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NEWSLETTER | VOL. 33, January 2024

Welcome to this month’s edition of The Hollywood 360 Newsletter, your place to get all the news on upcoming shows, schedule and interesting facts from your H360 team!

Carl’s Corner

by Carl Amari

Happy New Year everyone!  Here’s the Hollywood 360 newsletter, January 2024 / Vol. 33.  As someone on our mailing list, you’ll receive the most current newsletter via email on the first day of every month.  If you don’t receive it by the end of the first day of the month, check your spam folder as they often end up there.  If it is not in your regular email box or in your spam folder, contact me at carlpamari@gmail.com and I’ll forward you a copy.  The monthly Hollywood 360 newsletter contains articles from my team and the full month’s detailed schedule of classic radio shows that will air on Hollywood 360.  The week of January 6th, we’ll present an episode of Bold Venture starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.  Here’s an article on the one and only Lauren Bacall that I hope you enjoy!

 

 

LAUREN BACALL’s sex appeal could be seen on radio.

by Carl Amari and Martin Grams

I’m hard-pressed to name an actress who made her film debut as a leading lady in a major motion picture other than Lauren Bacall.  The film was To Have and Have Not (1944) and her co-star was Humphrey Bogart.  Their chemistry on-screen was impossible to miss and their off-screen relationship during filming resulted in their 1945 marriage.   

The power couple continued in the film noir genre with The Big Sleep (1946), Dark Passage (1947) and Key Largo (1948).  

Bacall’s sultry looks were matched by her distinctive voice, one she enjoyed lending to radio productions.  In 1941, she was billed as “Betty Bacall” on the comedy series Let’s Playwright.  During the war years, she was a frequent supporting player on Command Performance opposite Frank Sinatra, Cary Grant, James Stewart, Jimmy Durante, Herbert Marshall and Betty Davis, to name a few.

She made appearances on nearly every other major radio series as well, including The Jack Benny Program, The Bing Crosby Show, The Bob Hope Show, The Eddie Cantor Show and the biggest of them all, The Lux Radio Theatre.   The Bogarts were pitched radio program ideas by ad agencies, networks, sponsors and syndicators on a regular basis.  One of those pitches included an adventure series set in Cuba reminiscent of Key Largo, called Bold Venture.  

Bogart played the role of “Slate Shannon,” the proprietor of a small, quasi-respectable hotel in Havana, inhabited by a motley, shifting cast of characters.  Shannon’s motorboat, the Bold Venture, was on stand-by, ready to roar to the rescue of a friend or track down an enemy.

Bacall played “Sailor Duval,” ostensibly Shannon’s ward and given a seductive edge by the glamorous actress.  With its exotic Cuban background and Latin-American flavor, the weekly seafaring adventure program was loaded with gunfights, pirates, questionable characters and romantic intrigue.  

The Bogarts’ busy schedule demanded that the series be pre-recorded, so mega-producer Frederick W. Ziv funded a syndicated series with a big operating budget ($12,000 per episode) with a fees-plus-royalties deal for each broadcast.  Bold Venture was produced by the Bogart’s picture company, Santana Productions (named after a boat they owned) and recorded in Ziv’s Hollywood studio.   

The series made a fortune and was syndicated to more than 400 radio affiliates, but after a season and a half, Bogart sank it … “I got tired of it.  I never listened to it, but Betty did.  She loved to hear her voice.”

Note from Carl Amari: I recently licensed Bold Venture from the estate of Frederic W. Ziv and transferred all 78 episodes (including 18 lost episodes not heard in 70+ years) directly from Ziv’s master 16-inch discs and have them available on 39 Audio CDs or via digital download links in pristine sound quality.  If you’d like to purchase all 78 episodes of Bold Venture, call 815-900-7535.  If a live operator does not answer, please leave your name and return phone number and you will receive a call back asap.    

We successfully saved the Bold Venture radio series thanks, mostly, because of YOU the Hollywood 360 listeners so THANK YOU!  We are now attempting to save the radio series Boston Blackie (my personal favorite!).  

I recently licensed this series from the estate of Frederic W. Ziv so If you would like to help us transfer all 218 Boston Blackie half-hour radio episodes (this is the complete syndicated series produced by Frederic W. Ziv and starring Dick Kollmar, including more than 50 lost episodes not heard in more than 70 years) please go to our Kickstarter website and pledge any amount.  Depending on the amount you pledge, you can receive some or even ALL 218 Boston Blackie radio episodes in pristine sound quality on Audio CDs or via digital download.  All of the information is available at our Kickstarter website.  Simply search: “Boston Blackie” “Kickstarter” in your search engine or click here to be taken directly to the Boston Blackie Kickstarter website:

View Kickstarter

If you have trouble pledging on the Kickstarter website or would like to learn more by talking to a live operator, please call 815-900-7535.  If a live operator does not answer your call, please leave your name and return phone number and you will receive a call back asap.  

LEND ME YOUR EARS by Lisa Wolf

EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE, THE POLICE

RELEASED: 1983

Watch On YouTube

“I think it’s a nasty little song, really rather evil. It’s about jealousy and surveillance and ownership.” ~Sting

Happy Birthday to “Every Breath You Take” by The Police! Released in 1983 as part of their album “Synchronicity,” this iconic song has been a mainstay in the hearts of music lovers for four decades.

Written by the legendary Sting, the song explores themes of obsession and unrequited love. Contrary to its seemingly romantic melody, the lyrics tell a different story, expressing the darker side of longing for someone who may not reciprocate the same feelings. The haunting combination of Sting’s vocals, Andy Summers’ guitar riffs, and Stewart Copeland’s drum beats creates a musical masterpiece that transcends genres and continues to resonate with listeners across generations.

“Every Breath You Take” quickly climbed the charts, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, where it stayed for eight weeks.

While some listeners may interpret it as a love ballad, others recognize the darker undertones that Sting intentionally embedded in the lyrics. This duality has contributed to the song’s enduring popularity and its frequent use in media.

In movies, “Every Breath You Take” has been featured in classics such as “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada” (2005), “The Sopranos” series finale (2007), and “Silver Linings Playbook” (2012), among many others.

Television has also embraced the allure of “Every Breath You Take.” From the emotional drama of “Friends” to the thrilling suspense of “Stranger Things,” the song has become a go-to choice for directors aiming to enhance the impact of their storytelling.

As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of “Every Breath You Take,” let’s appreciate the enduring impact it has had on music and popular culture. So, next time you hear those familiar chords, take a moment to savor the magic of The Police and their unforgettable anthem of love and longing.

THE ROSE BOWL: RADIO PUBICITY OF THE GRANDDADDY OF THEM ALL

by Karl Schadow

In 1902, the initial contest of college football’s most famous bowl game was played in Pasadena, California. The Rose Bowl has been a yearly feature since 1916. In 1927, the classic event was first heard on a coast-to-coast broadcast via NBC. Graham McNamee who initiated play-by-play broadcasting of sporting events was the announcer. In subsequent years, Bill Stern assumed those duties for the same network. Ken Carpenter offered the color commentary. Carpenter may be best-known to classic radio fans as the announcer for several programs including The Kraft Music Hall, Command Performance and The Great Gildersleeve. By the 1950s, the Rose Bowl was heard on CBS radio. There was much publicity bankrolled by local sponsors in newspapers promoting the gridiron match as seen in the adjacent copy. 

Captions in bold to be placed underneath their respective ads

Salt Lake City 1936

First ad  King Coal Co 

Salt Lake City 1942

Second Ad Bintz company 1942

Atlantic City 1950

Third Ad WBAB

HOLLYWOOD 360 Broadcast Schedule for January 2024

1/6/24

RICHARD DIAMOND, PRIVATE DETECTIVE 3/23/51 Little China

 THE CHARLIE McCARTHY SHOW 1/5/47 w/ guest, Charles Boyer

 DIMENSION X 8/4/50 Perigee’s Wonderful Dolls

HAVE GUN-WILL TRAVEL 10/4/59 The Contessa

BOLD VENTURE 1951 The Key to Death

1/13/24

THE FAT MAN 7/8/46 The Black Angel

THE LIFE OF RILEY 12/8/50

ESCAPE 2/15/48 Ancient Sorceries

THE ADV. OF SHERLOCK HOLMES 5/7/45 The Purloined Ruby

THE JACK BENNY PROGRAM 3/27/55 The Shooting of Dan McGrew

 1/20/24

SUSPENSE 1/17/48 The Pasteboard Box

GUNSMOKE 3/21/53 Pussy Cats

 THE GREAT GILDERSLEEVE 5/21/44 City Employee’s Picnic

YOURS TRULY, JOHNNY DOLLAR 12/9/56 The Burning Car Matter

FIBBER McGEE & MOLLY 10/17/39 Raking Leaves

 

1/27/24

THE ABBOTT & COSTELLO SHOW 45/9/46 Lou Wants to Join the Circus

 LET GEORGE DO IT 6/17/52 There Ain’t No Justice

X MINUS ONE 12/12/56 Hostess 

CLOAK AND DAGGER 8/13/50 Roof of the World

THE ADV. OF MAISIE 3/8/51 Merton’s Dreams

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