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Radio Minstrels were entertainers whose shows considered of comic skits, variety acts, and music performed by people heard on radio, especially during the pre television years.
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Radio Minstrels were entertainers whose shows considered of comic skits, variety acts, and music performed by people heard on radio, especially during the pre television years.
By the 1920s, radio minstrel shows began appearing on the American radio, usually as musical performers who traveled to different cities doing concerts. As radio stations increased their airtime to fill all day, 7 days per week, demand increased for musicians who could entertain the audience. Radio stations used similar performers at other stations throughout the Midwest and into Tennessee. These migrating minstrels were a mainstay of programming for the rural independent broadcaster. Musicians regularly moved between stations in search of greener concert pastures with better booking potential. [1]
The rise of radio minstrel shows occurred on live locally programmed community radio stations. They broadcast content that was popular and relevant to their local/specific audience. During the 1920s and 1930s the majority of stations functioned as independent stations but there was little study on the types of content they aired. It is commonly believed that almost all programming of the era came through the networks with local stations acting as signal repeaters because broadcasts on local stations were produced live and went unrecorded in either sound or paper form. [2] Thus, it can be difficult to obtain information about programming at the local station levels.
The earliest minstrel performers were locally popular. During the beginning of the 1930s, Gene Autry was an American performer who became fame as 'The Singing Cowboy on the radio . In 1929, Autry signed a recording deal with Columbia Records. For four years, he worked in Chicago, Illinois, on the WLS-AM radio show called National Barn Dance, where he met singer-songwriter Smiley Burnette.
Lester “Smiley” Burnett, for example, began performing and announcing on WDZ. By 1933, he had variety shows, including a broadcasting show for children. [3] Then the creation of other shows became available. His radio performances gained him notice and he went on to work with Gene Autry in radio first, but then later in film where he ended up as a supporting actor in many of Autry’s movies.
Link of programming: http://www.myoldradio.com/old-radio-episodes/smiley-burnett-show-behold-the-bridegroom-commeth/1
Other artists like The Kentuckians were not paid for their appearance on radio stations in the early years, WDZ had formed an artists' bureau with booking agents to promote live performances by station talent. These performances were for a fee and provided the groups with income. This attracted musicians to the station who stayed as long as their bookings were good. [4] It is their presence on the radio that increased demand for hearing them in concert.
In their earliest years, stations like WOAW, Omaha, and KVOO, Tulsa, as well as both KMA and KFNF in Shenandoah, Iowa, utilized amateur performers who would perform for free, [5] but this alone would not promote continuity of programming if there were not some benefit to the performers in the long run [1] such as money from concert bookings. One station sought to enhance artist appearances by setting up an agreement with a tent owner to set up and move his tent to various locations where station talent would perform. In exchange, the station provided talent and gave free promotion of where the tent was to be each day. This would have provided the acts with at least a somewhat regular place to appear. However, it didn't draw well so the venture was short lived. [6]
From 1932 until the 1960s, Melbourne radio station 3DB broadcast The Minstrel Show every Thursday evening, and it was relayed to Major Broadcasting Network affiliates, as well as some independent Australian stations. [7]
National Barn Dance, broadcast by WLS-AM in Chicago, Illinois starting in 1924, was one of the first American country music radio programs and a direct precursor of the Grand Ole Opry.
Lester Alvin Burnett, better known as Smiley Burnette, was an American country music performer and a comedic actor in Western films and on radio and TV, playing sidekick to Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and other B-movie cowboys. He was also a prolific singer-songwriter who is reported to have played proficiently over 100 musical instruments, sometimes more than one simultaneously. His career, beginning in 1934, spanned four decades, including a regular role on CBS-TV's Petticoat Junction in the 1960s.
ABC Classic, formerly ABC-FM, and then ABC Classic FM, is a classical music radio station available in Australia and internationally. Its website features classical music news, features and listening guides. It is operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
The Phantom Empire is a 1935 American Western serial film directed by Otto Brower and B. Reeves Eason and starring Gene Autry, Frankie Darro, and Betsy King Ross. This 12-chapter Mascot Pictures serial combined the Western, musical and fantasy genres. The first episode is 30 minutes, the rest about 20 minutes. The serial film is about a singing cowboy who stumbles upon an ancient subterranean civilization living beneath his own ranch that becomes corrupted by unscrupulous greedy speculators from the surface. In 1940, a 70-minute feature film edited from the serial was released under the titles Radio Ranch or Men with Steel Faces. This was Gene Autry's first starring role, playing himself as a singing cowboy.
KBLA is a broadcast radio station in the United States. Licensed to Santa Monica, California, KBLA serves the Greater Los Angeles area. The station is owned by Multicultural Broadcasting, through licensee Multicultural Radio Broadcasting Licensee, LLC, and operated by pending owner Tavis Smiley with a progressive talk format.
WIAR was Paducah, Kentucky's first radio broadcasting station. It was initially licensed in July 1922, ceased making regular broadcasts in May 1923, and was formally deleted in early 1924.
WDZ is a commercial AM radio station, licensed to Decatur, Illinois. It broadcasts a sports radio format and calls itself "Fox Sports 1050." It is owned by the Neuhoff Corporation, which also owns four other local radio stations, WCZQ, WDZQ, WSOY and WSOY-FM. Studios and offices are located on North Water Street. It is one of the oldest radio stations in Illinois, and one of the few that still carry a three-letter call sign along with WGN and WLS Chicago.
Town Hall Party was an American country music program, firstly broadcast on radio and then television
Ralph David Foster was an American broadcasting executive and philanthropist who created the framework for Springfield, Missouri to challenge Nashville, Tennessee as the nation's country music capital during the 1950s. His KWTO was a stepping-stone for many top country artists; and with his music businesses, led to creation of Ozark Jubilee, the first U.S. network television program to feature country's top stars.
The Old Barn Dance is a 1938 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Joan Valerie, and written by Bernard McConville and Charles F. Royal.
The Old Corral is a 1936 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Irene Manning. Based on a story by Bernard McConville, the film is about a sheriff of a small western town who sings his way into a relationship with a singer from a Chicago nightclub who earlier witnessed a murder. The supporting cast features Lon Chaney Jr. and Roy Rogers.
The Big Show is a 1936 American Western musical film directed by Mack V. Wright and starring Gene Autry, Kay Hughes, and Smiley Burnette. Written by Dorrell and Stuart E. McGowan, the film is about a singing cowboy who confuses two girls by being himself and his own stunt double at the Texas Centennial in Dallas. Roy Rogers appears in the film as one of the Sons of the Pioneers.
Git Along Little Dogies is a 1937 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and the Maple City Four. Written by Dorrell and Stuart E. McGowan, the film is about a singing cowboy who gets caught up in a war between oilmen and cattle ranchers, taking the side of the ranchers until he learns that oil will bring a railroad to town. The film is also known as Serenade of the West in the United Kingdom.
Rufus Davidson, known as Rufe Davis, was an American actor. He appeared in over 30 films between 1937 and 1969, including 14 of the Three Mesquiteers titles. Davis played railroad conductor Floyd Smoot on the CBS television series Petticoat Junction from 1963–1968 and in 1970 guest appearances.
Colorado Sunset is a 1939 American Western film directed by George Sherman and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and June Storey. Written by Betty Burbridge and Stanley Roberts, based on a story by Luci Ward and Jack Natteford, the film is about a singing cowboy and his buddies who discover that the ranch they bought is really a dairy farm—and worse, it's subject to intimidation from a protection racket that prevents dairy products from safely reaching the market.
Rovin' Tumbleweeds is a 1939 American Western film directed by George Sherman and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette and Mary Carlisle. Written by Betty Burbridge, Dorrell McGowan, and Stuart E. McGowan, the film is about a cowboy congressman who exposes a crooked politician who is delaying passage of a flood control bill.
South of the Border is a 1939 Western film directed by George Sherman and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and June Storey. Written by Betty Burbridge and Gerald Geraghty, based on a story by Dorrell and Stuart E. McGowan, the film is about a federal agent who is sent to Mexico to prevent foreign powers from gaining control of Mexican oil refineries and fomenting revolution among the Mexican people.
Home in Wyomin' is a 1942 American Western film directed by William Morgan and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Fay McKenzie. Based on a story by Stuart Palmer, the film is about a singing cowboy who helps out a former employer in trouble with his failing rodeo while romancing a woman reporter. In Home in Wyomin', Autry sang his hit songs "Be Honest with Me", "Back in the Saddle Again", and "Tweedle O'Twill", as well as Irving Berlin's "Any Bonds Today", becoming the first major star to sing the official song of the U.S. Defense Bond campaign during the war.
Stardust on the Sage is a 1942 American Western film directed by William Morgan and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, William Henry, and Edith Fellows. Written by Betty Burbridge, based on a story by Dorrell and Stuart E. McGowan, the film is about a singing cowboy who helps his fellow ranchers against a corrupt mine superintendent looking to steal the mine in which they've invested. The film soundtrack features two duets by Autry and Fellows, "When the Roses Bloom Again" and "I'll Never Let You Go, Little Darlin'". The final scene includes an innovative audience sing-along medley of the classics "You Are My Sunshine", "Home on the Range", and "Deep in the Heart of Texas", with Burnette conducting and the words appearing at the bottom of the screen.
Gene Autry's Melody Ranch is a Western variety radio show in the United States. A 15-minute pilot show aired on December 31, 1939. The program ran from January 7, 1940 to August 1, 1943, and from September 23, 1945 to May 16, 1956. The show's entire run was broadcast over the CBS radio network, sponsored by Doublemint gum. The approximately two-year interruption resulted from Autry's enlistment in the United States Army to serve in World War II. Initially titled Doublemint's Melody Ranch, the show's name was changed to Gene Autry's Melody Ranch in early 1941. Episodes were 30 minutes long except for a 15-minute version that ran from September 23, 1945 to June 16, 1946. The theme song was "Back in the Saddle Again".
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