The Magic Key of RCA was an American variety radio show that featured an unusually large and broad range of entertainment stars and other noted personalities. It was on the NBC Blue Network from September 29, 1935 until September 18, 1939.
It was hosted by announcers Milton Cross and Ben Grauer, with a house orchestra directed by Frank Black through 1938 and Nathaniel Shilkret in 1939.[1][2][3][4][5]
Sies[3] says that, “NBC used this quality program to demonstrate the cultural contribution radio could make,” and notes that performers included Ruth Etting, Fibber McGee and Molly, John B. Kennedy, Rudolf Ganz, Casper Beardon, Paul Robeson, Jane Froman, Doris Weston, Frank Forrest, Paul Taylor Chorus, Margaret Brill, Rudy Vallée, Irving Berlin, Darryl Zanuck, Jan Peerce, Tommy Dorsey, Jack Harris, Ann Jameson, Sonja Henie, Tyrone Power, Walter Abel, Whitney Bern and George Shelley. Dunning[1] writes that there were appearances by Amos 'n' Andy, Lum and Abner, Paul Whiteman, Efrem Zimbalist, Ignacy Jan Paderewski, Eleanor Roosevelt, Vienna Boys' Choir, Benny Goodman, Gladys Swarthout, Ray Noble, Guy Lombardo, Richard Himber, Eugene Ormandy, Lauritz Melchior, Fred MacMurray, Walt Disney and the Pickens Sisters. Dunning comments on the wide variety on the show by noting that programming included short dramas, a male quartet from Stockholm, jazz from Chicago, an account of Benito Mussolini's campaign in Africa and a conversation with a crew of a submerged submarine.
A typical show in 1939 would begin with an opening number by Shilkret, followed by a comedy skit by Stoopnagle and Budd.[4][5]
The complete set of broadcasts is available for listening at the Library of Congress.
References [link]
- ^ a b Dunning, John, On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio, Oxford University Press, New York, 1998. ISBN 0-19-507678-8
- ^ Hickerson, Jay, The New, Revised Ultimate History of Network Radio Programming and Guide to All Circulating Shows, Third Edition, Jay Hickerson, 1996.
- ^ a b Sies, Luther F., Encyclopedia of American Radio, 1920--1960, McFarland, Jefferson, North Carolina, 2000. ISBN 0-7864-0453-3
- ^ a b Shilkret, Nathaniel, ed. Shell, Niel and Barbara Shilkret, Nathaniel Shilkret: Sixty Years in the Music Business, Scarecrow Press, Lanham, Maryland, 2005. ISBN 0-8108-5128-8
- ^ a b Shilkret, Nathaniel, Barbara Shilkret, and Niel Shell, Feast or Famine: Sixty Years in the Music Business, archival edition of Shilkret autobiography, 2001 (copies deposited in the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, The City College of New York Archival Library, The New York Philharmonic Archives, The Victor Archives (SONY)).
External links [link]
https://wn.com/The_Magic_Key_of_RCA
The Magic Key
The Magic Key is a series of books published for children as part of the Oxford Reading Tree, from Oxford University Press. The books are written by Roderick Hunt, illustrated by Alex Brychta, and primarily follow the lives of three children, Biff, Chip and Kipper Robinson. Additional characters such as their parents, their grandmother and their dog, Floppy, appear in the books, but may sometimes appear once or not at all in certain books
The series was first published in 1985 with a set of 30 stories, and there are now over 300. It is used by more than 80% of schools in the United Kingdom, and has been translated into numerous languages in over 120 different countries. In 2000, it was made into a television series, produced by the BBC.
Audience
The books are aimed at children from four to the age of nine, and could form part of an English language syllabus in line with the National Curriculum, designed to help children learn to speak and read Standard English.
Adaptations
The Magic Key (song)
"The Magic Key" is a 2002 hip-hop/electronic song recorded by French animated feature One-T + Cool-T. It was the third single from the album The One-T ODC and was released in April 2003. The song samples 'Má Hra' (1971 album 'Nová Syntéza') by Blue Effect, a Czechoslovakian progressive rock band.
It was the third most played songs on European radio and television during third quarter of 2003 and performed one of the longest-running singles in the 2003 French SNEP Singles Charts (41 weeks), peaking at #9. The song was also a top five hit in Denmark, Germany and Austria, and a top ten hit in Belgium (Wallonia) and Switzerland. It remains to day One-T's most successful single.
Track listings
Podcasts:
-
by Joy Electric
The Magic Of
by: Joy Electricsnowflakes fall springs snoring
elves are scurrying in the barn loft
tick tock hee haw hay is rustling
good old fairy dust and plum bowed parcels
white fawn fairy wands and shortbread castles
Chorus:
feel the magic of
rust turning to gold
penny candy silver snow
feel the magic of
frost upon the leaves
every memory you keep inside
when the north winds sing ture
you'll remember how the woodsman tricked you
time is treasured by the wise
you're still spinning but the sayings now ring true
is there life after the end of youth?
from here i won't let go
see whats left, rock & roll
everywhere you turn