➦In 1899...Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company of America registered.
➦In 1901...orchestra leader Andre Kostelanetz was born in Russia.
Arriving in the US in 1922, he conducted concerts for radio, and in the 30s he was given his own weekly show on CBS, Andre Kostelanetz Presents. He was known for arranging and recording light classical music pieces for mass audiences, as well as orchestral versions of popular songs and Broadway show tunes. His numerous recordings garnered sales of over 50 million and became staples of Beautiful Music radio.
He succumbed to pneumonia Jan. 13 1980 at age 78.
He was half of the first two-man radio morning show team on WNEW 1130 AM New York (Rayburn & Finch), and broke into TV as announcer for Steve Allen on the original Tonight Show.
Besides Match Game, for which he is best remembered, he also hosted the TV games Make the Connection, Choose Up Sides, Dough Re Mi, and Tic Tac Dough. He died Nov 29, 1999 at age 81.
➦In 1920...WEAF in New York City, aired the first broadcast of a prize fight from ringside. The fight was broadcast from Madison Square Garden where Joe Lynch defeated Peter Herman to retain the bantamweight title.
➦In 1922...pioneer New York radio station WEAF once again proved to be the pillar of radio promotion. This time they broadcast radio’s first double wedding ceremony. 4,000 spectators watched as the two couples exchanged vows at Grand Central Palace. The broadcast was made in conjunction with the American Radio Exposition. The couples each got $100; a hefty sum in 1922.
➦In 1962...The Tornados became the first British group to have a #1 record in the U.S. when they topped the singles chart with their instrumental "Telstar."
He was 65.
He had been announcer for dozens of network shows including Eddie Cantor, Fred Allen, Burns & Allen & Texaco Star Theater, and was the voice of radio’s last major attempt to stave off the TV onslaught, NBC’s The Big Show of the early 1950’s. He ended his career as an announcer with the Voice of America.
➦In 2000...SIRIUS Satellite Radio completed its satellite system. But it would be more than a year before the service was introduced in the first four US states.
➦In 2010...Radio and TV announcer (The Lone Ranger, The Green Hornet, The Dick Cavett Show, The Generation Gap)/National Radio Hall of Famer Fred Foy died at the age of 89.
Shortly after graduating from high school in 1938, Foy began in broadcasting with a part-time position at WMBC, a 250-watt independent station in Detroit. He moved to WXYZ in 1942, but World War II interrupted his radio career.
He was inducted August 28, 1942, entering the American armed forces September 11, 1942.
Attached to the 14th Special Service Company, Sergeant Fred Foy became the American voice on Egyptian State Broadcasting, delivering news and special programs to the Allied Forces in Cairo. He handled the distribution throughout the Middle East of American recordings, in addition to local broadcasts of Command Performance, Mail Call, Personal Album, Radio Bric-a-Brac and Front Line Theatre. He also announced The American Forces Programme. For Stars and Stripes he did American News Letter, a weekly summary of news from America, plus sport flashes and items from various theatres of war. For Cairo cinemas, he announced Headline News of the Day. Foy helped stage and announce USO sponsored programs, including a Jack Benny broadcast from Cairo to New York and an Andre Kostelanetz concert with Lily Pons.
After the war, Foy returned to WXYZ in Detroit. He took over the position of announcer and narrator for radio's The Lone Ranger beginning July 2, 1948 and continuing until the series ended on September 3, 1954.
No comments:
Post a Comment