The topic for the evening on Allen's Alley is rationing of canned goods. Once the guest star, Peter Lorrie arrives, Fred feels challenged. One Long Pan and Mr. Moto face off in a murder mystery to see which is the greater oriental detective.

PS: I'm still out of town, but had the chance to put this show together, almost without retrobot help. Thanks for staying tuned, but it may still be another week before I can get back into my usual routine. Don't forget to sign up for email reminders to get show notes, and to know when the podcast gets back to normal.

For a show from this era, the audio quality is excellent. Fibber and Molly get ready to go to Hollywood to make a movie. They are having utilities shut off. Fibber claims to be a "Lulu with a Lyca", (a good photographer). Song, Something in the Air. Fibber gets some acting lessons as the usual neighbors stop in for a visit.

Bonus Track: Benny Goodman. Dixieland Band. 1937. Also features Gene Kroupa, Teddy Williams, Lionel Hampton, and the vocal tallent of Martha Tilton.
I'll need to call it quits on the podcast for a few weeks. I posted some files in my public folder of my sky drive account. Click here to find out what is there. Basically archived shows from early in the Retro Radio podcast.

Please sign up for email notifications, and you'll be the first to know when the podcast will be live again.

The Chase and Sanborn Hour was hosted by Don Ameche. It featured the comedy talents of Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy, as well as the musical tallents of Nelson Eddie and Dorothy Lamour. The show featured variety that included a dramatic sketch, several musical numbers, and comedy.

After a couple numbers by Nelson Eddie, Charlie complains about his lack of pay from the tight fisted Edgar Bergen. I guess wooden puppets need some spending cash for the Christmas holiday.

After a number by Dorothy LaMour, Don
Ameche and May West do a play based on Adam and Eve. With a woman like May West as Eve, it's no wonder they were kicked out of the Garden. Funny stuff.

The bottom half of the show features more song, and comedy from a duo that I can't say that I recognize. For their day, even for this day, they have some pretty good bits. Of course, we haven't heard the last of May West or Charlie McCarthy.

Please sign up for email alerts for late breaking news about the show and extra links for subscribers.

Before our feature gets started, we first have a news flash from CBS News, on how the war in Europe is progressing.

Elmer Davis 290923 With Almost All of Poland Overrun

Lux Radio theater 390925 She Married Her Boss. Featuring Ginger Rogers as a secretary who has an affair at the office and ends up marrying her boss. Moving into his mansion seems like it might be a case of living happily ever after, but there are step children to contend with. Can the new bride win over the kids as easily as she won over her husband?

The show is a little long today, so no bonus tracks.

I'll need to clear older shows from the server this weekend, to keep things from getting too full. I'm trying to work on a way to post older shows, and reactivate the download links. Keep listening and reading show notes to see how that project is developing.

When George has his favorite cowboy magazine delivered to the wrong house, Rita Hayworth shows up to exchange the correct magazines that were mixed up. She is led to believe that the magazine was for a little boy. After the misunderstandings, Gracie learns that Rita ha had trouble getting a date. Now Gracie is on a mission to improve Rita's love life, but it may be too big of a job even for Gracie.

Paul Whiteman with the 6 Hits and a Miss sing, Why Don't you Fall in Love With Me? Later, Jimmy Cash sings, My Best Regards.

Bonus Track: Connie haines. Why Couldn't it Happen To Us?

PS: I've had some wierd connections to the web. My show seems to have uploaded OK, but let me know if it is missing the end, or has any other problems. I'll try to post it again.

The guest star is Madeline Carol, and Jerry has a crush on her, even though he and his secretary Flora seem to have a thing for each other. After plenty of jokes about dating, and nervous moments from Jerry, a play is performed about love in the Spring.

Dean sings songs throughout the show including: A Sunflower from the Sunflower State.

Bonus Tracks:
Frankie Lane. The Texas and Santa Fe. 1945
Johnny Mercer. My Sugar is So Refined.

Here's the reprise of the previous episode of Jack Benny. The grocery store bit is fairly short, but actually pretty good as Don Wilson seems to be doing a fairly decent impression of Chico Marx. Before we get to the sketch, The cast all make their entrances as if they were sleepy and tired. Jack has been busy making movies, Frank Black and Mary have their own excuses. Also we are entertained by a violinist who doesn't play too well. No, it isn't Jack. Finally, the last segment of the show is one where Jack makes radio history to recieve an award for his work on radio. The first ever to go to a radio comedian.

The audio quality is fair, mostly due to record skips, and some noise from the needle dragging. Much of the noise seems to be from later recording when an unknown transcriber took out the music tracks. There is noise from the needle dragging and hitting scratches through the short, silent gaps with no music being played.

Trivia: Besides learning about one of Jack's earliest films being made, there are several mentions of the Marx Brothers, including an impression of Chico. Jack gets in a good ad lib. In my opinion, a little better humor than his usual writer at the time. The writing and humor of Harry Kahn was great for it's day, lots of plays on words, old jokes, even for the day, but some of those jokes are so old, it's almost like hearing them as new ones.

Mary definitely had a different approach to her character back then. She isn't quite as sassy as she would become in just a couple more years. She comes across as being a little vacant in the head, and obvlious. Later she was less so, and always ready for a snappy comeback on Jack.

Frank Black, the tenor, began the image of a naive, boyish character. We don't see much of him in this episode. His type of character would be improved on when Kenny Baker would come on board in 1935, and more still when Dennis Day replaced Kenny.

Due to the music being cut out, we don't hear much from Don Besser. His speaking parts portrayed him as the straight man who Jack's jokes never seemed to affect. In his unflappable way, we would usually deflect the jabs, and have a terse comeback based more in reality than comedy.

The final regular cast member, Don Wilson is always ready to turn the slightest play on words into a Jello commercial. He does more character acting in his early days. He did work on other shows all through his career, but once teamed up with Jack, he would stay on as a cast member until the finaly show on both radio and television.

Bonus Tracks:
Billy Murray. Starlight Moon. 1908.
Tommy Dorsey. Until the Moon Disappears.

PS: It looks like I'm late again with the Friday show. I also broke my theme a little. I'm in a transition phase with my collection between three hardrives, and a stack of CD's. I couldn't find the show I had intended to do, so I thought it would be a good time to play the second part of Jack's Grocery. Besides being funny, it has some historical moments in it. Due to it's shortness, with the music numbers being taken out, I decided to sandwich it between a couple of songs. A real oldie from 1908, and one that actually came after the time of this program, performed by Tommy Dorsey.

Miss Brooks has recently had a run-in with a fortune teling scale. She Is about to meet a tall stranger. Though Harriet Conklin had the same fortune, Connie soon learns about a new French teacher. Is there something to this fortune telling machine? Will this new man sweep Miss Brooks off her feet, and give Mr. Boynton a run for his money? There is a proposal involved, and Mr. Boynton is offended, but it isn't exactly what Miss Brooks had hoped for.

Trivia: Oddly enough, the exotic, and romantic French teacher is also played by Jeff Chandler, the same actor who plays Mr. Boynton.

Bonus Track: Phil Harris. You Can't Go Wrong Doing Right. 1948.

Classic comedy routines with Lou Costello getting mixed up on how words are used and pronounced. Have some fun as the usual character actors, Verna Felton and Mel Blanc, come by to get picked on.

The show also featured bandleader Freddie Rich, and singer Connie Haines. Music included in tonight's show is the instrumental, 'Holiday for Strings,' and Connie Haines sings, 'I'll Be Around.'

Costello wants to put on a play. Charles Laughton visits to joke around, and to help with the play of Robinson Crusoe. Lou gets to play the lead, and makes Charles Laughton play the side kick.

Disclaimer: Original commercials are left in for entertainment purposes. The show was sponsored by Camel cigarettes. Don't smoke! It's bad for you!

Bonus Track: Louis Prima. Now They Call It Swing.

Note: I've started using my email notification again. If you don't want a reminder, just unscribe, or send me a personal email so I can take you off the list. If you know anybody who might like an email reminder, pass along the email and let them know nhow they can get their own reminders.

In the first show, Operating the Pine Ridge Matrimonial Bureau 35-01-18, which was episode #2 for the Retro Radio Podcast back on May 14, 2007. . the boys have started a matrimonial bureau to try to raise
money to get their Jotem Down store back in business.

We continue with Retro#3, podcast on May 16, 2007. Matrimonial Bureau gets Swamped With Mail
The boys are busy reading mail from applicants and trying to give advice
on their problems.

PS: Hey, how about those early retrobots? I hope you enjoyed the extra trivia and background on the sponsor of Lum and Abner, and about the show history.

A live show from Camp Elliot, a Marine Corps base, on the Marine Corps Birthday. . Gracie talks about how her friends from her Uplift Society trade chores. Due to their activity, they need a babysiter. Gracie volunteers, and soon the mistaken George thinks the baby that she is expecting is his, and not someone else's little boy.

Jimmy Cash sings, Twighlight Sonnata.

Finally, Bobby arrives, played by Walter Tetley, and gets sassy with Gracie. The truth about the babysitting job is out.

Paul Whiteman, along with the 6 Hits and a Miss, performs, Mr. Five by Five.

Bobby has George worn out, so Gracie tells him a mixed up fairy tale about Little Red Goldie Locks. Between Herman the duck trying to sing, and Bobby, George can't wait until the babysitting is over.

A classic Burns and Allen sit-com. I may have told the storyline, but nobody tells the jokes like Burns and Allen.

PS: Sorry this is a little late again. It's been a hectic week for me.

Enjoy some real classic country music and comedy. Guest singer is Tex Ritter.

Playlist:
Red Foley - Night Train to Memphis
Rod Brassfield - Opens with a comedy bit about "Returning from Germany."
Tex Ritter - Some Sweet Day.
Wally Fowler's Oakridge Quartet - Old Blind Barnabas.
Red Foley - I Just Can't Keep From Crying.
Old Hickory Singers - Back Home in Indiana.
Minnie Pearl - Opens with comedy bit about "Not Looking at Other Fellers."
Tex Ritter - You Two Timed Me One Time Too Often.
Red Foley - Blues in My Heart.

PS: Sorry the Friday show is a little late.

Marjorie invites her friend to stay and volunteers Leroy's room for her sleeping arrangements. Personality conflicts abound between her and Leroy. When Gildersleeves tries to be nice to their house guest, the girl doesn't make it easy for him. Not to mention a few misunderstandings, and a minor battle of the sexes. Trivia: The real life town of Gildersleeves, Connecticut is 100 years old on the day this show originally aired. Whih means it's pushing 170 these days.

Bonus Track: The Light Crust Dough Boys. Cripple Creek.

PS: Hey, we're back after being gone for a couple weeks. I was out of town, and the rumored wireless web connection that was said to exist where I went, didn't exist afterall. I thin we'll be back on schedule now. Though I had to skip a couple of our Friday Specials, I'll continue with my normal rotation of OTR. This Friday is a fifth Fiday, so There'll be a music show coming up. Stay tuned. It'll be fun.

Today I'm rolling the clocks back to a early, vintage Jack Benny episode. It is a milestone program in that it is the first show of the season, the first show for his long running sponsor, Jello, even the first time he opens the show with the catch phrase, "Jello everybody." The audio quality isn't the best, but I give a borderline between fair and poor. Still, it is decent to listen to between the skips, scratches, and clipped out musical numbers. Because it is a bit short, I took some time to give a longer intro, and tossed in an extra song.

The comedy style is a little rougher than Jack Benny shows after 1936, and later. Jack is still on his first writer. I can't think of his name at the moment so rather than making a mistake, I'll not even try to write it. I'm sure it will come to me as soon as I hit the "Post this Podcast" button.

Mary comes across as a dizzy girlfriend. Wisecracking, but not as sassy as her character would later become. Jack seems a little more in control, more of a joker, and almost no sign of his later trademark stinginess and toupee jokes on himself.

It would be about 2 more years and Jack would have a major falling out with his writer, and at the beginning of his 1936 season he would pick up the writing tallents of Phil Murro and Eddie Beloine. Also Phil Harris would join the cast in 1936. The singing tenor is still Frank Black, and Kenny Baker would later join in mid season in 1935 and stay until the end of the 1938 season.

The main theme of today's show is to salute the new sponser, and so Jack sets up his small town grocery. There are plenty of gags about food in general, some directed right at Jello. Hey, gotta work those commercials in there too. Not to mention some goofy customers. The show went over so well that Jack reprised and continued the episode the following week. I'll try to play that one as well soon.

Bonus Tracks: Alice Faye, with Rudy Valley's band. Here's the Key to My Heart. 1934.
Judy Garland, with Rudy Valley's band. Comes Love. Late 1930's.

.

In 1929, Amos and Andy was a daily radio broadcast. I don't have the next day's show so we have to skip ahead two days and listen to find out that, 'The Efficiency Expert Isn't Working Out.' Andy wants to use his own methods in running the business. He jumps on the ideas to build his own job up, and make his life as president of the company better, but Andy pretty much leaves running the business, and doing the work up to Amos.

In these old episodes, you may notice the lack of theme music. There wasn't any at all until another year or two later. I still have a couple more shows lined up before we finally have some with the original Amos and Andy
Theme musi.

These shows are fairly short, and I have some time to fill, so we crank up the old time machine to take us to 1932 for the next stop. First a brief intermission as we roll the clock back, past the days of radio and listen to a tune from Billy Murray. They Go Wild, Simply Wild Over Me. 1918.

The Family Doctor, Episode 2. From sometime in 1932. Wanted, Bright Youngster. Doc Adams visits a local store owner and talks the store keeper into hiring some help. The man is a little hesitant. "You know how it is with kids these days." After a bank robbery, and gun play, Doc comes across a mysterious boy with a gunshot wound. Does he have something to do with the robbery? Listen in to the courtroom drama that follows and find out. Don't worry, Doc Adams has a way of finding a happy ending each episode.

Macie, played by Ann Southard, was a blond bombshell who was more than just a dizzy blonde. She was always willing to offer a helping hand to those in need, even if it got herself into trouble at times.

Today's show finds Macie in charge of a blood drive. A desperate donor reveals her need. She is an overworked secretary who needs time away from her over bearing boss. The soft hearted Macie goes to see what she can do for her, and uses her feminine charms to teach the boss a lesson in employee appreciation.

Bonus Tracks: Johnny Mercer. She's Got the Cutest Personality.
Peggy Lee. I Enjoy Being a Girl.

I don't have dates on the music, but they are from sometime in the 1940's. They seem to fit our theme for the day pretty well.

Fibber McGee and Molly's best years were probably those in the early 1940's. Previously they had been in Vaudeville, but broke into radio on a program called Smack Out. The two played all four characters. Don Quinn was their writer. The same person who would write the Fibber McGee and Molly shows for the first dozen years of the run.

To start out I actually have two fragments of the old Smack Out show. They are a bit scratchy, and cut off sharply. They give a glimpse into early radio, and at how Jim and Marian Jordan sounded some 10 years before our feature.

At first, Jim and Marian were unwilling to be on radio. When they did get their show, the team of Jim, Marian, and Don were paid a salary of $320 per week. Marian was a union pianist and was paid something like $150 of the total amount. Don Quinn was paid roughly $100, and Jim recieved the remainder.

Moving on along, our show has Fibber coming upon the opportunity to sell wrist watches. The Old Timer appears, bsed on the original character of Uncle Luke, but now voiced by Bill Thompson. After Fibber has an incident involving his closet, and Billy Mills plays, Fibber runs into Teeny. Teeny is still oiced by Marian, and even more sassy than ever. After Harlow Wilcox delivers the mid-show commercial, Fibber tries to sell his watches to the local jewelry store. Suddenly things turn serious when a bandit holdsup the jewelry store, making off with jewels but not Fibbers watches. It looks as Fibber might have some explaining to do. The Kingsmen sing, Coming Through the Rye. Fibber has to spend the remainder of the show in courtroom drama, defending himself. Fibber's neighbors try to come to help him, including: Boomer, Mrs. Uppington, and Gildersleeves. Will they manage to help? I predict that things will get worse before they get better. It all works out in the end.

Once again, it's the fifth Friday of a month and we have an all music show for you. The clock has been rolled back to the 1930's for a rare treat from Phil Harris.

In the early 1930's, before becoming Jack Benny's long time band leader, Phil Harris was well known on the radio. He often performed live band remotes from the famous Coconut Grove. Today's show is from 1933. Only a handful of these shows survive, and can be hard to find, even on the Internet. At this time in his life, Phil wasn't yet married. He would marry his first wife in this time during his Coconut Grove days, but the marriage would break up shortly after joining the Jack Benny cast. In these early years is when Phil first met Alice Faye, but they wouldn't marry until 1941.

Next, the time machine is launched for June 18, 1938. It's an early band remote from the Paradice Restaurant, one of the several locations where Glenn Miller played, and did live remotes. Previously Glenn Miller had been trombone player and arranger for several bands. He played with Tommy Dorcey, Benny Goodman, and others. Glenn Miller tried toform his own band in 1937, but it wasn't successful. A few months later he gave it another try and the band took off. This band remote from 1938 is one of the earliest recordings from the new Glenn Miller orchestra.

Playlist:
Phil's Theme song, (Nope, it's not That's What I Like About the South.)
Cop on the Corner, vocalist Leah Raye.
Harlem Moon, vocalist Phil Harris.
Love, Nuts, andNoodles. Vocalist Mr. Smith.
Phil's Theme (reprise).

The Butcher Boy.
Don't Break Up My Heart.
Cowboy From Brooklyn.
My Best Memory of You.
I Know That You Know.
Sentimental Side.
On the Alamo
Dipspy Doodle.

Time for some Summer fun with the Bickersons. They are traveling to enjoy a camping trip to Yosemite. Ride along and enjoy their misacventures as they argue their way there.

It's a short episode, so we have time to continue our theme of disfunctional families and listen in on Baby Snooks.

Bonus Track: Baby Snooks. After the Party. February 29, 1940.

After Daddy is the best man at an old friend's wedding, he has to leave early to take Snooks home. She isn't feeling well. After the party, Snooks asks daddy about weddings and marriage. After Snooks torments daddy, Gracie Allen stops in for a cameo appearance. 1940 was the year for the Presidential election, and Gracie brings up the topic of politics, plugs her own campaign for president, and helps daddy tuck Snooks in bed.

PS: Gotta clean up the old files. All my show notes are here. If anybody sees a show that has been removed, let me know, I'll repost it. Maybe I could post a re-run show on MOndays if folks let me know if that is what you all want.

Red Skelton salutes vacations in this classic episode.

First he and Rod O'Conner talk about Red's weight loss. Clem Kadiddlehopper is in a play called Homesick. Junior goes camping in the mountains.

Features Luraine Tuttle, Rod O'Conner, Verna Felton, David Forrester, Anita Ellis, Wonderful Smith.

Bonus Track: Bing Crosby and Fred Allen. Comedy short. 1950. Fred Allen had been unemployed at this time when he made a guest appearance. He also pokes fun at the advances in medical science. Fred even sings a song with Bing. Runs 9:47 minutes.

Disclaimer: This Red Skelton program was sponsored by Raleigh Cigarettes. Advertisements are left in for entertainment purposes only. Don't Smoke! It's bad for you!

TheAmerican Trail was a short drama series that documented milestone events in American history.

In episode 5, Samuel Slaters Machine, follow along as the inventor bring the first machines to the United States and launches the industrial revolution in the very early 1800's.

In episode 6, the Golden Ocean, ride along with a wagon train as it sets out along the old Cumberland Trail. The pioneers head for their dreams out west. They try to battle the elements as they raise their ocean of golden wheat.

Staying on a hillbilly theme, we have a show from the west. Well known character actor, singer, and side kick of cowboy films, Smiley Burnet is featured on this episode. The Western Theater featured a different cowboy gues star each week.

In the ranch house, Smiley puts his dentistry skills to work to help cowboys with tooth aches. They may not be willing. Smiley might not use painless techniques. It's all funny, and there's a story line to go along with it too.

Bonus Track: Bing Crosby. My Darling Clementine.

Hey, I know that Bing wasn't known for country western music, but he actually did a few. After getting the show ready, I discovered the date on Bing's song was 1960, and the featured show today is likely to be Sept 29, 1946. But I may be wrong on those dates.

PS: My storage space is getting close to being full. I can probably hold out until next weekend, but if I need to I might kick off a few stray shows from the server before then.

A rare treet. I had a hard time finding any shows with Judy Canova, other than guest spots on other Old Time Radio programs. Then I stumbled on a collection of 59 of them. The first two shows in the collection are staticky and skippy, but this one is decent. Judy Canova was a character actress specializing in her hillbilly roots. In the series she is always going between her rustic ranch to Hollywood high society. Her comedy centers on the culture shock and misunderstandings of the big city and small town life.

Judy usually opened and closed her shows with a song. Today she sings, Just Because. Then at the grocery store, she was passed a note to tell her she has a date that night with Mickey Rooney. Since Judy is something of a wall flower, she is excited about it and is off to get an evening gown. The rest of the show is a series of misadventures that lead to a final let down. There is a musical interlude in the middle by Eddie Dean.
Bonus Track: Jerry Colona. Bell Bottom Trousers.

A gang of thugs plan to rob a business that keeps lots of cash on hand. There's no alarm, just a watchman. They lure him away and get the cash, a haul of 3 million. The watchman, along with a doctor with an office nearby, are able to identify the frontmen who did it. The cops are then able to pressure them to the ringleader and to get the cash back. It's non-stop police adventure as we ride along with the Gangbusters.

No Bonus Tracks today.

PS: Sorry I missed the Wednesday show. It slipped my mind, and when I went to post a show on Thursday I had to deal with enough other mishaps that made it impossible for me to get one out. A flat tire on a van, jacks tht aren't the right kind. Power outages at home, low cell phone batteries, and important phone calls to wait for. I think things are back to normal now.

Today we're winding the time machine way back. This rare Jack Benny episode is from a time that doesn't get much play time. The audio quality is good, but the musical numbers have been snipped out from the original recorded transcription.

In some recent episodes of this era, Jack has made visits to the homes of Don Besser, his band leader at the time, and to Don Wilson's homes. Tonight he is invited to the Frank Parker home where we find that his parents are opera singers. Instead of talking, they sing their conversations.

Bonus Tracks.
Dolly Connolly. Red Rose Rag. 1911.
Benson Orchestra Of Chicago. Ain't We Got Fun. 1921.
Ben Selvin Orchestra. Vocals, Vaughn Deleath. I Can't Give You Anything but Love. 1926

It's time to take that trip back to the Autumn of 1939, and relax in the same way our grand parents, and great grand parents did.

First up some news from the European conflict, and the latest news of what Germany is up to now. Then a little lighter programming with Vic and Sade. It's an episode where Sade has committed herself to some extra duties at her thimble club. Vic and Rush have some fun with her as they help her out.

Finally, a variety of song, fun and dialog in a variety show. The Screen Guild Theater was a program that donated it's proceeds that would normally have been paid to the tallent, so retired actors had a home to live in.

Play List:
Elmer Davis, CBS News. The War is 21 Days Old. 39-09-21.
Vic and Sade. Wildflowers. 39-09-22.
Screen Guild Theater. Judy Garland, Mickey Rooney, Carrey Grant. 39-09-24.

Enjoy. I hope your Summer is going well.

It's a new season for George and Gracie. Though they were really married for around 15 years or so by this time, This is the first show where they appear as a married couple. The sponser has changed from Spam to Swan soap, They have a new bandleader, formerly it was Artie Shaw, but now is Paul Whiteman. The premise of this episode is introducing their new singer, Jimmy Cash.

The show takes on more of a sitcom flavor, and there is even a new maid for the household. Not to mention te first appearance of Herman the duck. Mr. Lee, the South American guitar player is back to talk back to George, but his role seems a bit smaller this season.

Gracie is as dizzy as ever as she secures their new singing tallent. She found him working at a grocery, and he has trouble making it to the radio studio to sing until he finished his grocery job. Meanwhile Paul Whiteman does a swinging version of Three Blind Mice, then later Gracie sings. All along the way, there is plenty of jokes to go around.

Bonus Track: The Kingsmen. The Hutsa Song. 1941.

Here's a rare treat. An episode of a musical program that was produced by the Armed Forces Radio strictly for broadcast to troops serving in the Pacific and also broadcast through London for those in the European theater of operations. Jubilee featured the top artists of the day featuring black artists. It's mostly music, but there's also some comedy and joking around.

Sorry, no Bonus tracks today.

Happy Independence Day. Freedom isn't free. Support our troops, where ever they may be.

Tonight we have a double feature. A comedy short from Amos and Andy, originally aired January 14, 1929. Followed with a musical interlude and a short drama from the Empire Builders.

Amos and Andy discuss the merits of having a slogan for their Taxi Cab Company. The Empire Builders was a drama that took place on the railroad. As the train travelled we see a bit into the lives of the passengers, or sometimes those of the people who live near the railroad. In this episode a young man tries to win back the heart of his girl who is leaving town for a singing job in Seattle. These are old recordings and the audio quality is a little less than ideal. A little staticky.

Bonus Track: Ben Birney with his Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra. Vocals by the Keller Sisters and Lynch. Side by Side. Exact date is unknown, but it's probably around the time that our radio programs take place.

Stan Freeberg had a radio show in the later days of old time radio. His style of comedy was in doing sketch humor. Much the same as the zany style as Carol Burnet. He used a cast of several other voice actors and actresses to do short sketches about crazy topics. He doesn't spend time in being an emcee, or in moving the show through transitions, you just go from one crazy scene to the next.

His show was only on as a Summer replacement and only had a 12 show run.

PS: Thanks for the continued support of the podcast page, and in downloading the show. I just recently cleaned some older shows from the server. Over the course of the next week or two, I will be deleting more shows a little at a time. With doing the extra Friday show I just can't keep the old podcasts out there for as long. Contact me If you want archives of all the shows on CD. I'm sure we can figure something out to send them to you.

Though my storage space is kept close to maximum, and my bandwidth is slowly increasing, I still have plenty of room for more listeners to join on the fun. Tell a friend, or share some of the shows that you've downloaded.

Happy listening.

Before we get into Phil's ordeal with convincing voters to turn out and cast their votes, we spend a few moments in the Harris home as Phil tries to figure out why the girls have such low grades in school. Phil sings, King of Babylon. Alice sings, You Come from Rhode Island.

Bonus Track: Johnny Mercer. Atchison, Topeka, and the Santa Fe.

A patriotic addition with two episodes of The American Trail. In the first episode, The Louisiana Purchace, in 1803, Thomas Jefferson is thought to be going against the Constitution when he offers to buy New Orleans. France responds by including the entire Louisianna Territory. A purchase that seemed insane at the time, but one that would greatly increas the holdings of the new country.

Then in the following episode, now that the Louisiana Purchase has been made, Thomas Jefferson commissions Lewis to go explore it. He gets his party together and sets out. Wintering in the Dakota territory, his guide leaves, so he takes on a new man and his indian wife, Sackejewa.

PS: This is the weekend to do some housekeeping and remove older files from the server. If anyone wants files older than last February, contact me about getting an archive of past shows on CD's.

My schedule is a little messed up due to flaky Internet connections. After posting the Friday show a little late, here's the Sunday show. Have a Happy Fther's Day and enjoy a visit with Jim Anderson on Father Knows Best.

Mom Anderson and the kids all have their own ideas for celebrating Fathers Day. I personally like Bud's ideas the best, but mom makes them come around to her idea of letting dad decide what to do. He really wants to spend the day alone fishing, but he lets the family honor him by letting them all tag along. As the situation turns into a logistic nightmare, the only humor is in the comedy oferrors that take place. And there are plenty of those. The sene between Dad and Bud talking about gathering firewood brings back memories of having that same conversation with my own dad wile on a camping trip.

Bonus Track: Benny Goodman's Orchestra with Helen Forrester singing, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.

PS: Support the show. Make a donation with the PayPal button.

Rogue gets a phone call to come to Menden to investigate. He is wired money and will be told what the job is when he arrives. He does, and finds that Everybody including the cops know, and thugs know, and his client is dead. As he investigates on his own he finds himself in danger. Will he manage to solve the crime without being killed? What's the big cover up any way? Listen and find out.

To continue our theme of Father's Day Fred Allen closes his season with this show where he jokes a little about Father's Day, strols down Allen's Alley with a question about cooking. In the last part of the show he decides to take up Ozzie Nelson on an offer to rent a room from him. Fred gets some much needed rest, but at Ozzie's expense.

Bonus Track: Ben Selvin. You Said It. Not sure what year.

PS: Just a reminder. There won't be any shows next week on Wednesday or Friday. Sorry, but even retrobots need a vacation sometimes. I hope you are enjoying your Summer.

Also, sorry this is getting posted a little late. My web connections are becoming marginal lately.

It's getting close to Fathers Day, and I thought I'd start a Father theme. Though this show of the Abbott and Costello show is all about horses, and horse racing, there are a few jokes about fathers worked into it.

The usual cast includes announcer Ken Niles, the Freddie Rich orchestra, singer Connie Haines, and excellent character actress Verna Felton. Plenty of jokes and routines concerning horses and horse racing.

Bonus Tracks: Spike Jones. William Tell Overture. Probably from the late 1940's.

I have been trying to work out some kinks in my recording set up. In recent weeks I've managed to find a couple microphones, but I can't seem to cut out the noise of my laptop's cooling fan. Grr... It's an ongoing challenge for me, and I think I may have it fixed soon. For now it's the best I can do unless I let the retrobots take over the show.
Easy for me, but probably boring for you.

In a week or so, I may have to go a short while without any podcasts. I'll be out of town and away from technology. So if you see me drop off the face of the Internet for a little, now you know why.

One final note. I've been getting some friend requests lately. These are other podcasters with podomatic.com. Plese check them out. Most give themselves a "Clean" rating, but I make no promises on how clean. There may be some that are not rated or have "Explicit" ratings. Visit them at your own discretion. Even those that are clean in nature may or may not hold the same opinions as those of the Retro Radio Podcast, but it takes all kinds of folks, and different strokes to make up an interesting world.

An imaginary evening on September 20, 1939. Imaginary because the episode of Vic and Sade isn't exactly known, but was sometime in September 1939, and the Band Remote from Glenn Miller was actually on August 10, 1939, but is typical of the music that might have been heard on a September evening back then.

Vic and Sade was a popular, and long running day time program. It featured countless characters, but the only voices ever heard were Vic, Sade, and Rush Gook. At least not until later episodes when other voice actors were included. Rush was eternally 14 years old and always trying to get Vic and Sade to treat him as a young adult and not a little kid. Sade was a typical housewife who doted on her men, but also upheld certain social airs with the neighbors. Vic had an endless array of pet names for Rush, had a goofy sense of humor, and tried to be a dependable husband and dad.

A brief news spot is brought by the service of CBS News and its resident expert on the war efforts, Elmer Davis. At this point in history, it all seemed to be so remote, but things would get much worse before it would get better. In September 1939 though, who could tell?

Finally, Glenn Miller brings us a live band remote from Glen Island Casino. Near New Roshelle, New York. Actually broadcast on August 10, 1939, but it's the closest I could find to our featured date to give a glimpse of what some of the musical hits were of the day. Play list includes: The Lady's in Love with You, Twilight Interlude, Ding Dong the Wicked Witch is Dead, and the Bugle Call Rag. Of course the third track, Ding Dong the Wicked Witch is Dead is from that brand new film that was just released in August 1939, The Wizard of Oz. And featuring that new, young, little girl with the big voice, Judy Garland. Of course, Glenn Miller's vocalist was Marion Hutton.

Actually we have a couple shorts that run just over 10 minutes apiece. The first one is from February 9, 1949. Bing Crosby had been sick and still has a sore throat. Doctor Groucho is on hand to perform a tonsilectomy. Bing and Groucho manage to sing a really old tune called, Night Time in Little Italy. Features Connie Haines as Groucho's nurse and Ken Carpenter is the announcer.

The second clip has Bing in much better voice. It's a show that was broadcast from Chicago, and Groucho, among other things, acts as tour guide for Bing. They team up to sing Groucho's well known hit, Lydia the Tatooed Lady, originally recorded in 1927.

Bonus Tracks: Bing Crosby. When the Blue of the Night Meets the Gold of the Day. Later is another song by Bng. The Donovans. To wrap up we have Connie Haines to sing, How Sweet You Are.

An episode called, 'Andy Helps Ruby Make Amos Jealous'. At least that's what I'm calling it. It gets cut short by a few seconds, but the show is pretty much there. I also managed to clean it up fairly well, but there's still a little noise from the record.

Just as the title implies, Ruby wants to win the affections of Amos. She would later become his wife in the series. Andy and Kingfish decide to call on her to ask her for dates and make Amos jealous. Does it work? Well, though the show is cut short a bit, we won't find out anyway. These early episodes ran as a serial and the story line continued into the following days.

A second show follows from Jan 14, 1929 called 'Slogan for the Cab Company'. It runs a little shorter, but cuts off in a way that at least leaves us with a complete sentence. The two friends try to think of a good slogan for their new Taxi Cab Company. This second show likely aired before the previous one.

In their early days the team of Gosden and Correll wrote all the material, and acted all the voices. This continued through the 1930's, and into the early 1940's when they went from a daily 15 minute show to a weekly 30 minute show. But we learn more about that in the last feature.

Afterward is a more modern feature. An Interview from the radio program 'Where are They Now'. Recorded over 40 years later, in 1971, Charles Correll is interviewed about being Andy, and how the team got started. I don't have any info on the interviewer. He only mention his name briefly at the end, and that he is originally from Detroit. Listen and learn how the team got started. Were they an instant hit? Who did which voices? What about women voices? A glimpse of the huge popularity of Amos and Andy in their early years. How did they develop the characters? And many more revealing questions about the show.

PS: I've added in a few friends in the recent days. I've had the chance to listen to a few of their podcasts. They are listed as clean. Enjoy, and realize that the opinions expressed in other podcasts do not necessarily reflect the views of myself or the Retro Radio Podcast. Check them out, and decide for yourself.

This is a longer show. It runs about an hour, so no extra tracks today. The actual title isn't known, but it begins with the bit about the telephone marriages, and inclueds the following. After a spoof commercial, the Town Hall News discusses the dangers of people who want to be married by telephone. Followed by a look at a government program to boost the economy. Babe Ruth's return to baseball. The Merrymacs sing, Sidewalks of New York in a swinging new style. After a commercial, and the Limehouse Blues played by the band, Fred Continues. His guest is the puzzle editor for the Boston American news paper. The Merrymacs sing a song about Jonah in the Whale, followed by a commercial.

Portland makes her appearance. She talks about Fred looking tired and worn down. The rest of the cast join in with their comments about Fred's looks. The Merrymacs sing, Down by the Old Mill Stream. Then after a commercial, the band plays, There's Honey on the Moon Tonight. Finally the Mighty Allen Art Players put on a play called, The Studios Predicament. A comic slice of life in Hollywood circles.

Here's one from late in the Golden days of Radio. The Real McCoys was also a television program. The air dates of the radio shows seem to be pretty much unknown. I found a listing of air dates for the TV program, and figured the date from that. This episode was #4 in the run for the 1956 season, so I backed into the date from there.

Also the shows of the Real McCoys seem to be not radio shows, but the soundtrack from the TV program. Still, there's good stuff here. Walter Brennan is Grandpa, Richard Krenna is Luke. Richard Krenna also had played Walter Denton on Our Miss Brooks, and Oogie Pringle from the 'A Date with Judy' program. He was even one of Mickey Rooney's friends on the Hardy Family radio programs. End of trivial info.

In today's show, The McCoys find themselves in trouble when they need $150 to meet a mortgage payment. They discover their only valuable asset is a rifle handed down to Grampa by his Great Grandfather.

Bonus Tracks: McKinney Sisters. Feudin and Fightin.
Rose Maddox and the Maddox Brothers. Bring It on Down to My House Honey.
Tex Ann. I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes.

PS: No quiz today. I don't have time. Happy listening, and thanks for downloading the shows.

A short collection of some of the best Swing music from the mid 1930's through the late 1940's. Various artists that include many of the greats. Glenn Miller, Andrews Sisters, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Tommy Dorsey, Connie Haines, and a few more. This selection runs just under an hour.

Play List:

1. 1936. Tiger Rag. Benny Goodman, Teddy Wilson, Gene Kroopa. 0:03:21. 0:03:21
   
2. 1937. The Goona Goo. Ozzie Nelson. 0:02:44. 0:06:05
   
3. 1938. Bir Mir Bis Du Shein. Andrews Sisters. 0:02:40. 0:08:45
   
4. 1938. What Have You Got That Gets Me? Dec 30, 1938. Glenn Miller . 0:03:02. 0:11:47
   
5. 1940. Blue Skies. Sammy Kaye. 0:02:30. 0:14:17
   
6. 1943. If That's the Way You Want It Baby Dec 9, 1943. Connie Haines. 0:02:14. 0:16:31
   
7. 1944. Accentuate the Positive. Bing Crosby, Andrews Sisters. 0:02:42. 0:19:13
   
8. 1944. Beat Me Daddy Eight to the Bar. Glenn Miller, Ray McKinney. 0:03:08. 0:22:21
   
9. 1944. Cow Cow Boogie. Glenn Miller, Ray McKinney. 0:02:43. 0:25:04
   
10. 1944. Rum and Coca Cola. Andrews Sisters. 0:03:07. 0:28:11
    
11. 1944. Shoo Shoo Baby Jan 20, 1944. Connie Haines. 0:02:03. 0:30:14
    
12. 1945. Sentimental JourneyJune 10, 1945. Francis Langford. 0:02:07. 0:32:21
    
13. 1945. Sunnyside of the Street July 29, 1945. Francis
14. Langford. 0:02:05. 0:34:26
    
15. 1946. That's What I Like About the South. Phil Harris. 0:02:27. 0:36:53
    
16. 1948. Can't Do Wrong Doing Right Oct 3, 1948. Phil Harris. 0:02:14. 0:39:07
    
17. 9999. In the Mood. Glenn Miller. 0:04:16. 0:43:23
    
18. 9999. Whatcha Know Joe. Tommy Dorsey. 0:03:26. 0:46:49
    
19. 9999. The Contenintal. Artie Shaw. 0:03:09. 0:49:58
    

In this episode Jim tries to teach the kids the merits of how it was in the Old Days. Making toys instead of buying them. The idea is tested farther when the power goes out. Everybody is made to lose out on a favorite modern convenience. Even father. In the end, everyone seems to adjust well except for... can you guess who?

Bonus Track: Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters. Get Your Kicks on Route 66. 1946.

Pay Attention! There will be a quiz after the program to see how well you paid attention. I'm serious. It's all in fun. Just click here to take this fun trivia quiz.

Watch for the Friday Special. It will be a little more special than normal. I'm planning a music night. It'll be a chance to catch up on all your favorite swing music. Well, OK, my favorites but I hope that they are yours too.

Command Performance was a show that was produced specifically for the troops and was broadcast over the Armed Forces Radio Service, AFRS. Only a couple Christmas shows were also broadcast to the general public. The humor is a little less censored, but still falling well within the clean classification. The humor and writing is geared for military men, so there are some veiled innuendos. Still, by today's standards for such things, we aren't even close to a PG, or PG-13 rating here.

Each week performers were brought on the show as requested from leters from the trenches. This week Betty Grable is the host. The show leads off with Comedienne and singer Judy Canova. Comic Robert Benchley offers military flavored humor, while musical support is by Harry James, and Jack Benny's entire cast runs the second half of the show.

Bonus Track: Andrews Sisters. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B. 1941.

Happy Memorial Day.

A Memorial Day Special. Features the first two episodes of the American Trail. Episode 1, Dispatch to New York, deals with the passing of the Declaration of Independance. It touches on some of its controversary among the founding fathers. Episode 2, Northwest Ordinance, the laws that permitted settlers to move out and expand the nation. A story of one man and wife who struck out to build their home. Though facing oppression, the Constitution exersizes its strength to protect citezens from tyrants.

Opens with a somg recorded in 1901 by John Philip Sousa. Stars and Stripes forever. Closing is another tune by John Philip Sousa, recorded the following year, 1902. The Liberty Bell March.

A special intermission by Red Skelton, as he explains the meaning behind the Pledge of Allegiance.

Join Fibber, Molly, and the gang as we learn about a big windfal of money that is to be coming Fibbers way. He brags to Mrs Uppington, Mayor LaTrivia, Teenie, and Mr Wimple about his plans to build, and the dreams he has to improve his property. Naturally, his bubble is burst as we all find out the error of his ways. It was all just a big misunderstanding over a newspaper headline.

Bonus Tracks: A spoof sponsor message about a product we all use every day. Also a classic commercial from Jack Benny and Mary Livingston about their sponsor at the time, Jello.

Riley has plans for a new house, but trouble getting a contractor to build it. Not to mention the doubts of his wife over the cost.

Notice: A new quiz has been posted relating to this podcast episode.
Visit my new Quiz Page
to try it, or take a different one.

Bonus Tracks: Spike Jones. Der Feuhrer's Face.

No Bonus tracks today. I had a bit of a slow down with some computer issues. My system with my back up files was giving me fits.

Here's a classic comedy from the late 1940's. George and Gracie decide to help out the housing shortage and take in a veteran and his family. The show is full of plenty of crazy mix ups.

The next best thing to mom for a kid is a school teacher. A teacher is like a mom away from mom, and nobody knows it better than Connie Brooks. She may not be a mom, she's just a single woman, but she is no stranger to the daily boredom of the classroom. And no stranger to dealing with kids.

In this episode, Miss Brooks is being selected by Snap Magazine for a Teacher of the Year Award. She isn't too keen on the reporter, but warms up to her enough to show her a little glimpse of her daily life, both at home and at school. The burning question of the day is, "Who exactly sent in the recommendation for the award and recognition for Miss Brooks?"

Bonus Track: Andrews Sisters. Three Little Fishes.

PS: As mentioned both on the podcast page and in the podcast, I've put up a page under my own domain to be an alternate web page to look at. It really just draws the feed in from the Podomatic.com web site, but I can format things differently. I'm also working on a couple new features that I can do on my own web site that I can't quite do on podomatic. As things develop, I'll mention it in the show, but as always, just stop by the podcast page for updates, or my personal page. I'll let the cat a little way out of the bag, it involves taking old time radio quizzes, and maybe even ringtones.

I'm always up for suggestions to make the podcast and web page an enjoyable experience. Leave me a comment, and let me know.

We lead off with a news report by Elmer Davis. It gets cut a little short, but it is one about conflict between the Germans and Russians over Iran, and Eastern Europe. As tensions grow, England and France try to decide what to do to keep peace.

The song in the podcast goes uncredited, but it is one by Ben Selvin. Song of the Nile. Believed to have been recorded in 1939, but I think the song is older than that.

As my retrobot gets frustrated, we are treated to a Fibber McGee and Molly episode of excellent audio quality, as well as humor content. Fibber finds himself as a newspaper columnist for the social column. He recieves threats from a disgruntled person who he wrote about. Fibber and Molly spend the show trying to avoid contact with him.

Tracks:

Elmer Davis 390919 Adolf Hitler's speech at Danzig. 3:56 min.

Ben Selvin 1939 My Song Of The Nile. 3:07 min.

Fibber McGee and Molly 390919 E0214 Newspaper Column. 29:52 min.

It's another Jack Benny episode. For some reason, he has quite a few of them, and other programs don't . Maybe it has something to do with being on the air for so long. I like this show better than the last one I did anyway. It has more about mothers, and less about horse racing.

As the show opens, Jack and Phil joke about how they are honoring their mothers this year. Jack plays the role of mother hen to the chicks of his cast. Mary telephones her mom from the show. Phil plays, Morocco. Jack and Phil talk about their next favorite topic, horse racing. When Kenny comes in he has to explain again about his mother hen theme. The cast share some riddles, but Don has a song about the sponsor. Kenny sings, Lost and Found. Guest appearance by mayor Mancel Walcott, of waukegan, IL. We learn that the Mayor's childhood nickname was Bitey, and Jack's was Droopy. Something about the lack of suspenders. Jack lets the Mayor have the lead in the play. Jack and Mary are married, the rest of the cast are her boyfriends. Will the husband stand for such unfaithfulness?

In the show, Kenny referes to Red Hot Mama. Somewhere, I have that song, but couldn't find it. That's the idea behind the Hank Penny tune.

Bonus Tracks: Hank Penny. Red Hot Papa. Tomy Dorsey with Vocals by Connie Haines and Frank Sinatra. Lets Get Away From It All.

It seems we played Jack Benny not too long ago, but just like his sponsor, Jello, there's always room for more. The audio is a little staticky, even after I touched it up. As happens with some of these old programs, some of the musical numbers have been clipped and lost.

In the scheme of things, this is Phil's first season. Jack and Fred Allen have been feuding now for about 5 months. Phil seems a little stiff, but it is just Jack trying to feel out his character, and how to use him in the show. The gang give Jack a hard time about his betting at the horse track. Everybody takes the time to put in their word to recognize Mother's Day. The play for the evening is about school days. Kenny Baker sings, Where Are You? Jack is the teacher. The cast members, joined by Andy Divine, are students who give Jack a hard time. After some class room antics, Phil plays, Riding High. Finally, Jack gives a small taste of the play they are to do the following week.

Trivia Note: In the school house, Jack asks a question about who the first president was. He hints that his first name is George. The answer he gets back is George Olson. To continue the gag, he asks about his wife, and a name is given. George Olson was a popular band leader of the day, the woman who is named is his wife. They both were on Jack's original show as part of the cast when he started out.

Bonus Tracks:
Tune Wranglers. I Can't Change It. and the Ozzie Nelson Orchestra. Swing, Dear Mother In Law, 1937.

PS: My computer is still having some trouble. As long as it holds up, I'll keep posting stuff. My Internet connection is still a little flaky, but as long as I hold a lightening rod, covered in aluminum foil in my right hand, while placing my left hand on my monitor, and holding my left foot at a 87 degree angle, pointing South by South West, stepping on a broken pop can with my right foot, remembering to keep my knees slightly bent, and hold perfectly still for the duration of the upload, it works. Usually.

Important! I'm having some technical trouble. If I can't get my laptop to squeeze out a few more ounces of life, my podcast may go on hold, or become intermittant soon. For a few days now, I've had trouble moving data to the Internet. It has taken countless attempts to simply upload this podcast episode. In doing so, I heard some strange, crackly sounds, like crumpled cellophane coming from my power supply. So far, the magic smoke that makes electronic machines do their happy little work is still in there, but I don't trust it. I managed to find an old power pack from my old laptop that is getting the job done and feeding the little fairies in my computer to keep on doing that old black magic that they do so well.

Bottom line, keep checking on me, but if my ship seems to have disappeared into the Bermuda Triangle of Cyber Space, you now know why.

Today's Tracks:
241013EddyCanter_DoodleDoDo_SingASweetMelody.mp3 3:14 min
260420SamAndHenryTelephoneCall.MP3 3:16 min
280717ThePresidentialElection.mp3 6:02 min
320001FalseWitness.mp3 14:31 min

Eddie Cantor was an entertainer from early in the 1900's. He started as a singing waiter, then was hired to be in the Zeigfeld Follies around the time of World War 1. he continued to be with the Follies all through the 1920's and made a fortune for himself, which he lost much of in the stock market crash of 1929. He would soon recreate himself and become a radio comedian with a career that would last well into the 1950's.

Amos and Andy started out as a duo named Sam and Henry. Today we have a sample of one of their Sam and Henry shows as they deal with some incoming telephone calls. As Amos and Andy, Amos tries to make sense of politics. Early shows didn't have theme music. Tuypically a radio announcer would simply do his air check, announce the time, and a brief introduction before the show aired.

Early radio shows didn't have a lot in the production departent. There was little in the way of sound affects and helping the listening audience to visualize the story. Our final feature today is from 1932. By the time The Family Doctor was on the air, musical themes, and more use of sound affects were common.

The Family Doctor was a well done series of dramas that ran for about 39 shows. It revolved around a typical, small town doctor of the day. Each 15 inute show is a stand alone show, but they do build on each other to tell a bigger story.

Today is a story about a theft of some money, and towns people that jump to conclusions. As Doc Adams makes his rounds, he catches all the gossip. Life in 1932 sure had a slower pace, but it wasn't without its social problems. Sometimes the doc even has a cure for that too.

OK, I know it's not exactly a Mother's day show, but mom's like Valentines too. As often happens in the Father Knows Best show, mom usually shines through anyway. In this show all the kids, and dad have plans to honor mom. They all make their own plans to buy her an orchid. When they reallize the overkill on orchids, the pendulum of fate swings the other way. I don't want to spoil the ending for you, so I'll just say that mom is happy at the family and the attempts that were made to make her happy.

PS: This weekend I'll have to clean older shows from the server to make space. Don't forget about my new page, if you ever have trouble reading the text on the retro.podomatic.com page you can click through to: http://heltsley.net/retro. Either that or give my PayPal button a click.

I figured out that if only about 10% of my usual listeners drop me a dollar every month, I could go pro. Or if everybody just dropped me just one little dollar per year, I could go pro. But if people don't,that's OK too. Having fun with Old Time Radio is a nice hobby to have, and share with others.

With the family at an outing at a baseball game, Gildersleeves gets to toss out the first ball, due to his campaigning for mayor in the upcoming elections. He leaves when he is given a note from Leroy, about his school principle, Eve. Gildy finds out it isn't about any bad grades, but that Eve's mother is arriving and arrangements are made to pick her up at the train station.

No bonus tracks today.

Barry gets the notion he is being hired on a phony case to act as a stooge. It starts with a carriage ride in the park with a brunette. She wants Barry to investigate her husband. A man with a gun tips off Barry not to trust the brunette. Now curious, Barry leaves and investigates the brunette. He sees a confrontation between the woman and her imposter husband. He also encounters the man with the gun. A private eye working for the husband. Is she really a wacky, two timing wife, or is there something fishy with the husband?

Red Skelton was famous for the characters he portrayed as well as his style of humor. This show is based on humor about dentists and features some of the best of Red's characters. Also featured are the musical tallents of Anita Ellis and the David Forrester Orchestra.

Red opens the show in his usual manner of joking around with Rod O'Conner. Anita Ellis sings, Love in Vain. The GI Dentist with J Newton Numskull, as he goes through his Army exit phycal. David Forrester plays, Without a Song. Junior loses his baby teeth. He just needs a little help ih having it pulled.

Bonus Track: The Andrews Sisters. Rum and Coca Cola. 1944.

PS: Red Skelton was sponsored by Raleigh cigarettes. The Retro Radio Podcast does not endorse the use of tobacco, including smoking. The commercials are left in for entertainment and nostalgic purposes only.

No bonus tracks today.

Features Frances L Bushman as Nero, and Elliot Lewis as Archie. Archie and his friend Minus talk over literary topics. Minus has bought a book. Suddenly, as they drive, shots ring out as somebody shoots at them. Nero identifies the book as a rare and valuable edition of Shakespeare. With Nero's help, Archie tracks down where the valuable book came from. A reward is expected, but who knew the literary world of bookworms could have such a dark and violent side.

Jack and Groucho are busy at a stiff competition. Who knew checkers could take so much out of a guy? They enjoy a little fun taking jabs at each others sponsor. Rochester tries to coach Jack on his checker moves with musical clues.

Little does the general public know, but this will be the last season with Grapenuts as the sponsor. Mr. Billingsley drops a hint about a future sponsor when he says, "LSMFT." Jack alludes to California being sunny. Apparently the current weather is anything but. The game gets rained out, and Groucho has to leave. Meanwhile Mary and Butterfly talk about fashion and men, and get ready to leave for the program.

In the studio, Jack introduces a murder mystery play. Dennis sings, I've Got You Under My Skin. Mary makes comments about Fred Allen's recent comments that Fred made on his show. The mystery begins with a few gags written by Groucho. Mary gets a little melodramatic. While bumbling around for clues, the show ends where it began, with a checker game in the rain.

Hey, it may sound like gave away the whole show, but there are some prety good gags that I don't have the time to tell about. Give it a listen.

Bonus Track: Ben Bernie & His Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra, with Vocals by the Keller Sisters and Lynch. Side By Side

A classic holiday special, just for Easter. The Great Gildersleeves is getting the family ready for the Easter services, dealing with reluctant kids, and social pressures to take part in the Sunday morning rituals. He faces the real meaning of the holiday in his own way.

Bonus Track: From a recording of the Grand Ol' Opry sometime in 1945, exact date is unknown. Roy Acuff sings, 'How Beautiful Heaven Must Be.'

Tracks:
1. Ben Selvin. My Song of the Nile. 03:08.
2. Elmer Davis and the News 1939-09-16. Tonight or Tomorrow Morning. 04:04
3. Artie Shaw. Alone Together, 1939. 03:25.
4. Ellery Queen 1939-09-24. The Mischief Maker. 25:19

A slice of life from September 1939. A peaceful time, but on the verge of war.

A personal note: In my own family, my dad was barely 7 months old, and his younger sister wasn't born yet. His parents would be just 37 and 40. Younger than I am right now. My mom and her younger brother were yet to be born and those grand parents would have been ages 27 and 35. The oldest of my aunts and uncles would have been 15. A couple of very young families with kids all either in school or toddling and in diapers, and more to come. Working hard as they managed to struggle through the Great Depression, and a future that looked to bring war soon.

Sit back and relax. Enjoy a few moments around your virtual radio. Kick off your shoes, grab a comfortable rocking chair and let yourself be taken back to join grandma and grandpa as they unwind at the end of the day.

Fibber and Molly get ready for the big Spring Festival Parade. Fibber wants to dress as a cowboy and ride their newly acquired horse, Lily. Molly plans to ride in a carriage behind them as they are Grand Marshals. Frank Nelson is the costume store clerk. Mrs. Uppington stops in to compare notes on her ideas for a costume. Billy Mills plays a perky, upbeat tune. Back at home, the old Timer visits and drops off Fibber's costume. Harlow visits to talk about the parade, and work in the commercial. Mayor LaTrivia visits to give a patriotic speech about the war, and become frustrated by the McGees about the parade route. Kingsmen sing, Keeping Our Big Mouth Shut. Mr Wimple stops by with his latest word on "Sweetie Face." Time is running short when Teeny has a quick visit. Plans have to change at the last minute. There's a problem with Lily... Hey, I'm not going to give away all the show details. Listen and enjoy.

Bonus Track: From a performance on Good News for 1938, Judy Garland teams up with Baby Snooks to sing, "Why? Because!"

PS: A personal note. I recently have been doing some major renovations to my personal home page. You can find the link elsewhere on the podcast home page, but here's another.

heltsley.net

While in the transition phase, there may not be a lot to see, but Check it out and watch it grow.

--Keith H

Excersize Tip of the Day
- If you are going to try cross-country running, start with a small country.

Eddie talks about the movies and theater goers. Eddie gets sentimental over his former singer, Deanna Derbin, and her movie career. Hattie McDaniel is on hand after her recent marriage and talks to Eddie about her experience, and that Eddie is just a little bit of a cheapskate. Dinah Shore sings, I'm Mad At The Moon. Oscar Levant, pianist, and self proclaimed genius of the radio show, 'Information Please' talks about what it's really like with his radio show. The Mad Russian gives both Eddie and Oscar a hard time as they have a battle of wits. Eddie wraps up, with a little help with Hattie McDaniel, and sings, Where Do Women Get Those Hats?'

Bonus Track: The Original Dixieland Jazz Band. Georgia Swing. Plus a quick shoutout for scratchygrooves.com a place with archived radio shows that feature music from the first 50 years of the last century. Scratchygrooves started in the mid 1980's and went up until only a couple years ago. Visit the web site for all the details.

Track 1: Ben Selvin's Knickerbockers - Damfino Name (est1922) 3:09 min.
Track 2: Will Rogers - Timely Topics 1923. 3:16 min.
Track 3: Sam and Henry - At the Dentist (04-20-1926) 3:13 min.
Track 4: Empire Builders - Columbia River (12-22-1930) 32:59 min

Just a selection of picks from the earliest days of radio. A little big band music by Ben Selvin, a sample of the comedy of Will Rogers, and the comedy team Sam and Henry who would later be known as Amos and Andy get us started. The main feature is the Empire Builders, a drama series that was based on the railroad and showcased various dramatic themes. Today it's a trip up the Mississippi River Valley to Minnesota. Then from the Dakotas on west towards the Great Divide.

Groucho talks with an interesting group of people that include a Father of the bride and Mother of the groom, who talk about the wedding plans of their children getting married soon. A butcher and a housewife. A bondsman and a process server.

Bonus Track: A few minutes in 1945 with Abbott, Costello, guest Frank Sinatra, and the rest of the cast. A little skit about being back in school.

In 1941, a new year begins, and it's a new year to start worrying about finances. Fibber and Molly make a withdrawal at the bank and to show off, Fibber takes it in a crisp, new $100 bill. When the two try to catch a ride on the trolley, Fibber drops his only quarter. Now he can't pay, since all the cash he has on him is the large bill, and nowhere to cash it in. Vodiodo McGee brags to Mrs Uppington about his glorious past, but still no change. After a musical interlude by Billy Mills, we find the McGee's walking home. They stop to chat with the Old Timer. They also spend a few moments chatting with Harlow Wilcox about the sponsor, of course, but still no ride. Teeny tags along, and Fibber tries to con her out of a few pennies of er pocket change. Not enough for a ride, but enough to make a phone call to get help from Gildersleeves. But first a talk with Mert, the operator.

The Kingsmen sing, I Hear a Rhapsody. After his failed phone call connection, Fibber has a run in with Boomer. He seems to have about everything except change for a hundred dollars. Will our heros finally make ithome? Will Fibber ever get change for his hundred dollar bill? Don't miss the ironic twist ending to this comedy.

Bonus Track: Ben Selvin. 1926, I Can't Give You Anything but Love.

PS: I took the older shows off the server. Starting this Friday there will be an extra show on Fridays. Once I begin that, I'll be taking even more off as I need to to make space. By the end of April, we'l only be carrying about 5 months or so instead of the usual 6 months. Just leaving a reminder for our web page visiters.

Family sitcoms of early radio and TV were squeaky clean and often more a demonstration of the perfect, ideal family with only hints of life in the real world. One such program was the Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.

Ozzie and Harriet, to me, seem to be a little more detached from what their kids are doing, compared to the Anderson's of Father Knows Best. The situations Ozzie finds himself tend to be more farfetched. For example, in today's show, Ozzie finds himself the recipient of a gift from an Arabian Prince. He struggles with how to deal with a messy camel, and how to get rid of it. Who else in the world but Ozzie could end up in a situation like that?

I know Jack Benny had some pretty strange pets. Carmichael the Polar bear, an ostrich, Polly the Parrot. Phil Harris had some strange situations, almost cartoon like. I guess that's the point. Those shows were more along the line of caricatures of personalities. Ozzie and Harriet were real people, really married, and the kids on the show were really theirs and not child actors. I suppose with all that reallity built in, they took advantage of some unreal situations to flavor the show.

Bonus Track: In honor of the real Ozzie and Harriet, we have a track from the Ozzie Nelson Orchestra. Not sure of the date, but the song is: 'Is You Is, or Is You Ain't My Baby?'

Enjoy.

Coming soon, a new show per week. It will mean only carrying 5 or so months of archived shows in the server, instead of the 6 or so I do now. I think it'll be worth it

George is being pestered by Sapphire to take an extended vacation out west. The plan is to take the bus. But what's this? Kingfish hears that Andy has won a car in a raffle. Naturally, he schemes to get it for his trip, and leave Andy thinking he didn't win anything. Poor Andy, will he ever learn to not trust the Kingfish?

Bonus Tracks: Artie Shaw. Born to Swing, 1937. and Louis Armstrong. Sweet Little Papa, 1926.

Liz sets out to make friends with the next door neighbor, known as the General. He may be old, but he is wearing her out by reliving his old military days. Soon she is out to find a new friend to keep him busy.

Bonus Track: A few moments with Groucho, Interviewing a SeaBee. November 1950.

Announcements: Soon, probably in April, I will be adding a Friday show, for a total of three shows per week. For the Friday show, there won't be any bonus tracks, or extra music, unless the featured show is musical in nature. Friday nights will be the spot for all non comedy shows. Detective, mystery, drama, and others.

Tune it in and let me know what you think. Also I'm always open to comments, questions or complaints on any of the regular shows. Let me know if there is something in the show to do different, include, or just stop.

How do you like:
*the Retrobots?
*Keith's comments.
*The Bonus Tracks.
*Opening or closing credits.

Like it, hate it, somewhere in the middle, never though about or don't care.

Help me make the podcast better.

A final note about adding the new shows. To make room for them, I'll have to clean off older shows that are 4 to 5 months old. Rather than the way I do it now with those shows that are 5 to 6 months old.

Stay tuned in, share us with a friend.

A long show, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis were asked by the sponsors to do an extra few minutes with their popular comedy show, so we get an extra 15 minutes. Guest Frank Sinatra sings and has fun with Jerry. They do a skit about school days, as well as the usual style of comedy of Dean and Jerry.

Bonus Tracks: none today.

Through the Summer months of 1940 the Burns and Allen show was transitioning from a stage show to a situation comedy form. In their early days George andGracie didn't let on that they were married, so often the jokes would involve them seeing other people. The story in today's show actually continues from the previous pgrogram. George had a falling out with a girlfriend who took him to court. He has to pay his court costs, but Gracie thinks she can get him out of it. In doing so, she runs up a bill for long distance telephone calls that far exceed any legal bills he has.

Bonus track: The Ben Selvin Orchestra, Yes We Have No Bananas. 1923.

The season from 1936 to 1937 was a big year for Jack Benny. Kenny Baker was still on the show, Phil Harris had just started, and later in the season Rochester would make his appearance. The feud with Fred Allen was just getting started, in fact when today's show was done, it had been going on for a month and a half, and they hadn't even consulted each other about it yet. It would still be a couple more weeks before they finally got together to talk about the feud that would last for years to come.

The famous feud began when Fred Allen had a young boy on his show to play his violin. He made a snide, but friendly, remark about Jack Benny's playing ability. Jack knew that Fred would be listening, so he made comments back at Fred. The verbal volleys went on and found Jack Benny being challenged to play Schubert's 'The Bee,' Well, today isn't that show, but it is mentioned.

Our last podcast was from the Lux Radio Theater with Jack Benny and Mary. In today's show you get to see the aftermath of that experience.

Bonus Tracks: In honor of Jack Benny's western theme, The Coon Creek Girls from 1938. Old Uncle Doodey. OK, I couldn't resist. After the show is a special treat. Jack Benny's rendition of the Bee. It was played the following week.

One comment about Jack Benny
s performance. He was often heard scratching out notes on his violin and driving his music teacher nuts in shows that would air some ten years later. Listen, he does a very good job of it. You will also notice a little extra ragtime tossed in. It goes back to his vaudeville days when he was part of a violin/piano duet billed as, "From Classical to Ragtime." This is probably much the same style and quality that he played before his World War Navy service and his switch to comedy.

Here's a long one, but worth the listen. Cecil B. DeMill introduces Jack and Mary, and tells a little about how they met. Mostly true, but with some jokes tossed in. Jack plays the part of Brewster. Mary is the daughter of a lady who owns a theatrical boardinghouse where Jack lives, and is behind on rent. Jack has big plans and dreams about what he would do if he had money. He is about to find out. A rich uncle leaves him a fortune. to claim it Jac has to spend a million dollars within a year. He can't tell anybody why he is spending all the money. Prime situations for lots of funny situations. Jack and Mary don't let us down, but he is finding that spending that much money is more of a challenge than he figured on.

Bonus Tracks: None today. It's a long show, so we hop right on it.

Red Skelton is an aspiring salesman who wants to be a success. All he seems to get is doors slammed in his face. With a mixture of his classic style of standup comedy, he finds himself entangled in a murder mystery. Also features Verna Felton from his usual radio program, and Wilard Waterman, the voice of The Great Gildersleeves in the later episodes of that program.

Bonus Track: From 1934, a blast back to radio's distant past, and a few minutes of Jack Benny telling us about hisacation to Atlantic City.

Judy Foster is a typical 1940's teenager. Today is her dad's birthday and she wants to do something special. Trouble is, father has some important business to take care of first. Judy has her own idea of fun for her father, and his business associate. Though she does a good job of raising her father's blood pressure, things do manage to work out, in typical 1940's style. Is this a realistic view of real 1944 teenage life? Sure, just about as much real as the modern teenage shows that might appear on the Disney Channel.

So... get your 1940's slang tweaked up and enjoy this blast to the past, and go on a date with Judy.

Bonus Tracks. Perez Prado. Tick Tock Poly Wock.

Reminder: This is the weekend where I clear off older shows from the server. If you find a show where the download link won't work anymore, you know what to do. Just send me an email and let me know. I recently discovered that I still do have my archive of programs that I've podcasted. I might be tempted to send you the episode. For any donations to the show of $10 or more, I can send you a 2 CD set of our first season plus several bonus items. Just use the PayPal button to donate, then email me to make sure I know what your mailing address is.

Allen Young was a radio actor who later became a star of TV and film. Here he is in the peak of his radio career. He sets out to buy his girlfriend a special gift and discovers a Kiss Meter. The machine registers him as the greatest lover in the world, so now Allen finds out the title isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Bonus Tracks: No music today, but a mini biographical sketch that David, the Retrobot uncovered for me. A quick look at Allen Young's life and work. Interesting stuff, maybe I'll print it here if I do another show from this series.

I hope everybody had a nice Valentines Day, but love can lead to some less than lovely situations. Enjoy a reality check with the antics of Baby Snooks. Then a slice of life with John and Blanche Bickerson. With these characters as examples, you know that some marriages just might be more frustrating than your own. At least these should be good for a few laughs. Keep the romance going, and don't let this happen to you.

Bonus tracks: Francis Langford. Sweet Embraceable You. June 10, 1947. and Hank Penny. Mama's Getting Young.

Here's another show featuring that love stuff. At the Anderson home, Bud has a new girlfriend, and like any regular teenage guy, his little sister pokes fun at him. With a little help and advice from dad, he somehow gets through the ordeal. Does father really know best? Who cares. It's a funny show. Learn a little about how mom and dad Anderson met.

Bonus track: Connie Haines. I'm Gonna See My Baby, 1945.

The show is from later in the run of the Phil Harris and Alice Faye show. The girls are a little older and have questions about how mommy and daddy met. They each pull one aside and get the true story about the night that Alice and Phil met. Of course, the stories don't match and barely resemble each other. I love the comments the girls make at the end. Interesting, and funny radio reality.

In the real world, I'll grant that our famous Hollywood couple might have met in a night club, and maybe their perceptions and attitudes may have been something close, but of course, the story today is all fiction. Enjoy and Happy Valentines Day.

Bonus tracks. The Washboard Wonders, You're Everything Sweet. And a special closing by Bob Hope and Bing Crosby, recorded December 7, 1948.

It's about time we did something different around here. Enjouy a mystery story made just for Valentines Day. Let George Do It was a detective show that featured George Valentine. Often hired by a letter that arrived and made acompelling appeal for his attention. The lady sending in the letter today is a secretary for a headstrong boss. There have been threatening phone calls, and packages, but the bossman tries to play it off. He plays it just a little too confidently and now, George has his interested peaked. So without any further clues, listen and enjoy this mystery.

Bonus Tracks: Glenn Miller, and Ilsa. 1944. Poinsienna. Glenn Miller had a series of broadcasts that went out over Nazi Germany. Hitler had banned American swing music, but he just couldn't stop Glenn Miller and his Army Air Corps Band. This is just one track of many that exist of his broadcasts.

Also, Hank Penny plays us out with Little Red Wagon.

Thanks for the continued support. Keep listening. Don't forget to leave a comment here on the web page.

This show was aired in November of 1936. Just as the cold and flu season tends to kickin. To keep up with things, sure enough, Jack has a cold. He braves it out while the gang all make fun of him. Then the cast does their annual football play. Even "Butch" Livingston gets in on the action.

Bonus Track: Mildred Bailey with husband Red Navaro. A 1942 recording of 'Please Don't Talk About Me When I'm Gone.'

PS: It's time to clean off my server space. I should have done it last weekend.

The girls go to watch a band rehearsal. Afterward, Frankie is late and has a new girlfriend who convinces him to be a sculpter. He wants Phil to wear a leopard skin loin cloth to pose with her in a bear skin outfit. It turns out she was out for his money, what little he has. With the help of Alice and Phil, Remley sends her on her way.

Dennis Day was both a tallented actor and singer. From the Jack Benny show, he was most known for ballads and the occasional novelty song. Today, he gets the chance to show off some of his other vocal singing styles, even taking on that Andrews Sisters hit, the Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy. I think he does a great job of pulling it off, especially when he is joined by his co-star, Vern Smith. The plot is a little thin, but it revolves around Dennis having to babysit for a very uncooperative... well, bratty little boy.

Bonus Track: Louis Armstrong. Just a Jigalo. Plus, he plays us out with an instrumental of, Tiger Rag.

Red has just finished releasing his hit film, 'The Fuller Brush Man,' and talks a little about it. Then he gets busy with sketches with Clem Kadidlehopper, who tries to help out with the sponsor. Then Deadeye plays poker. Finally, Junior deals with child psychology.

Bonus Track: Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters. Is You Is, or Is You Ain't My Baby?

PS: My Retrobot made a mistake when announcing the show's date. The actual date is October 21, 1947. Not January. Also, a usual, the commercials are left in for entertainment value only. We don't endorse smoking, so don't do it.

Lum and Abner was a long running radio show. In it's early days, it was on every day in a 15 minute time slot. The shows told a continuing story of what the two Arkansas friends were up to.

Todays shows are from a period of time when the two friends, and their arch rival, Squire Skimp, were trying to get a circus outfitted and ready to open. The circus, is one that Abner had acquired it in a recent business deal. Eventually the circus does open, and actually does well. The trouble is that Lum and Abner give a little too much power to Squire, and while the circus is touring expenses get out of hand.

In many ways, Lum and Abner resemble Amos and Andy. In their early days, both shows ran daily, and told an ongoing story. The two main actors played all the male voices. Actually all of them, since none of the female characters actually were heard over the radio.

Lum and Abner was first pitched as being two black-face men, but the network executives, thankfully, figured that they didn't want yet another Amos and Andy program. So, the two actors used the exact same scripts, but turned the characters into a couple of country boys.

Bonus Tracks: The Night Owls, Papa's Gone. Norman Phelps, I Like Bananas, The Tune ranglers, Black Eyed Susan Brown. Finally a surprise sponsor announcement at the end. (Hey! Regular listeners know, we don't have any sponsors. Yet.)

It's Back to School time after the holidays. The students, as a civics project, get jobs running various city government positions. Do schools still do this? I sure hope not. The kids take their jobs seriously, but things are quick to fall apart.

Bonus Track: Connie Haines. Why Shouldn't it Happen to Us? 1944.

PS: In case folks didn't notice, I had to do some clean up on the server and remove older shows . Everything as far back as July remains.

Starring Fred MacMurray and Claudette Colbear. A story abut a man who wants to get back to his rustic roots. He takes his wife, with all her city ways, to start a chicken farm. Something like the 1960's TV show, Green Acres, only 20 years earlier.

An oldie from the mid 1930's. It has an old sound, because it is an old show. Jack Benny jokes around about some topical events of the day, then resumes his murder mystery drama that began on a previous, nonexisting episode. At least it doesn't exist as far as I know about. The show features announcer, Don Wilson. Orchestra leader, DonBesser. Tenor, Frank Black. And of course, Jack and Mary.

Bonus Track: Bill Boyd, Pull Down the Shades and Lock the Door.

PS: Thanks for listening, and don't forget to send me a quick email or leave a comment.

A unique episode of Suspense starring Dennis Day. He gets to show some of the depth of his acting abilithy. A light hearted glimpse at the day in the life of a 1950's Beatnik. Dennis Day has some fun with the squares that he encounters, until he gets blamed for a murder. In the end, he learns his lesson. Well, at least for a little while.

PS: It's been a couple weeks since I could podcast. The short story is that a virus snuck in under my AVG software and I ended up having to have my hard drive reformatted. My collection of OTR shows survived, but I lost all my archives of posted episodes. Oh well, I can recreate them if anybody is interested in the future, but the robot host comments, which aren't the same as my show notes are gone. Hey! stop cheering. I like my bots. As it turns out I am down to only one for now, but I can probably rebuild the others, maybe, eventually.

Happy listening, and thanks for staying tuned to the show.

I meant to post this last Sunday, but had trouble logging into the server. Sorry it's late, but here's a show that I hope gets folks in the Christmas spirit. One of the best known musical pieces of Christmas time is Handel's Messiah. It has an interesting story about ow it came to be written. Actually it almost never came to be. It isn't the entire cantata, though it would fill the whole show by itself, without the narration. The audio is a little scratchy in spots, but should be mostly enjoyable.

Bonus Tracks: A 1928 Collection of Carols. It was actually a recording that was made just for employees, and was handed out at the annual Christmas party in 1928. Also a song from an Eddie Cantor program in 1939. I guess there's one more. my closing cre It Came Upon a Midnight Clear. I don't know who sang it, but it comes from good old Nostalgic Radio Land.

Twas the night before Christmas at the Anderson home. Everything is going as normal. Cathy is accident prone, dad overloads the electric circuit, Judy takes the role of drama queenBud is blunt and way to honest in his observations, and mom just keeps things rolling along.

Mr. Anderson reads the kids a Christmas story to get everyone in the mood for celebrating Christmas. A story written by another Anderson. Hans Christen Anderson.

Bonus Track: Bob Wills, When It's Christmas On The Range. 1949.

Command Performance was one of several shows that were produced specifically, and only for the military. With only one exception that I know of Command Performance was never broadcast to a civilian audience. The sponsor, and boss of the show was considered to be the soldiers themselves. The cast always had the biggest stars of the time, and as requested by letters from the trenches.

Today's show features Jean Tierney as host, Betty Hutton as singing tallent, Gary Cooper reads the sports news, and other big names of the day. The comedy was such that would push the censors, but is still fairly tame by comics of today.

PS: It was time, so I had to clear the older shows off the server.

After seven years of being lost at sea, and presumed drowned, a wife is declared dead. The husband now remarries and sets out on his honeymoon. Things get very interesting when his first wife is miraculously rescued and turns up on the very day his honeymoon is to start. How does he break it to his new wife? To his kids? The frustrating ordeals are taken with a dose of humor.

Note: to old time radio fans, you'll notice the judge is played by Arthur Q. Brian. For those of you who are new to old time radio, Arthur Q. Brian is also the voice of Doc Gamble on Fibber McGee and Molly. Also the voice of Floyd the barber on the Great Gildersleeves. And to you who are really new, and all those references don't mean a thing, he is the voice of Elmer Fudd. You get to hear him in his real voice today.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Miss Brooks was a program broadcast on Sundays, and this is the show just after Thanksgiving 1949. It seems Connie Brooks has a special problem. Mrs. Davis is cooking the Thanksgiving Day Feast. If you don't know anything about the show, just know that Mrs. Davis is a character known for her exotic experiments in cooking, generally with terrible results. To share in her torment, Miss Brooks invites the other cast members. Her most prominent student, Walter Denton, the oblivious Mr. Boynton, and all The Conklins.

One observation I had about this episode, was that the student, Walter Denton, isn't thrilled with spending the holiday with a Teacher. Oddly enough, The same sentiment is also expressed by the principal, Mr. Conklin.

Any rescue Miss Brooks may have had in mind for a delicious turkey dinner are brought to a screeching halt. But I won't say more, just download the show and listen.

Bonus track: Benny Bell. Gonna Give My Girl a Goose for Thanksgiving.

PS: You can enjoy a nearly daily dose of clean jokes by stopping by the RobotComic podcast, hosted right here on podomatic!
Just click here to visit robotcomic.podomatic.com

While you are there, make sure you grab the RSS url, and add it to your podcatcher.

In 1940, George Burns and Gracie Allen were in a transition. The left one sponsor, Heinz, and started with another, Hormel. At the end of their last season with Heinz, they had done a series of shows where Gracie was running for president. Campaign song and everything. When they changed sponsors, the nature of the show went from a stand up comedy and music format, to one that more closely resembled a sit-com. And can you believed it? they dropped Gracie's presidential campaign. I'll bet FDR was getting scared and afraid that he would be beat by a girl. He probably forced her off the campaign trail. (I'm joking of course.)

At least one thing about the ficticious presidential campaign that Gracie ran, was that it informed the general public on how the election process works and hopefully encouraged them to get out and vote.

Though they had been married since the mid 1920's, George and Gracie didn't put their marriage into the act until a few years later. At this time, they give the impression that they are still swinging singles. The shows for Hormel are the kind that build on each other. Still, they are good stand alone episodes, and if you missed one of the past ones, it doesn't impact the comedy or story line much.

PS: Hey, remember, I take requests if there is a favorite radio program, or radio star you want me to play. It doesn't have to be comedy.
I'm only an email away, so click here and let me know.

A Thanksgiving celebration with two comedy greats. Lou helps out with a formal dinner arrangement at Bud's house.

Some classic comedy moments. This same show was aired the following year as well.

Bonus Tracks. A special three song salute to Connie Haines who recently passed away.

Hey, somehow I'm running a day behind. Here's a really oldie from the dark days of the Great Depression. The Texaco Firechief program went on the air and was able to steal away Ed Winn from the Ziegfeld Follies. Later they would have other hosts, each with their own style of comedy. Ed Winn was known as the Perfect Fool, and was one of the biggest names in comedy in the early 1900's. He was part of the Ziegfeld Follies and helped WC Fields to transition from being a juggler into a comedian. They both were good friends with Fannie Brice, the tallent behind Baby Snooks. The audio quality is a little rough, but generally not bad to listen to. The jokes are old, but for 1932 they were mostly current.

Bonus Track: Bill Boyd and His Cowboy Ramblers. I Can't Tame Wild Women. Some folks may be aware that the name of the actor who played Hop Along Cassidy was William Boyd. This is not the same person.

As many other performers of the day did, Jack Benny took his show on the road to entertain the troops of World War II. Today, Jack is at Camp Custer, Michigan and getting a lesson in Judo. It seems that everybody can get the hang of it, except him. The show has some musical numbers cut out, so it runs a little short. Also the audio quality is mostly good, but a little scratchy in spots. Then the end gets chopped just as Don is about to announce the final commercial. The show is all there though.

Bonus tracks: Groucho Marx with Francis Lankford presenting a day in the life of a Marine. June 10, 1945. And Connie Haines singing, You Gotta Talk Me into It Baby from a live recording on December 30, 1943.

One of the big questions in the world of Fibber McGee and Molly is, "What does Fibber do for a living anyway?" Well, he is a radio actor and director. Today's show gives an example of what Fibbers livlihood is. Not to mention a bonus track compiled from jst one randomly picked episode. Subtle hints abound, maybe not in every single show, but often enough that anyone should know what his job is.

Another bonus track is from an early recording by the Andrews Sisters. They had been singing together on the radio since 1932, but weren't discovered and given a recording contract until 1938. They had that unique style of putting a swinging twist on anything they sang, including this number of Alexander's Ragtime Band.

I'm posting this a day early. I may not be around tomorrow to do it then. An unlikely character or the rustic life, Throckmorton P. Gildersleeves, is convinced to take a trip to a dude ranch. Both for Leroy's benefit, and because his neighbor, Leila Ransome is also going.

Bonus tracks include that zany comic from the Bob Hope program, Jerry Colona, and a clip about what it would be like if women went hunting. Hint, the show it comes from was the Good News program, hosted by Robert Young and sponsored by Maxwellhouse Coffee.

PS: It's that time again to do some housekeeping. By the time you read this I will have already cleaned off the older shows. Gotta keep the disk space cleared of.