I've waited so long to get the audio of this program converted so it could be used on
Norm's Ramblins. This is a treat for me as well as you. What a great dreamweaver Bill Stern was. I never missed a broadcast and was alway happy when he would announce a college football game I could hear in Milwaukee. They were usually Army/Navy, Army/Notre Dame, Notre Dame/USC and the like. He was the man who helped build my dreams... outrageous though he was at times.
BILL STERN "THE COLGATE SHAVE CREAM MAN" IS ON THE AIR.
Bill Stern, the nation's finest sportscaster and story teller.
Over the years he built a committed audience. Click to enlarge
Stern's courstsy Nash Rambler for the 1952 Texas/Notre Dame game. Click to enlarge.
Men equated brushless shave cream to toughness.
Stern's radio drama stories became sports anthologies. Click to enlarge
He even had a Sports Card made of him!
The Colgate Sports Newsreelwas 15 minute daily radio program that aired from December 1937 - June 1956 on Blue Network, NBC, and ABC.
Though fairly well-known by the time he began hosting the Colgate Sports Newsreel, it was on this program that Bill Stern's showmanship and penchant for "tall tales" made him one of the most beloved broadcasting personalities of his era.
Each day Stern would broadcast his quarter-hour program on location, from wherever that week's "big game" was being held. During his shows he would cover the sports news of the day, interlaced with heavy doses of melodrama, sales promotions, and outlandish stories which Stern himself would describe as "some legend, others hearsay, but all so interesting that we'd like to pass them along to you."
If all this sounds vaugely familiar to you, it's no mistake. For Bill Stern was a heavy influence on modern-day radio icon Paul Harvey -from his prolonged pauses, dramatic repetition, and stellar hyperbole, right down to Harvey's "Page One, Page Two!" (Stern's sayings were "Reel One, Reel Two" and a "that's the three-o mark for tonight," the traditional journalistic symbol "30" which marks the end of every article.) At least, this is my Dad's interpretation. He also believes that Bill Stern strongly influenced Garrison Keiler as he developed his "Lake Woebeggon" radio series on PBS.
Bill Stern was born in Rochester, New York in 1907 and from an early age showed an interest in theater and show business. He began working in vaudeville and various stock companies, and by age 24 had become assistant stage manager of New York's Roxy Theater. He later worked a similar position at Radio City music hall, then in 1934 he attended a tryout with NBC which would change his life. He was hired as an announcer and for four years broadcast the "Friday Night Fights" on NBC for Adams Hats -gaining great popularity with sports fans in the process. In 1937 the Colgate Sports Newsreel was launched and a year later Stern began another long term association with MGM's News of the Day, but it's for the Colgate Sports Newsreel that Stern is best known.
Throughout the life of the Sports Newsreel Stern enjoyed a huge following of faithful and devoted listeners, many of whom didn't follow sports in the least! In each episode the program would begin with a men's quartet singing the Colgate Newsreel theme, set to the tune of Mademoiselle from Armetieres. Sometimes an organ would accompany the quartet or was used (along with various sound effects) to boost the drama of Stern's stories. Top stars of sports and stage were often guests on the show. Personalities such as -Orson Welles, Jack Benny, Lucille Ball, Frank Sinatra, Brace Beemer (the Lone Ranger), Babe Ruth, Dizzy Dean, and Connie Mack- were among the many. All of this stardom and pageantry, combined with Stern's gift for "yarns" and magnetic personality, made for a program few could resist. It remains a shining example of radio showmanship at its best.
Stern had a mental breakdown in the middle of announcing one of the major college football games which impacted his life considerably.
To catch an episode of Bill Stern and the "Colgate Sports Newsreel" that originally aired October 4th 1946, just click on the Sounds From the Past button above and discover wny my Dad and so many other loved this man. By the mid-40's his fifteen-minute program aired just on Friday's.
And that's the "three-o mark" for tonight! -Chris Plunkett
For you non-journalists, a 3 and a zero (or two short parallel lines) at the bottom of an article told the editor that the article ended there.
JESUS WAS SEEN BY PEOPLE AFTER HIS DEATH, BURIAL, AND RESURRECTION
"Hey, cast your nets on the other side!"
There were several appearances of Jesus to his disciples and others following his death, burial and Resurrection. Those who believe the Resurrection never occurred use these appearances to prove their theory that His body was stolen or that the event never occured in the first place. The entire event was a well-planned ruse. No other world religion or faith system may claim the truth that their leader is still alive today – after physical death. All the others are still in the grave.
The Gallilean incident of His appearance had to be incredible! Can you imagine being there on that morning?
Later Jesus appeared again to the disciples beside the Lake of Galilee. This is how it happened. A group of men were there – Simon Peter, Thomas, “The Twin,” Nathanael from Cana of Galilee, my brother James and I and two other disciples.
Simon Peter said, “I’m going fishing!” “We’ll come too,” we all said. We did, but caught nothing all night. At dawn we saw a man standing on the beach, but we couldn’t see who he was.
“Any fish, boys?” he called out. “No,” we replied. Then he said, “Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you’ll get plenty of them!” So we did, and couldn’t draw in the net because of the weight of the fish – there were so many.
Then I said to Peter, “It’s the Lord!” At that, Simon Peter put on his tunic (for he was stripped to the waist) and jumped into the water [and swam ashore]. The rest of us stayed with the boat and pulled the loaded net to the beach, about 300 feet away. When we got there, we saw that a fire was kindled and fish were frying over it, and there was bread.
“Bring some of the fish you’ve just caught,” Jesus said. So Simon Peter went out and dragged the net ashore. By his count there were 153 large fish; and yet the net hadn’t torn. “Now come and have some breakfast!” Jesus said; and none of us dared ask him if he really was the Lord, for we were quite sure of it. Then Jesus went around serving us the bread and the fish.
John 21:1-14 The Living Bible, Tyndale Press, Wheaton, IL
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Isn't it interesting that Peter "put on" clothing before he dove into the water? I wouldn't have wanted that encumbrance as I swam or waded to shore. And wasn't it a neat experience for the disciples to realize the reward for obedience -- even when they didn't even know who the person was that told them to try the other side of the boat. Certainly they had tried ALL sides during the night. But a true fisherman will try anything, I guess, before giving up. That "one last cast" ususally comes in multiple units before rowing to shore or putting away the equipment.
Don't you know that had to be the best breakfast the disciples ever had in terms of taste, joy, exultation, excitement, anticipation, mental activity, physical restoration, and the full run of feelings?
We should be celebrating the victory Jesus secured for us on the Cross and the Resurrection every day of our lives. Jesus paid the price of sin by giving his own sinless life in our place. And he won the battle over spiritual death through resurrection power.
Remember, that very same power that raised Jesus from the dead is alive in anyone who asks for a personal relationship with God through his Son, Jesus Christ, through faith and repentance.
John wrote this after telling about the encounter between Jesus and Thomas:
Jesus provided far more God-revealing signs that are written down in this book. These are written down so you will believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and in the act of believing, have real and eternal life in the way he personally revealed it.
That should get a "Maranatha" out of every one of us -- "Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus!"
THEY'RE ALWAYS COMING OUT WITH SOMETHING NEW IN THIS TECHNOLOGICAL WORLD OF OURS
Introducing the new Bio-Optic Organized Knowledge device. The trade named has been established as "BOOK."
BOOK is a revolutionary breakthrough in technology: no wires, no
electric circuits, no batteries, nothing to be connected or switched on.
It's so easy to use, even a child can operate it.
Compact and portable, it can be used anywhere -- even sitting in an
armchair by the fire -- yet it is powerful enough to hold as much
information as a CD-ROM disc. Here's how it works.
BOOK is constructed of sequentially numbered sheets of paper
(recyclable), each capable of holding thousands of bits of information.
The pages are locked together with a custom-fit device called a binder,
which keeps the sheets in their correct sequence.
Opaque Paper Technology (OPT) allows manufacturers to use both sides of
the sheet, doubling the information density and cutting costs. Experts
are divided on the prospects for further increases in information
density; for now, BOOKs with more information simply use more pages.
Each sheet is scanned optically, registering information directly into
your brain. A flick of the finger takes you to the next sheet. BOOK may
be taken up at any time and used merely by opening it.
Unlike other display devices, BOOK never crashes or requires rebooting,
and it can even be dropped on the floor or stepped on without damage.
However, it can become unusable if immersed in water for a significant
period of time. The "browse" feature allows you to move instantly to any
sheet and move forward or backward as you wish. Many come with an
"index" feature, which pinpoints the exact location of selected
information for instant retrieval.
An optional "BOOKmark" accessory allows you to open BOOK to the exact
place you left it in a previous session -- even if the BOOK has been
closed. BOOKmarks fit universal design standards; thus, a single
BOOKmark can be used in BOOKs by various manufacturers. Conversely,
numerous BOOKmarkers can be used in a single BOOK if the user wants to
store numerous views at once. The number is limited only by the number
of pages in the BOOK.
You can also make personal notes next to BOOK text entries with an
optional programming tool, the Portable Erasable Nib Cryptic
Intercommunication Language Stylus (PENCILS).
Portable, durable, and affordable, BOOK is being hailed as a precursor
of a new entertainment wave. Also, BOOK's appeal seems so certain that
thousands of content creators have committed to the platform and
investors are reportedly flocking. Look for a flood of new titles soon.
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Carolyn Wuthrich, a friend of May's passed this on. Dick Schaaf, Vernacular Engineering from Apple Valley, CA in on the piece. Don't know if he is the author
or a "passer on."
Here are some links that are close to my heart because they are friends or family. I try to always have great links at the end of many of my Ramblins articles -- links that relate to the article itself -- but here are some more that will help us move out of our "three-foot circles."
Each of the lines below is a link that will take you to an interesting Website when you click it.
The old and semi-retired Internet Flyer, Harvard No Land discovered an excellent Web site that might help you some day. Here's want Harvey wrote to his friends and to me:
"If you aren't familiar with this site, check it out. It's pretty amazing. Try to find a hymn they don't have listed." Put it on your favorites for that time when there is a questions about "words."
We're always honored by visitors. We do our best to provide new information on this "Ramblin" page ... and leave some of the stuff we think is extra good a little longer than the others. Please visit again.
We'd enjoy hearing from you. Drop us a note. We'd enjoy knowing you're visitin.' To do so, click the "Drop Us A Note" link right below.
We extend to you an old Southern salutation you don't hear much any more down here.... "Ya'll come back now, ya'hear?"
Norman Plunkett
God is good -- ALWAYS!
And especially as He floods you with all the grace you need no matter what the situation. As you trust Him, God's grace is always just enough and always on time.
