Hello,
First, I want to thank my pal Stu and another, anonymous commenter, who both identified that the Stan Freberg speech I posted two weeks ago is from 1958. The clues were right there in his words, but I didn't pick up on them. Thanks!
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This post is very media-recording oriented. I think those tend to be among the most popular things I share, so perhaps this will be particularly enjoyable for many of you. And then there's Jack Eigen....
I'm starting today with some requests. First, because, when I mentioned to a friend that I have a bunch more tapes of deejay Humble Harve and other vintage west coast radio recordings, I was quickly asked to share another one of those reels. So, without further ado, here is more Humble Harve on KBLA in what was probably April of 1966!:
Download: Humble Harve Miller on KBLA, Burbank, Circa April, 1966
Play:
The rest of the tape is recorded with a segment of a show hosted by Gene Weed on KFWB. And while the tape box (reproduced below) indicates that this tape is ALSO from 1966, whoever wrote that was wrong. This is clearly from 1962. Not only are none of the songs from after 1962, there is a commercial/promotional contest involving the then-brand new Walt Disney release, "Bon Voyage", which was released in the spring of that year:
Download: Gene Weed on KFWB, Los Angeles, 1962
Play:
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I also have a correspondent who has been asking for more Jack Eigen. You can find all of my Eigen posts by clicking on his name in the Labels at the bottom of this page. Like the other tapes I've shared, this is a compilation of excerpts from Eigen's late night Chicago shows. I have somewhere between 18-22 of these, I think, most of them, like this one, well over two hours long.
Download: Jack Eigen - The Jack Eigen Show, Volume 4
Play:
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Next, for those who might be fans of the late, somewhat lamented TV variety show, here's an episode of Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall, from the end of October, 1964, featuring Anne Bancroft, Stanley Holloway and the incomparable Victor Borge:
Download: Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall - with Victor Borge, Anne Bancroft and Stanley Holloway - 10-29-64
Play:
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Now here's an oddity, perhaps only appealing to a few of you, certainly fewer than the offerings above. Somewhere along the line, I managed to get ahold of some recordings of what sounds like a college study group and/or a group of college students working on a specific project or projects. They are pretty dry, and I haven't shared them before. I thought this one was a little more interesting, because it sounds like they are waiting for more people to show up, and discussing how they aren't getting anything done, while also quizzing each other about what they need to study. But as far as I can tell, nothing actually DOES get done. (Also, someone leaves the machine on for several minutes after everyone leaves, and we get to hear a bunch of ambient noise from outside the room for awhile.).
I've dated this "probably 4/25/79", but "possibly 4/25/79" would have been better. It may also be 2/19/82. The box is sort of confusing - there's actually a third date, crossed out, too. Here's a scan of it.
And here's that tape:
Play:
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Finally, here's our "Very Short Reel" for this post. Here is a short excerpt that someone captured, of the end of an episode of "Tic-Tac-Dough", one of the shows which was later caught up in the "rigged game shows" scandal. Bill Wendell (best known to people my age as the first announcer on David Letterman's late night shows) was the host for almost exactly one year, from October 1958 to October 1959, so this tape comes from that period. He was not the host when the (known) discredited contestants appeared, but he was the last host of its 1950's iteration, and appeared on the show while it was being investigated and being cancelled.
Download: Short Fragment of an Episode of Tic-Tac-Dough
Play:
The Tic Tac Dough champ on this show is USAF Lieutenant Jim Astrue, who became the highest money winner in the show's daytime run. Based on newspaper accounts of the time that were charting his progress, this program likely aired Friday February 13, 1959 (the clip acknowledges it's a Friday), his winnings are just under $100K and a Wednesday, February 18 newspaper says his winnings are now at $100,700. He eventually left with $143,600.
ReplyDeleteAstrue's name does not come up in regard to the rigging of the quiz shows in the accounts I have read, but given how rigging is well-documented in the case of the nighttime version, it wouldn't surprise me if he too was the beneficiary of rigging. The hosts were generally kept out of the loop regarding the rigging, save for Jack Barry on "Twenty-One" who as co-head of the production company was aware of it.
Well, the KBLA & KFWB on air recordings are, what can I say, just amazing! Both of these stations were legendary in the Los Angeles radio market during the 60's and these take one back to another era. Thank you for those, Bob. (MORE MORE MORE!!!)
ReplyDeleteGame show expert Adam Nedeff now tells me that at this point, Tic Tac Dough was being played legitimately and that Lieutenant Astrue's winnings were honest.
ReplyDeleteYour posts are always interesting, but I especially want to thank you for sharing the airchecks. They're a lot of fun!
ReplyDeleteI hope maybe a viewer has Mort Sahl when he had his show on KLAC. 99% of libraries will digitize your old reels/tapes for free. Save cultural history!
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