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News, History & Ephemera · NBC Blue

Behind the Mike

September 15, 1940 – April 12, 1942 · 82 broadcasts

Radio explaining itself, while radio was still new enough to find that interesting. Every Sunday from September 1940 the NBC Blue Network gave Graham McNamee half an hour to take listeners behind the microphone -- and McNamee, the announcer who had more or less invented American play-by-play seventeen years earlier, was the right man to do it. It was a magazine, not a drama. A single half-hour might run six unrelated stories: how a sound-effects man makes a sneeze, what a studio orchestra is actually for, four actresses auditioning live for a part in Moliere, NBC's man in London explaining what goes into an overseas newscast, a demonstration of a gadget that made an instrument seem to talk. Listeners' questions were answered in a segment called Correspondence Corner. Mort Lewis wrote and directed, Ernie Watson's orchestra played, and the guests ranged from Dinah Shore and the Mills Brothers to Jack Benny, interviewed by his own announcer. It ran sustaining -- no sponsor -- for eighty-two logged Sundays, to April 1942. McNamee died four weeks later, at fifty-three. The series was renamed and finished out the season without him.

Collection status: 33 of 82 held (40% complete)
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Episode Spine

Grouped by year. Jump to the full list below, or open a season on its own page.

1940

September 15, 1940 Premiere Show Listen (MP3)
The first broadcast packs in six stories in twenty-five minutes: radio's most loyal fan, an NBC page boy who was also a corporate executive, profiles of Ward Wilson and song plugger George Marlowe, the Correspondence Corner, and how a Renfrew of the Mounted broadcast helped a boy out of a recurring coma.
September 22, 1940 Warming Up a Studio Audience Listen (MP3)
How one of NBC's daytime serials talked a listener out of breaking up her home, and what a Pot O' Gold winner did with his $1,900. Guests include The O'Neills author Jane West, a past Pot O' Gold recipient, and Capt. Tim Healy of NBC's Stamp Club.
September 29, 1940 Baby's Cries Listen (MP3)
Radio's professional cry baby, Janice Gilbert, and blues singer Mary Small -- two very different uses of a young voice at the microphone.
October 6, 1940 Versatile Acting Listen (MP3)
Dialect actor Charlie Cantor demonstrates his trade, with pro football star Ken Strong, restaurateur Leo Linderman of Lindy's, and Eddie Davis, a onetime cab driver turned radio gag writer.
October 13, 1940 Sundown on the Veldt Listen (MP3)
NBC sportscaster Bill Stern interviews Navy football coach Maj. Emery E. Larson and lays out the preparation a football broadcast takes. Joseph Marais sings South African songs, and a dramatisation retells the case of a yachtsman taken ill off the Galapagos, whose rescue the Navy mounted after a radio call reached it.
October 20, 1940 Radio Sneezing Listen (MP3)
A look back at two vanished programs, the RKO Hour and the tea show Chase and Sanborn first sponsored, with vocalist Tom Kennedy, Georgie Price, Len Doyle and Haven MacQuarrie among those McNamee introduces.
October 27, 1940 Stoogedom Listen (MP3)
A salute to Col. Charles T. Davis, who started the old Collier's Hour and was the earliest to turn motion pictures into radio drama.
November 10, 1940 Sound Effects Listen (MP3)
Announcer Jimmy Wallington and character actor Gilbert Mack let listeners in on how a character actor does his stuff, with 1927 audition winner turned opera singer Agnes Davis, announcer Don Cordray and radio editor C.J. Ingram.
November 17, 1940 Making a Living by Dying Listen (MP3)
A salute to radio's twentieth anniversary that also carries an excerpt from the program pre-empted a fortnight earlier. NBC page boy Addy Amor, who had written three hit tunes, hears Mary Small sing his latest; also on are Real Folks stars George Frame Brown and Elsie Mae Gordon, and Dave Elman of Hobby Lobby.
November 24, 1940 Dinah and the Truck Driver Listen (MP3)
Pat Kelly, chief of NBC's announcers, explains what the job demands -- and the show launches a new department, the Sound Effect of the Week. Dinah Shore sings; bandleader Harry Horlick appears, as do the comics Pick and Pat.
December 1, 1940 War News Mistakes Listen (MP3)
Fred Bate, NBC's man in Britain, tells McNamee what work and preparation lie behind each overseas newscast from London. Lee Bristol gives the advertiser's view of radio, and the program collects some famous on-air fluffs.
December 8, 1940 Musical Bridges Listen (MP3)
Four actresses audition on the air for two leads in Moliere's Imaginary Invalid, the winners to appear on Great Plays the following Sunday. Ernie Watson explains what the studio orchestra is for, with Lanny Ross, Henry Burbig and radio editor Nick Kenny.
December 15, 1940 Radio's Dramatic Actresses Listen (MP3)
A salute to Eno Crime Clues, with Jack MacBride, Prentiss Winchell, Gertrude Warner and Jayne Cozzens.
December 22, 1940 Difficult Names Listen (MP3)
Profiles of the Mills Brothers and of 'Cheerio', with Ben Grauer deputising for Graham McNamee -- the first of the two broadcasts the log credits to him.
December 29, 1940 Radio Almanac Listen (MP3)
A salute to Roxy's Gang, with Ben Grauer again deputising as master of ceremonies.

1941

January 5, 1941 Weird Prospective Guest Interview Listen (MP3)
McNamee returns as emcee for a salute to Sigmund Spaeth, radio's Tune Detective.
January 12, 1941 Script Writers Listen (MP3)
An actual actress audition, carried on the air.
January 19, 1941 FDR Third Inaugural Ceremonies Listen (MP3)
Preparations for Franklin Roosevelt's third inauguration, with dramatised highlights of the Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Wilson and Roosevelt ceremonies. McNamee is remote for his portion; Tiny Ruffner handles the studio.
January 26, 1941 You're My Dream Listen (MP3)
A salute to Death Valley Days, with singer Frank Luther.
February 2, 1941 Putting a Program Together Listen (MP3)
The show turns the microphone on itself and explains how Behind the Mike is put together.
February 9, 1941 The Lady from Oklahoma Listen (MP3)
How a big band is organised, with Ida Bailey Allen.
February 16, 1941 Character Actors Listen (MP3)
A salute to the Eveready Hour, and tips on becoming a radio star.
February 23, 1941 Comedy Broadcasts Listen (MP3)
How a new act gets found and pushed. Three singing Powers models appear, and the week's dramatisation turns on Tom Powers, whose broadcasts are said to have set a convict reading his way toward an education.
March 2, 1941 Pioneers of Radio Entertainment Listen (MP3)
A salute to the pioneers of radio entertainment, including a recitation of 'The Shooting of Dan McGrew.'
March 9, 1941 Child Actors
How a horror program is put together.
March 16, 1941 An Actual Quiz Kids Audition
An actual Quiz Kids audition, carried on the air.
March 23, 1941 The Lee De Forest Story Listen (MP3)
A tribute to Dr. Lee de Forest, and the relationship between the telephone and radio.
March 30, 1941 Eno Crime Clues
How not to write a radio script in Hollywood, with Lana Turner and Hedy Lamarr; Arch Oboler is on hand.
April 6, 1941 Exploits On the South African Veldt
Exploits on the South African veldt.
April 13, 1941 How Do You Do, Ladies and Gentlemen
An edition built around the announcer's oldest opening line, 'How do you do, ladies and gentlemen.'
April 20, 1941 Director - Star Relationships Listen (MP3)
Juano Hernandez and a tale of voodoo, with NBC's Raymond Guy; the surviving recording circulates as a piece on director-star relations.
April 27, 1941 Jailbreak
A dramatisation of the 1935 Alcatraz prison break.
May 4, 1941 Enoch Light's Disappearance from the Airwaves Listen (MP3)
Jack Benny marks his ninth anniversary in radio in an interview conducted by his own announcer, Don Wilson -- and the show asks what became of bandleader Enoch Light, vanished from the airwaves.
May 11, 1941 Getting Foreign News by Short Wave
Inside NBC's short-wave listening post, where foreign broadcasts were monitored.
May 18, 1941 Amusing Stories Behind Radio Listen (MP3)
True amusing stories from around radio, with Al Simon, Alma Kitchell, Sylvia Froos and Bill Rapp.
May 25, 1941 Mystery Scripts
How a mystery script is written.
June 1, 1941 Behind-the-Scene Workers
The behind-the-scenes workers a listener never hears.
June 8, 1941 Selling a Show to a Sponsor Listen (MP3)
How a radio production firm sells a program to a sponsor.
June 15, 1941 English Children in America Speak to Their Parents
The story behind South American radio -- and English children evacuated to America speaking to their parents at home.
June 22, 1941 How A Horse Race Is Broadcast Over Radio
How a horse race is broadcast.
June 29, 1941 The Associated Press Listen (MP3)
A tribute to the Associated Press.
July 6, 1941 How A Daytime Radio Serial is Conceived
How a daytime radio serial is conceived.
July 13, 1941 (untitled)
July 20, 1941 (untitled)
July 27, 1941 'Truth or Consequences' Expose
An expose of Truth or Consequences.
August 3, 1941 Phil Harris Tells All - About Jack Benny
Phil Harris tells all -- about Jack Benny.
August 10, 1941 (untitled)
August 17, 1941 How A Commercial Radio Program is Created
How a commercial radio program is created.
August 24, 1941 Rochester and Schlepperman on Jack Benny
Rochester and Schlepperman, on working with Jack Benny.
August 31, 1941 The Story of the Quetzel
The story of the quetzal.
September 7, 1941 The Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street
The Chamber Music Society of Lower Basin Street.
September 14, 1941 Radio Announcers' Fluffs
Radio announcers' fluffs.
September 21, 1941 H. V. Kaltenborn's Reporting Experiences
H.V. Kaltenborn on his reporting experiences.
September 28, 1941 Commentator Irene Kuhn on China
Commentator Irene Kuhn on China.
October 5, 1941 How The Quiz Kids is Broadcast
How the Quiz Kids is broadcast.
October 12, 1941 Zulu Radio Star Listen (MP3)
A demonstration of the Wright Sonovox -- the device that let an instrument seem to speak; the recording circulates as 'Zulu Radio Star.'
October 19, 1941 Spooks, Witches and a 'Cole' Black Cat
Spooks, witches and a 'Cole' black cat.
October 26, 1941 Broadcasting Under War-Time Conditions
Broadcasting under wartime conditions.
November 2, 1941 Escape from Yugoslavia
Escape from Yugoslavia.
November 9, 1941 Stokowski On the Acoustical Reflector
Stokowski on the acoustical reflector.
November 16, 1941 The Story Behind 'Vox Pop'
The story behind Vox Pop.
November 23, 1941 Mrs. Joe Taylor-Torrans, Songwriter
Songwriter Mrs. Joe Taylor-Torrans, with impressionist Arthur Boran.
November 30, 1941 Impersonations of Famous People Listen (MP3)
The story behind the weird organ music of Inner Sanctum, with Arthur Boran's impersonations of famous people.
December 7, 1941 Telephone Lines In Radio Broadcasting
The scheduled subject was the part telephone lines play in broadcasting, but the program never reached listeners: it was blacked off the air by the bulletins from Pearl Harbor. The show played on for the studio audience, and that ad-lib hour was repeated two weeks later.
December 14, 1941 Pre-Empted
December 21, 1941 How to Become a Sports Announcer
How to become a sports announcer.
December 28, 1941 A Salute to Dave Elman of Hobby Lobby
A salute to Dave Elman of Hobby Lobby.

1942

January 4, 1942 Radio and The War Department
Radio and the War Department.
January 11, 1942 AT & T Long Lines and Radio
AT&T long lines and radio.
January 18, 1942 A Spotlight on Zulu Radio
A spotlight on Zulu radio.
January 25, 1942 Creating Ellery Queen
Creating Ellery Queen.
February 1, 1942 The Story of Alistair Kyle
The story of Alistair Kyle.
February 8, 1942 Swop Nite
Swop Nite.
February 15, 1942 Quiz Kids Defense Bonds Figures
Quiz Kids and the Defense Bond figures.
February 22, 1942 The Story Behind Defense Bonds and Stamps
The story behind defense bonds and stamps.
March 1, 1942 A Salute to Station WAGE in Syracuse
A salute to station WAGE in Syracuse.
March 8, 1942 Behind The Daughters of Uncle Sam
Behind The Daughters of Uncle Sam.
March 15, 1942 Behind the Cliquot Club Eskimo Program
Behind the Cliquot Club Eskimo program.
March 22, 1942 Tallulah Bankhead and Command Performance
Tallulah Bankhead and Command Performance.
March 29, 1942 The Blue Theater Players Listen (MP3)
The Blue Theater Players.
April 5, 1942 (untitled)
April 12, 1942 (untitled)
The Story

Radio explaining itself, while radio was still new enough to find that interesting. Every Sunday from September 1940 the NBC Blue Network gave Graham McNamee half an hour to take listeners behind the microphone -- and McNamee, the announcer who had more or less invented American play-by-play seventeen years earlier, was the right man to do it. It was a magazine, not a drama. A single half-hour might run six unrelated stories: how a sound-effects man makes a sneeze, what a studio orchestra is actually for, four actresses auditioning live for a part in Moliere, NBC's man in London explaining what goes into an overseas newscast, a demonstration of a gadget that made an instrument seem to talk. Listeners' questions were answered in a segment called Correspondence Corner. Mort Lewis wrote and directed, Ernie Watson's orchestra played, and the guests ranged from Dinah Shore and the Mills Brothers to Jack Benny, interviewed by his own announcer. It ran sustaining -- no sponsor -- for eighty-two logged Sundays, to April 1942. McNamee died four weeks later, at fifty-three. The series was renamed and finished out the season without him.

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