➦In 1898...Marian Irene Driscoll Jordan was born (Died from cancer at age 62 – April 7, 1961). She was an actress and radio personality. She was most remembered for portraying the role of Molly McGee, the patient, common sense, honey-natured wife of Fibber McGee on the NBC radio series Fibber McGee and Molly from 1935–1959. She starred on this series opposite her real-life husband Jim Jordan.
![]() |
| Jim Jordan and Marian Jordan |
Jordan was first heard on radio with her husband Jim in 1924 after a bet that Jim made with his brother. The couple's performance was a success. They began performing at WIBO, a radio station in Chicago where they earned $10 a week.
![]() |
| Newspaper Ad late '30s |
The series was a big hit. Marian played the role of Molly McGee, the patient and intelligent wife who supports husband Fibber McGee through various get rich quick schemes and misadventures.In 1938, the show and Jordan would both suffer major changes. During this time, Marian was drinking excessively. She entered a rehabilitation center in suburban Chicago and tried to get sober. "Molly" was written out of the radio show, and the program was renamed Fibber McGee and Company.
Those who knew Marian doubted that she would ever return to radio, especially after the show moved from Chicago to Los Angeles in 1939. However, Marian astonished everyone by travelling alone from Joliet, Illinois to Pasadena, California in March 1939. She was able to return to the character of "Molly," and some listeners considered her better than before. The show received high ratings, from season three in 1938 until the end of its run.
It also gave birth to a spin-off. In 1941, a recurring character, Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve, (played by Harold Peary), began a new show called The Great Gildersleeve. The radio and television series Beulah was also a spin-off of Fibber McGee and Molly.
Marian Jordan's health began to deteriorate in the 1950s. This was the beginning of the end both for the show and for Jordan. The program officially ended in 1956 but the Jordans continued their roles as Fibber McGee and Molly in short skits on the NBC radio program Monitor until October 2, 1959, when her poor health made her unable to continue.
➦In 1912…After midnight, two wireless radio operators at Cape Race, Newfoundland heard the last of the RMS Titanic's distress calls.
At 2:27 a.m., the "unsinkable" ocean liner sank in the North Atlantic after hitting an iceberg the evening before.
There were 711 survivors. A total of 1,517 people died, of which 328 bodies were recovered. Those too badly damaged or deteriorated were buried at sea, and the remaining 209 were taken to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where they were claimed from the morgues or buried over an 11-day period starting May 3.
➦In 1921...The Air Mail Radio Service of the Post Office Department adopted an experimental radio service for disseminating market news, initially started by WWV in cooperation with the Bureau of Markets of the Department of Agriculture on December 15, 1920. By April 15, 1921, this service, known as the "Daily Radio Marketgram," was adapted to transmit market news using a 2 kW spark transmitter and Morse code at 5:00 PM (except Sundays and holidays) on 750 kHz (400 meters). This marked an early use of radio for practical, non-entertainment purposes, laying groundwork for broader broadcasting applications.





























