Arthur Godfrey Time was a Monday-Friday show that featured Godfrey’s
monologues, interviews with various stars, music from his own in-house
combo and regular vocalists. Godfrey’s monologues and discussions
were usually unscripted, and went wherever he chose. The program
remained a late morning staple with the Old Read Head on the CBS
Radio Network schedule until 1972.
1948
Arthur Morton Godfrey (August 31, 1903 – March 16, 1983)
Arthur Godfrey was seen for the last time in the final broadcast of “The
Arthur Godfrey Show” on CBS-TV. The hour-long series originally aired
from January 1949 to June 1957 as “Arthur Godfrey and His Friends”.
The variety show was live, and Godfrey often did away with the script
and improvised. He refused to participate in commercials for products
he did not believe in himself.
Carol Creighton Burnett
Actress, comedian, singer, and writer.Carol Burnett is best known for her long-
running TV variety show, The Carol Burnett Show,on CBS. It originally aired
from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 278 episodes, and again
with 9 episodes in the fall of 1991.
From left: Guest star Douglas Fairbanks and show host Bob Hope.
Other guests included Dinah Shore, and the Mexico City Boys Choir
singing the Hallelujah Chorus.
It was Easter Sunday, April 9, 1950 and the national TV debut of Bob
Hope on NBC in a 90 minute variety extravaganza called The Star
Spangled Review. He had previously appeared on a 1947 West
Coast broadcast, but this was a Big Deal, his first national television
appearance.
The TV special, produced by Max Liebman who was also responsible
for Sid Caesar & Imogene Coca’s “Your Show of Shows” at the time.
The show was a ratings success and Hope agreed to become the host
on a regular basis. It was much like Hope’s radio show, a mixture of jokes,
skits, and musical quest stars. It was eventually renamed the Bob Hope
Special and aired as a staple on NBC until 1997.
Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
The “Martin & Lewis” radio show premiered on the NBC network. Their guest on
the inaugural program was Bob Hope. It drew lackluster reviews in the April 30
issue of Billboard magazine. The series ran until 1952.
