Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:21 — 13.4MB)
Eddie Cantor is the first host on this first episode that will bring top celebrities to the air. All requests come from letters sent in from the troops themselves.
The line up includes:
- Bea Wayne sings her version of, Chatanooga Choo Choo.
- A rebroadcast snip of the recent Joe Lewis fight where he knocked out Max Baer is presented.
- Eddie jokes aboutthe the fight, and about Joe going into the military.
- Danny Kaye shares a comic and musical glimpse at his life and early beginnings.
- Dinah Shore sings, Blues in the Night.
- A birthday greeting goes out to a Sergeant then Merle Oberon is requested to be Eddie’s leading lady.
- An original drama kicks off where Eddie has to break the news to Merle Oberon, that he is to be her next leading man. How will he do it? How will she take it? Jokes on age and beauty are the topic. As part of the fun, the Mad Russian joins in.
PS: The show structure set by today would set the stage for all future shows. Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines would pour letters into the show to request stars, or themes for a show, or anything they missed from home, or just wanted to be put in the show. One thing the producers would drop is the birthday mentions. When shows were distributed, they were put on the “Mosquito Network” which meant the recorded disks were randomly distributed by small aircraft that took supplies to front line areas, and there could be no garantee of the date the shows were actually aired to the troops. Another thing that wasn’t seen much was the snips of news or sports coverage that was presented in today’s show. Maybe the producers figured that news reels were a better vehicle for those things. I’m not sure, but if you know, then drop me a comment.
