Friday, February 1, 2019

Librarians on Old Time Radio: Luigi Takes a Librarian to the Fair on Life with Luigi (1951)

Here is my fourth entry in my Librarians on Old Time Radio series.  After two episodes featuring crimes and one featuring the old American West, I think it is only fitting that we feature one of the comedies.  Sometimes the comedies do not translate well to modern sensibilities and tastes, but they are part of the genre and definitely part of the culture at the time.  And since immigration is such a common story in the news these days, spending a half an hour with Luigi Basco might be in order.
Downtown Chicago (Chicago, Illinois - May 6-8, 2014)
Wrigley Building in Chicago - May 2014
From 1948 to 1953, CBS Radio featured a weekly half-hour situation comedy telling the story of a recent immigrant to the United States in the times after World War II.  The program is Life With Luigi, a comedy series staring J. Carrol Naish in the title role. It was the brain-child of Cy Howard and starred J. Carrol Naish plays the title character, Luigi Basco, who was spending his new life in Chicago.  Character actor Alan Reed (maybe best known as the voice of Fred Flinstone) plays Pasquale, Luigi's sponsor and best friend.  Each of the episodes starts off this the same opening - as announcer Bob Stevenson would say:
We invite you to enjoy life – Life with Luigi – a new comedy show created by Cy Howard and starring that celebrated actor, Mr. J. Carroll Nash with Alan Reed as Pasquale. 
A year ago, when Luigi Basco left Italy to start his new life in America, he promised his mother that he would write and tell her about his adventures. So now let’s read Luigi’s letter as he writes to Momma Basco in Italy. 
The episode we are featuring first aired on May 1st, 1951. Luigi starts off (as he does each week) with his letter to Momma Basco and was talking about a great picnic they went to back in the old country.  Then it goes to their citizenship class as it often does.  But all the students, immigrants from all over Europe, could not remember who wrote the Village Blacksmith (it was Longfellow).  What had the students all worked up?  They were all going to Riverview Park that coming Sunday, and everyone had two tickets. So who were they going to bring?  Would Luigi bring Rosa?  Nope, he needed a real date...but where?

 He finds a date in a place he was not expecting - the library.  He had to go there after class to return a book that was overdue.  It did not take him longer to read, but he was lending the book to others.  He seemed to be running his own private library.  But talking with the librarian led to small talk - and the next thing you knew, Luigi had a date to the park.  Sure they took advantage of making all the librarian jokes you can think of - they do have a certain charm.  But when Pasquale finds out that he is not taking Rosa, he places a bet that he would not get a kiss that day.  And things do not end exactly as Luigi might have wanted, but they were good in the end.  The cast includes J. Carrol Naish, Alan Reed, Mary Shipp, Joe Forte, Ken Peters, Hans Conried, Jody Gilbert and was written by Mac Benoff and Lou Derman.

 While a comedy, I think they always respected the characters and what they did to come to the States.  There were a number of programs that had immigrants as major characters, but this is one of the best known.  Kinda interesting when you listen to the episodes today.  I hope you enjoy.




Here are some links to programs relating to Life With Luigi:
Librarians on Old Time Radio 
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Sunday, January 20, 2019

Librarians on Old Time Radio: Boston Blackie Solves the Stolen Rare Book (1946)

Here is my third entry in my new series - Librarians on Old Time Radio.  I am going to feature programs that have librarians and related information professionals in key roles in the story.  These might be fairly straight forward - or only tangentially related to librarianship.  This episode features a a detective/crime series that I have always loved.  I am moving this to the front of this series because I heard this on XM recently when driving back from Pittsburgh - not Boston.

Suzzallo Library (with Decorative Squirrels) at the University of Washington - Seattle, Washington (May 8-11, 2018)

Suzzallo Library at the University of Washington 
Seattle, Washington (May 2018)

One of my favorite Old Time Radio series is Boston Blackie.  These crime stories always leave the police, especially Police Inspector Farraday, frustrated and befuddled.  But to the rescue is Boston Blackie - who always solves the crime and saves the day.  Each of episodes starts the same way - with this phrase that says everything you need to know about Boston Blackie:

"Enemy of those who make him an enemy,
 friend to those who have no friend."

Remember that phrase!  Boston Blackie moves effortlessly on both sides of the law, but is primarily interested in doing what is right.  If that means working with the police, then so be it!  The character was created by author Jack Boyle, Boston Blackie was a safecracker who served time in prison before turning his attention to making things right.  The most well known episodes were syndicated by Frederic W. Ziv to Mutual and other networks after World War II.  Staring in the role as Boston Blackie was Richard Kollmar.  Mary Wesley (his constant companion) was played by Jan Miner.  Maurice Tarplin plays Police Inspector Farraday, who starts off most episodes with the belief that no matter what the crime was, Blackie was involved.  Tarplin is also know as the voice of the Mysterious Traveler and The Strange Dr. Weird.  

On September 3rd, 1946 - the ABC Radio Network broadcast an episode known as the "Stolen Rare Book." It starts out with Mary Wesley looking for a valuable first edition of a book at the local library.  She is heading to the rare book vault to see the work - when someone alerts everyone that the attendant there has collapsed.  So when Inspector Farraday shows up, so does Boston Blackie.  But in the hubub of the collapsing attendant - it seems that a rare book has been stolen.  Blackie and Mary Wesley discover that the person who noticed the collapsing attendant works for a rare book dealer Harold Benson - and might be responsible for the missing volume.  And while they were thinking that Benson might be involved - the story and the case changes when it is discovered that the rare book dealer was murdered.  So as you might imagine - there are all sorts of "keep quiet" librarian gags throughout the episode.  But once again, Boston Blackie saves the day and figures out the crime.

Stolen Rare Book on Boston Blackie (September 3, 1946)



Here are some links to programs relating to Old Time Radio and Boston Blackie:
Librarians on Old Time Radio 
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Sunday, January 13, 2019

Librarians on Old Time Radio: The Librarian from Frontier Gentleman (1958)

229/365 (January 26, 2009) - Nancy Pearl on the Toy Wall

My Nancy Pearl Action Figure back in 2009 on my old office toy all.  
She is one heck of a librarian!

Here is my second entry in my new series - Librarians on Old Time Radio.  I am going to feature programs that have librarians and related information professionals in key roles in the story.  These might be fairly straight forward - or only tangentially related to librarianship.  Maybe there is a minor part of a librarian in the story.  Anyway, I should have a good number of episodes to feature over the upcoming months.  I hope to feature one entry a week - but this last week got past me - fingers crossed for catching up soon.  Hope you enjoy them.

 In the late 1950s, there was one network that was producing great radio programming.  It was the same network that we featured last week with their landmark program, Suspense. While during the late 1950s, networks were focused on television, CBS produced a number of great programs for the medium of radio.  Some of these programs were relatively short lived, but thankfully, we still have them.  One of them was a vehicle for CBS Radio star John Dehner, who I featured a few years back on the centennial of his birth.  John Dehner was practically a regular guest star on Gunsmoke, appearing in over 200 episodes.  When you needed a bad villain, you called John.  When you needed a good villain, you called John.  Pretty much, you called John.  He would star in the radio program Have Gun, Will Travel (also on the CBS Network) and that would start only weeks after the show I am featuring today, Frontier Gentleman.  This was one of the adult western programs that CBS offered, but with an interesting twist.

From the Digital Deli entry (linked below), they described Frontier Gentleman thusly:

"The protagonist of the series is J.B. Kendall, a cashiered British Cavalry officer who spent most of his military career in the Punjab area of India. He takes a position with the London Times, on assignment to cover the developing frontier of the Montana and Wyoming Territories of America during the 1870s. His portfolio is to transmit first-person accounts of the roaring American frontier, offering insights into that tumultous time of exploration, colonization, warring Indian tribes, and the rampant anarchy still prevalent in most of the frontier towns of the era."
While there were only 41 episodes of this program, that ran from February to November, 1958, it is a fun way to see the American west through the eyes of an outsider.  John Dehner's J.B. Kendall uses the column that he would have written as a frame for his adventures, much like Johnny Dollar used the expense reports.  

 On October 5th, 1958 (toward the end of its only season on the air), the episode broadcast was called "The Librarian".  In this episode, a widower by the name of Almira Danworthy from out east tries to scare off a settler who is trying to take over her land claim. She was a librarian out east and moved west with her husband. After being swindled by a shady land developer, they found themselves on this plot that they had to develop - or lose. But in working the land, her husband died of exhaustion. But in returning to their land, she discovered that someone else had taken over the property, a Confederate veteran.  So, its just another story of a librarian who has to share space with people who don't belong.  Alas, some things never change.  Joining John Dehner in the cast is Virginia Gregg as the librarian, Vic Perrin (billed as "Richard Perkins" - from the RadioGOLDINdex), Charles Seel, Eddie Firestone with Bud Sewell as the announcer.  The story was written by Tom Hanley and Antony Ellis was the producer and director.

The Librarian (Frontier Gentleman from October 5, 1958)

Here are some links to programs relating to Old Time Radio and Frontier Gentleman:
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    Wednesday, January 2, 2019

    Librarians on Old Time Radio: Damaged Library Book from Suspense (1945)

    Kresge Library Collection Surplus - July 17, 2014

    Lots of Damaged Books Here
    Kresge Library (Michigan) Collection Surplus - July 17, 2014

    I have started up a number of series of blog posts on the Golden Age of Radio - or old time radio.  I have focused on Christmas, Thanksgiving, diet, baseball, African-Americans, world travel and lighthouses.  Today I am starting a new series that I have been planning for some time.  As a librarian (13+ years at the University of Michigan), I have long wanted to match my love of old time radio with my profession.  So today, I start up my new series - Librarians on Old Time Radio.  I am going to feature programs that have librarians and related information professionals in key roles in the story.  These might be fairly straight forward - or only tangentially related to librarianship.  Maybe there is a minor part of a librarian in the story.  Anyway, I should have a good number of episodes to feature over the upcoming months.  I hope to feature one entry a week.  Hope you enjoy them.

     Among the very best shows that were broadcast during the Golden Age of Radio, the CBS Network's Suspense really stands out as one of the best of the best.  Radio's "outstanding theater of thrills" had a 20 year run on CBS - starting in 1942.  In fact, the last Suspense episode in 1962 marks the end of the Golden Age of Radio.  As you might imagine for a program that ran for 20 years, you have a great combination of excellent stories and fantastic production values.  If CBS was the best network on the radio, this was their star attraction.  Week in, and week out, they had one amazing program after another.  One of the reasons why I love listening to the early episodes is because I enjoy the sponsor, Roma Wines.  Their commercials are the best - Salute!  

     So maybe I should have held this one back - but why not start with a bang!  On September 20th, 1945, Suspense featured the great actress Myrna Loy as Prudence Roberts, in their production of "Library Book." We open with Prudence Roberts at the circulation desk at a librarian answering a phone call to see if they carry or carried the Racing Form. We are then have a patron return a book the counter. Gone With The Wind was returned 2 days late (that would be 4 cents) when the patron mentioned that pages 931 and 932 were pulled from the book. So Prudence followed the rules and wanted to charge the patron who returned the book for the vandalized copy of this work. The last thing she wanted to do was to buy another best-seller. When a colleague interceded and suggested that if the patron vandalized the book, would she have brought it up? While many might have tossed the now damaged book aside, she discovered that words were marked up on page 933. While Gone With The Wind is a romance, this is becoming a mystery. (Though to the young boy who thought it was about airplanes, it was very disappointing). Prudence discovers that the missing page and the one afterwards are leading to a kidnapping plot.

    Joining Myrna Loy in the cast were Cathy Lewis, Wally Maher, Conrad Binyon, & Joseph Kearns as the announcer. The story is based on the 1939 short story by Cornell Woolrich called "The Book That Squealed." It was adapted by William Spier, who also directed the episode. I hope you enjoy this episode, albeit filled with the stereotypical depictions of librarians, but the accurate telling of our love of rules!

     Library Book (Suspense, September 20th, 1945)

    Here are some links to programs relating to Old Time Radio and Suspense:
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