tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70034486697103713172024-03-05T01:36:27.789-05:00Master Of My Public DomainA Guide to all things Nostalgic available online; including Public Domain Movies, TV shows, and Old Time Radio shows available for free download off the Internet.Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.comBlogger213125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-18230155306043432402012-01-29T12:08:00.001-05:002012-01-29T12:11:08.160-05:00The OTR Revival Of The 1970s<p> </p> <p> <a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-kY3DPG0IU1E/TyV8-l4JcZI/AAAAAAAAGZw/fYiSZAI84aI/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8b7rrbmjHaCl_WYNdEzOC_Q_xb3mgwe0G9KU-T1BsddnfvQK1YsBI1UvvgpZN12SLjcHxerAUy_gDpaKpI45Qz9vP45MOoUfV7p6nvqJ5B8HAIrSiIoCxHtTFryRaXCKqKF08WQzWa_Y/?imgmax=800" width="187" height="244" /></a></p> <p>Photo Credit - Wikipedia</p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although I grew up hearing tales of old-time radio from my parents, for this child born in the mid-1950s, the golden age of radio had already passed by the time I could care.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">I knew who <em>Fibber McGee and Molly</em> were, and <em>The Shadow</em>, and had heard the story from my folks about Orson Welles' <em>War of the Worlds Broadcast</em>, but I hadn’t actually heard them.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Well, not until my early teens when I managed to get my hands on a couple of LPs with old radio shows on them. </font><font size="3">But in the mid-1970s CBS radio began a highly successful revival of the radio drama, called <em><strong>CBS Radio Mystery Theatre.</strong></em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Created, directed, and  produced by Himan Brown, and hosted by E. G. Marshall, starting in 1974 (<em>and running until 1982</em>) CBSRMT produced 1399 45-minute episodes. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote><font size="3"> <p> <br />For this child born of the TV age, suddenly having an ongoing source of quality radio drama was an unexpected delight. </p> </font></blockquote> <font size="3"> <p> </p> <p>Not only did it awaken an interest in old radio for for me, when I began collecting OTR (<em>old time radio</em>) shows in earnest in the early 1990s, getting the full collection of CBSRMT shows was high on my list. </p> <p> </p> <p>The series featured original stories along with retellings of classic works.  You’ll find murder, horror, science fiction, and even historical dramas in the mix. </p> <p> </p> <p>While many performers graced the sound stage over the years, a number of `regulars’ could be heard including <em>Fred Gwynne, Kevin McCarthy, Celeste Holm, Keir Dullea, Mason Adams, Mercedes McCambridge, John Lithgow, and Tony Rob</em>erts. </p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p>Himan Brown, a genuine legend due to his 65 year career in radio, is reputed to have produced more than 30,000 episodes of radio shows, including: <em>Barrie Craig, Bulldog Drummond, The Inner Sanctum, Dick Tracy, Flash Gordon</em>, along with numerous daytime soap operas. </p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p>I’ve recently had the opportunity to check out a website that offers the entire production run of the CBSRMT series along with <strong>plot descriptions of each episode.</strong>  </p> <p> </p> <p>Click on the image below to visit this fan supported site:</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.cbsrmt.com/" target="_blank"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-a-mEwuUwG4g/TyV8_Y2pX3I/AAAAAAAAGaA/OXq6h-Kowns/image%25255B8%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="356" height="181" /></a> </p> <p></p> </font> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-70903636939333338752012-01-29T11:16:00.001-05:002012-01-29T11:22:59.365-05:00Shotgun Slade: A `Crossover’ Western<p> </p> <p> </p> <p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfI9HmrZ3gaKreZJ46rBDM4oKegpLh9q2jX8LgxF1JI73-vjMtG869nKX5RRr9mjAtY59RgdoG1BRHNC77307imObHqr9A0aDlNu6GbUNh5Te2fKP9Gi_bEqC6KYZhuMz1pXHkacCzPqI/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-2PS2uY_lJxg/TyVw7Q4xDAI/AAAAAAAAGZo/02XCl2XH6Xg/image_thumb.png?imgmax=800" width="150" height="123" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although you wouldn’t know it by today’s <em>cop – forensic investigation - medical</em> drama cornering of the market in television drama, in 1959 westerns were the number one genre for prime time TV.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">There were a record 26 different westerns playing each week on the tube at the end the 1950s, and that year three of them made the top 10 list (<em>Gunsmoke, Wagon Train, Have Gun, Will Travel</em>). </font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">A pretty good showing, but actually a decline from the previous year, when 7 of the top 10 shows were westerns.  While still going strong, westerns were beginning to lose out to more modern and `hip’ dramas like <em>Johnny Staccato, 77 Sunset Strip, and Hawaiian Eye</em>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">With such a large field of similar shows, producers went out of their way to give their production a `<em>signature’</em>,  something to set it apart from the crowd.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In <em>The Rifleman</em>, Chuck Connors carried a modified Winchester Model 1892 rifle, tricked out to rapid fire. Don Durant as Johnny Ringo, carried French designed LeMat twin barreled revolver, that could fire a single 16 gauge shotgun shell in addition to .40 ammo.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Perhaps most famous (<em>and certainly the most coveted by my 6-year-old playmates)</em> was the <em>Mare’s leg</em> sawed off rifle carried by Steve McQueen in <em>Wanted: Dead or Alive.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">It was nicknamed the `mare’s leg’ because of its substantial kick.  But it was the ultimate in cowboy cool.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1959, Scott Brady (<em>brother of actors Lawrence Tierney and Edward Tierney</em>) took on the role of <em>Shotgun Slade</em>, which ran for 2 years and 78 episodes.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">After starting out in poverty row movies, Brady had managed to carve a respectable career as a leading man in movie westerns and assorted TV dramas, appearing in many anthology series of the 1950s.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Like many of the other westerns that year, Shotgun Slade had a gimmick . . . well . . . <em>actually three gimmicks.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">First, instead of being a rancher, or a sheriff, a bounty hunter, or a gambler  -  Slade was a<strong> private detective</strong> in the old west. With shows like <em>Richard Diamond</em> and <em>Peter Gunn</em> drawing good ratings, making your cowboy hero a detective seemed like a good ploy. </font></p> <font size="3"> <blockquote> <p> <br />Next came the signature gun, which this time was a over/under shotgun with a .32 caliber single shot rifle paired with a 12 gauge shotgun.  </p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p>And lastly, instead of incorporating a typical western movie score, the series featured a modern jazz beat, another homage to the increasing popularity of shows like <em>77 Sunset Strip</em> and <em>Peter Gunn</em>. </p> <p> </p> <p>The jazz score, admittedly, takes some getting used to.  But the end result is an atypical, albeit enjoyable western. </p> <p> </p> <p>Think <em>Peter Gunn</em> on a horse. </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p>We’ve several places for you to view episodes of this unique old western.   The <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a> has 5 complete episodes <a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=collection%3Aclassic_tv%20AND%20subject%3A%22Shotgun%20Slade%22" target="_blank"><strong>HERE</strong></a>. </p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ShotgunSlade-Backtrack" target="_blank">Shotgun Slade – Backtrack</a> <br />Shotgun Slade | Season 1, Episode 33 | Originally Aired - May 28th, 1960</p> <p> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ShotgunSlade-CrossedGuns" target="_blank">Shotgun Slade - Crossed Guns</a> <br />Shotgun Slade | Season 1, Episode 30 | Originally Aired - May 13th, 1960 <br /></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ShotgunSlade-FlowerOnBootHill" target="_blank">Shotgun Slade - Flower on Boot Hill</a> <br />Shotgun Slade | Season 1, Episode 36 | Originally Aired - August 9th, 1960 <br /></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ShotgunSlade-TheSpanishBox" target="_blank">Shotgun Slade - The Spanish Box</a> <br />Shogun Slade | Season 1, Episode 32 | Originally Aired - May 27th, 1960 <br /></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ShotgunSlade-RingOfDeath" target="_blank">Shotgun Slade - Ring of Death</a> <br /></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p>For even more shows (<em>including the ones listed above</em>) you can try <a href="http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Shotgun+slade%2C+long&oq=Shotgun+slade%2C+long&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=24808l25566l0l25846l6l6l0l3l0l0l173l390l1.2l3l0" target="_blank"><strong><font size="4">this link on Youtube</font></strong></a><strong><font size="4">.</font> </strong></p> <p> </p> <p>Scott Brady worked steadily through the 1960s and well into the 1970s playing tough cops, or cowboys, and the occasional heavy.  </p> <p> </p> <p>His last role was in the movie Gremlins (1984). </p> <p> </p> <p>Brady died in 1985, at the age of 60, from pulmonary disease. </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p></p> <p></p> </font> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-74919418022874832112012-01-15T15:35:00.001-05:002012-01-15T15:35:19.724-05:00A Terrific Repository Of Classic TV, Radio, And Movies<p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-PWVT_8LCeHc/TxM4hNho0qI/AAAAAAAAGVM/q7KqULeN_-Q/s1600-h/image%25255B3%25255D.png"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-V1SjRImJbJ8/TxM4hpWKGGI/AAAAAAAAGVU/rY_7h7rZRI4/image_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="337" height="270" /></a> </p> <p><font size="3"><a title="http://free-classic-movies.com/" href="http://free-classic-movies.com/" target="_blank">http://free-classic-movies.com/</a></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">While several family matters have distracted me from my regular posting on this site (<em>soon to resume</em>), I have found an absolutely terrific (<em>and growing</em>) repository of public-domain radio, TV, music, and movies where you can download or watch online some of the best entertainment the golden age ever produced. </font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">Run by Jimbo Berkey, files are fast to download, and the layout a pleasure to navigate.  You’ll also a good deal of background information about the movies and shows he presents.</font></p> <font size="3"> <p> <br />So check out:</p> <p></p>  </font> <p><font size="3"><a title="http://free-classic-movies.com/" href="http://free-classic-movies.com/" target="_blank">http://free-classic-movies.com/</a></font></p> <p><font size="3"><a title="http://free-classic-tv-shows.com/" href="http://free-classic-tv-shows.com/" target="_blank">http://free-classic-tv-shows.com/</a></font></p> <p><font size="3"><a title="http://free-classic-music.com/" href="http://free-classic-music.com/" target="_blank">http://free-classic-music.com/</a></font></p> <p><font size="3"><a title="http://free-classic-radio-shows.com/" href="http://free-classic-radio-shows.com/" target="_blank">http://free-classic-radio-shows.com/</a></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">And if all that weren’t enough, Jimbo also has a terrific selection of free classic games you can play as well. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"><a title="http://leisure-time-games.com/" href="http://leisure-time-games.com/" target="_blank">http://leisure-time-games.com/</a></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-46344618982793696332011-12-11T09:31:00.001-05:002011-12-11T09:32:25.477-05:00Hollywood’s Christmas Gift To The Troops<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-yaxBQ8zT91Q/TuS-o8uxTVI/AAAAAAAAGOs/WDi3sfGlvZE/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-P7p16HMJKxg/TuS-pMdzTlI/AAAAAAAAGO0/I4kHyLCqUYo/image_thumb.png?imgmax=800" width="244" height="139" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p> <br /><font size="3">In 1958, although the United States was technically at peace, the cold war raged on. Hundreds of thousands of military personnel (<em>and their families</em>) were stationed around the globe, often in remote places like Adak, Alaska and Diego Garcia.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In order to bring our troops a slice of home, and some holiday cheer, </font><font face="Trebuchet MS"><font color="#000000"><font size="3">for the better part of two decades Hollywood had been providing free, exclusive entertainment to the troops, via AFRS radio shows, records, and USO road shows.</font></font></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font face="Trebuchet MS"><font color="#000000"><font size="3">While USO road shows were still being mounted, getting top-notch entertainment to the hundreds of military bases and outposts was obviously a challenge.</font></font></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font face="Trebuchet MS"><font color="#000000"><font size="3">So the idea of putting together a <strong>filmed holiday special</strong> for the troops – produced by the USO (<em>with assistance from the ABC, NBC, and CBS television networks and contributions from just about every actor’s guild in Hollywood</em>) was born.</font></font></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Reportedly more than 700 copies of the film were distributed to the armed forces. </font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although considered a`Christmas gift’ for the troops, this 90 minute variety show only features a couple of Christmas songs. </font><font size="3">In recent years this 90 minute show has been repackaged and sold on DVD as <em><strong>Bing Crosby’s White Christmas All-Star Show</strong></em> – which quite honestly is a bit of a stretch. </font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Crosby appears, about mid-way through the show to sing White Christmas, but is hardly the host.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Most of the entertainment was the sort of fare that the folks back home were enjoying year-round.   </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <ul> <li><font size="3">Milton Berle, Bob Hope, and Danny Thomas doing comedy monologues</font> </li> <li><font size="3">Frankie Laine, Jimmy Rogers, and Tony Martin singing their signature songs</font> </li> <li><font size="3">Songs from Lena Horne & Gale Storm </font></li> <li><font size="3">Benny Goodman </font></li> <li><font size="3">Ray Bolger in a comedic dance </font></li> <li><font size="3">Marge & Gower Champion Dancing</font> </li> <li><font size="3">Van Cliburn in a short piano performance</font> </li> <li><font size="3">Jack Benny, George Burns, and Jimmy Stewart in a Vaudeville skit </font></li> </ul> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">With holiday greetings from the stars to the troops interspersed. </font><font size="3">You’ll also find appearances by Dinah Shore, Dick Shawn, Jane Russell, Gregory Peck, Kim Novak, Shirley Maclaine and many, many more.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The highlight (<em>for me at least</em>) comes near the end, when Danny Kaye and Louis Armstrong do a duet of <em>`When The Saints Go Marching In’. </em></font></p> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Movie buffs will recognize this number (and arrangement) from the movie `<em><strong>The Five Pennies’</strong></em>, which starred Kaye and featured Armstrong. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">This rendition, which was done <u>before </u>the movie was filmed, was apparently a very successful rehearsal for one of the most memorable moments of that film.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Follow the link to watch this show on YouTube. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrPaQq1Ws_8" target="_blank"><u>Bing Crosbys White Christmas - All Star Show [Full DVD]</u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <font size="3"> <p> </p> <p>As an added bonus, Danny Kaye and Satchmo teamed up several times over the years to perform `The Saints’, including this version from Danny’s TV show (1963-1967).</p> <p> </p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:1471ff2d-c7d5-4e99-b291-ddbe44217909" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="0e105e9e-d0bb-4166-91b6-924e9d231bcc" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P56AiMGLT8c" target="_new"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-234dZ5Xwi8Y/TuS-pkTDXkI/AAAAAAAAGPE/PglWk_iPPbI/video0fdbf9a65c75%25255B6%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('0e105e9e-d0bb-4166-91b6-924e9d231bcc'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"425\" height=\"355\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/P56AiMGLT8c&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/P56AiMGLT8c&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"425\" height=\"355\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> </font> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Enjoy!</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font face="Trebuchet MS"><font color="#000000"><font size="3"> <br /></font></font></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p></p> <p></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-3414331249212851062011-12-10T10:33:00.001-05:002011-12-10T10:36:31.481-05:00Another Christmas Potpourri<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-F8cwHshoomM/TuN7gj5Xh4I/AAAAAAAAGOc/5SRIggWJmQk/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-QIcVshp6p-w/TuN7uwsM-AI/AAAAAAAAGOk/KALa-0Us7_c/image_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="244" height="141" /></a> </p> <p>Your Hit Parade - 1955</p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Digging through <a href="http://www.youtube.com/" target="_blank">Youtube</a> for old Christmas shows can yield a lot of treasures. While I can’t vouch for their public domain status, they <em>are</em> available to watch (<em>or download</em>) until someone objects, or claims copyright infringement.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">During the 1950s and 1960s practically every TV series had a <em>`Christmas’</em> episode. Some did a new one every year, while others simply reran a `classic’ episode during the holidays.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Some were overtly religious, some took a more commercialized (Santa Claus) perspective, and others . . . well, they were designed to be heartwarming and life affirming. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Today we’ll highlight some of these holiday treasures.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Since my first major post here at MOMPD, back in September of 2008 was </font><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2008/09/rock-roll-killed-your-hit-parade.html"><font size="3">'Twas Rock & Roll That Killed Your Hit Parade</font></a><font size="3">, it is only appropriate that our first stop today is a Christmas Eve 1955 episode of <em>Your Hit Parade.  </em></font></p> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udzWOyKAg1o" target="_blank"><u>Your Hit Parade: Christmas Eve Show (1955)</u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The next stop is a pair of unusual Christmas offerings that includes one I profiled two years ago, but was subsequently removed from the </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">; a half hour <strong>Four Star Playhouse</strong> production called `<em>The Answer' (1954)</em>, starring David Niven, Carolyn Jones, and Anthony Caruso.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><strong><font size="3">`The Answer' was nominated for 4 Emmy's & won the 1955 DGA award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement for Television.</font></strong></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The story is by Leonard Freeman, a name that many will recognize as the producer of such critically acclaimed shows as <em>Hawaii Five-0 </em>and <em>Route 66</em>.  </font></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/SU0gl6HHLPI/AAAAAAAAAuA/bIXaI7r-5OI/s1600-h/Niven%5B4%5D.jpg"><img border="0" alt="Niven" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/SU0gl5hRAXI/AAAAAAAAAuE/im8AIpcv1Ww/Niven_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" width="192" height="131" /></a></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.youtube.com/movie?v=D1mO5UPVtq8&feature=mv_sr" target="_blank"><u>Holiday Classics: A Tale of Two Christmases / The Answer</u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without a Bob Hope overseas special for the troops, and this time we have his 1967 USO tour of Vietnam and Southeast Asia, featuring Raquel Welch, Elaine Dunn, Phil Crosby, Barbara McNair, and Miss World, Madeleine Hartog Bell.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SzOsLRT7d5c" target="_blank"><u>BOB HOPE CHRISTMAS SPECIAL</u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">And since you can’t have too much hope for the Holidays, his 1978 NBC Christmas Special with Red Skelton, Andy Gibb, and Dionne Warwick.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buhA04XdReY" target="_blank"><u>1978 "Bob Hope's All-Star Merry Christmas"</u></a></h3> <p> </p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">I’ll have more Christmas-related shows between now and the end of the year. </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-21367023894874884172011-11-27T09:18:00.001-05:002011-11-27T09:19:16.465-05:00The Posts Of Christmas Past<p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While I’m looking for new Christmas & Holiday fare to write about over the next month, I thought I’d repost the links to earlier blogs I’ve posted on this festive season.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In the baker’s dozen of blogs below you’ll find scores of old time radio episodes, TV shows, and movies to choose from – plus the back story behind them.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2010/12/command-performance-christmas.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">A Command Performance Christmas</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-quickie.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">A Christmas Quickie</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-tv-1950s-style.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">Christmas TV – 1950s Style</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2010/11/christmas-companion-to-cinnamon-bear.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">A Christmas Companion To The Cinnamon Bear</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/12/classic-tv-christmas.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">A Classic TV Christmas</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/12/holiday-movie-fest.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">Holiday Movie Fest</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/11/christmas-karaoke.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">Christmas Karaoke</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/11/armed-forces-radio-holiday.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">An Armed Forces Radio Holiday</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/11/cinnamon-bear-72-year-old-christmas.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">Cinnamon Bear - A 72 Year-Old Christmas Tradition</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2008/12/christmas-potpourri.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">A Christmas Potpourri</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2008/12/two-small-miracles-for-holidays.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">Two Small Miracles For The Holidays</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2008/12/bing-crosby-christmas.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">A Bing Crosby Christmas</font></a></h5> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2008/11/old-time-radio-christmas.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">An Old Time Radio Christmas</font></a></h5> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="4">Enjoy!   </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-52867050652240762532011-11-13T09:55:00.001-05:002011-11-13T09:55:40.551-05:00Pilot Error<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><font color="#000000"></font></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">In order to sell a TV series producers generally are required to film some sort of `pilot episode’. Sponsors, or the network want to know if the characters are likeable, if the premise is interesting, and whether there’s ample room for future story lines. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Given the number of truly awful TV series that have made the grade over the past 6 decades, you really have to wonder about the pilots that failed to attract a buyer. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Not all of them were bad, of course.  Some simply were too derivative of earlier shows, while others were simply ahead of their time. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">In TV lore, there is probably no more famous <em>`failed pilot’</em> than the first shot at making <strong>`Star Trek’</strong>.  Although NBC didn’t buy the series based on the first pilot submitted by Gene Roddenberry (<em>they thought it was `too cerebral’</em>) the took the unprecedented step of ordering a second pilot. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Other pilots showed promise, but required tweaking of the cast.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">The pilot for what would eventually become <em>The Dick Van Dyke Show</em> was originally called<em> Head of the Family,</em> and starred Carl Reiner. Largely autobiographical, this series based on Reiner’s life as a star and writer for <em>Your Show of Shows</em>, failed to sell with him as the lead.</font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Many of these failed pilots never made the air, although a few ended up as `filler’ episodes on anthology series during the 1950s and 1960s.  Most are lost in the dustbin of TV history, although I’ve written about a few in </font><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2010/06/failed-tv-pilots.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">Failed TV Pilots</font></a><font size="3"> and </font><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2010/06/failed-pilots-part-deux.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">Failed Pilots Part Deux</font></a><font size="3">.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Today, another sampling of shows that . . . for whatever reason, never made it out of the starting blocks. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">First stop, <em>Destination Space</em>, which attempted to cash in on the burgeoning space program craze of the late 1950s.  Like it’s far more successful cousin <em>`Men Into Space’</em>, <em>Destination Space</em> attempted to portray a more realistic outer space opera. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_f-IsS6Xy6y09lEN42QeHK_KIfbvgvS2uXZDGhPtpGq9SZnROfMzzZjGmqZKRhB37oRBBLsPj3k37AuRrPNB7razyRBo_up0ymLcnjuQhXINLNOWsIFEyFZzP-69N-Qs_XRXxJzBl9SQ/s1600-h/image%25255B8%25255D.png"><font size="3"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-3S4OlSxjCBo/Tr_aafbuVWI/AAAAAAAAGH0/p1JLvqWphxI/image_thumb%25255B2%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="152" height="113" /></font></a><font size="3"> </font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">Most of the special effects were pulled directly from the 1955 George Pal production of <em>Conquest of Space,</em> and so this pilot at least has the `<em>feel’</em> of golden <em>age Sci-Fi.  </em></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Unfortunately, the plot moves slowly, despite the efforts of a cast of very familiar faces; <strong>John Agar</strong>, <strong>Harry Townes</strong>, <strong>Whitney Blake</strong>, <strong>Charles Aidman</strong>, <strong>Cecil Kellaway</strong>, and<strong> Edward Platt</strong>. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Although many reviewers have looked upon this pilot unkindly, I confess that as a child of the 1950s, I enjoyed it for nostalgic –<em> if not artistic</em> – reasons when I saw it recently. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">You can watch it, along with the others in today’s blog, on the </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <h3><font size="3">"</font><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/destinationSpace" target="_blank"><u><font size="4">Destination Space"</font></u></a></h3> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Next stop, a TV pilot treatment of a one of the longest running detective characters in detective fiction; Bulldog Drummond. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">As I wrote in </font><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2010/07/before-there-was-bond.html"><font size="3">Before There Was Bond</font></a><font size="3">, the character of Bulldog Drummond was created in 1920 by British author <strong>Herman Cyril McNeile</strong> who wrote under the pseudonym `<em>Sapper’.</em></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">In all, `Bulldog’ would appear in 10 novels by McNeile (<em>and a handful of short stories),</em> and another 9 novels penned after his death in 1937 by Gerard Fairlie and later Henry Raymond. Between 1923 and 1969 there were 2 dozen<strong><em> Bulldog Drummond movies</em></strong> made, and from 1951 to 1954 Bulldog Drummond was portrayed on the radio by Ned Weaver for the  Mutual Broadcasting System.</font></p> <p><strong><font size="3"></font></strong></p> <p><font size="3">In 1957, in what is admittedly a lesser attempt at bringing <strong>Captain Hugh "<em>Bulldog</em>" <em>Drummond</em></strong> to the screen, we get a pilot that eventually aired on Douglas Fairbank’s anthology series, <em>Douglas Fairbanks Presents. </em></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">The episode is called `The Ludlow Affair’, and it starred Robert Beatty as a vaguely Americanized Drummond, racing around 1950s London in a vintage sports car, and dealing with dangerous villains. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Although the voice over <em>(by Fairbanks)</em> in the closing credits promised weekly adventures of Drummond in exotic locations around the world, the series was never picked up. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/movies/thumbnails.php?identifier=DoulglasFairbanksJrPresentsBulldogDrummond"><font size="3"><img title="[item image]" alt="[item image]" src="http://www.archive.org/download/DoulglasFairbanksJrPresentsBulldogDrummond/format=Thumbnail" /></font></a></p> <p> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/DoulglasFairbanksJrPresentsBulldogDrummond" target="_blank"><font size="4">DOULGLAS FAIRBANKS JR presents Bulldog Drummond</font></a></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Last stop, a 1954 pilot based on the highly successful 1930s comic strip,<em> Mandrake The Magician</em>.  </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Already portrayed on film by Warren Hull in a1939 12-part Columbia movie serial and on the radio during the 1940s by Raymond Edward Johnson, this 30 minute pilot for NBC starring real-life magician <strong>Coe Norton</strong> and <strong>Woody Strode</strong> failed to attract a buyer. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Having watched this episode, I can’t help but feel that the stilted acting, and lame dialog, and weak plot had something to do with that.  </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Still, it has a degree of nostalgic value.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-9jB6d_jaIJg/Tr_aaujtltI/AAAAAAAAGH8/YzwEB_hI6cM/s1600-h/image%25255B11%25255D.png"><font size="3"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-TY1IGbfhYmE/Tr_aa0qNfmI/AAAAAAAAGIE/r4zWxjZLDe8/image_thumb%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="164" height="122" /></font></a><font size="3">  </font></p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/MandrakeTheMagicianTvShow" target="_blank"><u><font size="4">MANDRAKE THE MAGICIAN TV SHOW</font></u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Hopefully more of these gems will show up on the Internet Archive, and other venues.  </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">While they may not represent the best that the golden age of TV had to offer, they are still valuable glimpses of our shared past and deserved to be saved, and shared, for future generations to enjoy. </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-55245899401795274012011-11-06T08:31:00.001-05:002011-11-06T08:31:24.281-05:00Matt Clark: Railroad Detective<p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-BbECfazu0Tk/TraMJoVxaBI/AAAAAAAAGFc/a7EFPY9qC78/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-p-ByNtvDwbE/TraMKFdBACI/AAAAAAAAGFk/bJB7fBEeSGU/image_thumb.png?imgmax=800" width="232" height="192" /></a>  </p> <p> <br /><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">In 1954, television was still the new kid on the entertainment block, and radio and the movies were still king. Some regions of the country were yet to see their first broadcast station.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">TV was making inroads, however.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">RCA introduced their first color set that year – at the astounding price of $1000 – equivalent to about $8,000 in today’s dollars. </font><font size="3">A hefty price tag for a 15-inch screen, with a less than perfect picture. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Movie studios could see the writing on the wall, however, and they quickly began producing content for this new medium. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">While Warner Brothers produced a long string of hit TV shows (<em>Cheyenne, Maverick, 77 Sunset Strip, Lawman, etc.</em>), it was Republic Studios that garnered the first <em>TV Emmy Award</em> for a `<em><font color="#800000">W</font></em></font><font color="#800000" size="3"><em>estern </em></font><font size="3"><em><font color="#800000">or Adventure Series’</font></em> in 1955.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"> <br />The show was <em><strong>Stories of the Century</strong></em>, and it starred Jim Davis as railroad detective Matt Clark, and for most of the series run - <em>Mary Castle</em> as his undercover partner Frankie Adams. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although it ran only 39 episodes, and failed to revive Republic Studio’s flagging finances, the series is well remembered today for its solid action sequences and early appearances by many soon-to-be famous actors. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3"><strong>Richard Jaeckel</strong> played <em>Billy the Kid</em> and spaghetti western legend <strong>Lee Van Cleef</strong> appeared as <em>Jesse James</em>. <strong>Richard Webb</strong> showed up to play <em>John Wesley Hardin</em>, <strong>Jack Elam</strong> portrayed <em>Black Jack Ketchum</em>, and <strong>Marie Windsor </strong>played <em>Belle Starr</em>. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">The `high concept’ for this series was to dramatize the lives of famous western outlaws, using a fictitious railroad detective (<em>Matt Clark</em>) as being in on, or nearby their final fate. This despite the fact that these `stories’ spanned nearly 50 years of western history. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">This contrivance aside, the opening narration to each episode read: <em>"<font color="#0000ff">The official newspaper files of the early west record many stories of famous and notorious characters of that period . . .”</font></em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">After which Jim Davis would identify the outlaw <em>(or outlaws)</em> that would be the subject of that night’s episode.   <br /></font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">While the series makes some attempt at historical accuracy (<em>at least dates and places</em>), the events shown don’t <em>always </em>agree with the historical record.  </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">This was, first and foremost, entertainment . . . not a documentary. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Republic studios – best known as producers of western movies – had ample footage from earlier productions that they could weave into this series.  Scenes where Quantrill raids Lawrence, Kansas in 1863 comes from Raoul Walsh's <strong>DARK COMMAND</strong> (1940), and the wagon chase scene from <strong>WAR OF THE WILDCATS</strong> (1943) shows up in the Black Jack Ketchum episode. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">By matching up clothes and uniforms to the scenes lifted from older movies, the director managed to blend new footage with the old, giving the low-budget series a more expensive `feel’.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Add in some well-staged fisticuffs or gun play, at least one chase scene, and the comeuppance of the bad guy at the end, and you had a 30 minute episode.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Tall, rangy Jim Davis (<em>who would gain greater fame as Jock Ewing in Dallas</em>), was a veteran of Republic Oaters of the 1940s, and could be both likable, or tough as nails, when the scene required it.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Mary Castle as Frankie Adams added a bit of welcome estrogen to the mix, as Clark’s beautiful but very capable partner.  A role model that was – for TV at least – a bit ahead of its time.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The problem with the series was that with each outlaw captured or killed in one episode, in short order the more famous denizens of the west has been taken care of, and the writers had to find more and more obscure bad men <em>(or women) </em>to profile.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Hence we got episodes on little known rascals like <b>Joaquin Murietta</b>, <b>Bill Longley</b><i> </i>, and <strong>Burt Alvord</strong> mixed in with tales of <strong>Geronimo</strong>, <strong>Billy The Kid</strong>, and the <strong>Doolin Gang.</strong></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">After 39 episodes, they were running out of material. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="4"></font></p> <p><font size="4">The </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="4">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="4"> currently has 17 episodes of this series available to watch or download.  You can get a complete listing </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=Stories%20of%20the%20Century%20AND%20subject%3A%22stories%20of%20the%20century%22" target="_blank"><strong><font size="4">at this link</font></strong></a><strong><font size="4">. </font></strong></p> <p><strong><font size="4"></font></strong></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-r6uNkLEeUJc/TraMKQ8hZ2I/AAAAAAAAGFs/jx3CBADiGEc/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-7LjY7FNoB6E/TraMKwk40rI/AAAAAAAAGF0/_iEjNdx6W3c/image_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="244" height="187" /></a> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Jim Davis would work steadily in TV until his death in 1981, while starring in the hit primetime soap Dallas. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Between 1958-1960 he co-starred with Lang Jefferies in <strong>RESCUE 8</strong>, about a Los Angeles Fire Rescue unit, which pre-dated the TV show EMERGENCY by more than a decade.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Mary Castle, who at one time was viewed as possible replacement for <em>Rita Hayworth</em>, fared less well. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">She was married briefly three times, and her personal life derailed badly due to alcohol . After several arrests in the late 1950s for intoxication, her acting career eventually evaporated. </font></p> <font size="3"> <blockquote> <p> <br />Her last acting credit is from an 1962 episode of Gunsmoke, and the character is just listed as `Saloon girl’. </p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p>Castle died in 1998 at the age of 67 of lung cancer. </p> <p> </p> </font> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-54074377395516427792011-10-30T09:36:00.001-04:002011-10-30T09:39:39.855-04:00Tales Of Frankenstein<p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-0t80yUFxTCE/Tq1S1vOyy3I/AAAAAAAAF_U/2nfqQ_54IqM/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-wZOwiB1ntXc/Tq1S13DIa1I/AAAAAAAAF_c/fvigcI3kZsI/image_thumb.png?imgmax=800" width="244" height="194" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Since it was first published in 1818, Mary Shelley’s <em>Frankenstein: The Modern Prometheus</em>  has been a template for <em>`science gone wrong’</em> horror genre.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Whether it is seeking to create a new human life from spare parts, or  develop a new source of nuclear energy, or perhaps a radical cure for some disease . . . the deep seated fear over man delving into areas where he should not has become a staple of modern science fiction and horror.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Given that Halloween is upon us, I’ve a brief tour of freely available (public domain)<font size="3"></font> radio, TV, and movie versions of the Frankenstein legend that you can download and enjoy this weekend. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">First stop, a 1938 radio production of the Frankenstein story in 13 parts <em>(each about 13 minutes</em>).   Faithful to the 1818 Mary Shelly book, you can find this collection on several free sites including:</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><a title="http://www.botar.us/archives.html" href="http://www.botar.us/archives.html" target="_blank"><font size="4">http://www.botar.us/archives.html</font></a></p> <p><strong><a title="http://www.otr.net/?p=frkn" href="http://www.otr.net/?p=frkn" target="_blank"><font size="4">http://www.otr.net/?p=frkn</font></a></strong></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="4"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">We’ve a pair of TV adaptations of the story from the 1950s.   First, the infamous <em>Tales of Tomorrow</em>  Frankenstein episode, broadcast live in the early 1950s.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Over the years, the retelling of the story has embellished it a bit, but it is an example of how things didn't always go as planned during a live broadcast.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The legend is that Lon Chaney Jr., under the influence of alcohol, thought that they were doing a dress rehearsal, and not a live broadcast.  During his `<em>rampage scene'</em> in the first half of the show, instead of busting up props, he picked them up and then set them down carefully.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">For whatever reason, Chaney does pick up, and set back down, a number of props - particularly in the first half of the show. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Tales_of_Tomorrow_16_Frankenstein" target="_blank"><u>Tales of Tomorrow #16: Frankenstein (1952)</u></a></h3> <p><font size="3"></font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Six years later, up and coming Hammer Studios and Universal teamed to produce a pilot for a TV show to be called <em>`Tales of Frankenstein’</em>, which utilized stock footage from old Universal horror movies of the 1940s to reduce production costs.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While certainly a cut above the <em>Tales of Tomorrow</em> version, the pilot was never sold.  </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/TalesOfFrankensteintheFaceInTheTombstoneMirror-Pilot" target="_blank"><u>Tales Of Frankenstein (The Face In The Tombstone Mirror) - Pilot</u></a></h3> <p><font size="3"></font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">As an example of the cost cutting measures employed, the disembodied head that narrates the opening to this episode was lifted from an old Inner Sanctum movie, and so the lip movements don’t sync with the narration.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Some websites list a second `pilot’ for this series as `Jack the Ripper’, but that appears – instead – to be an episode from The Veil. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">And lastly, a couple of suitably `<em>cheesy’</em> Frankenstein movie sequels can be found on The <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a>. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="4"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/FrankensteinsDaughter" target="_blank">Frankenstein's Daughter</a></font><font size="4"> - 1958</font></p> <p><font size="4"></font></p> <p><font size="4"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Lady_Frankenstein" target="_blank">Lady Frankenstein</a></font><font size="4"> - 1971<font color="#000000"></font></font></p> <p></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Be warned: Neither of these two movies is likely to win any artistic awards, but then, there’s a reason they’ve fallen into the public domain.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Enjoy.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-41675072483483417852011-10-23T09:07:00.001-04:002011-10-23T09:07:07.586-04:00Have Yourself A Macabre Halloween<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-f78xsQehqwU/TqQReUqKdTI/AAAAAAAAF8E/0tM2uG5-uFQ/s1600-h/image%25255B6%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-RGOtBx-LJBg/TqQReprnw7I/AAAAAAAAF8M/63WgEmnJANk/image_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="209" height="209" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The early 1960s saw the demise of the golden age of radio, killed by the unstoppable juggernaut of television.  With few exceptions, radio was morphing into a medium mostly of music and talk.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Daytime soaps <em>Our Gal Sunday</em>, <em>This is Nora Drake</em>, <em>Backstage Wife</em>, and <em>Road of Life</em> all ended their runs in 1959.  <em>Gunsmoke</em> ended its stellar primetime radio run in 1961, and <em>Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar</em> was put to bed after 811 episodes in September of 1962<strong><em>.</em></strong>  </font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">There were a few hangers on, particularly during the morning and afternoon time slots.  Shows like <em>Arthur Godfrey Time</em>, <em> Garry Moore</em>, and the Bing <em>Crosby – Rosemary Clooney show</em> continued into the mid-1960s, but even their fates were becoming obvious. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although radio drama was on the decline stateside, because many of its listeners were in far-off places and unable to gather in front of a television set, the <strong>AFRS</strong> (<strong>Armed Forces Radio Service</strong>) continued to provide a wide variety of audio entertainment for the troops well into the 1960s.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Created in 1942, shortly after the onset of WWII, AFRS provided radio broadcasts and V-Discs (78 & 33 rpm records) to troops around the world. Often the shows beamed to the troops were the same shows heard stateside, but sometimes they were created specifically for AFRS.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">One such home-brewed show was <em>Macabre</em> – which ran for only 8 episodes during 1961-1962, and was produced by <strong>FEN</strong> (<em>the FAR EAST NETWORK</em>) of AFRS. Despite this short run, i</font><font size="3">t is well remembered for its excellent production values and spooky subject matter.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a> has all eight episodes available for listening or download.  Being only 50 years old, the audio quality is better than you’ll find on many of the older recordings.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The episodes, all appropriate for the week leading up to Halloween, are:</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Macabre 611113 - [1] Final Resting Place </font></p> <p><font size="3">Macabre 611120 - [2] Weekend </font></p> <p><font size="3">Macabre 611127 - [3] The Man in the Mirror </font></p> <p><font size="3">Macabre 611204 - [4] The House in the Garden </font></p> <p><font size="3">Macabre 611211 - [5] The Midnight Horseman </font></p> <p><font size="3">Macabre 611218 - [6] The Avenger </font></p> <p><font size="3">Macabre 620101 - [7] The Crystalline Man </font></p> <p><font size="3">Macabre 620108 - [8] The Edge of Evil </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">The link to download them is </font><font size="4"><strong><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Macabre_35" target="_blank">Macabre</a></strong></font></p> <p><strong><font size="4"></font></strong></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">I’ll have more Halloween Horror from the golden age of radio, TV, and movies later in the week.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-30879751267564040182011-10-15T11:51:00.001-04:002011-10-15T11:53:48.227-04:00The First James Bond<p> </p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwsYK6QWWyY_O4uAKcsHV3xmU0QDczPoBDG8iyafLPnZB1NHMe1wRIeFXi-a7GO36VzPIndsBZegcX2SFh3BuMWOBjeKSP66xNhSpGiUa3ba6DRa8YweSlo5WCBX6l0sPZpPXPYx1VeF8/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-jh3Gl2FF84U/Tpmr-YHNetI/AAAAAAAAF5M/l0vC7uCexog/image_thumb.png?imgmax=800" width="137" height="244" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1953 Ian Fleming published the first of 12 James Bond novels, <em>Casino Royale, </em>and launched what is arguably the most successful entertainment franchise of the 20th century. More than 100 million copies of his novels have been sold, and the series has spawned more than 2 dozen films.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><em>Casino Royale</em> sold very well in the UK, but a year later in 1954, Commander James Bond was still relatively unknown in the United States.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The earliest attempt at a filmed version of James Bond came in October of 1954, when an American anthology  TV series called  <em>CLIMAX!</em> produced a live broadcast of <em>Casino Royale.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Fleming was reportedly paid $1,000 for the rights to the story, and Barry Nelson played an `Americanized’  <em>Jimmy Bond</em> of `combined intelligence’.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Bond aficionados will immediately notice a few `discrepancies’ in this production, including the changing of American CIA Agent Felix Leiter  into a British agent named  Clarence Leiter.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Linda Christian becomes the first `Bond girl’, in a character that was an amalgam of the <em>Royale</em> characters Vesper Lynd and Rene Mathis.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Peter Lorre is appropriately menacing as the first Bond Villain, playing <em>Le Chiffre,</em> whom `Jimmy Bond’ must bust playing Baccarat.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Admittedly stage bound, and lacking the sort of sexual conquests, fast cars, jazzy music, and gadgets that Bond movies are famous for, this still makes for an interesting hour of early TV.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">A copy of this early TV production has just showed up on the </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">, and you can either watch it online, or download it for your collection. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxCasinoRoyale" target="_blank"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-OoK6WOsqQz8/Tpmr-zmi9WI/AAAAAAAAF5U/ey_94O1FGAI/image%25255B8%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="388" height="111" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxCasinoRoyale" target="_blank">Climax!: Casino Royale</a></h3> </blockquote> <p></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Interestingly, the only time the words <strong>`Casino Royale’</strong> are uttered during this production is during the intro by series host William Lundigan.  </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">For more live productions from the golden age of TV, you may wish to check out:</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <h5><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2011/09/seeking-satisfying-climax.html">Seeking A Satisfying Climax!</a></h5> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although CBS briefly toyed with the idea of a James Bond TV series in the the late 1950s, it would be another 8 years before Bond would return to the screen (<em>Dr. No</em>).  </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">Casino Royale has been remade twice since this Climax version, with the 1967 James Bond spoof called starring David Niven, and most recently in 2006 with Daniel Craig playing a darker, earthier Bond sans many of the gadgets that had defined earlier screen portrayals. </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-72276155095741235502011-10-02T11:46:00.001-04:002011-10-02T11:56:07.683-04:00Ramar Of The Jungle<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-n6UtGNABxRI/ToiHSNcweWI/AAAAAAAAF2c/MK7ZAtoR1SI/image%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="214" height="244" /> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Juvenile adventure television series were a staple of 1950s television, with shows like <em><em><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2011/06/king-on-you-huskies.html" target="_blank">Sergeant Preston</a></em>, <a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/03/from-out-of-clear-blue-of-western-sky.html" target="_blank">Sky King</a>, </em>and <a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/07/matt-dodson-err-make-that-tom-corbett.html" target="_blank">Tom Corbett</a> taking their audiences from the Yukon territory, to the cockpit of a soaring Cessna <strong>T-50</strong> `<em>Bamboo Bomber’</em>, to the far reaches of the asteroid belt.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font color="#000000"><font size="3">For 30 minutes (<em>minus commercials</em>) these shows would transport kids of all ages to exotic locales, where adventure awaited and despite any adversity, the good guys always won.</font></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font color="#000000"><font size="3">One of the best remembered shows of my childhood was a syndicated adventure series staring <strong>Jon Hall</strong>, called <em>Ramar of the Jungle</em>.</font></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font color="#000000"><font size="3">For this all-American youth of the 1950s a scientist-doctor who lived and worked in the jungle, carried a rifle, and always saved the day . . . well, that was a hard combination to beat.</font></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font color="#000000"><font size="3">The series consisted of 4 13-episode blocks. With the 1st, 3rd, and 4th blocks taking place in `Africa’ and the 2nd series in `India’.</font></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><font size="3"></font></font></p> <blockquote> <p> <br /><font size="3">In reality, they were really shot on the back lot in Hollywood, with cheap sets, dubious looking `natives’, and stock jungle footage liberally spliced into each episode. The same jungle scenes had a habit of showing up repeatedly week after week, but then, it wasn’t <em>supposed</em> to be a documentary.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Each of the 4 season’s had a 3-part story arc, that allowed the producers to repackage these episodes into four separate feature films.  Another seven `TV movies’ were stitched together for syndication as well, long after the series ended.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The show starred <strong>Jon Ha</strong>ll – an actor who first appeared in movies in 1935, but didn’t really gain attention until the 1937 movie <em>The Hurricane</em>, with Dorothy Lamour.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">He worked steadily throughout the 1940s playing the lead in lightweight escapist adventures like <i>Arabian Nights</i> (1942), <i>White Savage</i> (1943), <i>Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves</i> (1944), <i>Cobra Woman</i> (1944), and <em>Prince of Thieves</em> (1949). </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Hall was married for 20 years to the beautiful and talented songstress <strong>Frances Langford</strong>, who played opposite Don Ameche in </font><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2008/11/not-exactly-ozzie-and-harriet.html" target="_blank"><font size="3">The Bickersons</font></a><font size="3">.  They divorced in 1955, but remained friends until Hall’s death in 1979. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">  <br /></font></p> <p><font size="3">While able to find work in B movies, Hall – like many of the B-list stars of the time – moved to television in the 1950s.  He played Dr. Tom 'Ramar' Reynolds in 52 episodes of <em>Ramar of the Jungle</em> between 1952 and 1954.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Hall’s career languished post-Ramar, with few roles offered, and ended with the ultra-low budget horror film <strong>The Beach Girls and the Monster</strong> in 1965<strong>.</strong></font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">It is a testament to just how long Ramar ran in syndication that I remember it vividly playing on Saturday afternoon television as much as a decade after filming ended.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Hall’s co-star was <strong>Ray Montgomery</strong>, a contract player with Warner Bros. in the 1940s who appeared in mostly minor roles.  Handsome, and a capable enough actor, there wasn’t anything that set him apart from the crowd.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Unlike Hall, however, Montgomery managed to stay active in show business throughout the 1960s and into the 70’s and 80’s, playing guest roles in shows like <em>77 Sunset Strip, Hawaiian Eye, The Virginian, </em>and<em>  Lassie</em>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The third member of the cast was<strong> Nick Stewart</strong>, who played a native guide named Willy-WIlly.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Despite third billing, Stewart actually had a longer (<em>and better</em>) resume than either of his two co-stars. He’d started out as a dancer at the Cotton Club, moved to Broadway in the 1930s, and appeared in the movies (bit roles) as early as 1932.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Most famously, h</font><font size="3">e’d played <strong>Lightnin'</strong><em> (as Nick O'Demus)</em><strong> </strong>on the the TV version of the <em>Amos & Andy Show.</em> </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Stewart and his wife Edna Stewart founded the <em><strong>Los Angeles' Ebony Showcase Theatre</strong></em>, which worked to give black actors roles beyond the traditional maid and porter stereotypes. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">We’ve 5 episodes of Ramar for you to sample from the </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">.    </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/RamarOfTheJungle-EvilTrek" target="_blank"><strong>Ramar of the Jungle - Evil Trek</strong></a></font><strong> <br /></strong><font size="3">Ramar of the Jungle - Season 1, Episode 1 </font></p> <p><font size="3"> <br /></font></p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/RamarOfTheJungle-WhiteSavages" target="_blank"><strong>Ramar of the Jungle - White Savages</strong></a></font> <br /><font size="3">Ramar of the Jungle - Season 1, Episode 2</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p></p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/RamarOfTheJungle-DrumsOfAfrica" target="_blank"><strong>Ramar of the Jungle - Drums of Africa</strong></a></font> <br /><font size="3">Ramar of the Jungle | Season 1, Episode 3 </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/RamarOfTheJungle-TheDoomedSafari" target="_blank"><strong>Ramar of the Jungle - The Doomed Safari</strong></a></font><strong> <br /></strong><font size="3">Ramar of the Jungle | Season 1, Episode 4 </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/RamarOfTheJungle-TribalFeud" target="_blank"><strong>Ramar of the Jungle - Tribal Feud</strong></a></font><strong> <br /></strong><font size="3">Ramar of the Jungle | Season 1, Episode 5 </font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Jon Hall died at his own hands in 1979 while in the final stages of terminal cancer. </font><font size="3">Upon retirement from show business, Ray Montgomery successfully transitioned into California Real Estate.</font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">Nick Stewart passed away in 2000, but along the way his <em>Ebony Showcase Theatre</em> helped launch many careers,including those of such noted performers as Nichelle Nichols, John Amos, and Isabel Sanford.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Not a bad legacy. Not bad at all. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-80594783673664427842011-09-18T11:23:00.001-04:002011-09-18T11:23:22.955-04:00Spike Jones: Musical Depreciation<p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">My twin brother makes his living as an infamous banjo player, but <em>my</em> musical ambition was to grow up to play second shotgun in the Spike Jones Orchestra. </font><font size="3">Alas, Spike died in 1965, before I could really handle a 12 gauge, and so that dream died with him.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But the zany music of Lindley Armstrong `Spike’ Jones lives on.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although he started out as a `straight’ musician, playing percussion with <em>Victor Young’s  orchestra</em> and then the <em>John Scott Trotter Orchestra</em> throughout much of the 1930s, Spike emerged from the background in 1941 with the formation of his<strong> City Slicker’s band</strong>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Spike was to big band music what the Marx Brothers were to to the movies.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Utilizing a madcap array of cowbells, gunshots, whistles, pots & pans, chicken clucks, hiccups, sneezes, and other unusual vocalizations, along with some truly fine jazz musicians they produced a string of novelty hits that spanned three decades.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Amplifying and building upon the antics of earlier novelty orchestras <em>(and contemporaries) </em>like <em><font color="#800000">The Hoosier Hotshots</font></em>, and <font color="#800000"><em>Freddie Fisher </em></font></font><font color="#800000" size="3"><em>and the Schnickelfritz Band,</em> <font color="#000000">Spike Jones and his City Slickers struck gold in 1942 with a wickedly funny parody of Adolph Hitler called <em><strong>In Der Fuehrer’s Face</strong>.</em></font></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The song was featured prominently in a 1943 Donald Duck cartoon by the same name, and became one of the best remembered of the war-era songs.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Below, a short Movietone News performance of Der Fuehrer’s Face by Spike & Company while on a war bonds tour. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:906e37c4-a1a2-4107-bb49-0ccc8d62e878" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="b4997be9-d733-4ecb-93d4-5fdc8d09b5c6" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1583adUqSg" target="_new"><img src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-sVNzgrY1ULU/TnYM4jibT8I/AAAAAAAAF0I/NcfJDG4QP0w/video829b1775160a%25255B21%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('b4997be9-d733-4ecb-93d4-5fdc8d09b5c6'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"382\" height=\"286\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/I1583adUqSg&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/I1583adUqSg&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"382\" height=\"286\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">What would follow would be a series of highly successful musical parodies, a popular radio show (<em>plus numerous guest appearances across the radio dial</em>), movie shorts and guest shots in feature films, many early appearances on TV, and a couple of TV shows of his own.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Between <a href="http://www.youtube.com/" target="_blank">Youtube</a> and the <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a>, we’ve numerous videos and recordings to sample.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">An early example comes from a `Soundie’ – a precursor to today’s music video – which could be viewed on video jukeboxes placed in bars and restaurants during the 1940s (see </font><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/07/soundies-music-videos-of-past.html" target="_blank">Soundies . . . Music Videos Of The Past</a>).</p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">This one is from 1942.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:a15cb072-1d2c-47df-81ec-5046c9ec6145" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="bc425b20-c3c9-4110-bb28-162a8b69d94e" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijnfdLFhn2o" target="_new"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-3rkDIpDSLmA/TnYM47MMA5I/AAAAAAAAF0M/tEp9bDkt_Yg/video48412eee9e2f%25255B14%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('bc425b20-c3c9-4110-bb28-162a8b69d94e'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"425\" height=\"355\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/ijnfdLFhn2o&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/ijnfdLFhn2o&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"425\" height=\"355\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">One of their most enduring songs was `<em>Cocktails For Two’,</em> which was written in 1934 at the end of prohibition by Arthur Johnston and Sam Coslow and debuted in the movie <i>Murder at the Vanities</i> (1934).</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The song is remembered today, however, due to the 1944 send up by Spike and his Orchestra. Starting off by playing sweetly, in short order mayhem ensues. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:b9e79aa5-f443-4f84-95c1-4a42b1d01ae5" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="ecc18b99-4a58-4904-98d5-95a8700bd1b4" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvt4b_qwC_Q" target="_new"><img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-x6Zya1-UAf4/TnYM5SwLdGI/AAAAAAAAF0Q/kwFegCxUfdY/video03cc8f5be02d%25255B16%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('ecc18b99-4a58-4904-98d5-95a8700bd1b4'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"399\" height=\"299\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/lvt4b_qwC_Q&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/lvt4b_qwC_Q&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"399\" height=\"299\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">One of the secrets to his success is that his musicians – while playing for laughs – were arguably some of finest jazz performers in the business. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Next we’ve a 30 minute NBC TV show from the early 1950s.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:d754ab01-1391-4606-980d-61b9f0f42fbc" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="1d88b0db-8f22-49a1-81ec-e2dfc0a9b98a" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAzm9yBfoHM" target="_new"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-uxwoSNYxsBQ/TnYM6U2B_cI/AAAAAAAAF0U/9zJ-nR67p5M/video8260b83705e9%25255B10%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('1d88b0db-8f22-49a1-81ec-e2dfc0a9b98a'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"382\" height=\"286\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/bAzm9yBfoHM&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/bAzm9yBfoHM&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"382\" height=\"286\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">As you can probably tell by now, Spike’s music was as much meant to be viewed as it was to be heard.  And that would make him a natural for early television shows of the 1950s. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">For more Youtube Videos of Spike Jones, including many segments from his TV show, follow <a href="http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Spike+jones&aq=f" target="_blank"><strong>THIS LINK.</strong></a></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Moving over to the <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a>, we have more than <strong>50 radio episodes</strong> gathered from three different Spike Jones radio shows; </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">"Chase and Sanborn Program" - 1945 Summer Series <br />"Spotlight Revue" - 1947/48 Series <br />"Spike Jones Show" - 1949 Series</font></p> <p></p> <p></p> <p></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SpikeJones" target="_blank"><u><font color="#ff8000">Spike Jones</font></u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Spike is one of many radio performers you can see in the 1946 movie <strong>Breakfast in Hollywood. </strong>Also featured are Nat King Cole, Andy Russel, Hedda Hopper, and Billie Burke.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/BreakfastInHollywood_961" target="_blank"><u><font color="#ff8000">Breakfast in Hollywood</font></u></a></h3> <p> </p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1951, Spike hosted the Colgate Comedy Hour. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SpikeJonesColgateComedyHour" target="_blank"><u><font size="3">Spike Jones Colgate Comedy Hour</font></u></a></h3> <p><font size="3"></font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">And for scores of Spike Jones audio recordings, you need look no further than:</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=%22Spike%20Jones%22%20AND%20mediatype%3Aaudio" target="_blank"><font size="3"><strong>SPIKE JONES RECORDS</strong> on the Internet Archive</font></a></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The rock & roll revolution in the mid-1950s made it difficult for bigger bands to compete, and comedy records were moving to the spoken word (<em>Tom Lehrer, Bob Newhart, Stan Freberg</em>), but Spike Jones kept recording until the early 1960s.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">A lifelong heavy smoker, Spike suffered from emphysema and died far too young in 1965 at the age of 53.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But for his many fans, and thanks to archival sites like Youtube and the Internet Archive, his memory lives on. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-88757898138156710272011-09-05T10:07:00.001-04:002011-09-05T10:57:45.744-04:00Seeking A Satisfying Climax!<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-Gpbab7Fp1GM/TmTXn11QaDI/AAAAAAAAFw0/Q95Ou7xL3_A/s1600-h/image%25255B3%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-VLpJMticeYU/TmTXoTMqZRI/AAAAAAAAFw8/bk_3FyOfSK8/image_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="234" height="183" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Unlike today, where most TV shows feature a regular cast playing the same characters in a `series’ of stories, during the 1950s dramatic anthology series were common.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Nearly every week, either live or on film, shows like <em>Studio One</em>, <em>Playhouse 90</em>,<em> Lux Theatre</em>, and <em>Climax!</em> would present an original teleplay or an adaptation of a famous book, movie, or stage play.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The result was what is now recognized as the <em>`golden age’</em> of televised drama, where young unknown actors could learn their craft working along side stage and movie veterans, and promising writers could hone their skills. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Since many of these shows were performed and broadcast live. . . goofs, gaffs and miscues would sometimes add to their already considerable entertainment value.</font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Between 1954 and 1958 CBS television aired 166 hour-long dramatic presentations on their show <em>Climax!</em>  sponsored by Chrysler motors.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Hosted first by actor <strong>William Lundigan</strong> and then later co-hosted by singer, actress, and Disney legend <strong>Mary Costa</strong>, these shows featured an impressive list of established stars and up and coming talent including:</font></p> <blockquote><font size="3"></font> <blockquote> <p> <br /><font size="3"><em>Michael Rennie, Red Skelton, Barry Nelson, Peter Lorrie, Linda Christian, Linda Darnell, Steve McQueen, Thomas Mitchell, Anne Francis, Howard Duff,</em> Vera Miles, Sebastian Cabot, Lee Marvin, Elaine Stritch, along with many others.  </font></p> </blockquote> </blockquote> <p><font color="#881100" size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">A number of these actors would made multiple appearances over the years, albeit playing different characters.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Perhaps most famously, <em>Climax!</em> in its 3rd episode marked the first screen appearance of super secret agent James Bond, although in their 1954 production of <em>Casino Royale</em>  Barry Nelson played an Americanized CIA agent `Jimmy Bond’ in a battle with villainous Peter Lorre.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Other famous adaptations included <em>Sorry, Wrong Number, The Champion,  Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde,</em> <em>The Lou Gehrig Story</em>, and the <em>Adventures of Huckleberry Finn</em>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The live performances are necessarily stage-bound, and are not as slickly mounted as the filmed episodes, but provide ample entertainment nonetheless. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">We are fortunate to have nearly a dozen of these shows available on the <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><strong>Internet Archive</strong></a>, and that number appears to be growing. </font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">You can view a list of their current offerings at </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=collection%3Aclassic_tv%20AND%20subject%3A%22Climax!%22" target="_blank"><font size="3"><strong>THIS LINK.</strong></font></a><font size="3"><strong> </strong></font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While this list will hopefully expand, right now the following episodes are available. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxTrailOfTerror" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax: Trail of Terror</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxTheScreamInSilence" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax!: The Scream in Silence</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxAPromiseToMurder" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax!: A Promise to Murder</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxPublicPigeon1" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax!: Public Pigeon #1</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxTheVolcanoSeat" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax!: The Volcano Seat</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxTrialByFire" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax!: Trial By Fire</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxFoursHoursInWhite" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax!: Fours Hours in White</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxAnErrorInChemistry" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax!: An Error in Chemistry</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Climax-TheLouGehrigStory1956" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax! - The Lou Gehrig Story (1956)</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ClimaxTheAdventuresOfHuckleberryFinn" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax!: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn</font></a> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Climax-DrJekyllAndMrHyde" target="_blank"><font size="3">Climax - Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde</font></a><font size="3">  <strong></strong></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <font size="3"> <p> <br />During its four year run <em>Climax!</em> garnered nearly a dozen Emmy nominations, including best dramatic series in 1956 and 1957. Of note,11 of their scripts were subsequently sold to the movies.</p> <p> </p> <p>For those who miss the Golden Age of Televised drama, or those who would like to know what it was all about,  I feel certain you’ll get a lot of satisfaction out of having these multiple Climaxes<em> </em>in your collection<em>.</em> </p> <p></p> <font size="3"> </font></font> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-39706231011204261722011-08-21T09:54:00.001-04:002011-08-21T09:54:47.853-04:00Revisiting Borrah Minevitch<p> </p> <p> <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-gXtfLZ4y8WM/TlEOHshwkLI/AAAAAAAAFq8/ONRY4QNi_Jc/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-Q2MsTQlFYEI/TlEOIFI3qgI/AAAAAAAAFrA/xyevw9UrR4U/image_thumb.png?imgmax=800" width="244" height="183" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">In April of 2009 I wrote a blog called </font><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/04/borrah-minevitch-and-his-harmonica.html"><font size="3">Borrah Minevitch And His Harmonica Rascals</font></a><font size="3">, and included a number of </font><a href="http://www.youtube.com/" target="_blank"><font size="3">Youtube</font></a><font size="3"> videos.  Sadly, I discovered earlier this week that most of those links are no longer active.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Luckily, there are <strong>other video clips available</strong>, and so today a reprise of that blog with new embedded videos.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">As I’ve cautioned before, sometimes the links I post end up in the great bit-bucket in the sky.  If you see something you want, better to get it while you can.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Specialty acts were commonplace in the early days of show business, when high visibility meant working steadily in Vaudeville.    After all, you could hone an act over the years, and perform it basically unchanged for decades, and never run out of audiences.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Of course, movies and television destroyed that.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">In one short appearance a specialty act could `burn’ their entire repertoire in front of a national audience.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But while it lasted, particularly during the heyday of Vaudeville up to the early days of television, specialty acts were in great demand.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">One of the best was Borrah Minevitch and his Harmonica Rascals, although today some of his antics might not be considered politically correct.  </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Minevitch, who was born in Kiev, Russia immigrated to the United States at the age of 8, and studied piano and violin, but he fell in love with the harmonica.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1925 <em>(at the age of 20)</em> he came up with the idea of a `specialty act’; he hired a dozen or so young boys, taught them the basics of the harmonica, dressed them in formal attire, and formed a `harmonica orchestra’.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Within a year, the <em>Harmonica Rascals</em> were one of the hottest acts in Vaudeville.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">When sound came to the movies, Minevitch (<em>who was a consummate promoter</em>) worked his ensemble into a dozen shorts and some feature films.   His act featured physical comedy, along with harmonica musical antics. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">An early appearance of the Harmonica Rascals was in <em>One In A Million</em>, a Sonja Henie musical comedy from 1936.  Here you’ll hear them play the title song to the movie, in a medley with Ravel’s Bolero, and the classic Lime House Blues.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:f8d0d97a-53d5-4e33-a7a8-ffcee84d19fb" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="a68c8e4a-6f41-4b59-b762-3d98b8a354b5" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3tYKO1ByDw" target="_new"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-6WoZ1Nz3gqs/TlEOIoXReTI/AAAAAAAAFrE/4a3vSf7Te-U/video0559be083404%25255B12%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('a68c8e4a-6f41-4b59-b762-3d98b8a354b5'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"392\" height=\"294\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/r3tYKO1ByDw&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/r3tYKO1ByDw&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"392\" height=\"294\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Another big screen appearance came in 1942 as Borrah and is rascals played `Always In My Heart’ from the movie of the same name.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:9738fb78-d0a6-43ec-ac09-eb8d371aa668" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="9f5e8997-f28f-4c71-a606-01c15be741e3" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zps493C7pxA" target="_new"><img src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-A0W7Iw89t5A/TlEOI1Ga4lI/AAAAAAAAFrI/cQWhUmlYcVg/video66be77f81ac0%25255B9%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('9f5e8997-f28f-4c71-a606-01c15be741e3'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"383\" height=\"287\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/zps493C7pxA&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/zps493C7pxA&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"383\" height=\"287\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">One of his best short films came in 1942, with Borrah Minevitch’s Harmonica School.   We’ve a couple of clips from that film. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><strong><font size="3">Harmonica School  1943</font></strong></p> <p><font size="3">Borrah Minevitch - Dave Doucette - Carl Ford - Ben Burley - Ernie Morris - Hugh 'Pud' McCaskey - Sammy Ross - Etto Manieri - Pat Marquis - Frank Marquis - Bill McBride </font></p> </blockquote> <blockquote> <p><b><b><font size="3"> </font></b></b></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:4a845369-5eae-42f0-a125-635e96eafbae" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="5b6e6921-f22a-4a74-8de5-4ca1264e9e71" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSDe7EbHLIY" target="_new"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoGXFlMcgF6UEhJzx1kUZ85Q3t58k4ZghITqe9a4UkTHJI8hOpcnxSIRhWC3K8VTT5aLm6pLfkz0xygq-oq8ta52vAJkxXS-MoJ9Tvz8AEUn_tZxRrs6GinJqEVlzU7w2zdLC1cVYvyMw/?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('5b6e6921-f22a-4a74-8de5-4ca1264e9e71'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"390\" height=\"292\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/aSDe7EbHLIY&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/aSDe7EbHLIY&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"390\" height=\"292\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p> </p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:594a0383-5e37-4a61-9022-25b06c322ddf" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="630a7ba2-0d8f-419d-beca-647bb52cd15a" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41auToAfjYw" target="_new"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-5fK8wckfLO4/TlEOJZKLzrI/AAAAAAAAFrQ/1tmUVUoe1xk/video1d379dd0f9ce%25255B8%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('630a7ba2-0d8f-419d-beca-647bb52cd15a'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"387\" height=\"290\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/41auToAfjYw&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/41auToAfjYw&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"387\" height=\"290\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">The <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a> also has several classic 78 recordings of Borrah Minevitch and his rascals performing:</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/HungarianRhapsody2" target="_blank"><u>Hungarian Rhapsody #2</u></a></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Dardanella_957" target="_blank">Dardanella</a></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/HoraStaccato" target="_blank">Hora Staccato</a></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/LaVioletera_539" target="_blank">La Violetera</a></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/HayseedRag" target="_blank">Hayseed rag</a></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Minevitch would retire in 1947, and die suddenly of a heart attack in 1955.   He paved the way, of course, for other Harmonica specialty acts that would follow – most notably the Harmonicats.</font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-268488755633887342011-08-13T11:21:00.001-04:002011-08-13T11:30:28.845-04:00The Indomitable Dr. Christian<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-dg-w7WC1ZtI/TkaWdi8qlKI/AAAAAAAAFpE/KB1vaxNV8XA/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-yIGFHpYAXL4/TkaWeL9GIYI/AAAAAAAAFpI/2FKJme4TvPM/image_thumb.png?imgmax=800" width="155" height="244" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">For the past 50 years, `good’ doctors have nearly always been portrayed on TV and in the Movies as being young, brash, and irreverent.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Older TV doctors . . . with the notable exception of <em>Marcus Welby</em>  . . .  have generally been portrayed as being stodgy, behind the times, and sometimes even dangerous.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But for 17 years – starting in 1937 -  arguably the most famous and beloved <em>`doctor’</em> in America was kindly Dr. Paul Christian, portrayed first on the radio, and then in the movies and on TV by veteran Danish born actor Jean Hersholt.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Already an established  character actor in Hollywood – with his first American movie roles coming in silent films as far back as 1915 – Hersholt was cast as Dr.John Luke in the movie <em>The Country Doctor</em>, loosely based on Dr. Allan Roy Dafoe, the doctor who delivered and cared for the most famous babies in the world - the <em>Dionne Quintuplets</em> of Ontario, Canada<em>.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Up until May of 1934, no set of quints had ever survived infancy, and the so the Dionne Quintuplets were a global sensation.  The Canadian government – concerned over the parents ability to care for and raise these babies – made them wards of the Crown making Dr. Dafoe and two other's their legal guardian.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">A special nursery was built, and thousands of tourists each day were allowed to view the quints at play from an observation gallery.  The Dionne quintuplets quickly became a major tourist attraction, and their likenesses – along with Dr. Dafoe’s – were used in advertising of everything from Karo syrup to Quaker Oats.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Despite the money and fame, life for the Dionne Quintuplets would prove more of a sad melodrama than a fairy tale. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Hollywood, recognizing the possibilities, cast the quints in 4 movies over the next few years.  The first, <em>The Country Doctor</em> - starring 49 year-old Jean Hersholt – strongly identified him in the public’s mind as the perfect `country </font><font size="3">doctor’.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Hersholt would make two sequels (<em>Reunion</em> 1936 and <em>Five of A Kind</em> 1938) and wanted to bring the character to radio, but was unable to obtain the rights.  Instead, he created his own Dr. Paul Christian – who lived in worked in the small mid-western town of River’s End.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While technically a soap opera <em>(it was broadcast on Sunday Afternoons on the CBS radio network</em>), don’t let that put you off.  Each episode is a self contained story, and the show was a charming blend of drama, gentle humor, and 1930s Americana. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <font size="3"> <p> <br />And quite unusually, by the 1940s, most of the scripts were submitted by loyal listeners ( sometimes <em>polished by the writing staff</em>) which – beginning in 1942 – resulted in an annual script-writing competition.</p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p>Top prize was $2000 (<em>big money back then</em>) and several runners up received $500. Among the many winners were Rod Serling and Earl  Hamner, Jr..</p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p>The <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a> has 175 episodes of the Doctor Christian radio series – including the first episode which introduced the series. </p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Dr.Christian_911" target="_blank"><u><font color="#800000">Dr. Christian 175 Eps</font></u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p>When a movie star ends up starring in a successful radio series it only makes sense to produce a Hollywood feature as well.   And Jean Hersholt played Dr. Christian in 6 movies over a three year period.</p> <p> </p> <ul> <li><i>Meet Dr. Christian</i> (1939) </li> <li><i>Remedy for Riches</i> (1940) </li> <li><i>The Courageous Dr. Christian</i> (1940) </li> <li><i>Dr. Christian Meets the Women</i> (1940) </li> <li><i>Melody for Three</i> (1941) </li> <li><i>They Meet Again</i> (1941) </li> </ul> <p></p> </font> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">So far, four of these movies have shown up on the Internet Archive. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <h3><u><font color="#800000">Dr. Christian Meets The Women (1940)</font></u></h3> <p><font color="#800000"></font></p> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/courageous_dr_christian" target="_blank"><u><font color="#800000">Courageous Dr. Christian, The (1940)</font></u></a></h3> <p><font color="#800000"></font></p> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Melody_for_Three_movie" target="_blank"><u><font color="#800000">Melody for Three (1941)</font></u></a></h3> <p><font color="#800000"></font></p> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/they_meet_again" target="_blank"><u><font color="#800000">They Meet Again (1941)</font></u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">The movies often shifted easily between drama and comedy, and the last entry <em>They Meet Again</em> was clearly the weakest entry in the lot. </font><font size="3">The radio series would continue another 9 years, however.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Jean Hersholt would appear one last time on screen as Dr. Christian in the opening episode of the 1956 ZIV TV series sequel called <em>Dr. Christian</em> – starring the subject of <a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">last week’s blog</a> – MacDonald Carey as elderly Paul Christian’s nephew Mark who took over his practice.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Hersholt died shortly after that appearance from cancer, but is well remembered for his many movie roles (<em>including Shirley Temple’s grandfather in Heidi</em>), his work translating the works of Hans Christian Anderson into English, his radio series, and his humanitarian work in Hollywood.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">The Academy Awards, in recognition of Hersholt’s work for 18 years as president of the Motion Picture Relief Fund, periodically awards the <strong>Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. </strong></font></p> </blockquote> <p><strong><font size="3"></font></strong></p> <p><font size="3">Past recipients have included Frank Sinatra, Jerry Lewis, Elizabeth Taylor, Danny Kaye, and Oprah Winfrey.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">All in all, not a bad way to be remembered. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-49841122282824828432011-08-06T10:58:00.001-04:002011-08-06T11:02:41.704-04:00Locking Up Early TV Syndication<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRkw3ApVm4ou53B4qN1hnLEi1XTpenn295JoCg8_lLNwhRCWBIvtRoRT2fVOryg27cROGo29UWs1IktbueSjJkdhMUec52wlo8Zk6xeUqJVB0BYzFnOeOm0wuVHOb2YBVcBnJ64hZACUo/s1600-h/image%25255B11%25255D.png"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-tmS9l775dbs/Tj1XkND861I/AAAAAAAAFm4/7t9v5-zWPQM/image_thumb%25255B3%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="154" height="118" /></a>   </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although the major networks provided most of the prime-time programming schedule to the growing array of TV stations during the 1950s, syndicated TV shows were a big business as well. Local stations were desperate for content to air beyond the traditional evening `prime’ time slot.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Ziv Television Programs, Inc., founded by Frederick Ziv in 1948, was probably the most prolific and successful of the independent TV producers, churning out hundreds of hours of programming every year.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The ZIV studios stock in trade were half hour, mostly male-oriented adventure dramas. As episodes were usually filmed over 3 or 4 days, and at a cost of under $40,000 an episode, it proved to be a profitable formula. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Many ZIV shows were highly successful, like<em> Highway Patrol</em> (1955-59), <i>Bat Masterson</i> (1958-61), <em>I Led Three Lives</em> (1953-56), <em>The Cisco Kid</em> (1949-56), <em>Men Into Space</em> (1959-60), <em>Science Fiction Theatre</em> (1955-57), <em>Ripcord</em> (1961-63), and <em>Sea Hunt</em> (1958-61), and are fondly remembered by the baby boom generation.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Other Ziv shows are less well remembered – like <em>The Man Called X</em> (1956-57) and <em>Bold Venture </em>(1959-60) -  which were attempts to rework successful radio dramas of the past.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Most of these syndicated shows featured decent production values, fast paced scripts, and personable stars. They also provided ample work for a generation of soon-to-be famous TV actors just learning their craft.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">One of the lesser known shows was called <em>Lock Up </em>- which ran for two years and 78 episodes between 1959 and 1961 - and it starred MacDonald Carey as real-life Philadelphia defense attorney Herbert L. Maris.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The scripts were supposedly based on Maris’s files, although a certain amount of literary license can be assumed to have been employed. </font><font size="3">The style is reminiscent of other procedural police & crime dramas of the era, with the story told in a straight forward – almost documentary style.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Stretching credulity a bit, MacDonald Carey’s character almost always teams up with police detective Weston, played by John Doucette, to prove his client’s innocence. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">The <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a> has more than 40 episodes of Lock Up available for viewing or download. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="4">To see the current offerings select  </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=collection%3Aclassic_tv%20AND%20subject%3A%22Lock%20Up%22" target="_blank"><strong><font size="4">THIS LINK</font></strong></a><font size="4">.</font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">While enjoyable enough in their own right, episodes of <em>Lock Up</em> provide us with fascinating glimpses at early TV appearances by Joe Flynn, Robert Conrad, Mary Tyler Moore, Gavin Macleod and many others.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">You’ll also find established actors like John Carradine, Buddy Epsen, and Lon Chaney, Jr. showing up in guest roles. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">MacDonald Carey had been a modestly successful radio, movie, stage and TV actor prior to this series.  </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">He appeared in Hitchcock’s <em>Shadow of a Doubt</em> (1943), <em>Suddenly, It’s Spring</em> (1947), and a series of `B’ western movies in the 1950s  including <em>The Great Missouri Raid </em>(1951), <em>Outlaw Territory</em> (1953), <em>and Man or Gun</em> (1958)).  </font></p> <p> <br /> <br /><font size="3">While perhaps best known for playing the role of Tom Horton on <i>Days of our Lives</i> for 3 decades, he was also one of the most familiar faces on TV for several decades appearing on everything from <em>Murder, She Wrote</em> and <em>Fantasy Island</em> to <em>Burke’s Law </em>and <em>The Outer Limits.</em></font></p> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">MacDonald Carey died in 1994 of Lung Cancer.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">As a tribute, the soap opera <em>Days of Our Lives</em> continued to use his famous voice over during the opening of each show even after his passing. </font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-CJyVpzyQqi4/Tj1WnSHnLrI/AAAAAAAAFms/Xu7NSY9Byzk/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png"></a></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">As for the production company ZIV, they began producing shows for network clients in the mid-1950s (<i>West Point</i>,<i>Tombstone Territory, Bat Masterson, Men into Space, </i>& <i>The Man and the Challenge), </i>but their heyday was nearly over.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1960 United Artists bought flagging ZIV Tv productions for $20 million dollars and renamed it Ziv-United Artists. </font><font size="3">By 1962, the company had phased out Ziv entirely, and changed its name to United Artists Television.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">And so ended an era. </font> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-CJyVpzyQqi4/Tj1WnSHnLrI/AAAAAAAAFms/Xu7NSY9Byzk/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-xe6i4wV6NNk/Tj1WoLv8ADI/AAAAAAAAFmw/thKTNSAo_78/image_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="244" height="216" /></a></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-CJyVpzyQqi4/Tj1WnSHnLrI/AAAAAAAAFms/Xu7NSY9Byzk/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png"></a><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font><font size="3"></font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-CJyVpzyQqi4/Tj1WnSHnLrI/AAAAAAAAFms/Xu7NSY9Byzk/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png"></a><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-35057339420903096682011-07-23T11:35:00.001-04:002011-07-23T11:35:56.459-04:00A Canticle For Leibowitz<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:A_Canticle_for_Leibowitz_cover_1st_ed.jpg"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-xu-iaTZbWlE/TirqWwuJqCI/AAAAAAAAFiY/zh9doF7dZUg/image%25255B6%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="150" height="244" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">I first read <em>A Canticle for Leibowitz </em>during the summer of 1969, as a lad of about 14.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">That summer I had moved from reading mostly juvenile sci-fi books and stories (<em>Heinlein & Asimov</em>) to more adult fare.  First devouring Pat Frank’s<em> Alas, Babylon</em>, then Heinlein’s <em>Stranger in A Strange Land</em>, I moved on to Walter M. Miller’<em>s </em>Hugo Award winning novel. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While I’d like to say I was sophisticated enough to fully appreciate the depth of Miller’s work, the truth is a lot of it was probably lost on me the first time I read it.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">I returned to it again in my senior year of High School, and again in my mid-30s.   Each time, finding more to savor.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">At first glance, it may seem another post-apocalyptic tale.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The world has been consumed in a great nuclear <em>`Flame Deluge’</em>, and the remnants of humanity are reduced to `<em>simpletons</em>’ who eschew technology and science.  Illiteracy is commonplace, and nearly all of mankind’s books have been destroyed.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But this is a book of <em>ideas</em>. </font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">Set over a period of 1500 years and divided into three parts (<em>set roughly 600 years apart</em>), <em>A Canticle</em> tells of the clandestine preservation of knowledge by an order of monks cloistered in the American Southwest, the slow rise of technology, and the nearly inevitable repeating of history.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While nothing really compares with reading the book, a 15-part abridged radio dramatization - produced for <a href="http://www.npr.org" target="_blank">NPR</a> and broadcast in 1981 by WHA radio (<em>Madison, Wisconsin</em>) and other public radio stations – does the story justice.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The half hour series ran on Sunday nights from October 1981 to January 1982, was repeated several times in the 1980s, and then shelved until 2001, when it was rebroadcast by NPR stations around the country.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The 7-1/2 hour program was adapted for radio by John Reed, and directed by Karl Schmidt.   The cast included Carol Collins, Fred Coffin, Russell Horton, Bart Hayman, and Herb Hartig.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">You’ll find the radio production available on The </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">.  You can either listen to individual episodes using their audio player, download individual episodes to listen to on your own computer or MP3 player, or download the entire series in a single Zip file. </font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="5"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/ACanticleForLiebowitz" target="_blank">A Canticle for Liebowitz</a></font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">If you’ve never read the book, this series may well inspire you to do so, as there is far more to the story than this series can provide. </font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">Nonetheless, this production is both satisfying and well worth savoring. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Enjoy.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-63743221057124830382011-07-02T11:50:00.001-04:002011-07-02T11:54:22.861-04:00If You Knew Sousa . . .<p> </p> <p> </p> <p> <br /><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-flk_AFT9lLE/Tg8-OLSUiRI/AAAAAAAAFeA/BvCqdMqF3J4/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-439G4WDzjRY/Tg8-OudNKsI/AAAAAAAAFeE/P8Wax5WBmNI/image_thumb.png?imgmax=800" width="213" height="244" /></a> </p> <p><em>John Philip Sousa doing his best Clifton Webb impersonation. . . </em></p> <p><em></em></p> <p><em></em></p> <p><em></em></p> <p><em></em></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">With this being the 4th of July weekend, there is nothing quite as quintessentially American as the military and patriotic music of John Philip Sousa.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While best known for “<em>The Washington Post</em>", "<em>Semper Fidelis</em>" (Official March of the United States Marine Corps), and "<em>The Stars and Stripes Forever</em>"  - Sousa composed more than 130 marches, more than a dozen operettas, and a number of <em>(mostly forgettable)</em> songs.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Born in 1854, in Washington D.C., Sousa began playing the violin at the age of six.  His father was a trombonist in the Marine band, and when John was 13, his father enlisted him into the Marines to keep him from running away to the circus.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Sousa served a 7-year apprenticeship with the Marine band before leaving.  Over the years, Sousa mastered a number of instruments and, after joining a pit orchestra, learned to conduct.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">He returned to the U.S. Marine Band as its conductor 1880, a post he retained for 12 years. Sousa led <em>"The President's Own</em>" band under five presidents (1880-1892).</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1892 Sousa formed his own band, and over the next 39 years toured extensively, giving over 15,000 concerts. His personal appearances, and records, made him independently wealthy and the most famous bandleader of his time.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The highly enjoyable bio pic  <em>The Stars & Stripes Forever</em> (1952), staring Clifton Webb, Robert Wagner, and Debra Paget takes some liberties with the plot <em>(Wagner’s Willie Little character appears to be entirely fictitious)</em>, but is nonetheless a well mounted <em>(for Hollywood)</em> attempt to tell the story of `The March king.’</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Sadly, the movie is not in the public domain, but shows up on cable often.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Given the era when Sousa reigned, it isn’t surprising to find a large number of early Sousa recordings available free online.  As always, the <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a> proves to be a treasure trove of these recordings. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The sound quality of many of these old 78’s can range from fair to poor, but nonetheless are fascinating audio clips from more than one hundred years past.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">We’ve 18 historical recordings made between 1895 and 1918 featuring the Sousa’s Band, with everything from a boisterous cakewalk, to a Viennese Waltz,  to the march music one expects.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/John_Philip_Sousa" target="_blank"><u>John Philip Sousa - Sousa's Band - The March King</u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">For better sound quality, we can turn to the Pride of the 48 Band (produced in 1958) doing 10 Sousa selections.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/JohnPhilipSousaMarches" target="_blank"><u>JOHN PHILIP SOUSA: Marches</u></a></h3> <p> </p> <p>The Pride of the 48 Band. <br />[conductor uncredited].</p> <p> <br />STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER. <br />WASHINGTON POST MARCH. <br />KING COTTON MARCH. <br />FAIREST OF THE FAIR. <br />EL CAPITAN. <br />THUNDERERS MARCH. <br />SEMPER FIDELIS. <br />MANHATTAN BEACH MARCH. <br />LIBERTY BELL MARCH. <br />HANDS ACROSS THE SEA.</p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">And lastly, from <a href="http://www.youtube.com/" target="_blank">Youtube</a>, three variations on Sousa’s most enduring composition -  <em>The Stars and Stripes Forever. </em></font></p> <p><em><font size="3"></font></em></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">First, the traditional symphonic treatment by the Boston Pops Orchestra.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:83a5e5f7-5d16-4f7c-aeb8-af6458c00d82" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="c09e2ec0-09bb-466f-9538-67f756ebd363" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GqMT_vbLK4" target="_new"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-cACyvuX4VTg/Tg8-PJb-jlI/AAAAAAAAFeg/aiowka0LqB4/video774ec776852d%25255B14%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('c09e2ec0-09bb-466f-9538-67f756ebd363'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"402\" height=\"301\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/_GqMT_vbLK4&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/_GqMT_vbLK4&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"402\" height=\"301\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Next, the famous Vladimir Horowitz transcription of the Stars and Stripes Forever.  Played somewhat slower than by most bands, Horowitz gives amazing feeling to the piece. </font></p> <p> </p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:cda1466b-cfd3-4835-ab69-711a7d656439" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="fe41dc1d-84ef-440e-aa75-b4d79e2df703" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_TZzL6SNnc" target="_new"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-Xx3HQ-Cya8Y/Tg8_Kya-NgI/AAAAAAAAFek/2SzWFlUHsgg/video57682ce2ac80%25255B2%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('fe41dc1d-84ef-440e-aa75-b4d79e2df703'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"385\" height=\"288\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/P_TZzL6SNnc&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/P_TZzL6SNnc&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"385\" height=\"288\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">And lastly, the incomparable Chet Atkins showing us how it’s done on the guitar. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div style="padding-bottom: 0px; margin: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; display: inline; float: none; padding-top: 0px" id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:650e00a1-74da-4eeb-981d-cfb13f7d5fe6" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent"><div id="2fcd0c62-01b6-4bfb-b93a-a7696df9ed3b" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; display: inline;"><div><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8BDYETDM5c" target="_new"><img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ZakxGK5z2SQ/Tg8-P4UrFdI/AAAAAAAAFeo/hfED9ioRJ3s/video254e219e8127%25255B11%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('2fcd0c62-01b6-4bfb-b93a-a7696df9ed3b'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = "<div><object width=\"397\" height=\"332\"><param name=\"movie\" value=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/V8BDYETDM5c&hl=en\"><\/param><embed src=\"http://www.youtube.com/v/V8BDYETDM5c&hl=en\" type=\"application/x-shockwave-flash\" width=\"397\" height=\"332\"><\/embed><\/object><\/div>";" alt=""></a></div></div></div> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Happy Fourth of July to everyone!</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-78521293766809019232011-06-24T13:44:00.001-04:002011-06-24T13:44:08.084-04:00Our Friend Irma<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><a href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-1TCOzRLbFMU/TgTM2i371zI/AAAAAAAAFaA/OPbi9iV9q3g/s1600-h/image%25255B2%25255D.png"><font size="3"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-NuHp8ojV9-U/TgTM3AE0FOI/AAAAAAAAFaE/VEFgO8ZxMHU/image%25255B11%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="190" height="244" /></font></a><font size="3"> </font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">While Gracie Allen may have invented the dumb blonde character in the 1930s, Marie Wilson perfected it the following decade playing the <em>loveable-but-absolutely-scatter-brained</em> <strong>Irma Peterson</strong> – first on radio, then in two movies and a relatively short-lived TV series. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Unlike Gracie, Marie was blessed with high cheekbones, an innocent face, and a killer figure. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">She began working in films (often uncredited) around 1934, but managed to secure the role of Mary, Quite Contrary in Laurel & Hardy’s musical  </font><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0024852/"><font size="3">Babes in Toyland</font></a><font size="3"> in 1934.  </font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">She was signed by Warner Brothers in 1935, and over the next four years appeared in many forgettable films.  The best of the lot was </font><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0029940/" target="_blank"><font size="3">Boy Meets Girl</font></a><font size="3"> (1938) with James Cagney. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Once she was let go by Warners, film work slowed.  </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">But Marie found  success on the stage during the war years of the 1940's, appearing in the Los Angeles stage show "<strong>Ken Murray's Blackouts</strong>"; an amalgam of young starlets, bawdy humor, and novelty acts that ran for 7 years. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">I profiled Ken Murray in January of 2009 in </font><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2009/01/ken-murray-hollywood-without-makeup.html" target="_blank">Ken Murray: Hollywood Without Makeup</a><font size="3"></font><font size="3">.</font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Marie also managed to appear in a few films during this time, including<em> Rookies on Parade</em> (1941), <em>She's in the Army</em> (1942), <em>The Fabulous Joe</em> (1947).</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">But true success came when CBS radio decided to explore the idea of creating a radio series based on the popular stage play, and film, <em>My Sister Eileen</em> – about two sisters (<em>one sensible, one a starry-eyed actress</em>) trying to make it in New York City. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">When attempts to reach a deal failed, CBS came up with <em><font color="#800000">their own show</font> </em>about two girls (<em>one sensible, the other daffy</em>) trying to make it in  . . . where else?  </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">New York City. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">The result was <em>My Friend Irma,</em> which starred<em> Marie Wilson</em> as dim-bulb Irma Peterson and (<em>Cathy Lewis, Diana Lynn</em>) as solid and dependable Jane Stacy. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Supporting the two leads were <em>John Brown</em> as Irma’s deadbeat boyfriend Al, and the inimitable <em>Hans Conried</em> as the Russian Violinist Professor Kropotkin, along with <em>Alan Reed</em> and <em>Leif Erickson</em>. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Although more than 300 episodes were recorded during its 7 year run, only about 50 of them have survived.  </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">You can listen to them (<em>or download them</em>) off the </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-MFgV07DEnbQ/TgTM4Oczz4I/AAAAAAAAFaI/iqwwxhgYkmY/s1600-h/image%25255B7%25255D.png"><font size="3"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-S6aAH72lQIs/TgTM4kT_mxI/AAAAAAAAFaM/D7-wuDkpK94/image%25255B12%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="230" height="305" /></font></a><font size="3"> </font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/OtrMyFriendIrma" target="_blank"><u><font color="#0000ff" size="3">My Friend Irma 51 Eps</font></u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">The show proved immensely successful, and in 1949 Paramount Studios decided to make it into a movie – and used it to launch the film careers of an up-and-coming comedy duo – <em>Martin & Lewis</em>. </font></p> <p><a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-xpRnz47tqKg/TgTM5LWWPRI/AAAAAAAAFaQ/_cC7hEGtxkQ/s1600-h/image%25255B10%25255D.png"><font size="3"><img style="border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-zJXvHpmUGTE/TgTM5l79poI/AAAAAAAAFaU/Kx5bperLwRY/image%25255B13%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="133" height="244" /></font></a><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Two years later (1951), a sequel – again with Martin & Lewis – was released called <em>My Friend Irma Goes West.</em> </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">In both of these movies, Jane Stacy was played by the considerably more photogenic Diana Lynn, instead of Cathy Lewis. </font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">And once again, these movies were very successful.  </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">The TV version, which ran from January, 1952 until June, 1954, was the first live show to be broadcast from the from the CBS Television City facility in Hollywood.</font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">Cathy Lewis reprises her role as Jane in the first year, but moves on and is replaced by a new roommate – Kay – played by Mary Shipp in season 2. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">We’ve only a couple of TV episodes available right now, but hopefully more will turn up. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3">You can find them on the Internet Archive at </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=collection%3Aclassic_tv%20AND%20subject%3A%22My%20Friend%20Irma%22" target="_blank"><strong><font size="3">this link</font></strong></a><font size="3"><strong>.</strong> </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> <blockquote> <p> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/My_Friend_Irma_-_Irma_Gets_Engaged" target="_blank"><font size="3">My_Friend_Irma_-_Irma_Gets_Engaged</font></a><font size="3"> <br /></font></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/My_Friend_Irma_-_Dating_Barrington" target="_blank"><font size="3">My_Friend_Irma_-_Dating_Barrington</font></a><font size="3"> </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Sadly, life ended too soon for all three actresses associated with this show.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">After the show ended, Marie Wilson’s star was eclipsed by the arrival of Marilyn Monroe. She took to the road and performed summer stock, and dinner theatre, in plays like as "Bus Stop,", "Born Yesterday”, and “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes."</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">She died in 1972, at the age of 56, of cancer. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Cathy Lewis, who went on make numerous TV appearances until the mid-1960s (including as a semi-regular on Hazel), died in 1968 at the age of 51 - also of cancer.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">And Diana Lynn, who appeared on TV shows during the 1960s, died of a stroke in 1970 at the age of 45.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">A final postscript to the story.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Arthur Kurlan, the writer who brought <em>My Sister Ei</em>leen to CBS in 1946 - only to see his project rejected, and a cloned <em>My Friend Irma</em> produced instead – sued the radio network and ultimately won compensation for himself and the original author, Ruth McKenney.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><em>My Sister Eileen</em> ran on Broadway for 864 performances, was made in two Hollywood movies (1942 & 1955), a 1953 Broadway Musical (<i>Wonderful Town</i>), and a brief 1960 TV series. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">And the <em>two-girls-in-the-big-city</em> theme was carried forward again, in the 1970s, by the TV series <em>Laverne & Shirley. </em></font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><em></em></font></p> <p><font size="3">Proving, I guess, that some themes have universal appeal. </font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font><font size="3"> </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-26896755891994459132011-06-11T10:23:00.001-04:002011-06-11T10:29:08.651-04:00Get Smart (J. Scott, That Is)<p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-oPboLr2fRCc/TfN6ZliDqbI/AAAAAAAAFWk/-ISni1UWhuE/s1600-h/image%25255B14%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-mPcMtzN2BqU/TfN6aHAKJDI/AAAAAAAAFWo/LCLaKJdomAw/image_thumb%25255B6%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="246" height="187" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">To radio audiences of the late 1940s,<strong> J. Scott Smart</strong> – tipping the scales at 270 lbs – was the personification of his character, private detective <em>Brad Runyon</em> aka <em>`The Fat Man’.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">His deep bass voice easily conveyed girth in a medium devoid of visual clues, and his personable performances humanized his hard boiled character’s demeanor.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Based, at least loosely, on a Dashiel Hammett character (`<em>The Man’, from Continental Op</em>), Runyon broke ranks with traditional hard-boiled P.I.s  of the 1940s who were nearly always portrayed as lean, mean, and as often as not, as sporting a pencil thin mustache.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although his radio show predated my arrival mid-way through the Baby Boom, I remember my parents talking about <em>The Fat Man</em>, and it’s famous introduction by the narrator, when I was growing up. </font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><i><i><font size="3"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Pr2JCnZD6gE/TfN6aVLqCBI/AAAAAAAAFWs/5Oj8F32Hk-g/image%25255B10%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="164" height="195" /></font></i></i></p> <p><i><i><font size="3"></font></i></i></p> <p><i><i><font size="3"></font></i></i></p> <p><i><i><font size="3">There he goes into that drugstore … he's stepping on the scale.</font></i></i></p> <font size="3"> <p> <br />Weight?<em> … two hundred thirty-seven pounds ... fortune - DANGER!</em></p> <p> <br /><em>Whooooooo is it? The Fat Mannnnn ….</em></p> </font></blockquote> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although not exactly a big star (<em>weight aside, of course</em>), Jack Smart appeared on Broadway (<em>A Bell of Adano, Separate Rooms</em>) in the 1940s, in movies (<em>albeit often uncredited or in small roles</em>) most famously as <em>The Fat Man.  </em></font></p> <p><font size="3"> <br />During the 1930s and 1940s he appeared in so many radio shows he was called <em><strong>`The Lon Chaney of Radio’</strong>,</em> including as a regular on all of the incarnations of <em>The Fred Allen Show (Mighty Allen Art Players and Allen's Alley)</em>, and documentary series <em>The March of Time</em>. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1951, after playing the detective role for five years on the radio, Smart was tagged to play Brad Runyon on the big screen, along with a cast of rising stars; Julie London, Jayne Meadows, and an impossibly young Rock Hudson. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">This should have been the pinnacle of Smart’s success, and was hoped to launch a series of movies (<em>ala The `Thin Man’ another Hammett creation</em>), but it was not to be. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">After the movie was in the can, but before it was released, Hammett (<em>who in actuality did little but collect royalty checks off the radio show – he reportedly never even listened</em>) was caught up in the </font><font size="3"><em><strong>House Un-American Activities Committee</strong></em></font><font size="3"> investigation when he refused to give up names of other activists.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">He was jailed briefly, but like so many others, ended up blacklisted in Hollywood.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Shows that were associated with him, like <em>Sam Spade</em>, and <em>The Fat Man</em>, despite their popularity - suddenly found sponsors unwilling to lend their names to his works. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-cjixBlyyQws/TfN6cd1TR5I/AAAAAAAAFWw/PV6ufHACGOM/image%25255B9%25255D.png?imgmax=800" width="409" height="324" /> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Which probably explains why the only filmed version of <strong>The Fat Man</strong> has slipped into the Public Domain, and is available on The </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p></p> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/Fat_Man_1951" target="_blank"><u>The Fat Man (1951)</u></a></h3> </blockquote> <p></p> <p></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Although obviously not a high-budget movie, this film is surprisingly enjoyable, made even doubly so by the early screen appearances of Hudson, Meadows, and London and a nice comic turn by Marvin Kaplan.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Episodes from the 6 year radio run of <em>The Fat Man</em> are, sadly, in short supply. There are but 7 episodes from the American Series available on the Internet Archive.</font></p> <p> </p> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/TheFatMan_319" target="_blank">Th<u>e Fat Man – Radio Episodes</u></a></h3> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">J Scott Smart would play the role of `Top Guy’ on TV for one season in 1951, with Ross `Wild Wild West’ Martin as a costar.  He returned to the stage in an ill fated production of  Waiting For Godot in 1955, after which he retired from acting.  </font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">J. Scott Smart spent his remaining years as a productive artist, producing well received paintings, collages and sculptures.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Smart died in 1960 of pancreatic cancer. </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-48336704360203939672011-06-04T12:45:00.001-04:002011-06-04T12:45:19.303-04:00"On, King! On, You Huskies!"<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-95lB385ybj0/TephG2ifx5I/AAAAAAAAFVg/sYjpz0pzDNk/s1600-h/image%25255B5%25255D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibc_w7mQIxG7RxTLDJbxycWM9I0iiO9zcennwx8Jh6LPeFDTINA6rw39wUC13AWCavhQvlc0V19eTREqxkRL3A_fm94rGUDbhKQ0YYdECvg4Z8mMFxdWTxjFJst2-lFdd0EQNXjXq8H0M/?imgmax=800" width="170" height="244" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">As a lad of perhaps 5 or 6 (<em>circa 1958-1960)</em> Saturday mornings were eagerly awaited because they meant two things:</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">A six hour block of cartoons (<em>Bugs Bunny, Tom & Jerry, etc</em>)  and `juvenile <em>adventure’</em> shows on TV like <a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2008/11/memories-of-rocky-jones-space-ranger.html" target="_blank">Rocky Jones – Space Ranger</a><em></em>,<em> Ramar of the Jungle</em>, <em>The Buccaneers</em>,  <em><a href="http://masterofmypublicdomain.blogspot.com/2011/02/british-invasion.html" target="_blank">Robin Hood</a></em>, <em>William Tell</em>, <em>Red Ryde</em>r and the north woods exploits of <em><strong>Sergeant Preston of the Yukon. </strong></em></font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">I’d not seen <em>Sgt. Preston</em> in decades, but recently came across several episodes from the series, an archive of the original radio show, and even some <em>Sergeant Preston of The Yukon</em> Comic books available online. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Set in the Yukon Territory during the gold rush of the 1890s, this `Northern’ was vastly different from the ubiquitous westerns of the day.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><em>The Lone Ranger</em>, <em>Annie Oakley</em>, <em>The Range Rider</em>, and other `juvenile’ cowboy shows all had the same <em>`back lot look’</em>, with exterior scenes all pretty much shot in the Hollywood hills; sunny and dry weather, and flat or rolling land.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Sgt Preston, however, had exterior shots filmed around Big Bear Lake, California (<em>it’s mile-high topography a decent substitute for the Canadian Rockies</em>) and featured pine forests, craggy mountains, running streams, and often as not, snow.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Different also was the use of the narrator (<em>effectively carried over from the radio series</em>) who not only set up crucial plot points, he explained the nuances of tracking, or building shelter, or finding your way in the North woods.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Sergeant Preston was<em> educational</em>.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But the story of Sgt. Preston – originally called <em>Challenge of the Yukon </em>– began on radio nearly 20 years before I first laid eyes on the show.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">During the golden age of radio (1930s & 1940s) - since all it took was good voice & sound effects talent, a decent script, and a recording study to make a radio show happen – local radio stations often created their own series.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">If it proved popular, it could be transcribed <em>(recorded on platters)</em> and could be syndicated on one (<em>or more</em>) of the radio networks.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">One of the most successful of these radio show factories was Detroit's station WXYZ, which during the 1930s created two iconic radio series that both transitioned to television and the movies, and are both well remembered today.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><em>The Lone Ranger</em> and <em>The Green Hornet</em>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1938 the station owner, George W. Trendle encouraged by the success of those two shows, asked for another adventure show, but with a dog as the hero.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The result was <em>The Challenge of The Yukon</em>, which chronicled the adventures of Sergeant William Preston of the Canadian Northwest Mounted Police, and his faithful dog King and his horse Rex.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">For 9 years the show ran locally as a 15-minute serial, until in 1947 it acquired a sponsor (Quaker Oats) and went to 30 minutes, and to the ABC radio network until December of 1949. In 1950 the show switched to the Mutual Network.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The show is remembered for its effective use of sound effects, theme music (<em>Emil von Reznicek's overture to Donna Diana)</em>, unusual locale, and exciting plots.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While King was arguably the star of the show (<em>he often saved the day</em>) </font><font size="3">Sgt. Preston was played by several radio actors over the years.  The role was originated by <strong>Jay Michael</strong>, followed in the mid-1940s by former movie actor Paul Sutton took over the role, and briefly by<strong> Brace</strong> <em>`The Lone Ranger’</em> <strong>Beemer</strong> in the mid-1950s<strong>.</strong></font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">The </font><a href="http://otrr.org/" target="_blank"><strong><em><font size="3">OLD TIME RADIO RESEARCHER'S GROUP</font></em></strong></a><font size="3"> has put together an astounding collection of COTY (Challenge of the Yukon) episodes ranging from the 15 minute shows of the early 1940s up until the 1950s.   Literally hundreds of episodes. </font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Single episodes can be listened to, or downloaded from <b><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/OTRR_Challenge_of_the_Yukon_Singles" target="_blank">Challenge of the Yukon - Single Episodes</a>   and the complete collection can be downloaded in 9 CD-sized ZIP file from <b><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/OTRR_Certified_Challenge_of_the_Yukon" target="_blank">Challenge of the Yukon</a>  both available on the <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a>.</b></b></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><strong>The Internet Archive</strong> also has a growing number of episodes from the TV show which ran on CBS for 3 years (1955-1958) and then for a decade in Saturday morning reruns. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Currently, the following episodes are available:</font></p> <blockquote> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonOfTheYukon-LastMailFromLastChance" target="_blank"><font size="4">Last Mail From Last Chance</font></a></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonOfTheYukon-ReliefTrain" target="_blank"><font size="4">Relief Train</font></a></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonOfTheYukon-ScourgeOfTheWilderness" target="_blank"><font size="4">Scourge Of The Wilderness</font></a></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonOfTheYukon-RebellionInTheNorth" target="_blank"><font size="4">Rebellion in the North</font></a></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonOfTheYukon-IncidentAtGordonLanding" target="_blank"><font size="4">Incident at Gordon Landing</font></a></p> <p><font color="#bb3300" size="4"></font></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonOfTheYukon-TheWhiteHawk" target="_blank"><font size="4">The White Hawk</font></a></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">When more episodes are available, you’ll find them </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=subject%3A%22Sergeant%20Preston%20of%20the%20Yukon%22" target="_blank"><font size="3">at this link</font></a><font size="3">.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Sergeant Preston was so popular during the 1950s, there was even a long-running comic book featuring his exploits, and those of his companions King and Rex.  Many of those are also available on the archive. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonComicFourColor373" target="_blank"><font size="3">Sergeant Preston Comic Four Color # 373</font></a> <br /></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonComics0102030405" target="_blank"><font size="3">Sergeant Preston Comics # 01,02,03,04,05</font></a></p> <p> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonComics0607080910" target="_blank"><font size="3">Sergeant Preston Comics # 06, 07, 08, 09, 10</font></a> <br /></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/SergeantPrestonComics2526272829" target="_blank"><font size="3">Sergeant Preston Comics # 25,26,27, 28, 29</font></a></p> <p> </p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3">Comic Books are usually archived in a .cbr or . cbz format, and require a special viewer. For windows, Linux, and MAC I can recommend the <strong>Comical</strong> program available at:</font></p> <p><font size="3"><a title="http://comical.sourceforge.net/" href="http://comical.sourceforge.net/" target="_blank">http://comical.sourceforge.net/</a></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">It’s open sourced and free.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Since these were `juvenile’ adventure shows the good guys were always obviously good, and the bad guys obviously bad.  Crime never pays and Sgt Preston is square-jawed, resolute, and always gets his man. </font></p> <blockquote> <p> <br /><em><font size="3">Usually because King saves his Canadian Bacon. </font></em></p> </blockquote> <p> <br /><font size="3">Corny perhaps by today’s standards.  But entertaining stuff, if you yearn to return to a simpler time and place, and perhaps memories of a childhood well spent in front of a glowing Cathode Ray tube.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">I suppose there’s nothing left to say on the subject except:</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><strong><em>"Well King, this case is closed."</em></strong></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"> </font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-26176519137426462752011-05-22T11:35:00.001-04:002011-05-22T11:35:35.511-04:00Then Came (Charles) Bronson<p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/TdktL-2QUfI/AAAAAAAAFPg/0nwEEkBhBMQ/s1600-h/image%5B11%5D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgooRg8NiGESioHIyes69PZwpQoMo0lYD__sMEXR8nbrCzvL1YizQpt8V2K5erd__MJeQ0E61aj93uk7PJOj5JWLhV5hR2qvUNyQarJSj3t3eUIkghLxJHvWfSz40ljec1mBmycAbeyzPg/?imgmax=800" width="182" height="227" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Classic TV shows of the 1950s are often goldmines of early appearances by actors who – while not yet famous – were just learning their craft.   In earlier blogs I’ve mentioned some of the earliest work of actors like Darren McGavin,  Paul Newman, and Leslie Nielson.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The tough-guy, action star of the 1970s - <strong>Charles Bronson</strong> - in the 1950s was a journeyman actor, still a long way from fame and fortune.   </font> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Born Charles Buchinski in 1921, one of 15 children of a coal miner in Pennsylvania, and who spoke almost no English until he was a teenager- the odds of him becoming a matinee star were pretty long.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But after service in WWII (<em>he was an aerial gunner aboard B-29s),</em> he worked odd jobs and joined  a theatrical group in Philadelphia where his interest in acting bloomed.  Later, he moved to New York, and for a time shared an apartment with another aspiring actor – Jack Klugman.   </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1950 he married a fellow actor from Philly named Harriet Tendler, and moved to Hollywood, in search of a career. They divorced 15 years later. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">He made a number of uncredited appearances in movies (<i>You're in the Navy Now</i> (1951),<i>The People Against O'Hara</i> (1951), <i>The Mob</i> (1951), <i>The Marrying Kind</i> (1952), <i>My Six Convicts</i> (1952)).</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1952 he finally received screen credit in the Hepburn-Tracy classic <em>Pat and Mike</em>, billed as Charles Buchinsky.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">After that, his face – but not his name – appeared in another half dozen features, including (<em>Red Skies of Montana (1952), Battle Zone (1952), </em>and<em> Torpedo Alley (1953</em>)). </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">He may not have been getting famous, but he was getting work, including an occasional appearance on a fledgling media called Television.</font><font size="3">His star ascended a bit more in 1953 when he played Vincent Price's mute henchman Igor, in the 3-D remake of  <em>House of Wax.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But it was his portrayal of a murderous Modoc warrior, Captain Jack, in Alan Ladd’s <em>Drum Beat</em> in 1954 that garnered him is first real notice in Hollywood.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">That year, during the infamous red-scare of the 1950s, his agent suggested he adopt a less eastern European sounding surname, and so he changed it to Bronson. </font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Soon Bronson was getting work in both TV and the movies.  Most of his movie roles were either supporting characters, or  - as in the case of Roger Corman’s  <em>Machine Gun Kelly</em> (1958) – low budget affairs.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Typical of his early TV work are the following two appearances, both from The </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/FederalMenTheCaseOfTheDeadlyDilemma" target="_blank">Federal Men: The Case of the Deadly Dilemma</a></font> <br /><font size="3">An undercover federal agent (Charles Bronson) trying to penetrate a counterfeiting ring runs into a big dilemma when the boss asks him to kill a man.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/PublicDefenderCornered-withCommercials" target="_blank">Public Defender: Cornered-With Commercials</a></font> <br /><font size="3">A young has been boxer (Charles Bronson in an early TV role) makes an agreement with the Public Defender to turn himself in for a probation violation.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">In 1958, ABC TV (<em>which was, at the time, languishing far behind CBS and NBC in the ratings</em>) offered Charles Bronson his own TV series where he would portray an ex-combat cameraman turned freelance photographer, who often ended up embroiled in peril and intrigue.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The show was  <em>Man With A Camera</em>, and it’s premise was a handy</font><font size="3"> device to let Bronson’s character – Mike Kovac – insert himself into other people’s problems.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Only 29 episodes were filmed, and they were shown on Friday nights (9 pm EST) during the 1958-1960 seasons. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">All 29 episodes are available online.   You can access them either through the <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051293/videogallery" target="_blank">IMDB Video gallery</a>  or <a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=Bronson%20AND%20mediatype%3Amovies%20AND%20subject%3A%22Man%20with%20a%20Camera%22" target="_blank">directly from the Internet Archive</a>. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051293/videogallery"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/TdktMg6PJYI/AAAAAAAAFPo/wgiCVS-ggtg/image%5B4%5D.png?imgmax=800" width="410" height="248" /></a> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">You’ll find a number of very familiar faces showing up in guest appearances on this series, including Sebastian Cabot, Anthony Caruso, Yvonne Craig, Angie Dickinson, Tom Laughlin, Ruta Lee, Gavin MacLeod, and Grant Williams.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While the series was short-lived, Bronson’s career continued to flourish.   In 1960 he co-starred in John Sturges' western classic  <em>The Magnificent Seven</em> and in 1963 he was featured prominently in<em> The Great Escape.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">He worked a couple of short-lived TV series in the mid-1960s; <em>Empire </em>and <em></em><i>The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters.</i></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"><em>In 1967 </em>he co-starred with Lee Marvin and Ernest Borgnine in the classic war film<em>, The Dirty Dozen.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While becoming very well known in the United States, Bronson’s star was rising even faster in Europe, where he was very popular.  He starred as Harmonica in Sergio Leone’s <em>Once Upon a Time in the West</em>  and reportedly turned down the lead in <em>A Fistful of Dollars, which</em> helped propel Clint Eastwood to stardom.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Real fame in the U.S. came from his Death Wish series of movies, which started in 1974 and lasted until 1987 with Death Wish IV.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">That series, along with films like <em>Telefon,  Ten Til Midnight, The Evil That Men Do,</em> and <em>Messenger of Death </em>helped make Bronson one of the top box office stars of the 1970s and 1980s.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">While many people are familiar with post-1960 career, we are quite fortunate to have access to his earlier work on the Internet Archive.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Bronson died in 2003, at the age of 81, after a long illness.   His second wife, actress Jill Ireland had passed away in 1990, from breast cancer.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-3410281419961148282011-05-07T11:28:00.001-04:002011-05-07T11:28:59.560-04:00Full Dinner Jacket<p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/TcVlODki06I/AAAAAAAAFMk/6WUw3Uhrd-A/s1600-h/image%5B6%5D.png"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/TcVlOu_fUcI/AAAAAAAAFMo/4WDbh3U1L4U/image_thumb%5B2%5D.png?imgmax=800" width="304" height="239" /></a> </p> <p> <br /><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">More than a decade before Sean Connery redefined the suave and debonair cold war secret agent James Bond, Brian Donlevy undertook the role of special agent Steve Mitchell for 4 years on the radio  . . . and in 39 early television episodes . . . in <em>Dangerous Assignment</em>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Arguably, the radio series was a better venue for Donlevy than was the TV series, as his vocal talents gave him the gravitas to play world-weary Steve Mitchell as he is sent off to obscure backwater ports to smash spy rings, rescue defectors, thwart smugglers, or retrieve stolen classified documents. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Steve Mitchell was called an “International Troubleshooter” – <em>not  a spy</em> – and he worked for an un-named US government agency. </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">He received his assignments each week from `The Commissioner’, after which he was soon winging his way to Berlin, or Prague, or Beirut to solve a crisis in just</font><font size="3"> under 30  minutes of air time (<em>including commercials</em>). </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Visually, Donlevy was less of the `hero’ type as he was already in his early 50’s when the series was filmed, and he looked every inch of it.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The radio series ran the NBC radio network from 1949 to 1953.   During the last year of the radio show Donlevy pitched the show to the TV networks, but no one was interested.   He put together his own production company and produced 39 filmed TV episodes, which were sold into syndication around the country.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In its favor, the TV show had decent production values for 1953, was one of a small handful of filmed programs of the time, and provided a large dose of daring-do in (<em>simulated</em>) exotic locations for viewers of the day.</font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">We’ve 90+ episodes of the radio show available on The <a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank">Internet Archive</a>, along with a growing number of TV episodes. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><b><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/DangerousAssignment90Episodes" target="_blank"><font size="4">Dangerous Assignment: 90+ Episodes</font></a></b></p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">Six half hour TV shows are currently available. </font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <div><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/TheAlienSmugglerStory" target="_blank">Dangerous Assignment: The Alien Smuggler Story</a> <br />Dangerous Assignment - Season 1, Episode 1</div> <div> <br /></div> <div><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/DangerousAssignment-TheBhandaraStory" target="_blank">Dangerous Assignment - The Bhandara Story</a> <br />Dangerous Assignment - Season 1, Episode 7 <br /></div> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/DangerousAssignment-TheSunflowerSeedStory" target="_blank">Dangerous Assignment: The Sunflower Seed Story</a> <br />Dangerous Assignment - Season 1, Episode 13</p> <p> </p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/DangerousAssignmentTheMissingDiplomatStory" target="_blank">Dangerous Assignment: The Missing Diplomat Story</a> <br />Steve Mitchell goes to Barcelona to track down a European diplomat who has gone missing with top secret papers. Episode 17 <br /> <br /><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/DangerousAssignmentTheArtTreasureStory" target="_blank">Dangerous Assignment: The Art Treasure Story</a> <br />Steve Mitchell is on board a train in search of a Nazi art treasure and a former Nazi official that commits multiple murders. Episode 27 <br /></p> <p><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/DangerousAssignmentTheAssassinRing" target="_blank">Dangerous Assignment: The Assassin Ring</a> <br />Steve Mitchell needs to find out who killed an Arabian king and framed the US for being behind the assassination. Episode 31</p> <p> </p> </blockquote> <p><font size="3">If more episodes turn up, you can find them using <a href="http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=subject%3A%22Dangerous+Assignment%22" target="_blank">THIS LINK.</a></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> <br /><font size="3">Brian Donlevy – a long-time stage actor in New York - make his mark in the movies first in 1935 in the Edward G. Robinson film <i>Barbary Coast</i>.  He followed that debut with a number of successful films, including his Oscar nominated role of Sergeant Markoff in <i>Beau Geste</i>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">During the 1940s he played many `heavies’ in film noir productions, and perhaps most famously, played conniving Dan McGinty, in The Great McGinty (<em>a role he would reprise in The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek</em>).</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">In 1946 he played the role of Trampas in <em>The Virginian</em> and two years later played opposite Clark Gable, Van Johnson, and Walter Pidgeon in <em>Command Decision</em>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">His movie career dwindled by the early 1950s, and he moved into the burgeoning field of TV, appearing in anthology series like <em>Studio One</em>, <em>Kraft Theatre</em>, and <em>Lux Video Theatre</em> along with guest shots on shows like <em>Rawhide, Wagon Train,</em> and <em>Perry Mason.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Brian Donlevy died in 1972, at the age of 71, from throat cancer. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7003448669710371317.post-33648606449446289242011-05-01T10:34:00.001-04:002011-05-01T10:34:07.399-04:00Benny Bell Rides Again<p> </p> <p> </p> <p><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/Tb1vWuNv-tI/AAAAAAAAFK4/ENlXsiEPH04/image%5B13%5D.png?imgmax=800" width="224" height="228" /> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Granted, unless you are over the age of 50, or listened to the Dr. Demento Show during the mid-1970s, you may have no idea who Benny Bell was.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">But we can rectify that.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Bell was a prolific song writer and performer.  He wrote more than 600 songs, many of which were written in Yiddish and Hebrew.   He wrote radio jingles, and novelty songs, and formed his own record company to release his endeavors.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">With success fleeting at best, in 1939 someone suggested he write `blue’ lyrics – something he was particularly good at – for the cocktail lounge jukebox trade.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Bell became arguably the king of the risqué party song, the master of the double entendre, during the 1940s.  His stock in trade was the sort of thing that England’s Benny Hill would popularize 30 years later.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">His songs were considered slightly scandalous back then – but by today’s standards would scarcely raise an eyebrow.</font></p> <p> </p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">Except for how cleverly they got their message across without using any of George Carlin’s 7 dirty words you can’t say on TV.</font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Nevertheless, his records rarely got radio airplay back then.  Instead, his records could be found on jukeboxes in bars, sold from `behind the counter’ in record stores, and played at parties by daring adults.  </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">His most famous song  – <em>Shaving Cream</em> - recorded in 1946 by Paul Wynn, was `rediscovered’ by Dr. Demento in 1975, and suddenly became a `hit’ again, rising to number 30 on the billboard ratings in April of that year.   </font></p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p></p> <dl><dd><font color="#800000" size="3">"I have a sad story to tell you </font></dd><dd><font color="#800000" size="3">It may hurt your feelings a bit </font></dd><dd><font color="#800000" size="3">Last night when I walked into my bathroom </font></dd><dd><font color="#800000" size="3">I stepped in a big pile of ...shhhhh . . . aving cream, </font><font color="#800000" size="3">be nice and clean. . . . </font></dd><dd><font color="#800000" size="3">Shave ev'ry day and you'll always look keen." </font></dd></dl> <p></p> <p><font color="#800000" size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3">The setup for each verse uses words like `bit’ and `split’ to infer the rhyme will be an obscenity . . . but instead you get the verse of <em>`shaving cream, be nice and clean . . . ‘</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The lyrics used a familiar device utilized by Bell.  It was suggestive, not explicit.  If you found it vulgar . . . well, that was the fault of <em>your dirty mind</em> . . . not his.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">The same technique was used in the far milder <strong>`Sweet Violets’</strong>, which was covered by Dinah Shore in 1951. </font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <p><font size="3">His biggest hits included<em> `Shaving Cream’, `Sweet Violets’</em>, and <em>`Go Take A Ship For Yourself’</em>.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">His signature song,<em> “Pincus The Peddler”,</em> became a big hit among Jewish immigrants, and led to several less successful sequels. </font></p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/Tb1vXNLpXPI/AAAAAAAAFK8/ag9DQ_yBtpc/image%5B6%5D.png?imgmax=800" width="244" height="244" /> </p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Sadly, Bell’s career (<em>and finances</em>) suffered during the 1950s and 1960s, and only recovered a bit when his music was `rediscovered’ in the mid-1970s.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Aside from it’s entertainment value (<em>which I find considerable</em>), his records are a little-heard-today example of Yiddish comedy which was popular in the middle of the last century.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">I’m pleased that his works are being preserved <em>(and made available to the public</em>) by the </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3"> and by the </font><a href="http://faujsa.fau.edu/jsa/" target="_blank"><font size="3">Judaica Sound Archives</font></a><font size="3"> at <em>Florida Atlantic University.</em></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">First from Florida Atlantic University, <a href="http://faujsa.fau.edu/jsa/music_album.php?jsa_num=401594&queryWhere=jsa_num&queryValue=401594&select=bell&return=artist_album" target="_blank">12 recordings by Bell.</a></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p><a href="http://faujsa.fau.edu/jsa/music_album.php?jsa_num=401594&queryWhere=jsa_num&queryValue=401594&select=bell&return=artist_album" target="_blank"><img style="border-right-width: 0px; display: inline; border-top-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px" title="image" border="0" alt="image" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_CLJS75_Cnao/Tb1vXs05TXI/AAAAAAAAFLA/aLXFQ45l8Ac/image%5B12%5D.png?imgmax=800" width="414" height="174" /></a> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Next, we’ve nearly 3 dozen recordings from the </font><a href="http://www.archive.org/index.php" target="_blank"><font size="3">Internet Archive</font></a><font size="3">.  </font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <blockquote> <h3><a href="http://www.archive.org/details/BennyBell" target="_blank"><u><font color="#0000ff">Collected Works of Benny Bell ()</font></u></a></h3> <p><font size="3"></font></p> <p> </p> </blockquote> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">Bell – who finally achieved national recogniztion at the age of 69 with the re-release of <em>`Shaving Cream’</em>, died in 1999 at the age of 93.</font></p> <p> </p> <p><font size="3">His grandson, <strong>Joel Samberg</strong>, published and released a biography of Bell in a  book called <font color="#800000">"Grandpa Had a Long One: Personal Notes on the Life, Career and Legacy of Benny Bell,"</font> in 2009.</font></p> Michael Costonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07982161449334601397noreply@blogger.com1