Most Old Time Radio enthusiast already have a huge collection of shows collected or downloaded to listen to, but sometimes it is just nice to listen to the radio around the house, while working, or just relaxing. Whatever the occasion, a favorite streaming internet radio station to listen to is the Pumpkin FM Old Time Radio Network. They offer not one, but eleven great old time radio channels for your entertainment. Each channel plays a mix of the best British and American classic radio shows.
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The Screen Guild Theater was a popular radio anthology series during the Golden Age of Radio, broadcast from 1939 until 1952, with leading Hollywood actors performing in adaptations of popular motion pictures such as Going My Way and The Postman Always Rings Twice.
The show had a long run, lasting for 14 seasons and 527 episodes. It initially was heard on CBS from January 8, 1939 until June 28, 1948, continuing on NBC from October 7, 1948 until June 29, 1950. It was broadcast on ABC from September 7, 1950 to May 31, 1951 and returned to CBS on March 13, 1952. It aired under several different titles: The Gulf Screen Guild Show, The Gulf Screen Guild Theater, The Lady Esther Screen Guild Theater and The Camel Screen Guild Theater.
George Murphy hosted the show in 1939. In 1940, Roger Pryor began hosting the show. The show began as a general variety show and later changed formats to include old time radio versions of popular films. It starred most of the big name Hollywood celebrities of the time.
Actors on the series included Ethel Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, Ingrid Bergman, Humphrey Bogart, Eddie Cantor, Gary Cooper, Bing Crosby, Bette Davis, Jimmy Durante, Nelson Eddy, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Clark Gable, Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, Johnny Mercer, Agnes Moorehead, Gregory Peck, Fred Astaire, Frank Sinatra and Dinah Shore. Fees these actors would typically charge were donated to the Motion Picture Relief Fund, in order to support the creation and maintenance of the Motion Picture Country Home for retired actors. The series came to an end on CBS June 29, 1952. Visit show page here.
The radio version ran for 122 episodes and aired on NBC from January 9, 1949 to September 28, 1951 under several different titles: NBC Theater, Screen Director's Guild Assignment, Screen Director's Assignment and, as of July 1, 1949, Screen Director's Playhouse.
Actors on the radio series included Fred Astaire, Lucille Ball, Charles Boyer, Claudette Colbert, Ronald Colman, Gary Cooper, Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Marlene Dietrich, Kirk Douglas, Irene Dunne, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Henry Fonda, Cary Grant, William Holden, Burt Lancaster, James Mason, Ray Milland, Gregory Peck, William Powell, Edward G. Robinson, Norma Shearer, Barbara Stanwyck, James Stewart, John Wayne, and Loretta Young.
The television version, produced and filmed at Hal Roach Studios, was broadcast for one season of 35 half-hour episodes on NBC, under the sponsorship of Eastman Kodak, airing from October 5, 1955 to September 12, 1956. Actors on the television series included John Wayne, Thomas Mitchell, Walter Brennan, Peter Lorre, Evelyn Ankers, Fay Wray, Errol Flynn, Edmond O'Brien, Buster Keaton, Buddy Ebsen, William Bendix, Robert Ryan, Laraine Day, George Sanders, Ward Bond, Rory Calhoun, Jack Carson, Neville Brand, Alan Young, Cloris Leachman, Edgar Buchanan, Peter Lawford, Marie Windsor, Charles Bickford, Zasu Pitts, Joe E. Brown, Jack Elam, Herb Shriner, Kim Hunter, Keenan Wynn, Jeanette MacDonald, Leo Durocher, Macdonald Carey, Ralph Bellamy, Basil Rathbone, Fred MacMurray, Jerry Mathers, Rod Steiger, Ray Milland, Alan Hale, Jr., Gower Champion, Marge Champion, Linda Darnell, Howard McNear, Dennis Hopper, and Leo Gordon. But there was one difference between the two versions of the program: while the radio program had presented only condensed versions of well-known plays and films, the television version presented mostly original dramas.
Directors included Frank Borzage, Leo McCarey, John Ford, Tay Garnett, Allan Dwan, George Waggner, Ida Lupino and Fred Zinnemann.