ARTHUR GODFREY AND ME

Little Billy at the beach. Under 18, way before Arthur Godfrey.

Arthur Godfrey, Tom Mix and radio was the metronome of my young life

There was Daytime Radio and Evening Radio. I don’t remember late night radio because I had a bedtime. But I guess we had it in Brooklyn New York, the City of Churches, as we liked to call it. Well we had temples too and synagogues too. Perhaps the city fathers weren’t politically correct then. Arthur Godfrey changed my life.

Tic  MONDAY 1952 Arthur Godfrey in the mornings changed my life. We met him on the radio and he was pretty good. Played the ukulele. But we fell in love with him on our first Television set. My mom had a stroke and couldn’t go to work any more so the TV was her new best friend along about my 12^th birthday. Arthur Godfrey broadcast from Miami Beach lying in the surf while Mom huddled in our apartment with snow piling up on the windowsills. She began a campaign to move to Florida that ultimately succeeded in 1955.

I loved the sound effects too. I couldn’t wait to get home from school each day to tune in.

Tic  MONDAY The Long Ranger, Tom Mix (Except for April 12, 1945. They cancelled the program because President Roosevelt died.) I cried. Not because of the death but I really, really wanted to listen to Tom Mix that day. Each broadcast ended with a cliffhanger and you couldn’t miss. You’d be left behind forever…

Toc  TUESDAY The Green Hornet, Life with Luigi

Tic  WEDNESDAY  The Thin Man

Toc  THURSDAY Roy Rogers

Tic  FRIDAY  Gene Autry

Toc  SATURDAY  Bath night…Splish splash with crooner Morten Downey and then real fun with Grand Ole Opry  starring cousin Minnie Pearl. You know she always left the price tag on her hats.

Tic  SUNDAY  Inner Sanctum. My favorite. We gathered round the Philco radio with its built-in record player and blanket the light to get goose bumps in the dark.

Yea Arthur Godfrey!

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