<description>Edgar Bergen first came to the attention of American audiences on Rudy Vallée’s NBC Royal Gelatin Hour on December 17th, 1936. How could ventriloquism work on radio? Perhaps Rudy Vallée himself put it best the night Bergen debuted.

Five months later NBC gave Bergen his own show on Sundays at 8PM. He was an instant smash hit. Don Ameche worked with Bergen in those years. He was emcee on December 12th, 1937 when Mae West was the guest for an innuendo heavy skit called “Adam and Eve.”

Over the next six seasons his show was never rated lower than fourth. Twice it was the country’s top program. On April 9th, 1944 Bergen’s rating was 27.1. Roughly twenty million people were tuned in live, coast-to-coast from WEAF in New York at 8PM eastern and 5PM pacific over KFI. This is that entire Easter Sunday broadcast.</description>

Edgar Bergen first came to the attention of Ameri…

Edgar Bergen first came to the attention of American audiences on Rudy Vallée’s NBC Royal Gelatin Hour on December 17th, 1936. How could ventriloquism work on radio? Perhaps Rudy Vallée himself put it best the night Bergen debuted.

Five months later NBC gave Bergen his own show on Sundays at 8PM. He was an instant smash hit. Don Ameche worked with Bergen in those years. He was emcee on December 12th, 1937 when Mae West was the guest for an innuendo heavy skit called “Adam and Eve.”

Over the next six seasons his show was never rated lower than fourth. Twice it was the country’s top program. On April 9th, 1944 Bergen’s rating was 27.1. Roughly twenty million people were tuned in live, coast-to-coast from WEAF in New York at 8PM eastern and 5PM pacific over KFI. This is that entire Easter Sunday broadcast.

BW - EP150—009: Easter Sunday 1944—Edgar Bergen And Charlie McCarthy

<description>At 7PM eastern time over Mutual Broadcasting’s flagship WOR, The Mysterious Traveler went on the air. Written and directed by Robert Arthur and David Kogan, The Mysterious Traveler debuted on Mutual December 5th, 1943. 

Maurice Tarplin played the title role with a good-natured malevolence. The traveler mostly narrated from an omniscient perch. 

He rode a phantom train by night. The opening signature was the distant wail of a locomotive whistle, fading in gradually until the rumble of the train could be heard.

David Kogan and Robert Arthur had met in Greenwich Village, New York, partnering on Mutual’s Dark Destiny. 

After it was canceled, they came up with the Mysterious Traveler concept and prepared three sample scripts. Norman Livingston bought it for WOR. 

As independent producers, they were paid a flat rate for the whole package. Any money they saved by using the same actor in multiple roles went into their own pockets, so they used the best character actors in New York. Kogan also directed the series. On Easter Sunday, episode 19, “Beware of Tomorrow,” aired just as a gloomy dusk descended upon New York. 

Opposite The Mysterious Traveler, The Jack Benny Program signed on live, coast-to-coast at 7PM from WEAF in New York and at 4PM from KFI in Los Angeles. By April of 1944, Benny’s writing team consisted of Sam Perrin, Milt Josefsberg, John Tackaberry, and this man, George Balzer.

By the spring of 1944, General Foods had been sponsoring the program for ten years, first with Jell-O and then Grape Nuts Flakes. Benny’s ratings had quietly been slipping since 1941. At the end of this season, his contract with General Foods was up. 

There was tension between the two parties because Benny had helped save Jell-O from going out of business. Benny had full control of his show. NBC also guaranteed his Sunday time slot for as long as he wanted it. This position allowed Benny to sell his program to the highest bidder.

George W. Hill, the President of American Tobacco, wanted Benny’s show. His chief account executive was thirty-six-year-old Pat Weaver, the future president of NBC. Benny’s management team quietly held a sealed auction for sponsorship on February 24th. 

A surprise winner was announced: Ruthrauff &amp; Ryan, agency for American Tobacco’s Pall Mall cigarettes, bid twenty-five thousand dollars per-week for three thirty-five week seasons. The weekly money was payable to Benny for all payroll and production costs. They also included an additional two-hundred-thousand dollars over the three years for marketing and promotion. 

American Tobacco also agreed to pay for any network and carrier line charges. The advertising community was stunned.

The Easter Sunday program was Pall Mall’s audition. In the end, this would be the only Jack Benny episode to have a Pall Mall commercial. 

Pat Weaver and George W. Hill knew no one would take Ruthrauff &amp; Ryan’s bid for Pall Mall seriously. Had Foote, Cone &amp; Belding, American Tobacco’s agency for its top cigarette, Lucky Strike, entered the fray, the attention would have driven up the price. 

The last Benny show sponsored by General Foods was June 4th, 1944. Benny took out a full page ad in Variety thanking General Foods for ten years of sponsorship. In August, he left on a three-week USO tour of Australia and the South Pacific.

On August 28th, American Tobacco announced that Pall Mall’s sales didn’t justify a twenty-five thousand dollar per week expenditure. Lucky Strike would sponsor the show. The following week they announced a comprehensive, multimedia ad campaign. It was estimated to cost over a quarter million dollars. Lucky Strike would sponsor The Jack Benny Program beginning October 1st, 1944.</description>

At 7PM eastern time over Mutual Broadcasting’s fl…

At 7PM eastern time over Mutual Broadcasting’s flagship WOR, The Mysterious Traveler went on the air. Written and directed by Robert Arthur and David Kogan, The Mysterious Traveler debuted on Mutual December 5th, 1943. 

Maurice Tarplin played the title role with a good-natured malevolence. The traveler mostly narrated from an omniscient perch. 

He rode a phantom train by night. The opening signature was the distant wail of a locomotive whistle, fading in gradually until the rumble of the train could be heard.

David Kogan and Robert Arthur had met in Greenwich Village, New York, partnering on Mutual’s Dark Destiny. 

After it was canceled, they came up with the Mysterious Traveler concept and prepared three sample scripts. Norman Livingston bought it for WOR. 

As independent producers, they were paid a flat rate for the whole package. Any money they saved by using the same actor in multiple roles went into their own pockets, so they used the best character actors in New York. Kogan also directed the series. On Easter Sunday, episode 19, “Beware of Tomorrow,” aired just as a gloomy dusk descended upon New York. 

Opposite The Mysterious Traveler, The Jack Benny Program signed on live, coast-to-coast at 7PM from WEAF in New York and at 4PM from KFI in Los Angeles. By April of 1944, Benny’s writing team consisted of Sam Perrin, Milt Josefsberg, John Tackaberry, and this man, George Balzer.

By the spring of 1944, General Foods had been sponsoring the program for ten years, first with Jell-O and then Grape Nuts Flakes. Benny’s ratings had quietly been slipping since 1941. At the end of this season, his contract with General Foods was up. 

There was tension between the two parties because Benny had helped save Jell-O from going out of business. Benny had full control of his show. NBC also guaranteed his Sunday time slot for as long as he wanted it. This position allowed Benny to sell his program to the highest bidder.

George W. Hill, the President of American Tobacco, wanted Benny’s show. His chief account executive was thirty-six-year-old Pat Weaver, the future president of NBC. Benny’s management team quietly held a sealed auction for sponsorship on February 24th. 

A surprise winner was announced: Ruthrauff & Ryan, agency for American Tobacco’s Pall Mall cigarettes, bid twenty-five thousand dollars per-week for three thirty-five week seasons. The weekly money was payable to Benny for all payroll and production costs. They also included an additional two-hundred-thousand dollars over the three years for marketing and promotion. 

American Tobacco also agreed to pay for any network and carrier line charges. The advertising community was stunned.

The Easter Sunday program was Pall Mall’s audition. In the end, this would be the only Jack Benny episode to have a Pall Mall commercial. 

Pat Weaver and George W. Hill knew no one would take Ruthrauff & Ryan’s bid for Pall Mall seriously. Had Foote, Cone & Belding, American Tobacco’s agency for its top cigarette, Lucky Strike, entered the fray, the attention would have driven up the price. 

The last Benny show sponsored by General Foods was June 4th, 1944. Benny took out a full page ad in Variety thanking General Foods for ten years of sponsorship. In August, he left on a three-week USO tour of Australia and the South Pacific.

On August 28th, American Tobacco announced that Pall Mall’s sales didn’t justify a twenty-five thousand dollar per week expenditure. Lucky Strike would sponsor the show. The following week they announced a comprehensive, multimedia ad campaign. It was estimated to cost over a quarter million dollars. Lucky Strike would sponsor The Jack Benny Program beginning October 1st, 1944.

BW - EP150—008: Easter Sunday 1944—Jack Benny's Only Pall Mall Show & The Mysterious Traveler Rides

<description>When we were last with Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve in episode 149 of Breaking Walls he was gearing up for his local mayoral campaign, while simultaneously struggling to break away from his ex-fiancé Leila Ransom, voiced by the just-heart Shirley Mitchell. On Easter Sunday, Gildy’s mayoral campaign for Summerfield officially began, and he went to church.

This episode took to the air at 6:30PM eastern time over WEAF in New York. Its rating was 17.9. Nearly fourteen million people tuned in while having Easter Sunday dinner.</description>

When we were last with Throckmorton P. Gilderslee…

When we were last with Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve in episode 149 of Breaking Walls he was gearing up for his local mayoral campaign, while simultaneously struggling to break away from his ex-fiancé Leila Ransom, voiced by the just-heart Shirley Mitchell. On Easter Sunday, Gildy’s mayoral campaign for Summerfield officially began, and he went to church.

This episode took to the air at 6:30PM eastern time over WEAF in New York. Its rating was 17.9. Nearly fourteen million people tuned in while having Easter Sunday dinner.

BW - EP150—007: Easter Sunday 1944—The Great Gildersleeve Runs For Mayor

<description>At 6PM over NBC’s WEAF, The Catholic Hour took to the air with an address from Monsignor Fulton J. Sheen.

Fulton John Sheen was born on May 8th, 1895 in El Paso, Illinois. He was ordained a priest in 1919, quickly becoming a renowned theologian. He won the Cardinal Mercier Prize for International Philosophy in 1923 and went on to teach theology and philosophy at the Catholic University of America. 

Beginning in 1930, Father Sheen began a twenty-year run hosting The Catholic Hour on NBC before moving into TV to present Life is Worth Living and The Fulton Sheen Program. Twice winning an Emmy for Most Outstanding TV personality, he was also featured on the cover of TIME magazine. 

He was appointed an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York in 1951, holding the position until 1966 when he was made Bishop of Rochester. He resigned in 1969 near his seventy-fifth birthday and would live until December 9th, 1979.

In 2002, twenty-two years after his death, an official cause for canonization into sainthood was opened. Pope Benedict XVI officially recognized his life of "heroic virtues." However, his 2019 beatification was postponed after the current Bishop of Rochester expressed concern that Sheen mishandled a sexual misconduct case against a priest. Although the Diocese of Peoria countered that his handling of the case had already been thoroughly investigated, as of 2024 Fulton J. Sheen’s beatification is still postponed.

Opposite The Catholic Hour,  The Blue Network aired The Radio Hall of Fame on WJZ.

Hosted by Deems Taylor and sponsored by Philco, The Radio Hall of Fame was conceived as a weekly Academy Award of radio through Variety Magazine, focusing on that week’s hits.

When it was launched in December of 1943, there was serious questioning as to whether it was proper for Variety to be so intimately involved. How could a trade paper whose business was reviewing show business enter into its production? Ben Bodec, a fifteen-year Variety reporter quit in protest, but the show went on without a hitch.

It was a glittering spectacle, stars like Fred Allen, Bob Hope, Sophie Tucker, Groucho Marx, Bing Crosby, George Burns, Gracie Allen, and the Andrews Sisters all appeared. It would air until April 28th, 1946.</description>

At 6PM over NBC’s WEAF, The Catholic Hour took to…

At 6PM over NBC’s WEAF, The Catholic Hour took to the air with an address from Monsignor Fulton J. Sheen.

Fulton John Sheen was born on May 8th, 1895 in El Paso, Illinois. He was ordained a priest in 1919, quickly becoming a renowned theologian. He won the Cardinal Mercier Prize for International Philosophy in 1923 and went on to teach theology and philosophy at the Catholic University of America. 

Beginning in 1930, Father Sheen began a twenty-year run hosting The Catholic Hour on NBC before moving into TV to present Life is Worth Living and The Fulton Sheen Program. Twice winning an Emmy for Most Outstanding TV personality, he was also featured on the cover of TIME magazine. 

He was appointed an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York in 1951, holding the position until 1966 when he was made Bishop of Rochester. He resigned in 1969 near his seventy-fifth birthday and would live until December 9th, 1979.

In 2002, twenty-two years after his death, an official cause for canonization into sainthood was opened. Pope Benedict XVI officially recognized his life of "heroic virtues." However, his 2019 beatification was postponed after the current Bishop of Rochester expressed concern that Sheen mishandled a sexual misconduct case against a priest. Although the Diocese of Peoria countered that his handling of the case had already been thoroughly investigated, as of 2024 Fulton J. Sheen’s beatification is still postponed.

Opposite The Catholic Hour,  The Blue Network aired The Radio Hall of Fame on WJZ.

Hosted by Deems Taylor and sponsored by Philco, The Radio Hall of Fame was conceived as a weekly Academy Award of radio through Variety Magazine, focusing on that week’s hits.

When it was launched in December of 1943, there was serious questioning as to whether it was proper for Variety to be so intimately involved. How could a trade paper whose business was reviewing show business enter into its production? Ben Bodec, a fifteen-year Variety reporter quit in protest, but the show went on without a hitch.

It was a glittering spectacle, stars like Fred Allen, Bob Hope, Sophie Tucker, Groucho Marx, Bing Crosby, George Burns, Gracie Allen, and the Andrews Sisters all appeared. It would air until April 28th, 1946.

BW - EP150—006: Easter Sunday 1944—The Catholic Hour and The Radio Hall of Fame

<description>Between 4PM and 5:30 eastern war time, NBC broadcast Easter services from the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, as well as the NBC symphony with Arturo Toscanini. CBS broadcast Orchestra music and The Family Hour. The Blue Network aired Music and the Mary Small Revue. Mutual Broadcasting’s flagship WOR aired Abe Lincoln’s Story and Green Valley, U.S.A.. 

At 5:30, Mutual’s most popular program took to the air. It was their only show in the top-50 and the highest-rated weekend daytime program on the air. Pulling a rating that month of 14.1, roughly eleven million people tuned it. Sponsored by Blue Coal, It starred the just-heard Brett Morrison. The show? None other than The Shadow. 

In this particular episode, an evil fiend uses an experimental Television device to see anything he wishes remotely. The Shadow’s powers of mesmer don’t affect a TV screen. This fiend therefore finds out the true identity of the Shadow.</description>

Between 4PM and 5:30 eastern war time, NBC broadc…

Between 4PM and 5:30 eastern war time, NBC broadcast Easter services from the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, as well as the NBC symphony with Arturo Toscanini. CBS broadcast Orchestra music and The Family Hour. The Blue Network aired Music and the Mary Small Revue. Mutual Broadcasting’s flagship WOR aired Abe Lincoln’s Story and Green Valley, U.S.A.. 

At 5:30, Mutual’s most popular program took to the air. It was their only show in the top-50 and the highest-rated weekend daytime program on the air. Pulling a rating that month of 14.1, roughly eleven million people tuned it. Sponsored by Blue Coal, It starred the just-heard Brett Morrison. The show? None other than The Shadow. 

In this particular episode, an evil fiend uses an experimental Television device to see anything he wishes remotely. The Shadow’s powers of mesmer don’t affect a TV screen. This fiend therefore finds out the true identity of the Shadow.

BW - EP150—005: Easter Sunday 1944—The Shadow

Breaking Walls: The Podcast on the History of American Network Radio Broadcasting.

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