On This Day, August 22: Richard Widmark and CBS Is There
Also featured: Town Meeting Debates.
August 22 Exhaustive Update
This report documents the comprehensive provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, and story synopses for 6 historical broadcasts transmitting on August 22 across American network broadcasting history (1944–1980):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story-First Plot Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "The Ship (Hosted by Richard Widmark, Starring Jeff Corey)" | Mutual 1980-08-22 10:00 PM |
Non-commercial Mutual Radio Theater |
Richard Widmark (Host), Jeff Corey (Capt. van Doorn), David Opatoshu | Roy Winsor (Writer), Fletcher Markle (Director), Ray Erlenborn (SFX) | ["Adventure", "Drama", "Mystery", "Maritime"] |
Host Richard Widmark presents an eerie maritime adventure about an aging Dutch cargo captain who salvages an abandoned freighter adrift in the South Pacific, only to discover that the vessel's automated steering mechanisms are operating under the control of an unseen supernatural force. |
| "The Case of the Counterfeit War Savings Stamps" | Mutual (WOR) 1944-08-22 5:15 PM EWT |
Street & Smith Selected Juvenile Sponsors |
Leon Janney (Chick Carter), Jean McCoy (Sue), Gilbert Mack (Tex) | Fritz Blocki (Director), Ken Powell (Announcer) | ["Children", "Detective", "Adventure", "Serial"] |
Adopted son of master detective Nick Carter, youthful sleuth Chick Carter and companions Sue and Tex decipher an encrypted code hidden on counterfeit war savings stamps, raiding an abandoned printing shop before the saboteurs can destroy their lithograph plates. |
| "Lexington, Concord and Merriam's Corner: April 19, 1775" | CBS (WCBS) 1948-08-22 2:00 PM EDT |
Sustaining CBS Educational Series |
John Daly (Anchor), Ken Roberts, Don Hollenbeck, Richard C. Hottelet | Goodman Ace & Joseph Liss (Writers), Robert Lewis Shayon (Director) | ["Historical", "Educational", "Drama", "News Reenactment"] |
CBS news correspondents broadcast live on-the-scene reports from April 19, 1775, taking listeners to Lexington Green where the opening shots of the American Revolution are fired, following the Minutemen's stand at Concord Bridge and the British retreat through Merriam's Corner. |
| "The Affair of the Dancing Destroyer" | Mutual (WOR) 1949-08-22 8:00 PM EDT |
Sustaining Mutual Mystery Series |
Santos Ortega (Peter Salem), Jack Grimes (Marty), Luis van Rooten | Louis Vittes (Writer), Mende Brown (Director) | ["Detective", "Mystery", "Drama", "Crime"] |
Small-town criminologist Peter Salem travels from sleepy Scarsdale to a premier Manhattan ballet company to investigate the suspicious stage collapse and fatal poisoning of a prima ballerina, unmasking a jealous understudy and a corrupt theatrical manager. |
| "Should Federal Price Controls Be Retained? (Debate: Sen. Joseph Ball vs. Robert Nathan)" | Blue / ABC 1946-08-22 8:30 PM EDT |
Town Hall, Inc. Non-commercial Public Affairs |
George V. Denny Jr. (Moderator), Sen. Joseph H. Ball, Robert Nathan | Town Hall Radio Bureau, Gene Hamilton (Announcer) | ["Talk", "Debate", "Public Affairs", "Educational"] |
Moderator George V. Denny Jr. hosts an impassioned debate from Town Hall New York between conservative Senator Joseph H. Ball and progressive economist Robert Nathan on whether federal price controls and the Office of Price Administration should be permanently dismantled. |
| "What Does the Korean Conflict Mean to America?" | ABC 1950-08-22 9:00 PM EDT |
Town Hall, Inc. Public Affairs Presentation |
George V. Denny Jr. (Moderator), foreign policy debaters | William Traum (Director), Gene Hamilton (Announcer) | ["Talk", "Debate", "Public Affairs", "War"] |
Moderator George V. Denny Jr. moderates a national forum exploring the geopolitical consequences of the Korean conflict, featuring heated debate over whether U.S. intervention under United Nations auspices will prevent a wider third world war. |