Sat, 12 October 2019
We start off with “You Bet Your Life.” Groucho talks with a woman who met her husband when she fell into his drum kit, a “spinster,” and a lighthouse keeper. Then on “Romance of the Ranchos,” we visit the islands off the coast of southern California. If you’ve read Scott O’Dell’s “Island of the Blue Dolphins,” you may be familiar with some of the strange goings-on in these islands’ past.
Episodes
You Bet Your Life November 30, 1949 “The Secret Word is ‘Window’” 2:48
Romance of the Ranchos February 4, 1942 “The Island of Santa Catalina and the Channel Islands” 34:45
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_YOU_BET_YOUR_LIFE_and_ROMANCE_OF_THE_RANCHOS.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 8:05am EDT
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Sat, 21 September 2019
We start off with “Information Please.” Are you up on the wives of King Henry VIII, children in literature, Shakespeare, and soup? Get ready to stump the experts. Then on “The Abbott and Costello Show,” Lou returns to his old grade school, P.S. #15 in Patterson, NJ to appear in a production of “Romeo and Juliet.”
Episodes
Information Please May 30, 1941 “Guests: Jan Struther and Cornelia Otis Skinner” 1:41
The Abbott and Costello Show November 16, 1944 “Lou Visits His Grade School” 31:03
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_INFORMATION_PLEASE_and_ABBOTT_AND_COSTELLO.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 8:04am EDT
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Sat, 31 August 2019
First up, it’s “The New Adventures of Nero Wolfe” with Sidney Greenstreet as the rotund, yet brilliant private investigator. Hard to believe it, but Wolfe actually leaves his brownstone mansion to do a little detecting. Then we return to England as the bumbling government officials of “The Men from the Ministry” investigate a phantom train in a country village. Episodes The New Adventures of Nero Wolfe March 16, 1951 “The Case of the Midnight Ride” 1:50
The Men from the Ministry August 29, 1965 “Train of Events” 31:00
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_NERO_WOLFE_and_THE_MEN_FROM_THE_MINISTRY.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 6:04am EDT
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Sat, 10 August 2019
First up it’s “X Minus One” with one of their most intellectual episodes: “Appointment in Tomorrow,” which asks what role public perception plays in science. Then Bob Bailey stars private problem-solver George Valentine in “Let George Do It.” It’s up to George to find some missing currency paper before it’s used by a counterfeiting ring. The economy of a nation is at stake.
Episodes
X Minus One November 7, 1956 “Appointment in Tomorrow” 2:19
Let George Do It August 2, 1948 “The Money Maker” 30:55
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_X_MINUS_ONE_and_LET_GEORGE_DO_IT.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 8:41am EDT
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Wed, 24 July 2019
We start this week with “The Bob Hope Show.” Bob is in England. He teams up with legendary British music hall and screen comedian Jerry Desmond for jokes about the National Health Service and a sketch about Bob’s school days. Then Orson Welles stars as “The Shadow,” that mysterious righter of wrongs with the power to cloud men’s minds. Who know what evil lurks in the hearts of men? He does. Episodes
The Bob Hope Show June 5, 1951 “With Jerry Desmond from London” 2:55
The Shadow December 12, 1937 “The Death Triangle” 28:47
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_THE_BOB_HOPE_SHOW__THE_SHADOW.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 9:09am EDT
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Sun, 7 July 2019
Tonight we present two quiz shows recorded a little over a decade apart, but featuring the same contestant. In the 1940s young Margaret Merrick was a frequent panelist on “The Quiz Kids,” where it was no secret that she had had polio. Before we had the term, she was a “poster child” for what was then called “infantile paralysis.” Margaret then appears with her husband on Groucho Marx’s “You Bet Your Life,” where she talks about her youth and the couple tackle questions about numbers in everyday life. Though polio has nearly been eradicated worldwide, The March of Dimes still exists. It’s currently dedicated to preventing premature birth and birth defects. You can donate here.
Episodes
The Quiz Kids January 24, 1943 “Would You Be Pleased If Varicella Paid You A Visit?” 3:26
You Bet Your Life October 21, 1953 “The Secret Word is ‘Name’” 33:12
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_THE_QUIZ_KIDS_and_YOU_BET_YOUR_LIFE.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 5:34pm EDT
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Tue, 25 June 2019
A few weeks back, we presented the radio drama version of the classic film, “Sunset Boulevard.” Tonight, “The Jack Benny Program” is going to render (in the best sense of the word) its version. Mary is out sick, but her real-life sister, Babe, is on hand to play the Gloria Swanson role. Then we present three episodes of the little-known Basil Rathbone series, “Word Detective.” These three-minute investigations into word origins were really just ads for the Underwood typewriter company, but they are informative and entertaining nonetheless. Episodes
The Jack Benny Program March 25, 1951 “Sunset Boulevard” 2:33
Word Detective November 2, 1959 “Tangerine” November 5, 1959 “Melba Toast” November 6, 1959 “Stoic” 32:34
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_JACK_BENNY_and_WORD_DETECTIVE.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 7:51pm EDT
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Mon, 10 June 2019
This week, we have two programs we’ve never presented before. Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall had their own adventure radio series in the 1950s, “Bold Venture.” It was part “Casablanca” and part “African Queen.” Bogie plays the proprietor of a Havana hotel frequented by conmen, gamblers, and treasure hunters, and every week brought the couple adventure and excitement. Next, it’s America’s favorite bow-tie-wearing redhead, “Archie Andrews.” Light on the adventure, but high on the domestic comedy and teen-aged shenanigans, here Archie finds the simple act of getting dressed for a date to be quite a challenge.
Episodes
Bold Venture April 23, 1951 “Spanish Gold” 02:47
Archie Andrews July 10, 1948 “Archie Gets Dressed for a Date” 30:27
Direct download: Presenting__the_Transcription_Feature_-_BOLD_VENTURE_and_ARCHIE_ANDREWS.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 1:36pm EDT
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Sat, 18 May 2019
“Sunset Boulevard” is justifiably regarded as one of the finest films ever made. The tale of faded silent-era film star Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson), desperate to make a comeback, and the screenwriter she dragoons into working for her (William Holden) has been a favorite with critics and viewers since its premiere in 1950. Although the film noir classic loses its striking visuals in this radio adaptation, the fact that it sticks so closely to the original dialog and has Swanson and Holden reprise their Academy Award-nominated roles makes listening to this “Lux Radio Theater” production the next best thing to watching the film.
Episode
The Lux Radio Theater September 17, 1951 “Sunset Boulevard” 2:06
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_SUNSET_BOULEVARD.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 7:21am EDT
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Tue, 30 April 2019
Among other topics, “Information Please” asks about measures of length in common metaphorical phrases, “Huckleberry Finn,” and then-recent current events of 1939. Next we present for the first time, “The Jimmy Durante Show.” Jimmy is interested in politics, so he travels around the nation celebrating the 50 states and trying to get his show business friends to pledge their votes. Episodes Information Please July 11, 1939 “Guest: Elliott Roosevelt” 01:44
The Jimmy Durante Show April 21, 1948 “Jimmy Solicits The Show Biz Vote” aka “Guests: Lou Clayton and Eddie Jackson” 33:43
Direct download: Presenting_the_Transcription_Feature_-_INFORMATION_PLEASE_and_THE_JIMMY_DURANTE_SHOW.mp3
Category:Presenting the Transcription Feature -- posted at: 8:16pm EDT
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