Podcast Summary: Meet Me At Owl's 49-12-27 xxx Drugstore is in Pasadena

Podcast: Harold's Old Time Radio
Host: Stu Wilson (recorded episode from original airdate: December 27, 1949)
Release Date: September 18, 2025 (podcast re-airing)

Overview

This episode brings listeners to the bustling self-serve Owl Drugstore located at Walnut and Los Robles in Pasadena, California. Stu Wilson, the charming host, interviews local customers—most of them everyday folks and families—and hands out gifts for on-the-spot trivia. Sprinkled with period-appropriate commercials and light-hearted banter, the show is a time capsule from radio’s Golden Age, offering a glimpse of community life and retail culture just before the 1950s.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: Community at the Drugstore

• The episode is broadcast from the newly opened Owl Drugstore in Pasadena, inside the Alpha Beta market.
• Host Stu Wilson greets patrons, engages them in friendly interviews, and provides small gifts, reflecting the era’s focus on neighborly interaction and service.
• Notable is the self-service model, considered a novelty at the time.

2. Interview with Local Youngsters

Betty Engfall (Marshall Junior High, Pasadena)

• Age 13, in 8th grade, planning to attend Muir High School, and aspires to go to Stanford, inspired by her sisters.
• Asked about desired marriage age: “About 22. Because that's when you get out of college.” (03:40)
• Wins beauty and bath products for correctly answering a trivia question on U.S. coastlines (Florida).

Claude McKinnon (Madison School, Pasadena)

• Age 11, youngest and only brother still at home, wants to become a police officer.
• Has three older, married brothers.
• Gets a simple quiz on Columbus’ ships—needs a hint for “Santa Maria,” but receives gifts regardless.

Oliver Mensch

• Age 12, German heritage.
• No question segment for Oliver; he’s simply given candy as a participant.

3. Conversation with Senior Patron

Mrs. Myrtle M. Dalton

• Long-time Pasadena resident (from Worcester, Ohio, in CA for 42 years), has watched the store “grow from months back.”
• Describes herself as alone but part of a close neighborhood.
• Grandmother, proud of her new granddaughter Victoria Ann Dalton.
• Misses a question on the upcoming Grand Marshal of the 1950 Tournament of Roses parade (“Paul G. Hoffman”) but receives stationary and beauty products.

4. Trivia and Gifts—Engagement and Encouragement

• The host emphasizes fun: “You don't have to know the right answer to be able to get a prize or get our gifts, you see. So we'll just have some fun with it.” (03:44)
• Audience members are encouraged to send in their own questions for a chance to win prizes.

5. Retro Commercials and Period Products

• Commercial spots (skipped in detail here): Rexall cough syrup (“Cherisote”), beauty products, Lord Baltimore vellum stationary, and electrical home appliances such as waffle irons and toasters.
• Notable: Dr. West's “new beauty treatment for your teeth.”
• “Save a dollar a minute. Buy the Value Minute specials at Owl Rexall Drugstores.” (09:25)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Time | Speaker | Quote | |--------|---------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 02:29 | Stu | “Oh, well, how come Stanford? That's the place where ... they only take in about 500 girls, isn't that it?” | | 03:23 | Stu | “In other words, you'll go to college and then you'll waste that fine education just by going and getting married, huh?” | | 04:29 | Betty | “Florida.” (correctly answering the longest coastline state) | | 05:51 | Mrs. Dalton | “It's a lovely place. I've been watching this grow from months back and they put it up in very fast order.” | | 06:12 | Mrs. Dalton | “Well, I'm alone, but I still call myself we.” | | 07:01 | Mrs. Dalton | “I have babysitted. Not very much, but a little.” | | 07:31 | Mrs. Dalton | “I'm certainly glad to see him. I just got a new granddaughter which we're all very proud [of].” | | 10:23 | Stu | “Four boys in the house. I bet your mom has a Time of it, huh?” | | 11:12 | Claude | “Be an officer.” (career ambition) | | 12:09 | Stu | “Yeah, it was the—I'll whisper it to you—it was the Santa Maria. Say the Santa Maria. But with this program, you don't have to worry a bit about whether you get the right answers or not, because we have gifts for you anyway.”| | 13:01 | Oliver | “12.” (age, succinct and shy) |

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:14]: Host Stu Wilson opens at the Owl Drugstore.
• [02:02 – 04:51]: Interview with Betty Engfall.
• [05:40 – 08:25]: Interview with Mrs. Myrtle M. Dalton.
• [10:04 – 12:47]: Interview with Claude McKinnon.
• [12:51 – 13:01]: Introduction and brief chat with Oliver Mensch.
• [13:07 – 14:34]: Closing remarks, value minute, and final commercial tag.

Overall Tone & Style

The tone is warm, family-friendly, and gently humorous. Stu Wilson blends quick wit, neighborly affection, and genuine curiosity. The rhythm is relaxed, celebrating everyday people and their aspirations in a small-town setting—complete with a little showmanship and plenty of giveaways.

Perfect For

Listeners who love Americana, vintage broadcast styles, or those interested in mid-century daily life and retail culture. The episode re-creates the experience of local radio as both entertainment and community touchstone, with an easy flow between interviews, trivia, and sponsor messages.