''For the television series of the same name, see'' The Silver Theatre. ''Silver Theater'' (sometimes written as ''Silver Theatre'') was a

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 tr ...

dramatic

anthology series An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a dif ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. Originating in

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Picture ...

, it was carried on CBS and on the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the governmen ...

. First broadcast October 3, 1937, its last broadcast was August 17, 1947.

Format

Drama

Originally, ''Silver Theater'' featured movie stars, primarily in original dramas and less often in adaptations of movies. Comedies were presented occasionally. In a reversal of the customary trend, some original dramas from ''Silver Theater'' were purchased for use in movies. In 1947, when the program was broadcast as a summer replacement series, radio stars—rather than those from movies—were used as leads.Reinehr, Robert C. and Swartz, Jon D. (2008). ''The A to Z of Old-Time Radio''. Scarecrow Press, Inc. . P. 234.

Variety

In 1941, the ''Summer Silver Theater'' was a variety program, with

Ed Sullivan Edward Vincent Sullivan (September 28, 1901 – October 13, 1974) was an American television personality, impresario, sports and entertainment reporter, and syndicated columnist for the ''New York Daily News'' and the Chicago Tribune New Yor ...

as host and Will Bradley as bandleader. A guest star featured each week.

Personnel

By its nature, Hollywood Star Playhouse had no regular cast. Different movie stars of the era were featured, as indicated in the sampling of episodes and stars listed below. One continuing presence was that of the host, who was referred to as the "director" on the air.

Conrad Nagel John Conrad Nagel (March 16, 1897 – February 24, 1970) was an American film, stage, television and radio actor. He was considered a famous matinée idol and leading man of the 1920s and 1930s. He was given an Academy Honorary Award in 1940 and ...

was the initial host. John Loder replaced him in the early 1940s. Announcers over the program's lifetime were John Conte,

Dick Joy Dick Joy (December 28, 1915 – October 31, 1991) was an American radio and television announcer. A journalism major at the University of Southern California, he went on to become well known on network radio and television. Early years Joy's in ...

, Henry Charles, Roger Krupp, Jack Bailey, and

Harry Bartell Harry Alfred Bartell (November 29, 1913 – February 26, 2004)Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . p. 34. was an American actor and announcer in radio, television and film. Wit ...

Felix Mills Gordon "Felix" Mills (born July 28, 1901, in Fort Collins, Colorado), was a composer, arranger and conductor during the Golden Age of Radio in the 1930s and 1940s. He was the musical director for The Mickey Mouse Theater of the Air, a Disney ...

directed the orchestra.

Selected episodes

Sponsor and promotions

The sponsor, International Silver Company, launched the program by inviting couples married 25 years or more to the CBS studio for the initial broadcast on October 3, 1937. International Silver apparently chose well in selecting ''Silver Theater'' as a vehicle for advertising. The company's satisfaction with increased sales was such that CBS ran a four-page advertisement in the March 1, 1940, issue of

Broadcasting Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting began wi ...

magazine touting the advertising's effectiveness. The ad quoted comments from International Silver: "After thirteen weeks on CBS: 'We find we can paint a more alluring picture ... by radio than with the printed page.' ... After three years on CBS: ' bstantial increase in sales for every year we have been on the air.'" As the ad continued, it noted that ''Silver Theater'' had become more popular over those three years and that "as the popularity of the program has increased, sales of 1847 Rogers Bros. have increased." Concurrently, the International Silver Company advertised their 1847 Rogers Bros. silverware with advertisements in ''LIFE'' magazine including product endorsements by Hollywood actresses. Many also performed in the Silver Theater, including

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in '' The ...

Carole Lombard Carole Lombard (born Jane Alice Peters; October 6, 1908 – January 16, 1942) was an American actress, particularly noted for her energetic, often off-beat roles in screwball comedies. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Lombard 2 ...

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

Rosalind Russell Catherine Rosalind Russell (June 4, 1907November 28, 1976) was an American actress, comedienne, screenwriter, and singer,Obituary '' Variety'', December 1, 1976, p. 79. known for her role as fast-talking newspaper reporter Hildy Johnson in the H ...

, and

Loretta Young Loretta Young (born Gretchen Young; January 6, 1913 – August 12, 2000) was an American actress. Starting as a child, she had a long and varied career in film from 1917 to 1953. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the fil ...

. Another brand of the company, International Sterling, also promoted the Silver Theater in ''LIFE'' magazine advertisements. CBS also produced a brochure "showing success of the ''Silver Theatre''."

Adaptations

International Silver of Canada, counterpart of ''Silver Theaters sponsor, had its own version of the program (''Summer Silver Theatre'') on the CBC in 1941. The program "bore little resemblance to its American counterpart" and lasted for only 10 episodes.

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

Episodic Logs

Episodic log of ''Silver Theater'' from Jerry Haendiges Vintage Radio Logs

Episodic log of ''Silver Theater'' from radioGOLDINdex

Stories

"Debutantes -- You Can Have Them," a story from ''Silver Theater'', was printed in the August 1939 issue of ''Radio and Television Mirror''.

"Love's new sweet song," a story from ''Silver Theater'', was printed in the January 1942 issue of ''Radio and Television Mirror''.

"Stronger than Steel," a story from ''Silver Theater'', was printed in the December 1941 issue of ''Radio and Television Mirror''.

Streaming audio

Episodes of ''Silver Theater'' from Internet Archive

Episodes of ''Silver Theater'' from Old Time Radio Researchers Group
1930s American radio programs 1940s American radio programs American radio dramas CBS Radio programs Radio programs adapted into television shows