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A comparative analysis of children’s radio and television programs in the Los Angeles area

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A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OP CHILDREN* S RADIO 'AND TELEVISION PROGRAMS IN THE LOS ANGELES AREA

A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the Department of Radio University of Southern California

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts

by Barbara Louise Wood June 1950

UMI Number: EP65341

All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion.

Dissertation Publishing

UMI EP65341 Published by ProQuest LLC (2014). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code

ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106 - 1346

'SO T h is thesis, w r itte n by

............. BAREABA..L.QUJ:SE...YifjQQD.......................... u n d er the guidance of h.®.!£-. F a c u lt y C o m m itte e , and a p p ro v e d

by a l l its m embers,

has been

presented to a n d accepted by the C o u n c il on G r a d u a te S tu d y a n d Research in p a r t i a l f u l f i l l ­ m ent o f the requirem ents f o r the degree of

.............JESTER...OF... ARTS....................................... ......................E:..5J.‘.Peuelj.JrJI

Dean B a te

Jya.e... 19 50 ........

TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I.

PAGE

THE P R O B L E M .................. The problem

1

...................................

Statement of the problem

............

1

Justification of the p r o b l e m ................

2

Limitations and conditions

..................

3

........................

4

Review of literature

Survey of the s t u d i e s .............. Method of procedure

4

.........................10

Organization of the thesis II.

1

.. .• .............11

THE STANDARDS................

12

Social c o n c e p t s ..........• •• ............. Respect • • • • • • • Homelife

...........

. . . . . . .

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Intellectual d e v e l o p m e n t ................ Authenticity Literature Vocabulary

12

. » • • • • • •

. . .

16 16

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

16

................................. 17

I n t e r e s t ............................ . .

Humor

14

................

Entertainment • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .

Clarity

12

. . . 18

............ .....................

18

20 .. . .

21

Music and sound e f f e c t s ......................... 21 &ood taste

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

22

CHAPTER III.

PAGES

SURVEY

OF THE CHILDREN’S RADIO P R O G R A M S ........

Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy The Adventures of Champion B Bar B Ranch

24

. . . . .

21+

• • • • • • • • • •

25

..........

The Lone Ranger

26

................

27

Adventures of Red Ryder • • • • • • ..........

27

Cisco K i d .............. • • • • ..............

28

Let’s Pretend • • • • • • ....................

29

Smilin1 Ed M c C o n n e l l ........................

31

Junior Miss • • • • • • • • •

32

................

It* a Fun to be Y o u n g .................... IV.

SURVEY

OF THE CHILDREN’S TELEVISIONPROGRAMS

33 . .

35

• • • • • • • • • • •

35

• • • • • • • • • . . • • • • • •

36

Apples For the T e a c h e r ......................

37

Uncle Howie • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .

38

Treasure Isle

38

Children Should Be Heard Sandy Dreams

................

Mickey O ’D a y ................................

39

Adventures of Cyclone M a l o n e ..........

40

Hopalong Cassidy

40

......................

Judy Splinters

• • • • • • • • •

............

41

Telescout Club

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

42

Cowboy Thrill • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

43

Bozo 9 s Circus

................



43

CHAPTER

PAGE P l a y t i m e ................................ • • • • Sleepy J o e ...................................... Time for Beany • • • • ........................

44 44

45^

Cowboy S l i m .......................... V.

ANALYZATI OH OF THE RADIOPROGRAMS Programs in general

. . . . . . . .

47

........................

Time of b r o a d c a s t ........................ . • Broadcasting Systems

47 47

..............

48

Approximate age of l i s t e n e r ..................

48

..............

49

Geographical setting and locale

Time . . . . . ........................

. . .

51

.

51

Type of program Social c o n c e p t s ..............................

51 ^

R e s p e c t ............................ ..

51

Respect for law and o r d e r ..................

53

Respect for adult authority

53

Respect for American institutions Morals • • • • •

............ ............

............................

B o m e l i f e ........ ............................ Intellectual development

54

55 56

• • • • •

57

Vocabulary and vocal inflections ............

58

Children1s literature

59

Authenticity

. . . . .

............

............................

Philosophical thoughts ......................

59 61

CHAPTER

PAGE Entertainment ............

. . . . . . . . . .

61

Action and s u s p e n s e ..................

61

Sound effects and m u s i c ....................

62

Characters

67

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Humor

72

V I . ANALYZATION OF THE TELEVISION P R O G R A M S ........ Programs in general .

74

..........

74

Time of b r oadcast................

74

Television stations . .

76

....................

Approximate age of listeners

• • • • • • • •

Geographical setting and l o c a l e Time

76



* . . ........................

78

Type of program • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Social c o n c e p t s ............

78

. .

79 79

Respect for law and order • • • • • • • • • •

79

Respect for adult authority ................

81

Respect for American institutions.........

82

Morals

• • • • • • • • » • • • • • • • • • •

83

• • • . • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

84

..............

85

Homelife

Intellectual development

•••

Vocabulary and vocal inflections Childrens literature Authenticity

..........

87

..............

87

* ..................

89

• • • • • • • •

Philosophical thoughts

86

V

CHAPTER

PASS Entertainment................

• •

89

Action ands u s p e n s e .............................. 90 Sound effects and m u s i c

.

92

C h a r a c t e r s ..................................... 93 H u m o r .................... • . •. ........... • • VII.

SUMMARY #

BIBLIOGRAPHY

. ...........

. . . . . . ..........................

9$ 102 108

y' / '

LIST OF TABLES TABLE I. II.

FACIE Summary ©f Standards . • .

.................... . 1 9

Date Analyzed, Day of Broadcast, Time, Network, Type of Program, Minutes per Week and Intended Age Level of Listeners of the Radi© Programs . . 50

III. IV.

Time and Locale of the Radi© Programs

• • • • . • •

............

• • • • • • • • • 6 8

Number, Sex, Nationality and Age of the Subsidiary Characters..............

VII.

.?0

Methods Employed to Produce Humor in Radi© Programs • • • • • • • • • •

VIII.

.63

Number, Sex, Nationality and Age of the Principal Characters . . . . ..........

VI*

52

Number of Times Music and Sound Effects Employed in Radio Programs

V.

• • • • • •

........

• • • • • 7 3

Date Analyzed, Day of Broadcast, Time, Network, Type of Program, Minutes per Week and Intended

IX. X.

Age Level of the Television Programs . . . . . .

77

Time and Locale of Television Programs • • • • • •

80

Number, Sex, Nationality and Age of Principal Television Characters

XI,

Number, Sex, Nationality and Age of Subsidiary Television Characters

XII*

• • • • • • • • • • • • • 9 5

..........

• • • • • • • 9 7

Methods Employed to Produce Humor In Television Programs • • • • • • « • • • • • • • • • • • •

*100

CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM That radio and television plays are an important role in the life of the child is an indisputable fact-just how important is not yet known*

Investigations have

revealed that the average daily time for children listening to the radio is estimated to be between two and one-half to three and one-half hours. Parents, broadcasters and educators, realizing the importance, have been earnestly trying to ascertain the many implications connected with child listening.

They have

criticized children’s programs and programs listened to by children though not intended for them.

Much of this

criticism has been unscientific and unsupportable,

This

has led to many research activities sponsored by universities and parent groups, which has resulted in a very decided improvement in the attitude of the broadcasting stations toward the whole topic of children’s programs, I. Statement of the P roblem,

THE PROBLEM The subject of children’s

■** John .De Boer, "Radio and Children’s Emotions," School and Society, September 16, 1939, p, 50,

a radio and television programs has occupied an important place in all deliberations concerned with the emotional and intellectual development of young children*

Since children's

programs reach millions of young, eager and impressionable • minds, they have a great burden of responsibility--more so than any other* It was the purpose of this study (1) to analyze the programs in the Los Angeles area for both emotional and intellectual enrichment for children (2) to compare the children’s radio programs with the children’s television programs* •Justification of the problem*

It has not been

difficult to get agreement that children’s radio and tele­ vision programs should enrich childhood experience, but just how the purpose should be achieved and in what specific directions radio and television should attempt to do this are questions that continue to challange the broadcaster, the script writer, the parent and the teacher.

Standards

are set up by many, but they are so varied and indefinite that there has been little uniformity and little progress in improving the calibre of the various programs*

Most children

have access to a radio, for as early as 1938 seventy per cent of our homes were supplied with at least one radio and now it is doubtful if more than five per cent of our homes are without a radio.

It is probable that since the invention of

printing, nothing else has had quite so great an effect upon 2 human society as the radio. The effect on children is even greater since they are in the learning and growing stage.

Television has added the

element of vision, so its effect on children will be even greater than radio’s effect.

Therefore program standards for

both mediums should be decided upon and used uniformly. Limitations and conditions.

(l)

The radio and tele­

vision programs surveyed were those listened to by children in the elementary and intermediate grades.

(2)

Only radio

programs broadcast by the four major netv/orks--the national Broadcasting Company, the Columbia Broadcasting System, the Mutual Broadcasting System and the American Broadcasting Company--were included in this survey.

(3)

All the programs

were drama, variety or participation--no musical programs were included.

(4)

All the programs were heard during the

leisure hours of the school child--thus between four o ’clock and eight o ’clock, Pacific Standard Time, on week-days and on Saturdays and Sundays.

(5)

Commercial and sustaining

radio and television'programs were surveyed.

Commercial

programs were those which were paid for and presented by

^ National Committee on Education by Radio, ‘’Education by Radio,” (Washington B . C . : Volume 1, No. 12, April 30, 1931), P* 5.

4 sponsors chiefly interested in providing entertainment and giving information concerning the product to be sold to the public*

The sustaining programs referred to those programs

which were selected and financed by the broadcasting companies, thus no product was sold to the public*

(6)

Scripts for the

majority of children’s television programs were not available for they were almost all ad lib shows.

The Mutual Broadcasting

System would not permit commercial scripts to leave their files, even for research purposes,

therefore it was impossible

to obtain scripts of programs emanating from that network. II.

KBVIBY/ OF THE LITERATURE

There was an extensive bibliography on the subject of radio and radio programs for children, but the studies made for evaluation of programs broadcast for children were comparatively small.

These studies were the most closely

related. Survey of the studies. Dr. Azriel L* Bisenberg, in a comprehensive survey, studied the radio listening habits of 3345 children in the intermediate grades of the Hew York Metropolitan School Area.

From this study she made these

interesting conclusions: Children of higher intelligence rating listen slightly mose as compared to those of lower rating... Those of higher intelligence rating listen more to narrative programs, humor, news, special interest or

5 hobby programs and olassioal and semi-ciassioal music; while those of lower ratings listen more to popular danoe music, to programs that feature popular songs, and to narratives which are tinged with emotion and sentiment.3 Boys and girls differ in degree rather than in kind in the programs to which they listen...Boys listen to more programs that are adventurous, mysterious and virile. Girls prefer programs of sentiment, and of home and family life. Another factor in determining the sex of the majority audience is the name of the program. Certain names connoting adventure and virility attract the boys while others that connote .adventures of.' girls and home life attract the girls. Various programs are listened to by both sexes because each finds in,the narrative those elements that appeal to them most. Taste for radio programs change. Various programs are outgrown by children. They become satiated with programs that have been running for several years and the programs that offer narratives that vary a little from their own experiences.5 Mrs. Sidonie Mastsner Gruenberg, director of the Child Study Association of America, and a committee developed a criteria in evaluating children’s radio programs which was used in the selection of suitable programs for various age levels and varying interests.

They concluded:

Certain characteristics of the radio itself make evaluation difficult. Unlike books and motion pictures which can be reviewed specifically, the radio is not

3 Azriel L. Risenberg, Children and Radio Programs (Uew York: Columbia University Press, 1936) , p. 77.

‘4 I b i d .. p. 186. ^ IJbid., p* 190

6 static, A given program changes from day to day in detail and from week to week in plot. It may be mild or amusimg one day, and filled with excitement and suspense the next. Some programs may be running poor at the time of review and may improve later--and vioe versa. Some aspects of any given program may be very much better than others--the continuity may be excellent* but the adver­ tizing laid on with a rather heavy hand; the character­ izations may be realistic, but the plot full, or the reverse; the motif of the program may represent a new and effective treatment or technique, but its present stage of development may still be crude. Recognizing these difficulties, the committee has listed here those programs tvhich seem on the whole to meet the standards of emotional emphasis, good taste* truthfulness, attitudes and sentiment, language and quality and advertizing,6 Waldo Abbot, who has written various books on how to write radio shows, made the following statement concerning children*s programs: It is not my contention or purpose to enter the controversy between child psychologists and commercial advertizers as to the validity of the contention that the majority of the children’s programs now on the air are emotionally overstimulating and have undesirable effects upon the characters of the young listeners. The kind of program to be broadcast will be determined by the children themselves. If they want blood and thunder they will probably get it, for the advertisers know thei business even though they are a little weak on child psychology,? Violet Gooch Stone made a detailed study in old, established school districts in 1936 on children’s preferences for radio programs.

She sent questionnaires to

6

Sidonie M, Gruenberg, Radio Programs for Children (The Radio Institute of the Audible Arts, 1935J7 P.2. Waldo Abbot* Handbook of Broadcasting (Hew York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc,, 1937), p. 227,

7 three districts in southern California*

They were filled

out hy 1461 children, 200 teachers and 113 parents of various types of social, economic and racial groups*

She c onciuded*

The extent to which children listen consistently to all types of programs shows lack of ability to discrim­ inate between desirable and undesirable forms of entertainment*^ Children like what is ’’exciting,” ’’interesting’1 and ’’mysterious*” Crime and mystery plays and children’s plays seem to be the only programs which satisfy these characterizations* Although children’s interests cover a wide range in content, radio programs designed for children are limited to a very narrow group, chiefly crime, and aviation, with some adventure themes more or less fantastic and questionable.9 In 1937 Mary Gardner Power made a survey of 517 pupils of the intermediate grades to determine what influence, if any, the radio might have on the child.

A very inter­

esting conclusion formulated by this study was that children listen to a wide variety of programs during the week which leave their mark on the character of the child*

Mary

Gardner Power also concluded that where there was little adult attention of a directive nature given to the quality and type of programs to which the child kept listening, it was to be expected that the selections would be of poor quality.

This fact was proven in almost every case in

Q

Violet G. Stone, ’’Children’s Preference for Radio Programs,” (unpublished D octo r’s dissertation, The University Of Southern California, Los Angeles, 1937), p* 460* ^ Ibid** p* 462

8 this study."^ In 1941, May Zona Hyman made a study evaluating the educational values of ten children’s radio programs*

Some

of her conclusions were: Entertainment given over the radio for leisure time listeners, that are composed of children, must he in a form that will seize the child’s interest and liking. There needs to he variation in types of programs to satisfy individual listeners* Thus children’s programs should he comprised of adventureous types, fairy tales, real life stories, scientific discoveries, hohhy clubs and quiz programs,!! It is quite apparent from the conclusions that the children’s programs do not contain all of the qualities that are desired. To raise the radio programs to a higher standard so that it would retain the interest of the child and the approval of his parents, should he the aim of any script writer of children’s programs.!^ M.I. Eirth and G.S* Erskine wrote a hook, Gateway to R a d i o * in 1934 which expressed their many views on children’s programs and listening habits*

A few of their

conclusions were: Man y mothers trustingly believe that program built specifically for children for their children to hear. Would that What an infinity of present trouble and

every radio must he safe this were true* future sorrow

M ary G. Power, ’'The Influence of Radio on the Child," (unpublished M a s t e r ’s thesis, The University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 1938), p. 155. ^ M a y Z. Ryman, "Certain Educational Values of Ten Programs Broadcast for Children," (unpublished M a s t e r ’s thesis, The University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 1941), p. 108. 12 Ibid... p. 105,

9 would be saved both parents and children.13 Thus in a gangster thriller on the radio , one child will remember only the shooting and his terror because of it; another will want to ape the gangster who did the shooting, and will have less fear because he will always see himself behind the business end of the gun; while a third child may only remember that he has been told in the program to eat a certain cereal. If, night after night, these same children follow the thriller serial, the first child will become more and more obsessed with his terror, the second child will be­ come all the more determined to be a gangster, and the third will insistently demand the cereal, which may be contrary to doctor’s orders.I4 If the child listener emulates badly portrayed and badly conceived characters, who may be held up as the typical American boy or some other model for the listener, then the whole program remains forever a blot upon the name of the sponsor and his product, and a lasting disgrace on the radio company permitting such atrocities to be broadcast from their station.I6 Most of the sustaining features are in the main, innocuous, and create no wrong or unwholesome desire in the minds of the listening children. But one wonders with the wealth of material available, why these presentations are generally so poorly conceived and cheaply performed.3-6 From an extensive canvass of children to determine their likes and dislikes in the matter of radio programs, we find that the infant prodigy is generally disliked by the child audience...They would rather hear a grown-up tell a tale of fantastic adventure, an Arabian Nights, or a Treasure Island.!*?

*!

*2

M.I. Firth and G*S. Erskine, G-ateway to Radio (New York; The Macaulay Company, 1934), p. 245. 14 Ibid., p. 247. 15 Ifrid., p. 249. ^

I b id.. p. 250.

^

I b i d .. p. 251.

10 Would it not be well to take heed of the menace of the wrong sort of radio program for children* and furnish them with mental as well as physical protection?!^ The adult mind is not likely to he injured by a radio program that is either mediocre or replete in sensation­ alism* but the child mind can be so influenced by the constant or recurrent thrills that a permanent injurious impression can be left.1^ III.

METHOD OF PROCEDURE

A set of standards has been compiled by the investi­ gator,

Points of view of the broadcaster.,

the script writer*

the parent and the child have been taken into consideration. Sets of criteria by Abbot, Crews, Firth and Erskine, Eisenberg*

the Federal Education Committee*

the Mutual

Broadcasting System* the BAB Code* the Rational Broadcasting Company and the PTA were studied.

Specific program standards

were then decided upon, A survey was taken of the children1s-radio programs being broadcast on the Los Angeles network stations during the months of August and September in 1949,

(The four

networks were the American Broadcasting Company* the Rational Broadcasting Company, the Mutual Broadcasting System and the Columbia Broadcasting System.)

During the same months a

survey was made of the children’s television programs in the

18 I b i d ,, p, 252, 19 Ibid,, p, 298,

11 Los Angeles area,

(The television stations were KTSL* O B H ,

KTLA, KFI-TV and KLAC-TV.)

^Whenever possible a script or

outline of the program was obtained and matters such as vocabulary, humor, sound and musical effects, and word interpretations were studied. Each program was judged by the forementioned set of standards and conclusions were drawn as to the worth of the program,

the age level, the educational value and the enter­

tainment value. iv.

orcahizatioh

of

the

thesis

The materials involved in this study have been considered in the following manner.

Chapter II is devoted to

a discussion of the standards and criteria to be used in judging the children1s programs.

Chapters III and IV will

give the results of the radio and television survey.

Chapters

V and VI are devoted to analyzing the findings as checked against the standards set up in the criteria.

Chapter VII

gives a brief summary of the findings of this study.

Some

conclusions were drawn and recommendations were ma.de for the improvement

of radio and television programs for children.

CHAPTER XI STANDARDS The problem of creating one set of standards by which to judge children’s programs is difficult, for diff­ erent groups put emphasis on different criteria*

For

instance, some judge programs only for the moral, ethical and social values around which the program is built, others are interested only with the contributions that the programs make to child development; the radio station and the writer are concerned primarily about entertainment values, partic­ ularly dramatic qualities and showmanship*

In the following

set of standards and criteria approaches to the problem from all three points of view has been attempted*

This study is

based upon the legitimacy and importance of each item* I. Respect*

THE SOCIAL CONCEPTS

One of the most important things to look

for in children’s shows is respect--do the heroes and hero­ ines show respect for items such as law and order, adult authority and American institutions.

A children’s program

should positively affirm, or at least not negate the four freedoms--freedom of worship, freedom of expression, freedom from want and freedom from fear*

Unfavorable references or

insinuations about particular races, classes, nationalities

and religion must be portrayed sympathetically and realis­ tically,

Love of our country and unswerving loyalty to its

ideals can he built from the wide use of realistic materials in children’s programs,

Dramatizations should not hesitate

to stress democratic values and to convey a hopeful outlook "i

upon the future. Children of different social and economic groups should be able to gain an accurate insight into the ways the others live--thus occupational skills which are essential to the American way of life should be portrayed both honestly and sincerely*'*

Certain occupations, such as the movie star,

the business executive and the lawyer, are typed as worth­ while and glamorous, while other occupations,

such as the

housewife or the mechanic, are entirely neglected.

There

should be more material available that portrays adult patterns of occupational achievement,

Faith should be built

in democracy and in democratic living,^ Moral qualities, such as fair-play, honorable conduct, clean living and the values of building character have to be

Howard Howland, ’’Criteria for Children Vs. Radio Programs,” Criteria for Children’s Radio Programs (Washington D.C,s The Federal Radio Education Committee, 1942), p. 11, 2 Evalyn Grumbine, Reaching Juvenile Markets (Hew York The McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1938), p, 197, 3 June Pray, "Dialagnosi,fl Radio and Television Life, p, 12, February 13, 1949, .

. . . . .

.

.

14 considered.

Programs should not moralize, however these

items must be included in every show.4 Homelife. Every child should be able to identify the radio or television program with his homelife.

Therefore

the heroic characters of radio drama, which children imitate, idolize and identify themselves with, should not distort, over-simplify nor misrepresent the patterns of American society into which the child is growing.

Even purely

imaginary heroes should be permitted to have at least a few human faults and the capacity to make mistakes, may seem more plausible.

so that they

Self-sacrifice, consideration for

others, loyal courage, defense of minorities and under­ privileged groups, modesty and humility can be just as heroic to children as the single-handed capture of a robbery gang. Erom an emotional standpoint,

status in the gang and

school life are two of the greatest problems which confront the child; therefore prqgrams containing realistic drama on the boy or girl "gang’1 or on the neighborhood, playground, school or camp life of children is a desirable quality* Certainly the problem of being accepted in a social world of one’s equals is a theme of major importance to children.

^ Program Standards (Hew Yorks System, Inc., June 1, 1945), p. 27*

Mutual Broadcasting

15 Family relationships, mutual respect and understand­ ing between parents and children, and family-problem situations should he portrayed in children’s radio programs.

This can

be proved by the overwhelming success of certain radio programs which are based on family groups.

It also suggests

the importance of further experimentation along these lines in the children’s field.

The aim of this type of program

should be to provide the growing child with a better under­ standing of family problems,^ Certainly the; full resources of radio have not scratched the surface of motivating the child to do things for himself--and i^f there is a major evil in radio listening for children, it is the evil of inactivity or passivity. The suggestive power of radio should be utilized whenever possible in leading listeners to useful hobbies, interests, activities and knowledge.

skills,

The average child

spends fourteen hours a week listening to the radio and un­ less more definite responsibility is taken for reinforcing other activities, it is highly doubtful that radio should get this much time and attention from children.

Radio can

promote and stimulate the development of mechanical and artistic skills--it can also utilize unlimited subject matter from camping, nature lore and outdoor life.

5

Curios-

Howard Rowland, Criteria for Children’s Radio Programs (Washington D.C.: Federal Radio E d u c . Committee), p. 18.

...

16 ities can be stimulated, hobbies can be motivated and simple experimentation with home materials can be suggested,

ftadio

programs can also awaken the interest of children in reading good books, II. I^TSLLEGTUAL DEVELOIMENT Philosophical thoughts.

Authenticity in the aesthetic

and artistic portrayal relates to the competency and skill of the writer and producer in presenting an effective program. Children’s programs should be authentic in broad historical or contemporary interpretation, factual detail and artistic portrayal.

If the purpose of the show is to convey a major

lesson or historical truth, this major truth must be authentic and minor details may be sacrificed in order that the truth may have its maximum appeal in a setting of good showmanship.

On the other hand, if the primary purpose is to

convey actual historic events, and the detailed circumstances surrounding them, these events should be authentic and acdurate, with showmanship used only in their selection and presentation.

Since these facts often remain in children’s

minds they should always be correct. Literature.

It is doubtful if -writers whose formula

it is to hold the young listener at a fever pitch of excite­ ment contribute anything constructive to the development of the child.

Attempts to point out that, in many cliff-hanger

serials on the air, the leading characters are really allegorical representations of good and evil, and that the eventual denouncement of the plots shows justice and good­ ness triumphant are entirely heside the point.

Such attempts

at justification merely emphasis the fact that in order to hold listener interest in the usual string of threadbare characters, fantastically unreal adventures have to be unfolded from day to day.

Therefore the rich field of child

r e n ’s literature should provide the main part of the content of children1s radio stories, and the main cues for handling the plot and character development in the story originating from other sources. Vocabulary.

The vocabulary and vocal inflections

used in a c h i l d r e n ^ program must clearly be comprehended by the youngest age level of intended listeners.

Although one

or two new words can be grasped in a radio program,

the

child feels a sense of loss if he does not understand all of the words spoken on a program. sparingly.

Accents should be used

A widely debated issue is the use of colloquial­

isms versus "good'* English.

The advocates of good English

sometimes forget that ideas and feelings can often be expressed more forcefully and more simply by colloquial

g

/

• • • •• - - -

...... Kenneth Robb, "Better Radio for Children,'* Parents Ma g a z i n e . 23:43, August, 1949.

18 expressions than hy correct speech.

Obviously it would be

inadvisable in a radio play for a truck driver to use the same expressions as a celebrated journalist.

Colloquialisms

should not be used if they are apt to be misunderstood.

They

may have legitimate uses when they supplement rather than substitute for good characterization,

2To rule such as that

against the use of slang, colloquialisms, provincialisms or bad grammar should be permitted to stand in the way of realistic portrayal of situations,' III. Interest,

EHTERTAIMSITT

A must in every radio and television

program is that it be interesting.

Children are even more

impatient with the uninteresting than are adults.

They

demand a story that holds their interest from the very first word to the last.

These three checks are important in

judging a child’s interest, plenty of it? vital.

(3)

(2)

(l)

Is there fast action and

Are there sound effects--this point is

Is the play in the child’s world of imagination?

The child must mentally see the program as well as hear it, rj

Howard Rowland, Criteria for Children’s Radio Programs (Washington D.C.: The Federal Radio Education Committee, 1942), p. 20, ° Josette Frank, ’’Those Dreadful Programs,” W o m a n ’s Home C ompanion, 74:116, February, 1947,

The

19 TABLE I SUMMARY OR STANDARDS I.

Social concepts A,

Respect (for law and order, adult authority and American institutions)

B*

Morals (fair play, honorable conduct, clean living and character building)

C*

Homelife (friendships, family relationships and outside interests stimulated)

II*

III*

Intellectual development A*

Vocabulary and vocal inflections

B*

Authenticity

C,

Children’s literature

D*

Philosophical thoughts

Entertainment A*

Interest (fast action, sound effects, characters and suspense)

IV*

B*

Clarity (language and ideas)

C*

Humor

D*

Music and sound

Good taste A*

Radio code of ethics

B#

Truthfulness and sincerity

C*

Ho unwarranted emotional stress

D*

Ho undue stress (of fear and aggression)

The illusion of reality must "be so complete and so strong that the listener projects himself into the drama--identify­ ing himself first with one character and then another* Children are readily transported into an imaginary, fictional world and the principal thrill which radio drama brings to children is the thrill derived from this projective exper­ ience, the vicarious identification with one or more characters in the drama* Clarity.

Clarity of both language and ideas are

important in judging a radio program--for if the child does not understand,

the entire program is a waste of time,^

The

tendency to overrate or underrate detail is a source of concern to all interested in bettering children’s shows.

Dialogue

frequently engages in too much narration of specific details of the plot or story; then the child is not given a chance to use his imagination.

Realism is achieved only when the

listener imagines the drama to be real.

Since the fun of

listening to a story is the fun of making the characters do what you want them to do in your imagination, only enough detail should be given to set the scene and to give believ­ able characterization.

The primary purpose is to move a

story along, not to convey miscellaneous and incidental

9

• » M,I, Firth and G.S. Erskine, Gateway to Radio (Dew York: The Macaulay Company, 1934^7 p, 250.

21 information,

A serious mistake is to please educators and

parents by including a number of isolated facts of geography* history or science that is irrelevant to the plot. Humor,

Humor needs to be used more extensively in

children’s programs.

It aids them in solving many important

problems of conduct by giving them examples of behavior which are commonly regarded as ridiculous.

Children

frequently turn to adult' comedy programs instead of children’s serials because the programs lack humor,

Prom the stand­

point of audience building, it would be an excellent idea for script writers^to include more humor in their shows,

The

dead-seriousness of most of the children’s thrillers is not particularity healthy as a steady day to day routine for the child a u d i e n c e , ^ Music and sound effects, need to be clearly visualized,

Music and sound cues both Sound effects should be care­

fully integrated with the situations and action portrayed, and never should impede the intelligibility of the dialogue. Moderation,

simplicity and familiarity should be the guiding

principles.

Music is very valuable as a supplement to sound

effects because music leaves more room for the listener to exercise his imagination in picturing events and scenes.

10 Howard Rowland, Criteria for Children’s Radio Programs (Washington D.C.: The Federal Radio Education Committee, 1942), p, 19,

It

can set the mood for a program or can he used as background music to intensify an emotional response.

Musical themes*

background music and musical transitions cannot make up for the lack of story material, however, both music and sound effects can enhance and enrich the radio drama and the func­ tion of both should be to advance the story itself, not to dominate the situation. G-ood taste.

The most important single criteria in

judging a children*s show is the standard of good taste. is the hardest thing to judge.

This

Many codes defining the

standards of good taste have been compiled.

They have been

developed by many organizations all of whom have their own particular ideas concerning the interpretation of **good taste.1*

Since a writer or producer cannot be effective if he

is surrounded by a list of generalized and indefinite taboos, they are better served by suggesting positive values to be attained.

Their task then becomes one of writing and

directing programs that are genuinely entertaining and signif­ icant for children and are automatically in good taste.

The

most obvious infringements of good taste are ordinarily wellguarded by the broadcasters themselves as exemplified in this code published by the Mutual Broadcasting System. Fair play and honorable conduct, intelligence and moral courage should be reflected in sympathetic char­ acters (heroes and heroines) in children’s programs. Lawlessness, cowardice, malice, deceit and selfishness may not be shown as other than reprehensible.

23 1, Torture or horror, by suggestion, dramatization or sound effect; overemhasis on gun-play or violence, 2, Utilization of the supernatural or of superstition in ways that might arouse fear or mental confusion, 3,

Profanity or vulgarity,

4,

Treatment of kidnapping or other to terrorize juvenile listeners,

5,

Stirring up of morbid suspense or hysteria through "cliff-hanging'^-the ending of an episode on a note of distressing uncertainty,!!

Program Standards (Hew York: System, Inc,, June 1, 1945), p, 27,

crimes calculated

Mutual Broadcasting

CHAPTER III SURVEY OP THE C H I L D R E N S RADIO PROGRAMS Children’s programs were heard on the air daily from 5s00 to 8:00 in the evening and on Saturdays from 8:00 to 9 ?00 in the morning and in the early afternoon.

Although

many programs were off the air for the summer, the time element was still the same--the shows were still broadcast during the leisure time for the school-age children.

In

this chapter each program will be briefly surveyed. Jack Armstrong, the All-American B o y . Armstrong,

the All-American Boy, was

Jack

the oldest children’s

show in radio which had been sponsored continuously by one client.

Its initial broadcast was back in 1932 under the

sponsorship of General Mills.

The theme of the dramatization

revolved around the all-American b o y ’s ability to cope with any situation— arising in adventures that took him to very nearly every corner of the earth. At the time of this study, Jack Armstrong, an established national hero among children, was portrayed by Charles Plynn.

Other members of the cast were Dick York^as

Billy, Patricia Dunlap as Betty and Ken Griffith as Vic. The program was written and directed by James Jewell.

Publicity release from the American Broadcasting Company, Los Angeles, California for August 31, 1949.

25 The program was formerly a weekly fifteen minute serial broadcast over the Mutual Uetwork,

Jack Armstrong was

then heard on the American Broadcasting Company*s network. Station KSCA in Los Angeles every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 5:30 to 6:00, Pacific Standard Time,

Shows

broadcast on Wednesday, September 7, 1949 and Friday, September 9, 1949 were used in this study, -• o The Adventures of Champion, The Adventures of .



,

........................................................•

Champion was a serial in which the bravery, loyalty and cleverness of the horse Champion was dramatized.

Uncle Smoky,

an old timer, narrated the story as well as took an active part in the drama.

Kicky West, and Rebel, the dog, were also

principle characters in the day*s program, story was dramatized in serial form.

Fvery week a

The investigator heard

"The Mystery of the Red Beard" and "The Mystery of the Creen Bottle," The program was directed by William Birch and was produced by the Cene Autry Productions,

It was heard daily,

Monday through Friday, at 5:30 p,m,, Pacific Standard Time, over KHJ, the Mutual-Don Lee Network,

The programs

analyzed were heard on September 9, 1949 and on September 13, 1949,

^ Interview with the Publicity Department of the Don-Lee-Mutual Broadcasting System, Los Angeles, California,

B Bar B R a n c h T h e

Bon Lee-Mutual network, ItHJ in

Los Angeles, presented B Bar B Ranch every Tuesday and Thursday evenings at 5:00, Pacific Standard Time.

The show

was sustaining at the time of this survey. This western drama sported Bobby Benson, the twelveyear-old owner of a Texas Ranch. Cury.

He was portrayed by Ivan

B o b b y ’s constant companion, old Wendy, was portrayed

by Tommy Vincent.

Bach program dramatized one of their

adventures in a complete episode.

Peter Bixon wrote the

series and Bob Emerick announced.

The shows analyzed were

heard on September 13, 1949 and on September 15, 1949. The Lone Ra nge r.^

The Lone Ranger, a children’s

dramatization of western stories^ was heard over KECA in Los Angeles,

the American Broadcasting Company, on Mondays and

Wednesdays at 7:00p.m., Pacific Standard Time, and on Satur­ days at 8:00p.m., Pacific Standard Time, at the time this study was made.

It was formerly broadcast three times a

week over the Mutual network. Mr. Trendle, once owner of an independent broadcasting station, needed a new program to save himself and his station from financial difficulties.

He knew he would have to

^ Interview with the Publicity Bepartment of the Bon Lee-Mutual Broadcasting System, Los Angeles, California. 4

Interview with the Publicity Bepartment of the American Broadcasting Company, Los Angeles, California.

present something that would appeal to the public, yet he knew he would have to find an inexpensive program that required no name star.

With his years of experience dealing

with the public, he considered children less critical and knew that their programs would not have to be elaborate. Since children’s favorite stories were about crime or the wild west, he tried to combine the two.

It was decided that

the western story should be played by a hero who was a sort of benevolent outlaw with a mask.

He should go around

righting wrong against tremendous odds and then disappear 5 quietly afterwards. $

The script writer of the Lone Hanger, Fran Striker, based his stories on simple psychology and he made each episode into a complete drama.

The stories were in the

realm of the child’s imagination, but situations that might frighten the child in his own surroundings were ommitted. For instance, prowlers in homes never had a part in the stories; villians shot to kill, yet the actual killing was never dramatized. This program was analyzed on September 7, 1949 and on September 14, 1949 The Adventures of Red R y d e r Red Ryder brought law

Post.

® L. Bryan, III, ”Hi-Yo, Silver,” The Saturday Fvening 212;20-21, October 14, 1939. f?

Interview with the Publicity Bepartment of the Bon Lee-Mutual Broadcasting Company, Los Angeles, California.

and order to small western towns.

He was helped by his two

loyal friends, Buckskin and Little Beaver, who aided Bed in bringing villians to justice.

The Bed Ryder show had been

on the air continually for the past seven years with the same cast with the exception of Little Beaver, Johnny McGovern, who replaced Tommy Cook when he outgrew the part. At the time of this study, Bed Byder was heard over KKJ,

the Don Lee-Mutual Hetwork every Tuesday and Thursday

evening at 7;30 p.m., Pacific Standard Time.

Brooke Temple

was Red Byder, Horace Murphy was Buckskin and Johnny McGovern was Little Beaver. series.

Paul Pranklin script and directed the

Art Gilmore was the announcer.

Langendorf Bread

sponsored the show. Each dramatization was a complete episode.

The

programs analyzed were broadcast on September 15, 1949 and on September 20, 1949. *7

The Cisco K i d .

In the old Southwest with its

shifting population, its great spaces and its usually insufficient law enforcement agencies, bandits were numerous. The dramatizations of the Cisco Kid brought the most ingenious of them all to justice.

Jack Mather was Cisco and Harry Long

was P anc h o .. This program, sponsored by W e b e r ’s Bread, was broad-

7

Publicity Release from the Columbia Broadcasting System, Los Angeles, California, September 7, 1949.

29 cast over KHJ,

the Don Lee-Mutual Broadcasting System* every

Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 7s30 to 8:00 p.m, * Pacific Standard Time,

The episodes analyzed were “broadcast on

September 7, 1949 and*on September 14, 1949, ...

Q

Let* s Pretend,

L e t ’s Pretend* award winning CBS

fantasy series featuring fairy tales adapted, produced and directed by Hila Mack, began its twentieth year of consecutive broadcasting Saturday, September 17, 1949,

The

occasion also marked the sixth anniversary of sponsorship of the series by Cream of Wheat,

This program has earned

many citations, including the George Foster Peabody Award as "the best children’s program in radio," Mila Mack took over the program on August 18, 1930, when it was known as the Adventures of Helen and Mary, (She believed this to be the oldest children’s program on the air,)

Adults were eliminated from the cast as rapidly

as possible, and Miss Mack remade the program into a drarnaQ tization of fairy tales, with all parts taken by children. L e t ’s Pretend was run on a regular stock company basis.

All the children alternated on roles and there was

never any regular "stars" or children who played leading

8

v Publicity Release from the Columbia Broadcasting System, Los Angeles, California, September 8 , 1949, 9 v. • • M a y Z. Ryman, Certain Educational Values of Ten Programs Broadcast for Children (unpublished M a s t e r ’s thesis, The University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 1941), p.10.

30 roles week after week.

One program*s princess would be the

next program*s third fairy.

The boy who was king on one

show may have been cast as a scullery boy in the next.

Miss

Mack tried definitely to give her young cast just the kind of direction they might have met when they went on in the theater.

She also listened to the children’s ideas on how

a part should be played, even changing the lines occasionally. Usually a different fairy tale was dramatized each week, though they occasionally ran two weeks and one ran three.

All the stories were dramatized and arranged by Miss

Mack, and the music was selected by her,

A few times she

used stories written by children and sent to her. The children rehearsed two hours before they went on the air.

The only necessary requisite, apart from dramatic

ability, was the ability to read, which was sometimes rare with four yea,r olds. in each cast.

Usually there were about ten children

Two of the original cast members, Gwen

Davies and Maurice Brown, were still heard regularly on L e t ’s Pretend at the time of this study.

Miss Davies, at

the present a young lady, played her first roles from memory, being too young to read expertly.

Brown, who

played cello in the orchestra in the early years of the series, later composed and conducted the scene-setting orche s tral theme s . L e t ’s Pretend was heard over KBX, the Columbia

31 Broadcasting System, every Saturday morning at 8*05, Pacific Standard Time.

The shows analyzed in this study were broad­

cast on September 10, 1949 and on September 17, 1949.

10

Smilln* Ed McO onnell.

The Buster Brown Shoe

Company presented Smilin* Ed McConnell and his Buster Brown Gang every Saturday morning from 8:30 to 9:00, Pacific Standard Time, through the facilities of the National Broadcasting Company, Station KEI in Los Angeles. Smilin* Ed, the old story-teller, was surrounded each week by the frame characters Squeekie,

the mouse; Midnight,

the cat; Grandy, the piano; Eroggy, the gremlin; and Mr. Shortfellow, the poet.

Eirst he would introduce the story to

be dramatized--usually a fairy tale that took place in a far away country, such as Persia or else an Indian folklore story.

Travel played an important role in the scripts.

After the story, the other frame characters performed; Squeekie played the drums and cymbals, Midnight played the piano, Eroggy had an accordian and they all played some song. Mr. Shortfellow read a poem or else there was a guest who would play around at making a speech and Eroggy, the gremlin, would mix him up by saying the wrong thing which would be repeated.

An example of this was the following:

10 Correspondence with the Erank Eerrin Company, Los Angeles, California on August 17, 1949.

32 Froggy: Jim: Froggy: Jim:

Makes you stupid. Yes, stooping over is what makes me stupid-Ho! Mol I Tm not stupid... You only look that way. Of course. I only look stupid--Mo’ Please’ Stop making me say the wrong t h i n g . . . H

The same format was used every week.

The show was

produced “by Frank Ferrin and directed by Hobart Donavan. show, of course, starred Ed McConnell.

The

The programs analyzed

were broadcast on July 16, 1949 and on September 19, 1949. J uni or M i s s ,3-^

Although Junior Miss was not primarily

a c h i l d r e n s program, it was included in this study because: (1)

It was about a fifteen year old girl and many girls in

upper elementary grades were interested in J u d y ’s adventures. (2)

The program was preceded by probably the best children’s

program on the air, L e t ’s Pretend, thus there was a carry­ over of a juvenile audience. The half hour episodes of Junior Miss were built around the family life and adventures of Judy Craves.

She

and her friend, Fluffy, had a knack for getting in and out of trouble.

They also had the knack of getting on the nerves of

Mr. and Mrs. Craves,

the sister Lois and the maid, Hilda.

Yet their adventures, if not normal, were of the kind that could have been projected in the imagination of all girls.

H

Script of ’’Smilin’ Ed McConnell” for July 16, 1949,

p. 25. 12

Publicity Release from the Columbia Broadcasting System, Los Angeles, California, September 13, 1949,

33 The program starred Barbara Whiting as Judy Graves. Fran^Tan Hartesveldt produced the program; Henry Garson directed and wrote the Junior Miss scripts; and the music was by Walter Schumann.

The Columbia Broadcasting System*

KHX in Los Angeles, presented this program every Saturday • morning from 8:30 to 9:00, Pacific Standard Time,

The shows

analyzed were broadcast on September 10, 1949 and on September 17, 1949, I t ’s Fun to be Y o u n g . ^

i t ’s Fun to be Young was a

children’s participation, show,

The format of- the show was

planned to include:

(1) A special feature using two or three

children chosen as guests.

For instance one program had one

girl and two boys on the first part of the program.

The boys

wrote a letter to the 11emcee father-in-law" asking his *

permission to marry the daughter (the girl guest)--the boy who wrote the best letter won the prize.

On another Saturday,

two boys who were good at dialects had to say something in the appropriate dialogue as the emcee read a short story, (2)

Two youngsters in the audience were choseh