
I am of an age that I do not remember ever living a day without a television. As a child I remember listening to late night radio re-broadcasts of the old radio theatre shows and becoming an avid fan. Years later my love and appreciation of these shows has not waned.
If you have never enjoyed live radio plays from the past Golden Age of Hollywood you are missing out on a real treasure! There were a wide variety of comedy, mystery, history, and drama shows broadcast by the companies that later became the 3 leading television networks. One of the longest running and most popular shows was the Lux Radio Theatre. It remained a popular show for it's entire run between 1934 and 1955. Cecil B. DeMille was the original host and undeniably the best host. His success in films was a magnate that attracted all of the top stars to the live broadcasts.
The radio plays were performed before a live audience and usually divided into three acts. C.B. would introduce the stars at the beginning and tell listeners how Lux Soap would transform their lives and allow them to indulge in the same luxuries of the Hollywood stars performing that night. At the conclusion of the play C.B. would close with a brief interview with the guest stars and a final pitch for Lux.
The magic of radio plays allowed the bright stars of yester-year to paint on the unlimited canvas of the listener's imagination. The power of your imagination cannot be surpassed with even the best digital effects of a blockbuster movie.
So gather your children, grandchildren, and loved ones together. Settle in with a cup of tea or a lovely dessert and be thoroughly entertained by classic radio theatre.
The first episode in this new series I am bringing back to the airways is Walt Disney's classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. As an added treat C.B. interviews Walt Disney himself. Walt's wonderful world where magic can be found in wishes, fairy wands, and pixie dust is the world I grew up in and am proud to say I raised my daughters in. It is a world lost in the era of modern television where film makers use digital effects, profanity, and sex to disguise poor scripts and substandard acting and have the audacity to call it "entertainment". I hope you enjoy this genre of classic entertainment as much as I do. If so, please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts.
Enjoy! Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
P. S. Follow me on Twitter or Like me on Facebook and don't miss the next episode which will be the classic Peter Pan!
The radio plays were performed before a live audience and usually divided into three acts. C.B. would introduce the stars at the beginning and tell listeners how Lux Soap would transform their lives and allow them to indulge in the same luxuries of the Hollywood stars performing that night. At the conclusion of the play C.B. would close with a brief interview with the guest stars and a final pitch for Lux.
The magic of radio plays allowed the bright stars of yester-year to paint on the unlimited canvas of the listener's imagination. The power of your imagination cannot be surpassed with even the best digital effects of a blockbuster movie.
So gather your children, grandchildren, and loved ones together. Settle in with a cup of tea or a lovely dessert and be thoroughly entertained by classic radio theatre.
The first episode in this new series I am bringing back to the airways is Walt Disney's classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. As an added treat C.B. interviews Walt Disney himself. Walt's wonderful world where magic can be found in wishes, fairy wands, and pixie dust is the world I grew up in and am proud to say I raised my daughters in. It is a world lost in the era of modern television where film makers use digital effects, profanity, and sex to disguise poor scripts and substandard acting and have the audacity to call it "entertainment". I hope you enjoy this genre of classic entertainment as much as I do. If so, please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts.
Enjoy! Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
P. S. Follow me on Twitter or Like me on Facebook and don't miss the next episode which will be the classic Peter Pan!