MIKE GRACIA

Communist East Germany opened its borders on this day in
1989, allowing its citizens to travel freely to West Germany.

On this day in 1938, Nazi troops and sympathizers destroyed and
looted 7,500 Jewish businesses, burned 267 synagogues, killed 91
Jews, and rounded up over 25,000 Jewish men in an event that
became known as Kristallnacht or "Night of Broken Glass."

The great Northeast blackout occurred on this day in 1965, as
several states and parts of Canada were hit by a series of power
failures lasting up to 13 1/2 hours.

Dylan Marlais Thomas (October 27, 1914 – November 9, 1953)

Thomas came to be appreciated as a popular poet during his lifetime, though
he found earning a living as a writer difficult. He began augmenting his income
with reading tours and radio broadcasts.

At the post-mortem, the pathologist found three causes of death – pneumonia,
brain swelling and a fatty liver. Despite his heavy drinking his liver showed no
sign of cirrhosis. He was only 39.

Arthur William Matthew "Art" Carney
(November 4, 1918 – November 9, 2003)

Actor in film, stage, television and radio, Art Carney is best known
for playing sewer worker Ed Norton opposite Jackie Gleason‘s Ralph
Kramden in the CBS television sitcom The Honeymooners from 1955
to 1956. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in
Harry and Tonto (1974). Carney died in his sleep of natural causes
on November 9, 2003, 5 days after his 85th birthday, near his home
in Westbrook, Connecticut.

Jackie Gleason, Art Carney, and Audey Meadows

Art Carney as a department store Santa Clause in the
1960 Twilight Zone episode "Night of the Meek".  

Sen. John F. Kennedy (far right) participates in a panel discussion
on NBC’s Meet the Press, which aired on Feb. 14, 1954.

Meet the Press is a weekly television news/interview program broadcast on
NBC. It is the longest-running program in television history, though the
current format bears little resemblance to the debut episode on November
6, 1947.  It originates from NBC’s Washington, D.C. bureau.  Meet the Press
began on radio on the Mutual Broadcasting System in 1945.     

The first host was its creator, Martha Rountree (below) the program’s only
full time female moderator to date. She stepped down on November 1, 1953
and until Ned Brooks could take over.

ED DANNAHUE

On this day in 1938, Orson Welles’ "The War of the Worlds" aired on CBS
radio. The belief that the realistic radio dramatization was a live news event
about a Martian invasion caused panic among listeners.

George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985)

A deadly mudslide hit Nicaragua after hurricane Mitch on this
day in 1998.

On this day in 1974.

Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen
(December 26, 1921 – October 30, 2000)

Comedian Steve Allen achieved national fame as the first host of NBC’s 
The Tonight Show, the first late night television talk show in September
1954.

Lux Radio Theatre was a radio show that ran on CBS from 1934–1955. Every
week they broadcast an hour-long adaptation of a popular film or Broadway
play, often starring members of the original cast.

Left to Right: Cecil B. DeMille, unidentified actor, Gary Cooper, and
Helen Mack rehearsing "The Virginian" for a 1939 episode of Lux
Radio Theater.

Jane Wyman and Jimmy Stewart in the Lux Radio Theater
adaptation of the 1947 film “Magic Town”.

Cary Grant and Greer Garson during a 1942 Lux Radio Theatre
broadcast of “Bedtime Story”.   
 
      
     

May 31, 1943

Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998)

Actor and singer Gene Autry is known as The Singing Cowboy for his
appearances in ninety-three movies and ninety-one TV productions. The
roles as honest American heros earned him a reputation as one of country
music’s most prominent figures. Before fame he did work on his father’s
ranch and worked as a railroad telegrapher. He also performed as a singer
and a guitarist at local dances. Gene Autry owned the Anaheim Angels
baseball team for over thirty years.