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GM Radio Adventure Theater - 20000 Leagues Under The Sea (1977) Apr 30, 2009

Show notes

General Mills Radio Adventure Theater - The series had it origins in the meeting of two minds: the ad agency for General Mills at the time, Dancer-Fitzgerald-Sample was looking for a different means to reach a child audience besides television, which was decreasing commercial minutes and increasing costs; and Himan Brown, producer-director of the CBS Radio Mystery Theater, who wanted to introduce new audiences to the dramatic form on radio. Tom Bosley was chosen as the host because of his television recognition from a kid's oriented series, Happy Days. CBS chose to produce 52 original broadcasts followed by 52 repeat broadcasts. I believe they had hoped to maintain General Mills sponsorship during the complete 104 episodes, but General Mills dropped their sponsorship after the original broadcasts. The series continued for the next 52 repeats as the CBS Radio Adventure Theater.

THIS EPISODE:

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea(s) (French: Vingt mille lieues sous les mers) is a classic science fiction novel by French writer Jules Verne, published in 1870. It is about the fictional Captain Nemo and his submarine, Nautilus, as seen by one of his passengers, Professor Pierre Aronnax. As the story begins in 1866, a mysterious sea monster, theorized by some to be a giant narwhal, is sighted by ships of several nations; an ocean liner is also damaged by the creature.

CBS Radio Mystery Theater - The Deadliest Favor (08-26-74) Apr 29, 2009

Show notes

The CBS Radio Mystery Theater (or CBSRMT) was an ambitious and sustained attempt to revive the great drama of old-time radio in the 1970s. Created by Himan Brown (who had by then become a radio legend due to his work on Inner Sanctum Mysteries and other shows dating back to the 1930s), and aired on affiliate stations across the CBS Radio network, the series began its long run on January 6, 1974. The final episode ran on December 31, 1982. The show was broadcast nightly and ran for one hour, including commercials. Typically, a week consisted of three to four new episodes, with the remainder of the week filled out with reruns. There were a total of 1399 original episodes broadcast. The total number of broadcasts, including reruns, was 2969. The late E.G. Marshall hosted the program every year but the final one, when actress Tammy Grimes took over. Each episode began with the ominous sound of a creaking door, slowly opening to invite listeners in for the evening's adventure. At the end of each show, the door would swing shut, with Marshall signing off, "Until next time, pleasant...dreams?"

THIS EPISODE:

August 26, 1974. Program #139. CBS network. "The Deadliest Favor". Sponsored by: Budweiser, Buick. E. G. Marshall (host), Sam Dann (writer), Norman Rose, Marian Seldes, Dan Ocko, Ralph Bell. 52 minutes.

The Line-Up - Gas Station Robbery (09-23-50) Apr 28, 2009

Show notes

The Lineup is a realistic police drama that gives radio audiences a look behind the scenes at police headquarters. Bill Johnstone plays Lt. Ben Guthrie, a quiet, calm-as-a-cupcake cucumber. Joseph Kearns (and from 1951 to 1953, Matt Maher) plays Sgt. Matt Grebb, a hot-tempered hot plate who is easily bored. The director and script writer often rode with police on the job and sat in on the police lineups to get ideas for The Lineup. They also read dozens of newspapers daily and intermeshed real stories with those that they used in the show. With Dragnet a smash hit, realism in police dramas was popular at the time this show aired. Don't be caught without this radio show in your collection!

THIS EPISODE:

September 23, 1950. CBS network. Sustaining. A gas station robbery results in the attendent's death. The search for the killer is on. Jaime del Valle (producer, director), Eddie Dunstedter (music), William Johnstone, Jack Moyles, Sidney Marshall (writer), Parley Baer, Howard McNear, Bob Sweeney, Hy Averback, James Nusser, Herb Ellis, Sidney Miller, Robert Griffin, Virginia Gregg, Dan Cubberly (announcer). 23:15.

The Halls Of Ivy - New English Teacher (10-04-50) Apr 27, 2009

Show notes

The Halls of Ivy was an NBC radio sitcom that ran from 1950-1952. It was created by Fibber McGee & Molly co-creator/writer Don Quinn before being adapted into a CBS television comedy (1954-55) produced by ITC Entertainment and Television Programs of America. Quinn developed the show after he had decided to leave Fibber McGee & Molly. The audition program featured radio veteran Gale Gordon (then co-starring in Our Miss Brooks) and Edna Best in the roles that ultimately went to British husband-and-wife actors Ronald Colman and Benita Hume. The Colmans had shown a flair for radio comedy in recurring roles on The Jack Benny Program in the late 1940s, and they landed the title roles in the new show. The Halls of Ivy featured Colman as William Todhunter Hall, the president of small, Midwestern Ivy College, and his wife, Victoria, a former British musical comedy star who sometimes felt the tug of her former profession, and followed their interactions with students, friends and college trustees. Others in the cast included Herbert Butterfield as testy Clarence Wellman, Willard Waterman (then starring as Harold Peary's successor as The Great Gildersleeve) as John Merriweather, and Elizabeth Patterson and Gloria Gordon as the Halls' maid.

THIS EPISODE:

October 4, 1950. NBC network. Sponsored by: Schlitz Beer. Mr. bentley Brook has come to at Ivy College. He's quite good looking, and he's apparently fallen in love with Mrs. Hall! Ronald Colman, Benita Hume, Ken Carpenter (announcer), Sandra Gould, Jerome Lawrence (writer), Robert E. Lee (writer), Ken Peters, Helen Crutchfield, Mary Alden, Henry Russell (composer, conductor), Nat Wolff (director), Don Quinn (creator). 29:25.

The Fat Man - Murder Calls The Undertaker (1951) Apr 26, 2009

Show notes

The Fat Man"There he goes across the street into the drugstore, steps on the scale, height: 6 feet, weight: 290 pounds, fortune: Danger. Who isit? THE FAT MAN." Brad Runyon was the Fat Man, played by Jack Scott Smart. The series was created by Dashall Hammott and was first heard on the ABC network Jan. 21, 1946. J. Scott Smart fit the part of the Fat Man perfectly, weighing in at 270 pounds himself. When he spoke, there was no doubt that this was the voice of a big guy. Smart gave a witty, tongue-in-cheek performance and helped make THE FAT MAN one of the most popular detective programs on the air. Smart also appeared in The March Of Time (early 1930s), the Theater Guild On The Air, Blondie, The Fred Allen Show, and The Jack Benny Program. There was also an version made in Australia, syndicated on the Artansa lable, about 1954. There are at least 36 shows available from vendors. The Australian Fat Man was played possibly by Lloyd Berrell. Although not featuring J. Scott Smart, who really fit the part, the series is quite good.

THIS EPISODE:

Murder Calls The Undertaker (1951) - J. Scott Smart, Robert Sloane (director), Dashiell Hammett (author), Bernard Green (music director). 29:40.

Dangerous Assignment - Sunken Ships 7-12-49) Apr 25, 2009

Show notes

Dangerous Assignment - This thirty-minute international spy adventure featured Steve Mitchell (Brian Donlevy), and investigator of crimes in exotic locations. 60 episodes. Herb Butterfield played the Commissioner and Betty Moran was the Commissioner's secretary. Other cast members were GeGe Pearson, Ken Peters, Betty Lou Gerson, Dan O'Herlihy. The director was Bill Cairn and the writer for the series was Robert Ryf. The opening was the same every week "Yeah, danger is my assignment. I get sent to a lot of places I can't even pronounce. They all spell the same thing though, trouble." He would be summoned to his boss's office where he would be given his assignment; he would then fly halfway across the globe to save the day! The worldwide locations are dealt up with a feeling of local, and the characters that inhabit these far-away places with strange sounding names are solid and capably acted by veterans. Music is an almost harsh orchestra. Donlevy carries the plots with a world-weary and wary tone that makes sense, based on his occupation.

Beyond Tomorrow - Incident At Switch Path (04-11-50) Apr 24, 2009

Show notes

BEYOND TOMORROW was to be CBS's science fiction series. Three shows and one audition were transcribed to disk, but it's not certain if they were actually broadcast, despite announcements in newspapers. In the audition, the series title was BEYOND THIS WORLD and the audition show was "The Outer Limit". The first show under the series name BEYOND TOMORROW was "Requiem", a story by Robert Heinlein, which was later be done in DIMENSION X.

THIS EPISODE:

April 11, 1950. CBS network. "Incident At Switchpath". Sustaining. A fine story about two strange machines found buried deep in a cave. Theodore Sturgeon (author), Bret Morrison, Michael O'Day, William N. Robson (producer), Mitchell Grayson (director), Henry Sylvern (music), John Campbell Jr. (host). 1/2 hour.

The Devil & Mr. O - Hollywood Visitor (2-18-72) Apr 23, 2009

Show notes

THE DEVIL AND MR. O - A transcribed syndication of original broadcasts from Lights Out. With its premiere on the nationwide NBC hookup in 1935, Lights Out was billed "the ultimate in horror." Never had such sounds been heard on the air. Heads rolled, bones were crushed, people fell from great heights and splattered wetly on pavement. There were garrotings, choking, heads split by cleavers, and, to a critic at Radio Guide, "the most monstrous of all sounds, human flesh being eaten."

The Adventures Of Maisie - The Needy Orphanage (08-24-50) Apr 22, 2009

Show notes

The Adventures Of Maisie - Maisie, the first in 1939, was from the book "Dark Dame" by the writer Wilson Collison,who did decades of scripting for the silver screen along with Broadway plays and magazine fiction. From the first, MGM wanted Ann Sothern to play Maisie. She began in Hollywood as an extra in 1927. "Maisie and I were just together - I just understood her," Sothern, born Harriette Arlene Lake, said after several of the films made her a star. Throughout the 1930s and '40s, Ann Sothern and Lucille Ball, like many performers in Hollywood, had not one but two careers - one in motion pictures and one on radio. MGM Studios had created the series of ten motion pictures based on a brash blonde with a heart "of spun gold." Maisie, the first in 1939, was from the book "Dark Dame" by the writer Wilson Collison, who did decades of scripting for the silver screen along with Broadway plays and magazine fiction.

THIS EPISODE:

August 24, 1950 - MGM syndication. "The Needy Orphanage". Commercials added locally. Maisie and a wrestler battle to save an impoverished orphanage. Ann Sothern, Arthur Phillips (writer), Robert Cole, Elvia Allman, Frank Nelson, Harry Zimmerman (composer, conductor), Jack McCoy (announcer), Jeffrey Silver, Joan Banks, John McGovern, Peter Leeds, Sheldon Leonard, Tommy Bernard. 27:28.

Screen Director's Playhouse - The Night Has A Thousand Eyes (02-27-49) Apr 21, 2009

Show notes

Screen Director's Playhouse - From 01/09/49 to 09/28/51 this series was greatly enjoyed by the radio listening audience. It opened as NBC Theater and was also known as The Screen Director's Guild and The Screen Director's Assignment. But most people remember it simply as Screen Director's Playhouse. Many of the Hollywood elite were heard recreating their screen roles over the radio. John Wayne in his rare radio appearances, Cary Grant, Edward G. Robinson, Lucille Ball, Claire Trevor, Tallulah Bankhead and many others were on the air week after week during these broadcasts. Many of Hollywood's directors were also heard in the recreation of their movies. The President of the Screen Director's Guild appeared on 02/13/49, and Violinist Isaac Stern supplied the music for the 04/19/51 broadcast.

THIS EPISODE:

February 27, 1949. NBC network. "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes". Sustaining. A good story about a man who can see into the future, and can even see his own death! Bill Cairn (director), Cornell Woolrich (writer), Edward G. Robinson, Frank Barton (announcer), Henry Russell (composer, conductor), Howard Wiley (producer), Milton Geiger (adaptor), Paul Frees, William Demarest. 29:46.

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