Blogpost #31

Welcome back, radio historians! Today is the 83rd birthday of the National Broadcasting Company. NBC signed on the air November 15, 1926 with a four-hour program of music from various dance bands, comedy from Will Rogers, and numerous speeches from company executives. The program cost $50,000 to produce and was heard as far west as Kansas City via a "chain" of 25 stations.

Today, we celebrate NBC's birthday with an hour of excerpts from a 1966 radio special produced for NBC's 40th anniversary. The special was hosted by ventriloquist Edgar Bergen and his dummy Charlie McCarthy. It was heard over the NBC radio network on November 13, 1966 and was later issued as a two-LP set.

I had considered playing the show in its entirety over two weeks, but there were too many things that needed to be edited out. You probably won't miss the commercials for Chase and Sanborn coffee or the annoying laugh tracks, but just in case you'd like to hear the unedited version, it's available for free download at archive.com. I also decided to delete the performances by Al Jolson and Amos 'n' Andy, who represent a style of humor that has no place in the 21st century. If there's a Museum of Outdated Stereotypes, you'll find them there.

Next week, it's another Beatle birthday tribute. This time we're remembering Pete Best, who famously got the sack just days before the group was to make their TV debut. You'll hear a 1982 in-depth interview, plus rare recordings from his two years as a Beatle. There's also a clip from a 1964 TV quiz show where a celebrity panel tries to guess his identity. Thanks for listening!