Episodes
Friday Mar 12, 2010
Favorite Story - Pgm 43
Friday Mar 12, 2010
Friday Mar 12, 2010
I've been saving the last episode I have of the series "Favorite Story", syndicated by Ziv in the late 1940s and originating at KFI, Los Angeles. Program 43 is timely, since it's an Irish themed story, "Jamie Freel", the favorite story of Barry Fitzgerald and based on an Irish legend. Ronald Coleman is our host and Sean McClory is our star. Goldin dates the show to April 15, 1947.
I've seen another mp3 floating around of this show that's dubbed a little too slow and sounds like it's from a second generation tape; this direct transcription dub should sound a bit better. Our show was transferred from an original red (not green) vinyl Ziv transcription set. Apologies for the cue burn at the beginning of part two. If you're curious, you can read a version of the original folk story at Google Books in an 1890 volume, "Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish". update, 4.15.2010 - Corrected name of the featured star in the show - I put in the incorrect name with an overeager copy and paste from the wrong program.Friday Oct 02, 2009
Favorite Story - Pgm 62
Friday Oct 02, 2009
Friday Oct 02, 2009
Let's drop in again on "Favorite Story", an anthology of dramas hosted by Ronald Coleman and syndicated by Ziv in the late 1940s and early 50s. This time we hear something a little more high-brow.
Musician Alfred Wallenstein's favorite story, "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen, is program 62 in the series. The cast includes John Beal, Janet Waldo, and William Conrad. The show was transferred from original red vinyl Ziv transcription set. I think the show may be an uncirculated episode of the series among collectors.
Sunday Sep 13, 2009
Favorite Story - Pgm 61
Sunday Sep 13, 2009
Sunday Sep 13, 2009
Once in a while when going through old transcriptions, you find a little gem - something that surprises you and has an interesting backstory. We pay another visit to Ronald Coleman hosting the late 1940s syndicated Ziv series, "Favorite Story", this week presenting a story that was originally a radio play. It's Program 61 in the series, "Inside a Kid's Head", the favorite story of Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
The play was written by Jerome Lawrence Schwartz and Robert Edwin Lee. In fact, it was the first play they wrote together after forming a partnership in 1942. "The Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern Drama" notes that a few years later, they would become two of the founders of Armed Forces Radio, creating programs for the network such as "Mail Call" and producing programming for events like V-J Day. After the War, they continued working together, writing for the stage. You might have heard of one of their more successful little plays - "Inherit the Wind". "Inside a Kid's Head" is an imagatnitive and fun little tour through the life of a ten year old boy. The cast includes many old time radio favorites such as Hans Conreid. The show was transferred from an original Ziv red vinyl transcription set. The show may be previously uncirculated or uncommon among otr collectors.
Friday Jun 12, 2009
Favorite Story - Pgm 44
Friday Jun 12, 2009
Friday Jun 12, 2009
"Favorite Story" is one of those syndicated shows that's never gotten a lot of attention from old time radio collectors. But there's some great drama there, such as today's entry.
Program 44 is "The Strange Mr. Bartleby", based on a story by Herman Melville, the favorite story of Robert Montgomery. In addition to the host, Ronald Coleman, you'll hear two old time radio favorites - Hans Conreid and William Conrad - in a rather unusual story that's part mystery and part character study. Goldin dates this episode of "Favorite Story" to April 22, 1947. The show originated at KFI in Los Angeles and was then syndicated by Frederick W. Ziv. Our transfer is from an original set of red vinyl Ziv transcriptions,Friday May 01, 2009
Favorite Story - Pgm 13 - Joan of Arc
Friday May 01, 2009
Friday May 01, 2009
I recently came into a group of discs from the Ziv syndicated series "Favorite Story". According to Goldin, the show originated at KFI, Los Angeles. Each week, the program presented the "favorite" stories of famous personalities. Program 13 in the series dramatizes the story of "Joan of Arc", the favorite story of actress Jennifer Jones. Joan Lorring stars as Joan and the program, as it was each week, was introduced by Ronald Coleman. Goldin dates this particular episode to September 16, 1946.
I have to admit that Joan Lorring was unfamiliar to me, but it turns out she starred opposite Bette Davis in "The Corn is Green" in 1945 and was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her work. Also in the cast of "Joan of Arc", you'll recognize a couple of the hardest working men in radio, Howard Duff and William Conrad. Other programs in the "Favorite Story" series include many old time radio regulars. The show was transferred from an original red vinyl Ziv syndication transcription set, matrix numbers L22370-A1 and L23371-A1.