canova
Charlie McCarthy
Edgar Bergen
Dorothy Lamour
Madeleine Carroll
Don Wilson
Eddie “Rochester” Anderson
Jack Benny
Mary Livingstone
Kenny Baker
Phil Harris
Andy Devine
and
Seabiscuit
FEATURED SONGS INCLUDE
Two Sleepy People – Dorothy Lamour
Hounds on My Tracks – Judy, Annie, and Zeke
What Have You Got That Gets Me? – Phil Harris and the Jello Gang
In this episode:
The Martians Invade America!
Edgar Bergen tries to Tell a Ghost Story!
Jack Benny throws a Halloween Party!
Seabiscuit races War Admiral!
And More!!
Please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of show biz from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
Soundscape 1938, part 26, from When Radio Ruled, offered without further commentary for your entertainment and education. But mostly for your entertainment.
The Episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live August 28 through September 13, 1938.
Starring:
Edward Arnold
Charlie McCarthy
Edgar Bergen
Robert Young
Meredith Wilson
Fanny Brice
Hanley Stafford
Alice Faye
Frank Morgan
Father Flanagan
Cast of Family Doctor
Orson Welles
Judy Garland
Cast of Family Doctor
Cast of Blair of the Mounties
Featured Songs Include
There’s Honey on the Moon Tonight – Dorothy Lamour
Alexander’s Ragtime Band – Alice Faye
In this episode:
Frank Morgan tells Stories of his great Military Glory!
Hitler is being a Big Jerk again!
Czechoslovakia prepares to defend against the German Army!
The Reviews are in! The Mercury Theater is a Great Success!
Orson Welles yells at his Crew to shut up!
And More!!
Please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of entertainment from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
Soundscape 1938, part 23, from When Radio Ruled, offered without further commentary for your entertainment and education. But mostly for your entertainment.
The Episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live August 1 through August 28, 1938.
Starring:
Cast of Blair of the Mounties
Orson Welles
Al Jolson
Irving Berlin
Cast of The Shadow
Seabiscuit
Charlie McCarthy
Nelson Eddy
Edward Arnold
Edgar Bergen
Ella Logan
Rudy Vallee
Featured Songs Include
Marie – Tommy Dorsey Orchestra
My Bonnie – Ella Logan
Heatwave – Ethel Merman
My Lucky Star Medley – Rudy Vallee and his Orchestra
Automobile Theme Song Medley – Rudy Vallee and his Orchestra
In this episode:
Irving Berlin Sings!
Charlie McCarthy becomes a banker!
Big League Woman’s Softball!
Rudy Vallee Sings Jingles about 1938 Cars!
The Munich Crisis!
And More!!
Please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of entertainment from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
This episode starts out solemn with references to the marauding Japanese and unreasonable bully Nazis but ends with lots of laughs thanks to Charlie McCarthy and Friends.
It consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live July 3 through July 31, 1938.
My personal OTR collection contains thousands of hours of old time radio I use to create the year by year historical When Radio Ruled documentaries, and as I listen to each episode I extract the most interesting and entertaining bits and create a best of reel as a reference for when writing the script. And that’s what you are about to hear, part of that best of reel, a one hour chunk of really great audio artifacts from 1938.
This episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live June 22 through July 3, 1938.
Starring:
Joe Lewis
Max Schmeling
Fred Allen
Art Moger
Portland Hoffa
Harry Von Zell
Orson Welles
Jack Benny
Don Wilson
Phil Harris
Mary Livingstone
Andy Devine
The Cast of the Lone Ranger
L.A. “Speed” Riggs
Georgie Jessel
Norma Talmadge
The Cast and Musicians of The RCA Victor Campus Club
Featured Songs include:
Honey on the Moon – Town Hall Quartet
You Couldn’t be Sweeter – Phil Harris
That Was Love Sez My Heart – Mary Livingstone
Rings on her Fingers – The Merry Macs
In this episode:
Joe Lewis versus Max Schmeling!
Speed Riggs reveals Tobacco Auctioneer Secrets!
Mary Livingstone Sings!
Hot Swing from The Campus Club!
And More!!
Please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of entertainment from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
This episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live June 4 through June 19, 1938.
Starring:
The Cast of Colombia Workshop
Fred Allen
Ray Smith
Portland Hoffa
Harry Von Zell
Peter Van Steeden
Don Wilson
Jack Benny
Eddie “Rochester” Anderson
Phil Harris
Don Wilson
Kenny Baker
Mary Livingston
Joan Bennett
Featured Songs include:
Cry Baby Cry – Town Hall Quartet
Serenade in the Night – Connie Boswell
Don’t Be That Way – Meredith Wilson Orchestra
Second Hand Rose – Fanny Brice
In this episode:
Jack Benny and Joan Bennett Shoot their Movie!
What’s a Mikado? Kenny Baker wants to Know!
Fanny Brice sings one of her greatest hits!
And More!!
Please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of entertainment from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
Soundscape 1938, part 19, from When Radio Ruled, offered without further commentary for your entertainment and education. But mostly for your entertainment.
This episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast live May 26 through June 1 1938.
Starring:
Robert Young
Fanny Brice
Hanley Stafford
The Cast of Columbia Workshop
Georgie Jessel
Mary Livingston
Don Wilson
Kenny Baker
Phil Harris
Eddie “Rochester” Anderson
Jack Benny
Andy Devine
Agnes Moorehead
Orson Welles
Fred Allen
The Mighty Allen Art Players
Featured Songs include:
I was a Flora Dora Baby – Fanny Brice
Love Please Don’t Tell on Me medley – The Merry Macs
In this episode:
Rochester plays Leading Lady as Jack Benny rehearses for his new film!
The Shadow Confronts The Creeper!
A Vox Pop parody from Fred Allen!
And More!!
Please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of entertainment from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
Edgar Bergen redecorates Charlie’s bedroom behind his back!
And More!!
So please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of entertainment from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
The Soundscape series is a happy side effect of the research phase for the When Radio Ruled Historical Documentary Podcasts.
I listen to hundreds of hours of radio shows in order to create the year by year historical When Radio Ruled documentaries, and as I listen I extract the most interesting and entertaining bits and create a best of reel as a reference when writing the script. And that’s what you are about to hear, a one hour chunk of really great audio artifacts from 1938.
This episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast February 6 through February 13, 1938.
Featuring:
Georgie Jessel
Norma Talmadge
Josephine Starr
Gus Edwards
Eddie Cantor
The Cast of The March of Time
Frank Morgan
Fanny Brice
Jack Benny
Robert Taylor
Mary Livingston
Featured Songs Include:
Rhythm in your nursery rhyme – Georgie Jessel
School Days – Georgie Jessel
Summertime – Deanna Durbin
In this episode we get to meet the great vaudeville producer Gus Edwards
March of Times dramatizes the Roosevelt Second to None Naval policy, and the purge of German Army by Adolf Hitler.
Jack Benny and Robert Taylor play a Violin and Cello Duet, complete with vaudeville comedy patter.
Frank Morgan and Fanny Brice bring the funny, pint size Josephine Starr brings a voice as big as all outdoors, some incredible 3 part close harmony, and more.
So please come with me on the time machine to the year 1938 and be entertained by these giants of entertainment from long ago, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
I listen to hundreds of hours of radio shows in order to create the year by year historical When Radio Ruled documentaries, and as I listen I extract the most interesting and entertaining bits and create a best of reel as a reference when writing the script. And that’s what you are about to hear, a one hour chunk of really great audio artifacts from 1938.
This episode consists of a curated collection of Old Time Radio Clips originally broadcast January 30 through February 06, 1938.
Featuring:
Josephine Starr
Eddie Cantor
The Cast of The March of Time
Jack Benny
Eddie “Rochester” Anderson
Phil Harris and his Orchestra
Mary Livingston
Don Ameche
Charlie McCarthy
Edgar Bergen
Marlene Dietrich
The Stroud Twins
Featured Songs Include:
What are you doing the rest of your life? – Eddie Cantor
Stormy Weather – Maureen O’Connor
Oil Gusher – Raymond Scott and his Orchestra
Always – Deanna Durbin
Bie Mir Bist Du Schoen – Kenny Baker
Keep Muddling Through – Don Ameche and Dorothy Lamour
My Heart is Taking Lessons – Dorothy Lamour
In this episode, Charlie McCarthy gets a dog. What is life without a dog? We hear some recreated current events of 1938 from March of Time. There’s a great radio play love story featuring Don Ameche and Marlene Dietrich, the same Marlene Dietrich who later flirts with both Charlie McCarthy and Edgar Bergen. This episode is a lot of fun.
The Soundscape series is a happy side effect of the research phase for the When Radio Ruled Historical Documentary Podcasts.
This episode consists of a curated collection of Clips originally broadcast January 16 through January 3, 1938.
Featuring:
Georgie Jessel
Norma Talmadge
Josephine Starr
Eddie Cantor
Pinky Tomlin
Bert Kalmar
Harry Ruby
Lee Wiley
Don Ameche
Charlie McCarthy
Edgar Bergen
Nelson Eddy
Alice Brady
Dorothy Lamour
Featured Songs Include:
Bei Mir Bist Du Shoen – Georgie Jessel
When You Dream About Hawaii – Georgie Jessel
The Doll’s Song – Josephine Starr
Bei Mir Bist Du Shoen – Eddie Cantor
Mama, I wanna make rhythm – The Galley Sisters
Love Walked Right In – Kenny Baker
Broadway’s Gone Hawaii – Dorothy Lamour
So please take the time machine with me to the year 1938 and be entertained by these voices from the past, alive again through the magic of the theater of the mind.
In the previous episode, 1938 part 1, we looked at the political situation across the world. The coming confrontation between countries trying to provoke war and countries wishing to avoid it. How Hitler, Mussolini, Tojo, Franco, and Stalin created fear and suffering. How the USA, Britain, France, and the smaller democracies tried to keep free and out of war through appeasement and diplomacy while building up their defenses just in case.
To tell the truth, last episode was dark. Not a lot happened to be optimistic or hopeful about. Kind of a Bummer.
Invasions and threats of war are the dark cloud over the whole year. This episode is about some of the distractions used to forget about the scary stuff going on in Europe and Asia. What a relief it must have been to forget the Hitlers of the world and talk about the Joe Louis fight or the Seabiscuit race. The first full length animated movie! Is baseball still baseball if it’s played at night under artificial light? Can a car really go that fast? Did you hear about the latest thing those scientist invented? What will those eggheads think of next?
The Jack Benny show made Phil a huge star. Even though Phil would go on to do more films and have his own radio shows, and tour the country with his band, and appear on television and build a real estate empire he would always be known first and foremost for his Jack Benny years.
What you are about to hear are a series of musical selections Phil and his orchestra played live on Jack Benny’s Jello program in 1938.
Some are instrumentals and some feature Phil’s distinctive vocals, but all of them bring a joy and a bounce that will carry you through your day. So much fun to listen to. Enjoy Phil Harris and his orchestra playing live from 1938.
Old Time Radio’s Jack Benny show was a sitcom disguised as a variety show.
The cast used their real names, or rather their real stage names, but they all played characters unlike themselves. Characters of diverse comic points of view, each character contrasted with the others. Each funny in their own way and all together a delightful mix of contrasting attitudes and motivations.
rJack Benny was the center of this comic universe. He portrayed a cheapskate, self centered scardy cat who imagined himself a rugged ladies man.
Jack’s real life wife, Mary Livingston, played Jack’s sassy gal pal, boy crazy but not easily impressed by the rich and famous.
Band leader Phil Harris was cast as a drunken, womanizing, musical man about town. More talent than brains and care free.
Tenor vocalist Dennis Day presented as a simple minded momma’s boy. Innocent and child like.
Announcer Don Wilson was the adult in the room, often the object of fat jokes, but treating all with affection and respect. Almost a big brother figure.
The formula for the show was to move back and fourth between the world of putting on a half hour musical/variety radio show and the interpersonal world between the characters.
As you might expect, these characters endeared themselves to their listeners. It was fun listening to the real Jack Benny playing the radio character Jack Benny who was portraying some character in a radio play. It was fun to hear radio Phil Harris pretend to not know anything about music. It was funny when radio Dennis Day believed everything he was told, or Radio Mary recounted the story of a disastrous date.
These moments were broken up with songs from Phil and Dennis, sometimes Mary, and comical Jello commercials from Don. Sometimes sketches with guest stars who in most cases also played themselves in encounters with radio Jack Benny, like the time Barbara Stanwyck rehearsed a radio play with Jack or the time Orson Welles came by to give Jack acting lessons.
In truth, the characters the cast portrayed became so well known and loved that they could stand alone, outside the variety show world.
In early 1940 Jack and his writers did just that. For an entire month, the Jack Benny radio characters were sent on a fictional ski vacation to Yosemite.
The Jack Benny Radio shows February 4, 11, 18, and 25 1940 presented the trip to and the adventures at Yosemite starring the Jack Benny Gang.
Although presented episodically because of Jack’s half hour time slot, these four shows are a single radio play running approximately 80 minutes. It is a radical break from the Jack Benny formula, and adds layers of nuance to the characters as these actors get to really act in the longer more sustained narrative involving these characters.
And that’s what you are about to hear, the entire radio play cut together with commercials etc. edited out in order to focus on the story and maintain pacing.
Believe me, this is good stuff. Jack Benny and the Gang go to Yosemite parts 1, 2, 3, & 4.
Best known today as the third angle in the Bob Hope Bing Crosby road pictures romantic triangles, or perhaps as the sarong wearing eye candy in several other films, Dorothy Lamour started out as a big band singer.
Appearing weekly on the Charlie McCarthy show afforded Dorothy opportunities to remind audiences of her musical roots, and her lovely expressive voice.
And that’s what this episode is all about. For your enjoyment, Here is a delightful collection of tunes sung live by Dorothy Lamour on the radio in 1938.
This is the second year in a row that Charlie McCarthy has proven himself the greatest lover in Hollywood, or anywhere else for that matter.
Among those that Charlie McCarthy charmed are the some of the most accomplished and beautiful women of his time. Some of them tried to resist, some didn’t bother, in the end they were all putty in Charlie’s hands. The previous year, 1937, Charlie McCarthy had earned quite a reputation as an irresistable bounder and cad. His list of conquests included Olympic Skater turned film star Sonya Henie as well as famous movie stars Carol Lombard, Glenda Farrell, and Bette Davis. Charlie’s torrid affair with Sex Siren Mae West and her guest appearance on his show caused a great scandal, resulting in Mae West being banned from network radio for many years. Charlie emerged a more infamous lover than ever. Such is society’s unfair double standard.
Judy Garland was born Frances Gumm in 1922, and soon revealed a talent for song and dance. Her first public performance was when she was just 2 and a half years old, singing jingle bells at a Christmas pageant.
Her father was a successful vaudevillian with Judy and her sisters following in his footsteps, touring a singing act “The Gumm Sisters” in the waning days of Vaudeville.
When sound came to movies, so did song and dance acts like the Gumm sisters. The act moved to the big screen in early Vitaphone musical revues with seven year old Judy sometimes billed as Baby Gumm.
Fast forward to 1938, now 16 years old and being groomed for film stardom recently starring with Mickey Rooney in the very popular “Love Finds Andy Hardy “.
Judy, as a rule, did not appear on radio. She was too busy and important for that.
Except for The Good News program, which was created by Judy’s film studio MGM to feature MGM stars, movies, songs, and to convince their listeners to see MGM films in the theater.
As one of MGM’s newest stars, Judy dutifully appeared on a handful of the Good News programs in 1938 as their musical guests.
This collection of songs is from those appearances, 16 year old Judy Garland and her magnificent voice performing live 1n 1938. You are in for a treat.
Its time again to celebrate the holiday season and all it stands for with a Christmas stocking full old time radio yuletide magic.
This very special episode stars Phil Harris, Bing Crosby, Alice Faye, Jack Benny, Mary Livingston, Don Wilson, Kenny Baker, Joan Bennett, Eddie “Rochester” Anderson, Rudy Vallee, Andy Devine, and many other makers of Christmas magic
And magic it is. The magic of celebrating Christmas with old friends from 1938. The magic of our imagination. The magic of the golden age of radio. The magic of Santa Claus. The magic of the Jesus story. The magic of the subtle changes within ourselves, all of a sudden thinking and acting more like santa than scrooge. At least for a little while.
Our Old Time Radio Thanksgiving menu is made up of:
A first course of The Good News show from Thanksgiving eve , November 24, 1938.
Featuring:
Robert Young
Fanny Brice as Baby Snooks
And the cast of the very popular Andy Hardy movies, including star Mickey Rooney, in an original radio play.
Followed by an Entre of The Jack Benny Show from just after Thanksgiving 1937, November 28, entitled “Jack Cooked the Turkey” where the gang talks about their thanksgiving day.
Appetizer and desert provided by Fred Allen, courtesy to the cold open you just heard and the cold close to come.
All in all a delicious and satisfying audio thanksgiving experience with zero calories.
This podcast is a montage of excerpts from old time radio shows performed live and broadcast December 14 to December 30, 1937.
Starring : Dr Arthur C. Christie, Dr Gilbert W Hague, Dr Kingsley Roberts, Rudy Vallee, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Jack Benny, Fred Allen, Cecil B DeMille, Slim Hoffman, Brian Ahern, Madge Evans, Fibber McGee, Myrt and Marge, Eddie Cantor, Jimmy Wallington, Jack Buchanan, Winston Churchill, Marlene Dietrich, and more.
Featured songs include Rudy Valle “Down with Love”, Gracie Allen “I love you from Coast to Coast”, and Marlene Dietrich “Lilli Marlene”
Mae West and Charlie McCarthy – Great scandals if 1937
This podcast is a montage of excerpts from old time radio shows performed live and broadcast November 29 to December 12, 1937.
Starring Cecil B Demille, Eddie Cantor, Jimmy Wallington, Rudy Vallee, Tommy Riggs and Betty Lou, Frank Case, Andy Devine, Jack Benny, Mary Livingstone, Kenny Baker, Don Wilson, Fibber McGee, Don Ameche, Charlie McCarthy, Edgar Bergen, Nelson Eddy, Mae West, Pinky Tomlin and more.
This podcast is a montage of excerpts from old time radio shows performed live and broadcast June 21 to July 11, 1937.
Starring Cecil B. DeMille, Don Wilson, Phil Harris, Jack Benny, Mary Livingston, Jimmy Wallington, Pinky Tomlin, Don Ameche, Charlie McCarthy, Edgar Bergen, Sonya Hennie, W.C. Fields, Dorothy Lamour, Robert Armbruster, Zasu Pitts, Hoagy Carmichael, and more.
Featured Songs include Mary Livingston with the cast of the Jack Benny Show “The Love Bug”, Pinky Tomlin “As Far As Your Concerned”, The cast of the Charlie McCarthy Show with Hoagy Carmichael, “I love you like my old felt hat”
Mary Livingston (a.k.a. Mrs. Jack Benny) of the Jack Benny Show
This podcast is a montage of excerpts from old time radio shows performed live and broadcast June 13 to June 20, 1937.
Starring Pinky Tomlin, Don Ameche, Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy, Dorothy Lamour, W.C. Fields, Joan Blondell, Rogers & Hart, Jack Benny, Don Wilson, Kenny Baker, Phil Harris, Cecil B. DeMille, Helen Wills Moody, Fibber McGee and Molly, Rudy Vallee, Fanny Brice, Charles Winninger, May Robson, and more.
Featured Songs include Pinky Tomlin “Ragtime Cowboy Joe Medley”, Don Ameche “A little of you on toast:” Rudy Vallee “We danced the night away”
Eddie “Rochester” Anderson from the Jack Benny Show
This podcast is a montage of excerpts from old time radio shows performed live and broadcast May 31 to June 11, 1937.
Starring Fibber McGee and Molly, the Cast of Texaco Town, Pinky Tomlin, Don Wilson, Jack Benny, Rochester, Kenny Baker, Mary Livingston, Phil Harris, Don Ameche, Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy, Dorothy Lamour, W.C. Fields, Constance Bennett, Ray Middleton, Natalie Bucknell, Cecil B. Demille, Errol Flynn, Frances Farmer, Chico Marx, Groucho Marx, and more.
Featured Songs include Pinky Tomlin “Tetched in the Head”, and Dorothy Lamour, Charlie McCarthy and Don Ameche with a Gilbert and Sullivan Medley.
American actor, singer and comedian Eddie Cantor (1892 – 1964) with child actor Bobby Breen on CBS, 28th March 1936. (Photo by CBS Photo Archive/Archive Photos/Getty Images)
This podcast is a montage of excerpts from old time radio shows performed live and broadcast February 21 to March 8, 1937.
Starring Father Coughlin, Douglas Fairbanks, Erroll Flynn, Rudy Vallee, Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy, Eddie Cantor, Jimmy Wallington, Bobby Breen, and more.
Featured Songs include Rudy Vallee “Let’s Go Slumming” and “Here in the Moonlight”. And Bobby Breen “Trust in Me”.
This podcast is a montage of excerpts from old time radio shows performed live and broadcast January 17 to January 31, 1937.
Starring Don Wilson, Jack Benny, Andy Devine, Mary Livinston, Buck Jones, The Cast of The March of Time, Cecile B DeMille, Rudy Vallee, Edgar Bergen, Charlie McCarthy, The Charioteers, Phil Harris, Eddie Cantor, Basil O’Connor, Jimmy Wallington, Charlie Butterfield, Irving Berlin, and more.
This one is a short subject, about 15 minutes long, starring Jim Jordan as Fibber McGee as in Fibber McGee and Molly.
Classic Fibber and Molly episodes featured jokes, gags, and situations that often repeated from episode to episode and became running gags that listeners looked forward to each week.
One of my favorite running gag is because Fibber can ever admit ignorance on any subject, When invariably asked if he knows anything about this or that occupation, Fibber not only knows all about it, he used to do it professionally and was the best ever at it.
And he bragged about his professional success using alliteration to great comic effect.
You’ll see what I mean.
Here, just because why not, is Fibber’s resume, 1937
This podcast is a montage of excerpts from old time radio shows broadcast January 1 to January 6, 1937.
Starring Eddie Cantor, Cecil B. DeMille, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Jack Benny, Phil Harris, Mary Livinston, Kenny Baker, Don Wilson, Al Jolson, Harry Von Zell, Jimmy Wallington, Edith Head, opening day of the 75th Congress of the United states, Tony Martin, Dinah Shore,
We are lucky that Soundscape #5 is featuring Fred Allen.
Fred was a legendary wit, his improvisational style and warmth made him a favorite in Vaudeville, on the radio and later on television.
His partner in show biz and real life, Portland Hoffa, was one of the most popular Dumb Dora character actors of her era, second only to the great Gracie Allen.
Before TV 