Variety radio directory (1937)

PRODUCTION PROGRAM-PRODUCTION HISTORY, 1929-1937* By Edgar A. Granwald Radio has grown so rapidly, and with such demands on its energies 12 hours out of every 24, that records of its past are indeed obscure. Particularly is this true in a field such as programming, where statistical helps are not even the major requirement, but must be tempered with a flair for judgment. For the data drawn on in this condensed history, acknowledgment is made to the Cooperative Analysis of Broadcasting for the generous use of its documents. That these were not always mere documents, but frequently incisive comments on pure facts and figures, has been a fortunate circumstance. This is not the place for a discussion, one way or another, of C. A. B. methodology. Suffice it to say that the C. A. B. has been the major observation post for program tendencies during radio's history. Many a programming trend today stands out with a clarity unsuspected simply because C. A. B. statistics have been known to guide wholesale production shifts, this way or that. Since 1929, when records of any reliable sort first appeared, radio's program and production trends have roughly paralleled the evolution of the show business in general. Network production started with minstrelsy and music hall. Vaudeville appeared shortly thereafter. Opera, the concert, and the legitimate drama have had extended interludes and revivals. Comparing with the show business' ultimate cash wonder — the motion picture — radio production currently has reached its Era of Big Cash, a phase marked by two phenomena: (1) lavish background filler; and (2) the search for novelty. During this process, production and programming have threaded the following stages : 1. Music hall and minstrelsy, 1929-32. 2. The mystery drama, 1931-32. 3. The "personality" entertainer, 1932 to January, 1934 4. Concert-opera, 1933-34. 5. Era of big money — Part I — January, 1934. a. Numerous hOur-length programs. b. Trend toward background production. 6. Era of big money — Part II — 1935. a. The amateur hour. b. The continuous musical comedy. 7. Era of big money — Part III — 1936. a. Trend toward novelty. b. Eclectic use of dance music, variety, etc. There is a reason for this succession of stages, just as there was a reason for a similar evolution in the theatre proper. Radio being an aural medium, it naturally found its initial production in music. Minstrelsy — early humor combined * Charts of C. A. B. ratings, as well as popularity polls, for the past year commence on page 30. \7