Golden Age of Radio

December 11, 1943 The Whistler for one, a number of big musical shows like Hollywood Showcase, a number of quizzes, amateur shows and dramas, and are always readying  new ones. Right now they have a Jane Plakens quarters -hour Ladies in Waiting, with Ellen Drew, Jane Pickens and Patay Moran coming up. WAPI, Birmingham, with Kimmy Willson, as program manager, is the latest addition to the radio sales type of program operation. This outlet is still building. It’s still too soon to look for results, but it is adhering to the modus operandi that has clicked in other towns. WBT, Charlotte, N. C., is perhaps the most interesting story of the lot. They had practically no professional talent in the community and a peculiar audience problem. The Carolinas are one place that people do not leave and do not move into. They are mentally, morally, socially and economically self-sufficient. Cotton, tobacco and furniture are their industries, and folk music—not hillbilly —is the prime f...

DAVID ROSS . . . tried his hand as newsboy, reporter, actor and teacher before he took up radio . Writes poetry . Born in New York in 1895. Struggled against poverty; worked his way through college. He’s 5 feet 5 inches tall. DAVID ROSS ANNOUNCER AND POETRY – LOVER IT should take a casr-iron set of vocal chords to withstand the strain of the different assignments and excitements in an announcer’s life. Yet the silver-bell tones of David Ross sound as mellifluous as ever, after more than fifteen years spent on the air. His mellow voice is still heard caressing the air waves as announcer for such shows as the Andre Kostelanetz program on CBS every Sunday afternoon at 4:30 E.W.T. The long-lasting melody in David’s voice may seem from the fact that he has a poet’s soul. It was his habit of carrying around a collection of poetry that got him his start in radio . The very first program he’d ever seen was the one on which he made his debut. Instead of watching t...