''Information Please'' is an American

radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...

quiz show, created by Dan Golenpaul, which aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from May 17, 1938, to April 22, 1951. The title was the contemporary phrase used to request from telephone operators what was then called "information" and later called "

directory assistance In telecommunications, directory assistance or directory inquiries is a phone service used to find out a specific telephone number and/or address of a residence, business, or government entity. Technology Directory assistance systems incorporate ...

". The series was moderated by

Clifton Fadiman Clifton Paul "Kip" Fadiman (May 15, 1904 – June 20, 1999) was an American intellectual, author, editor, radio and television personality. He began his work with the radio, and switched to television later in his career. Background Born in Bro ...

. A panel of experts would attempt to answer questions submitted by listeners. For the first few shows, a listener was paid $2 for a question that was used, and $5 more if the experts could not answer it correctly. When the show got its first sponsor (

Canada Dry Canada Dry is a brand of soft drinks founded in 1904 and owned since 2008 by the American company Dr Pepper Snapple (now Keurig Dr Pepper). For over 100 years, Canada Dry has been known mainly for its ginger ale, though the company also manufa ...

), the total amounts were increased to $5 and $10 respectively. A complete ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...

'' was later added to the prize for questions that stumped the panel. The amounts rose to $10 and $25 when

Lucky Strike Lucky Strike is an American brand of cigarettes owned by the British American Tobacco group. Individual cigarettes of the brand are often referred to colloquially as "Luckies." Throughout their 150 year history, Lucky Strike has had fluctuating ...

took over sponsorship of the program. By 1948, the prizes changed to the following: submitting a question awarded the viewer an ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' world atlas, and stumping the panel added a $50 savings bond plus the complete encyclopedia. Also, they replaced the regular sponsorship with a different sponsor for certain broadcasts.

Regulars

Panel regulars included writer-actor-pianist

Oscar Levant Oscar Levant (December 27, 1906August 14, 1972) was an American concert pianist, composer, conductor, author, radio game show panelist, television talk show host, comedian and actor. He was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for rec ...

and newspaper columnists and renowned wits and intellectuals Franklin P. Adams and

John Kieran John Francis Kieran (August 2, 1892 – December 10, 1981) was an American author, journalist, amateur naturalist and radio and television personality. Early years A native of The Bronx, Kieran was the son of Dr. James M. Kieran and his wife, K ...

. All the panelists were well-versed in a wide range of topics, though each had a specialty.

Music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

and film questions were often addressed to Levant. Adams was well known for his mastery of

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...

and Gilbert and Sullivan. Kieran was an expert in natural history,

sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

and

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

. A typical question would have three or four parts and would require the panelists to get a majority of the questions right, lest they lose the prize money. The show would always have a fourth guest panelist, usually either a celebrity, a politician or writer. Guest panelists included

Fred Allen John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian. His absurdist, topically pointed radio program ''The Fred Allen Show'' (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and for ...

, Leonard Bernstein,

Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff (), was an English actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film '' Frankenstein'' (1931) (his 82nd film) established ...

Clare Boothe Luce Clare Boothe Luce ( Ann Clare Boothe; March 10, 1903 – October 9, 1987) was an American writer, politician, U.S. ambassador, and public conservative figure. A versatile author, she is best known for her 1936 hit play '' The Women'', which ha ...

, Groucho Marx,

Dorothy Parker Dorothy Parker (née Rothschild; August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967) was an American poet, writer, critic, and satirist based in New York; she was known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. From a conflicted and unhap ...

S. J. Perelman Sidney Joseph Perelman (February 1, 1904 – October 17, 1979) was an American humorist and screenwriter. He is best known for his humorous short pieces written over many years for ''The New Yorker''. He also wrote for several other magazines ...

Sigmund Spaeth Sigmund Gottfried Spaeth (April 10, 1885 – November 12, 1965) was an American musicologist who traced the sources and origins of popular songs to their folk and classical roots. Presenting his findings through books, lectures, liner notes, newsp ...

Rex Stout Rex Todhunter Stout (; December 1, 1886 – October 27, 1975) was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. His best-known characters are the detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant Archie Goodwin, who were featured in 33 novels and ...

Jan Struther Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numb ...

Deems Taylor Joseph Deems Taylor (December 22, 1885 – July 3, 1966) was an American music critic, composer, and promoter of classical music. Nat Benchley, co-editor of ''The Lost Algonquin Roundtable'', referred to him as "the dean of American music." Earl ...

, Jackie Robinson,

Alexander Woollcott Alexander Humphreys Woollcott (January 19, 1887 – January 23, 1943) was an American drama critic and commentator for ''The New Yorker'' magazine, a member of the Algonquin Round Table, an occasional actor and playwright, and a prominent radio ...

, George S. Kaufman,

Ruth Gordon Ruth Gordon Jones (October 30, 1896 – August 28, 1985) was an American actress, screenwriter, and playwright. She began her career performing on Broadway at age 19. Known for her nasal voice and distinctive personality, Gordon gained internati ...

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter, known for his innovative work in film, radio and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential f ...

, Basil Rathbone, Moe Berg, and a very young Myron "Mike" Wallace. The show was as much a comedy as a quiz show. The panelists displayed a quick wit in answering the questions, reveling in puns and

malapropism A malapropism (also called a malaprop, acyrologia, or Dogberryism) is the mistaken use of an incorrect word in place of a word with a similar sound, resulting in a nonsensical, sometimes humorous utterance. An example is the statement attributed to ...

s. (For instance, once the panel was asked to supply a common household expression. Adams: "Please pass the salt." Kieran: "The front doorbell's ringing." Levant: "Are you going to stay in that bathroom all day?") Due to the spontaneous nature of the program, it became the first show for which NBC allowed a prerecorded repeat for the West Coast.

Accolades

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the show frequently went on tours from its

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

base to promote the buying of

war bond War bonds (sometimes referred to as Victory bonds, particularly in propaganda) are debt securities issued by a government to finance military operations and other expenditure in times of war without raising taxes to an unpopular level. They are ...

s. Instead of the usual cash prize, a question writer would win a bond. The show received several awards as an outstanding radio quiz show. It is also believed to be the earliest example of the

panel game A panel show or panel game is a radio or television game show in which a panel of celebrities participates. Celebrity panelists may compete with each other, such as on ''The News Quiz''; facilitate play by non-celebrity contestants, such as on ' ...

genre. The program was so popular that, from 1939 to 1943, excerpts of 18 radio broadcasts were filmed and released by RKO Pictures as a series of theatrical shorts. Two card games based on the series were also released, as was a 1939 tie-in quiz book from

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pu ...

. The show was satirized by the zany panel of radio's '' It Pays to Be Ignorant'', which likewise enjoyed a successful radio run from 1942 to 1951. In 1947, Golenpaul edited the '' Information Please Almanac'', a reference book which continued through the years in different formats (including the website Infoplease). The program was mentioned by name in the 1949 film ''

A Letter to Three Wives ''A Letter to Three Wives'' is a 1949 American romantic comedy-drama which tells the story of a woman who mails a letter to three women, telling them she has left town with the husband of one of them, but not saying which one. It stars Jeanne Cr ...

''. At the start of the 1942 movie ''

Woman of the Year ''Woman of the Year'' is a 1942 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by George Stevens and starring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. The film was written by Ring Lardner Jr. and Michael Kanin (with uncredited work on the rewritten ...

'',

Spencer Tracy Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the first actor to win two cons ...

's character enters a bar and hears on the radio Katharine Hepburn's character appearing on ''Information Please''.

Television

''Information Please'' went to television from June 29 to September 21, 1952, on CBS Television on Sundays at 9:30 pm as a summer replacement for ''

The Fred Waring Show ''The Fred Waring Show'' is an American television musical variety show that ran from April 17, 1949 to May 30, 1954 on CBS. The show was hosted by Fred Waring and featured his choral group "The Pennsylvanians". Synopsis Sponsored by General Ele ...

'', a musical variety series. Adams and Kieran returned to the show, with Fadiman again as host and two guest celebrities. On August 17, Fadiman was replaced by John McCaffery for the rest of the show's run. A variation of ''Information Please'', this time a program devoted exclusively to music with the same four-member panel format, became popular when it was televised in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

in 1953. After two years of local success, ''

Musical Chairs Musical chairs, also known as Trip to Jerusalem, is a game of elimination involving players, chairs, and music. It is a staple of many parties worldwide. Gameplay A set of chairs is arranged with one fewer chair than the number of players ...

'' became a summer replacement series on

NBC Television The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

. The

Bill Leyden William Leyden (February 1, 1917,Born in 1917 peSocial Security Death Index under name William Leyden/ref> in Chicago, Illinois – March 11, 1970, in Hollywood, California) was a television game show host and announcer who emceed six game shows ...

-hosted game show lasted eleven weeks on the national airwaves.

International

An Australian version of the program was first broadcast from Melbourne radio station 3DB in about 1939, and was relayed to Sydney station 2CH from July 1941. It was soon relayed nationwide through the

Major Broadcasting Network The Major Broadcasting Network was an important part of the Australian broadcasting scene from 1938 until the 1970s. History and background In 1938 David Worrall, manager of 3DB Melbourne, launched the Major Broadcasting Network which up until i ...

. The program continued into the early 1960s. John Stuart was the host. (Stuart was a prominent 3DB broadcaster who presented the breakfast program under the pseudonym ''Daybreak Dan'', and the children's session as ''Bob Breezy''.) Panelists included Barry Jones, Edward Alexander Mann who broadcast as ''The Watchman'', Crosbie Morrison, Alan Nichols, John Lynch, Professor W.A. Osborne, Ian Mair, Dr Charles Souter, Eric Welch.''Changing Stations. The Story of Australian Commercial Radio'' Griffen-Foley, Bridget, Sydney, 2009.

References

General references

Martin Grams Jr. ''Information Please''. Albany, Georgia: BearManor Media, 2003

Inline citations

Listen to

Archive.org ''Information Please'' radio shows

OTR Network Library: ''Information Please'' (68 episodes from 1938-1943)

Zoot Radio, free old time radio show downloads of 'Information Please.'
*{{cite web , url=http://www.radioechoes.com/?page=series&genre=OTR-Quiz&series=Information%20Please , title=Information Please , publisher=RadioEchoes , date=1938–1948 236 episodes.

External links

CBS original programming 1938 radio programme debuts 1951 radio programme endings 1930s American radio programs 1940s American radio programs American radio game shows American panel games 1930s American comedy game shows 1940s American comedy game shows 1950s American comedy game shows 1930s Australian game shows 1940s Australian game shows 1950s Australian game shows 1960s Australian game shows 1952 American television series debuts 1952 American television series endings NBC Blue Network radio programs NBC radio programs Radio programs adapted into television shows Television series based on radio series Australian radio programs