Great Stories, Great Storytellers Collection, Part Two

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Great Stories, Great Storytellers Collection, Part Two

Larry Mauplin, Alan Litsey

Great Stories, Great Storytellers, Part Two The American Negro Theatre . Written, produced, and directed by Mitchell Grayson (December 10, 1944) New World a’ Coming A reporter develops a story about the American Negro Theatre (ANT) and their Broadway success, Anna Lucasta . The company was founded in 1940 by playwright Abram Hill and actor Frederick O'Neal. The artists focused on creating a "people's theatre,” and reflect social issues the four principals for black theatre outlined by W. E. B. Du Bois: work by, about, for, and near African Americans. Importantly, the company pushed back against the offensive Hollywood stereotypes of African Americans.  The American Negro Theatre produced works by black and white playwrights. Alumni included Sidney Poitier, Harry Belafonte, Ruby Dee, and Ossie Davis.   Anna Lucasta was a creative leap forward for writer Philip Yordan. who went on to a prolific career as a screenwriter. Yordan’s tale was originally imagined as a story about a Polish-American woman and her destructive family. Yordan brought the play to ANT and Hill adapted it for an African American company.   Anna Lucasta opened in Harlem and moved to Broadway. The play, which focuses on the human condition instead of a specific culture, ran for an impressive two years. Alice Childress, who performed in the play, wrote her Obie Award-winning work about the experience, Trouble in the Mind (1955). Childress also directed the play and was the first woman to win the Obie. See the New York Public Library’s Digital Exhibit about the American Negro Theatre.   Apartment to Let by Alan Campbell and Dorothy Parker Columbia Radio Workshop (August 8, 1939) The Columbia Workshop is among the most distinctive of the golden age of radio. The program was the brainchild of Irvin Reis, who brought his expertise as a sound engineer and director to his process. William Robson came on board as director in 1937.   Apartment to Let is a charming story about a young couple, Rosemary, and Nick. When we meet the newlyweds, they have chosen their new apartment. The couple vow to never argue and to live in their new flat “forever.” Check out what happens one year later, when Rosemary and Nick have had their inevitable first fight. What was the scrap over and why are they breaking up their beloved abode? Will they reconcile and save their marriage?  Campbell and Parker create their story of the inevitable conflicts of love with honesty and wit.   Read about Dorothy Parker and her husband Alan Campbell on Dorothy Parker Society web site.   Arrowsmith (October 14, 1848) Hallmark Playhouse. CBS.  Thursday nights.  Sponsored by Hallmark Cards.  Starring John Ludden. Summary: Host James Hilton introduces the program by stating that "Arrowsmith has the unique distinction of having been judged worthy of the Nobel Prize and the Pulitzer Prize for literature.  It is a story of profound meaning for our times especially."  In the first scene, Act I, Martin Arrowsmith reflects on when he was a young college student of 21 at Medico studying science under Professor Max Gottlieb.  He knew already that he wanted to work in research and study to become a bacteriologist.  He tells us that in those days he was engaged to "Madeleine Fox and her mother."  But one day he meets a nurse named Leora, learns that she is from North Dakota, and asks her to dinner.  Soon he finds himself in the dilemma  of being engaged to two girls at the same time.  Then he takes both of them to lunch, explains the situation, and Madeleine storms off, leaving the field to Leora.  They get married.  He then decides to become a doctor and establish a practice in Leora's home town.  She becomes pregnant, then miscarries.  Her doctor tells her she will never give birth.   The Second Act (Part 2) begins with Martin publishing an article in a scientific journal, after which he receives a letter from Dr. Gottlieb asking him to come to New York and become his assistant at the McGirk Institute.  He sends Martin to the West Indies, where a plague has descended upon the island of St. Hubert, to conduct an experiment with an antibacterial serum Martin has developed.  Leora contracts the plague and dies.  Martin then injects everyone on the island with the serum, violating scientific protocol, and remains there until the plague is completely eradicated.  He then returns to New York to begin his experiment all over again. At the conclusion, Hilton announces next week's play, "Mrs. Parkinson."   Blithe Spirit by Noel Coward Command Theater: "Everyone for the Boys" (May 16, 1944).  Sponsored by Auto-Lite. Summary: The program begins with host Ronald Coleman stating "Tonight Loretta Young and Edna Best join me in presenting the radio premiere of Noel Coward's gay comedy 'Blithe Spirit'.  It is being broadcast by short wave to all the America armies in New Guinea."  The first scene opens at the home of Charles Kent and his second wife Ruth.  Kent's first wife died 7 years ago, and he has been happily married to Ruth for 5.  Charles is being haunted by the spirit of Elvira, who was his first wife, and one evening becomes so agitated by her appearance (only he can see and hear her) that he spills the brandy Ruth has poured for him.  Ruth leaves him and goes upstairs to bed as he stares vacantly into space.  Then Elvira's spirit appears and tells Charles that she has not been completely dead.  He finds it "strangely peaceful" to see her apparition.  He tells her the next morning that she has returned "from the other place."  We then learn that it was Mrs. McCarthy, a medium, who summoned Elvira from "the other place," and when she comes to the house the next evening Elvira pleads with her to take her back because she has been accused in the meantime of deliberately causing Ruth's death.  Mrs. McCarthy then attempts to cast a spell that will get rid of her but fails when she decides she really wants to stay.  It seems that Ruth really is dead.  When Elvira finally leaves, Charles tells himself that for the first time in years he is free to do anything he pleases, no longer being encumbered by a wife.  After the story concludes, the stars speak to two soldiers in New Guinea via shortwave radio."   Diary of a Madman by Nikolai Gogol (December 19, 1964) Black Mass Will Poprishchin ever find the importance he seeks in life? Poprishchin grumbles about his pointless departmental position but delights in the mahogany tables and that all in his world are addressed as "sir".   He spies the director's daughter, Sophie, as he wanders to work. Lost in her beauty, he scrivens in his diary about overhearing diminutive dog Meggie talking with canine Fidel. He is stunned to hear Meggie and Fidel discussing letters they have written to each other. How clever he is to follow the doggies and learn Sophie’s address. October 4th. He is all a-twitter this evening with the possibility of seeing Sophie, but alas…. November 6th. What an afront. The chief clerk mocks his interest in the director’s daughter. November 8th. He ambles by the director's house and sees no one. “Dogs can talk…but they’re stubborn,” he muses.   November 12th. He lands at Fidel's home and asks the girl if he might speak to her dog. The dog bites his nose. He runs off with a pile of papers from Fidel’s basket. He knows that the doggie letters will provide important intelligence of enchanting Sophie. November 13th. Poprishchin is perturbed that the letters are so trivial. They “lapse into dogginess!” He learns that Sophie is now madly in love and engaged to the "chamberlain.” December 3rd. The marriage cannot take place! December 5th. Poprishchin puzzles that the Throne of Spain is vacant. December 8th. What to do about Spain? He reflects. The year 2000: April 43rd. Poprishchin discovers the King of Spain has been found. It is he! Martober 86. Between day and night. Poprishchin signs a special document as "Ferdinand VIII." He insinuates himself into Sophie's dressing room and tells her they will be united and deliriously happy. Alas, the devil is at the heart of everything that captivates a woman. No date. The day had no date. He walks "incognito," and waits for the moment he may present himself to the Spanish officials. The 1st He is astonished the Spanish deputies have not arrived. January in the same year, following after February. He fears that he might have fallen into the hands of the Inquisition . 34 March. February 349. “I cannot bear this suffering. My head is on fire!”   Hughie by Eugene O’Neill (1965), Part Two Part One was included in Great Story and Storytellers, Part One   Setting: The desk and a section of lobby of a small seedy hotel on a West Side Street in midtown New York. It is between 3 and 4 A.M. of a day in the summer of 1928. This is a recording of the 1964 Broadway production of Hughie. Written by Eugene O’Neill in 1942, after he had completed his masterpiece Long Day’s Journey into Night , it was intended as one of a collection of eight one act plays called By Way of Orbit . Each play would feature a character who tells a tale about someone who’s passed. This work is the only piece to have survived, the others destroyed by O’Neill.   The year 1942 was a tough one for the author. O’Neill was 53, his popularity on the wane, and already he was suffering from the brain disease that would kill him eleven years later. His writings about his family (mother, father, and brother) were torturous. O’Neill was alienated from his children, and for the most part, lived a life of isolation. The 1964 production was the American debut, directed by Jose’ Quintero, and featuring Jason Robards. Robards and Quintero were acknowledged masters of O’Neill. There are just two characters in the play. Erie Smith and the night clerk. Smith is a small-time hustler, himself a solitary figure, elegiac over how his life has gone south since the death of Hughie. Scholars and critics compare the play to Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. What are these characters waiting for? Do they dread their endgame or it their fate welcome? It’s unclear whether this recording was broadcast. Bay Area Theatre produced and broadcast a production in 1993, also directed by Quintero and performed Robards. You can read Hilton Al’s insightful personal reflection about Hughie in the New Yorker online. Is There any Difference (June 10, 1951) Hour of Saint Francis “The Hour of St. Francis” launched in December 1946 and continued through the mid-1950s. Over 400 syndicated shows were produced, and a relatively few recordings exist.   Lillian Randolph’s (1908-1980) lovely performance shines in this episode. Randolph is remembered for her work on The Great Gildersleeve , Beulah , and her extensive film and television career. Her last film was The Onion Field (1979). In this episode, we follow the story of Randolph’s character “Julia” and “Mrs. Benton.” Both women have sons, who become fast friends. The story reveals the deep connections between the families as their families grow and face tragedy. The drama is typical of its time in its depiction of American culture, gender, and privilege. It does, however, presents characters who are written with dignity and honesty. Existing recordings of the show can be accessed online, with registration. Joan of Arc (December 6, 1947)  Favorite Story   Favorite Story tells the tale of Joan of Arc ( c. 1412 – 1431). Each episode features a beloved story of a public personality. Joan of Arc is the favorite story of Jennifer Jones. Joan, played by Joan Lorring, is a patron saint of France, honoring her role as leader in the siege of Orléans. Joan is elevated to military leader. When we meet Joan, it’s revealed that Saints speak to her, including the archangel Michael, Saint Margaret, and Saint Catherine. Joan understands that she is to play a vital role to protect France from English usurpation. In 1428, she seeks an audience with Charles. Joan is charged by Charles to support the besieged French soldiers. In this adaptation, Joan is captured by the English and “tried” as a heretic. “What kind of mockery is this to be tried by your own enemies,” she challenges. Robert Conrad plays the English officer who railroads Joan to her death. The story presents Joan as vulnerable, but ultimately victorious in courageously standing tall in the face of death. Among others, the incomparable team of Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee produced, directed, and wrote the program. Langston Hughes, the Shakespeare of Harlem. Destination Freedom. (September 26, 1948)   Langston Hughes was a poet, activist, novelist, short story writer, playwright, and journalist. Hughes created the form jazz poetry and provided leadership and innovation during the period of the Harlem Renaissance. He wrote a for the leading black newspaper The Chicago Defender, 1942-1962 From 1942 to 1962, as the civil rights movement was gaining traction, he wrote an in-depth weekly column in a leading black newspaper, The Chicago Defender.   This broadcast tells the story of Langston Hughes’ coming of age as a young man and writer. Hughes longs to meet his absent father. His father arrives to town and invites Hughes to live with him in Mexico. His father is overbearing and intense, bearing the heavy burden of his experiences with racism in the U.S. Hughes’ father refuses to support his dreams of writing.   What happens when Hughes stands up to his father and claims his right to pursue his dreams? The series was created and produced and directed by Richard Durham, 1944-1950. Durham left the series as the focus on the contributions of black American and human rights diminished.   Little Women . (November 5, 1948) Great Scenes from Great Plays Great Scenes from Great Plays isn’t the most creative title, but this episode is a gem. The writing captured the March sisters beautifully. We’re reminded of why Louisa May Alcott’s novel has captured the imaginations of generations of readers. Louisa survived the drudgery of domestic labor as her abolitionist father, Bronson Alcott, connected with humanists and poets of his day, such as Emerson and Thoreau. (You’ll a appreciate a distant connection here, the team of distinctive writers in this collection, Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee achieved great success with their play, The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail.)   Alcott, like Jo, aspired to make her mark as a writer. Indeed, Alcott discovered that her adventures as an author was a good deal more rewarding than domestic science, on several levels. Alcott redefined her role, despite the values of the 19 th century, in her creation of Jo. Jo and Alcott were not only the authors of novels, but bold designers their lives.    Lum and Abner. Phantom Author's Manuscript (May 26, 1942).  Part One. Summary: The program begins with the familiar opening "Hello, Jottem' Down Store, this is Lum and Abner."  The first scene finds the two working on the printing press.  They have an order for handbills, which will bring in much-needed revenue.  They "need the money bad," according to Lum.  Pine Ridge has recently been experiencing a rash of robberies.  Then they find that someone has dropped off Chapter One of a book manuscript, a very nice job that should pay well.  It is titled The Mysterious Case of Evelyn Armature and begins "It was a cold, foreboding, wintry night that Evelyn Armature stole out of her large bedroom and went down to the end of the hall outside it where another room was located..  She smiled mysteriously, remembering all the times her grandfather had told her never to go into that room.  Or perhaps she was anticipating the mysterious and horrible secret that would be revealed to her within the forbidden room.  Soon after she began to explore it, she froze in her tracks as a ghost emerged from the floor.  It reached out to touch her neck, but then the clock struck one and the ghost vanished.  Then the clock struck twice more before disappearing into thin air."   Then Lum and Abner learn that they have been robbed.  Someone has stolen all their money, which had been hidden in a clock on their wall. This is probably a very rare episode, and may be difficult if not impossible to find anywhere except in this collection.  The section dealing with the manuscript, which consumes most of the show, is almost unbearably funny.  This is the best episode of the series I have ever heard.  Listeners will have the opportunity to hear an excerpt of a guaranteed best-selling novel.  Lum and Abner (Part Two).  "Abner Is Frightened Author" (May 28, 1942).  Summary: This also begins with the famous opening line "Hello, Jotem' Down Store, this is Lum and Abner."  The announcer recaps the incidents in Part One, which concluded when Lum and Abner discovered they had been robbed.  Today, Saturday, we find Abner in the store's library.  Abner has discovered Chapter Five of the manuscript of The Mysterious Case of Evelyn Armature stuck inside the door this morning.  He tells Lum he saw a real ghost in the grain room the other night.  They think the author of the manuscript is the thief who stole their clock, which had all their money in it.  Lum then says "I ain't a-scared of no ghost" well before the popular song "Ghostbusters" used exactly the same line. We learn that in Chapter Three the butler had been thrown into the furnace.  In Chapter Five we find Evelyn alone in the old mansion "except for her stepmother and the ghost."  Evelyn goes into her stepmother's room and finds the bed empty.  Then the ghost appears from behind a secret panel and reaches for her.  Cedric then comes into the store and interrupts our heroes, scaring them both.  Yard Knellwell is the presumed author of the manuscript, but Cedric, Lum and Abner do not know him.  Lum continues reading, Cedric now listening with rapt attention.  "As the long, clawed hands come closer and closer to Evelyn, she gives a loud scream and runs toward the window.  But before she can reach it, the floor opens up and Evelyn Armature disappears."  Then Chapter Five concludes with "To be continued." Then someone throws a rock through the window with a note attached.  It reads "If you want to know where Evelyn Armature is, be in your store tomorrow night at 12 midnight.  The phantom author will reveal all." Evelyn is about as unlikely a heroine as you will ever encounter, but one can't help being keenly interested as Lum and Abner work their way through the manuscript.  Will we ever get to hear Chapter Six? Lum and Abner: Author Reveals His Identity (May 29, 1942)   Summary: The announcer begins with "Well, the plot gets considerably thicker as more chapters by the author of The Case of Evelyn Ermitrude continue to arrive at the Edwards and Edwards Publishing Company by the phantom author.  It is nearly midnight as Lum, accompanied by Cedric, waits in the downstairs office of the Jotem' Downs Store.  Cedric has hung a ghost outfit in the closet.  Abner has disappeared.  Lum has a baseball bat near in case he learns that the author has harmed Abner.  Finally the front door opens.  Someone arrives wearing a mask.  Lum commands him to stop where he is and threatens violence if he does not comply.  Will Gray then removes his mask and reveals himself as the phantom author.  Then Abner arrives.  He disappeared last night.  Abner admits he disappeared as part of a plot to to get Lum to read the full manuscript and perhaps publish it.  Then a man named Mousie claims to be the author.  Abner now prepares to read the final chapter.  When Evelyn fell through the trap door of the old mansion, we learn, she landed in a secret dungeon in the cellar.  There she encountered  a ferocious  lion, which she tamed "by looking him right straight in the eye."  Then she climbed out of the dungeon, returned to the forbidden room, and encountered her stepmother, who was now taking off the ghost outfit.  Then she removed from a drawer a million dollar life insurance policy that Evelyn's Uncle had taken out on her before he died.  The mother-in-law hoped to cause Evelyn's death and collect the proceeds.  She killed the butler and maid to get them out of the way.  A lion that has followed Evelyn up the stairs then eats the mother-in-law, thwarting her nefarious scheme.  Evelyn marries the lion-tamer, and they live happily ever after. Mousie then asks Lum if he wants to publish the book, and receives an empathic "No" as his answer.  Mousie then reveals that Gussie is, in fact, the phantom author. This episode is not up to the hilarious standard of the other two, but we do learn the identity of the ghost, of Evelyn' would-be assassin, and the fact that our remarkable heroine escapes her enemies, falls in love, and faces the prospect of a long and happy life. The March on Washington. Jean Shepherd (August 29 1963) Jean Parker "Shep" Shepherd Jr. (July 21, 1921 – October 16, 1999) was an American storyteller, humorist, radio and TV personality, writer, and actor. You may recall the beloved film, A Christmas Story (1983). Shepherd narrative and co-write the film, based on his autobiographical tales. Hear Jean Shepherd’s compelling, personal and witty description of the March on Washington. More than 200,000 participated to stand up for Jobs an Freedom in the nation’s capital. The march successfully pressured Kennedy administration to launch a strong federal civil rights bill in Congress.  Kennedy remarked after the March, “it was the greatest moment of my life.” Shepherd describes talking with one lady attending the march. “You know,” she said, “I think even Satan was moved today.” Special thanks to Max Schmid for this recording.    Matinee with Bob and Ray (September 15, 1948) Just Fancy Dan A playful, improvisational episode of Matinee with Bob and Ray. The show animated the air Monday through Saturday on WHDH.   The weekday half-hours were broadcast live; the Saturday shows were usually 25 minutes The lightening-wit duo dazzled fans with their spontaneous humor. An off-the-wall quip may inspire the appearance of a familiar character, such as home economics guru Mary Margaret McGoon espousing wobbly guidance. A truckload of unrehearsed personalities, inevitably named “Sturdley,” were a beloved runner of the show. This show featured one of the many soap opera satires, Just Fancy Dan. A treasure of Bob and Ray shows are available online, including the REPS site. You can check out 238 Bob and Ray clips  and 434 Bob and Ray clips  at the  Internet Archive   My Client Curley (June 6, 1942) Columbia Workshop Norman Corwin writes and directs this delightful adaptation of Lucille Fletcher’s short story, My Client Curley . Fletcher, so fond of the thriller genre, taps of out her comfort zone is this fanciful show-biz folktale. Imagine you’re a hardscrabble agent who spies a dancing caterpillar, mentored by a young man named Stinky. Curley is a niche performer, he dances to only one tune, “Yes sir, That’s my Baby.” What happens when you, Stinky and Curley swirl into the be-wilderness of Hollywood. Is the limelight all it’s cracked up to be? The story found its way to the screen in 1944’s Once Upon a Time with Cary Grant. The reviewer of the movie in the NYT, published June 6, 1944 is charmed.     The Odyssey (April 11, 1948) Bookshelf of the World Summary:  The episode begins with the voyage home to Ithaca after the Greeks have left Troy in ashes.  The sailors expected to complete the trip in a few days, but it took 10 years.  They had many perilous adventures, including passing through Scylla and Charibdis, where many ships had been lost.  Also being stranded on the island of the Lotus Eaters, where everyone loses all motivation and is content to do nothing until they die.  In this program we find them shipwrecked and beached on the Island of Circe, which is inhabited by female creatures called the Sirens, whose singing leads men to their deaths and who plan to murder them all.  Their ally is Cyclops, a terrible monster with one eye in the middle of his forehead.  Circe is Queen of the Sirens, and tells Ulysses the island is named after her.  The other sailors who have been beached on the island with Ulysses are all changed into beasts by a spell.  Ulysses and one of his men (who has been changed into a cat) escape, go to the cave where Cyclops lives and find him asleep.  They survive their encounter with him.  After the spell is reversed and the sailors are changed back to humans again, they then return to the ship to make their escape.  The sailors put wax in their ears so they will not hear the song of the Sirens and have to return to their deaths. But after they are finished, there is no wax left for Ulysses.  They chain him to the deck to prevent his jumping overboard when he hears the song.  He rages and threatens, but they get him away safely and return to Ithaca. The announcer concludes with "You have been listening to the adventures of Ulysses from "The Odyssey."  Then "This is the United States Armed Forces Radio Service, the voice of information." The Private Life of Rochester Van Jones : Part 1 (May 12, 1950) Summary: The announcer begins with "Ladies and Gentlemen, The Columbia Broadcasting System invites you to sit back, relax and listen to Eddie Anderson in the amusing adventure of a happy-go-lucky fellow who works for that famous man in Beverly Hills."  This afternoon we find Rochester just going up the steps of his girlfriend Susie's house.  He has a rival who seems to be winning the battle for her affection, and when he goes in, she calls out "Is that you Franklin"?  Rochester then looks in the closet to see if Franklin is there.  Susie complains that Rochester never takes her anywhere and tells him she is getting ready to go out on a date with Franklin, who just bought her a 5-pound box of chocolates.  Franklin arrives, and the two soon depart leaving Rochester alone.  He laments how small his salary is working for Jack Benny, takes the advice of a friend and applies for a job as a part-time bill collector at the Friendly Finance Company.  The owner asks him to fill out an application for life insurance naming him as beneficiary.  He tells Rochester "Once in a while I get lucky."  Then an irate man whose mother has just been dispossessed of some property by one of the company's bill collectors comes barging in and knocks Rochester down with one punch.  This has several funny lines.    The Private Life of Rochester Van Jones : Part 2 (May 12, 1950) Summary: Now Rochester is working as a part-time bill collector for The Friendly Finance Company.  This morning we find him knocking on Susie's door.  When she doesn't appear, he goes inside and finds her talking over the back fence with her neighbor Lila.  He hears her saying that right now she is undecided about whether to choose Rochester or Franklin as her boyfriend.  Lila says she will take the loser when Susie makes up her mind.  He tells Susie he has come over to ask her out tonight but learns that Franklin has beaten him to the punch.  But later Susie phones him with the news that she has decided to go out with him tonight.  His assignment at work today is to collect money from a 240-pound wrestler.  This turns out to be surprisingly easy because the wrestler is hospitalized from injuries received in a recent match and can offer no resistance when Rochester takes $100 from his wallet.  He receives his $8.00 commission, and he is all set to take Susie to the opening of The Melody Club opening tonight.   Season of Disbelief (February 17, 1956).  CBS. CBS Radio Workshop   Summary: The announcer opens with "Tonight from Hollywood we present 'Season of Disbelief' and 'Hail and Farewell', two provocative character studies by one of America's most original authors, Ray Bradbury."  Then he introduces Ray, who compares life to "an endless coil of rope that goes back to the time we were born and extends ahead of us until the time of our death."  Mrs. Bentley is an old woman who reflects on her life and realizes that its most meaningful time by far was her marriage to her husband John.  She adored him, and he loved her until the day he died, which unfortunately was while they were still young.  She thinks the years that have passed since then have been meaningless, trivial, and sad.  In her final year or two, she is saved from utter despair by two little girls who visit her frequently and for whom she buys ice cream from a Good Humor man whose truck passes by her home every day. Bradbury introduces "Hail and Farewell" by asking the question "What if beauty could be made to last?  Would it still be beautiful, or monstrous?"  The program begins with a boy named Willie, age 12, preparing to leave the home of Emily Robinson and her husband after staying with them for 3 years.  They do not try to stop him.  They realize he is something special, other-worldly.  He came into their lives inexplicably and brought them happiness as their son all the time he stayed with him.  They did notice that when he departed he was carrying a birth certificate which indicated he had been born 43 years ago. Emily laments the fact that as we age, the freshness goes out of our lives like flowers wilting in the sun.  She asks Willie what it feels like to be young forever, but he tells her he has been unhappy too.  For many years after that Willie goes from one family to another, always a 12-year-old boy who likes baseball and reading juvenile literature and always staying 3 years with each set of parents.  Near the end of the episode he realizes, having failed in his attempt to get a job with a circus because the only one open to him was as a dwarf and he was too good-looking for that, that the only job he is fit for is making people happy.  The word "irony" fits this ending very well.   The Dark Lady of the Sonnets  by Bernard Shaw (BBC, 1938)  Robert Donat, the Man; George Woodbridge, the Beefeater; Lena Ashwelt, the Cloaked Lady; Mary Hinton, the Dark Lady The Dark Lady is the famed figure of Shakespeare’s sonnets, whose eyes and hair inspire her sobriquet. This jaunty one-act was written by Shaw in 1911 in support of a Shakespeare National Theatre, an idea a bit ahead of its time. The setting is 1600. Imagine a Midsummer evening, perched on the terrace of the Queen’s Palace at Whitehall, respondent with the Thames as your view.    You spy William Shakespeare, arriving a bit early to meet his love, who serves at the pleasure of the Queen. Ever the writer, Williams jots down all pithy phrases that capture his fancy. He has a brief chat with a Beefeater and charms him to allow him to remain on the premises. A lady arrives, but alas, it is not the woman he expects. William is enchanted and woos her. The dazzling woman is of course Queen Elizabeth. William’s wit is as sharp as Shaw’s. She finds his impudence charming, as he schools the Queen that his family lineage is the more respectable, as she finds herself ruler as a mere accident of circumstance. Their characters’ dialogue sparkles with echoes of Shakespeare’s plays.   The original broadcast includes a delightful introduction to the play by Bernard Shaw himself.  The introduction has been edited out of this recording, but if you are inclined, you can listen to it online.   Macbeth Follies. (April 26, 1940) This playful send-up was never broadcast, but privately recorded by the Mercury Theatre company members. Welles booms, “Mr. Allen has missed his cue!” Hear Welles recite III ii We have scotch’d the snake not kill’d it and “improve” on Shakespeare in III iv It will have blood; they say, blood will have blood. Stones have been known to move and trees to speak, And little boys to sit on chairs and make them sweep and rattle right in the middle of a record.   Welles jokes about his finances, he doesn’t know how he’ll pay for a twenty-five-cent breakfast. He and the company are amused by Louella Parsons’ erroneous column that boasts Welles’ is going into partnership with Lawrence Olivier to stage plays. A fun snapshot of remarkable artists having fun together. Lum and Abner: "Author Reveals His Identity" (May 29, 1942).  Part 3.   Summary: The announcer begins the episode with "Well, the plot gets considerably thicker as more chapters of "The Mysterious Case of Evelyn Ermitrude" by the phantom author continue to arrive at the Edwards & Edwards Publishing Company. Abner prepares to read the last chapter.  When Evelyn fell through the trap door of the old mansion, she landed in a secret dungeon in the cellar. There she encountered a ferocious lion, which she tamed by looking him "right square in the eye," as her boyfriend, a lion-tamer, has taught her to do.  Then she climbs out of the dungeon, returns to the forbidden room, and encounters her stepmother, who is just taking off a ghost outfit.  Then she removes a million-dollar life insurance policy from a drawer that Evelyn's uncle had taken out on his niece shortly before he died.  The mother-in-law hopes to cause Evelyn's demise and collect the death benefit.  She killed the butler and maid to get them out of the way.  A lion which has walked up the stairs behind Evelyn now quickly devours the mother-in law.  Evelyn marries the lion-tamer, and they live happily ever after. Mousie then asks Lum if he wants to publish the book.  He answers with an emphatic "No." Those who sign up for this collection will have the pleasure of reading a great book about a fearless detective and following the perils of one of the world's most unlikely heroines.