On This Day, August 23: Harold Peary and Let's Pretend
Also featured: Wendy Barrie.
August 23 Exhaustive Update
This report documents the comprehensive provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, and story synopses for historical broadcasts transmitting on August 23 across American and British broadcasting history (1941–1970):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story-First Plot Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Trouble Off San Lorenca (Starring Lamont Johnson as Tarzan)" | Commodore Syndication 1952-08-23 (Transcribed) |
Local Commercials Commodore Advertisers |
Lamont Johnson (Tarzan), Gerald Mohr, Herb Butterfield | Walter White Jr. (Producer), Michael Rye (Announcer) | ["Adventure", "Jungle", "Action", "Pulp"] |
Tarzan travels to the African coastal port of San Lorenca to stop an illegal gun-running syndicate supplying heavy weapons to renegade bandits threatening native peaceful villages. |
| "Melilot (Cream of Wheat — Directed by Nila Mack)" | CBS (WCBS) 1947-08-23 11:05 AM EDT |
Cream of Wheat Corp. Cream of Wheat Cereal |
Nila Mack (Hostess), Sybil Trent, Jack Grimes, Arthur Anderson | Nila Mack (Writer/Director), Bob Johnston | ["Children's", "Fantasy", "Fairy Tales", "Family", "Adaptation"] |
Nila Mack and the Junior Pretenders present the classic fairytale of the humble, kind-hearted shepherd boy Melilot whose loyalty and bravery overcome a wizard's enchanted curse to win the princess's hand. |
| "The Fairytale of Melilot and the Enchanter (Cream of Wheat)" | CBS (WCBS) 1947-08-23 11:05 AM EDT |
Cream of Wheat Corp. Cream of Wheat |
Nila Mack (Hostess), Junior Pretenders | Nila Mack (Adapter), Maurice Brown (Organist) | ["Children's", "Fantasy", "Fairy Tales", "Family", "Adaptation"] |
The Pretenders troupe dramatizes the folk tale of the young shepherd boy Melilot, using musical enchantments to break the spell of a wicked mountain sorcerer and restore peace to the fairy kingdom. |
| "The Harold Peary Show: Audition Pilot Special (Honest Harold Hemp)" | CBS (KNX) 1950-08-23 8:30 PM EDT |
Sustaining CBS Comedy Showcase |
Harold Peary (Honest Harold), Jane Morgan, Parley Baer | Ray Singer & Dick Chevillat, Norman Macdonnell | ["Comedy", "Sitcom", "Small Town", "Domestic"] |
In this rare audition pilot recorded after departing The Great Gildersleeve, Harold Peary introduces his new comedic character Honest Harold Hemp, the bumbling and pompous host of a small-town homemaker radio broadcast in Melrose Hills. |
| "The Clitheroe Kid: The Best of Birthday Luck (Series 14, Episode 13 — BBC)" | BBC Radio 2 1970-08-23 1:30 PM |
Non-commercial BBC Variety & Comedy |
Jimmy Clitheroe, Peter Sinclair, Patricia Burke, Danny Ross | James Casey & Frank Roscoe, Tony Fayne | ["Comedy", "Sitcom", "British", "Family", "Vaudeville"] |
Cheeky Lancashire schoolboy Jimmy Clitheroe creates utter chaos for his long-suffering Grandad and Scottish mother while attempting to purchase an elaborate birthday present for his dim-witted brother-in-law Alfie. |
| "The Man and His Moose (Starring Wendy Barrie — Dari-Rich)" | CBS (KNX) 1941-08-23 12:30 PM EDST |
Bowey's Inc. Dari-Rich Chocolate Milk |
Wendy Barrie (Guest Star), Arthur Q. Bryan, Verna Felton | Paul Pierce (Producer), Harry Ackerman, Frank Goss | ["Drama", "Comedy", "Anthology", "Romance"] |
Screen star Wendy Barrie headlines a delightful screwball romantic comedy about an eccentric young country lodge owner whose prized mounted moose head becomes the center of a hilarious inheritance dispute with a wealthy city socialite. |