Podcast Summary: "Your Radio Almanac" – February 9, 1944 (#3)

Host: Harold’s Old Time Radio
Date Released: December 5, 2025
Guest: Ann Sothern
Highlight: A live radio variety performance from radio’s golden age, featuring Orson Welles, guest star Ann Sothern, comedy sketches, a musical number, and a poignant reading in honor of Abraham Lincoln.

Episode Overview

This episode immerses listeners in the charm and wit of a classic mid-1940s “Radio Almanac” with Orson Welles, joined by special guest Ann Sothern. The cast invites the audience into a blend of light banter, parody, music, and a moving dramatization to honor Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. The show is a time capsule of an era when families gathered around the radio for weekly entertainment, brimming with self-aware humor, celebrity references, and the patriotic spirit of wartime America.

Key Segments & Highlights

1. Show Opening and Banter ([00:31]–[02:40])

• Orson Welles greets listeners with characteristic wit, mentioning a full moon and Edison's birthday, making a sly reference to Spencer Tracy.

  • Quote: “He invented the incandescent lamp only to discover years later that Spencer Tracy had beat him to it.” (00:41)

• Ann Sothern banters with Welles, humorously acting nervous about what lies ahead, referencing Welles’ reputation as a magician.

  • Quote:
    • Sothern: “Well, aren't you going to saw me in half?”
    • Welles: “Oh no. The OPA put a stop to that. They said I was wasting too many women.” (01:36–01:39)

• The conversation pivots to playful jabs at Frank Sinatra and a hypothetical “Romeo and Juliet” featuring Sinatra.

  • Sothern: “He may be a boy scout, but a lot of girl scouts belong to his troupe.” (02:00)
  • Welles: “I know, but Sinatra would never make it.” (02:35)

2. A Rom-Com Parody: “Teaching Orson to be Romantic” ([02:40]–[06:30])

• Ann Sothern instructs Welles in romantic acting, leading to a farcical attempt at seduction for the (audible) radio audience.

  • Sothern: “Now, put your arms around me.” (02:51)
  • Welles: “My arms around you?” (02:52)
  • Attempts further romantic lines, interrupted by fake phone calls and censors.

• Censor Intervention: “Mr. Peabristle” prevents Welles from kissing Sothern near the microphone, parodying radio decency rules.

  • Jack Mather: “He’s not allowed to kiss anybody that close to a microphone.” (05:03)
  • Sothern (quipping): “Why? You know a better way?” (05:00)

• Mock fan mail from “Bela” (implied to be Bela Lugosi) and humorous affirmations of Welles’ alleged heartthrob status.

3. Musical Interlude – “Shoo Shoo Baby” ([07:45]–[09:04])

• Johnny Horace performs a period hit, “Shoo Shoo Baby,” capturing the swing and sentimentality of the home front during WWII. (07:45–09:04)

4. Wartime Sketch – “The Married Welders” ([11:56]–[20:42])

• A slice-of-life skit follows Joe and Betty, welders on alternating shifts at the shipyard, played by Welles and Sothern.

  • Comedic focus on their missed connections and fleeting romantic moments due to WWII work schedules.
  • Quote:
    • Sothern: “Well, what about me? I’ve got a husband. I see 15 minutes a day. I know the milkman better.” (18:44)
    • Welles: “This is no way to live. You working in the day and me working at night. How we’re ever going to bring up a family…” (18:29)
    • Sothern (in a mock advice show): “My husband works on the night shift and I work on the day shift. And the only time that…” (19:16)

• The skit’s punchline: As soon as Betty arranges to switch to the night shift, Joe is reassigned to days. (20:34)

5. Feature: “Carnival” by Lionel Barrymore ([20:59]–[24:14])

• Welles introduces a classical piece composed by actor Lionel Barrymore.
• The orchestra, led by Lud Gluskin, performs “Carnival,” giving listeners highbrow cultural fare—and an inside joke about Barrymore critiquing the trumpeter.
  • Welles: "Lionel says your third trumpet player was only using one lip." (24:29)

6. Dramatic Reading: Abraham Lincoln’s Farewell ([25:44]–[30:00])

• In honor of Lincoln’s birthday, Welles delivers a moving excerpt from Carl Sandburg’s “Prairie Years,” reimagining Lincoln’s departure from Springfield.

  • Quote:
    • “No one who's never been placed in a like position can understand my feelings at this hour, nor the oppressive sadness I feel at this parting…” (27:53)
    • “To you, dear friends, I owe all that I have, all that I am.” (28:24)
    • “Unless the great God who assisted him shall be with me and aid me, I must fail…” (28:39)

• The segment stands in sharp, respectful contrast to the rest of the show’s lighthearted comedy, providing emotional gravity and historical resonance.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Orson Welles on rival heartthrobs: “They do say that compared to me, Sinatra is just a boy.” (01:53)
• Ann Sothern on Sinatra: “He may be a Boy Scout, but a lot of girl scouts belong to his troupe.” (02:00)
• Orson Welles on romantic gestures: “I love you with an equatorial passion that no thermometer can register.” (03:09)
• Ann Sothern in “The Married Welders”: “Well, what about me? I've got a husband. I see 15 minutes a day. I know the milkman better.” (18:44)
• A sincere moment: “To you, dear friends, I owe all that I have, all that I am.” (Abraham Lincoln/Sandburg reading, 28:24)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Opening Banter & Introductions: 00:31–02:40
• Romantic Acting Sketch: 02:40–06:30
• Musical Number: “Shoo Shoo Baby”: 07:45–09:04
• Wartime Comedy Sketch: 11:56–20:42
• Lionel Barrymore’s “Carnival”: 20:59–24:14
• Welles’ Dramatic Lincoln Reading: 25:44–30:00

Tone and Overall Feel

The episode expertly balances screwball comedy, showbiz parody, and heartfelt tribute. The humor is brisk, self-referential, and loaded with celebrity jabs and 1940s cultural references. The cast’s chemistry (especially Welles and Sothern) keeps the pace lively. The emotional core is delivered in the Lincoln tribute, showing the era’s blend of patriotism, nostalgia, and hope.

For New Listeners

If you’ve never tuned in, this episode is an excellent entry point:

• You’ll experience the peculiar blend of period-specific humor, topical references, musical performance, and national reflection.
• Each segment flows swiftly, capturing the variety-show format that defined so much of early radio.
• Above all, the performance style, wit, and genuine affection among the cast are palpable—even across the decades.