Bracket programs?

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Bracket programs?

Postby shimp scrampi » Wed Dec 06, 2006 12:45 pm

Anyone know of a comprehensive guide to what programs preceded and followed Jack on the network each season? I think The Great Gildersleeve preceeded the JBS for a good chunk of the mid-40s, Our Miss Brooks was the lead-in toward the end, and obviously Phil & Alice and then Amos & Andy followed Jack's show later on. I was thinking it might be fun to listen to the bracketing shows to put a few episodes in historical context. If this info is somewhere obvious like 39 FOREVER I'll just kick myself and shut up.

As a corollary, how early in the evening would key Network radio shows be aired? For as long as I've been around, the big network shows on TV start at 8:00 (7 on Sundays), with local or syndicated programming preceding that, as well as I suppose an earlier daytime block for soaps and gameshows. But this was obviously not the case in the '40s and '50s, with 6:30 programming slots for fairly well-known entertainment shows preceding Jack. How was network/local programming time divvied up in the golden age?
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Postby Roman » Wed Dec 06, 2006 2:03 pm

The website http://www.dg125.com lists the ratings for national radio programs from 1930 to 1956. If you go through the data, you can see what shows preceded and followed Jack's throughout these years, or at least some of them.

In looking at these ratings, I was curious, naturally, to see where Jack's show ranked through the years. I see that in the 1935-36 season, for example, Jack was the third highest rated behind Major Bowes Amateur Hour and the Rudy Vallee show. Jack moved up to number two the next season (behind Edgar Bergen) and stayed there until the 1940-41 season when he rose to #1. From then until he stopped doing the radio broadcasts, his show never ranked below seven and most years was in the top three.
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Re: Bracket programs?

Postby Yhtapmys » Wed Dec 06, 2006 3:39 pm

shimp scrampi wrote: As a corollary, how early in the evening would key Network radio shows be aired? For as long as I've been around, the big network shows on TV start at 8:00 (7 on Sundays), with local or syndicated programming preceding that, as well as I suppose an earlier daytime block for soaps and gameshows. But this was obviously not the case in the '40s and '50s, with 6:30 programming slots for fairly well-known entertainment shows preceding Jack. How was network/local programming time divvied up in the golden age?


Here in western Canada, it would vary. I've seen radio listings where the shows were picked up live from the East, meaning a 4pm start on a weekend (weekdays were a bit different, as this would have been a key time for local sales of local shows).

Later, when transcriptions were popular, stations could play a bit with their times.

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Re: Bracket programs?

Postby Clyde » Wed Dec 06, 2006 4:02 pm

shimp scrampi wrote:... how early in the evening would key Network radio shows be aired? For as long as I've been around, the big network shows on TV start at 8:00 (7 on Sundays), with local or syndicated programming preceding that...


I seem to recall, as a yougster, that network television (all THREE of them) started at seven o'clock here on the east coast. But someone, somewhere, somehow, came up with the brilliant idea to allow "public access hour" or some-such term, thinking that the local stations would fill the seven to eight o'clock hour with enlightening programming aimed at their particular locale. The idea backfired miserably, and gave birth to the syndication that we are all so used to today.
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Postby TimL2005 » Wed Dec 06, 2006 5:15 pm

In the 40's and 50's Most network TV began at 7PM ET with a 15 minute newscast somewhere in there (CBS at 6:45, NBC at 7:45) (6PM start time Sundays) By the early 1960's Prime Time started at 7:30 Mon-Sat. and 7PM Sunday. The 1972-73 season showed the "Prime-Time Access" Rule take effect which put Prime Time at 8-11 PM Mon-Sat and 7:30-10:30 Sunday. By 1975-76 Sunday Prime Time was changed to 7-11PM ET
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Postby shimp scrampi » Wed Dec 06, 2006 6:33 pm

Thanks for all the responses! Using the site Roman graciously pointed me to (I'd seen it before but had forgotten about it), I made up a table but am still pretty much stuck with what I had known beforehand about lead-ins and lead-out shows. Gildersleeve as lead-in from '41-42 through the '46-47 season; various permutations of the Fitch Bandwagon show that eventually became the Harris-Faye program followed the JBS on NBC from 1939 to Jack's switch to CBS. At CBS, Amos and Andy always followed until the '53-54 season. Our Miss Brooks was the lead-in from '51-52 to '53-54. But that leaves an awful lot of gaps, particularly the Jell-O years. Anyone have more to add?
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