PODCAST

Breaking Walls

James Scully

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

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All Episodes

00:14:34

BW - EP153—002: Independence Day 1944—Vic And Sade...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/28

On Tuesday July 4th, 1944 at 11:15AM, the homespun Vic and Sade took to the air over NBC’s WEAF in New York.First airing on June 29th, 1932, Vic and Sade was created by Paul Rhymer. Known as “radio’s home folks,” the show was broadcast from The Merchandise Mart in Chicago. Rhymer wrote the script each morning before heading to watch the rehearsal and broadcast. On good days, one rewrite sufficed. On difficult days, the script would be ripped up again and again and poured over. The result was a

00:39:11

BW - EP153—001: Independence Day 1944—Norman Corwin...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/27

Tuesday, July 4th, 1944. It’s been twenty-nine days since the Allies first stormed the beaches of Normandy. They’ve continued to slowly push inland, but the battle for control of the Caen has raged onward. CBS is there with up-to-the-minute news. On Saturday July 1st, A counterattack by German Panzer Corps failed to dislodge the British Second Army around Caen. When OB West Gerd von Rundstedt phoned Berlin to report the failure, Chief of Staff Wilhelm Keitel asked, “what shall we do?” Rundstedt

00:01:33

Please Subscribe (For Free) To Breaking Walls on...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/25

Hey everybody James Scully here, host of Breaking Walls. If you've been listening to this show for years on this RSS feed, I want you to know that you can also subscribe to the show on Youtube — www.youtube.com/@thewallbreakersllc. I'm asking people who listen here on the RSS feed to subscribe on Youtube because Youtube offers the easiest path to monetizing this show. I'm going to be fully transparent right now: There have been times in the history of this podcast that via RSS feed, Breaking Walls

00:12:58

BW - EP152—024: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—The Last Red...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/13

At 10:50PM on D-Day, The Red Skelton Show took to the air with a final abbreviated episode before Skelton left for World War II.When his show debuted on October 7th, 1941 critics were skeptical. Skelton was a pantomimist. How could he succeed on radio? But he was soon getting laughs every eleven seconds and for three seasons more than twenty-five million people were tuning in as he pulled ratings in the 30s. His supporting cast of Lurene Tuttle, Ozzie, and Harriet Nelson were heavily

00:21:59

BW - EP152—023: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—FDR's D-Day...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/12

At 10PM, across all networks, the President of the United States Franklin D. Roosevelt, took to the air with a special prayer for the invading troops. Thirty-Five million Americans tuned in. It was the most-listened to broadcast of any kind which aired in 1944. At 10:15 Bob Hope took to the air with a special D-Day Broadcast. For more information on this year of Bob’s life, tune into Breaking Walls episode 148. This is FDR's D-Day Prayer below: My fellow Americans: Last night, when I spoke with

00:36:15

BW - EP152—022: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—A Rare...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/11

D-Day, June 6th, 1944 was a Tuesday. Ordinarily on Tuesday evenings NBC had a comedy lineup that rivaled the greatest in history. A main part of it was the man you just heard, Jim Jordan, who starred on Fibber McGee and Molly. The normal Fibber McGee and Molly show was canceled on D-Day. Instead, they presented a special musical program at 9:30PM featuring Billy Mills and the King’s Men, leaving room for late-breaking news bulletins. Opposite, CBS presented the first in a new series, The Doctor

00:15:23

BW - EP152—018: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—HV...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/07

At the conclusion of Ronald Colman’s reading of Edna St. Vincent Millay’s poem, legendary commentator H. V. Kaltenborn took to the air with news and comments on the day’s invasion.

00:33:48

BW - EP152—017: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—Ronald...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/06

John Nesbitt was born in Victoria, British Columbia on August 23rd, 1910. The grandson of actor Edwin Booth, the family moved to Alameda, California. Nesbitt was active in stock theater in Vancouver and Spokane and began working for NBC in San Francisco in 1933. By 1935, he was an announcer at KFRC in San Francisco.Nesbitt produced a series called Headlines of the Past which spun off into his signature program, The Passing Parade, in 1937. The inspiration came from a trunk inherited from his

00:16:24

BW - EP152—016: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—Lowell...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/05

It’s nearly 6:45PM and I’m at an automat getting some dinner. People around here are feeling a little looser as, by all accounts, the Normandy landings had been a success. They’ve got NBC on the air. Just ending is a “Serenade to America'' with Winifred Hite, Nora Sterling, Milton Katims and his Orchestra. Legendary newscaster Lowell Thomas is about to go on over WEAF with a summary and commentary on the day’s events. Thomas has been on radio since the dawn of the network era. He took over as

00:30:25

BW - EP152—015: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—King George...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/04

At 3PM The British King George VI issued a D-Day speech. The Transcription is below. Four years ago, our Nation and Empire stood alone against an overwhelming enemy, with our backs to the wall. Tested as never before in our history, in God's providence we survived that test; the spirit of the people, resolute, dedicated, burned like a bright flame, lit surely from those unseen fires which nothing can quench. Now once more a supreme test has to be faced. This time, the challenge is not to fight to

00:17:41

BW - EP152—014: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—Perry Mason

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/03

Perry Mason debuted over CBS airwaves on October 18th, 1943. On D-Day it was airing at 2:45PM from New York. Mason was a crime-busting lawyer, famous in fiction for unmasking killers in court. Though it came in the guise of crime drama, the show was full-bore soap opera. At points, Jan Miner played Della Street, Mason’s secretary. Mandel Kramer played Police Lieutenant Tragg.

00:35:56

BW - EP152—013: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—Portia Faces...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/02

That was the voice of Joan Banks Lovejoy who played the scheming Arline Harrison Manning on Portia Faces Life. During World War II she was all over New York radio. On Portia Faces Life, Lucille Wall starred as Portia Blake, a young woman lawyer who battled corruption in the small town of Parkerstown. The show debuted with a crisis on October 7th, 1940 and throughout its entire nearly eleven-year run, the crises never ended. The show moved to CBS in April of 1944 and on D-Day it was airing

01:01:15

BW - EP152—012: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—Mid-Day...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/06/01

12:45PM brought a forty-minute CBS news update featuring Edward R. Murrow from London, Douglas Edwards recapping CBS coverage, and a Quincy Howe analysis.Following this broadcast John Daly immediately signed on.

00:18:02

BW - EP152—011: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—Big Sister

Breaking Walls ·

2024/05/31

At 12:15PM Big Sister took to the air over CBS starring the just-heard Alice Frost as Ruth Evans.Ruth centered her life around her sister Sue and their crippled brother Neddie. When Sue married reporter Jerry Miller, Ruth was able to give her full attention to the care of little Ned. Then, unexpectedly, Ruth fell in love with Neddie’s new doctor, John Wayne, played first by Martin Gabel and later by Staats Cotsworth.

01:00:30

BW - EP152—005: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—CBS World...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/05/25

At 9AM eastern war time, CBS World News signed on with Douglas Edwards reporting. On D-Day Edwards was twenty-six years old. He’d been hired in 1942 by CBS as a reporter and understudy for John Daly. When Daly was sent overseas to cover the war in 1943 Edwards was promoted to lead The World Today, World News Today, and Report to the Nation. In 1945, Edwards was sent to London to cover the final weeks of the war with Edward R. Murrow. He was then appointed the network's news bureau chief in Paris

00:47:49

BW - EP152—004: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—First...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/05/24

I just phoned CBS news headquarters at 485 Madison Avenue. I’m told that they’ll resume scheduled programming at 10AM. NBC has canceled all programming until further notice. Mutual and The Blue Network are interspersing news throughout the day. The Stock Exchange will observe two minutes of silence and Mayor La Guardia will be holding a rally in Madison Square. As for me, I’ve been momentarily dismissed. I’m heading home to get some rest. Meanwhile, let’s listen to Bob Trout. Charles Shaw will

00:32:32

BW - EP152—003: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—Sunrise...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/05/23

As part of my job I’ve been sent by CBS to Union Square. I decided to stop by my high school alma mater, I’m at the Church of St. Francis Xavier on sixteenth street. They’re having a sunrise mass filled with prayer for our soldiers and other war workers. The people are stoic. Now isn’t the time to lose ourselves in emotion. Sunrise is at 5:25AM. I hear American troops have turned the tide of battle at the Omaha landing point, with warships backing them up at sea. Give a listen to the CBS

01:05:14

BW - EP152—002: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—The First...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/05/22

The man you just heard was CBS news reporter Robert Trout. Born in Wake County, North Carolina on October 15th, 1909, he grew up in Washington, D.C., entering broadcasting in 1931 as an announcer at WJSV, an independent station in Alexandria, Virginia. In the summer of 1932 WJSV was acquired by CBS, bringing Trout into the young network. He soon became an invaluable member of William S. Paley’s team, and was the first person to publicly refer to FDR’s radio programs as Fireside Chats. On Sunday

00:55:40

BW - EP152—001: D-Day's 80th Anniversary—The Invasion...

Breaking Walls ·

2024/05/21

Tuesday, June 6th, 1944 at about 12:45 in the morning. We’re at Bill Pogue’s Bar on the Corner of 88th street and Columbus Avenue in Manhattan. I just finished a twelve hour shift. I need a nightcap before I go back into that low-hanging fog. Did you hear the President tonight? We took Rome. One up and two to go. ____________ Only the German outlets that are saying the invasion has started. Paris radio just aired news bulletins and didn’t say anything. London radio told Hollanders to stay off

04:32:11

BW - EP151: Jack Benny's Famous Slump (1944)

Breaking Walls ·

2024/05/16

In Breaking Walls episode 151 it’s the spring of 1944 and Jack Benny’s sponsor, General Foods, thinks he’s in a slump. Benny got mad and it changed the broadcasting landscape forever. Tonight, we’ll find out how and why. —————————— Highlights: • Benny's Early Radio Career in the 1930s and Ratings Peak • Early Problems with General Foods • Dennis Day Leaves for World War II • Jack Fires General Foods, Signs with American Tobacco • Dick Haymes Replaces Dennis Day as Singer • The Importance of

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