Lost 1936 Show - FOUND!

[Wich2]

CELEBRATING "LUCKY" ARTHUR ANDERSON ~

On the fifth anniversary of the beloved veteran actor's passing, please join us on the World Wide Web this Friday night at 10:30pm EST for rare audio performances by my pal Arthur - from his Teens to his Eighties!

Time permitting, we'll hear him star in the re-premiere of a Radio show not heard since 1936, with Orson Welles in support; in a Stage performance from 2008; and in several other gems from the years between - concluding with some transcribed comments from the man himself.

Find us here on your cyber-dial:
https://yesterdayusa.net/?fbclid=IwAR1TPzkQXTvwAs3i4hj-WDB8Bk7gvKLnZbCAURaxry3ry7jJTALVRFW4meM

Best,
- Craig Wichman

[Wich2]

The Players are all Assembled ~

- Arthur Anderson - Lee Bowman - Cliff Carpenter - Ray Collins - Fred Foy - Joseph Franchini - Scott Glascock - Jack Grimes - Mary Jane Higby - Wendell Holmes - Mart Hulswit - Ian Martin - Don Pardo - Alexander Scourby - Sybil Trent - Peter Von Berg - Orson Welles - Craig Wichman - and company -

The Programs are all Polished ~

- PETER ABSOLUTE - LET'S PRETEND - X MINUS ONE - THEATRE 5 - LUCKY CHARMS - OPENHOUSENY - A FEW MOMENTS WITH ARTHUR

Join us in the Theater of the Imagination!

- Craig

[Wich2]

I have to admit, I'm a little surprised that there's so little interest in what looks fair to be the earliest extant Welles transcription!

The episode of PETER ABSOLUTE dates from May 10th, 1936 - and the estimable RadioGOLDINex's first listing is for a March 13, 1936 "March Of Time."

And as added value, our 22 year-old (!) fair-haired pre-Merc boy has/is great fun, in a turn as a barnstorming actor playing Dickens' "Bill Sikes." (With Ray Collins as "Fagin.")

Best,
- Craig

[Le Chiffre]

Craig, I tried to pull up the show, but I couldn't find it at the link you provided. I did pull up some other OTR shows at that link, including one with Talulah Bankhead that had very nice sound quality, but I couldn't pull up anything with Orson Welles or Arthur Anderson, nor did I see it on the list of scheduled programs. If you have a direct link to the show (or shows) in question I'll be happy to give it a listen.

A six-episode CD set of PTER ABSOLUTE ON THE ERIE CANAL is available on ebay. Don't know if Welles is on any of these episodes or not. I'd never heard of the show, so thanks for bringing it to our attention:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/OLD-TIME-RADIO ... 4670924327

[Wich2]

Chief -

Alas, at this point, those guys only Stream Live - they don't Archive or Pod. (They said they may make an exception in this case; I'll keep ya'll posted.)

As we discussed during the show, that ABSOLUTE cd set is a Modern Audio Drama redo of the original series; so there's no Orson on board. (Arthur condensed the scripts, and produced this for Radio Spirits.)

Best,
- Craig

[Terry]

I'm interested, but I missed the stream. I certainly know the name Peter Absolute from poring over the books on Welles.

There are earlier surviving recordings of Welles than that. He's on the following episodes of Cavalcade of America:

12-18-1935 Defiance of Nature
01-01-1936 The Declaration of Independence
01-15-1936 Building and Architecture
01-29-1936 Enterprise

[Wich2]

Well, my statement was conditional!

I just ran a quick check at RadioGOLDindex, and in the list in Callow's first book.

Best,
- Craig

[Le Chiffre]

There are earlier surviving recordings of Welles than that. He's on the following episodes of Cavalcade of America:

12-18-1935 Defiance of Nature
01-01-1936 The Declaration of Independence
01-15-1936 Building and Architecture
01-29-1936 Enterprise

It would be interesting to hear these. This was right around the time Welles was directing rehearsals for the Voodoo Macbeth. In fact, one web page says Welles originally turned down Houseman's offer to direct the play because he thought it would interfere with his lucrative radio work.

[Wich2]

Here ya go, boss ~

https://auislandora.wrlc.org/islandora/ ... ickman%3A1

(Best source I know of, sound-wise.)

Best,
- Craig