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Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month Jack Benny (February 14, 1894 in Chicago, Illinois – December 26, 1974 in Beverly Hills, California), born Benjamin Kubelsky, was an American comedian, vaudeville performer, and radio, television, and film actor. He was one of the biggest stars in classic American radio and was also a major television personality. Benny may have been the first standup comedian, as the term is known, as well as one of the first to work with what became the situation comedy. He was renowned for his flawless comic timing and (especially) his ability to get laughs with either a pregnant pause or a single expression, such as his signature exasperated "Well!". In hand with his dear friend and great "rival" Fred Allen — their long-running "feud" was one of the greatest running gags in comedy history — Benny helped establish a basic palette from which comedy since has rarely deviated, no matter how extreme or experimental it has become in their wake.

Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month Jack Benny (February 14, 1894 in Chicago, Illinois – December 26, 1974 in Beverly Hills, California), born Benjamin Kubelsky, was an American comedian, vaudeville performer, and radio, television, and film actor. He was one of the biggest stars in classic American radio and was also a major television personality. Benny may have been the first standup comedian, as the term is known, as well as one of the first to work with what became the situation comedy. He was renowned for his flawless comic timing and (especially) his ability to get laughs with either a pregnant pause or a single expression, such as his signature exasperated "Well!". In hand with his dear friend and great "rival" Fred Allen — their long-running "feud" was one of the greatest running gags in comedy history — Benny helped establish a basic palette from which comedy since has rarely deviated, no matter how extreme or experimental it has become in their wake.

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month The Life of Riley was one of several blue-collar, ethnic sitcoms popular in the 1950s. Chester A. Riley was the breadwinner of an Irish-American nuclear family living in suburban Los Angeles. Although most of the program took place within the Riley household, his job as an airplane riveter sometimes figured prominently in weekly episodes. Riley's fixed place in the socio-economic structure also allowed for occasional barbs directed at the frustrations of factory employment and at the pretensions of the upper classes. After The Life of Riley was canceled, blue-collar protagonists like Riley would not reappear until premiered in the 1970s. A pilot for The Life of Riley starred Herb Vigran and was broadcast on NBC in 1948. Six month later, the series appeared on NBC with Riley played by Gleason; however, Riley's malapropisms and oafish behavior were poorly suited to Gleason's wisecracking nightclub style. Bendix, who had played Riley on radio and in a movie version, was originally unable to play the part on television due to film obligations. When he did assume the role, however, he became synonymous with the character. COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE type in id # 19082

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month The Life of Riley was one of several blue-collar, ethnic sitcoms popular in the 1950s. Chester A. Riley was the breadwinner of an Irish-American nuclear family living in suburban Los Angeles. Although most of the program took place within the Riley household, his job as an airplane riveter sometimes figured prominently in weekly episodes. Riley's fixed place in the socio-economic structure also allowed for occasional barbs directed at the frustrations of factory employment and at the pretensions of the upper classes. After The Life of Riley was canceled, blue-collar protagonists like Riley would not reappear until premiered in the 1970s. A pilot for The Life of Riley starred Herb Vigran and was broadcast on NBC in 1948. Six month later, the series appeared on NBC with Riley played by Gleason; however, Riley's malapropisms and oafish behavior were poorly suited to Gleason's wisecracking nightclub style. Bendix, who had played Riley on radio and in a movie version, was originally unable to play the part on television due to film obligations. When he did assume the role, however, he became synonymous with the character. COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE type in id # 19082

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month Disorder in the Court (1936) The stooges are witnesses at a trial where their friend, a dancer at a nightclub where they are musicians, is accused of murder. The stooges manage to disrupt the proceedings but save the day when they discover the real murderer's identity COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE type in id # 19082

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month Disorder in the Court (1936) The stooges are witnesses at a trial where their friend, a dancer at a nightclub where they are musicians, is accused of murder. The stooges manage to disrupt the proceedings but save the day when they discover the real murderer's identity COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE type in id # 19082

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month Duffy's Tavern, an American radio situation comedy (CBS, 1941-1942; NBC-Blue Network, 1942-1944; NBC, 1944-1952), often featured top-name stage and film guest stars but always hooked those around the misadventures of the title establishment's malaprop-prone manager, Archie, played by the writer/actor who created the show, Ed Gardner. In the show's familiar opening, "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling," either solo on an old-sounding piano or by a larger orchestra, was interrupted by the ring of a telephone and Gardner's New Yorkese accent as he answered, "Duffy's Tavern, where the elite meet to eat. Archie the manager speakin'. Duffy ain't here---oh, hello, Duffy." Duffy, the owner, was never heard (or seen, when a film based on the show was made in 1945 or when a bid to bring the show to television was tried in 1954). But Archie always was---bantering with Duffy's man-crazy daughter, Miss Duffy (played by several actresses, beginning with Gardner's real-life first wife, Shirley Booth); with Eddie, the waiter/janitor (Eddie Green); and, especially, with Clifton Finnegan (Charlie Cantor), a likeable soul with several screws loose and a knack for falling for every other salesman's scam. The show featured many high-profile guest stars, including Fred Allen, Mel Allen, Nigel Bruce, Bing Crosby, Boris Karloff, Veronica Lake,Peter Lorre, Tony Martin, Gene Tierney, Arthur Treacher and Shelley Winters. As the series progressed, Archie sllipped in and out of a variety of quixotic, self-imploding plotlines---from writing an opera to faking a fortune to marry an heiress. Such situations mattered less than did the show's quietly clever depiction of earthbound-but-dreaming New York city life and its individualistic, often bizarre characters. COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE type in id # 19082

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month Duffy's Tavern, an American radio situation comedy (CBS, 1941-1942; NBC-Blue Network, 1942-1944; NBC, 1944-1952), often featured top-name stage and film guest stars but always hooked those around the misadventures of the title establishment's malaprop-prone manager, Archie, played by the writer/actor who created the show, Ed Gardner. In the show's familiar opening, "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling," either solo on an old-sounding piano or by a larger orchestra, was interrupted by the ring of a telephone and Gardner's New Yorkese accent as he answered, "Duffy's Tavern, where the elite meet to eat. Archie the manager speakin'. Duffy ain't here---oh, hello, Duffy." Duffy, the owner, was never heard (or seen, when a film based on the show was made in 1945 or when a bid to bring the show to television was tried in 1954). But Archie always was---bantering with Duffy's man-crazy daughter, Miss Duffy (played by several actresses, beginning with Gardner's real-life first wife, Shirley Booth); with Eddie, the waiter/janitor (Eddie Green); and, especially, with Clifton Finnegan (Charlie Cantor), a likeable soul with several screws loose and a knack for falling for every other salesman's scam. The show featured many high-profile guest stars, including Fred Allen, Mel Allen, Nigel Bruce, Bing Crosby, Boris Karloff, Veronica Lake,Peter Lorre, Tony Martin, Gene Tierney, Arthur Treacher and Shelley Winters. As the series progressed, Archie sllipped in and out of a variety of quixotic, self-imploding plotlines---from writing an opera to faking a fortune to marry an heiress. Such situations mattered less than did the show's quietly clever depiction of earthbound-but-dreaming New York city life and its individualistic, often bizarre characters. COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE type in id # 19082

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month The series detailed the adventures of Britt Reid, debonair newspaper publisher by day, crime-fighting masked hero at night, along with his sidekick, Kato, a Filipino of Japanese descent. A widespread urban legend has been the claim that the show's writers switched from one nationality to the other immediately after the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, but the first disappeared well before direct U. S. involvement in the war, and the latter was not initially given until much later, with nothing more specific than "Oriental" being said in the interim. (When the characters were used in the first of a pair of movie serials, the politically perceptive producers of 1939 had Kato's nationality given as Korean.) Britt Reid is a blood relative of The Lone Ranger. The character of Dan Reid, who appeared on the Lone Ranger program as the Masked Man's nephew, was also featured on the Green Hornet as Britt Reid's father, making the Green Hornet the grand-nephew of the Lone Ranger. Originally, the show was to be called "The Hornet", but the name was changed to "The Green Hornet" so that it could be copyrighted. The color was chosen because green hornets were reputed to be the angriest. Jim Jewell directed the series until 1938. Jewell's sister, Lee Allman (Lenore Jewell Allman) wanted to play a part in a radio series at WXYZ so Jim had her written into The Green Hornet. She was the only actress to play Lenore Case, Britt Reid's secretary, during the entire run of the series. "Casey" was aware of her boss's double life, but only in the later years of the run. Similarly, another well known confidante, Police Commissioner Higgins, did not come into existence until near the end of the series. COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE type in id # 19082

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month The series detailed the adventures of Britt Reid, debonair newspaper publisher by day, crime-fighting masked hero at night, along with his sidekick, Kato, a Filipino of Japanese descent. A widespread urban legend has been the claim that the show's writers switched from one nationality to the other immediately after the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, but the first disappeared well before direct U. S. involvement in the war, and the latter was not initially given until much later, with nothing more specific than "Oriental" being said in the interim. (When the characters were used in the first of a pair of movie serials, the politically perceptive producers of 1939 had Kato's nationality given as Korean.) Britt Reid is a blood relative of The Lone Ranger. The character of Dan Reid, who appeared on the Lone Ranger program as the Masked Man's nephew, was also featured on the Green Hornet as Britt Reid's father, making the Green Hornet the grand-nephew of the Lone Ranger. Originally, the show was to be called "The Hornet", but the name was changed to "The Green Hornet" so that it could be copyrighted. The color was chosen because green hornets were reputed to be the angriest. Jim Jewell directed the series until 1938. Jewell's sister, Lee Allman (Lenore Jewell Allman) wanted to play a part in a radio series at WXYZ so Jim had her written into The Green Hornet. She was the only actress to play Lenore Case, Britt Reid's secretary, during the entire run of the series. "Casey" was aware of her boss's double life, but only in the later years of the run. Similarly, another well known confidante, Police Commissioner Higgins, did not come into existence until near the end of the series. COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE type in id # 19082

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month The Great Gildersleeve (1941-1957) was arguably the first spin-off program, as well as one of the first true situation comedies (as opposed to sketch programs) in broadcast history. Built around a character who had been a staple on the classic radio sit-com, Fibber McGee and Molly, The Great Gildersleeve enjoyed its greatest success in the 1940s. Actor Harold Peary played the character during its transition from the parent show into the spin-off, and later in a quartet of feature films released at the height of the show's popularity. On Fibber McGee and Molly, Peary's Gildersleeve was a pompous windbag who became a consistent McGee nemesis ("You're a haa-aa-aa-aard man, McGee!" became a Gildersleeve catch phrase). But he also became a popular enough windbag that Kraft Foods — looking primarily to promote its Parkay margarine spread — sponsored a new series with Peary's Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve (the character was given several conflicting first names on Fibber McGee and Molly, and on one episode of that show revealed his middle name as Philharmonic) as the central, slightly softened, and slightly befuddled focus of a lively new family. COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE

clickhere Visit the Radio America Store web site.Buy your 50 mp3 for &5.00 Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month The Great Gildersleeve (1941-1957) was arguably the first spin-off program, as well as one of the first true situation comedies (as opposed to sketch programs) in broadcast history. Built around a character who had been a staple on the classic radio sit-com, Fibber McGee and Molly, The Great Gildersleeve enjoyed its greatest success in the 1940s. Actor Harold Peary played the character during its transition from the parent show into the spin-off, and later in a quartet of feature films released at the height of the show's popularity. On Fibber McGee and Molly, Peary's Gildersleeve was a pompous windbag who became a consistent McGee nemesis ("You're a haa-aa-aa-aard man, McGee!" became a Gildersleeve catch phrase). But he also became a popular enough windbag that Kraft Foods — looking primarily to promote its Parkay margarine spread — sponsored a new series with Peary's Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve (the character was given several conflicting first names on Fibber McGee and Molly, and on one episode of that show revealed his middle name as Philharmonic) as the central, slightly softened, and slightly befuddled focus of a lively new family. COME CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW AND HERE RADIOAMERICA ON TALKSHOE

Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month The Boston Blackie radio series, starring Chester Morris, began June 23, 1944, on NBC as a summer replacement for The Amos 'n' Andy Show. Sponsored by Rinso, the series continued until September 15 of that year. Lesley Woods appeared as Blackie's girlfriend Mary Wesley, and Harlow Wilcox was the show's announcer. On April 11, 1945, Richard Kollmar took over the title role in a radio series syndicated by Frederic W. Ziv to Mutual and other network outlets. Over 200 episodes of this series were produced between 1944 and October 25, 1950. Other sponsors included Lifebuoy Soap, Champagne Velvet beer and R&H beer. While investigating mysteries, Blackie invaribly encountered harebrained Police Inspector Faraday (Maurice Tarplin) and always solved the mystery to Faraday's amazement. Initially, friction surfaced in the relationship between Blackie and Faraday, but as the series continued, Faraday recognized Blackie's talents and requested assistance. Blackie dated Mary Wesley (Jan Miner), and for the first half of the series, his best pal Shorty was always on hand. The humorless Faraday was on the receiving end of Blackie's bad puns and word play.

Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month The Boston Blackie radio series, starring Chester Morris, began June 23, 1944, on NBC as a summer replacement for The Amos 'n' Andy Show. Sponsored by Rinso, the series continued until September 15 of that year. Lesley Woods appeared as Blackie's girlfriend Mary Wesley, and Harlow Wilcox was the show's announcer. On April 11, 1945, Richard Kollmar took over the title role in a radio series syndicated by Frederic W. Ziv to Mutual and other network outlets. Over 200 episodes of this series were produced between 1944 and October 25, 1950. Other sponsors included Lifebuoy Soap, Champagne Velvet beer and R&H beer. While investigating mysteries, Blackie invaribly encountered harebrained Police Inspector Faraday (Maurice Tarplin) and always solved the mystery to Faraday's amazement. Initially, friction surfaced in the relationship between Blackie and Faraday, but as the series continued, Faraday recognized Blackie's talents and requested assistance. Blackie dated Mary Wesley (Jan Miner), and for the first half of the series, his best pal Shorty was always on hand. The humorless Faraday was on the receiving end of Blackie's bad puns and word play.

Affordable Web Hosting $5.99 A month "The Battle of Midway," directed by John Ford, provides a relatively brief account of the Japanese attack of American ships at Midway atoll. The film is comprised mostly of authentic footage from the battle, with dramatic narration by Henry Fonda. "Behind every cloud, there may be an enemy," he intones as American fighter pilots search the sky. The rest of the film mocks Emporer Tojo of Japan and portrays him as ruthless, bombing hospitals and churches as he tries to conquer the Pacific.