Sunday, December 21, 2014

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas: Day 21 - Gunsmoke's Christmas Story

Working on sending out one blog entry each day in December to showcase great Old Time Radio for the Christmas season.  Here is a link to all the entries.  Here is day 21 - The first, and best, Christmas episode from Gunsmoke.  The episode was from December 20, 1952.  Like so many Gunsmoke episodes, it works at a different level.  The story is good - the acting is great - the production values is off the charts.  Gunsmoke famously was the western for grown-ups.  It ran from 1952 to 1961.  Only Suspense and Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar were kept on the air longer by CBS.  When the radio program ended, the television program, also on CBS was going strong and would last until the Spring of 1975.

If you have Sirius/XM, you can listen to Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#82). He has a number of great programs available throughout the month of December on his great show.  You can also get a large number of these programs at a variety or resources on the web. One place to find these shows is the 500 OTR Christmas Shows from the Internet Archive. This is a great resources for many of these wonderful radio shows!

CBS Columbia Square (Hollywood, Los Angeles, California) - October 31, 2013
The place where Gunsmoke was created and recorded
CBS Columbia Square (Hollywood, Los Angeles, California) - October 31, 2013

When most old time radio fans list their favorite five or ten programs, Gunsmoke is almost always on the list somewhere.  It is certainly on my list and a definite top five - if not higher.  The first western for adult audiences on radio, this CBS produced show featured the best cast, the best stories, and the best production values.  Gunsmoke had one of the best casts on radio, a group that stuck together during its entire run (1952 to 1961).  Each radio episode started the same way, with the narrator setting the scene:

Around Dodge City and in the territory out west, there's just one way to handle the killers and the spoilers... And that's with a U.S. Marshal, and the smell of...Gunsmoke!

Gunsmoke!... the story of the violence that moved west with young America. And the story of a man who moved with it...

Then, Matt Dillon would chime in...

I'm that man...Matt Dillon, United States Marshal. The first man they look for, and the last they wanta meet. It's a chancy job, and it makes a man watchful. And a little lonely...

CBS radio superstar William Conrad starred as Marshal Matt Dillon, He was joined by Howard McNear as Doc Charles Adams, Georgia Ellis as Kitty Russell, and Parley Baer as Dillon's assistant Chester Wesley Proudfoot.  They were often joined by the stars of CBS radio, most commonly it seems was John Dehner, who almost always played the bad guy.  I will revisit this wonderful series with more entries down the road.

The show was a new type of entry among Westerns.  Matt Dillon did not ride in and save the day each time.  He was more human than any of the other series leads on radio it seems.  And while William Conrad was too stocky and short to play Matt Dillon on TV, he was perfect for radio. 

Luckily, there are many episodes that are available to listen too.  Some of the scripts are reused, but the stories are fantastic and the performances are outstanding.

Summary:  This was only the 35th episode in the long history of Gunsmoke.  Marshall Dillon was returning to Dodge City when his horse was injured and had to be put down.  He was traveling the long trail to Dodge by foot.  He was anxious to get back as it was Christmas Eve.  While on foot, he ran into a stranger.  The decided to go together.  The stranger asked Matt about Dodge City, and how they celebrate Christmas.  What were their traditions.  What did they do for the kids.  What was it like to be there.  As Matt described Christmas in Dodge, he realized that his companion had a secret to share, the reason he was wandering from town to town.  In the end, the stranger would find peace in Dodge City that was eluding him all these years.

This is a wonderful story and a great Gunsmoke episode.  Hope you enjoy it!  

Here are some links to programs relating to Gunsmoke:
25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas:
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Saturday, December 20, 2014

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas: Day 20 - Christmas Shopping with Jack Benny

Working on sending out one blog entry each day in December to showcase great Old Time Radio for the Christmas season.  Here is a link to all the entries.  Here is day 20 - Christmas Shopping with Jack Benny.  One of the most famous actors in radio history, Jack Benny had an amazing radio show from the 1932 to 1948 (on the NBC Network) and from 1949 to 1955 (on CBS Network).  On both networks, he was one of the ratings leaders.  And for a good reason...this show is fantastic!

If you have Sirius/XM, you can listen to Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#82). He has a number of great programs available throughout the month of December on his great show.  You can also get a large number of these programs at a variety or resources on the web. One place to find these shows is the 500 OTR Christmas Shows from the Internet Archive. This is a great resources for many of these wonderful radio shows!

62/365/1888 (August 12, 2013) - Old and New Wallets
Old and New Wallets, 2013
The Jack Benny Program was a national treasure and it is great that we have so many recordings.  Staring in the show was Jack Benny, a vaudeville performer who seemed to hit it big over the airways.  Mary Livingstone played second fiddle (no pun intended) to her real life husband.  She apparently had horrible stage fright, but hardly shows it as the straight person to many of Jack Benny's jokes.  Eddie Anderson played Rochester, Jack's valet and chauffeur.  He was one of the earliest African-Americans on mainstream radio and was one of the most loved characters on the show.  Don Wilson was the show announcer and did the commercials.  He was the constant butt of jokes, primarily about his weight.  Irish Tenor Dennis Day (who was on the 1948 show) also had a show of his own.  Besides being a 'dim bulb' in all the skits, he also sang a song on every episode.  Phil Harris (who also had a show of his own) was the bandleader and the joker on the show.  His real wife, Alice Faye would join him on the show as well.  The last big name was Mel Blanc (of Bugs Bunny fame).  Blanc (who ALSO had his own show) was one of the most famous character actors to play on the Jack Benny Show.  He is very commonly the floorwalkers for the Christmas episodes.

The shows are chock full of laughs, funny stories, corny jokes and great music.  And while there are many holiday episodes that are great to listen to, I pulled out two that I really liked.

Summary:  The episode took place during the Battle of the Bulge, the last winter of World War II.  It starts with Jack, Mary and Rochester trimming the tree - with some old defective lights that shocked Jack every time they were turned on.  (Well, you will hear).  There are some great electrician lessons here for the taking.  They also recount going back to the store for shopping.  The show ends with everyone coming over to their house, including actor Andy Devine.  Jack Benny ends the performance with a touching message to the troops, who were listening to the show via the Armed Forces Radio Services.  The AFRS transcription disks actually how many of these recordings were saved.

Summary: Jack and Mary head off to go shopping for the cast members.  Jack, who is notoriously cheap, was all set to buy a wallet for Don Wilson, until he realized that it was $40.  To be honest, according to the CPI calculator, a $40 wallet from 1948 would be $391 today...which might be a bit much for a wallet.  After Jack agrees to buy it - he keeps going back to the floorwalker, played by Mel Blanc.  As a bonus during this episode, you can hear Dennis Day sing Ave Maria.

There are many more Christmas episodes from the Jack Benny episodes on the web.  Enjoy them all.

Here are some links to programs relating to Jack Benny:
25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas:
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Friday, December 19, 2014

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas: Day 19 - Johnny Dollar and the Nick Shurn Matter

Working on sending out one blog entry each day in December to showcase great Old Time Radio for the Christmas season.  Here is a link to all the entries.  Here is day 19 - Johnny Dollar and the Nick Shurn Matter.  This is, of course, from Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, the great series that featured America’s fabulous freelance insurance investigator.  While there were a number of holiday episodes for this long running series, the Nick Shurn Matter is one of my favorites of the five part marathons.

If you have Sirius/XM, you can listen to Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#82). He has a number of great programs available throughout the month of December on his great show.  You can also get a large number of these programs at a variety or resources on the web. One place to find these shows is the 500 OTR Christmas Shows from the Internet Archive. This is a great resources for many of these wonderful radio shows!

Squirrels and other pictures at the University of Michigan on an awful cold wintry day (January 6, 2014)

Squirrels at the University of Michigan on an awful cold wintry day (January 6, 2014)

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar is one of my favorite Old Time Radio series.  It ran from 1949 through 1962 (making it one of the last dramas on the radio).  These detective stories all started with an insurance claim - or the concern that one might be coming.  Companies all over Hartford, Connecticut would call in Johnny Dollar if they had any doubt or concerns about an insurance policy or a claim.  The structure of the show revolved around his expense account - which was a nice way to move the story forward.  I will go on record and say that he did not seem to pad his expense account as much as he was accused of doing so!

Throughout that time, there were a number of actors who portrayed Johnny Dollar (America’s fabulous freelance insurance investigator).  The one I loved the most is Bob Bailey (see my previous entry on the centennial of his birth).  From October 3, 1955 through November 2, 1956 (after a year break), the show changed its format.  Instead of 30 minutes self-contained dramas, the stories would be spread out through 15 minute episodes spread out over five consecutive nights.  Instead of a story in 30 minutes, the writers and producers now had 75 minutes to tell a story.  With this larger canvas, the stories became more interesting and detailed.  Discussions that would have been quicker between characters, or just told in exposition, were drawn out.  Relationships between the characters were more greatly developed and the stories added a layer of complexity that could not be done in 30 minutes.  In fact, they took stories that were originally on as a single episode and turned them into a five part serial.  And if a listener missed an episode, they always did a good job of providing some footing with the story in the opening minute each evening.

When they moved to the five part serials, they brought in Bob Bailey to play Johnny Dollar.  He was fantastic in this role (as with the title character in Let George Do It) and made it for me.  I first realized how cool these were through Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#82) and his Johnny Dollar Marathons - where he would play all five episodes in a row.  I always felt that these episodes remind me of some of the work from CBS (Norman Corwin and the Columbia Workshop) that represents the best that the medium could offer.

The Nick Shurn Matter is a great story.  Johnny Dollar gets the call from an insurance adjuster and they are trying to prevent the paying of an insurance claim. Turns out that a crooked guy died under suspicious circumstances.  His beneficiary, was crooked in his own right...one Nick Shurn, a no good hood.  But the twist is that everyone was sure that Nick Shurn pulled the trigger.  The task for Johnny Dollar is to find a witness and protect her for trial.  One Kathleen O'Dare, a hat check girl at a New York club that Shurn owned, was a witness to the crime, but was missing.  Running from Nick Shurn and his hired gun, Kathleen raced back home, to a small town in Northern Michigan.  With the pageantry of small town Michigan for Christmas and a snowstorm, Johnny Dollar was racing against time, and Nick Shurn to keep Kathleen O'Dare safe.


Nick Shurn Matter - Part 1 (December 19, 1955)

Nick Shurn Matter - Part 2 (December 20, 1955)

Nick Shurn Matter - Part 3 (December 21, 1955)

Nick Shurn Matter - Part 4 (December 22, 1955)

Nick Shurn Matter - Part 5 (December 23, 1955)


Here are some links to programs relating to Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar:

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas:




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Thursday, December 18, 2014

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas: Day 18 - Detroit's WXYZ & The Lone Ranger

Working on sending out one blog entry each day in December to showcase great Old Time Radio for the Christmas season.  Here is a link to all the entries.  Here is day 18 - Christmas with the Lone Ranger.  When the movie came out in 2013, I was thinking of writing up a story about the Lone Ranger and how it was produced at WXYZ in Detroit.  I thought I did that, but alas, I did not.  There are thousands of episodes of the Lone Ranger - but there are a few that stand out for Christmas.

If you have Sirius/XM, you can listen to Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#82). He has a number of great programs available throughout the month of December on his great show.  You can also get a large number of these programs at a variety or resources on the web. One place to find these shows is the 500 OTR Christmas Shows from the Internet Archive. This is a great resources for many of these wonderful radio shows!

Paramount Ranch (Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area) - Friday November 1, 2013

Paramount Ranch (Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area) - Friday November 1, 2013

 It is amazing to think that millions of boys in the United States could hum a Rossini Overture and never really knew it.  Gioacchino Rossini was a 19th Century Italian composer who penned numerous operas and other pieces.  His overtures are very well known and are a staple at classical concerts all over the world.  His 1829 opera William Tell (or Guillaume Tell) featured an overture that would be one of the most memorable of all his works.  A good part of that popularity comes from its use in the Lone Ranger on radio and television.

The Lone Ranger first appeared in American culture over the radio.  Instead of Hollywood or New York City, the broadcasts originated from Detroit's WXYZ.  Only a few radio programs originated from the middle of the country outside of Chicago.  Scott Bishop's Dark Fantasy (WKY in Oklahoma City) certainly comes to mind.  But WXYZ was responsible for a few well known series including the Green Hornet and the Challenge of the Yukon.  There was a great article on the Lone Ranger in Hour Detroit magazine in 2007.

Each episode would start with the familiar music and an introduction to let you know you were in for a treat: "In the early days of the western United States, a masked man and an Indian rode the plains, searching for truth and justice. Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear, when from out of the past come the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse Silver! The Lone Ranger rides again!" (from the Wikipedia entry - link below).  Brace Beemer was best known voice actor to portray the Lone Ranger.  Tonto was played by actor John Todd, who was or Irish, not Native American decent - but that was the way that radio worked.  Tonto was also known as Kemo Sabe, or trusted scout.  This great series is not only a cultural icon, but also a great tribute to the radio history in Detroit.

Peace Comes to the Frontier (December 23, 1940)

Summary: When a local banker promises to pay $10 a head for cattle from the two biggest ranches in the Red River Valley, suspicions run deep.  Especially as they were thin and scrawny because of a longstanding drought in the valley.  When the good-meaning banker only gets $6 a head, he needs some help from the Lone Ranger to get the two ranchers to bring peace to the Red River Valley.

Present for Janey (December 25, 1944)

Summary: The Lone Ranger and Tonto pay a visit to a rancher at the holidays.  The question about how bad the approaching weather leads to the rancher hiring an extra hand for the winter.  But it turns out that the person they hired comes with a bit of baggage - or a comedy partner.  Or that was what the Lone Ranger thought.

Bells of San Pedro (December 25, 1946)

Summary: The Bells of San Pedro would ring out and draw people to the mission when they had supplies and food to share.  This had been the case for many years, but the bells went silent when a business syndicate swindled (albeit legally) a benevolent mine owner into selling his stake.  The mine owner had supported the mission, but when he lost his money, he could not do it any longer.  His son had been away for two years as was suspected of being a bandit.  A dying mother brought him back to the town for the holidays, but the Lone Ranger and Tonto were the ones that saved the day and make it possible for the bells to ring again.

The Christmas Tree (December 25, 1950)

Summary: A repeat of an earlier episode from Christmas 1948, the Lone Ranger tells his nephew (bet you did not know he had a family) Dan Green about a poor mining cashier who was scraping by with a wife who was injured and young son was framed for a robbery he did not commit.  With only a modest Christmas tree, the young son prayed to make his family whole again.  With a bit of faith, and the Lone Ranger, the young boy received a Christmas gift he could have only dreamed about.

Three Wise Men (December 25, 1953)

Summary: While the recording is not great, this tells a nice Christmas story.  With a winter storm bearing down upon them, a young family found refuge in a lonely shelter.  They were slowed down by a son who was very sick.  Soon, they are joined by three men who seem to have a secret to hide.  Like with the Christmas Tree story from 1950, some help from the Lone Ranger saves the day and helps the family get a fresh start with life.

Here are some links to programs relating to the Lone Ranger:
25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas:
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Wednesday, December 17, 2014

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas: Day 17 - The Whistler's Christmas Episodes

Working on sending out one blog entry each day in December to showcase great Old Time Radio for the Christmas season.  Here is a link to all the entries.  Here is day 17 - The Whistler's Christmas Episodes.  The Whistler is just one of the best mystery programs on Old Time Radio.  If you have not heard these shows before - you are in for a treat.

If you have Sirius/XM, you can listen to Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#82). He has a number of great programs available throughout the month of December on his great show.  You can also get a large number of these programs at a variety or resources on the web. One place to find these shows is the 500 OTR Christmas Shows from the Internet Archive. This is a great resources for many of these wonderful radio shows!


Black-bellied Whistling Duck at Orlando Wetlands Park (Christmas, Florida) - October 31, 2014

Black-bellied Whistling Duck at Orlando Wetlands Park (Christmas, Florida) - October 31, 2014 - See what I did here?

The Whistler is one of the greatest old time radio programs.  This mystery series aired from May 1942 to September 1955 on the West-coast network from CBS Radio.  The show was sponsored by the Signal Oil Company.  The lead in for the show was: "That whistle is your signal for the Signal Oil program, The Whistler."  The Signal Oil Company was one of the biggest west-coast oil companies.  They became part of AlliedSignal and then Honeywell.  The Signal Oil Company as an entity phased out in the 1960s, but in the years before, they were a leading gas supplier int he Western United States.

One of the best parts about The Whistler is that each episode was a self-contained story, using new characters and situations.  They were able to bring in many big names on radio and film into the studio to report the episodes.  These actors included Frank Lovejoy, Betty Lou Gerson, William Conrad, Jack Webb, Gerald Mohr, Doris Singleton, Lurene Tuttle, Joseph Kearns and Bill Forman (who played the title role of The Whistler more than any other actor).  The Whistler was the omniscient voice in the story, who started the episodes with the same refrain: "I am the Whistler, and I know many things, for I walk by night. I know many strange tales, hidden in the hearts of men and women who have stepped into the shadows. Yes, I know the nameless terrors of which they dare not speak."  These are wonderful 30 minute mysteries that do a great job of keeping the listener interested.  They are also one of my favorite mysteries.

These Christmas episodes are a real treat.  In many of the recordings, it referenced the fact that these episodes were transcribed (or recorded) in order for the production company to be home with the family on the holidays.  You will hear the term "transcribed" often in old time radio, these are the large discs that were used to record the performances for playback later.  This was very common among dramas in the late 1940s and 1950s.  Here are some brief descriptions of the episodes.

Christmas Bonus (December 25, 1944)

Summary: When money is stolen from a department store, there seems to be little doubt that the ex-con is the one that did it.  But it wasn't.  He was straight and honest since serving his time.  But when he is fired without cause, he realizes that crime is his only future.

Letter From Cynthia (December 25, 1949)

Summary: It's Christmas Eve in Southern California, but when you work at a hospital, there is no time off.  The peaceful evening is disturbed when a letter arrives and a doctor needs to confront his past.

Three Wise Guys (December 24, 1950)

Summary: Based on Damon Runyon's 1933 short story, this episode features Bill Forman, John Brown, Jack Moyles as the Three Wise Guys.  These three moved in between the straight and, well, not-so-straight paths.  On Christmas Eve, the three guys find themselves in Pennsylvania trying to find the loot from a payroll job.  They followed the star to the location where the loot was stashed.  When they arrive, they are surprised to find a former girlfriend of one of the guys.  And she is about to have a baby.  Well, you can see where this is going.  It is a great Christmas story and well worth the listen.

Christmas Gift (December 23, 1951)

Summary:  Betty Lou Gerson plays a singer who ran away to Panama City to get away from troubles in the United States.  She took on a new identity and performed in a small club far from those who knew her.  But then at Christmas time, a visitor from the States changes everything.  And while things look grim for the singer, there is a happy tune at the end.

Here are some links to programs relating to the Whistler:
25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas:
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Tuesday, December 16, 2014

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas: Day 16 - Holidays with Connie - Our Miss Brooks

Working on sending out one blog entry each day in December to showcase great Old Time Radio for the Christmas season.  Here is a link to all the entries.  Here is day 16 - Our Miss Brooks Christmas Episodes featuring Eve Arden as that hard-luck English teacher at Madison High School, Connie Brooks.  Her love interest was the schools's biology teacher, Mr. Philip Boynton.  Mr. Boynton was played by Jeff Chandler (of Michael Shayne fame) who was born on December 15, 1918.  Yesterday would have been better for this...oh well!

If you have Sirius/XM, you can listen to Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#82). He has a number of great programs available throughout the month of December on his great show.  You can also get a large number of these programs at a variety or resources on the web. One place to find these shows is the 500 OTR Christmas Shows from the Internet Archive. This is a great resources for many of these wonderful radio shows!


Saline High School's Science Olympiad Team at the 2011 Northmont Invitational (January 8, 2011)

Saline (Michigan) High School's Science Olympiad Team - January 2011

From 1948 through 1957, Eve Arden played the lovelorn English teacher at Madison High, Connie Brooks.  This series is one of the very best comedies that we have from Old Time Radio days.  Arden leads an all-star cast in this well written series on CBS Radio that actually holds up well, even today. Between never having enough money, job responsibilities that seem to change from week to week, a cat that is a character all to herself and a love interest who is more fixated on frogs than women...Eve Arden's Connie Brooks always maintains her grace and charm.  The show also featured Jeff Chandler as Mr. Philip Boynton (Connie's long suffering love interest), Jane Morgan as Mrs. Margaret Davis (Connie's landlord), Gale Gordon as Mr. Osgood Conklin (Madison High School's principal, and Richard Crenna as Walter Denton (a student at Madison High).

The show also was on television starting on October 3rd, 1952.  Through TV and Radio, she became one of the most famous teachers of her day!  From her obituary in the Los Angeles Times in 1990, they wrote:

But it was as Connie Brooks, the wisecracking English teacher in mid-America's mythical Madison High where she constantly engaged in hilarious battles with her stuffy principal, that she became a Friday night favorite.

 She was offered the role of the classroom humanist with the smart mouth and warm heart after being heard as radio's Miss Brooks for four years. 

 There she had developed a following of hundreds of teachers across American and had even been offered teaching jobs in real schools.  Miss Arden (making $200,000 a year at the time) did not accept, but she did begin speaking at PTA meetings.

While the show ran for many years, they had a great tradition of reusing the same script for the Christmas program.  The Magic Christmas Tree aired a number of times (1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952 and 1955).  Here are the links to the recordings and to the scripts for these Christmas episodes.

Magic Christmas Tree (December 24, 1950) - Connie is planning on spending a quiet Christmas Eve at home, when a knock on the door changed everything.  A young boy showed up to sell her a Christmas tree.  She had no choice, the boy gave a hard-luck story about his family - and the Christmas tree was Magic.  The first reason turned out to not exactly be the case...but the magic part - that's a different story.  Members of the Madison High family, including Mr. Boynton show up for a Christmas that she will never forget!  I guess it was almost dreamy!
Christmas Gift Mix-up (December 20, 1953) - Connie is in a pretty typical state of affairs.  It is getting close to Christmas as Connie is thinking how to stretch out the $20 that she has for all the gifts she wants to give.  (NOTE: Since I am a business librarian, it is good to know that the $20 in 1953 would be around $177 today - according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' CPI Inflation Calculator).  As Connie talks with her friends and colleagues, she realizes that has less, and less for her Mr. Boynton!  But things get really amusing when a certain gift of apparel makes the rounds and gets gifted, and re-gifted without any knowing.

Here are some links to programs relating to the Our Miss Brooks:
25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas:
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Monday, December 15, 2014

25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas: Day 15 - Christmas in Connecticut (with Ronald Reagan)

Working on sending out one blog entry each day in December to showcase great Old Time Radio for the Christmas season.  Here is a link to all the entries.  Here is day 15 - though it was not technically aired for the holidays - but it definitely has a Christmas theme.  It is again from the Screen Guild Theater - their production of Christmas in Connecticut with Ronald Reagan...YES, that Ronald Reagan!  I will probably feature Lux Radio Theater's version of It's a Wonderful Life soon....I hope!

If you have Sirius/XM, you can listen to Greg Bell's Old time radio channel (#82). He has a number of great programs available throughout the month of December on his great show.  You can also get a large number of these programs at a variety or resources on the web. One place to find these shows is the 500 OTR Christmas Shows from the Internet Archive. This is a great resources for many of these wonderful radio shows!


Dad Barry & Corey at Mystic Connecticut (June 23, 1968)

My brother and I with my dad, Mystic Seaport in Connecticut - June 23, 1968

 This is a really cool item that I found on Old Time Radio. Is is the Screen Guild Theater production of Christmas in Connecticut, The recording is from August 5, 1946 - so it is not in the middle of the holiday season - but it does the trick. The recording features the married couple of Ronald Reagan (yes, the President of the United States) and his wife at the time, Jane Wyman. Besides being interesting with the former president serving as the star of the recording, it is very cool to learn about one of Radio's charity programs. From the Digital Deli: "Why charity? From the outset, the various Screen Guild programs were conceived, produced and broadcast for the express purpose of raising money for the Motion Picture Relief Fund. Over the years, the Motion Picture Relief Fund appeal extended to raising funds for a Country Home and Hospital for retired, ill, indigent, or destitute Motion Picture Industry artists."

Here is the episode:
Here are some links to programs relating to Screen Guild Theater and Christmas in Connecticut:
25 Days of Old Time Radio Christmas:
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