Alias Jimmy Valentine (radio program)

Alias Jimmy Valentine
Bert Lytell starred as Jimmy Valentine (1918 photo)
GenreCrime drama
Running time15 minutes
Country of originUnited States
Language(s)English
SyndicatesNBC-Blue
StarringBert Lytell
James Meighan
AnnouncerDick Joy
Written byDoris Halman
Produced byFrank and Anne Hummert
Narrated byFord Bond
Original releaseJanuary 18, 1938 –
February 27, 1939
Other themesIf I Should Love You
Sponsored byEdgeworth Tobacco
Dr. Lyon's Tooth Powder

Alias Jimmy Valentine is an old-time radio crime drama in the United States. It was broadcast on NBC-Blue January 18, 1938 - February 27, 1939.[1]

Format

The concept for Alias Jimmy Valentine came from writer O. Henry in his short story "A Retrieved Reformation".[1] That story was adapted into the 1909 play Alias Jimmy Valentine by Paul Armstrong.[2][3]

The program's stories focused on Lee Randall, described by Jim Cox in his book, Radio Crime Fighters: More Than 300 Programs from the Golden Age as "an ex-con and reformed safecracker [who] applied his talents and enormous underworld contacts to abet the forces of law and order".[1] While doing so, he became an honest bank clerk and fell in love with the daughter of the banker.[4]

Producers

The series was produced by Frank and Anne Hummert, who were described by Jim Cox in his book, Frank and Anne Hummert's Radio Factory: The Programs and Personalities of Broadcasting's Most Prolific Producers as "the most prolific creatives in eight decades of broadcast history".[5] They originated more than 100 radio series, about half of which were soap operas.[5]

Cox wrote that Alias Jimmy Valentine episodes raised "the never-to-be-resolved query: 'Can a protagonist go straight and overcome his impasse?'"[1] That query, Cox wrote, "was true formulaic Hummert".[1]

Personnel

Bert Lytell and James Meighan each played the lead at different times.[6] William Bennett Kilpack[7] and Earle Latimore also appeared on the program.[8]

Dick Joy was the announcer. Doris Halman was the writer.[1] Ford Bond narrated.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Cox, Jim (2002). Radio Crime Fighters: More Than 300 Programs from the Golden Age. McFarland. p. 39. ISBN 9781476612270. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
  2. ^ "Alias Jimmy Valentine". Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Illinois. December 26, 1909. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States: Feature Films, 1921-1930. 1971. p. 12.
  4. ^ Cox, Jim (2009). The A to Z of American Radio Soap Operas. Scarecrow Press. p. 25. ISBN 9780810863491. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
  5. ^ a b Cox, Jim (2003). Frank and Anne Hummert's Radio Factory: The Programs and Personalities of Broadcasting's Most Prolific Producers. McFarland. p. 5. ISBN 9780786416318. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
  6. ^ Terrace, Vincent (1999). Radio Programs, 1924-1984: A Catalog of More Than 1800 Shows. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 978-0-7864-4513-4. P. 21.
  7. ^ Cox, Jim (2004). Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons: A Complete History and Episode Log of Radio's Most Durable Detective. McFarland. p. 65. ISBN 9781476607382. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
  8. ^ Herbert, Stephen (2004). A History of Early Television. Taylor & Francis. p. 466. ISBN 9780415326681. Retrieved 5 October 2016.
  9. ^ Cox, Jim (1999). The Great Radio Soap Operas. McFarland. p. 26. ISBN 9781476604145. Retrieved 5 October 2016.