Golden Age of Radio

  PINT SIZE—BUT POWERFUL . . . Unique is the word for Johnny. Johnny is radio’s only vocal trademark. Johnny is the only holder of a life-time contract in the history of radio. Johnny is only 47 inches high and weighs only 59 pounds. Johnny is the only name he goes by—and to millions of Americans. That’s right—Johnny is the lad who three times a week gives his famous call over two of our major networks. For little man, Johnny isn’t doing badly. His job pays him $20,000 a year, plus a good deal of fame. The audition which netted him all this was just unique as his career. Johnny was a bellhop in New York hotel. Eleven years ago, a certain Milton Biow —advertising man and genius of a sort—passed through the hotel and got an idea. He had Johnny page a non-existent Mr. Philip Morris . Of course, Johnny paged Mr. Morris without results, but when he reported his failure to Mr. Biow —he found it turned into phenomenal success . He got the contract for the cigarette account, whi

Featured vocal group on the FibberMcGee and Molly program, the King’s Men —Bud Linn, Jon Dodson, Rad Robinson, Ken Darby—star as the show’s summer replacement (Tues., 9:30, NBC).

The Deseret News – Jan 9, 1951 Bogart, Bacall Sign For New Radio Series Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, in private life Mr. and Mrs., have been signed to co-star in a new radio adventure series, “ Bold Venture .” The Bogarts’ contract is for 52 half-hour programs, with options up to five years. Production costs for each half hour show, which in addition to the stars will feature original background music by David Rose and orchestra, will be approximately $ 12,000. The Bogarts who, in addition to their minimum fee, will receive a royalty on sales, are expected to realize $5000 a week from the show during the first year. National release date for the program has been set at March 26. In the show itself, already being taped in Hollywood studios, Bogart and Bacall do not play Mr. and Mrs. roles. He owns an inn and an all-purpose boat named “ Bold Venture ” which she is his ward and love interest. Each half-hour episode is a complete story in itself.

The Milwaukee Journal – Oct 13, 1940    Browse this newspaper>>            Browse all newspapers>> 'Sh! I Can't Tell That One on the Air' By Edgar A. Thompson Of The Journal Staff THE funny little guy in “soup and fish” pointed his funny nose at the buffet luncheon and plowed through the movie and radio stars at the “Knute Rockne” premiere at South Bend, Ind. “Oh! There’s Mrs. Hope!” screamed a woman and she rushed up to him with a friend. “Look, George! Here’s Bob Hope ! Ha, ha, ha, isn’t he funny for us Bob – we enjoy your broadcasts so much but do he funny for us now!” Hope gave her that “I just missed a three inch putt” look and said, “I’m sorry, lady, but I’m only human and right now I’m hungry and interested in my stomach and not my belly to beans, ham, potato salad, bread, olives celery and a fork. I caught him between the bread and olives. We shook hands and I got the buttered, side of the bread. So I said: “Look, Bob, how do

Sunday, December 27, 1942       THE MILWAUKEE JOURNAL—SCREEN and RADIO Building a Bob Hope Radio Show Comedy half hour is put together piece by piece, rough edges trimmed By Kate Holliday “THAT was a boff . Leave it in!” Such a cry might barrel through the NBC control room in Hollywood at a preview of Bob Hope’s radio show . A boff, for your information, is a joke so funny it brings a belly laugh. What is a radio show preview? Just that: A show before a show—to which the public is invited and at which Hope and company test the merit of gags they have concocted. It explains, to a large degree, Hope’s continued success. A comedian’s life is usually not a happy one, evidence to the contrary. A guy like Hope, say, doesn’t just amble toward a microphone come Tuesday night and be funny. Instead, he builds his show gag by gag . It all begins on the Thursday or Friday of the week preceding the program. At that point Hope and his seven writers meet and discu

Radio’s New Top Gal, A Modern Jenny Lind May 30, 1942 By Dorothy Roe Pretty,- brown – eyed Dinah Shore , the girl soldiers write during their off-duty hours, is having a wonderful time singing for servicemen all over the country and out of it. The little southern girl has been warbling since she was 10years old, but has been recognized as a top flight singer for only a few years. Today Dinah is known as the modern Jenny Lind, and her most recent title—the Elsie Janis of World War II “EXCUSE me, please. It’s the navy.” Dinah Shore rose from the table and followed the head waiter to the door, where an embarrassed young sailor waited with apparent eagerness. We had been talking about life in Tennessee , where she was born, about the war and the songs the soldiers like. I had been asking her questions, because I wanted to know the real girl behind that moody voice on the radio, that voice that forms a link with home for American soldiers and sailors from Iceland to the B

The Milwaukee Journal – Oct 4, 1942 She’s Really Anything but a Dope By Carlton Cheney DOWN through the ages countless millions of words have been uttered or written about the manifold advantages of being smart. But one may look in vain to the advice of sages and pundits for single observation , a friendly tip extolling the manifold virtues of being dumb. This, it appears, is a gross and deplorable omission which we right here and now set about to correct, being moved to the effort by a visit we paid the other day to the home of Gracie Allen , that darling dunce of the air waves , on the eve of her return to radio with husband-partner George Burns . Gracie and George , as you no doubt know, have been taking a summer vacation, but they will be back on the ether Tuesday night, again supported by Paul Whiteman and his orchestra; Jimmy Cash, the Arkansas Singer; Bill Goodwin, announcer and stooge, and Clarence Nash as Herman the Duck. White the show this season w