The Big Story

Thanks for the episode greybelt

Best regards
Art

Coming in just a few weeks! Details on joining the Zoom conference will be available that week.

UGH! Wrong date on my previous post... it's actually Friday August 12. Got the day right in my calendar, not the date

We have been trying to track down the real story behind the October 1, 1947 episode about counterfeit coins by Jack Adams of the Los Angeles Examiner. There are so many counterfeiting stories in that period and that region for multiple decades. A problem with the research is that the Examiner archives are not available online.

Yesterday, Karl Schadow reminded me that there was an audition program cut for a new series in 1946 produced by the legendary Mark Hellinger. The series, "The Fourth Estate," never made it to the air... but... the audition is good and starred Edmond O'Brien... and you can hear Jack Adams!


You can hear many of the elements that would be used in The Big Story. I was hoping that there might be a clue in this dramatization about the case that could lead me to the original story. No luck. But they did say it was a "page 1" story on the cover of The Examiner. The best I can determine is that the story is from 1933 or possibly 1937.

Radio Life did a story about the audition performance, with photos. Download the PDF
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I had wondered if this audition, though failed, played any role in the formulation of Feature Assignment, the first audition of TBS... but FA was actually first! We have a scan of that audition, which was from February 1946. This may have been a race to get a newspaper program on the air. The Feature Assignment script was prepared for CBS, and obviously never made the network schedule. TBS would become an NBC series on radio and TV.

The FA audition recording has always been dated as 1947. I suspect that was because no one had a copy of the script before now.

And it indicates a progression of the series name...
Special Assignment gave way to Feature Assignment which became The Big Story. On the script you can see "special" crossed out and replaced by a handwritten "feature."

As I scanned the Variety data base, it was clear that these two show ideas were competing for attention for months and months among the networks and advertisers. TFE was getting most of the publicity, and was even accepted by NBC and had Philip Morris as a sponsor. It all fell through and Feature Assignment became the choice, with the name change to TBS settled a week or so before the initial broadcast.

The Big Story presentation is this Friday, August 12, 2022 at 7:30pm.

All of Cobaltia is invited! Send an e-mail to [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] and you will get a bounceback email with the Zoom details.

MWOTRC will have their regular member meeting starting at 7:30pm and the presentation will begin at about 8:10 or 8:15 and last an hour. Be sure to log in at that time if you want to just hear the presentation. OR... sign in at 7:30 and enjoy their fun.

MWOTRC is one of classic radio's longest-running clubs, and its members stayed together during the COVID lockdowns by switching to Zoom. They still meet in person now and then, especially during the Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention, putting on recreations at that event.

Please join in!

I hope the presentation went well! I wish I could have attended, but had some family obligations in the evening.

Thanks! We had a good time and they were pleased. There was no real Q&A -- usually that's a sign that not many people were actually familiar with the series other than hearing an occasional episode. I think we raised some interest

Video is not available yet

But the web page created for the presentation is available at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

The COMPLETE SET of circulating TBS is available there as well as some interesting items that were discussed in the presentation

A PDF of the slides can be downloaded as well.

Back in a few days....

The presentation is now online
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It's the full meeting of MWOTRC, but that link will start the video at the beginning of The Big Story presentation.
It's followed by a discussion about the late Jay Hickerson

The Big Story video is now available as a standalone excerpt of the MWOTRC meeting.

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The slides, TBS TV episodes and the set of circulating episodes are at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Thanks for the presentation link, greybelt. I really enjoyed watching it! Really excellent presentation!

Watched your presentation yesterday...very enjoyable. I, for one, am glad they didn't go deeper into some of the gruesome details behind the stories

Dear folks,
Sorry I haven't written lately


Well, I got snookered into thinking I had a missing episode, and I thought I had checked it, but it was not. (So I kind of snookered myself!) It was a mislabeled file.
I thought I had
47-05-21 (008) The Tactless Texan [Gene Howe, Amarillo Globe]
but it was a mislabled and lesser copy of
48-07-21 069 The Lottery Racket [Keeler McCartney]
So, beware if you see this file anywhere...

I did the research on the episode in preparation for posting. It was one of those fascinating episodes and real stories that I thought I'd post the notes for it anyway. I wish the recording actually existed!

It features one of those colorful reporters entrenched in the goings-on of their community for decades. This one, however, was the publisher of a little newspaper that garnered lots of national attention for the strangeness of the crime. The city grew and the publisher became one its best-known citizens. An elementary school in town still bears his name.

A man gets a eye for his secretary and decides to blow up his car to kill his wife. He injures his son in the process. He's convicted of the crime... and commits suicide by blowing himself up in his jail cell. But it's not before he writes it all in his diary. The new rule: don't let prisoners keep nitro in their cell.


The resolution was announced at the conclusion of the broadcast.



Gene Howe bio at the Texas State Historical Association
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Texas Panhandle Sports Association
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Kansas Press Association Hall of Fame
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Find-A-Grave
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His motto: "A newspaper may be forgiven for lack of wisdom but never for lack of courage."


Here's the strange story through the clippings...


This is the house at 3711 Fountain Terrace where the incident took place. After the incident, traffic to the neighborhood was packed for days as curious locals wanted to see where the strange crime occurred. This is how the home looks today



AB MacDonald was a successful reporter but occasionally would venture into other aspects of communications. He left newspapers for a little while to become the publicity agent for preacher Billy Sunday.

A bio can be found at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Here's a photo of him (where's the paper that is in the outer hatband that says "press"?) ... as well as his Pulitzer prize certificate...


The document at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
has detailed information about the Payne case and the Pulitzer submission starting on p31


Despite the lack of a recording, this was a really interesting story to investigate. The early The Big Story episodes seemed to search for really big stories that got national attention in their time and had famous reporters. Then it became the grittier local-name reporters who got more of the show's focus.

There are some upgrades that will be posted these next few days. Stay tuned!!

These next few days will have some upgrades -- most days will have more than one. Links to the prior posts that have the research are also supplied

We still can't find the original news story for this episode. Counterfeiting was rampant in Los Angeles. I've had no luck finding references in obituaries or other sources. The best guess now is that it's the "Sampson Ring" in 1932-1934.

Big Story 47-10-01 (027) Counterfeit Coins [Jack Adams, Los Angeles Examiner] UPGRADE.mp3
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The original post was [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

This was also dramatized for an audition for the newspaper series The Fourth Estate. The recording and background is at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]


This next one is of the Kilgallen episode that has circulated for decades. There were two posts about it, and great relief when we finally found the original story.

Big Story 47-10-15 (029) Bobby Soxer Kid From Bayonne [Dorothy Kilgallen, Journal American] UPGRADE.mp3
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Big Story 47-11-26 (035) Unfinished Love Song [HowardBeaufait,ClevelandNews]UPGRADE-2.mp3
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This is about the real-life event that inspired the play and movie Arsenic and Old Lace
Big Story 47-12-10 (037) Final Curtain [Aubrey Maddock, Hartford Daily Courant] UPGRADE-2.mp3
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Yesterday I posted the upgrade of the Aubrey Maddox episode that dramatized the news story that would inspire the play Arsenic and Old Lace. It just so happens that a version of the play was posted as the latest entry at the Good Old Days of Radio podcast. It's part of their month-long tribute to Boris Karloff, and his daughter, Sara Karloff, joins them! The program is from 1946-11-25 Screen Guild Players.
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Big Story 47-12-17 (038) Ambitious Hobo [Russ Wilson, Des Moines Tribune] UPGRADE-2.mp3
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Big Story 48-01-07 (041) Manhunt In Manhattan [Ted Prager, NY Daily News] UPGRADE-3.mp3
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Thanks greybelt

Best regards
Art

All done with the upgrades with this batch...

Big Story 48-05-05 (058) Pillars Of Society [William Miller, Cleveland Press] UPGRADE-3.mp3
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Big Story 49-01-26 (096) Liquidating Partnership (Jigsaw Crime) [Joseph Werges, Arkansas Gazette] UPGRADE.mp3
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There are two versions of this episode -- this one has the opening time tone
Big Story 49-03-09 (102) Respected Chemist Dead [Ike McAnally, Cleveland News] HAS TIME TONE - UPGRADE.mp3
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Thanks greybelt

Best regards

Art

In January, I'll be hosting 4 weeks of the Radio Talking Book Service "Dusty Attic" program -- and the theme will be newspapers. So I'll be playing some Casey, Night Beat, and also some Big Story.

Which three Big Story episodes should I play?

My favourite episode has always been

47-11-26 (035) The Unfinished Love Song

Best regards

Art

Radio Talking Books Service presents "The Dusty Attic" tribute to newspapers and newspaper reporters of the classic radio era.

Dr. Joe Webb hosts this four-week exploration of the role of newspapers in society and their depiction in audio dramas.

The first installment is Saturday, January 7, and is repeated on Sunday. Here are the details...

Listen to the stream at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] or with the TuneIn radio service
The weekly "Dusty Attic" program can be heard at 11pm ET on Saturday and repeated again at 10pm ET Sunday.

Saturday January 7 11pm / Sunday January 8 10pm
The Big Story - Audition show 1946-02-05 Feature Assignment (never aired) - the original plans for the series were a bit different than when The Big Story came to the air in 1947; this is the famous story about a young man sent to prison, framed for a murder to cover up police corruption during Prohibition; he was freed many years later after his mother, who cleaned offices overnight for many years, so she could offer her life savings as a cash reward to someone, anyone, who would finally step forward with the truth
Screen Director's Playhouse 1949-12-09 Call Northside 777 starring Jimmy Stewart - Hollywood offers a superb treatment of the very same news story, with Jimmy Stewart's top-notch radio acting skills and a big-budget production

Saturday January 14 11pm / Sunday January 15 10pm
Night Beat - 1951-06-08 Search for Fred - a case of rabies paralyzes Chicago, with Frank Lovejoy as Randy Stone in one of classic radio's finest series
Big Town - 1939-07-14 Deep Death - Edward G. Robinson covers a tragic story of a mine collapse and its far-reaching implications for the industry

Saturday January 21 11pm / Sunday January 22 10pm
The Big Story 1950-12-06 Bernard Beckwith, Denver Post reporter, encounters a peculiar carpenter who keeps changing the story of his wife's mysterious death
Casey, Crime Photographer 1947-05-08 The Laughing Killer - a former bandleader is out of prison, framed for a murder he didn't commit, the kind of story that always drove Casey to find the truth

Saturday January 28 11pm / Sunday January 29 10pm
Night Beat - 1952-07-03 The Old Itch - Randy Stone is driven to his wits end by a reporter, played by real-life wife Joan Banks, whom Randy finds attractive and frustrating as a competitor; it's clear that Frank and Joan are having a marvelous time performing in a script expressly written for their talents and their personal affection
Casey, Crime Photographer - 1947-03-20 The Demon Miner - A rejected Shadow script is re-written to become one of the most exciting Casey episodes ever produced.

Many thanks to retired reporter Bob Stepno (jheroes.com), professor Matt Nunes, Frank Lovejoy enthusiasts Don Ramlow and Karl Schadow, and many others whose research and encouragement were essential to these presentations.

NOTE: RTBS recommends using the TuneIn app, but there may be occasional commercial interruptions when using the smartphone version. There are no commercials using the TuneIn app on Roku and other popular streaming devices.

Saturday night (Jan 21 2023) is part three of Radio Talking Books Service "The Dusty Attic" tribute to newspapers and newspaper reporters of the classic radio era. This is the third of a four-week exploration of the role of newspapers in society and their depiction in audio dramas hosted by Dr. Joe Webb.

The weekly "Dusty Attic" program can be heard at 11pm ET on Saturday and repeated again at 10pm ET Sunday. Listen to the stream at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] or with the TuneIn radio service

Saturday January 21 11pm / Sunday January 22 10pm
* The Big Story 1950-12-06 Bernard Beckwith, Denver Post reporter, encounters a peculiar carpenter who keeps changing the story of his wife's mysterious death THIS RECORDING IS A BIG SOUND UPGRADE!
* Casey, Crime Photographer 1947-05-08 The Laughing Killer - a former bandleader is out of prison, framed for a murder he didn't commit, the kind of story that always drove Casey to find the truth. (My old show notes page is at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] -- FYI the audio links no longer work)

NOTE: RTBS recommends using the TuneIn app, but there may be occasional commercial interruptions when using the smartphone version. There are no commercials using the TuneIn app on Roku and other popular streaming devices.

Tonight is the concluding part of Radio Talking Books Service "The Dusty Attic" tribute to newspapers and newspaper reporters of the classic radio era. This is the last of a four-week exploration of the role of newspapers in society and their depiction in audio dramas hosted by Dr. Joe Webb.

The weekly "Dusty Attic" program can be heard at 11pm ET on Saturday and repeated again at 10pm ET Sunday. Listen to the stream at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]  or with the TuneIn radio service

Saturday January 28 11pm / Sunday January 29 10pm
* Night Beat - 1952-07-03 The Old Itch - Randy Stone is driven to his wits end by a reporter, played by real-life wife Joan Banks, whom Randy finds attractive and frustrating as a competitor; it's clear that Frank and Joan are having a marvelous time performing in a script expressly written for their talents and their personal affection
* Casey, Crime Photographer - 1947-03-20 The Demon Miner - A rejected Shadow script is re-written to become one of the most exciting Casey episodes ever produced.

NOTE: RTBS recommends using the TuneIn app, but there may be occasional commercial interruptions when using the smartphone version. There are no commercials using the TuneIn app on Roku and other popular streaming devices.


And regarding The Big Story, I was able to hear an interview with Allan Sloane, and in it he says that he was the one who recommended the change from Feature Assignment to The Big Story. Ah, so it was Allan who was checking out the racing forms where the horse "Big Story" was in the news so much that Spring.   We'll never know -- the phrase "big story" was always in the jargon of the newspaper business. One thing I was not aware of was how Sloane worked in small papers at the start of his career. That meant he had some background to pull into the scripts, and, he also knew many of the reporters they were "fictionalizing" in the scripts. I would think that would be early on in the series before the series became a magnet for submissions.

He also said he helped inspire the opening theme when he realized typing the letters T-H-E-spacebar-B-I-G-spacebar-S-T-O-R-Y had a rhythm and sound to it on his manual typewriter that he demonstrated to the composer.

It is pretty interesting stuff -- and this is all in just a few minutes of chatter.