Transcript

Narrator (0:05)

Good evening. The makers of the new Rinso bring you the Amos and Andy show with their guest tonight, the lovely star of the new RKO radio picture, Tender Comrade, Miss Ginger Rogers. Amos and Andy's theme is the perfect every Friday night. Now, my theme for tonight is Rinso certainly gets around. However, Amos and Andy are ready and waiting. And here they come with their guest, Miss Ginger Rogers. Our story opens tonight not with Amos and Andy up in Harlem, but in Pritchard's Department store downtown. We find Mrs. Henry Van Porter walking down one of the aisles, approaching the gift department. Behind the counter is the sales girl, Miss Ginger Rogers.

Miss Ginger Rogers (1:08)

Something I can do for you?

Mrs. Henry Van Poter (1:10)

I was looking for a pair of bookends. Something not too gaudy and yet smart and chick. Has you got anything for a dollar?

Miss Ginger Rogers (1:18)

Well, yes, we have these glass ones here. They're on sale at a dollar.

Mrs. Henry Van Poter (1:22)

Oh, yes. Yes, they is. Charming, ain't they?

Miss Ginger Rogers (1:25)

They're a very good value. They're made by a very fine firm in San Diego.

Mrs. Henry Van Poter (1:30)

Oh, imported. I'll take a pair of them, please.

Miss Ginger Rogers (1:36)

All right, that'll be a $3. Do you wish to take them with you?

Mrs. Henry Van Poter (1:39)

No, this is a sin. I want them wrapped as a gift and sent to Mr. Andrew H. Brown at this address here.

Miss Ginger Rogers (1:45)

Fine. I'll see that it gets in the afternoon delivery.

Mrs. Henry Van Poter (1:48)

What time should that arrive there?

Miss Ginger Rogers (1:50)

Well, I'm not sure. Our truck driver's getting a permanent wave today. She may be a little late.

Mrs. Henry Van Poter (1:58)

By the way, has you got any more of them plastic picture frames that you advertised last week?

Miss Ginger Rogers (2:02)

Not a one of them left. The way the women went for those things, you'd have thought Frank Sinatra came with every frame in person. But we've got a new shipment coming in tomorrow morning, so be sure to be here early.

Summary

Podcast Summary: Amos & Andy 43-12-10: "Bookends and Babies"

Harold's Old Time Radio — January 16, 2026
Guest Star: Ginger Rogers

Episode Overview

This classic episode of Amos & Andy wittily explores a case of comical misunderstandings around gifts, gossip, and babies. Special guest Ginger Rogers joins the cast as a spirited department store sales clerk, and the plot careens from bookend sales to a widespread (and incorrect) rumor about an impending baby in Harlem. The episode blends farce, slapstick, and rapid-fire banter, offering a slice of 1940s American radio comedy.

Key Discussion Points & Plot Highlights

1. Department Store Dealings & Ginger Rogers' Cameo

Setting: Pritchard’s Department Store Gift Counter
Mrs. Henry Van Porter searches for bookends as a gift for Andy, assisted by the vivacious sales girl, played by Ginger Rogers.
Rogers banters humorously about store merchandise and challenges with delivery — “Our truck driver’s getting a permanent wave today. She may be a little late.” (01:50, Ginger Rogers)
Bookends are purchased and sent to Andy.

2. Andy’s Job Prospects and Reluctance Toward Gift

Andy is excited about his incoming job at Harlem Hospital (starting Jan 1), but skeptical advice from Kingfish abounds:
- “Seven o’ clock was never meant for a getting up hour. The only reason they got that number 7 printed on the clock is so there won't be no blank space between six and eight.” (03:06, Kingfish)
Andy receives the bookends as a thank-you for helping with an insurance sale. He immediately schemes to return them, admitting, “There’s one thing that I hate. It’s bookends.” (04:33, Andy)

3. A Comic Chain of Bartering and Swapping

Andy’s attempt to return the bookends at the store fails, especially when Mrs. Van Porter arrives mid-exchange, overhearing Andy’s awkward fib about wanting “three more pair.” (06:02)
Kingfish suggests trying the swap shop; the market for bookends evaporates when Andy wants to sell, and he ends up trading all four pairs for a beat-up baby buggy, plus $2 swapping charge.
- “A quarter horsepower? What does that mean?” — Andy learning about electric motors (07:42)
- “That market sure got flooded fast, didn’t it?” (07:22, Andy)

4. The Great Baby Misunderstanding

While Andy and Kingfish attempt to flip the baby buggy, a mix-up begins:
- Lightning is asked to "watch the baby buggy," and passersby (and later, all of Harlem) misinterpret this as news that the Crawfords are expecting a baby.
- “Except the Crawfords is gonna have a baby.” (11:14, Lightning spreads the rumor)
- Wild gossip ensues, culminating in plans for a surprise baby shower.

5. Chaos at the Baby Shower

The entire community chips in for a secret baby shower, with Andy proud to re-gift the baby buggy as a present.
The scene at Pritchard’s baby department is ripe with absurdities. Ginger Rogers, now reassigned to baby clothes, confesses she's as clueless as her customers:
- “That's too bad, because I'd like to know what it is myself.” (16:00, Ginger Rogers, on the bassinet)
- Claiming to be a mother of “six… no, seven” for sales credibility, she spins more tall tales.
Rogers manipulates Andy and Kingfish into buying another baby buggy, invoking dramatic guilt about “two babies and one buggy.”
- “And if you don’t buy this baby buggy, why, just think of what people will say.” (20:28, Ginger Rogers)

6. The Truth Revealed—and the Final Twist

At the shower, the Crawfords arrive genuinely baffled.
- “We are not having any baby.” (23:06, Lightning [Brother Crawford])
- Andy and Kingfish, mortified, realize the folly.
In a final comic cycle, Andy returns to the swap shop… only to discover his “grab box” prize is yet again four pairs of bookends.
- “There’s them four pair of bookends again. High as Reg.” (24:32, Andy)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Department store banter:
- “The way the women went for those things, you’d have thought Frank Sinatra came with every frame in person.” (02:02, Ginger Rogers)
On morning work hours:
- “The only reason they got that number 7 printed on the clock is so there won't be no blank space between six and eight.” (03:06, Kingfish)
On unwanted gifts:
- “There’s one thing that I hate. It’s bookends.” (04:33, Andy)
Cascading rumor:
- “Except the Crawfords is gonna have a baby.” (11:14, Lightning)
Bassinet confusion:
- “That's too bad, because I'd like to know what it is myself.” (16:00, Ginger Rogers)
Ginger’s failed baby expertise:
- “Well, the babies are so much younger than I am that we don't have very much in common. I love the rascals, all seven of them.” (16:56, Ginger Rogers)
On buying another buggy:
- “And if you don’t buy this baby buggy, why, just think of what people will say.” (20:28, Ginger Rogers)
Comic reversal:
- “There’s them four pair of bookends again. High as Reg.” (24:32, Andy)

Timestamps for Key Segments

00:05 – 02:19: Mrs. Van Porter buys bookends from Ginger Rogers at Pritchard’s.
02:19 – 04:55: Andy receives bookends, schemes to return them; Kingfish’s banter.
04:55 – 06:21: Bookend exchange attempt leads to comedic mishaps.
06:21 – 09:12: Swap shop scene; bookends traded for a baby buggy.
10:39 – 11:24: Lightning spreads the baby rumor.
12:49 – 13:46: Plans for a surprise baby shower and gift buying.
13:46 – 19:04: Pritchard’s baby department; Ginger Rogers' faux-expertise and sales tactics.
20:50 – 23:13: The chaotic, mistaken baby shower.
24:01 – 24:32: Andy’s final “swap”—the return of the bookends.

Tone & Style

The episode is fast-paced, built on classic 1940s radio humor with wordplay, comical misunderstandings, and social satire. Ginger Rogers gamely lampoons herself as a clueless-but-plucky clerk. Andy and Kingfish’s chemistry and banter prompt much of the situational comedy.

For New Listeners

You’ll get a full helping of classic radio comedy: quick-witted repartee, contagious misunderstandings, and the warmth of community—albeit very misguided—endeavoring to do good, only to end up in their typical pickle. The guest performance by Ginger Rogers is a highlight, blending Hollywood glam with self-effacing humor, and the episode’s final twist brings the plot hilariously full circle.

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Amos & Andy 43-12-10 Bookends and Babies