The Bing Crosby Show for General Electric

Last updated
The Bing Crosby Show for General Electric
Genre variety
Running time30 minutes
Country of origin United States
Language(s) English
Syndicates CBS
Starring Bing Crosby
The John Scott Trotter Orchestra
Jud Conlon's Rhythmaires
Announcer Ken Carpenter
Written by Bill Morrow
Directed byMurdo MacKenzie
Produced by Bill Morrow
Recording studio Hollywood, U.S.
Other studios Palm Springs, California
Original releaseOctober 9, 1952 (1952-10-09) –
May 30, 1954 (1954-05-30)
No. of series2
No. of episodes75
Opening theme Where the Blue of the Night (Meets the Gold of the Day) (first season) Unnamed piece of music by Victor Young for series two
Sponsored by General Electric

The Bing Crosby Show for General Electric was a 30-minute variety old-time radio program starring entertainer Bing Crosby. The series ran on CBS radio from 1952 to 1954. The series was sponsored by the General Electric company and was usually recorded in Hollywood, although some shows were recorded in Palm Springs. The last seven shows of the first season were broadcast as though they had come from Paris, France, but they had actually been recorded in the US prior to Crosby's departure for Europe. [1]

Contents

Overview

Singer and entertainer Bing Crosby had finished a three-year engagement with Chesterfield cigarettes on CBS radio which had ended in June 1952. Crosby remained with CBS and General Electric took over as sponsor for his show. The show was named The Bing Crosby Show for General Electric and premiered on Thursday, October 9, 1952. [2] Notable guest stars and appearances on the series included Frank Sinatra, Jack Benny, Ella Fitzgerald, Connee Boswell, Bob Hope, Dinah Shore, Rosemary Clooney, Peggy Lee, The Bell Sisters and Kay Starr. [1] The competition of television was causing radio audiences to fall away dramatically and the Crosby show had to adapt to this over its two-year run. Crosby is said to have been paid $16,000 per week which made it one of the most expensive shows on radio. This figure also had to cover the cost of staff and guests. [2]

Season one

The format used for the Chesterfield show was followed with songs and chat. Variety liked the opening show, saying inter alia, “Bing Crosby is back for another semester in radio and this time, flying the General Electric colours. Chesterfield gave him the go-by at the wind up of last season, along with Bob Hope, considering the weekly tab too high. The Hollywood and Vine reports have it that, as with Jack Benny before him, the production, accoutrements and bankroll on Bing’s showcase have been trimmed in keeping with the ‘radio re-appraisal’, if so, GE has grabbed itself a good deal. For there is no perceptible change - so far as the listener is concerned - either in Crosby or his entourage." [3]

The shows continued until July 2, 1953, and the audience share for the season was 6.5 which enabled the program to scrape into twentieth position in the Nielsen ratings. The top show was Amos 'n' Andy with 14.2. [2]

Season two

The first show of the second season was broadcast on September 27, 1953, the series having been moved to Sunday nights. “Where the Blue of the Night” was replaced as a theme song by an untitled orchestral piece written by Victor Young. Ken Carpenter and the John Scott Trotter Orchestra remained as fixtures. The shows were still being produced by Bill Morrow and Murdo MacKenzie and continued until May 30, 1954. The audience share was 6.0 for the season which earned the show seventh place in the Nielsen ratings. The game show People Are Funny took top position with a rating of only 8.4 confirming that the public had deserted radio for television. [4]

Radical changes had been made to the Crosby broadcast with most shows being assembled piecemeal and put together for transmission. Usually, audiences were not present and recordings of earlier audience reactions were dubbed in creating the illusion of a “live” recording. Typically Crosby would spend Sundays recording material for the shows. Expensive guest stars were rarely used and Crosby employed his sons - Gary, Dennis, Phillip and Lindsay - frequently on the show. Jud Conlon's Rhythmaires were not used in this second series and a regular spot was established for the Orchestra to play an instrumental version of a well-known song.

A notable guest however was Frank Sinatra who appeared around the time when he had been nominated as Best Supporting Actor for his role in “From Here to Eternity”.

Whilst the songs and the chat continued, the ‘normal’ commercials were abandoned in favour of several minutes of ‘discussion’ between Crosby and Ken Carpenter, on such heavyweight subjects as ‘Government’, ‘Communism’ and ‘Collectivism’. It was the time when McCarthyism was rife but even so the propaganda must have been hard going for the listeners. [5]

Variety was positive about the opening show saying, “Sunday is now Bingsday on CBS Radio and no matter where you move him, the loyal will find him. His voice and personality have the magic of the Pied Piper and even without his long-time ‘themer’ (“Blue of the Night’) he'll be fished out of the receiver... General Electric preferred to have cross talk about people, rather than “move merchandise". [6]

Billboard was more cautious in its reaction. “Bing Crosby returned to the air this week in good voice and a gay old mood... In a season in which Crosby is due to bow on TV on a somewhat regular basis, it’s worth noting that his current radio show is strictly a radio show, consisting of songs and pleasant chatter. While his zillions of fans would no doubt flock to see him do no more than that, it is nevertheless to be hoped that Bing will pay some attention to develop a really televisable format." [7]

The series ended on May 30, 1954, and its ending was a little confusing. There were 39 shows in the first season for General Electric but only the 36 in the second. The usual ‘discussion’ between Crosby and Ken Carpenter, implied that they were summing up all the previous items of this nature but astonishingly, at the close of the program, Crosby is heard to say, “I hope to see you all again, next week, when our guest will be Miss Rosemary Clooney.” This information was re-iterated by Ken Carpenter in the closing announcements. In fact, it was planned that Gary Crosby would take over with his own show on the following Sunday. The confusion may have been due to Gary Crosby having a motor accident on May 24 and being treated for a lacerated nose and an injured knee. Gary Crosby's debut had to be postponed until June 13 and his radio program replaced his father's on CBS for the summer period of thirteen weeks before Gary began his third year at Stanford. [8]

Bing Crosby had decided not to continue with a weekly radio series and in November 1954, he returned to the airwaves with a five-nights a week 15-minute program called "The Bing Crosby Show".

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bing Crosby</span> American singer and actor (1903–1977)

Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. was an American singer, actor, television producer, television and radio personality and businessman. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a leader in record sales, network radio ratings, and motion picture grosses from 1926 to 1977. He was one of the first global cultural icons. He made over 70 feature films and recorded more than 1,600 songs.

<i>The Flip Wilson Show</i> American variety television series (1970–1974)

The Flip Wilson Show was an hour-long variety show that originally aired in the US on NBC from September 17, 1970, to June 27, 1974. The show starred American comedian Flip Wilson; the program was one of the first American television programs starring a black person in the title role to become highly successful with a white audience. Specifically, it was the first successful network variety series starring an African American. During its first two seasons, its Nielsen ratings made it the nation's second most watched show.

<i>High Tor</i> (play) 1936 play by Maxwell Anderson

High Tor is a 1936 play by Maxwell Anderson. It received the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Play of the 1936–37 season. Twenty years after the original production, Anderson adapted it into a television musical with Arthur Schwartz.

The Edsel Show is an hour-long television special broadcast live on CBS in the United States on October 13, 1957, intended to promote Ford Motor Company's new Edsel cars. It was a milestone in the long career of entertainer Bing Crosby and is notable as the first CBS entertainment program to be recorded on videotape for rebroadcast in the western part of the country following a live performance for the east coast. Crosby arranged for this ‘live’ program to be ‘produced’ by his alma mater Gonzaga University in order that the profits could go to them in a tax efficient way. The program won the Look Magazine TV Award for ‘Best Musical Show’ and was nominated for an Emmy as the “Best Single Program of the Year”.

William S. Morrow was a comedic screenwriter and producer who wrote scripts for radio, films and television.

<i>The Screen Guild Theater</i> American radio series

The Screen Guild Theater is a radio anthology series broadcast from 1939 until 1952 during the Golden Age of Radio. Leading Hollywood stars performed adaptations of popular motion pictures. Originating on CBS Radio, it aired under several different titles including The Gulf Screen Guild Show, The Gulf Screen Guild Theater, The Lady Esther Screen Guild Theater and The Camel Screen Guild Players. Fees that would ordinarily have been paid to the stars and studios were instead donated to the Motion Picture Relief Fund, and were used for the construction and maintenance of the Motion Picture Country House.

<i>Command Performance</i> (radio series) US Armed Forces Radio show from 1942–49

Command Performance was a radio program which originally aired between 1942 and 1949. The program was broadcast on the Armed Forces Radio Network (AFRS) and transmitted by shortwave to the troops overseas—with few exceptions, it was not broadcast over domestic U.S. radio stations.

<i>The Bing Crosby Show</i> (1964 TV series) American TV series or program

The Bing Crosby Show is a 28-episode sitcom television program starring crooner, film star, iconic phenomenon, and businessman Bing Crosby and actress Beverly Garland as a married couple, Bing and Ellie Collins, rearing two teenaged daughters during the early 1960s. In the format, Crosby portrayed a former entertainer turned architectural designer with a penchant for singing, and each episode usually contained at least one song. Produced by Crosby's own company, affiliated with Desilu Studios and subsequently CBS Paramount Television, the series aired on ABC from September 14, 1964, to April 19, 1965. Rebroadcasts continued until June 14.

The Bing Crosby Show is a 1954 American television special. Bing Crosby's first television special, it was directed by Fred de Cordova, it originally aired in the United States on January 3, 1954. Guest stars included Jack Benny and Sheree North, with Ken Carpenter as the announcer.

<i>Philco Radio Time</i> 1940s radio series

Philco Radio Time was an old-time radio radio series starring entertainer Bing Crosby. The series ran over ABC Radio with episodes airing from October 16, 1946–June 1, 1949. The series also was syndicated for a period of time over the Armed Forces Radio Network.

<i>The Bing Crosby – Chesterfield Show</i>

The Bing Crosby Show for Chesterfield was a 30-minute musical variety old-time radio program starring entertainer Bing Crosby. The series ran on CBS Radio from 1949–1952.

<i>The Happy Prince</i> (Bing Crosby and Orson Welles album) 1946 studio album by Bing Crosby, Orson Welles, Lurene Tuttle

The Happy Prince is a studio album of phonograph records by Bing Crosby and Orson Welles of the Oscar Wilde short story The Happy Prince.

<i>The Man Without a Country</i> (album) 1947 studio album by Bing Crosby

The Man Without a Country is a studio album of phonograph records by Bing Crosby of the famous Edward Everett Hale story released September 15, 1947. The story had been adapted as a poetic narrative by Jean Holloway. The album was produced and directed by Paramount Pictures producer Robert Welch with musical accompaniment from Victor Young and His Orchestra.

15 Minutes with Bing Crosby was Bing Crosby's first solo radio series, which aired on the CBS network from September 2, 1931 until October 31 of the same year. It was to have a major impact on his career.

<i>Bing Crosby Entertains</i> American radio show

Bing Crosby Entertains was a weekly radio show which ran for two seasons during 1933–1935, and was to cement Bing Crosby's reputation as a radio star. Bing Crosby Entertains was Crosby's most important radio series to date, and it enabled him to fully develop as a rounded radio personality instead of a singer who did not speak.

Bing Crosby was heavily involved with the Armed Forces Radio Service during World War II.

The Bing Crosby Show was broadcast daily Mondays to Fridays and was of 15 minutes duration with Bing Crosby talking about all manner of different subjects and usually including three songs around the dialogue.

The Ford Show Featuring Bing Crosby was a 5-minute CBS network radio show broadcast from 1957 to 1958. It included an opening theme, one or two songs by Bing Crosby, commercials by Ken Carpenter, closing theme, and on occasion a guest such as Rosemary Clooney.

<i>A Christmas Sing with Bing</i> (1955–1962) American radio program series with a Christmas theme

A Christmas Sing with Bing was a series of transcribed radio hours hosted by Bing Crosby and broadcast on Christmas Eve for eight years from 1955 to 1962. The first edition of the program was released as an LP by Decca Records in 1956. Insurance Company of North America was the broadcast sponsor.

References

  1. 1 2 Pairpoint, Lionel. "And Here's Bing!". BING magazine. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 Macfarlane, Malcolm. "Bing Crosby - Day by Day". BING magazine. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Variety". October 15, 1952.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. ↑ Macfarlane, Malcolm. "Bing Crosby - Day by Day". BING magazine. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  5. ↑ Pairpoint, Lionel. "And Here's Bing!". BING magazine. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Variety". September 30, 1953.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. ↑ Plotnik, Gene (October 10, 1953). "Billboard".{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  8. ↑ Pairpoint, Lionel (2000). And Here's Bing . Retrieved February 13, 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.