The Good Old Days of Radio Show

Want to hear what 1950 thought “the future” would sound like? We have an unusual program for you today, an NBC pilot from 1950 called Report from the Future, dramatized news broadcasts delivered as if they’re being reported from years yet to come. It’s part radio drama and part faux newscast. The program jumps through imagined headlines: a manned rocket launching into space, the (fictional) discovery of Cleopatra’s tomb, and a baseball slugger breaking Babe Ruth’s home run record. To make it all seem more believable, the show even folds in “expert” interviews from the era, including a rocket engineer and Major League star Ralph Kiner. More than anything, it plays like a time capsule of mid-century optimism, capturing what Americans in 1950 expected science, exploration, and pop culture to achieve in the decades ahead. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

This week, we’re back in the world of Crime Classics with another offbeat entry, “The Triangle on the Round Table.” Host John Tefteller is joined by Karl Schadow and Steven C. Smith to dig into this 1953 episode, which takes the familiar legend of King Arthur and turns it on its head. Forget shining armor and noble quests, this version leans into dark humor and sharp writing, with knights who feel a lot more like modern, flawed humans than storybook heroes. William Conrad stars as a weary, battle-worn King Arthur, caught in a story full of tension, betrayal, and cynicism. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

Today, John Tefteller sits down with Jerry Haendiges, one of the true pioneers of vintage radio collecting and preservation. Jerry takes you back to the very beginning, when he was literally rescuing transcription discs from radio stations in 1965, back when a lot of places were just tossing them out. He talks about the formation of SPERDVAC (one of the major groups dedicated to saving radio drama), and why digitizing rare recordings matters, especially if we want younger listeners to ever discover this stuff. Jerry also breaks down how he went from collector to key player in syndicating classic radio to stations all over the U.S. We also play full broadcasts of The Shadow and Blondie, two of Jerry’s favorite shows. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

This week, we continue our look at the brilliant and often overlooked series Crime Classics. Host John Tefteller is joined again by experts Karl Schadow and Steven C. Smith to spotlight the August 1953 episode "Your Loving Son, Nero." They dig into the “quadruple threat” talent of Elliott Lewis and the unforgettable music of Bernard Herrmann, who made a small ensemble sound like a full orchestra. Then we hear the episode itself, a darkly fascinating (and sometimes surprisingly funny) take on Emperor Nero and his relentless attempts to get rid of his mother, Agrippina. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

Ready for a little St. Patrick’s Day time travel? Today we are bringing you a 1949 broadcast made for St. Patrick’s Day, hosted by Ray Milland and starring Edmund Gwenn as the storyteller. The story is a whimsical fable called “The Leprechaun Who Didn’t Listen,” and it follows Johnny, a young leprechaun (played by Alan Young) who just will not take advice from his elders or teachers… and keeps paying the price for it. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

We’re kicking off a brand-new ten-week series, this time diving into the 1953 program Crime Classics. Host John Tefteller is joined by two guests, researcher Karl Schadow and biographer Steven C. Smith, to explore how producer Elliott Lewis created one of radio's most unique historical crime dramas, and how composer Bernard Herrmann managed to make it sound epic using only a handful of musicians. This week’s featured episode takes us back to Ancient Rome, 44 B.C., for a stylized retelling of the assassination of Julius Caesar. The story blends real history with just a hint of satire. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

It’s time for some classic deadpan radio comedy served extra dry. Today we're bringing you two original Bob and Ray Show recordings from August 1951, played straight off vintage AFRS transcription discs. And if you’ve never heard Bob Elliott and Ray Goulding in their early days, this is the perfect intro. You’ll hear sketches like an “ad” for a dual-purpose swimming pool table, plus a fake Adult School of the Air lesson that explores what happens when you’re just… brutally honest all the time. Familiar characters like Mary McGoon and Tex show up too, getting into surreal conversations, including one about a completely nonsensical plan for a musical swim across New York Harbor. It’s sharp, weird, and quietly hilarious. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

This is the final episode of Carlton E. Morse's Adventures By Morse syndicated radio serial, The Cobra King Strikes Back. And after 10 weeks of scary adventures in the Cambodia jungles, ancient temples, and gorillas and werewolves, it feels like a hard-earned rescue… but in this type of pulse-pounding, high-octane story, the relief never lasts long. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

Today, host John Tefteller and radio historian Dr. Joe Webb uncover another rare find; a long-lost episode of the hit 1940s crime drama “Mr. District Attorney.” This one’s been missing for decades until recently discovered in a private collector’s stash. John and Dr. Webb go into the history behind the series and how it became one of the most popular crime shows of its time. They also talk about why so many East Coast programs from that era vanished. Jay Jostyn and the Golden Age "Mr. District Attorney" Series Need to be "Re-discovered" https://suspensearchive.wixsite.com/drjoesworkshop/post/jay-jostyn-and-the-golden-age-mr-district-attorney-series-need-to-be-re-discovered   The Blockbuster Series Mr. DA Did Not Start That Way https://suspensearchive.wixsite.com/drjoesworkshop/post/the-blockbuster-series-mr-da-did-not-start-that-way   Ipana toothpaste https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipana Ipana print ad https://archive.org/details/1948-advertisement-for-ipana-toothpaste_20201109   Minit-Rub print ad https://archive.org/details/MinitRub1947A   Chuck Schaden interview of Jay Jostyn https://speakingofradio.com/interviews/jostyn-jay/   Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

We're nearing the end of our 10-part adventure Carlton E. Morse 1944 serial in the jungles of Cambodia today. In this chapter, Captain Friday and the crew make a desperate break for it, trying to escape an ancient temple that’s been taken over by a twisted priesthood of men who’ve become something far more savage than human. Their guide, Taquan, a man caught between Western learning and his own fading traditions, leads them through a hollow mountain using swaying suspension ladders, with the so-called “human wolves” closing in behind them. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

It’s time to hang out with one of radio’s original troublemakers. In this episode, we’re spinning The Henry Morgan Show from May 16, 1950, hosted by the “bad boy of radio” himself, Henry Morgan. He’s sharp, irreverent, and famous for taking shots at pretty much everything… including his own sponsors (when he actually had them). Morgan’s joined by Art Carney and Arnold Stang, and the show's packed with sketches such as a send-up of personality tests, a bit about a Mother’s Day telegram, and a parody of over-the-top jungle adventure movies. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

We've made it to chapter 8 of Carlton E. Morse's Adventures By Morse serial. Things get a lot darker as Captain Friday and the rest of the expedition are holed up inside a remote Cambodian temple, cut off from the outside world. As night falls, the conversation turns to local legends—stories of werewolves, human beasts, and ancient curses—made all the more unsettling by strange howls echoing through the jungle. Another pure pulp cliffhanger that leaves you hanging in the dark. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

It’s Tuesday, so it's back to zany comedy 1940s radio style. This time it's an October 1944 episode of It Pays to Be Ignorant, the “quiz show” where a panel of so-called experts take moronic questions and proudly give the most ridiculous answers possible. And this week’s twist? They’ve got composer Deems Taylor in the mix, acting as the classy, unbothered foil. Expect goofy musical bits, comedians heckling the orchestra, and some fun interaction with military members in the studio audience. It’s corny, fast, loud, and it’s a great snapshot of how vaudeville comics kept thriving once radio took over. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

The pulp radio adventures of Captain Friday and Skip Turner continue today. The crew finally learn the truth behind their so-called kidnapping, and Patricia and Celia swear they were confronted by a savage, beast-like man in their room. The Cobra King Strikes Back was the second 10-part Carlton E. Morse syndicated series that followed briefly after the first run of Morse's better known serial, I Love A Mystery. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

Happy Valentine's! It's been awhile, but today we're back... marching through another great 1947 episode of The Jack Benny Program. But of course because it's Valentine's Day, and Valentine's Day is Jack Benny's birthday, we picked it up. In this episode the gang does a hilarious parody of the movie The Egg and I. And because it’s 1947, Lucky Strike cigarette ads worked right into the comedy. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

The wild goings-on continue in today's chapter of Carlton E. Morse's Adventures By Morse radio serial. Captain Friday and the rest of the expedition are still prisoners, driven deeper into the Cambodian jungle. Wild ponies, narrow jungle trails, and a secret passage hidden behind a waterfall all stand between them and whatever fate awaits. The journey ends inside Hollow Mountain itself, where the prisoners are forced up swaying ladders and through ancient stone passages to a hidden temple. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

John Tefteller and radio historian Dr. Joe Webb are back with another “lost and found” classic: a 1948 episode of The Adventures of Sam Spade. This one was missing for decades until it turned up on an Armed Forces Radio Service transcription disc, and it’s based on Dashiell Hammett’s short story The House in Turk Street. John and Dr. Webb dig into the behind-the-scenes history, from the show’s production quirks and cast lineup to Hammett’s rocky relationship with the people adapting his character. SHOW NOTES The Adventures of Sam Spade 1948-05-18 The Girl Called Echs The lead actors: Howard Duff as Spade, Lurene Tuttle as Effie Howard Duff had a long and successful, and sometimes rocky, radio, film, and television career. He was not an expected candidate to become Sam Spade. The then-wife of producer William Spier, Kay Thompson, suggested that he be given better consideration. Thompson was a musical coach at MGM and was an important behind-the-scenes influencer in encouraging stars to appear on Suspense. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Duff Lurene Tuttle was one of the top radio actors of her time. She might be best known for playing Spade’s dizzy secretary, Effie, but she appeared in hundreds, if over a thousand, radio roles, often uncredited, in soaps, dramas, westerns, comedies, and other programs. Tuttle had a successful television career, often playing the busybody next-door neighbor, as well as many film roles. The supporting cast of this episode: Jeanette Nolan (Elvira Echs / Eliza), Jay Novello (Sgt. Benson), Lurene Tuttle (Old landlady), Sidney Miller (Doc) , Joe Kearns (Laundry Man / Warren Beeding), John McIntire (Monty), UNKNOWN (Eddy Echs) The title Girl Called Echs is a lampoon of the popular espionage NBC radio series Man Called X. It was often comedic and generally unserious spy drama in spite of the many important and weighty post-WW2 topics at the core of its plotlines. The later popular NBC spy show Dangerous Assignment took things much more seriously. At about the 4:15 mark of this Spade episode, there is a Man Called X not-so-inside joke. Spade says “I am looking for a man called ‘Echs’ and I don’t mean Herbert Marshall.” The star of that series was Herbert Marshall, indeed, one of the favorite performers for the Suspense series during the time that Spade producer William Spier guided that series to its prominence. Even though Man Called X was an NBC series, numerous actors and writers for Suspense and Sam Spade appeared in that series in supporting roles. When the cast arrived for their rehearsal of this Spade script, they likely all got a good chuckle out of the references. One of the in-joke reasons for chuckling at the title is that in the East and Central time zones NBC schedule, The Man Called X followed the Spade broadcasts! Many regular listeners of NBC  and devotees of both series would have picked up on the joke. So much of the Spade series was tongue-in-cheek with many inside jokes that only the crew and actors detected them. This title and Duff's comment about Herbert Marshall at around the 4:00 minute mark was one that everyone could understand. The plot is partially based on Dashiell Hammett’s short story The House on Turk Street. There is a reading of the original story at YouTube https://youtu.be/gtHskjWNXRo?si=uk8w- Je8CTUnyqxA Sam Spade profile and history at Thrilling Detective https://thrillingdetective.com/2018/11/18/sam-spade/ Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

Our pulp escapade into the imagination of Carlton E. Morse continues today with chapter five of Adventures by Morse. Captain Friday and the rest of the expedition wake up as prisoners inside a forgotten Cambodian temple, hauled there by a roaming bandit caravan and at the mercy of the jungle. What follows is a run of vanishing companions, hidden trap doors, and underground passages crawling with things you definitely don’t want to meet in the dark.  Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

Today we're following up on our commitment to finish the 15-episode run of The Stan Freberg Show. This episode is basically roasting its own cancellation. In the process, Freberg gives an early demonstration of what a brilliant mind he had for creative advertising with wonderfully ridiculous fake ads for “Instant Freberg.” They also do a hardboiled detective spoof called “Sam Spelade.” John wraps things up with a quick look at the bigger picture: the slow fade of network radio, and why Stan Freberg still matters as a legendary writer, performer, and comedy trailblazer. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD

On this episode of The Good Old Days of Radio Show, we plunge deeper into The Cobra King Strikes Back as our jungle adventure continues. After being ambushed at the ruins of Angkor Thom, the ancient walled city in Cambodia that once served as the heart of the Khmer Empire, the team finds itself swept away by a massive caravan into the remote wilderness. Held in stone chambers deep in the jungle, the group must battle fear, fatigue (even elephant-induced seasickness), and the unsettling sound of a spectral voice that seems to warn of imminent death. Visit our website: https://goodolddaysofradio.com/ Subscribe to our Facebook Group for news, discussions, and the latest podcast: https://www.facebook.com/groups/881779245938297 Our theme music is "Why Am I So Romantic?" from Animal Crackers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KHJKAKS/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_MK8MVCY4DVBAM8ZK39WD