Breaking Walls

On March 9th, 1971, Lucille Ball, Lucie Arnaz, and Carol Burnett were guests of Dick Cavett's on his ABC late-night show. During the course of the interview Lucille Ball discussed being "fired" by renowned Broadway producer Florenz Ziegfeld at the tender age of sixteen.

On March 8th, 1974 Rick Nelson was a guest of Johnny Carson's on the Tonight Show. During the interview the (then) thirty-three year-old Nelson briefly spoke with Johnny about people still thinking of him as the child star he was during the 1940s-1950s.

In 1970 Westinghouse put together a retrospective on the history of radio broadcasting in honor of the 50th anniversary of KDKA broadcasting the 1920 election returns.

Years prior, Dr. Frank Conrad, who received numerous awards for his work, including, from the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, the 1930 Edison Medal "for his contributions to radio broadcasting and short wave radio transmission", and the 1936 Lamme Medal "for pioneering and basic developments in the fields of electric metering and protective services" was interviewed by Westinghouse about how KDKA began. This is what he had to say.

As an aside, Dr. Conrad suffered a heart attack on November 6th, 1941 while driving to his winter home in Miami, Florida, and died there three days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and Manilla on December 10th, 1941.

After Ricky Nelson tragically passed away in a plane crash on New Year's Eve 1985, KRLA in Southern California broadcast a retrospective on his career, which featured many interviews, including one with older brother David Nelson. In this clip, David talks about when he and Ricky began to perform on their parents' radio show in 1949.

Have you heard of the This Day in Jack Benny podcast? It’s hosted by John Henderson.

Like myself, John discovered the Golden Age of Radio as a child and like millions of Americans, John has found The Jack Benny Program to be amongst the most well-written and timeless of shows from that era.

Each week on This Day in Jack Benny, John posts a Jack Benny radio show episode from the past, usually with a bit of background information on what was happening on the show, or what was happening in the United States at the time.

This Day in Jack Benny is available on all of the major podcast outlets you’re familiar with like iTunes, Stitcher, Podbean, and Libsyn, and Player FM. John’s main site is https://thisdaybenny.com/.

Today we’ll be playing “Kids Impersonate Jack Benny.” This episode of John’s podcast originally aired on August 14th, 2019. The Jack Benny Program episode is from February 22nd, 1953, and it re-uses a script originally written for the April 23rd, 1950 episode.

So sit back, grab a bowl of Jell-O, or pour yourself a bowl of Grape Nuts Flakes. If you’re a rebel I guess you can also light up a Lucky Strike, though myself and modern health studies don’t recommend it.

On October 2nd, 1991 legendary radio and TV emcee Art Linkletter had a call with John Gassman of SPERDVAC (http://sperdvac.com/) to discuss his life and career. Here Mr. Linkletter talks about how he got involved in radio.

This is a snippet from Breaking Walls Episode 95: Radio And The Classroom (1939 - 1965)

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In the summer of 1955, CBS executives were looking for a way to increase weeknight listenership in a cost-effective manner. They decided to revive a once popular programming format: the fifteen-minute weeknight serial.

The show they picked to relaunch was Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar.

Radio veteran Jack Johnstone, most recently at the helm of Jimmy Stewart’s The Six Shooter, was brought in to direct. The new format allowed for significant character development time.

Because the show was unsponsored and CBS cost-sustained, many of Hollywood radio’s affordable best were involved. Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar re-debuted over CBS airwaves at 8:15PM on October 3rd, 1955.

On February 7th, 1982, Bob Bailey's daughter Robert Goodwin Bailey joined John Dunning on 71KNUS for a chat about her father's life and career. Bailey was famous on radio for playing the lead in Let George Do It and later Yours Truly Johnny Dollar. When his radio career ended in 1960, Bob Bailey struggled with alcoholism and although he recovered, eventually had a stroke.

In Breaking Walls Episode 95, we go back to school with radio’s teacher’s pets, class clowns, and perhaps the most iconic “Miss” in radio history.

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Highlights:

• How William Paley used The Columbia Workshop to launch shows and careers.

• Suspense Moves to Hollywood and Gets Sponsorship

• The Radio Rise of Eve Arden and the Launch of Our Miss Brooks

• The NBC University Theater dramatizes a Washington Irving Classic

• The New Mr. and Mrs. Ronald and Benita Colman Show

• Johnny Dollar Investigates a Suspicious Schoolhouse Fire

• Theater Five saves a Nursery

• All Hallow’s Eve

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The WallBreakers:

http://thewallbreakers.com

Subscribe to Breaking Walls everywhere you get your podcasts.

To support the show:

http://patreon.com/TheWallBreakers

——————————

The reading material used in today’s episode was:

• The Who Is Johnny Dollar Matter — by John C. Abbott

• On The Air — By John Dunning

• Network Radio Ratings, 1932-53 — by Jim Ramsburg

As well as articles from:

• Broadcasting Magazine - April 27th, September 14th, and November 30th 1964, as well as January 4th, January 11th, and June 28th, 1965.

• Radio Daily - September 30th, 1949

• Sponsor Magazine - September 2nd, 1952

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On the interview front:

• SPERDVAC was with Jack Johnstone, Al Lewis, Jeanette Nolan and Elliott Reid—For more information, please go to SPERDVAC.com.

• Chuck Schaden interviewed Eve Arden, Parley Baer, Ken Carpenter, Norman Corwin, Gale Gordon, Jack Haley, Agnes Moorehead, Russell Thorson, and Willard Waterman. Hear their full chats at SpeakingofRadio.com.

• Hans Conried, William N. Robson, and William Spier were with Dick Bertel and Ed Corcoran for WTIC’s The Golden Age of Radio. These interviews can be heard at GoldenAge-WTIC.org.

• Eve Arden, Roberta Goodwin Bailey, and E. Jack Neuman were with John Dunning for 71KNUS.

• Elliott Reid was with Frank Bresee and Walden Hughes on October 14th, 2002 and Don Quinn was interviewed by Owen Cunningham in 1951.

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Selected Music featured in today’s episode was:

•I Wonder Why - by Dion and the Belmonts

• Pyramid of the Sun - by Les Baxter

• Moon - by George Winston

• The Look of Love - by Billy May and his Orchestra

• Young at Heart - by Frank Sinatra

• I’ll be Seeing You - by the Harry James Band

• Spooky - by Dusty Springfield

——————————

Special Thanks to our sponsors:

• Radio Drama Revival

https://www.radiodramarevival.com/

• The Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society

https://www.ghoulishdelights.com/series/themorls/

There are three other gentlemen who deserve my thanks: Jerry Haendiges, Ted Davenport, and Goodmond Danielson, who’s high quality audio recordings are available for purchase. Goodmond also has a facebook group and corresponding podcast. It’s called “The Radio Show Collector’s Group” and his most recent podcast features Yours Truly Johnny Dollar.

I’d also like to thank Walden Hughes and John and Larry Gassman of SPERDVAC. Listen to their shows on the Yesterday USA radio network.

By the way, SPERDVAC - The Society To Preserve and Encourage Radio Drama, Variety and Comedy will be having their next convention this coming November 7th through 10th at the Crowne Plaza Hotel at 3131 Bristol St. in Costa Mesa, CA.

For more information, please go to SPERDVAC.com

A Special Thank you to:

Tony Adams

Ryan Kramer

Barry Nadler

Christian Neuhaus

Aimee Pavy

Terry Wallace

——————————

WallBreakers Links:

Patreon - patreon.com/thewallbreakers

Social Media - @TheWallBreakers

URL - thewallbreakers.com

In Breaking Walls Episode 95, we go back to school with radio’s teacher’s pets, class clowns, and perhaps the most iconic “Miss” in radio history.

——————————

Highlights:

• How William Paley used The Columbia Workshop to launch shows and careers.

• Suspense Moves to Hollywood and Gets Sponsorship

• The Radio Rise of Eve Arden and the Launch of Our Miss Brooks

• The NBC University Theater dramatizes a Washington Irving Classic

• The New Mr. and Mrs. Ronald and Benita Colman Show

• Johnny Dollar Investigates a Suspicious Schoolhouse Fire

• Theater Five saves a Nursery

• All Hallow’s Eve

——————————

The WallBreakers:

http://thewallbreakers.com

Subscribe to Breaking Walls everywhere you get your podcasts.

To support the show:

http://patreon.com/TheWallBreakers

——————————

The reading material used in today’s episode was:

• The Who Is Johnny Dollar Matter — by John C. Abbott

• On The Air — By John Dunning

• Network Radio Ratings, 1932-53 — by Jim Ramsburg

As well as articles from:

• Broadcasting Magazine - April 27th, September 14th, and November 30th 1964, as well as January 4th, January 11th, and June 28th, 1965.

• Radio Daily - September 30th, 1949

• Sponsor Magazine - September 2nd, 1952

——————————

On the interview front:

• SPERDVAC was with Jack Johnstone, Al Lewis, Jeanette Nolan and Elliott Reid—For more information, please go to SPERDVAC.com.

• Chuck Schaden interviewed Eve Arden, Parley Baer, Ken Carpenter, Norman Corwin, Gale Gordon, Jack Haley, Agnes Moorehead, Russell Thorson, and Willard Waterman. Hear their full chats at SpeakingofRadio.com.

• Hans Conried, William N. Robson, and William Spier were with Dick Bertel and Ed Corcoran for WTIC’s The Golden Age of Radio. These interviews can be heard at GoldenAge-WTIC.org.

• Eve Arden, Roberta Goodwin Bailey, and E. Jack Neuman were with John Dunning for 71KNUS.

• Elliott Reid was with Frank Bresee and Walden Hughes on October 14th, 2002 and Don Quinn was interviewed by Owen Cunningham in 1951.

——————————

Selected Music featured in today’s episode was:

•I Wonder Why - by Dion and the Belmonts

• Pyramid of the Sun - by Les Baxter

• Moon - by George Winston

• The Look of Love - by Billy May and his Orchestra

• Young at Heart - by Frank Sinatra

• I’ll be Seeing You - by the Harry James Band

• Spooky - by Dusty Springfield

——————————

Special Thanks to our sponsors:

• Radio Drama Revival

https://www.radiodramarevival.com/

• The Mysterious Old Radio Listening Society

https://www.ghoulishdelights.com/series/themorls/

There are three other gentlemen who deserve my thanks: Jerry Haendiges, Ted Davenport, and Goodmond Danielson, who’s high quality audio recordings are available for purchase. Goodmond also has a facebook group and corresponding podcast. It’s called “The Radio Show Collector’s Group” and his most recent podcast features Yours Truly Johnny Dollar.

I’d also like to thank Walden Hughes and John and Larry Gassman of SPERDVAC. Listen to their shows on the Yesterday USA radio network.

By the way, SPERDVAC - The Society To Preserve and Encourage Radio Drama, Variety and Comedy will be having their next convention this coming November 7th through 10th at the Crowne Plaza Hotel at 3131 Bristol St. in Costa Mesa, CA.

For more information, please go to SPERDVAC.com

A Special Thank you to:

Tony Adams

Ryan Kramer

Barry Nadler

Christian Neuhaus

Aimee Pavy

Terry Wallace

——————————

WallBreakers Links:

Patreon - patreon.com/thewallbreakers

Social Media - @TheWallBreakers

URL - thewallbreakers.com