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Command Performance (radio Series)
''Command Performance'' was a radio program which originally aired between 1942 and 1949. The program was broadcast on the Armed Forces Radio Network (AFRS) and transmitted by shortwave to overseas troops—but with few exceptions since it was not broadcast over domestic U.S. radio stations. Background Most episodes of the program were produced before an audience in the Vine Street Playhouse in Hollywood, California, and recorded via electrical transcription. The weekly listening audience was estimated to be at 95.5 million. Troops sent in requests for a particular performer or program to appear, and they also suggested unusual ideas for music, sketches, or sounds from home on the program, such as: " Ann Miller tap dancing in military boots"; "a sigh from Carole Landis" or Lucille Ball; "foghorns on San Francisco Bay"; "Errol Flynn taking a shower"; "a slot machine delivering the jackpot" and "Bing Crosby mixing a bourbon and soda for Bob Hope". Top performers of the day were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Andrews Sisters
The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (1911–1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andrews (1916–1995), and mezzo-soprano Patricia Marie Andrews (1918–2013). The sisters have sold an estimated 80 million records. Their 1941 hit " Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" can be considered an early example of jump blues. Other songs closely associated with the Andrews Sisters include their first major hit, " Bei Mir Bist Du Schön (Means That You're Grand)" (1937), " Beer Barrel Polka (Roll Out the Barrel)" (1939), "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar" (1940), " Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree (with Anyone Else but Me)" (1942), and " Rum and Coca-Cola" (1945), which helped introduce American audiences to calypso. The Andrews Sisters' harmonies and songs are still influential today and have been copied and recorded by entertainers such as Patti Page, Bette Midler, Christ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dick Tracy
''Dick Tracy'' is an American comic strip featuring Dick Tracy, a tough and intelligent police detective created by Chester Gould. It made its debut on Sunday, October 4, 1931, in the '' Detroit Mirror'', and was distributed by the Chicago Tribune New York News Syndicate. Gould wrote and drew the strip until 1977,webpage notes villains and includes short bio of Chester Gould. and various artists and writers have continued it. Dick Tracy has also been the hero in a number of films, including Dick Tracy (1990 film), ''Dick Tracy'' (1990) in which Warren Beatty played the lead. Tom De Haven praised Gould's ''Dick Tracy'' as an "outrageously funny American Gothic", while Brian Walker described it as a "ghoulishly entertaining creation" which had "gripping stories filled with violence and pathos".Walker, Brian. ''The Comics: The Complete Collection''. New York: Abrams ComicArts, 2011. (pp. 189-191, 226-231, 259, 370) Comic strip Creation and early years Basing the character ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Library Of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law of the United States, copyright law through the United States Copyright Office, and it houses the Congressional Research Service. Founded in 1800, the Library of Congress is the oldest Cultural policy of the United States, federal cultural institution in the United States. It is housed in three buildings on Capitol Hill, adjacent to the United States Capitol, along with the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center in Culpeper, Virginia, and additional storage facilities at Fort Meade, Fort George G. Meade and Cabin Branch in Hyattsville, Maryland. The library's functions are overseen by the librarian of Congress, and its buildings are maintained by the architect of the Capitol. The LOC is one of the List of largest libraries, largest libra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mail Call (radio Program)
''Mail Call'' was an American radio program that entertained American soldiers from 1942 until 1945, during World War II. Lt. Col. Thomas A.H. Lewis (commander of the Armed Forces Radio Service) wrote in 1944, "The initial production of the Armed Forces Radio Service was 'Mail Call,' a morale-building half hour which brought famed performers to the microphone to sing and gag in the best American manner." The program featured popular entertainers of that day, such as Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, and Dinah Shore, performing musical numbers and comedy skits to boost the morale of soldiers stationed far from their homes. Lewis added, "To a fellow who has spent months guarding an outpost in the South Seas, Iceland or Africa a cheery greeting from a favorite comedian, a song hit direct from Broadway theatre, Broadway, or the beating rhythm of a hot band, mean a tie with the home to which he hopes soon to return.'' California headquarters ''Mail Call'' and other AFRS programs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Transcription Disc
Electrical transcriptions are special phonograph recordings made exclusively for radio broadcasting,Browne, Ray B. and Browne, Pat, eds. (2001). ''The Guide to United States Popular Culture''. The University of Wisconsin Press. . P. 263. which were widely used during the " Golden Age of Radio". They provided material—from station-identification jingles and commercials to full-length programs—for use by local stations, which were affiliates of one of the radio networks. Physically, electrical transcriptions look much like long-playing records, but differ from consumer-oriented recordings in two major respects which gave longer playing time and reduced likelihood of diversion to private use: they are usually larger than diameter (often ) so did not fit on consumer playback equipment, and were recorded in a hill-and-dale, or vertical cutting action, as distinct from lateral modulation as in ordinary monophonic discs. They were distributed only to radio stations for the purpose ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shortwave Receiver
A shortwave radio receiver is a radio receiver that can receive one or more shortwave bands, between 1.6 and 30 MHz. A shortwave radio receiver often receives other broadcast bands, such as FM radio, Longwave and Mediumwave. Shortwave radio receivers are often used by dedicated hobbyists called shortwave listeners. History While home built shortwave receivers had been used by amateur radio operators and radio experimenters prior to World War I, the first time shortwave radio reception was available to the general public was through the use of shortwave frequency converters sold as accessories to broadcast-band radio sets during the mid 1920s. Such converters were generally found unsatisfactory in performance, and so dedicated shortwave receiving sets soon appeared on the market. National Radio Company introduced the SW-2 "Thrill box" shortwave regenerative receiver in 1927, and later offered improved models, such as the highly regarded SW-3. Other notable early shortwave ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Charioteers
The Charioteers were an American gospel and pop vocal group from 1930 to 1957. History The Charioteers were put together in 1930 by Professor Howard Daniel at Wilberforce University, in Wilberforce, Ohio. They originally called themselves the Harmony Four. Later they changed the name to the Charioteers, from the song " Swing Low, Sweet Chariot", a favorite in the group's repertoire, which they eventually recorded in 1939. Starting with gospel music, the group expanded its repertoire to include popular songs. Their first break came after they won the Ohio State Quartet contest in 1931; soon after, they were engaged to perform on the Cincinnati radio station WLW. They stayed with the station for over two years, until another radio series brought them to New York City. They signed their first recording contract, with Decca Records, in 1935. Between 1935 and 1939 they recorded for V-Disc, Vocalion, Brunswick, and Decca without having a hit, yet their popularity grew through ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Basin Street Blues
"Basin Street Blues" is a song often performed by Dixieland jazz bands, written by Spencer Williams in 1928 and recorded that year by Louis Armstrong. The verse with the lyric "Won't you come along with me / To the Mississippi..." was later added by Glenn Miller and Jack Teagarden. The Basin Street of the title refers to the main street of Storyville, the red-light district of early 20th-century New Orleans, north of the French Quarter. It became a red light district in 1897. Other recordings * Benny Goodman & His Orchestra with Joe Harris in 1935 * Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys with Tommy Duncan * The Mills Brothers, first recorded in 1939 where they utilised their famous mouth trumpet/trombone trademark. * Margie Rayburn on 1956 single "Can I Tell Them That You're Mine?" * Shirley Bassey, on her 1957 album ''Born To Sing The Blues'' * The Hi-Lo's on their 1957 album ''Suddenly It's the Hi-Lo's'' * Louis Prima on his 1957 album '' The Wildest!'' * Dave Brubeck on his 195 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elmer Davis
Elmer Holmes Davis (January 13, 1890 – May 18, 1958) was an American news reporter, author, the Director of the United States Office of War Information during World War II and a Peabody Award recipient. Early life and career Davis was born in Aurora, Indiana, the son of a cashier for the First National Bank of Aurora. One of his first professional writing jobs was with the '' Indianapolis Star'', a position he held while attending Franklin College. A brilliant student, Davis received a Rhodes Scholarship to Queen's College, Oxford in 1910. His stay in England was cut short when his father fell ill and eventually died. Davis met his wife, Florence, in England. Upon his return to America, Davis became an editor for the pulp magazine ''Adventure'', leaving after a year to work as a reporter and editorial writer for ''The New York Times''. For the next decade, Davis reported on stories ranging from pugilist Jack Dempsey to evangelist Billy Sunday. It was his coverage of Billy S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Variety (magazine)
''Variety'' is an American trade magazine owned by Penske Media Corporation. It was founded by Sime Silverman in New York City in 1905 as a weekly newspaper reporting on theater and vaudeville. In 1933, ''Daily Variety'' was launched, based in Los Angeles, to cover the film industry, motion-picture industry. ''Variety'' website features entertainment news, reviews, box office results, plus a credits database, production charts and film calendar. History Founding ''Variety'' has been published since December 16, 1905, when it was launched by Sime Silverman as a weekly periodical covering theater and vaudeville, with its headquarters in New York City. Silverman had been fired by ''The Morning Telegraph'' in 1905 for panning an act which had taken out an advert for $50. He subsequently decided to start his own publication that, he said, would "not be influenced by advertising." With a loan of $1,500 from his father-in-law, he launched ''Variety'' as publisher and editor. In additi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
