i [.
Hollywood and Broadcastirg
FROMRADIO TO CABLE
Michele Hilmes
University of Illinois Press Urbana and Chicago
I_ /1 Lt ( ./: 60 Hollywood and Broadcasting frz.r Radio Goes Hollvwood 6t Pto t[L_Hayrli9r- advised the studios not to give in to the complaints of O,I Radio programming ') "' -the exhibitors, arguing that as ioon as the studi6i-formally 'scrie.,agreed that Takes Shape ;at. rp".;.. it fu., .edilced thb-box-office-Gtre of stars, The history lr Alr I of the developmentof the forms and ;iliEitors iould uiE ihis as*T-barglining too[-}ii film negotiaiibns, structuresof the radio ' to an.unsuspecting 6qsu driving down rental prices.2* i#g:i:Tlf" :i:::. :l:l jjll ii.*aves pubricin - abr e, uurrrurn rort rurlarety,u' tne '#ff In fact, throughout the period exhibitor reaction was not undivided. ; * r,,n-".iilffimedrum,s genuine;: :5,::':achievements ::::'-'i,' and Ylinnovations :: Ll'k in programming,r although bringing an Although many theater owners, particularly the larger independent varietyof entertainm..,ito , *ij.. ' gionpr, did regard radio asa threat,others saw in radio an opportunity i1y,_111 ;"ll:;.;';il'"."*.ff, *i IrL?^t kn^-'.zurt' , ..r. y medium., *_,i " jiiJ:; 4 to promote films on the locallevel. This differencein reactionreflects i:3:: : ::r_.,1._1 T i:. _ .".. ;.J; vuls, t, . j::j^ 0.,.-o,oI therap id s_e_ues!.d;{i*.., tidao lc l"f+L: a pattern of film industry collisionof inrereststhar goesback as far as rone,:.::"::: :t {i "_,'i orthe radio adv.."lloi"jffil*#r?#i*f,# as the historiEF6Eert- vild""-{ the days of the Motion Picture Patents Tiust. Staiger points out :;' ?t.'. Janet Hu.,.i.o,,tffi" Zot c*, it interest 1;F*,:::1, ile;,iliruff::: i, I that is difficult to eeneralize motives for actions across laree \1, groups; each group may contain elements within it that, often because ,*#1":Xiil,i\fri31"*.en.&u*. d:.r*"]lllparallel in any otter pefraE-Te lhistory of lll''rl Ff local legal or business circumstances, may act in ways dissimilar w za5\ Most -^"n,rut with, or even contradictory to, goalsof affiliated or parent organizations. of this material represented bggSry,qgj.rd- AYv.;11 -modification of I a;'rroc{{ Given, too, that ownership ties between the integrated studios and-* -tttttT:f f.:f"-:;_yith the exception liorth' tti. I k"U;r;Tffi##;-+-,^1the tattulk 'howshow andanrt rhethe quiza,,io |&"y*.'' theater companies v,rre often only through a fractiJnd share of ,t..f.i f[ ';.:ff.jj,]lJ,.i, interests and goals ofparents and s r 'o""":!!g:€gcert. t';dffiand+L_ .. .._-.. .._ ___.::. -r{a This diversity of reaction to radio amid exhibitors is reflected in tradei Z{'ntr'i: nlm [Jxiii''g1.',1i,$i-e";U:':ill,,:t,,ffto fir irs burgeoning nedi. T6iifrro< deveffientdevelopment :rd-::'ryhe ii. publication reports.25 I .rof il,1.r"all these foEr.-**?-t rc*.€ "+L+ef In between reports on the deleterious effects of radio-listening on r|r of th.^b.oiGring_s,hedules kYns' of the networks from , !929-30,,"*:"fl1::':o.,1934-35. l , and1e3e-40.h;;;;.;;;;;;;.;;;;;, fi""# I'N tr,. ioJ-;ffi;; or hoursin a typicarweek upv*-;,y1,:::::f"l"r,r^r^:l1rgs+ spent broadcastingmusic of , h[rii all types .or. f;-;9 ;.-;i::i ii:; g :1!Z:!j,l]:lj:: -""" "-: tot6,rv_Jv, ..p..s.ntingrcpresenrtng _:1t.r,. aa_gradual sraduat decrease in music,s dtlfi,t, rmportanceto ],?rt-:.nraslp*.rbed"le. lbe The.u.ri.ilil;a;;-r" -r*, u------."ffinraa vr.td0 dt least in parr l'.A",i,. , , t;;;:; ;;o;;'".,*..1liro the dramatic rise in o.,r..rli;;,;;. :- ;-":l -f9i+, and 11:00pM., or lil only sp_o,radicallyduring a longerauy. nf "":.ise day tt. "*r^,| _beganat 6:00-e.v. and proceedeiwith " f,iffy-pr.rca ffi sign-offat t:00 A.M. U* J i"*1*tntil or taier Most of the earty_morning, u rate-nrght,and fill-in hours +@<'v{ were occupiedby music. irr.- ,..o"a Ll noticeabletrend ;0a61, is that the arnountof on-air dramadurine prime-time (eveningand Sundav afterfoon) schedures sla/diu (w^(- ir..;;;J;; Ii^';..*r, ll in 1933 and 20 percent in ,al.,{,1 1e39 to 26.7 p.;;;;; i'nnn. ini ,n,.0 tren4 the r,r:eu se?4_9 ttal ral.*, sEB,,, from . .,. ri giur" *3tb&1 o"f., - quantitvi"@ _of r?lte.rr,rro:! i;;ffir'rrr,":.rr,l*o. = f , i"to u , .." ."ii"^Jilffiuffisro ffijiio.o.i,^l;-- fiiI H:ryrtuerpray rn4r*i,L&t'l infu;nce played.an important part in all three of these like it or not-would automatically plug its pix when announcing the p f,,- t..i*mt, $ry:"!, nr-r" J " " if,,ljil;; ;il" song titles and recordings played."26 *,:; :##*lff ##'; ,#h, r,erfo,l distinct stages:tirg reriocl_up . ^Lnol It:il 5l-gg-.i,1c]uding1936, -*k"; tu 1r cLJ,o[u(Anv. )br[ , ;.rJA qr{Aav ; a9 o,l (t3F = / -_:i+.--.-".- i, r t . ,1"" t^e'^|,. i,^. -,- t--l u Uu-aMi " . er\ "X$l i to, ^,g . Vyfe{+vd v,.! {TAf T", *, 1ecl,",a(( Hollywoodand Broadcasting Radio Goes Holllrpood Fin& ^"., 63 bv sporadicinvolvement and the innovationof oneor two variety shows, I Oot.43L. to 2\ -Congress undertake a massive investigation of and other 6'I.ffi-7tt;- ani-the post-t936pefr&l-during which Hollywood-basedprogrannming >v^* O,- t- r ftT -p.og.a*J-ffiiled telephone company practices, both as a fact-finding study 4ano btJl,u,6o,1 proliferlGdTnl soon began io doriilnaG-tiler "the and in order ?to to effect of monopolistic Onie again, as with-ihe?itrv 6?CBSlritNew York City, rllT"T lr"tt,un:t' l frL.onnecting| (j 3 - tne DUbll k(&%n" 'f!? =\4o;^ then for the wires connecting New York to Denver, even although direct .pY -- , L erq::.gtt'€i";ir6"'",h"'1;:##-":ffiT':"::1 +a(^( 4 ino,,iesunJ=ir.c' ;;L'f.;ffi, + 7"F(, Los Angeles to Denver wires were in place and capable of transmitting .;:iffiH+i'borro*ineandTi6iffit...sii iili.rltffi"Zi a,,finn r_ thCi56-orr in rhe eerli." ^-;^,{ r^- r^+r J-'otq,ili; tt - :_--- g - radio.signals-all the.e c[arges figyled per gircuit qrile. usrrallv m-ulh b..rqyj!g3!g_.i.1fiiiG€ti1ff6ed" ffi;ili., p..i"i'r* urtr, I l,lolr[., 'J h- industries.33 t*0. ] less direct than actual distance. This practice considerably increased I ohhctit urt" fr. r6iiffie .o.i 6itvlffilit-oTFnaied shows,leading ro various Y!t!^h-r! d; probiemsin prb-- Hollywood's d'l|St'vi Ieal^* Role in Radio Programming kT'Ys\viiwt First, becausethe networkspreferred to avoid the additional fees, vd^V.- '--'&ni{ -, ,_ -: :({ tJ_,1 rory-i.1r. , frlffio*elo New yoik*Eiii-I6Fr-a?ti-o-Tdois, rn the ir.I"-'.* +f+ rill,iit- " p'[email protected]@[ &&&r{ .1radle- :tars djrryg[G Uffi ' "'- l:."la;"F;yqrry{;@yFF'_"s F sl*!s and the radio movie trend in the early 1930s)das@e difficult and prohibitively expensive. hits. Each of these >--1.'. "emosTn-fr8il'-i?Iid- Yl{'!&, frr.*u-pffie' the'ciltorsof thepopular were invited make Double Cfuck for RKO in 1931, ."hv*l-l-- LA serial to Cluck and line the studio contracted to pay the comedy team's $1,000-per-day Variay The variety based on standand vaudeville .nra/iJ'vt Third, the pgllsjljilqouraged the. of permanent 5$dlas-and t, t,.-, I a,!, !ll!!di_gg h'h transmitting stations on the West Coast; Chicago in the early 1930s 't!V\^uL,'utvt-i,"v&L\ , 1vtfi, ol-, r.r;a-reiliie?;-nar-nr;rihgt , -:=:=-::r--':-:ar:=.:--- centeF6Fladio^^-.^=T:^::^ thai,u^i HollywoodLr^il.^^,^^r with,^,i+L itsi*^ Ll-,{ Aa+'i" byr,, =ro,,,.. .;nillionsmillions of dollars of captive talent.3r ' forms on radio; the addition in 1928 of big-name Holly*ood stam ,,. ,'n'Irc" ) The situation rapidlyrapidlv reversed itselitself after 1935. but it took a federal ?nJ**-* -"ifs helped boost its popularity further. investigation-to'g':5'""i1. (Y- bro;pa_Pavrrall:--.!r-rY- ilt-q telglg-4etLrYlurr:/-rrv company-'i
"Hollywood "Hol- films: Krrl Boots starring John Wavne; Players" on CBS; and the (1926); Special Deliaery e927); Gtoifying tlu Amcican ly*ood Star Playhouse" which aired first on CBS, then ABC, then Girl (1929), a Paramount musical also guest-sra.ri"g Rudy Vallee, NBC through the early and mid 1950s and provided Marilyn Monroe Florenz Ziegfield, Jimml Walker, and Adolph Zukor; Whoop)e(1930); with her first broadcast date in 1952. Palm2 Day (1931); and Ttu Kid from Spa;n (lg3}). He went on to make nine more that were entertaining and fairly profitable, if not particularly distinguished. Vallee had also made one film previously, 1938:SYmbiosis R,fdi Zir vagabindt,,-iY@fit he is ..*.-u...J primarily for his work I /tP a5r{the radio industry in radio, which carried him on through his extended film career.*3 I ,^ ''r. r r^.,.,.r,After1938, the crogslferti!124gies-OlHallg@9d '^(o " ' gSg-S on the U"*%forrome-d-on a-multiplicity of levels,each contributing to the otherin .and !g4{-{]]gr, other hand, as popular I vW;jU,U vaudeVil.le and radio comedians, got their film start in the Brg Broadcast Qwt 31*.an increasingly symbiotic-re.lglionship. A score of radio programs of 1932 and went on to achieve .rol,,.,ing from the prototypes discussed previously emersed from 1938 their greatest popularity in ielevision. oi. ''-')k{za Vd,oa although starting out with a primary reputation as through the war years, as well as a new tyPe, the .adi-o series basedl -iailioXXj5q$, "crooner," a achieved considerable success on the characters or situation of a suffie,f in films. His first film, - *uit*ut', King of Jazz for Universal in 1930, followed by Tlu Big Broad,cast, @;"p-.p.rr prototype,"pp.u..d-ir,' established his box-office appeal; in the years between his 6-lm debut l-oi" I o,i t^.e. --" 1937,the same year that King Vidor's classic remake of the film (released l4q, 4rI Z yoy - and his later success on television, Crosby starred in in a silent vCiiion by Henry King in 1925)was released.The series more than fifty films, most for Paramount, not all memorable, Javoa-: affua. r.r,]5iiE-iDvears. "The Adventuresof the Thin Man" came on the but at least moderately successful.Among the most popular were Crosby,s..road Co;TEffi air in 1941.based on thffi novelby Dashiell movies', made with Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour for paramount \-t'- William Powell and Myrna Loy.*' in 1940, 1941, Hammett) that starred 1942, 1945, t, 1947, 1952, and 1962. Many other radio stars appeared in and inspired rg$h,prr' Radio at ttu Box Olfice films through the 1930s and 1940s. Other borrowing also occurred, the ' radio most famous of The film industry also drew upon radio. P:grl"il-s- i1 ,1932, -fid^ieU( the movieswith a steadily,incTashg supply of ready-made 1*gsupplied-'taient . Ih9 reasolg for this sudden and mateiial whose establishe'd-i1?li6-appealcould be used to lncrease and ease in borrowings betwercn th-e_two industries lay with lwl;,i fo, ^5t'ni;. make ifrF-utarTi;';:1Jn-January 12, 1932, vaniry ani6inceillf,at-Fox Z{-dfu- PiEtuffiT'filFFurchased the rights to a radio script for the first \--j- "The which had run time: Trial of Vivienne Ware" by Kenneth Ellis, rn the trade as the "Swin
'udjo-'-- wrth decreased transmission Yl 3' --:- - L charges in effect, ,[email protected],:.?'-b;6?gto7Ly'.; ' - ll r wbriked?'r1,o" both ways; besidesTis radio \I'"Till,:f shows inspired ,11 by lilms,,:9#:i:l: the studios v -?J.i.:^,- "*"t"qotJU-\/l|/\,J ^. which had originated all schedules in New york. decid.d to b,rilEll"i. ----#: . - -:-, --, Ir.r----Yl- -a{'e, soonffiFAAe idea of fi"lmson radio showsor formats. bln;l;;:*;,,{:;-:-";L--rrr:-F-^':::'-1::-;7;.--;-,;;-* stuili 28. Russell Nye, ?'hzIhwnbarrassed Masa (New York: Dial Press, 1970). 53. Dunning, Tiuncin yestcrda\,pp. ..Metro,s 240_41; Maxwell House Air 29. White, AmzricanRadio, p. 66; Summers and Summers, Broadcastingand Show," Variety,November.l0, t^!37; .,Radio Relying on Hollywood," ir. Vri tlu Publu Intzrest,P. 59. Morntng Tilzgraph,September 20, lg+0. 30. FederalCommunications Commission, Rcportof tlu FcdaalCommnications 54. Newsu,eek,November. 15, 1937,p.25; Dunning, Til,nein yestztdalr,p.241; Comtnissionon thz Inacstigationof tlv TelephoncInfustry in tlu Unitzd Statcs, 76th Summers, A Thirty ynr History; Neu york Wortd.Tiigram, f.U--y t, f Sig; Cong., lst sess.,House Document no. 340, 1939. Billboard, October york l, 1938, n..!:,-M, Timzs, F.irr.r".y 22, l&;,-p.'1g., 31. Arthur Frank Wertheirn, Radio Conudl (New York: Oxford University 55. Ibid., November29, 1926,p. 24. Press,1979). 56. Ibid., August 30, 1939. 32. FederalCommunications Commission, 1939, p. xvii. 57. Ibid., October 17, "The 1937. 33. Liwar2 Drgast,October 31, 1936,p. 17; Orrin E. Dunlap, 58' Simon N' whitney, "Antitrust poricies Jr-, . and the Motion pictureIndustry,,, Swing to California," Ncw YorkThus, October 17, t937; BusirussWeek, No' in Tfu AmzricanMoaie Industrn ed. Gorham Kindem (Carbonda.le:So.rthe.n vember 6, 1937,p. 27; New Yo* Tincs, April 12, 1936,sec' 9, P. 4; November Illinois University Press,1982), p. l8l. 29, 1936,p. 2+. DouglasGomery, .,Failed - -59. Opportunities:The Integrationof the U. S. 34. Dunning, Tuu in Yeswday(Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, Motion Picture and Television John Industries,', euartnl2 Riiew oy Filn Stud;es 1976),pp. 208-10; Frank Buxton and Bill Owen, Tlu Big Broadtast(New York: (summer 1984):219-27; "An Gary N. Hess, H-istoricarstudy of the DuMont Viking Press,1972), pp. 85-86. Television Network" (ph.D. diss., Norrhwestern University, 1960, repr. New 35. Harrison B. Summers, ed., A Thirty YearHistory of ProgramsCatried on York: Arno Press, 1979). National Radio Netuork in tlu Unitzd Stat2s,1926-1956 (Coiumbus: Ohio State UniversityPress, 1958, repr. New York: Arno Press, l97l). 36. Varbtl,January 5, 1932, p. 59. 37. Summers, A Thity YearHbtory. 38. Cecil B. DeMille, Tlu Autobiographyof Cccil B. DcMillc, ed. Donald Hayne (EnglewoodCliffs, NJ.: Prentice-Hdl, 1959),pp. 346-48. -,\[,'; 39. Buxton and Owen, Tht Big Broadrast,pp. 146-47; Dunning, Tuu in Yutcrdnl,pp. 378-81; DeMille, Autobiographnp. 346. | fil 40. Bernard Lucich, "The Lux Radio Theatre," in AtnericanBroadrasting: A I rB^-r Sourccbookon tlu History oJ Radio and Tbleaision,ed. Laurence W. Lichty and MalachiC. Topping(New York: HastingsHouse, 1975), pp. 391-94; DeMille' Ir-" Autnbiographnp. 346; Gene Ringgold and DeWitt Bodeen, Tlu Fibns of Cuil | Fohr'i B. DeMille (New York: Citadel Press, 1969), pp. 370-77. -vhv: Ii 41. Dunning, Titu in Ycswda2,p. 639. | o 42. Ibid., pp. 10-11, 568-69; Buxton and Owen, Tlu Big Broadcast,p. 225. I t-,f 43. Varbt2,January 10, 1933; New YorkTincs, July 16' 1933, sec. 9, p. 7. -**{,1 44. Busirussl4laa*, November 6, 1937,p.27. I "The 45. Litzrarl Drgast,October 31, 1936, p. 17; Dunlap, Swing to Hol- = lnw]ri lywood"; Ncta Ymk Tiznar,November 29, 1936,p. 24- ( 46. Robert H. Stern, "Regulatory Influencesupon Television'sDevelopment: Early Yearsunder the FederalRadio Commission," AmcricanJournalof Ecorcmits !'a,{" and Sociohglt22, no. 3 (1963): 3+7-62. 2|.$v. 47. Neut Yok Times,October 17, 1937,sec. 10, p. 12. "rU, .d 48. Ibid., July 7, 1937,sec. 9, p. 11. 49. Ibid., April 12, 1936,sec. 9, p. 4. 50. Ibid., May 18, 1936,p. 14. ^B 51. Ibid., June 14, 1936,sec. 9, p. B. 52. Hd W Bochin, "The Rise and Fall of the DuMont Network," in ,:,$3' o'*{ Amcrian Broadtasting,ed. Lichty and Topping, p. 190. t ^t *Ytt " l--e "Lux Radio Theatre of the Air,, 79 general, has tended to fiocus on the decoding process_by which a message form is perceived and interpreted by a viewer-the moment + o&!!gd!!g occupies an equivalent and equally important position in the communication model. '^1*"' The institutional structures of broadcasting, with their practices and networks ofproduction, their organizedrelations and technical infrastruc- 'discursive' "Lux process is not without its aspect: it, too, is framed .{rb^,rrr^i The Radio Theatre y_L-lrl9frttrs: toeas: 3la concefnlnq the roullnes of : ^;*1-----'a production, definedtechnicul lhill:r-en[..':ojal ideolosies, pto'l*ko, of the Air" Pry:'",.}'::.T.illv.% ztry tnstrtuuonal i(nowleclge, dehnltlons and assumptions. assumotions about - ,--;------J-' ...:_.:---._ f/v^ a. tha uyot.1r....rrdrrh^a anda6i so-^ on^- fielqq_lbg_qonstitutiona;--^ .L^ ^^-^.:.---:^- of-r the-L, programme uit"4 *-. through _ ,r..'j',1 this productionstructure.2 uS,l .d*i hrk, ' Thus the encoding processincludes "o, ,4f plgdg!&Ugebnrques, _ i:":4*, t, but also the forcesbehind the_deuelop-anif ir.tor. *., techniques: Fvokc . ida'lq1 - 't t6eTnstitGill-ffirct,.r.es oi-broadcasting. orggltzgd_.rl4ioujna i"rlr.{*,*^ u"1Lo key developments that (uv? The previous three chapters have traced several l---;_i.__. i;tlaogssgtr_f"r-i"o o,{r(-""o't' on radio programming' althougharthough the message - led to the increased influence of Hollywood itselfltselt takes on a symbolic structure, expressed drgi..-^,f.c,-. - the West Coast The reductiolr of AT&T land:!!ne-ratE'!-to and from through language forms or codes, which does not become co*pl.t. l-"''*-c', ttrdfol' in the in 1936p.ovidEEll. *ith its bottleneckon leasingn€twork lines until it is received and decoded by an audience, rhe *o-.rrt of 41o6,,-,r., "predominant" "''n*qu- ru^kroe t92bs, a hidden b"t grc.i.l-&g!gl, i",,!: of tlollrw,ool productionplaysa..predominant''role,becauseitisthe..pointof,L^rcproduction plays a role, because "point -Ul+rf hun*L^late 3![ity- it is the of ':y4tL4'- interes-ts pa$rgiPat i-rr-radiq$oductton' The growing streng[ol departurefor the realization"of the messageform oi -ar_1 -to itself.3 , t*ilo production through-the intermedigy Furthermore, np@4fii. ;-*;.;iul ,po"so.s in program as Hall developsin later works.rvvr^rr encodingLrrLvurrrE forcesrurLsl murtlusr r, . . ;*:cry-! t]b-'j.t ":--E*t4 t'zLLN-"iiit. i{vglliqllg aggpgie.cottt.ib'rt.d to qlp .d,.gc!ineof letwir\ be examinedconcretely, within ---T -----t *4". thethe-c_onlg*tconrexr gfof ?a speciE-JrGor@odspm;r'rst=r--o d N4thi h,"t,;.h-Ll;"** . i[. .r.riio" of importanr but as yet unrecognized an.ds-p-fti.rfi-criiumstancbs, ,,.rrt"irrirr! p.-qir"rori i_n_ordg q. erdt.j".L;;;;;;i;".iil g "t [ ,-W-ZFA .brl-1.'.,|^.loopholes_inth.go.,...'*.ntdispositionofthe..radioproblem,'per- t1ilsfi6;lic .b.rrt*J6.r. set in nlacehv theseinsrit'tinnc r-.t th,,o J hl'hi 9Ji. tt:^^J1J W'(.^iitea the Jominanceof the t*o major interconnectednetworks - both vAV \paqzoTr^and their heavy dependenceon the output of the agencies. regulatoryand industrialstrictule$et a Ai.p "!no-in^-,. , These forces,along with the 1 and 2_l con-titute what might be -.,..,"-'"tc+'(eb"hcl place in tbq l920ffiapters iat.a tn. macroeconomic_sof the film-broadcastingindrlstry interface. develoPmentof -,1/wJ4^?'-=l^..t f. t r r.? Theyt ney arear€ tllc rrlaJul raLturJ (6PrC broadcast programming, setting the basic stmctures and conditions of '-eoJ^. c{o{Cbf possibiiity for what would come later. A traditional political economy u .pp.otct to the media might stop here, having delineated tT .:tS.gL; .uiy-U"t, as Stuart Hall reminds us, not necessarily the sufficient- conditions f,or broadcast. texts to- develop_..3;-{9{ia' !!{s_c11gu3 "T trt.;notm;il;; orllte poliiical eco;tt"t iriod'elgrow-o6-f his own theoretical approach, which conceives of the communicative act "determinate as a processconsisting of three moments": the process it:glf, u"d tE iggdilg-Pry"..:' Although H:Jffi;ffi :*:-:,"i,'J',"-.i":"1#':J:i#T:"::::*:?:":y,1rb'., of enioding, th"'=Sl93Cg&M cy3llg9,g: r9-Ilgcqdiug-Jhe-origination-oliudi,"rdu-e! 1n" "cultural stuclres"scnoot ln p.rggrams,pro- topr^c t*;no Hall's own work. and the work of the Y' k v4,*1tQ;I | ur^*r,i+vJuaarf - !pcrtoobrg r - \rr*4e 6ru c .t.^1LhJ, eb-"'t"r J:.1'1ul'' L^lt'it'b"'t "Lux f Fool^&rrso Honywoodand Broadcasting ,/ j Radio Theatre c lco-kr4^t+th pu3t, of the Air" 8r I l^r-b 6- glag1 3ld categories,4ndthe formationof the broadcastschedule,l creativeprocess, I Jype_: I Y,'^k*''^' particularryof thoseshows ai*d durins the most ".*g within the ilstitutional that support and, to ,l Yt,) 15 y' popularpopurar trmes,umes, until-theuntrl I I !J!_!,gtures J +,?LiV V\ j( I the developm"",developmenq 9{"f .f.isp91 advertising_!!,r4teFi; .1r..,;;;'.il;ffi c6rtaii--exent, determine them.'" late I950s..This lack -.;r ; lr"ctr4 ,rA b;*Lrl" of neiwork control can be seenin tfre faci shows.onradio often ' *" ea I r'p^ jffi:f rt _rrr )'l lh"'successrul network-hoppedin mid-run, switch- I tu,il;:iTiH::i'yi,ffiTi#";il"i:E il":;:ilT ; ; r3g-ne-tworksaccording to ulh,J: : f *t gkdr-.,. I.');Y*, time srot available or more favorablerates. numberof worksrr.'.,'. u. t u^t?r' ?"'cr"-^' contemporary hisiiirians and-an-alystsof terevision,projecting the 'cf thc Hollvwood decisive Wvy^i1 d^*aLgr',1:*-9hf?9t9ri-lt!s rnel'.1' .11{-slgnifvt!g-elps!l- 1 role played by today's network p.og.._mi.,j alfrrr_.rrt, backward onto radio, neglectthe true oliginatoriofrrrort ofthe'broadcast .[g6,ur/forTs still us: the major I:::,r:-;,'1,"4,;;'iiTo.Sl":"f.i'..i::J;":ffij:'.lj,Jl,l"'TTI'll,i,l,llnlF?ltf ,t\r'.V. rb,!, W|;'1' _with aEGrtiri"e-ie"".i.s. Thishis-veri ,;i"-;;i-Ln or pru.t-ices,Douglas eomeiey's i"ifvsis .f tfte lgelopmenl, .i ."ti"i \'rsron,_orj€sponstbrhry lbr,programming ;, bettertts the conceptsand t hlm and it. .ff1cts,?fi-#arles \,iusser's.tudf-iif Ed*in'S. Po.t.. srmcture enforced over the years by the FCC, which i6lbtes and ihe shift in creative control fr#lfrGxhibitor to the cameramun- ld*i ffi l.q"?.".y noradvertise... e .ro..i';l';; just t5T0:, ryU,broadcasiers, ;"#ff.TJ::: l.S{^hua,,r,"fd _4irector.tTheearly daysof the broadcastmedium are beginning )kal;,beti"d radio prggram^ming may - 7 began. Not until the final rehearsal before broadcast did the show mgye .Tt,,Ltt :"linH:r'tT*:TH':; to the network studios, where sound levels were taken and the whole ,.^?1{ These run through before -a*Jtf.tt-fi*r.p"Ttii - ,"[";*.[ re!q*, ""d* the directionof-Tnne-Fiil6-mert' lequence going oyg.livrc ovellhe_ngtwork hook-ups. A^-., \ -': ^_ :'t wrirerstu,rned o,ri an amazingnumber and variety of radio Programs' \ During thi stage before the run-through, the radio director,s talents r' r'coJtt".including "Ma 'Just Plain Bill," fully engaged. As Watt put ,:7W)- suchlong-running shows as Perkins," \were it: fn.: ri "Betty "fack "The ol(1 ; ,lolir'r,.Jlll and Bob," Armstrong," Romance of Helen Trent," -':-'-:::-l!ri / Preparing the schedule, or formula, for a radio program is much likc "Pepp.. F"amiln" and rnany more' olher smalgr tP-:tYt !-{f*f Yo,r'g;s having eggs, flour, sugar and shortening for a cake. Too much of this or guy.]!u ccu-!{-be qlght put together*aone-time show,.which if succgssfu! too little of that can make an unholy mess and result in a waste of good --*tr"/"",rnap,,ra,i"?ff material simply becausethe ingredients are not assembledproperly. My consist of: ::i.'ff ffi *Iffiiiil**,,*'tt'!"r'rt'-e!'-'cQnc-eBt \Arhr'ingredien-ts-' 9"C,!s-oratg-$al-!sa,l-e;__qrr-g-ry,&vjE.,star,female: one tia. tCl|.l A useful glimpse into the process of radio origination is provided of ceremonies: "One =,)tI--- -. T.aster 9"_. .st_9991=mal*_l1og9;-g19__siqgel-_Iqd9_or 1938, 'f? l. Iemale:one orchestra wrth leader; r a^ cr ^ , . t by an article 'Backstugepublished by the Saturday Euening Post in oneannouncer; sundry actors.-- actresses. -t)wr\ to4lc l;Q'intr *'ith an Advertising Agency's Radio Director" script sound.effects-iiEn,. ;.r.o- , lviin.rt. to Go' fltlp,.- * -writers,- iffi*ii.r fa,trJ",..pl Watr, a radio director in real life. Watt traced the /-/^p,r,h,9i,{("'' by Kenneth L. N.*t came another important step-submitting the completed script q4 I',,{, 'H"*;:;ll,.Hlll#i#1'.:::it.',:t#.*J to the network censor for approval, so any material in controversial ko.,pt' ::::f;:"H#;1,f; or - v{f questionible t"rFibikl $["sedly be eliminated. Once this was Slru accomplished, the final rehearsal was scheduled, with actors and ac- v U4. ?_lr.ntuq^1lr^ tr,er9_eq,f. orthe, bg pa_Lts-rn-$escript -h|rcd -4_!b9_!e$ ml""te.l{t inis -gtr(.- .t t toaLg_ fi-%4 ttffi L>crn l(.;i; uq :r---lofal^ '. Ao V]olr ',1 f this time through the eyes of the company president whose decisiol-it - l7 was to advertise ,orr radio. Although the process rimained the sam-e, 9efl'^ ffi: ra;C-m- ra rtui;s perspectivete;ded to center on costs of such a ;,; production, and each successivedecision-stars, singers, script writers, etc.-was discussed from the point of view of its price tag. Fortunelisted ,'T ,b' v W6ln\ some of the most popular shows on the air in terms of their production and time costs:rs nuk, Table 4 a,I 1. Fortunr's Cost Analvsis of Top Radio Shows of 1938 .rH Program Production Time )*iht Chase & Sanborn Hour (McCarthy) $20,000 $1s,900$35,900 5*!* Jack Benny (Jello) 15,000 11,500 26,500 I]\l""',r Kraft Music Hall (Bing Crosby) r3,500 17,100 30,600 / "Lux 86 Flollywood and Broadcasting Radio Theatre of the Air', 87 rh€ integrated ad took on the properties of "_celeb.iglSli-o.ri^l ( Program Production Time Totd , l4.69-1LJ,ofhu-c,Llsw- _ lending a ready-pade aur_a.of elamour.to tl-rep-;;;;;-T;;ehbrit--i 15,000 17,300 32,300 t-J-'l--1 Lux Radio Theatre (gu.estmovie stars) testrmonralremains one of the major advertising strategiestoday, and Eddie Cantor (Texaco) 15,000 11,900 26,900 the agency known for its innovations in this area isJ. Walter Thompson, 12,000 10,400 22,+00 "Lux Al Jolson (Lever Bros) not surprisingly also the creators of the Radio Theatre." Major Bowes' Amateur Hour (Chrysler) 25,000 20,100 45,1 00 Burns and Allen (General Foods, for The Creative Site: Walter Thompson 10,000 10,600 20,600 J. Grape Nuts) frtt-0' c l' Walter - Town Hall Tonight (Fred Allen, sponsored The J. Thompson firm has a long history' in the d.rr.lop-.rrt ) 10,000 15,800 2s,800 of advertising. Its founder, Walter Thompson, ,. : \J'w"ll4-11", by Bristol-M.versCo.) James got his start in \]-]] -T 1870 in New York and contributed to the rise of magazines as an Source. Frlzz, MaY 1938, P. 5' advertising medium and as a part of American culture. One of the \||/ The programs are listed in order of their ratings according to the first to see the immense advertising potential in the weekly and monthly Cooperative Analysis of Broadcasting, or Crossley Report' In addition, publications, Thompson's list of magazines under exclusive contract by "All 'big' as Fortunc noted, but four of the ten shows listed" 'are the turn of the century included the Athntic, Cmtury (successor to Scnbner\), Harpcr's, Lippiruott's, Godq't, Peteron's, and the NorthAmzrican Rniztp. The firm went on to become one of the prototypes of the A, progr"--ing strategies developed, so too did the art of the radio complete advertising agency. It tended to specialize in products ap- pealing to women as consumers, from soaps and cosmetics to ficod products. In 1916, Thompson sold out to a group of employees headed by Stanley Resor, who in 1917 married another top JWT employee, Helen Lansdowne. Lansdowne was one of the first women to rise to ,'c}+2n|JJ/. lo.\tt^t, the top of the advertising profession; her influence helped to make --'' successful with (ra{ n{lta.qe JWT the female market it pursued. Ffer successful on radio. Fibber McGee and Molly likewise found frequent reasons campaign for Woodbury soap was influential in Procter and Gamble's cites a proposal for a \?l\,{ b C, w ik*k,for using Johnson's wax on their sirow. Allen 1911 decision to employ JWT to advertise its Crisco cooking oil, the which the show opens qr.ii*T-il.l ^ t"up opera from Irna Phillips for Kleenex in first time the large consumer products company had employed an !-;-, -!::--d-:xf removing her lt *iti. tire main character sitting at her dressing table outside advertising firm. Together Hglg lgllgoryle Stanley Resor e 16 3nd 4l :-F:pt t* ..,.k np with-surprise-Kleenex. t}e,J. walter Thompsonfl; fo;lh;;i ti'iny ana H?lpuLarsd.,.""?,. ao a1nagg{ ffi |tuto Benny ana tris troupe madeJello commercials famous by working weiCinEueniial in its innovativemove into raailry.- [,rvq .fack C*\,n"Nrr,';:ti.:" t * ,"i.r..r.., to the product into their comic routines-although this kind HEIenLanltiown. R.;;i;ust Jso Ue"i.ait.JffiE t,' -f.--0d/qfj 4JWT trademarke -, ry\ the radio director of h1. rF,;th-,' o *ii.nr.:;ram client to avoid t{--"}V- Uqn^i,] tt. tnr' Si"ra"1Effi Pos, article advise his hypothetical !:t!-e 1gl. Alth-5ilgFtheffid.'i1a;Gilft i'"'(uch More common was the straight comm€rcial read strategies, Resor's contribution lay in attaching the product u^aaYv,L:P{*ro.,.^'1" l'olW a format. Pl'g teqtimonial err"ct.d by ffi. As RoffiTllarciland to a f,amousname. Her first coup, in 1924, involved persuading Mrs. ' 1 h*.,_ c ,t,L *.oGI=TEilM"**eU Horrse program, a pioneer in the. ul!.er\^gygll O:J{-. TT'ffit, a New York socialite, ro endorse pond's cold cream Program ttf hllfi; ,,,/-t:commercial,.scrupulously maintained ttrg 9ollt!41rity-9f49d' in exchange for a hefty donation to a charity of her choice. Other the table '€-l_!udy" ,rF[ SIf "hut..te.s d.]F.ed the commercialsis they gatheredaround endorsements followed, including Queen Marie of Ru- the programhost, the Old Colonel,to sharecoffee and reminisce mania, Mrs. Reginald Vanderbilt, and the Duchess de Richelieu. From $5&a^{fi.ur,hr;i-th.-.about olden daysat the Maxwell House Hotel (the program's setting), the crowned heads of Europe, ir was a short step to Hollywood.re 5 ,;;; 'Good ;i-ttf{!!$4'}:-;;; Teddy Roosevelthad characterizedthe coffee as to the JWT's involvement in radio began in the 1920s. One of its earliest qf {JPdas[,, last drop."'it When the program cast member was a Hollywood star, successeswas the bringing together of Rudy Vallee with Fleischmann's 88 Hollywood and Broadcasting "Lux Radio Theatre of tl.re Air" 89 yeastin 1928,one of the most successfulshows on the air at the time. ai&rit a!treres!.-produ,Ls ,! e . . That same year JWT sent a representativeto $9flyw9g!-one of the #+g: ltdl*j-lf 3s-e19iaQ Jwr t,.r"^ such cratactemonstrate two points: fi rsi,' thii thii ia".4!qiU'@, ?ir'i' first of the maioi Ngx-Yor!.---qgqnp.rgpto-glgso. This Fpieientative, I ut", llJ"*,. later head of the Hollywood branch office established in 1934, was e?}, Daniel J. Danker, Jr., a Harvard-educated promoter who became ak) .t4 ^ something of a celebrity in his own right during his influential career 4rr h{4 put w> in Hollywood. By IpJQ.TWT had together radio progal"l &t "."9 ""d eighteen of its clients, accounting.for-more th4n-twenty-three_-hours -:9199P,."1 second, that the soap cornpiriii:'i lnd their more than the "soaps.', 'ii€i-wCek of network time. Lever Brothers in particular was One of;Wft m-6-reimpo.tant accountswas the manufacturing giant known for its sponsorship and in- novation in evening prime-time lil k Lerrh3 r,.,i{.lr Lever Brothers. The Cambridge, Massachusetts,company was a wholly shows.2, "gigantici Jqitu [r&n-.[q o*iEii-l"b.idiary of Le,uer Brothers and Unilever Company, nominally under Dutch ownership but managed from London-in fact, The Evolution of "Lux" "among according to Forturc, the three largest British investments in Conceptually, the beginnings ,.Lux the U.S." Lever Brothers' U.S. product line included Rinso soap flakes, t ^ . of the Radio Theatre,, radio show be fi* LurKw.can traced to the celebrity advertising campaign deveroped Lifebuoy health soap, Lux flakes, Lux toilet soap, Spry tlgetabl./*'"*i"tY by the a.r.t.,1 J. Walter Thompson Agency for Lux shortening, and a few lesser brands. In terms of sales volume in the' I ioit"t ,orl. As noted, JWT i t(14' frequendy.reliedfreouentlv relied upon,,-^. tho .-l-L-:|., +^-.:-^-:-l the celebrity testimonial, and in the case of Lux -Y. had.bellme ML --93 known bv.1928ficr its use of l_if Magazile Iglhcgedj!"r_st- LqtY" + *-+:, .copy^demonstrates a p.ogt6; f.or., tt.;o ladiesof 1925to specificcelebrities. Fo. .*.mple, ; ' inTi.iy"3l.,ro.lt,t a 1928 ";i;;;; t-, advertisement, E. Mason ilopp.a " ;;-iff; bL, DeMilIe" states,"Beauty ,only may be ,ti., a."p, but nothingis more Le essential than the loveriness Yv of a gir|s skin. A star's adoring pibri. and exacting director demand l,,Jvtd,l that beauty first of all." This opinion is accompanied by a picture phyllis of Haver, who confirms tte issue Uy boo,JNn stating, "No star can hope_to look lovely unless she has really velveti smooth skin-studio I'ux \ttr'-q skin. Toilet Soap leaves my skin so gently smooth that I have v no fear of the high-,.Wampas powered lights of the close"-up.; lrEC A 1929 advertisement features the Baby Stars,,, *ho ,la1 (or,dtli use Lux Toilet Soap for smooth skin,' ..Nine tr and ih. fu-orr. line, out _ -b of ten screen stars use Lux Toilet po Lux toilet soap accounts. Rinso and Spry were handled by the Ruthrauff Soap.', Although a few of Lever,s Fold other products use the I\- h i;r^,;-t and Ryan Agency, who also had Lifebuoy until it was given to the occasional star endorsements, the campaigns v!:_tb' +W'. for Lux soap flakes r'lr1\:,{ftf{i tf,f, WittiamEstyAgencyinthemid-thirties.AnotherLeverproduct,Lipton and Lifebuoy, for example, remain aistinct^ly iif_ Pro'rc'' ferent, the "gentreness" o4 {sooa u.|*----*&v----*4--tu17 -^-^-^r L., v^.,-- ^-J D,,L:^^- ,^,r.:^L ^- ^c 1oL -+^^t +^ one emphasizing the of the flakes ; tea, was managed by Young and Rubicam, which as of 1940 stood to o' h..rds J.n--'.- lot ,*i l-.'htrk isal",r, and clothing, the other developing ,,8.O.,, -:-L.-', -+:'-:-a' gain a few more Lever accounts. Thus, although the actual cr€ative the famous theme and ,' health YW," fmphasizing aspects..Llx soapt focus on ..f"Urr!t.. -'JSPij::", york;ork was_accorypli:b.a_y'$'"j,.ery1_1c.99qpl:!'s-4_y'$'"J!'sasenciesln{@*l!*?rp"T9s9hasencie@ led ryU.".ra I| directly to the strategy b:Fild its radio show. X - , I according to agency.styleand spe,cializ*i.91,,tlg *liq-ft ma.de -. -cpgry3gy .. _ One person who muiiSe given '.' fatlt tG-de.is]ons aboui *hich .i."puid;;" siiict'"id l" *hich medium - credit for thi successof Lux,s appeal | YeLb,t t +F.{*h theJWT A g,..lt The link and corporateidenti{-behifrtfEliertising (u- t,r..u,,t."a, whohandled *go,i;io;, ol.rpf tkJ"n 1"r-t@."]h.T. i.I_T,?.frio will 561..tt 1oilryooa - stars and other personnel so successfu[t ,h",, ;;;;; ,.1. o-t | , , campaignscan be seenin thefact that in 1940Lever Brothers maintained 1. . to v'y.|L+1^|',;|{^r,tN|n"utoi'lofsix.?e!io'.s.h.o.!Y-|'.gnrh..ffi-anaro"'l,) Fortunc, most stars".i." werewcrc notuur evencvcn palo l.D, O ..r.--,':-.*, ,-.-":., paid forror thelrtherr ..rdo.r.*.rrtr]endorsements. the right friends and doing favors for them i : l*#*tng with the flair of -l- r l. hrr-d-rY+FF1lfr \ o]"t u rj"&;" I*Ar - r Il' i*iv ?trtq,Aer.,[,,n[ "-te't" 'Crn ljkr''tff-tu ,r 90 Hollvwood and Broadcasting and an Irish politician, Danker succeeded partly by sheer personality' meant later on by pointing out to-Piclyre-Players th:t]!*t* testimonials freenationatadvartisins-i@if 5;E4F-9l'rEio'ifrlE-foiiiiiiiiiis*G al-Q,qrv,p.ala:";rrry*:biryTYTl-fatYhv' e ffia..aooGui"Jtirlt trr*, via Danker, was.:::*:'-::l'll3l; singularly adept at be t4 > \U*ur^; obtainineobtaining these endorsements. However, some of this luck may also be "Lux who linked tJthe hefty fees paid to stars on the Radio Theatre," frequently doubled in the other advertisements' Danker remains a key During a simulated intermission the host, crooner ng,r.e U.iri.ra the radio show; his good relations with the studios and Rudy Vallee, saunrered teJ-d among f k in obtaining studio cooperation the tables introducing his guest to fans until they happened to rcb- th-eirexecutives and personalities helped .,Let,s overhear a conversation at one table. Vallee said, listen," to his friend (and to the radio audience). A change in tone quality signaied a change in microphone; then the radio listener found himselfjoining Vallee Y^^'* in eavesdropping on a young couple who were marveling at the man,s for film properties and stars' Iritical, he functioned as chief negotiator great success in business since he had been takine Fleischmann's Yeast.2{ a process in which his flamboyant personal lifestyle apparendy served him well.22 M:w," ffiTi:i'*Hfj*"1fi*:'*'# Lryf,+*"1l. simJIIrro th;Fliil;FFifiiffihter" program,also broa'lrast from. . o1 afternoons' New York City. Sta11!ngon the NBC -network .Sydaf M::giI L+ tvlp it '*itaned to CBS-in ]tsl-4! gq-q. te1e.la:9oll' e'0.q-"Yl Shos* when ,, I I - v - time slot, where it siayed for the rest of its radio existence' LUI\P - (ro .6|. ratings began to sl.r*p itt the second year, attributed by one source Walter dur6 wrrrf?a; fo u:*SeVirrshorrage of adaptable BroadWay material,t' J. 'i..^ ,. I i Thomiibn assisned,h. yo.rngaccount executive Danny Danker to the X',I'"T::'iF;:';fr;i,fJj; ^WrT, i#l*ffi:; "The I lhrt , ^-'^ ii ,ru*.i.fv'dlioris.*Dtnkermade the recommendationthat the show son inGffial memo, facts are that Vallee doesn't know now what ".:l to the West : tf'IWcb . movel,LiG-arirety to Holiywood. Wllh 4T&T service is going to be rehearsed this afternoon. He doesn't write one word of (oudi,|; ayRr3ved .h"r,c."iid the script. All of the things 21\'^0 i;T;"liy *oi"* ul[u".d-abtelJfi'! 1he about how he first met these people, etc., -b^ u t.A - ,,T"*--6ioudiisi-;ii"rFoil*Aoiyivood" for the first time onJune 1, we make up for him." The strategy had proved so successful, according - "all t ro,(lv ffi decisionto hire Cecil B. DeMille to the memo, that the theatrical , 1936.Danker is alsocredited with the JWT publications are now hailing Yjbsf,i : Vtttr(* / as emcee.23 a,j L' - r ! r The decision to hire DeMille was crittcalitical inrn settingsettrng the tone that led ,oto the program's success. TheIhe flactorstactors thattnat ledreq to theurc decision,utcruvrt' however,rrvwsvEr' t{$",t]on"*f|-1,.0n b'^W^.-;;-"\! Program's rre cl.u.lipresaged inJWT's previous radio experienceand practice' "Fleischmann's - -; the time, the - , particularly -ith its mosi successful show of by Put on the air in Yeast Hour," a variety show hosted }:!f)ktlee' 1929, this show pioneered many of theAi6;ienti6?itt. variety series, creatrngine spin-offssprn-ors inln situationsltuaflon comednc()rncur drama, and even documentary Vallee himself d lt" h.4p. form tiat- later became staples of radio broadcasting. -ry:.:l together r, served as emcee-announcer, bringing a different group of guests 9f k&q^t a "Lux 92 Hollywood and Broadcasting Radio Theatre of the Air" 93 often just happened to figure in the conversation. Certainly, DeMille i=*t"-thase! byt notyet l3 (9119rh.apsngver would Up) 19adEj4_, evolved into the focal point around which popular discussion of the ilms. l nls ls partrcularry true during the first seasons of the "Ladies . show; show took place. Introduced each evening as and gentlemen. . . @s your producer. . .Mr. Cecil B. DeMille!," the famous director re,c9-iv9d releases *Lux." :ig:tg_Atl.T,..:.",-a to be adaptedfor Although, credit for almost every aspqgt_gfthe-gbgyv, as demonstrated in a 1944 as notet, few' 6lniF were adridly previewed*6iilEFx,' "No or aired article in the Christian Scbue Moninr magazine: one could have simultaneously with box-officerelease, of the ninety-five showsaired been better prepared to take the show over its early hurdles than from october 1938 through November 1940,only tiri.t..n were aired DeMille. To the opinion of the experts, who said no one would listen close to the time of their releasewith original stars performing 'Let's _first to a solid hour of drama over the air, he replied, try it, anyway."' the radio roles. Most of the [email protected] *{':t,^\s \Jbfuifow other Actually these decisions were made long before DeMille came on the vearsafter tFefi;t b."ffiffi. -AIso,roughly half of the lead "Celil L!#4t ,l_+ - l, ...r,.. brr, the public characterof B. DeMille" aqlrea!.esl bJ aZ pel|oge-f, rn the radio adapi.ions had starredin the [6-eatricatfilm, at4gfr gh--t he pe rc e n -r3-t j drtuyr'l4.tt v4 e#*#r'T:..HH*:":: ffi b" iaq Eg !._ltrg y.Il*gl*ad- gri.,. ,ll v to{,0. :*+"T**lHi;{*:::, *#_:r "d'; ffi _:-:.1' nlgner ratrngs; a tew actors and acressesbecame ,,!Uf:_:g$&F,', iu1.e grnrui," DeMille lent aura of glamourand i.npoi6ETo.trr.-{rf fcr example, D6n Ameche,Brian Aherne, Barbara St".r*vcftii.rdeti. k",8, - )f lu4.!.*d+;t -4n r. - { - t, | - ephemeral nature of the radio exDerience. His presence imparted an t;gq ( and Fred MacMurray, playing roles for whicl the original Z,ih!.t uo +'t'' u'au{ : *'sta_rstsil_..Colb..t, $ v }e{;'iFmediate p-rccptron-ofiEe Jhow uiTopof t}r" line," far more effectively - were unavailable or unwilling to appear. Iq ih, Vt could-ilia n@ perhapsequally 7 d't|,' In terms of studio participation, e!__tt.._*gigf and:ninor XvttlfiplvA+Vqti,than--Jsuccessfuldirector. "Lux" :tuCios ,'Tt '{^i^, t,, allowed to use their fil* prope.t[iif6i-e poi.rt ". ".rotiG, .. tt'1:J.@31^ ']Lnx iq\a rat '------true creativework of tbe Radio Theatre,lhowever,-wasz well as indepehdentssuch as Gordwyn, fhe# --L- I^LL: . Selznick,and Korda. Goldwyn professionals rarely t'o ltr in particular .,Lux,', W. W*.1" n htr,^!, , accomplished by a group of radio and advertising Od participated heavily in using the radio show to heHrl:r-pr-e"iew many of his films or ro air them simultaneously with theatrical }-,,-&cknowledgedinthepopularpress.Thea5!p1a1ion-o|3\s:r53pr[+{ja9 u' t.i ,n{."{olk from its ni- ,o u -".rr-..agied radio .,"qg*iqnwaJi6icdin-pliSFEffor ...I"l.e, far more.frequently-_---- -_-a--" ; :;;7 than other producersrr and4rru srudios.rtqulvJ. LackingL4LKlIlg -- =*;i;|;iffi*ame vf ' ,, .^/ ;l"r r.";.tt#ca*. a scriptwritera. {'r,ro9s5. huge promotion departments of the major studios, Goldwyn as an qdag, "Lux" trtr'^1.' t t t - MGM, where his credits includedthe Academy Award-winning Oe- may have found an extremely affordable ?lakt' waFTtr'i"ii'w;;;. Xl(gl^independent' means of ly t;;;r repracedby sanford Barnett, formerly the sho*'s f.,l! box-office publicity. Though no other one independent "frame"' *i, used the show's director.The or - promotions possibilities as often, as Goldwyn, 62I' ieklur*Iy{rto- Jr U,' *#^ lndepgq4q!_-plgggggls qggtr more likely Y):ff._ to use thjggrerelease [email protected]; : zbt^'a,av+.A strategy than the it^,i nTTT:iftffi'JfiJ,il'fii'i**J"':#Tfiil"il'.ii:li,T;-l e*stablished-fi -stars studios. They were.also=-_=- far more likely 6't-. r,l*,'r4 iuooli rt"*,in;;,iiffit,h Thompsonwell into the 1960s.Sanford Barnett to-Tse-Th6-ori gi nal I m i n ffi presentati ons. ,: ;r1.r*r; C\ Cf was replaced as director by Fred MacKaye, a former bit actor on the The use o1 to. p"Uti.ity poi"ti to an ift/^*-.,{ Vcl^h t inherent conflict not show. The sound man, an important position in a radio production, only in this particular show, but r'Q"^{t[lr^,'. ' - c.',',. also in most of-fie 6Ei6ffiiion frLtG]4i'\ was Charles Forslth.{his team had been assembled-uy--ttti progTaln's . t ^ in which Hollv"wood studios or talent were involved. These programs "produc.r," t(F!+a. true D"tiel DunkElil-iii".ny p"t; the shtw. T-heir .e1155!-twpcen,a.tr..,^ differentr,#----. purposes:.forc^-u^'---,-,r as a 'l!f llgllywood, megnp.9lp:g-ggg$-- .....-...14'JJo, contributionswill be discussedin depth ilIEianffi of the program I either for first- or subsequent-rui,current or fairlacurr.;i "-----: '.< fri--.;; selected.In facr, DeMi-lle'splg!:.r..[g-:yes reqqUg:d only for the flnal forf^-L----: boosting the lamefame andr^-iH-_. farfriliii'i-yfamifi-Etflol-iheir -tive .-fi -,:[email protected]'itiei,Ly'r",.. ,to. o'l-i-trei.sta[;stars; forto. trtffiilttriaa.,reGil dress rehearsa ana ine itseli;*ifii previoilJ stagesof asa sgurcsot[l?!Ey;!0aae'.gr;ai1-;;a-rtt#.a.; "in il.lbim;g -deiisiiins'"viere . -j_.-=z-'t, tlf p.oc.!s took place hii itiiitil-il]- and ireative tt r' to draw oeoole unwittingly into the commercial message.'The con- \r lrtd'I*t, jgrc-tu..irr."t,,-o ),c ir.--- +,.,^ i-+--^^+^ L^r ----- .- r I h@g{-- jglely througtrDTJ.:II _9:sl" and JWT 3v' of these two interests had many favorable aspeiF-for both: , glamorous t-ioncepi=bihin.d,r6.e-trixxm.:frcarel'.w49 the ad- (*' fr,{r^ r settings for Lux soap messages on the one hand, and - o{^fkV Hollywoodfilms tcra4io..This description is slightly publicity for films on the other. 'r tJif U(of- - e, lp,ilb"of Tir- t ; ,\ -7'a!'r,t, .inexpensive l^!r0 t: :"n ,. leading, however,in that other materialswere sometimespresented as V But if ei-tleqeither f,agtorfactor ryerewere allowedallo*c.l torn dominaterlnm over the other, or if Y(l tP['r' &rhtwell, notably classicsor Broadway materials, the frlm rights to which one aspect were perceived as detrimental to +",5.,/'^.qt{^f.,i,+19 e the other. thi-&iicate ttrLv' h-:1.. O[f' 94 Hollywood and Broadcasting "Lux Radio Theatre of tlre Air" 95 balance between the interests of the studios and the intergsls of the usual studio audience composed of leading Hollywood figures. Later, advertisei would collapse. Foi7ximple, should the advertiser demand as production became more routine, the show became a vehicle for that the adaptation of Carablarcabe rewritten to show Ingrid Bergman Lux soap flakes advertising, rather than the toilet soap. A separate, using Lux soap before she goes out to the climactic meeting with less prestigious announcer was used to narrate the commercials. which Bogart, the studio, in this case Warner, would be rightfully indignant "intermissions" were inserted at two different occurring at roughly about misuse of its commercial propert% and would__ceaseto benefit rrventy-minute intervals. And although lesser-known srars sometimes accrue tp-,3hestudio in terms of..,lfavorablgpglllglgr..&f-ttS_o-fyn_plqdqgt. directly mentioned Lux soap in their post-program talks, Hollywood's O" tfri olrr.. hand, shouid tfr. ftf- pr"p".ty ""a p.irorru, of the stars hotter properties confined their enthusiasm to studio, rather than Lever be ailowed to dominate the commercial message completely, ".g9CI4 Brothers, products. the commercials come to and "Lux be seen as an annoying unnecessary A more twical structure of the Radio Theatre" went something 'lffrc,?{+. i*ii f RT -o"ld like the following: After a transition announcement about .,Lux"'s ".--,r- be reduced greatly. Hence the utility thE-Frame," or staging \r -i-- of of the imminent broadcast by the network announcer, a blare of trumpets - ll show, ii:Ff's "And \y caseaccomplished so ably by DeMille-and by the and a musica.l fanfare preceded the famous now. . . Lux Presents Ai{k^, tnv.d team of headedby Carroll Carroll, whose task it "Ladies k^kos^1sfg 4 tfflE_fp$.rr Hor-rywoon!" [more fanfare] and Gentlemen...your pro- was to cornposeqle_fram-and.to integrate.it within the fabric of tEE Uilry, to,qC VNi ducer...MR. cEcrl n. oEvrLLE," over applausefrom the studio audi- -t evenrng. - tl . , -This ence. DeMille then took over the microphone, gave his greetings and y,:^' ,,n%nol frame underwent changesas the radio show progressedand a bit of chit-chat, and announced the upcoming attraction and stars, fr,lY "Lux"'s ttrW.f' gainedin popularityand prestige.The earliestshows, such as working in at least one relatively low-key plug for the Lux product- ititwk initial Holly'wood broadcast of "The Legionnaire and the Lady" (based on the 1930 Paramount film Morocco), featured far more direct hype I for both Lux products and for current and forthcoming studio projects, with more direct involvement in actual commercial endorsements by DeMille and studio personnel. During the broadcast, DeMille used "intermission" one segment to bring forward Fred Datig, casting director of Paramount Studios, who endorsed Lux Toilet Soap in these narrator was in making this "I transition, n9t only from Sgruerela!-1o ) terms: look for players who screen well-who have lovely figures, dra tio" of good features, and fine complexions. This means a lot to both stars the narrative. The actors then took over, in aversion ofthe frlm property and extras-Lux Toilet Soap is the official soap over on the Paramount in which most details of action, character, and setting had been com- Iot and every other great studio in Hollywood.":0 pressed into dialogue and in which sound effectlplayed an important To even out the balance publicity power during the evening, of at Part. the end of the broadcast DeMille introduced Lasky, who spoke Jesse Then, between acts of the three-part presenration, in1g,1m!s!lgn*w?s 'rr.L D , fior a few minutes of Paramount stars and productions, mentioning called.Th6lFsition hom?iaffi-m;t..ig;o ""i.ie[t .od--;.ia cfr^'\ vguub Adolph Zukor and Samuel Goldwyn in the course of his talk, and ul cue4glppDuse, rolow Framtng tlu Nanatiue bridging and thanks and congratulations all around, further musical "Lux Analysis of the Radio Theatre" version of the show closed.z7 the film Dark Victory is complicated, however, by the multiple :[rarr-res-or co-r]te:rts,_lglgb19d in the presentation of the -3t"rirl.,._d! gf.:ubtgh-c^antributelglbc_oye"all "Dark 'rnganing Victory" of tlii prograq. It iiimportant to es_tablish,first, *gIllgt material of this analysis, an issue often made diftcult in the analysis The Academy Award-nominated film Dark Vittnrl starred Bette Davis' [email protected] uninterrupted presentation of HumphreyBogart,andGeorgeBrentinitstheatricalversion.Ichoose a "Lux" clearly discrete, coheriil, and autonomo,r, *oik (as in the case of a to e*amin. this film's adaptation to a episode for pragmatic as theatricil nlm),' the uioiai'#l*presentation intersper:.r i6i- p-iinary well as theoretical reasons. First, this particular Program haPPens to "Lux" diiinaticdramatic -atliiamaterial *itli'Commiiiillwith commercial unno,r.,..*iirts.announcements, commentary, and be one for which an audio recording is available; not all of the - prombiion@ithDromotional material havinElo do wit[uocominsuBcoming orosrams.program! the nlfnet- episodes were recorded for posterity, and of those that were' not many work or station itself, etc: what Raymond Williams refers to as the are available outside archives or museum settings' Second, the success 'ilJEGiGi6i-discou "Lux" t, ; flo*-i6f rse.32 of Dark vitorlboth as a film and as a episode makes it worthy n1a tu film' ',:, The same is true lor radio; indeed, because network radio originated consideration; audiences found it to be a particularly satisfying 10,t.!. ?1,-^ | of "flow," JI' I"X-'..f,'*this it is especially pertinent.to study its utility withi.{r the tsl and the ratings for the broadcast version testify to the accuracy-of -fu "the hr.tr[ Lu+ri overa{-ipstitution of broadcastin g, as *ffii nitio-n'ii" the showsloi spokesmen's.ipo.t, that most popular plays" 'are those which - 'Dark 7u iG.ti.Tt i, notionir p.ffily relevant to radio program analysis in arre srrpposed to tpp.al more directly to women: plays such as ltit 'The 'Wuthering that, unlike television's spot advertising structure, where relatively Victory;, Constant Nymph', or Heights''"28 history than unrelated materials are joined by the networks or stations in a relativeiy fnta, tnis particular ProPerty has a more interesting unpremeditated manner, ng{g\ by signing over the most: beginning as a moderately successful Broadway play by George f+dlq_Slgrated entire time slot to one:@ggqln.g_the entire range of material Brewer and Bertram Bloch, it enjoyed a frfty-one-performance run at broad6*i in the hand! if6nJ uni_!!g_c-re!t_ive departmen,. To the Plymouth Theatre in New York, opening on November 7, 1934' -iileifiEili6lC.iGbi;t; !gl- by centraie merely o.r of a broadcast progrzrm', and siarred Tallulah Bankhead as Judith Traherne.2e Purchased "Lux" then, as many studies have done, ii to create an artificial and unri- Warner shortly thereafter, it was next performed on in a lesser- presentative construct having little relation to the real broadcast event known version starring Barbara Stanwyck and Melvyn Douglas that as it was both produced and experienced. aired on April 4, 1938. It is unclear whether this release occurred made. In 1939, bV ZW Thus three dominant institutionsare concernedin the productionI before or afier the decision to film the story had been - "Luxt-lh6IEEilork-o. U,T dt of b;.J;rstine institution. the commercialln Dark victarl appeared in its best-known reincarnation as a theatrical f )ry,. purposeof thEF6;;r;ffi;,niated by iis ad''re.tisingagencL-mThe \.o'tw film, starring Bette Davis, George Brent, Humphrey Bogart, nonald-loIr/ ' - f \J '- - ''?Ll.i,, :ffiuF;atT:tituii6il!7ffch-p"rovides rhE ciramatic treFi-r the +larnl Reagan, and Geraldine Fitzgerald, among others' The adaptation was 'irttttt,t |" Goulding' In piogrh:JlTe ao-i"*-rna;;trcan be sien in the;';".yrytglo ,.,ritien by Casey Robinson, the director was Edmund ntw'J.'{,:. *..i-t-, "emotional the text, in what I will refer to as flames.By the terrn fratru I refer to { general, the film was received as a standard tearjerker, t,*:,* 'recogn-iZ5lE-units "gooey "a ffi6xual struJture and organization that .efle-ct, [t^l, flim-flam," a collection of cliches," and glutinous star ve- - i* more anTr.esu-li-from,the interestsand goalsof the differenr groups*"i..".a hicle,":o but auJiences flocked to see it. Next came the second, J \v:tt i i "Lux" Tracy, that gf'l in ii-ficiduition. I usethe termlzamzfirst to representtle limiting prestigious version, starring Davis and Spencer * ''lJfalana,"; fr_.r f n -6'-i,.,i determining function of eachlevel of radio discourse,Uy-trictr ,l "itaired a ott;ut,raryonJanuary 8,U, 1940,l9+U' presumably leadingleaolng uP to or reinforcingrtuuurLrrrs thet'^' ir PresumaDly {*SfAL,}t. "textualized" best picture- In 1963' the :t needs and interests of each successive institution ro l.r. I film's Academy Award nomination for ProPe-rty ;^ i "contain" "n certain extent and control the ne{t; and second, *'as rcmade as Stalzn//ozrs starring Susan Hanvard; the made-for- Y3 FEt]u b-..ggt" I \'r, "Dark Victory" starring Elizabeth fe i it often occurs in discussionsof discursive structures. For instance, it | telwision versionfollowed in 1975as -ji "mean- \ be, but obviouslY hf3*E-ncoding and Decoding)'article, Stuart Hall refers to the Montgomery. Gooey and glutinous the story may ;*, l- ings and ideas" that "frame" program within possessedof staying power.3t f, the constitution of t}le ti"tl^n ".tr5ut'u t,e&Jud i( . i+(, F4'p$A1J* f'*A* ,nlO. d.*lr,r.u:, 98 Hollywood and Broadcasting "Lux Radio Theatre of the Air,' 99 the communication structure. A definition of the term Jramz in Hall's precisely because of the glamour, "pre-marketed" ". prestige, and interest work, and as I will use it, might b. dir.."t", id.rtifi t" a Hoil)"wood-based advertising strategy could add to a marketing of codes or signifying practices used by an institution." This adds to campaign, the choice of DeMille "organization as narrator was critical to the progra_,i Erving Gofiinant-use of the term-aslhe of experience" success. DeMille's invocation of the Hollywood "definitions mystique, introd"uction or of a situation...built up in accordancewith principles of stars, background information on the film properties, references to of organization which govern events" by postulating an element of studios and backstage personnel, conversations with celebrities, and so intent, of organized interest that y'rolzras meaning, as opposed to on are used, implicitly and-explicitly, to tie the appeal of Hollywood Goffman's more passive, empiricist definition (e.g., organization is to the Lux soap product. without "there," thi.@icn. simply we perceive it).33 rn rts re and ideas." The various types ol'narrative E _ .lA outside frame, Frame 1, mediates through Almost all film adaptation progr:rms employed 1 kq^^,' "" \ ^ "aprog&gn this seconJ f..m. i"n t or forms of address the conventions, ne,eds,an3-ggglplqicJ of some way, "Lux," -l although through judicious use of the DeMille 1 loA0 c:Ju o}_Ia$g."on radio." Frame 1 ffiof primarily the interests of the network,net-ork. lov\!.rril? ffis persona, was able to give the Hollywood frame far more weight and glamour than some of its competitors, perhapsone of the reasonsfor structure a which sells time on its leading position in program popularity. t$ji.313gg!g,pr_omising linkage sKp,o*slyg!9 ?t ?9-di9.nj9ttrough -a]so third an4 inner.fram. .onritt, of what could (and later, with d*r with a number of local stations. Frame I functions .The. "the 9 broadcastins television, would) be called proeram itse['': the adaptation of the --I- to recontife purposes of broadcast radio with the the commercial film of the evening. This isTE-dr;#EGl4._used_ar.&rt" for t regulatory structures of the federal government. It is made apparent t& jther frames. Ae cen ed to Cl'*ukr- uzb, in the text, not only through largely r""iriUt." ti* S draw listenersto the radio set. However,unlike the dramatic strucrure S,'Tii,it ,Tt"^ ",-a n,) factors-such as time limitations, r@- ofifieTE?liiron6lffial frlm, whoseeconomics dictare a form quite ;ur'o "inner 'noui'il0r grarns, and technical and content restrictions-but also through the diferent from the radio program, the frame" of the broad'c..t ' ^ voice of the network announcer, which leads into and out of the program, " d'IY?4 or may (and a reminder that the P''fuoso inierven-E-lFliZftifi identification practices designed to tie the . 2 .j. "'-, network is there) during the show. This frame is the largest context ouur_ r4rusr qc5rKrtcq r.o oe rnter-rupreo. tO jgnd ltsell-_.(segmentatle|n^.:^- for radio analysis and would affect almost any program on radio ?nc|1|isrug.tio1,.ption, to provide opportunities for the audience not only to similarly. Frame 2 articulates the connsnialluncliqn aflbg-ppgfigr: gnter dregesrsbut d^""{?- gi|edi.gesis!!e !g-air!9,9rl it as well (but only as faiEtliefarEthe sffiundingdffiundine Pion',*l^1-,l,on$* the intere n frame). Because -Y,nhr/qbr^t 1dve.ggi3gagen9.y. this disruption, this permeability, is a dominant.harl {v^,r*' In terms program includes the sponsor's Z w;,l: of material, then, Frame 2 acteristicof the commercialbroadcasr discourse, both in radio and 1- i 7,.'-::" *,i.a*rrh theprogram, pry9qnqqtio.,ngtb_e cgnlg3tt television-and a necessary ry"\ tq. i"_!i9!'gtiqlof Ltr9.-geg?!o_I'-g one to broadcasteconomics as they devel- .Jf Wk , lvl,l of a specific show, the commercial messages themselves, and other oped in this country- Ft*{: .o*. i ft,\v belo"^gl.l_Sto the.program but not tlre. frlm adaptation itseh particularly WWq Inaterials 1g important. ; In G-EdSe of "Lux," this frame is divided between the outright ly TFansiE&ip'lay a crucial role in the broadcast text becausethey I 'L; commercial interests-the voice of the sponsor's spokesman and other l--@Sg.*'"s._torce thatunites the *.r;i;";;;;;j f$&A *)- I characters featured in the actual commercials for Lux soap flakes- 'ry:- \' "Hollywood" "pro- l'.'v' 9"[email protected]@r;6dJoT-iird for and the component of the program, personified by whiqh thi:.tiiog"a- ls @) constmC,.q@u, th. d;"iie-moiliommcihTy ,^ :\1] ducer" Cecil B. DeMille. Yo s, but it i. r.";;;;t;J;;;;; The fjedr^otr."'6'pr,; 'lf Hollywood referent is an important comDonent of Frame 2. by narrative 9lpl.a!el1gl-s.In the following discussionof the show, tfr. Jilqd;ifldo't.,^')/ D------=-_. r/, ! ' x M{; Because Lever Brothers and JWT chose this particular kind of program transitions will be given particular consideration,for it is here that the. - ii I 1 rW!-{? , + l^^'! ^f. ' ''' A {rrq' llvc|{t,, -c_rtt9 t f' dsotet^ih..^io,Lr'. LtPff&^^r''\ "Lux 100 HollYwood and Broadcasting Radio Theare of the Air" 101 "cuing" seams in the continuous and smoothly flowing broadcast narrative are the listener, as does the applause of the..live studio audience,', "sutures-"-lequired into revealed,'In along with the to lead the-!!9191rer drawing on conventions already well established and understood by .odiG-."veu1ed ..Lux presents tfeiL0b uXi a.64 g..i* teitual,tra.,ritio.r,*-.-if broadiist's 1936. With the well-known declaration, Hollywoodl;' qork behind the scenes. ^b. , r . t as rhey attempt ro oDscuresome ol the forces at made by the show's announcer, followed by a rising musical overtur€ tr"tjl/ ih9t+4"\( states fA- Roland Barthes, discussing the codes at work in the novel, of the show's theme, the program effects an exit from what was. at "vacant" tuk'?p*,n,G this time, the rather world of the network into the sponsored ";:::1'J?Jffi:i:,'#1,:::n::::'.'.?#:il%n:'.'J'.::,::'::: program; CBS, as the network most receptive to the programming - from it: both demand 1 bourgeois society and the mass culture issuing needs of its commercial sponsors, tended during prime time to lade like signs'" from the foreground i tigns r,r'hich do not look T@itS almost completely. Thus the transition from Frame | .tructure, by which the listener is led TroE-ET-iZii-ilS-nZFsituation I to Frame 2 is rather suppressed, existing more in significant absence I nt.rhe ait*cial construct of the narrati't'e, cottespo"ds i6-iEe?iifr1iles than in presence, especially on CBS, the advertisers, network. NBC v r'ner"riairational n..+x;aiurthcs uSes--ofri{pi'--nf devices which seek to iiatui'aliid the during this period remained somewhat more obtrusive, in keeping with {"^tcl , r n nt^alWorft^*u subsequi:ntnarrative by feigningto -uk itth" orrtcome of some natural its organization and economics.35 'disinaugurating' circumstance and thus, as it were, it"-such as epistolary novels, ma.tusiripti supposedly discovered by the author, Frame 2 siories told to the author by some participant, films that begin before The transition from Frame 1 to Framg 2 would be tollowed by the "marker" "this "The the credits. without the that states is a fiIm," and so announcer's introduction: Lux Radio Theatre brings you Bette 'Dark on. (one thinks of the elaborate narrational framing of semiotician Davis and Spencer Tracy in Victory'. Ladies and gentlemen, Umberto Eco's popular novel, Tlv Name of tfu Rose).34 your produceq Mr. Cecil B. DeMille!" [music rises to climax, applause]. And, although all forms of creative expression act to obscury some The announcer's role in the case of this program took on overtones of ,.Lux of their eeneritive forces and techniques, the broadcast medium is the theatrical variety show or vaudeville, providing the Radio ln o6*we i{r q1h{_p".tic.rtaifl@-TE6 reasons for this again can be traced back to Theatre" with a plausible means of exiting from the previously broadcast * ^ U"; (otqs the fundamental economic structures of broadcasting, by which enter- material and entering the world of the Hollywood spectacle presided Afimfittiised as bait for commercial messages, Because time is held over by DeMille. After the applause died down, DeMille would confirm "Hollywood" captiGT] b-oth the broadcast and the film-both must take place in the unique element of the second frame with the equally "Greetings e"Apol"rir^*rr^I 4vd a iet pattern, during a set time, unlike reading a printed text-the well-known line from Holly'wood, ladies and gentlemen.,, "frame" h, ho,;L{-"i. abilitl of the audience to skip over or screen out commercial material He would then launch into the introductory material so CoH*r audiencels carefully Cen/ is greatly reduced. -In grder to hold the 4te4iqrl' 9,y9rt[ prepared by J. Walter Thompson scriptwriters, combining wruag.et commercial material-which ln itself ;tt iitG-iimited entertainment Hollywood lore and glamour-in the case of this broadcast, the recent value, or whlcn the audience may rCsist, or, more important in the Oscar awards won by Davis and Tracy-with an initial plug for the broadc-d3linstitu?idi-, *hich may not necessarily be construed as serving sponsor's product, given an equal dramatic weight by DeMille's charged "Tonight the public interest, convenience, or necessity-must be surrounded and delivery. wen the unemotional lights in front of the Lux i;cl.or-.t'by iiore appealingmalerial in an attemPt to obscure tlie hooT< Radio Theatre have a special glow of pride in our players and our 'Dark behinJ ihi'*o.-, the purpose behind the text- Hence the elaborate play, Victory'. Our stage is set for a prize-winning achievement- framing mechanism of the broadcast discourse. and so is the stage in your home, when Lux Flakes is starred- Many domestic producers have discovered that casting Lux Flakes in a leading Frame I role is good business at the household box office."36 "Lux "Dark The Radio Theattt"'s pr€sentation of Victory" opened This rather forced analogy is a typical feature of the ,.Lux" interior with the first, important transition from Frame 1, the broadcasting frame. To use another example, after an adaptation of the W. C. Fields frame, to Frame 2, the program-as-Program' the radio Program aware mwie Poppl, Fields and co-star Anne Shirley spoke with DeMille as of itself as such and not embarrassed to reveal its commercial PurPose' follows: after a short humorous monologue in which Fields recounted "valet As with most transitions in radio, music plays an important Part in his experiences as a de chambre" to a circus elephant and refers "Lux 102 HollYwood and Broadcasting Radio Thearre of the Air" 103 to his face turning red as a result of a small boy mistaking his nose A similar transition occurred during the second intermission. After "But ..In for that of an elephant, Anne Shirley giggled and stated, Mr' rising music and the familiar gong crash, the announcer said, just 'Dark Fields, don't you know that anything washed in Lux never changes a moment, Mr. DeMille brings you Act 3 of Victory"' and then "Sally" color? Might I recommend that you dip your trunk-I mean' nose' proceeded with annother conversation with extolling the virtues excuse me!-into a noggin of those beautiful Lux suds?" Fields then of Lux flakes, during the course of which a testimonial letter from a "Madame, replied, do you too wish to impugn my honor? I shall be Lux user was read. At the end of this commercial the hour's sole overt "network" heckled no more! Mr. DeMille, I bid you good night!"3? manifestation of Frame 1, the frame, occurred, as a voice "Dark "This For Victory," however, the Oscar nominees were not subject said, is the Columbia Broadcasting Systern-" Frame 2 quickly to such crass commercialization-so as not to tarnish this particularly reasserted itself with rising music and DeMille's introduction to the highly burnished Hollywood gloss, no taint of hucksterism was allowed third act. The routine varied slightly with the final commercial break too close to Davis or tacey. Instead, atypically, the two stars were after the conclusion of the play. This transition exited not only to the never required to talk about anything other than the Hollywood com- commercial framework but also introduced the main part of the Hol- ponent, including their recent and forthcoming films and small plugs lywood component, usually occuring in the form of a dialogue between "Lux" for other studio-related material. During this particular per- DeMille and the stars of the performance after its conclusion. This "In formance, the actual commercials were all read by the show's announcer time the announcer would state, just a moment Mr. DeMille "Now (not DeMille, but a flacelessvoice later given credit by DeMille as Mel returns with our stars" and close with Mr. DeMille is bring ..intermission," Ruick). For the first the transition occurred immediately our stars to the microphone." following the show's first major climax: after the operation on Davis's Thus Frame 2 is dominated by the persona of DeMille, who served "She'll brain tumor, the doctor closed the first act with the line, die as an important bridge between the commercial purposes of the program within a year" tragic music, crash of gong, applause]' The and the Hollywood component, not only in his persona, but also in [rising "You announcer's voice then came on the air saying, have just heard his function as he introduced the inner frame and provided the first 'Dark Act 1 of Victory' starring Spencer Tracy and Bette Davis' Mr' and last commercial plugs. Ratherthan disrupt the flow of the fictional DeMille brings you Act 2 in just a minute. But first, I have some narrative with an abrupt transition tiih-comfr6ftfl r,oi..-D"Mill.', important news for you. Listen a moment, and you'll hear how it function as the narrator and master of ceremonies allowed the-"closed" key]. The telegraph key is and fictional world of the film adaptation-to sounds on the wires [sound of telegraph gr". *gf-Siqd".a!y-p-"*outa qt" saying just three words. Here's what they are: New Quick Lux' Yes, diEn voice-oTTEEffiIalesriian, lmoothing oi.r it .t ott ..*Isi - "breakrbetween that's our big news for millions of housewives."3s be an abrupt closed fictional naratFe a.rd the direct A dialogue then ensued between the announcer and another com- add{gl!. of the commercial announcement'aq{F;dlaung .b-eJ:seenthe "Sally," "You know, mercial character, introduced as who interjected, co.,flicting ,reeds 9!he sho;[S_ogq.fq!4gdglle! the one hand, I thought Lux flakes just couldn't be improved. They're so swell!" @"ily*p@ho"st' After a minute-long promotion of Lux flakes, the announcer closed the as the broadcast medium developed, and its forms became conven- commercial and efiected the transition back to the second frame with tionalized and accepted, this buffering function became abbreviated, "Now the words, our producer, Mr. DeMille." DeMille came back on it can still be seen on broadcast television in the form of program "dis- "markers": the air-with a shift of microphones to produce a slightly more logos or still frames, often with a voice-over, marking the tanced" effect than the close-up mike techniques used in the commercial transition from program to advertisement. ' announcement, creating an impression of theatrical sPace-to an- As previously noted, the Hollywood elements involved in the pro- 'Dark "Lux nounce: "Act 2 of Victory', starring Spencer Tiacy as Dr. duction of the Radio Theatre" played an important role in its "mise-en-oreille" Frederick Steele and Bette Davis in the role of Judith Traherne, with overall popularity and in the of the program as a i whole. DeMille Earline Tuttle as Ann" [theme music up, then falling under DeMille's played the role of the Hollywood impresario, bringing voice]. DeMille then shifted into the other important aspect of his role stars and screenplays together for an appreciative audience, constantly i as emcee. that of narrator. involved in the creative pnocess of bringing the glamour of Hollywood ..Lux Radio Theatre of the Air,, 105 to the air. The following excerpt from his opening introduction on the Bogart, that night's stars) "Dark in a Lux endorsement, although they never Victory" if broadcast is a good example. spoke for themselves in the matter: If there's a litde more grey in my hair this week, believe me it came To bring the Bogart family to rehearsals, we had to lure them from the task of finding the right dramatic material for such splendid from their brand new mountain home...if you should drop in on a friendly artists as Bette Davis and spencer Tracy. In fact we considered and visit of inspection, as I did, you'd find Lux flakes rejecteddozens of plays beforeselecting the ..Dark doing their part in washing one we think is perfect, curtains, bedspreads, blankets, etc. etc. etc. when I commented on Victory." As a producer, I've alwaysdisliked the type of play known as thi! "vehicle," fact, Bogie assured me that on his fifty-four_foot a one that's designed yawl in Newport Harbor, for the actor instead of the audience. which is the Bogart's home away from home, Lux flakes are a standard And when there are two noted playersin a cast, there,s a double danger part of the equipment, making this family that the play will turn out ,,Dark loyal to Lux flakes on land to be a double vehicle. But Victoi" and sea."s has grip and power and human appeal. And when our curtain falls on the third act, I believe you'll agreewith me that this play is really a great These endorsements, whether actual or imputed, provided the emotional experience. Each woman in our audience will unconsciouslv necessary smooth,transition, or.suture, between the commercial put herself in the place of Judith Traherne; each man will wonder what function of thl program and one he would have done as Dr. Frederick Steele."3e of its entertainment functions, the glimfse into Hollywocid and its proiesies. But the other function or trr". rrort of trr. At the end of the program, DeMille traditionally interviewed the show, whether DeMille o. one of his successors, tied this iecondarv stars of that night's i& performance and perhaps included a commercial commercial-entertainment function to the inner frame, or p.im".y message within ,,Dark the interview. For Victory,', DeMille led Davis dramatic material of the evenin$-The nairation, together *iti=o-rrna and tacy into a conversation effects that f,ccussedfirmly on Hollywood, with and music, made it possible to condense and take away the the stars discussing their mutual regard for and past appearances with visual aspects of a film, yet still present a recognizable narrative. each other. However, at the end, Davis was allowed to inquire, ..What 'Lux are you planning for the Radio Theatre' next week, Mr. DeMille?" Tlu Inncr Framz and after DeMille's announcement that the next week's broadcast would one of the first tasks facing ..Lux "Sing the sciptwriters of the Radio Theatre,, be You Sinners" with Bing Crosby and a few further credirs, consisted of attempting to ald "I -sqree"r_4!_begr ong:h4!f to two hours she closed the show with know we're all going - of visually to enjoy that, Mr. 'lP,', ;ltq U)n dramatic material into u nfty--i^rt., u"aio-onlrna.rative. DeMille"-a fairly standard exchange for the better-known performers. ) : 'l Arurousn some ntms macle i, Jav the translation better than others, the basic In general, the closing interviews I: ffi provided an opportunity for the tod^f Ftc Hollywlod precept of narrative arways received primary consideration- unseen radio audienc. info-rmal,. orrt-of_character the narrative had to lq_li:rc.gja-q1r 4n make sense as a story, ^thematic"andpossessing a beginning, t: among tn. fa-o"i directo, :hat and the ,tr., oi;-h";"ffi;;;;G mr G,*ind end-no matt;; what kind of symbolic heard, and perhaps receiiilf'vievEfin ihe theater. ThL intimacy oithe reductiori had to'fak6-pliie 10 achibve this. This ii ce.tiinlriiliE-case &, radio experience gave audiences the chance with "Dark to participate in a casual victoi-i" in-whiifi mo-it"El?i6ents not directly related to moment with the stars, often involving a small joke or piece of monkey the relationship of Judith with Dr. Steele were jettisoned immediately. &. business, in their off-screen personas-an opportunity In addition, rarely accordei , economics of production mandated that as few actors and film viewers before the days of television. This listening in, intimate Ccgl.rn4. g:tresses_be r.lsed as possible: hecause of DeMille', ,ifu.y, ,"Uri""tiuf atmosphere also enhanced the qhe_ d $ efficacy gl gSqlaerci6l-ffi€S3.2se_if fees paid to the studios for the use of their stars, plus the Hollywood- 't, Anne Shirley or Evelyn Keys happened-i; ";;; I;.oup ;uJ,lary, style production varues of the program, &l the cost of producing the show how much more compelling than a regular commercial. The was heavy. In order K air of to afford the top stars who frovided ihe show's intimacy cultivated by the stars and host of the show could also be main appeal, cuts had to be made in other places. Where it proved used in their absence to sell the product: before beginning the narration to eliminate peripheral or minor .h.ru.t... ..To $possible f.o--1il.-ladio of the 1946 performance of Have and Have Not.', host William version,,theshorv'sregular:!1tr9:|:lrtrlg!_gr,,krr. Ilj*:l:T,.]:ro '.Bogart & Keighly implicated the family" (Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Play. ffijr K ql 106 Hollywood and Broadcasting : "Lux Radio Thearre of the Air', lO7 "Dark The basic plot of Victory," in stage, screen, and broadcast Here the words "desperately," .,cramming,,' ..excitement,,, and al- version, involves the character of Traherne (Bette Davis), a though unable Judith fully to transrate the twenty minutes of screen time young, wealthy Long Island socialite, who is diagnosed by Dr. Steele devoted to this plot development, still manage to convey important (George Brent, Spencer Thacy) a brain specialist, as having a brain information regardingJudith's activities and frame of mind. deMille tumor. Although an operation performed by Dr. Steele temporarily lollows this line with, "At york, "prognosis a horse show in New her reckless relieves her symptoms, her negative" means that she has jumping has won her first prize, and now she stands at the bar, receiving only a few months to live. Despitethe efiorts of her secretary-companion, the [slight pause] congratulations of her friends." Thus th. s.erre ii Ann (Geraldine Fitzgerald, Earline Tirttle) and those of Dr. Steele, set, and although it takes an attentive listener to pick up on DeMille's with whom a love interest develops, to keep her imminent demise a slightly ironic use of "congratulatio.rr'; the word lfollo*ing the term secret from the truth slips out and a period of wild living and "reckless"), Judith, which indicates the damage done byJudith to her-reputation denial of her feelings for Steele follows. During this period brief and standing with her friends during the preceeding period, enough dalliances with a playboy figure (played by Ronald Reagan in the {ilm information is given to smooth the transition back into the narratii,e version) and her stable manager (Humphrey Bogart) occur, but only as it proceeds. v "decently, lead her to realize that to die beautifully, finely" she must : ,.Lux te To accomplish the second task of the narrator, the Radio stop denying her fear and admit her love for Steele. They marry and Theatre" quite deliberately lo and specifically leads the interpretation back move to Vermont, where Steele has set up a laboratory to conduct to "Hollywood" le the frame by playing up the stars of each evening's serious research. Soon thereafter, the fatal symptom of darkening vision performance in monologue and interview, clearly establishing th. ac[, occurs, and dies after first having selflessly sent her husband or actress's 'l Judith presence in the production, often of a more intimate level away to receive an award for his work. rd than possible in the filmic production. Thus, althoQlrlllffiee In the radio version of the story the playboy character played in the Bette Davis as Jg{r-th taheme in the radio virsion, *ei.imaae well film by Ronald Reagan is eliminated entirely; the stable manager's awareof her..J-lii; p.....r.. i" tii. U-uaiu., ,,rriit"rra oiil;; role played by an oddly miscast Humphrey Bogart is not only reduced, qual it ie s b_y_ !9M iue,sU.si lli-ngE--oi1- "cre. -oiffi-may rn.i,GT6ilEaEil, but also changed significantly. The relationships between Ann and although the character created not be as convincirrg oi and between Ann and Steele, through simplification become Judith, as affecting as the one created in the fi-lm, we are aware of the presJnce much more schematized and sparse in connotation. In addition, the rs of Davis as that character-perhaps morE so,-E-ausE-ihE Elative lack of time and background information reduces the complexity of permeability-9f 'e. $e, radio text disrupts our process of identifying the characterization overall. Characters become in many cases little more actress as fully with the chardctbr' she'plays-and because the much ;IC than stereotypes, thus limiting the realistic and affecting properties of shorter time pifiiod allotted to the drama forces a simplification and the text. To substitute for lack of depth in the radio diegesis, the role reduction of its dramatic material. "our 8, of the narrator, performed o.r.e again by producer, Mr. Cecil "Dark l!. I. The transformationof Victory" into a broadc4s*t_p.toCttgtion, DeMille," becomes crucial. tnen;ffi olr.' z p-rocess oFsim pl i |se fi t"dtio n andssn eh t atio n it "t . rrclose. DeMille must accomplls.fu,qv.g.pri_maryfunctions in- the ltructure of the narratrvewlrhrn a segs_slintiliional&anesand to "Lux pro:iidCsfrquent the Radio Theatri." First, to Compeng-fe for iqduced, amount r fte o t@ Thir rt.ut.gy may also begin to account ly. oldiamatic material necessitated by the time constraints of the broadgast lor one ol the characteristicsof the broadcastmessage, its seemingly yll.1'l:!.provide3=6licigeTffi itummmFunallii6background s -strallowdigeesis, constantlv slrbiect to integlptions and self-referential ^fud id material for the story; second, this narration must lead-the listeners Luq7, e_temeq.!!_tha! con_trast.wirh the intense identifi cdii6i-ilEmanded bv the d- smoothly and out of the inner frame of fictionat diegesis, back to nlm: lJeMrlle's "Lux', fuu+nle.+^* lnto tunction in lg_iU_eftect-to.lead thq yiewer czn, )!v commercial frame. As an eximple of the former function, as DeMille -the .ep.at.@Tack to an awaxeness of those t'#"^" lct-".oy6-'L v's returns .' the listener to the inner frame after the second commercial c9-l9ernea p-g.uct io',, if,iiElili'Tu * ffiG-. produc t. In vtL.r-- ed "With .i"_lg break, he states (over a musical transition): only a few months other words,t}'e audienceis,l,e_d, n5i-?lEffiiito thi ficiional world lio of life before her, Judith taherne lives desperately, cramming her days' creareduy tn. aTa*i, i"-h;";t'F;r ifiharacters -a a."p.. ito uwtodnrt, and nights with excitement, striving vainly to forget." consideration of its themes, JU,'U. but instead is constantly pulled back, ed.rfre $t&aq "Lux 108 Hollywood and Broadcasting Radio Theatre of the Air" 109 and producer-of intermpted, made aware of the presence of stars and for advertisers, for the expresspurpose of capturine the audience,s Traheinel-6f-S-p€nt6i"Tracy, nol Dr.'Steele, of )Bette Davis, not Judith ailention on1yto redirg{l l, t.!e p'9qgg3?gy9l!I:d led to the product being advertised. lo DeMille the showman-and thence This structure can be seen particularly clearly in an examination of "Lux," early radio programs, such as because they are the site of Structures of the Commercial Broadcast Text innovation of both the economic structure of broadcasting and its characteristic mode of discourse. The tension between the interests of film traditionally been regarded 35 a f'glos,e-{l' The Hollywood Lras the various_producers of the radio plogEfrlfrTRiFg through aatiildiG6 .Epri[eni-iiorr.l ,yrt.* using a predominantly linear method of plot of frames and transitions, act specifically and firimarily to lead the development and strict adherence to a realistic aesthetic demanding a reader away lrom the dramatiC-narrative itself to intertextual consid- tightly controlled diegesis.*rNo extraneous information is contained -eratfifrti "Lui"'s i h4wing more to do, in case, with the fffi5f within the frame, nothing occurs that cannot be accounted for by the l; Hollywood and the carefully associated commercial product ffi;ffi demands of the narrative and the conventions of the traditional style. "classic thCiiEiEiiiba ;ork. Althoush -uy upp... urrypltXiai. The conventions of the Hollywood film" include such techniques _1h,!199ryept 1; garde in its self-reflexivity, these frames are rhemselves prgclgqqs_of as point-of-view construction and self-effacing narration, which intensify -.1- "Lux," encoding; theii reGieftS;-ifr-thb casC of lie in the myttlor the spectator's identification with the characters on the screen and 'mystique "realistic" of Hollywood ahd similar sets of meaning that the sponsor heighten his or her involvement with the enclosed world "being iirii'c y_i,sheg19 tie-to-the product advertised."- llli'' created by the film. This is certainly the case with the film version of From the tightly ordered, heavily symbolic universe of the fi.lm iiil,. Dark Victory which changes the Progression and location of the narrative "sketcH6r "artificiality" nanative, the radio version becomes little more than I to correct any resulting from the work's original stage 6il:tline for what was the filml a permeable that permits ihe setting. For instance, instead of the first scene occurring in Dr. Steele's Qls-coursg IGtener- Td-eiit-ESily mm-thejdffiitic dieeesis-but immediatelv office, as in the play, the film begins with a scene in which Judith falls "rccaptures"---,ru: -' that listener by directine fiioFFdr attEntion to the other from a horse as a result of tumor-induced double vision, to avoid the sets of codes, or frames, at work. AlthoffElEdaudielce-of the broad-casq awkwardness ofa flashback or an overdependence on dramatic dialogue ibrfi6fi-oT"""Daili-Vicio$- -.-y ;i b".o-. asln.rolved *itrr trt" to establish previous events. chaiacfef of Traherne as does the film viewer, he will The broad!:as! text, gq- the other hand, has frequently. been char- Judith or she be Ied back t11ne and again imagine Bgtte Davis, the actrefsl-playing actifrZed'.--asdi.pi.rt.J,;' with a relativEl'| shallow diegesis that disallows to prevalent in film. that part, partially through specific foregrounding of the star function the intense identification with the narrative so John ';Hollywoo?')"liim?, "engaging the look and the glance in the-iliowf *hich in turn iontains its r&renies Ellis sees the television image as "Luxt'.soap, to lending'associations to the product as desirif,by-fre rather than the gaze [of the film spectator]." Television viewing's "drifting "random quality," with sPectators in and out of the viewing advertiser..DeMille, whose equally encoded persona as program host "greatly experience over a period of time," has the effect of minimizing presides over this process, represents the synthesizing force that mediates the possibilities fior sp€ctator engagement," producing low viewer in- the tension between the program's thr€e different frames gf intent: volvement, according to Farrell Corcoran'*2 Although these writers and network, advertiser, and dramatic program. others attribute the source of television's unique qualities to different But what, then, of the structures of the contemporary dominant "host" aspects of the broadcast medium-its multiple and varied texts, constant broadcast lorm, broadcast television, long after the program or shifting of modes of address, continuous Presence in the home, the use emcee-still present in many early TV productions-has vanished from habits of its viewers, and its heavy reliance on the sound component the scene? With the emergence of the networks as the primary pro- "causes" of its discourse-each of these can be seen as secondary gramming agency in the late 1950s (chapter 5), the role of rhe sponsor characteristics, deriving from structures, both textual and economic, diminished to the simple purchase of thirty- or sixty-second spots originated by the early radio programs. The broadcast text as developed adjacent to the programs selected and scheduled by the networks, and in the United States on the commerciahe-ilpo1'trs--i3--f-undmentally a produced by the television production companies with whom the net- segmented, disrupted, permeable discourseGus6 it "t'ii created by works contract. Thus Frames I and 3 begin to elide, obscuring Frame "Lux 110 Hollywood and Broadcasting Radio Thearre of the Air', lll 2 as the network takes onto itself the commercial interests formerly of the nickoledeon and vaudeville-transformed by changing circum- held by an independent sponsor. stancesinto a form barely recognizable by its former standards. (.Lux" To further reduce the seeming importance of the role of the sponsor did make the initial transition to television in the early 1950s as the the various frames "Lux Video in network television, the marked transitions between Theatre," but its existence was short-lived. Why was a "Lux" of TV have been played down, streamlined but not entirely eliminated. successful show like forced to make that highly unsuitable program to the commercial Today's transitions from the inner core of the transition in the first place? The nexr chapter will discuss the aban- a cut to a show's logo break take the form of a simple fade to black, or donment of radio for television on the part of advertisers, made inevitable in still frame, perhaps with a tag of theme music. Some programs have by the policies and practices of the major networks. But having been eliminated the transition marker altogether, suspending the viewer in forced to be seen as well as heard, ilux" "product" why did the video version of temporary uncertainty about the status of what he or she fail to live up to its predecessor? "psychological" The reasons for this relate to the is seeing. Perhaps this is a marker. Today's narrator economics and to the formal structures of both film and television. is not explicit but implied, usually invested visually in the opening "Lux,' The television version of began in very much the same way sequence with which each program is introduced. The old transition, as did the radio program. From october 1950 until September 1952, "And now, a word from our sponsor...," once so familiar, has been Lux broadcast one half-hour of adaptations of stage material from eliminated entirely, except on public television, the economic base of New York, moving to Holly.wood in September 1952 but which is very different. Frame I becomes much more explicit, as we continuing with nonfilm, theater-based material until August 1954, when are bombarded by network previews and announcements ("Stay tuned th. p.ogram "Don't moved to NBC for a full-hour broadcast for...," miss...") promoting high awarenessof the network slot, Thursday nights lrom 10:00-11:00. During that same itself as a recognizable author of the television discourse-a necessary season, 1954-55, the radio-program went off the air after strategy in an era of proliferating channels and program services. several years of declining ratings. TheatricJflm adaptations In effect, then, as television has evolved, the function of Frame 2, became the main staple of the video program, withJames Mason the realm of the sponsoq has been not eliminated but increasingly as host that season, followed by Otto Kruger, Gordon MacRae, denied, disconnected from the content of the programs themselves, and Ken Carpenter. As with the radio show, interviews with the stars relegated to a seemingly distant source separate from the actual content and studio personnel connected with the evening's performance re- and function of television. Today's commercials seem to attemPt to mained de rigeur, but severaj factors rendered such appearances less "sneak" into the flow of programming, often taking the protective effective than their radio predecessors. coloring of the programs themselves-or increasingly, resembling an- First, during this same season, 1954-55, Hollywood began to make other form of programming, the music video-in order to minimize its presence feit on television using a different strategy than it had with the sense of transition from one mode of narration to another, in order radio. Rather than allow others to control the production of television to obscure the source of ultimate economic power in the structure of programs' most major studios went into production for themselves broadcast television. Each frame identified in the preceding discussion (chapter 5). Second, 1955 is the year in which theatrical films began of codes and signifying is made up of and utilizes a complex system to show up on network and syndicated television. With the films ( practices that need to be examined in detail, with close attention Paid themselves available, the purpose of the Lux concept was called into to specific historical and production conditions. This analysis of the question. why allow movie properties to be exposed to audiences in framing structures of the broadcast discourse can only point out the t a reduced, live, rewritten format when the films themselvescould now largest categories, but perhaps it can provide a starting point, at least, r find a new market on TV? Technical conditions as well as economic for future exploration, as the structures worked out in the early days 1 constraints mandated against a visual experience that could in any way of broadcast radio provided the starting point for the emergence of approximate the production values of a theatrical film: if inferior television programs and forms. f ,.use productions were to be allowed to up,, a fi.lm,s appeal with a s broadcast audience, wherein lay the benefit for the film industry? d The Transition to Television Also, with the Paramount decrees of l94T conditions in Hollywood :- "Lux itselfhad As successful as the Radio Theatre of the Air" was, we no longer changed; studios no longer held stars under the kind oflong- .e experience its like today. The radio film adaptation has gone the way term contracts as they had fiormerly, able to loan them out to radio or "Lux Hollywood and Broadcasting Radio Theatre of the Air" 113 "Lux other studios at will. The Video Theatre" was never able to 7. Raymond Williams, Titeuision: Ttchnohgy and Cultural Forz (New york: properties that the radio program drew so Schocken Books, 1977), pp. 90-91; Mike Budd, Steve Craiq, and Clay Stein- attract the top stars and "Fantasy man, Island: well, thus lessening the appeal of the commercial endorsements f,or Marketplace of Desire ,,,Jounat of Connunialion (Winter 1983): 67-77; Sandy Flitterman, ..The Lux soap as well as the benefit to the film studios. For example, an r%a/ Soap Operas: TV Commercials," "Double in Regarding Tileaision, ed. E. Ann Kaplan york: adaptation of Indemnity" (December 16, 1954), although (New AFI Monographs, 1984), pp. 8a-96. drawing on the Billy Wilder-Raymond Chandler film scenario, lost a 8. Erik Barnouw does credit the agencies, notably young and good part of its original appeal with such stars as Laraine Day and -Rgbicag "Casablanca" with providing the impetus that brought Hollywood i"o *aio3ito@-n-is Frank Lovejoy in the leads. (March 3, 1955), with Paul attribution of specific credit can be debated; elsewhere, he mentions some of Arlene Dahl, and Hoagy Carmichael could hardly purport Douglas, the people who played a role in writing and acting in early radio programs, prop€rty as the film. By spring 1957, more adaPtations to be the same but in a sporadic and anecdotal manner. The study of advertising has brought based on plays and short stories had begun to creeP into the schedule, little in the way of detailed historicar "Lux accounts of the actua.l p.o..., of p-g..- and in the fall 1958 season the show's name was changed to the innovation; a survey of the literature of advertising gives the imp.ession that Playhouse," going back to a one half-hour format and alternating on students of that field live in the moment: for every historical u..o,rrrt, no matter i,ti "schlitz Friday nights on CBS with the Playhouse of the Stars." With how personal or eccentric, ten studies ofcurrent techniques and strategies rine t changing circumstances surrounding both the film and broadcasting the shelves. One history, Stephen Fox's Zlz Minor Makcrs (Random House, interests of the networks, the com- 1983), provides interesring and valuable detail on the history of some of the l{ , industries, the tension among the they depended on major firms; however his focus-on the development and alternation of different t, mercial sponsors and their agencies, and the studios advertising strategies and styles-and his overall thesis, implied in the title- t;1 for audience appeal shifted into a different formation. Relations between that advertisers merely reflect trends and forces in society rather Hollywood and the broadcasting business entered a new phase- than create them-weaken Fox's discussion of the impact agencies may have engendered on other social institutions, including radio. "Political NOTES 9. Nick Browne, Economy of the Television (Super) Ti:xt," in Tbleaision: Tlu Citical Vicw, ed,. Newcomb, pp. 585-99. 1. Stuart Hall, "Cultural Studies: Two Paradigms," in Media, Culturc,and 10. Llewellyn White, Tlu Amtrican Radio (Chicago: University Socictl:A Citical Rcadcr,ed. Richard Collins et aJ. (London: Sage' 1986)' p. of Chicago Press, 1947), pp. playstead +7. 5+-67; Fox, Minor Maktrs, p. 150; James Wood, "Encoding/Decoding," TIU Stnry of Adaotising (New York: Ronald press, t95g), p. 413. 2. Stuart Hall, in Culture, Mcdia, I'angugc, ed. Stuart il.'.i' 11. Ralph M. Hower, j Tlu Hzstory of an Ad,oertisingAgency: N. Hall et al. (New York: Longman, l9B3), p. 377. W 4o €n Soo,_ "Encoding ar Work 1869-1939 (Cambridge: Harvard University press, 1939), p. 3. Stuart Ha1l, and Decoding in the Television Discourse," 199. 12. Hower, N. W. A7c4 p. 169; Allen, Spcaking l,if. Occasionai Papers, Centre for Cultural Studies, University of Birmingham, oJ Soap Opcras, pp. lt6-17; Fox, Minor Makzrs, to television production in pp. 159-60. 1973, p. 2. David Barker applies Hall's theories "One "Television . 13- Kenneth L. Watt, post, Production Techniques as Communication"' in Telnision: Tlu Minute to Go," TIu Saturdal Ewting Aprtl (New York: Oxford University 2, 1938, pp. 8-9; April 9, 1938, pp. 22-23. Citical Vizu, 4th ed., ed. Horace Newcomb "One 14. Watt, Minute to Go," April 9, p. 23. Press, 1987), pp. 179-96. "Radio "The 15. Fortunc, 4. Stuart Hall, Toad in the Garden: Thatcherism Among the II: A $45,000,000 Talent Bill,', May 1938, p. 54. 16. Allen, phillips's Theorists," in Manisn and tlu Inwprewion oJ Culture, ed. Cary Nelson and Speakng oJSoap Opoas, p. l 19; Allen quotes from proposal: "'Thus', 'the Lawrence Grossberg (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1988), p. 48. Phillips suggested, transition from commercial announcements "Mass-Produced to the story can be practically painless, and a great 5. Janet Staiger, Photoplays: Economic and Signifying deal of actual selling can Practices in the First Years of Hollywood," in Mouizs and Methods, vol. 2, ed. be done in the story itself." Bill Nichols (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1985), pp. 144-61; 17. Roland Marchand, Adaertising thc Amcrican Drcan (Berkeley: University "The Douglas Gomerey, Coming of Sound to American Cinema," Ph.D. of California Press, 1985), p. 106. "The diss., University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1975; Charles Musser, Early 18. Fox, Minor Makns, pp. 30-31, 80-82; Fortuu, Novembcr 1947, p. 94. Cinema of Edwin Porter," Cinana 19 (Fall 1979): 23. 19. Fox, Minor Malurs, pp. 88-89. Jourul "Mr. 6. Robert C. Allen, Speakingof Soap Opcras(Chapel Hill: University of North 20- Countway Thkes the f6,,, Fortunc, November 1940. Carolina Press, 1986), p. 128. 21. Ibid., p. 116. "Lux 114 Hollywood and Broadcasting Radio Theatre of the Air" llJ "Daniel 40. Lux Radio Theatre, "To Have and Have Not." 22. Ibid., p. 97; J. Dankea Jr.," Natioul Cyclopcdia oJ Ancritan (Clifton, NJ.,J. T. White, 1926), 33:223. 41. See, for example, Bill Nichols, Ideologt and tlu Inage (Bloomington: Biography "The NJ.: Prentice- Hall, Indiana University Press, 1981); Daniel Dayan, Tutor Code of Classical 23. John Dunning, Tinu in ksttrdolt (Englewood Cliffs, "The p. 378; Bernard Lucich, Lux Radio Theater," in Amcritan Broad' Cinema," in Moaits and Methods, ed. Nichols; Kristin Thompsom and David 1976), "Space casting: A Sourccbookon tlv History of Rdio and Telzoision, ed. Lawrence W. Lichty Bordwell, and Narrative in the Films of Ozu," Screm l7 (Summer and Malachi C. Topping (New York: Hastings House, 1975)' p. 391. 1976): 42-43. 24. Marchand, Aduetiing tlu American Dteam, p. 161. 42. John Ellis, Viibb Frlrozs (New York: Oxford University Press, 1982), Ibid., pp. 94, 106. p. 128; John Fiske and John Hartley, Reading Tileaision (New York: Methuen, 25. "Television "The 1978); Farrell Corcoran, as Ideological Apparatus: The Power and 26. Lux Radio Theatre, Legionnaire and the Lady," June l' 1936; from audio recording in the collection of the Museum of Broadcasting, New the Pleasure," Citical Studbs in Mass Communicalion (June 1984): 141. York, N.Y. "Lux" 27. Several productions were used to establish normal program "Dark structures: Victory," airedJanuary B, 19'10(Minneapolis: Radio Reruns, "To 1977); Have and Have Not," airtd October l+, 19+6 (Sandy Hook, NJ': "Poppy," Radiola, 1971); aired March 7, 1938 (Minneapolis: Radio Reruns, "The 1977); Legionnaire and the Lady," aired June 1, 1936 (New York: "The Museum of Broadcasting Collection); Al Jolson Storn" aired February 16, 1948 (Mobile, Ala.: Mobile Public Library Collection). "He 28' Frank Daugherty, Sells SoaptJ Tlu Christiut' Sciatrc Moniw WccHl March 25, 1944, p. 8. 29. Th. Best Phls of 1934-35 (New York: Dodd Mead, 1935)' p. 404- 30. From reviews cited in Leslie Halliwell, Halliunll's Film Guidt, 3d d- (New York: Avon Books, 19Ba), p. 303. 31. Gene Ringgold and DeWitt Bodeen, Tlu Films of Cccil B. DeMillz (New York: Citadel, 1969), pp. 370,372. 32. Williams, hlaision: Tirhnolog and Cultural Form, pp. 86-94; Michele "The Hilmes, Television Apparatus: Direct Address," Jounal of Filn and Vidto 37 (Fdl 1985): 27-36. "Encoding/Decoding," "Towards 33. Halt, pp. 128-38; {Jmberto Eco, a Semiotic Inquiry into the Television Message," Working Papersin Cultural Stu.dizs no. 3 (Autumn 1972):103-21; Erving Goffman, Framz Analysis (New York: Harper, 1974). 34- Roland Barthes, Imagc Music ??* (New York: Hill and Wang, 1977)' pp.114-17. 35. Frame I is also remarkably hard to study historically in its textual manifestations, because it is precisely these network announcements, con- nectors, and transitions that subsequent recordings of radio programs deemed unnecessary and uninteresting and edited out. It is difficult to find recordings taken from radio in their entirety from the 1920s, 1930s, and even early 1940s, thus my conclusions here are highly tentative. "Dark 36. Lux Radio Theatre, Victory." "Poppy." 37. Lux Radio Theatre, "Dark 38. Lux Radio Theatre, Victory." 39. Ibid.