FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!
Quiz about Radio Daze
Quiz about Radio Daze

Radio Daze Trivia Quiz


Talkies killed silent films but television transformed radio. This quiz hearkens back to the golden age of radio captured in recordings, transcriptions, and memories.

A multiple-choice quiz by Rehaberpro. Estimated time: 4 mins.
  1. Home
  2. »
  3. Quizzes
  4. »
  5. Entertainment Trivia
  6. »
  7. Radio
  8. »
  9. US Old Time Radio

Author
Rehaberpro
Time
4 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
321,220
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
7 / 10
Plays
436
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. In various forms this radio show lasted from about 1928 to the mid 1950s. It would be labeled a 'sitcom' today but what program started out as the story of two Black men seeking their fortune in Chicago? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. "Lum and Abner" entertained on the radio from 1932 to 1954. They ran the Jot em' Down General Store in what fictional city? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Each week this couple would welcome a variety of interesting guests to their home which often included opening their disorganized closet. Who was this couple? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. This radio sitcom followed the trials of a pompous bachelor raising his niece and nephew in the town of Summerfield. It was a 'spinoff' of another popular radio series and featured actor Harold Peary. What was the name of this great show? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. "My Friend Irma" ran from 1947 to 1954. It told the story of a dim-bulb blonde and became a template for comic blondes in future years. What was the name of the actress who starred as Irma both on the radio and film? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Announcer Maurice Franklin began each broadcast with "_______________, champion of the people, defender of truth, guardian of our fundamental rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." What crime radio program fills in the blank? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. An early morning variety program came out of Chicago that ran from 1933 until 1968. Name the program and the host. Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. In the golden age of radio, he was a familiar voice in sportscasting. He broadcast the first baseball World Series on radio and was the first to do a remote sports radio-cast. He had a radio program on which he told stories of human interest linked with sports. Name him. Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. School boys ran home from school so they did not miss the latest episode of this adventure series. Who was the 'All American Boy'? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. This program opened with his mother calling for him. He would always say "Coming Mother!". What was the name of this family show that centered on the misadventures of its teenage protagonist? Hint



(Optional) Create a Free FunTrivia ID to save the points you are about to earn:

arrow Select a User ID:
arrow Choose a Password:
arrow Your Email:




Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. In various forms this radio show lasted from about 1928 to the mid 1950s. It would be labeled a 'sitcom' today but what program started out as the story of two Black men seeking their fortune in Chicago?

Answer: "Amos and Andy"

Amos Jones and Andy Brown head to Chicago with four ham and cheese sandwiches and 24 dollars. They start the Fresh Air Cab Company, so named as the cab had no roof. Amos evolved into a family man but Andy was a bachelor, giving the story line romantic twists. Later George 'Kingfish' Stevens was added who over time pretty much took over the show.

Few radio listeners realized that the voices of the three leads were played by two white men named Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll with Gosden voicing Amos and Kingfish and Correll doing Andy. They had learned their craft by studying minstrel shows. There were some protests among Black intellectuals and Black press in the early 1930s which went unheeded. In the early 1950s when the show was transformed into a television series, serious protests over racial stereotyping caused the TV version to be cancelled
2. "Lum and Abner" entertained on the radio from 1932 to 1954. They ran the Jot em' Down General Store in what fictional city?

Answer: Pine Ridge, Arkansas

The program centered on the activities at the Jot'em Down Store. Lum was played by Chester Lauck and Abner by Norris Goff. The comedy was often about rural life, various get-rich-quick schemes, and what some termed hillbilly humor, perhaps the antithesis of Amos and Andy.

The characters went from their 15 minute format to three movies. New producers expanded the program to 30 minutes and added an orchestra which pretty much became its death knell.
3. Each week this couple would welcome a variety of interesting guests to their home which often included opening their disorganized closet. Who was this couple?

Answer: "Fibber McGee and Molly"

Jim Jordan was Fibber and Marian Driscoll was Molly. They were married in real life. The resided at 79 Wistful Vista. Fibber had no job and was a retired vaudevillian. Molly was his steady level-headed wife. Each week a cast of characters came to the house such as the old timer, Mayor LaTrivia, Doc Gamble, and Wallace Whimple to name a few. Familiar names who played some of these parts were Gale Gordon, Bea Benaderet, and Harold Peary. Audiences waited for Fibber to open his closet which was a sound-effects man pleasure to provide.

The two appeared in a couple of films playing their radio characters. There were periods when Jordan worked alone due to Driscoll's health issues. Molly's line "t'aint funny McGee" became a catch phase of that era.
4. This radio sitcom followed the trials of a pompous bachelor raising his niece and nephew in the town of Summerfield. It was a 'spinoff' of another popular radio series and featured actor Harold Peary. What was the name of this great show?

Answer: "The Great Gildersleeve"

The Great Gildersleeve character was a regular visitor at 79 Wistful Vista. Because his character had some potential, Harold Peary got his own program. When Peary wanted to bolt from NBC to CBS in 1950, NBC since it has rights to the Great Gildersleeve name, refused to give the franchise.

Instead, NBC hired Willard Waterman to play Gildersleeve. CBS gave Peary a show formatted similar to the Gildersleeve was it was not very successful. There were, however four Gildersleeve movies made. The format of a bachelor raising children was repeated in such series as "Bachelor Father" and "Family Affair".
5. "My Friend Irma" ran from 1947 to 1954. It told the story of a dim-bulb blonde and became a template for comic blondes in future years. What was the name of the actress who starred as Irma both on the radio and film?

Answer: Marie Wilson

Wilson is most remembered for her role as Irma but she had a long and varied career in films from 1934 to 1962, only two which related to the radio show. The producer was sued as the concept was lifted from "My Sister Eileen" and lost. The plot often dealt with Irma's ineptness as a secretary and her love life. Cathy Lewis and Diana Lynn, former quiz kid, were actresses that played the common sense roommate Jane.
6. Announcer Maurice Franklin began each broadcast with "_______________, champion of the people, defender of truth, guardian of our fundamental rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." What crime radio program fills in the blank?

Answer: "Mr. District Attorney"

"Mr. District Attorney" graced the airwaves from 1939 to 1952. Mr. District Attorney was not given a name during the radio run of the program and was addressed as Chief. Four actors--Dwight Weist, Ray Johnson, Jay Joslyn, and David Brian--played the role through the years. Vicki Viola played secretary Edith Miller for the entire run of the show.

The program was to some extent based on the exploits of District Attorney Thomas Dewey of New York who later was a unsuccessful Presidential candidate.
7. An early morning variety program came out of Chicago that ran from 1933 until 1968. Name the program and the host.

Answer: "The Breakfast Club" with Don McNeil

"The Breakfast Club" continued from 1933 to 1968. McNeill was the cornerstone of the program that presented a variety of ad lib talk, comments on current events, musical interludes, visiting celebrities, audience participation--elements found in modern early morning radio and television. McNeill retired from public life in 1968 and died at 88 in 1996.
8. In the golden age of radio, he was a familiar voice in sportscasting. He broadcast the first baseball World Series on radio and was the first to do a remote sports radio-cast. He had a radio program on which he told stories of human interest linked with sports. Name him.

Answer: Bill Stern

Bill Stern worked for NBC and Ted Husing worked for CBS and so were in competition to broadcast major sporting events. Stern was an excellent play-by-play man and could make even dull games more exciting. In 1935 Stern lost a leg in an automobile accident that caused him in later years to be dependent on pain-killers. Stern's sport/human interest stories were often fact, sometimes myth, sometimes extrapolations but always intriguing.
9. School boys ran home from school so they did not miss the latest episode of this adventure series. Who was the 'All American Boy'?

Answer: "Jack Armstrong"

Jack Armstrong was a teenager who traveled with his uncle and some of his friends to exotic part of the world and had cliffhanging adventures where ever they went. It was a staple of late afternoon radio from 1933 to 1950. The original voice of Jack was provided by Jim Ameche, brother to Don Ameche. Attempts to make Jack Armstrong into a Saturday morning cartoon were unsuccessful due to copyright issues but "Johnny Quest" was certainly a clone.
10. This program opened with his mother calling for him. He would always say "Coming Mother!". What was the name of this family show that centered on the misadventures of its teenage protagonist?

Answer: "The Aldrich Family"

The derivation of this show was serpentine. First there was a successful Broadway play "What A Life" in 1938. Rudy Vallee made the characters a segment on his radio show as did Kate Smith. "The Aldrich Family" then became a summer replacement for Jack Benny, after which it found its own slot until 1950.

Although several actors played Henry, but Ezra Stone, who had played Henry in "What A Life", is most associated with the role. "The Aldrich Family spun out eleven films. Attempts to make it into a television series failed when Jane Muir, hired to play Mother Aldrich, was accused of being a communist and was blacklisted by the industry, thus dooming the television show.
Source: Author Rehaberpro

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor kyleisalive before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.
11/21/2024, Copyright 2024 FunTrivia, Inc. - Report an Error / Contact Us