Radio digest (1922)

Youngsters of station WKY, Oklahoma City, Okla., enjoy a real sho' 'nough circus. Here are the elephants, the camel, the big tents and the animal keepers, and we have no doubt there are plenty of peanuts and red lemonade in the offing. Behalf of Butter By C. B. Kingston EVERY day from 12:45 to 1:00 o'clock the listeners to station WXAX, Yankton, South Dakota, bear the voice of D. B. Gurney, familiarly known as " D. B." ill the two Dakotas, Minnesota, Iowa. Nebraska and parts of Wyoming and Montana. Says John de Pagler of the Gurney Seed and Nursery Co., Yankton, South Dakota: "The territory covered by WNAX is largely dependent upon the dairy industry. In our efforts to increase the sale and consumption of butter we are broadcasting unique programs over WNAX. "About seven weeks ago D. B. viewed with some alarm the decrease in the price of butter-fat and butter. Realizing that if this decrease continued, it would hit the prosperity of the Middle West quite severely, he started a series of talks, choosing as his topic, 'Butter Is Better.' "This series of talks was an experiment, but D. B. hit the nail on the head and the dairy industry, represented by the farmers and creameries of the Middle West, urged him to continue his talks along the same line. Nothing loth, D. B. hammered away, urging people to use more butter, urging the farmers to deliver cream in better condition to the creamery, urging the creameries to make better grades of butter. "The results of this campaign were quickly felt. In a short time no less than five hundred towns reported that butter sales had soared. "WXAX organized the 'Butter Is Better' club and are urging listeners to become members and pledge themselves to banish butter substitutes from their tables and their stores. Dairymen pledged themselves to improve conditions on their farms: to improve sanitary conditions around their dairy cows and separators, and in delivering cream to the creameries, and are undertaking to deliver cream of low acidity and high quality. The creameries are competing with each other to manufacture butter with a score of ninety-two or better, and with all, the effect of this campaign has been most valuable. "We are putting on two fifteen-minute programs from WNAX between 1:00 and 1 :o0 every day except Sundays, featuring two of the progressive creameries who are helping WNAX to tight for better butter and less butter substitute. These programs consist of old time music, put on by an organization which we know as 'The Hired Hands.' It consists of Happy Jack O'Malley, old time fiddler: Hazel Olson, at the Baldwin piano: Oscar Kosta, of the Rosebud Kids, on the banjo; Harry Brown, with a mandolin or guitar; and, quite frequently, John Jensen comes in with the liddle. "] larold Clark, manager of the WXAX hatchery, sings specially written songs and usually your correspondent joins in with him and everybody has a good time. On one occasion, we had the Gurney quartet. It consisted of D. B. Gurney, president of the Gurney Seed and Xursery Company; Chandler Gurney, secretary and treasurer; Charles Gurney. advertising manager and purchasingagent, and E. R. Gurney, the W XAX Philosopher — with 'yours truly' leading the quartet." Goldsmith Has Prepared for a Radio Career A SON of the Middle West, Lee Goldsmith. General Manager of Station WCKY, Covington, Ky., bids fair some day to win a coveted honor, the medal awarded yearly by the American Academy of Arts and' Letters to the best Radio announcer. Goldsmith already has been nominated for the competition won last year by Milton J. Cross, and Goldsmith's friends believe that another year or two will see him at the top of the ladder to his chosen profession-^ Radio executive work. Unlike the majority of Radio ex; ecutives, Goldsmith prepared carefull for his career before he entered th field. He received his A. B. degree a the college' of Emporia. Kansas, an> took a special course in public speakin, at the University of Cincinnati. Then located in a small town in Kan sas, he listened to virtually every statioi in the country over a period of severa >ears, before going to Denver, where h. walked into KFXF. hung up his coi and told the proprietor he was going ft work there. Denver listeners liked Goldsmith, bu Goldsmith preferred Cincinnati, wher he had passed many enjoyable month as a student, and one day he receive' an offer from station WSAI. He cam on. and was employed; but the static was sold a few days later, and Gold; smith lost the opportunity to settl there. A year later a new broadcasting sta tion was constructed in Covington. Kyand opening night, last September, foutv Goldsmith in charge, although identifie. on the air only as the "Kentuck; Colonel." Charles Onan, Station WDAY, Fargo, past master on the guitar.