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"The grandest theater in the world cannot match the one between our ears. Radio provides the players and the plot, the mind supplies the rest."

Network radio in the United States really began when the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) assembled it's first line-up of stations in 1926. The Columbia Phonograph Broadcasting System (it soon dropped the word Phonograph and become the CBS we know today) followed shortly thereafter. NBC-Red, NBC-Blue and CBS, along with the younger Mutual Network, were to dominate the airwaves throughout the remainder of the Golden Age of Radio. In 1943 NBC was compelled by a court decision to divest itself of it's Blue Network. After the sale, it eventually became the American Broadcasting Company (ABC).

Network radio provided free entertainment and amused a nation during a decade of economic hardship in the 1930s, and bound the nation together during the harrowing years of the Second World War. (If you're interested in WWII news broadcasts, may I suggest you visit Echoes of the Past.)

In addition to news - the broadcasting of history as it happens - network radio often looked to the past for source material. A unique, and honored, series was "Cavalcade of America," sponsored through its long-run by DuPont. The program brought American history to life by presenting big, and little, stories from the nation's past. Shows were done before a studio audience and cast members dressed in costumes appropriate to the period of the story being aired.

Favorite Personalities

Fred Allen

The humor of Fred Allen, in many ways, has been forgotten in recent years. His shows, and his humor, were topical and very, very funny.

Allen's 60-minute "Town Hall Tonight" format was brilliant, so of course network corporate thinking killed the format after a few brief years. The hour long show continued for several more seasons, sans the townhall frame. Beginning during the war years, his 30-minute program in its various incarnations, highlighted his visits to Allen's Alley (and later a stroll down Main Street).

There is a wealth of Fred Allen information available on the web, including versions of his programs ranging from his very first, "The Linit Bath Club Revue" in 1932 to the last episode of "The Fred Allen Show" in June of 1949 (with Henry Morgan and Jack Benny as guests).

A biography of Fred Allen
Some Fred Allen quotations
More quotes

If you are truly interested in the humor of Fred Allen, may I suggest 'Fred Allen's Radio Comedy' by Alan R. Havig, a look at his radio career. I recently finished the copy I received as a gift. The book is entertaining and offers a unique look at Allen on the radio. The work at times is a bit dry and academic, and annoying in the several places where the author tells us he will tell us more later in the book (why not tell us now? -- or just tell us later). I genuinely enjoyed it, you might, too. On a four star basis, I'd rate it Three Stars.

There is a relatively new (published September 2001) Fred Allen book out that you might enjoy - 'all the sincerity in hollywood - selections from the writings of fred allen' by Stuart Hample. I devoured my copy. This book makes an excellent introduction to Fred Allen for those unfamiliar with him, and a wonderful way of getting reacquainted for those who know him. Perhaps the only flaw in this book is that it's far too short. This book gets Four Stars out of four stars.

Photo - Jack Benny & Fred Allen

Jack Benny

Photo - Jack Benny

Jack Benny was the master of radio comedy and the master of comic timing.

From the first broadcast of his first series for Canada Dry, Jack thrived in a 30-minute format. During his first few seasons, in shows for various sponsors, he slowly acquired the cast that would remain with him for many years . . . Mary Livingstone, Don Willson, Phil Harris, Kenny Baker (later replaced by Dennis Day) and a supporting cast including Mel Blanc, Frank Nelson, Benny Rubin, Sheldon Leonard and Bea Benaderet.

By the time Jello took over sponsorship of the show, Jack was a Sunday night institution, and would remain so until 1955 (and for several years thereafter via transcriptions). Jack's association with Jello was so ingrained that even though Jello ceased to be his sponsor after 1942, he could get a laugh with a Jello joke right up to his death in 1974.

In 1942, his show became a vehicle for Grape Nuts and Grape Nuts Flakes for two seasons. And in the fall of 1944 he begain touting Lucky Strike cigarettes. Jack Benny's Lucky Strike years are the best of the best in radio comedy. The humorous commercials became integral to the program. So much has been lost in recent years because over-the-air rebroadcasts of his show strip out the tobacco advertising for legal reasons. Often guest stars, including Humphrey Bogart, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dorothy Kirsten, et. al., would take part in the commercial hijinks.

The fun continued on Sunday nights until May 1955 when Jack ended his weekly radio series. His efforts on television (in a series, then on a special basis) continued until 1974. Another special scheduled for 1975 was in the planning stages at the time of his death in December 1974.


OTR Sites of Interest

-- Links reviewed and updated 29 Jul 2005 --

Member of "Old Time Radio Link Society" WebRing
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This page was last updated . . . 09 Aug 2006

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