EPISODE DESCRIPTION
Boxcars711 Overnight Western "Gunsmoke"
"The Buffalo Killers" (Aired June 7, 1952)
Two auditions were created in 1949. The first was very much like a hardboiled detective series and starred Rye Billsbury as Dillon; the second starred Straight Arrow actor Howard Culver in a more Western, lighter version of the same script. CBS liked the Culver version better, and Ackerman was told to proceed. But there was a complication. Culver's contract as the star of Straight Arrow would not allow him to do another Western series. The project was shelved for three years, when MacDonnell and Meston discovered it creating an adult Western series of their own. MacDonnell and Meston wanted to create a radio Western for adults, in contrast to the prevailing juvenile fare such as The Lone Ranger and The Cisco Kid. Gunsmoke was set in Dodge City, Kansas during the thriving cattle days of the 1870s. Dunning notes, "The show drew critical acclaim for unprecedented realism."
THIS EPISODE:
June 07, 1952. CBS network. "The Buffalo Killers". Sustaining. An albino buffalo skin is the clue to the murder of two buffalo hunters, and their father. Part of one promotional announcement has been deleted. Georgia Ellis, Howard McNear, Joel Murcott (writer), Stan Waxman, John Dehner, Lawrence Dobkin, Sam Edwards, Lillian Buyeff, Tom Holland, Mary Lansing, Rex Koury (composer, conductor), Norman Macdonnell (producer, director), Clancey Cassell (announcer), William Conrad, Parley Baer. 30:39. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.
EPISODE DESCRIPTION
Life Insurance Policy (Aired June 26, 1949)
Life with Luigi was a radio comedy-drama series which began September 21, 1948 on CBS. The story concerned Italian immigrant Luigi Basco, and his experiences as an immigrant in Chicago. Many of the shows take place at the US citizenship classes that Luigi attends with other immigrants from different countries, as well as trying to fend off the repeated advances of the morbidly-obese daughter of his landlord/sponsor. Luigi was played by J. Carrol Naish, an Irish-American. Naish continued in the role on the short-lived television version in 1952, and was later replaced by Vito Scotti. With a working title of The Little Immigrant, Life with Luigi was created by Cy Howard, who earlier had created the hit radio comedy, My Friend Irma. The show was often seen as the Italian counterpart to the radio show The Goldbergs, which chronicled the experience of Jewish immigrants in New York.
THIS EPISODE:
June 26, 1949. "Life Insurance Policy" - CBS network. Sustaining. Luigi takes out a $50,000 Life Insurance Policy. Next week, "Luigi" becomes the summer replacement for "Lum and Abner," at an earlier time. J. Carrol Naish, Alan Reed, Cy Howard (creator, producer), Hans Conried, Bob Stevenson (announcer), Mac Benoff (writer, director), Lou Derman (writer), Mary Shipp, Lyn Murray (music director), Jody Gilbert, Joe Forte, Ken Peters. 31:31. Episode Notes From The Radio Gold Index.
