Elizabeth Irene Beasley (January 28, 1904 – January 7, 1980),
[DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 26] known as the "long, tall gal from Dixie,"
[Dunning, John. (1998). ''On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio''. Oxford University Press. . P. 348.] was a singer and
master of ceremonies best known for her work on
old-time radio
The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the early ...
.
Early years
Born Elizabeth Irene Beasley,
[ before she was 2 years old, she was singing several children's songs. When she was 3 years old, she sang for a Sunday School Children's Day program. At 4, she played piano by ear.]Sweet Briar College
Sweet Briar College is a private women's college in Sweet Briar, Virginia. It was established in 1901 by Indiana Fletcher Williams in memory of her deceased daughter, Daisy. The college formally opened its doors in 1906 and granted the B.A. deg ...
, in Virginia.
Beasley taught music and mathematics[ in a school in Lamont, Mississippi. During time off from teaching, "she sold records in a phonograph shop and sang the latest songs in a five-and-ten."][
]
Radio
Beasley "pioneered the idea of singing commercials, and handled many for Procter & Gamble
The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer hea ...
."[
Sources differ on when Beasley began appearing on radio. One says that she began singing with Francis Craig's orchestra on WSM in Nashville in 1925. Another says that her debut in radio came in 1928 in Memphis, Tennessee,][ when she sang her own composition. The New Orleans Times-Picyaune on Oct 7, 1928, p 29 quotes her as saying in 1924 she approached radio artist Art Gillham, "The Whispering Pianist" asking him to sing her newly published song "If I Could Just Stop Dreaming." He told her "If you can carry a tune at all, you can do your own advertising and it will be an asset to the song. Just make 'em like it." She said that gave her the courage to sing on radio.In 1924 she sang it on WMC in Memphis, then Chicago stations. She became billed as a blues singer "the long tall gal from Dixie." She made records for Victor. By 1931 she had become "staff artist" at KMOX in St. Louis, Missouri.
In the early 1930s, she "costarred with ]Ted Husing
Edward Britt Husing (November 27, 1901 – August 10, 1962) was an American sportscaster. He was among the first to lay the groundwork for the structure and pace of modern sports reporting on television and radio.
Overview
Early life and caree ...
every Thursday over CBS." She also had her own 15-minute program three nights a week on CBS. On July 15, 1934, she launched her own program on NBC. In 1935, she sang on the Monday and Friday editions of a program headlined by organist Jesse Crawford.
In 1938, she developed ''R.F.D. #1'',[ a CBS program that ''Radio Guide'' described as "a 'one man' show of music and homely commentary dedicated largely to America's farm women."
Beasley was the writer, director, and sole actor for the program, which debuted July 4, 1938.
In the early 1940s, Beasley starred in ''Neighbors'', a daytime program on the "Dixie Loop of CBS." She was also the writer, producer, and host of ''Grand Slam'', a musical quiz program that was broadcast 1943-1953.][
]
Stage and nightclubs
Beasley "performed for a year in Chicago theaters, studios, and clubs."[
]
Composing
When she was a teacher, Beasley wrote her first song and convinced her father to have it published. During a vacation, she was a pianist for a radio station in Memphis when station officials persuaded her to sing on the air. That resulted in her performing her composition and being paid for it. As time went on, she wrote other songs and eventually signed with Victor Records, singing her own compositions.[
]
Later years
In the 1950s, Beasley retired from radio and devoted her efforts to real estate.[
]
Death
Beasely died of pneumonia January 7, 1980,[ in Ardsley, New York. She was 75.]
References
External links
Irene Beasley Papers at the University of Maryland
List of songs composed by Irene Beasley, from the Discography of American Historical Recordings website
Irene Beasley – Ardsley’s First Lady of Song
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beasley, Irene
1904 births
1980 deaths
American radio personalities
Sweet Briar College alumni
20th-century American singers
20th-century American women singers