What's My Name? (radio program)

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What's My Line
What's My Name radio show.jpg
Promotional photo for the show with Arlene Francis
GenreQuiz show
Running time30 minutes
Country of originUnited States
Language(s)English
SyndicatesMutual
NBC
ABC
Starring Arlene Francis
Produced byEd Byron
John Gibbs
Original releaseMarch 25, 1938 –
July 30, 1949
Sponsored byPhilip Morris
Bristol Myers
Oxydol
Chase and Sanborn
Fleischmann's Yeast
Lydia Grey
General Electric

What's My Name? was a 30-minute radio program in the United States. The program was hosted by Arlene Francis and was among the first radio shows to offer cash prizes to contestants. [1]

Contents

Format

Contestants on What's My Name? had to identify a person from a maximum of 10 clues given by the show's two hosts. People to be identified were celebrities and historical characters. [2] In the show's early days, a correct guess on the first clue earned the contestant $10; the amount earned dropped by $1 with each additional clue. In 1948, the top prize was increased to $100, with $50 and $25 prizes, respectively, for identification on the second and third clues. [3]

The program also involved listener participation to some extent, as listeners could send in questions to be used on the air. [4] People who submitted questions received $10 for each question used. [5]

A review of the first episode of What's My Name? offered little hope for its future, calling it "a rather drab show." The reviewer explained: "The program got off to a bad start in that the participants, for the most part, were unable to guess the identities of the characters asked for in the game until long after the listeners got the drift of the proceedings." The reviewer did, however, note that the show was "ably conducted by Bud Hulick and Arlene Francis." [6]

Francis was a constant on What's My Name?, serving as the hostess in all eight of its iterations on radio while her male counterparts changed. Hulick was the host in three versions. Other hosts over the years were Fred Uttal, John Reed King, Ward Wilson and Carl Frank. [3] Harry Salter and his orchestra provided the music. [7]

One source noted that What's My Name? "helped make a broadcasting fixture out of Arlene Francis." [8]

A 1942 review gave What's My Name? a much better evaluation than the earlier review mentioned above. Paul Ackerman wrote in The Billboard , "Name is well produced, moves quickly and manages to maintain an informal atmosphere directly traceable to Miss Francis's and Mr. King's manner with the contestants." [9]

Background

What's My Name? was the brainchild of radio writers Joe Cross and Ed Byron. An August 1940 magazine article related that, after listening to a program called Professor Quiz , "the two of them shut themselves up in a hotel room, vowing they wouldn't come out until they'd thought up a game program that was as much fun as Professor Quiz. What's My Name? was the result." [5]

Sponsors

General Electric sponsored What's My Name? until it left the air. It returned in 1949 with Homemakers Institute and Servel Gas Refrigerator Dealers as sponsors. [10]

Television

A version of What's My Name? was incorporated into the Paul Winchell-Jerry Mahoney Show on television. The program (originally titled The Speidel Show after its sponsor) ran from September 18, 1950 to May 23, 1954. [11]

In the show's early years, each episode began with a comedy skit featuring Winchell and Mahoney. That skit was followed by a quiz segment, What's My Name?, similar to the radio program. [12] The host for the quiz was Ted Brown. [13]

The TV version of the quiz failed to achieve the success of its radio predecessor. A review in The Billboard in August 1951 said:

Speidel has tried hard all season to combine the very accomplished Paul Winchell and Jerry Mahoney team and the former What's My Name? format into a successful stanza. The attempt has failed and, if anything, the talents of the ventriloquist and his little pal have been blunted by misuse." [14]

By 1953, the What's My Name? component of the Paul Winchell-Jerry Mahoney Show had been removed. [12]

Broadcast Schedule

Start DateEnd DateNetworkDayTimeSponsor
March 25, 1938March 17, 1939 Mutual Friday8 p.m. Philip Morris
July 5, 1939September 27, 1939 NBC Wednesday9 p.m. Bristol-Myers
November 4, 1939March 1940NBCSaturday7 p.m. Oxydol
March 1940August 16, 1940NBCFriday9:30 p.m.Oxydol
July 6, 1941August 31, 1941NBCSunday8 p.m. Chase & Sanborn
January 6, 1942June 30, 1942MutualTuesday8 p.m. Fleischmann's Yeast
February 21, 1943June 27, 1943NBCSunday10:30 p.m.Lydia Grey
June 3, 1948June 3, 1948 ABC Thursday9 p.m. General Electric
June 10, 1948November 27, 1948ABCSaturday9:30 p.m.General Electric
February 5, 1949July 30, 1949ABCSaturday11:30 a.m.NA

Note: "NA"—information was not listed on the cited page. [3]

References

  1. ↑ Reinehr, Robert C.; Swartz, Jon D. (2008). The A to Z of Old Time Radio. Scarecrow Press, Inc. p. 280. ISBN   978-0-8108-7616-3 . Retrieved 2023-06-11.
  2. ↑ "Radio Notes". Lewiston Evening Journal. March 25, 1938. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 Dunning, John (1998). On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio (Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 716. ISBN   978-0-19-507678-3 . Retrieved 2019-08-25.
  4. ↑ McLean, James (July 5, 1939). "On The Air Waves". The Miami News. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  5. 1 2 "Friday's Highlights". Radio and Television Mirror. 14 (4): 50. August 1940. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
  6. ↑ Banner (March 28, 1938). "New Shows On the Air: "What's My Name?"". Motion Picture Daily. p. 11. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  7. ↑ Grunwald, Edgar A., Ed. (1940). Variety Radio Directory 1940-1941. Variety, Inc. P. 343.
  8. ↑ "14 April: Up and down with The Aldrich Family". Kallman's Alley. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  9. ↑ Ackerman, Paul (January 17, 1942). "Program Reviews: "What's My Name?"". The Billboard. 54 (3): 8. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  10. ↑ "ABC Snares Bankroller For 'What's My Name'". Variety. January 26, 1949. p. 38. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  11. ↑ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television. Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 647. ISBN   0-14-02-4916-8 . Retrieved 2023-06-11.
  12. 1 2 Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle (24 June 2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows - 1946-Present (9 ed.). Random House Publishing. p. 1063. ISBN   978-0-345-49773-4 . Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  13. ↑ McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television. Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 647. ISBN   0-14-02-4916-8 . Retrieved 2023-06-11.
  14. ↑ Morse, Leon (March 17, 1951). "Paul Winchell-Jerry Mahoney Show". The Billboard. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
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