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#1
02-03-2015, 09:18 PM
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A question for you
Aside from my collecting mahogany boxes filled with obsolete technology and less than glowing CRT's, I have a VHS copy of a 1949 NBC program given to me by one of the principals of the show. He is 20 years gone in a car accident.
The program was a short-lived summer replacement on NBC from NY (the International Theatre) and long out of copyright. There is only one other episode of the show on the net/archive/youtube from an episode later in that season. That copy is a sophisticated version of the show directed by a true director with movie credentials later in it's season as they matured. My version is very early (four months prior) and more a Broadway production scaled for tv. It is a directors nightmare with a hack director truly 5 seconds behind the play on stage. My donor is a recurring stooge in the audience (and a producer of this program) and a historic radio performer I had the pleasure to have lunch with back then. He later sent me this VHS from his collection and a gracious note thanking me for remembering him and then he tragically died a few months later. I have restored it as best is possible with my dubbing center. What do I do with this? Post it to the world? Package it and sell it for others to post to the world (that is what happened with the latter episode)? Hold private viewing parties at home? This VHS is truly historic and I want to hear your opinions that help me figure out what to do. And the episode is hilarious is it's own July 5, 1949 Hellzappopin way. Henry!!! Henry Aldrich!!! Bigger clues may come. If you are nice, I may have a viewing party at ETF. No camcorders allowed.
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“Once you eliminate the impossible...whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth." Sherlock Holmes. Last edited by Dave A; 02-04-2015 at 05:32 PM. Reason: text 
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#2
02-04-2015, 09:07 AM
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Dave, you always seem to find the unobtanium stuff... my vote is for sharing it in any way you can!!
Jim
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#3
02-04-2015, 12:18 PM
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Here's some cast & crew info:
4 different actors played Henry Aldrich during the show run. The Aldrich Family (1949–1953) Full Cast & Crew Series Directed by Frank Papp Ezra Stone Lester Vail Series Writing Credits Clifford Goldsmith ... (play "What a Life!") Clifford Goldsmith ... (radio series) Clifford Goldsmith ... (creator) Series Cast Robert Barry Robert Barry ... Homer Brown #2 (1951-1952) (as Bob Barry) Charita Bauer Charita Bauer ... Mary Aldrich #1 (1949-1950) Nancy Carroll Nancy Carroll ... Alice Aldrich #2 (1950-1951) Robert Casey Robert Casey ... Henry Aldrich #1 (1949-1950) June Dayton June Dayton ... Mary Aldrich #3 (1952-1953) Robert Ellis Robert Ellis ... Henry Aldrich #5 (1952-1953) Joseph Foley Joseph Foley ... Mr. Bradley #2 (1950-1953) Henry Girard Henry Girard ... Henry Aldrich #3 (1951-1952) Jack Grimes Jack Grimes ... Homer Brown #3 (1952-1953) (as Jackie Grimes) Marcia Henderson Marcia Henderson ... Kathleen House Jameson House Jameson ... Mr. Sam Aldrich (original cast) (played the role on radio) Jackie Kelk Jackie Kelk ... Homer Brown #1 (1949-1950) Loretta Leversee Loretta Leversee ... Eleanor Mary Malone Mary Malone ... Mary Aldrich #2 (1950-1952) Maggie McNamara Maggie McNamara ... Ricki Peterson (1950) Richard Midgley Richard Midgley ... Mr. Bradley #1 (1949) Kenneth Nelson Kenneth Nelson ... Henry Aldrich #4 (1952) Paul Newman Paul Newman ... Occasional Cast Member (1952-53) Leona Powers Leona Powers ... Mrs. Brown (original cast) (played the role on radio) Gerrianne Raphael Gerrianne Raphael Barbara Robbins Barbara Robbins ... Mrs. Alice Aldrich #3 (1951-1953) Howard Smith Howard Smith ... Mr. Brown Ann Sorg Ann Sorg ... Anna Mitchell James Stephens James Stephens ... Jimmy Bartlett (1950) Richard Tyler Richard Tyler ... Henry Aldrich #2 (1950-1951) Ethel Wilson Ethel Wilson ... Aunt Harriet Lionel G. Wilson Lionel G. Wilson ... George Bigelow Lois Wilson Lois Wilson ... Mrs. Alice Aldrich #1 (1949-1950, 1951)) Bess Winburn Bess Winburn ... Marjorie Peterson (1950) -Steve D.
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Please visit my CT-100, CTC-5, vintage color tv site: http://www.wtv-zone.com/Stevetek/
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#4
02-04-2015, 05:29 PM
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Ding, ding, ding. Steve got the Ezra Stone part right! What a great gentleman he was and a fan of his fans for the two hours I got to spend with him. The big clue is "Hellzapoppin" and how that morphed in to this summer replacement show.
I am still conflicted as to what to do with this episode. First, I have to check with the Museum of Radio & Television in NYC to see if they have this. I'll be in NYC soon and will check in person. If they do, then my question ends. After that I would load it to the Internet Archive who does not have it. It does seem ghoulish to sell something given to me. I think I answered my own question Jim. The other option of selling it opens many cans of intellectual property rights worms. It seems out of copyright but that assumption caught up with "It's a Wonderful Life" a few years ago. Yes the movie was out of rights but the music was not. The clock restarted on that one and got rid of all the dollar store copies. "Alex, I'll take Buick for $800."
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“Once you eliminate the impossible...whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth." Sherlock Holmes. Last edited by Dave A; 02-04-2015 at 06:05 PM. Reason: text
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#5
02-04-2015, 08:06 PM
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Quote:
Actually, the real question is what happened to the Kinescope from which Ezra Feinstone made the VHS, after he passed away in 1994? Did it wind up in an archive? Well, the nearest thing to Olsen and Johnson on NBC Tuesday night July 5, 1949, would be Texaco Star Theatre. I'm assuming the NBC network, 'cause you mentioned the International Theatre which was leased to NBC until it was demolished about 1954-55. With that said, I'm not aware of any connection of Ezra Stone with the Texaco Star Theatre. I usually associate Ezra more with the Aldrich Family Radio show than with the Aldrich Family TV show, as he only appeared on the air in the radio show. James Last edited by earlyfilm; 02-04-2015 at 08:10 PM.
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#6
02-04-2015, 08:25 PM
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James,
Ding, ding, ding again. The show was a summer sub for the Berle/Buick Tuesday night show...along with his Buick sponsorship. It started on Tuesdays and somewhere moved to Thursday during it's short run. The Buick commercial in the middle of this show is awful. Long shots of the car (I wish I could own now) with no narration early on. It is painful to watch for it's three uncoordinated minutes of air. This show was on its own that summer as a sub. They seem to have resurrected the "Hellzapoppin" format from the O/J stage version. Stone was listed in the credits as "production supervisor". He was the theatrical director of this show in the vaudeville style and the tv director just flew along with Stone's staging...and it shows. Stone does not appear in the later version which is directed by a Mack Sennett veteran from the 30's. Eddie Cline. This may have been a one-off for Stone. I do not know what happened to the original kinescope. I do not know how this VHS came to be. That is lost to the family history and I am going to let it alone after all this time and as I have no contact with them. In the case of this show, Ezra's participation may have been short lived as this form of programming was not to survive. Vaudeville was gone and tv wanted to be like it's big brother...Hollywood. All in a few short months. We are not done. The clues continue. Where did the show title come from? "Now a word from our sponsor."
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“Once you eliminate the impossible...whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth." Sherlock Holmes. Last edited by Dave A; 02-04-2015 at 09:22 PM. Reason: text
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