CD 7B: “Phone Problems” - 10/11/1950 Supporting cast: Gale Gordon as Mr. Merriweather, Herb Butterfield as Mr. Wellman, and Robert Easton THE HALLS OF IVY as Mr. Crane. Commercial spokesman is Vic Perrin. School Days CD 8A: “The Goya Bequest” - 01/24/1951 Supporting cast: Herb Butterfield as Mr. Wellman Program Guide by Karl Schadow and Ken Peters as Mr. Benson. Vic Perrin is the commercial spokesman. Of the thousands of network radio shows broadcast during the medium’s Golden Age, there were arguably only a handful that stood out as icons within each CD 8B: “ Professor Warren’s Retirement” Verna Felton is heard as Miss Burgess genre. These did not necessarily reign at the top of the rating charts, but were - 01/31/1951 in "Professor Warren's Retirement." often lauded by the entertainment industry, the listening audience at-large, and Supporting cast: Arthur Q. Bryan as Prof. Warren, Verna Felton as Miss Burgess, various community institutions. Among these, one might consider Dragnet in and Sidney Miller as the diner employee. Vic Perrin is the commercial spokesman. the crime/detective category, while Gunsmoke was a treasured Western. Those who cherished horror/fantasy were often thrilled with Quiet, Please!. For the children, Let’s Pretend was a long-time favorite, while the religious turned to The Suggested readings: Eternal Light and The Greatest Story Ever Told. Though comedy programs often Juliet Benita Colman (1975) Ronald Colman, A Very Private Person: A Biography occupied many of the top slots in the surveys, most were not considered literary (New York, Morrow) titans. There was one program, however, which bridged comedy and drama with Sam Frank (1997) Ronald Colman: A Bio-Bibliography (Westport, Conn., the utmost showmanship. It focused on the understated struggles of the president Greenwood Press) of Ivy College and his wife, a former London stage star. This was the erudite 1950s classic: The Halls of Ivy. Acknowledgments: The author thanks Dave Grabarek (Library of Virginia) and Bryan Cornell (Library of Congress) for their invaluable assistance. This program was created by writer/producer Don Quinn, who had developed an excel- lent reputation in the industry for his work with Jim and Mar- ian Jordan. However, Quinn intended his new endeavor to be something different. As www.RadioSpirits.com he related to Jack Holland PO Box 1315, Little Falls, NJ 07424 (TV-Radio Life, November 5, 1954): “It was a revolt against © 2018 RSPT LLC. All rights reserved. For home use only. low-brow comedy. I had been Unauthorized distribution prohibited. trenchant and ephemeral for so many years.” He went on to Program Guide © 2018 Karl Schadow and RSPT LLC. All Rights Reserved. say: “I used the college setting because I wanted an excuse for 48262 a literate type of comedy. And I don’t think anyone was scared off by such an aca- CD 4A: “D-Day” 06/07/1950 demic approach to a show.” Supporting cast: Bill Thompson as Mr. Weatherby and Conrad Binyon as Philip. Vic Perrin and Truman In addition to the considerable contributions of the Bradley are the commercial spokesmen, with the series’ able architect, The Halls of Ivy enjoyed success network cue provided by John Storm. due to the talent of its stars: Ronald and Benita Colman. The radio audience was quite familiar with CD 4B: “Stolen First Edition” - 06/14/1950 Ronald Colman from his exploits on The Circle and Supporting cast: Willard Waterman as Mr. Lux Radio Theatre. He also starred in Merriweather, Herb Butterfield as Mr. Wellman, Rolfe Arch Oboler’s Everything for the Boys, Sedan as Mr. Epson, Sidney Miller as Mr. Maypole, and was the host of the Frederick Ziv and William Tracy as Tucker. The commercial Herb Butterfield is heard as Ronald Colman syndicated anthology Favorite Story. spokesman is Vic Perrin. Mr. Wellman. A native of England, Colman had a most impressive motion picture career CD 5A: “The Bentheimers and the Census” - 06/21/1950 -- successfully making the transition Supporting cast: Herb Butterfield as Mr. Wellman, Bob Sweeney as Mr. from the silent era to the “talkies.” In Bentheimer, Virginia Gregg as Miss Gregg, and Jeffery Silver as Johnny. The 1948, he garnered both the Academy commercial spokesman is Vic Perrin, and Eddy King provides the closing and Golden Globe Awards for his Best comments. Benita Hume Actor performance in A Double Life. In 1938, he married English actress Benita Hume, who retired from the motion CD 5B: “Faculty Raffle” - 06/28/1950 picture studios following their betrothal. Her final role was in the 1938 RKO Supporting cast: Herb Butterfield as Mr. Wellman, Arthur Q. Bryan as Prof. Pictures comedy Peck’s Bad Boys of the Circus. On the radio, she was heard on Warren, Peter Leeds as Bill, and Sheldon Leonard as Norman. Vic Perrin is the Lux Radio Theatre, and made guest appearances on both Rudy Vallee Hour and commercial spokesman, with the network cue provided by Don Stanley. Kraft Music Hall. Ronald and Benita’s first joint radio venture (which occurred while the couple was dating) took place during a special NBC broadcast of A CD 6A: “Poetry Reading” - 07/05/1950 Tale of Two Cities on December 21, 1935. A decade later, they began a stint Supporting cast: Alan Reed as Prof. Haeslip, Gloria McMillan as Dolores, Lois as recurring characters (Jack Benny’s neighbors) on the Lucky Strike Program. Corbet as Helen, and Robert Easton as Philip. Vic Perrin is the commercial Those escapades continued throughout the duration of their own program. spokesman, with Eddy King delivering the closing signature. Another key player in the successful evolution of The Halls of Ivy was Nat Wolff. CD 6B: “The Education of Annie Bell” - 07/12/1950 As of 1949, he had accumulated nearly a quarter-century of experience in radio Supporting cast: Jane Webb as Annie, Earle Ross as Mr. Bell, Willard Waterman (as a member in various radio packaging firms and talent agencies). In 1940, he as Mr. Merriweather, Herb Butterfield as Mr. Wellman, Raymond Lawrence as founded his own talent business…but that venture would be cut short when he the Chairman, Earl Keen as the dog. The commercial spokesmen are Vic Perrin was tapped for a post in the Office of War Information (OWI) radio department. and Frank Martin, with Eddy King providing the closing cue. In 1943, he left the OWI to become an executive with M-G-M, before returning to radio to produce such diverse entities as The Abbott and Costello Show and CD 7A: “The Leslie Hoff Painting” - 09/27/1950 Johnny Madero, Pier 23. In 1949, he and Don Quinn formed Ivy Productions, Supporting cast: James Edwards as Leslie Hoff, Herb Butterfield as Mr. Wellman, Inc. to market their latest enterprise. They had first become acquainted when Lois Corbet as Wilma Marshall, and Jerry Hausner as Mr. Crane. Vic Perrin is the Quinn was engaged as a consultant to the OWI in 1942. commercial spokesman. 2 7 Episode Guide: There was great excitement in the trade (Daily Variety, June 2, 1949) upon the Note: all episodes star Ronald Colman and Benita initial announcement of a proposed Hume as Dr. and Mrs. William Todhunter Hall, with Don Quinn series featuring Gale Ken Carpenter as the announcer. Gordon and Edna Best (the wife of Nat Wolff). The first audition was recorded CD 1A: “Traffic and Coconuts” - 04/21/1950 in the NBC Hollywood studios on June Supporting cast: Willard Waterman as Mr. 22nd of that year, with the premiere Merriweather and Eric Snowden as Ian. The preliminarily scheduled for a Thursday, commercial spokesman is Vic Perrin, with John 9:30 pm network slot. When this did Willard Waterman is heard as Storm providing the network cue. not come to pass, a second audition Mr. Merriweather. was requested by a potential sponsor on Edna Best CD 1B: “The Schofield Prize” - 04/28/1950 August 3rd. A new launch date for the series was set Supporting cast: Willard Waterman as Mr. Merriweather, Bea Benaderet as Alice, for October. The August 23rd issue of The Billboard Jerry Hausner as Mr. Crane, and Lee Millar as Jared Buckley. The commercial reported that the Lewis-Howe Co. was interested in spokesman is Frank Martin, with the network cue announced by Don Stanley. bankrolling the series (to promote Tums). However, on September 15th, Daily Variety communicated: CD 2A: “Student Actress” - 05/05/1950 “Schlitz beer is on the verge of buying ‘The Halls Supporting cast: Lucille Norman as Betty, Willard Waterman as Mr. Merriweather, of Ivy,” the most talked-about audition in years.” Bea Benaderet as Alice, Herb Butterfield as Mr. Wellman, and Lois Corbet as Much conversation continued in the trade…and the Gale Gordon Mrs. Garnett. Frank Martin and Vic Perrin are the commercial spokesmen, with Colmans began to be promoted as the new headliners. Contractual obligations John Storm providing the closing cue. for both Gale Gordon (for the CBS series Our Miss Brooks) and Edna Best (who moved to New York for a Broadway play) necessitated this change in casting. CD 2B: “Mrs. Whitney’s Statue” - 05/10/1950 Supporting cast: Paula Winslowe as Mrs. Whitney, Gale Gordon as Mr. With much anticipation, The Halls of Ivy debuted on Friday, January 6, 1950. The Merriweather, Jerry Hausner as Mr. Crane, Raymond Lawrence as Guard #1, and 8 pm East Coast version was followed by an 8:30 pm local West Coast airing. Harry Martin as Guard #2. Vic Perrin and Truman Bradley are the commercial It’s competition in both instances was The Goldbergs on CBS. During the next spokesmen, with the network cue provided by Eddy King.